China is becoming more and more aggressive, and is obviously going to use its full economic and military might to press its claim on the disputed islands in the West Philippine Sea. It’s hard to believe that the Chinese frigate that ran aground on the Hasa-Hasa shoal just 65 nautical miles west of the Palawan island town of… Read More »
The shooting rampage that killed 12 people and injured 58 others inside a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado last week has reignited a national debate over the United States’ gun control laws. The issue resurfaces after every mass shooting and consequently dies after just a few days, massacred each time by a powerful lobby from the ultra-conservatives and… Read More »
Lost in the jubilation over the conviction of Chief Justice Renato Corona and the national anger over the “greatest boxing heist” that led to the loss of boxing icon Manny Pacquiao to Tim Bradley was the recent revelation by retired Archbishop Oscar M. Cruz that jueteng, the scourge of many Filipino families, has actually flourished under the Aquino… Read More »
Two years since promising to lift the people from poverty and social abyss through the “daang matuwid,” it seems, as pointed out by a Manila bishop, the journey has reached a dead end. It seems the straight path has become a circuitous route that is only leading the country back to where it started two years ago. Aside… Read More »
The decision of the Philippine government to pledge $1 billion to the $456-billion standby fund being put up by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help distressed countries in Europe has raised questions from several sectors. Foremost of these questions is why lend $1 billion when the Philippines is drowning in debt? Another question that has been raised… Read More »
For all the time spent, evidence presented, testimonies made, and grandstanding done during the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona, there is one thing certain — the fate of the head of the third branch of government has been sealed long before the first witness appeared before the Senate court. The senators’ votes will hardly be based… Read More »
With two young senators admitting that they have parted ways with their respective spouses, fellow young and separated senator Pia Cayetano said last week it’s about time discussions on the proposed divorce bill be resumed. Cayetano, who has been separated from her husband for eight years now and going through the rigorous process of annulment, said: “I really… Read More »
While delegates to the Asian Development Bank annual meeting discussed ways to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor in the region last week, the Aquino administration tried to insulate the rich from the poor by putting up walls that hid the squatter shanties along the esteros near the site of the ADB. Probably thinking the… Read More »
There’s definitely more than meets the eye in the sudden interest of the Aquino administration in forging a peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front at the height of the escalating dispute between the Philippines and China over the Scarborough Shoals in the West Philippine Sea. Manila Standard’s Jojo Robles was on the right track in raising… Read More »
The declaration of support by US President Barack Obama for gay marriage last week has revived the long-drawn controversy over unions between two persons belonging to the same sex. For almost two years now, the gay marriage debate has been eerily quiet while both sides awaited the decision of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth District… Read More »