There Is Definitely Hope For ‘Pinas

    Some may say that hope is for dreamers but I’ll never be ashamed to admit being one. Aside from the ones dreamt at daytime and even the wet variety, I still dream of a happy Philippine nation. It need not be of utopian proportions, but adequate  food, education, security, basic necessities and happiness would do.

    I just finished reading Conrado De Quiros’ article entitled "Past, Present and Future" and I can’t help comparing him to Gandalf (I might run the risk of being branded as a fan, but who cares?). Like him, I have never lost hope in the Philippines, in spite of its people’s depravity. I would sooner emasculate myself than lose hope in this country, so that’s saying a lot.

     In his column, he proposed three simple things to solve the majority of problems in our country, not least our sense of self. First, he said we should look into our past and study History. Besides dates and names and the good old cliché "studying History will help avoid committing the same mistakes" (it’s true though), studying our past gives us an identity and pride, notwithstanding the traitors and harlots who ran the country down. The current regime even brazenly discouraged commemoration of the revolution that propelled it into position.

     The second is to alleviate hunger. This is achieved by self-sufficiency and not importing our staples. Great economic nations give high priority to their Agricultural Sector through subsidy. Never mind that it costs more. At least the consumers pay lower for food. That’s aside from the Geopolitical pressures that entail importing necessities. 

    Last is Education. We can never give enough emphasis on the importance of Education. Education is something beyond grades, or transcripts. Beyond Summa and Magna Cum Laude. It’s something beyond knowing Articles and Provisions by heart and memorizing equations and bodily functions. Education is Character and Values. It’s appreciating life and strengthening talents. Education is doing what’s right and what you’re supposed to amidst adversity and temptation.

      I know there are those who doubt, especially after the passionate wordings about Education. Everyone has every right and reason to be skeptical about turning this shabby excuse of a nation we call the Philippines, what with all the crimes, decadence and avarice this country has been witness to. But why not put faith in the Filipino people. Pessimism comes from seeing the horrible state of the country. Taking in all the crap is so dismaying, no one wouldn’t be negative. But why not look at what’s beyond the dismal state? What we can do for the better? What the frayed shoe would look like after a hundred strokes of brush after applying biton? Think positive for a change. Good thoughts attract goodness, so they say.

Extra Rice, Anyone?

     The public need not determine whether the rice shortage in the country is caused by either the lack of supply due to low yields or the inhumane hoarding by the corrupt few (or many for that matter). The bottomline here is that people are hungry, starving, famished or what have you to accurately characterize the state of the Philippine majority. I had a debate with my uncle and I explained the effects of Agrarian Reform, i.e., the inefficiency of rice production due to decentralization of arable lands, the lack of capital which is essential to planting rice crops, and of course, corruption among other related problems. My uncle then aptly countered that there is no shortage. On the contrary, there is  a surplus of rice in the Philippines—-the problem is the lack of supply due to hoarding of rice by both Chinese and Filipino businessmen. I realized that it really doesn’t matter. What matters is that we should do something. What options do we Filipinos have anyway?

    Rice, scientific name oryza sativa, is the staple food in our country. In western countries, carbohydrate-rich food like potatos, wheat and corn are considered side-dishes to meat and main dishes. But encouraging Filipinos to eat less rice will be hard as rice is deeply ingrained in Filipino culture, way before the Spanish colonization. I think it’s high time we Filipinos acted, though. Dire circumstances call for desperate measures. We should look at other alternatives to rice.

     We can eat more viands or "ulam," but if meat-based ulam is hard to afford (Viand originally being an allusion to meat and etymologically comes from the Latin word vivo which means life), then we can shift to vegetables, veggies being nutritious aside from cheap. East Asian countries like Japan have healthy lifestyles because they eat less by preparing a wide variety of dishes in meals.

       We can also plant wheat, as the crop can grow in the Philippines. Planting wheat can also alleviate early morning hunger as pandesal prices are anticipated to rise because of rising wheat prices in the world market. Corn is also a possible alternative. In Cebu, other Visayan provinces and parts of Mindanao, corn is processed into something like what Americans call "cornmeal" or "grits." Looks like mashed potatoes, ergo: looks tasty (for me).

    Forget about people ranting about what a shame it is that the Philippines, being an Agricultural country and the home of the International Rice Research Institute, has rice problems. No use in crying over spilled milk. We can prove other countries that we can’t be more stupid than we are right now, not least avoid Geopolitical pressure from others. 

Moral Ascendancy

    It’s really weird for priests both officials and rank and file "following" the footsteps of Jesus Christ to have a wide spectrum of stands in Philippine political issues. Okay, so everyone has the right to his/her own opinion. but preaching is a very potent source of influence. People look up to preachers and can influence a lot of people deeply whether outrightly or subliminally. So what is the official stand of CBCP about the NBN-ZTE deal? Who knows. But I know of one priest whose homily I have heard at least a couple of times.

    This particular priest (some say he’s an authority in political matters because he’s a socio-political-whatever graduate. Sorry, I forgot) delivers his homily along the lines of NBN-ZTE deal and the "media hype" the issue is allegedly getting. He then rants about how the truth will not set a person free because according to him, the truth often hurts, hence it causes suffering and desperation. I mean, where’s the logic in that? Yeah, the truth hurts but you know you’re not living a lie or a Utopian life. Should we shun the truth away and pretend that the Philippines has food security even if our Digestive systems say otherwise?

    He also criticizes ABS-CBN for being partial about the news, especially the "sensationalization" of rice shortage. He thinks channel 2 is merely saying what’s on the Lopezes minds. It might be true, but isn’t that why we have a choice between GMA and ABS? Okay, assuming a lot of people are gullible and are either hardcore Kapuso or Kapamilya. So what? Social problems are still felt tangibly.

    I can’t do anything else but pray for him. Just so God can straighten him up and then be able to teach the parishioners the essence of Christianity. That beyond doctrines and dogma, there is a more simple yet better aspect to religion, and that is doing good. God Bless the Philippines.