MANILA Actually, the conquest was mutual. Pope Francis charmed and conquered the Filipinos, while they overwhelmed him with their devoutness. He conquered our emotions as we conquered his admiration. The Pope, in the Philippines Jan. 15-19, will never again see anywhere in the world such multitude displaying their religious enthusiasm and fervor. The Pope’s visit was a much-needed opiate… Read More »
MANILA Actually, the conquest was mutual. Pope Francis charmed and conquered the Filipinos, while they overwhelmed him with their devoutness. He conquered our emotions as we conquered his admiration. The Pope, in the Philippines Jan. 15-19, will never again see anywhere in the world such multitude displaying their religious enthusiasm and fervor. The Pope’s visit was a much-needed opiate… Read More »
MANILA As we all know and are so proud of, we Filipinos are gung-ho about Christmas. Nothing on the calendar beats Christmas. We’re simply mad about Christmas. We go all out. We celebrate as if the day after Christmas, which isn’t December 26, it’s January 7 or thereabouts, is Doomsday. Like there’s no tomorrow, like it’s the end… Read More »
MANILA There is no holiday bigger than Christmas for us Filipinos. We’re simply crazy about it. The longest Christmas (I believe Mexico makes the same claim). The happiest holiday. The best time of the year. All true. As we all know, Christmas carols start wafting in the air the moment the “ber” months come rolling in.… Read More »
Frankly, it’s surprising how ineffective the camp of Vice President Jojo Binay has been in handling the corruption crisis that’s smothering him. It’s so evident that the bombshell exploded by former Makati Vice Mayor Ernesto Mercado took the Binay camp by surprise. Mercado was already all over the place before Binay’s fire brigade came to the scene. If… Read More »
Once again an American soldier is in the eye of a stormy controversy for allegedly killing a Filipino in Olongapo City. We Filipinos are rightfully outraged. The killer must pay for the crime. The main speculation is that Jennifer Laude, a transgender, was murdered when her killer found out her real gender and, apparently feeling duped, killed her… Read More »
MANILA Imelda Marcos says her husband Ferdinand’s martial-law regime was the best thing to happen to the Philippines. Because we Filipinos have short memories and a careless attitude toward history, we run the risk of making Imelda’s deluded statement the accepted truth by default. (This year is the 42nd anniversary of the imposition of martial law in the… Read More »
MANILA Crimes involving cops themselves have been rampant here lately. President Benigno Aquino III must order Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and National Police Chief Alan Purisima to crack down on erring policemen. High-profile crimes involving police reveal a loose sense of duty and a faulty understanding of their responsibilities. It makes one wonder about their training, how rigid it… Read More »
MANILA Opinion surveys here show that Vice President Jojo Binay is polling around 40 percent of people asked about their preference for president in 2016. That could be enough to get him to the presidential palace. In a muticandidate presidential election, 40 percent could be Binay’s winning ticket. President Benigno Aquino III won 42 percent of the vote… Read More »
MANILA There’s deadly conflict in many parts of the world. People are killing each other with extreme prejudice. It seems wherever one looks on the global map, there’s fighting of varying intensity. There’s a lot of hatred, a lot of distrust, and a lot of anger. Most frighteningly, there’s a lot of bloodshed. The current hot… Read More »