Comments - Latest Popular Stories, Instablogs Community by Gracieb

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Gosh, it is a mountain of effort to post articles at Instablogs these days! It is like passing through the eye of a needle just to be able to get your article through! When will the technical system make it easier for us?

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks Sameer and Sanwali for helping me out! You guys are great!

Sanwali

Sanwali — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Well Grace, this is what we are here for.

You are welcome, anytime.

Cheers! :)

Patrick

Patrick — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Mrs. Arroyo’s growth saga, the lives of the Filipinos have not improved an inch either. About 52 percent of families say they are poor, a ratio of poverty twice the official poverty incidence of 27 percent. Hunger, the worst form of poverty, afflicts a record high of 19 percent of families or 16 million Filipinos. and now there comes the economic woes and the food prices to add salt to the injury. But still the gov.t is mum, reluctant or perhaps incapable to deal with the crises, but in either case Filipinos are the soul losers.

Arnold

Arnold — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Patrick

yea I agree that there are severe crises here in Philippines. rising food crises has caused panic throughout the world and my dear friend Rome was not made in just one day. And if all of you will keep rattling criticisms to bringing down the present the government by any means possible , it’s like shooting yourself on the feet. Arroyo government isn’t perfect it has it’s own flaws,but a lot better than the previous administrations who are riddled with all the same corruptions with the economy turning upside down.

Johnny

Johnny — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

everything is going well here and i don’t find anything wrong as such. rather I’ll say that it’s not in the government but the ppl who create problem for the govt. and for themselves as well. A lot of Pinoys complain. It’s like their hobby or something. A lot of poor Pinoys complain about every thing. They blame the government, regardless of what they have and don’t have, what they have done and what happened to them.

There are investments yes and there are significant growth in jobs available, both here and overseas for us Pinoys. We, the workforce and taxpayers are the major players is this significant growth in the economy. The government officials are put there in that position because their job is to serve the public. Ironically, we the public are the one’s serving them... and for the global problem like food crisis or the environmental problems, we alone can’t do anything!!!

James

James — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

well this is again the cock and bull story. This sounds like the same old tired story of corruption. I find it hard to believe that no matter who it is in power the other side is always saying plunder, corruption. If every President, every wealthy person, every politician is so corrupt then we need to all give up now. Often the one’s who feel so taken advantage of are those who are trying to take advantage of others. They stop at nothing to undermine, overthrow, looking, searching for anything that could be construed as out of place, illegal, unethical, and all the time hiding under the guise of defending justice.

Grace, a society that is always complaining that someone is corrupt never gets anywhere. I find it hard to believe that every one is so corrupt. If this is true then it says a lot about the country in general which I do not want to believe. I am just saying people should work as hard on the real things that need improving than spending so much effort and wasted energy. Is this the real message that the Philippines want the world to hear over and over again as been the case?

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I agree with you, Patrick. Reality stares us in the face the moment we leave our gated or ungated homes. And there’s no way you can sugarcoat that with glossy and expensive television ads. The medium isn’t the message here, this time. What you see and what you feel are enough to drive, home the message - CLEARLY - stats or no stats.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Yes, James. No matter how ugly this might all seem to the outside world, some (if not most) will continue ranting and raving about corruption in their country. For the disadvantaged, this might just be the only level playing field there is. It is not complaining nor hanging out the dirty laundry. It is having a voice. And above all and most importantly, it about NOT SITTING ON THE FENCE.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

And, on the contrary, James, it is the society that complains about corruption that does get somewhere.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Dear Arnold,

Please view or read balanced news, investigative journalism, and the like. Your opinion might change after doing so. I see that you’re a fellow Filipino, so I wouldn’t want you to ”shoot yourself on the feet” yourself, to use your words.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

@ Johnny

I am aghast at your comment that everything is going well here and you don’t find anything wrong and that it is not in the gov’t but the people who create problems for the government.

I am simply dumbfounded. I cannot find anything to say as a response to what you said.

Marco

Marco — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

of course theres also this filipino attitude and expression “bahala na”. for that reason its really frivolous if not futile to expect too much improvement in the standard of living as measured in western economic terms for majority of Filipinos specially the uneducated and currently living in poverty.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

It’s funny how this article got another title. The title I gave this article is ”Drowsy.” Now, it is posted with the title ”Reawakening of the Filipino Soul.” I’m at a loss how it happened.

For the sake of making it clearer. This article is in no way about the ’reawakening of the Filipino soul.’ It is about Philippine economic planners making dreamy multi-year economic targets, and now trimming down these targets because the reality that confronts the country is the farthest from what they have on paper.

Hence, their targets were rather dreamy and done in half-slumber.

Hence, my title of ”Drowsy.”

G

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The society that never complains about corruption ends up as a totalitarian, autocratic nightmare... in Zimbabwe you will likely get beaten/tortured to death for publicly questioning the corruption; in China you will just as likely be sent to ”re-education” camps. Where the difference and distance between the popular media representation is so glaring, would people do better to just roll over and hide from the facts ? Of course not. That sounds like large swathes of American or generically Western society - where one is so enmeshed with one’s own pitiful commercial greed that the dire truth of the actual, concrete situation and social iniquity (in one’s own country or the world at large) becomes about as significant or real as a fictional television program’s shallow plot...

I think that it is very easy to make armchair judgements about corruption in the Philippines from distant vantage points but the fact is - Grace is well aware of the issues in her own country - she is an amazing woman doing amazing things to try and raise the experience of so many disempowered and uneducated from their disadvantaged and peripheral roles in that society...

Methinks someone should actually think before they speak... or write...

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks Sameer of the Instablogs Tech Team! Thanks for putting back the original title of ”Drowsy.” It’s really what the article is about.

Samir

Samir — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

No probz Grace... as Sanwali said that is what we are here for.

cheers :)

Thilan

Thilan — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Hey it is same with every developing country. The policy makers keep on enjoying all the luxuries on the name of poor and wretched. All the ideologies have used poor but poor have got nothing but false promises.

So no need to be so shocked.

Jaiyant Cavale

Jaiyant Cavale — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Grace your articles are very insightful and give a picture of what exactly is happening in your country. Unfortunately the situation in your country is the same as our country. India, African countries, Latin American countries, suffer from the same political/social situations.

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Hi Jaiyant,

I’m glad to see that you can post comments now. The Tech team was able to solve your problem, too. I still can’t post articles, though, without the quick and able help of the tech team.

Thank you for your comment. Yes, the horrid situation cuts across all developing countries, I guess. Although, I believe it exists everywhere. It’s just that we feel the brunt of it even more.

Jaiyant Cavale

Jaiyant Cavale — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Grace,

I have heard a lot about the knife wielding young children attacking people and robbing in Manila’s slums. I have also heard about the huge income disparity. The story sounds so similar to what happens in Bombay..

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Jaiyant,

I will not shirk from admitting that violence, even juvenile violence, exists in the urban poor areas of this country, but yes, that and the great division between the rich and the poor do exist in many other places in the world. I’m glad you that you note parallel realities.

Jaiyant Cavale

Jaiyant Cavale — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

And the sad part is it happens only where poverty exists. I mean look at all those favelas in Rio... They reek of crime and blood. Literally. And its one of the most glamorous cities in the world as well. In any country, high rate of crime and other social problems like you have mentioned occur in megacities. In India, cities like Indore, Lucknow have a lesser rate of such violence. And people are usually well off too... Is it the same there? I think people must be encouraged to settle in self sufficient smaller communities...

Grace Calderon

Grace Calderon — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Jaiyant

It is because in poorer countries, people from the provinces flock to the bigger cities. It is the lure of bright lights, big city. It becomes the promised land and greener pastures. Unfortunately, that is not what they find when they get there. The cities have become congested. Unemployment rises. Hence, poverty becomes the norm. And where there is poverty, high crime rate is sure to follow.

Jaiyant Cavale

Jaiyant Cavale — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I must write an article on the Anti North Indian/Anti South Indian movements incited by uncouth Maharashtrian (Western Indian State, Maharashtra) politicians.. It is about the locals venting out their frustrations against outsiders coming in hordes to Bombay (Largest city in India) seeking jobs.

And hey I won’t spam your article with my comments.. I’ll save them for your next article Lol