The Standpoint

There has been a number of story runs on the media the past couple of days regarding the search keywords ‘migrate’ and ‘migrating’ trending HARD soon after the election.   Seeing that it involved data analytics and number crunching, which is a passion of mine and is a good part of my day job for the past 17 years, it immediately struck a chord.   I first saw it on Rappler. I read through the article and, as soon as I was done, searched online to see what other agencies ran the story and how they presented it. Using google search tools, I saw the first run of the story is by Davinci Maru of ABS-CBN at 11:47pm on May 13, 2019, entitled “Dismayed at initial poll results, Filipinos search for ‘migrate’ online.   Then the Philippine Star soon followed, with a more detailed account of the interview.   To give credit where credit is due, of all the story runs, only the Philippine Star article actually provided more useable content, rather than the usual strategy emp...

He was driving home one evening, on a two-lane country road. Work, in this small mid-western community, was almost as slow as his beat-up Pontiac. But he never quit looking. Ever since the Levis factory closed, he'd been unemployed, and with winter raging on, the chill had finally hit home. It was a lonely road. Not very many people had a reason to be on it, unless they were leaving. Most of his friends had already left. They had families to feed and dreams to fulfill. But he stayed on. After all, this was where he buried his mother and father. He was born here and knew the country. He could go down this road blind, and tell you what was on either side, and with his headlights not working, that came in handy. It was starting to get dark and light snow flurries were coming down. He'd better get a move on. You know, he almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front...

The word "desiderata" is the plural form of the word "desideratum", a Latin word which literally means "something desired". I came accross this beautiful work as a teenager and it has greatly influenced and shaped how I see the world.   *** DESIDERATA by Max Ehrmann, 1927 Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender  be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly;  and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant;  they too have their story.  Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.  Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession...

Surrender is a negative word.  It does not exist in any fighter’s book.  It is an order, usually almost always the last one, every general wishes to not ever give.  In surrender we relinquish all our power, accept we no longer are in control, and we resign to our fate.  To surrender is to give up, to concede, to lose.  We live in a world where giving up, losing control or simply just losing are frowned upon. To surrender is to show weakness. So we “man” up.  We set out to conquer life. We struggle. We survive. Battle-hardened, we march on.  No retreat, no surrender.

Woke up today to the news that the Philippines is finally pulling out of the ICC. The mainstream media, as expected, started looking into the legitimacy of the act while taking the opportunity to once again throw the EJK trash in the equation, still hoping that the shit would stick somewhere, somehow.  It's already been 19 months that they have been trying the same approach, with some help from their friends - the political minority, the human rights groups, the UN HR, and lately, the ICC.