A Business Graduate's Random Blog on History and Gossip

As today is Rizal Day, I was thinking about how it's easy to mock him for what he did. Some say he should've just left the country and never returned. Some people tell me, "If you want to become a hero, why not get shot?" I always said, "Well, if Rizal didn't get shot then our predecessors will not get their freedom!" The Filipinas Heritage Library shares this information about Rizal: While awaiting trial in 1896, Rizal wrote a manifesto that expressed his disapproval of the armed revolution against Spain . He cleared his name, which he said was being used by some revolutionaries to espouse certain ideals. He said that he has always opposed, fought, and made clear that armed revolution was impossible, absurd, and disastrous. He explained that reforms must “also come from above,” because reforms that “come from below are upheavals both violent and transitory.” He emphasized, however, that like any Filipino, he desired our country’s freedom; and that educ

Today is Rizal Day and I feel like revisiting a high school lecture. It was all about Noli Me Tangere meaning Touch Me Not . It would be interesting that, while in college, I did notice the parallelism between two books-- Noli Me Tangere and Notre Dame De Paris (Our Lady of Paris)  which is more popularly known as The Hunchback of Notre Dame . My first exposure to the story was the Disney version (in 1996) and later some adaptive versions. The Disney version changed Frollo from a priest to a judge, in contrast to the original novel. Later, we had Noli Me Tangere where   Padre Salvi lusts after Maria Clara, who unknown to him was really Padre Damaso's biological daughter. Both Frollo and Salvi are bound to celibacy by their professions.  The term Kastila in Filipino may come from Castile or Castillian. Castile is a place in Central Spain. I bet a lot of Filipinos of Spanish descent may be of Castillan descent. Above is the song "Hellfire" by Disney in Castillian Spanish. I

I may be no lawyer or constitutionalist but it's time to use common sense . I'm afraid common sense is hardly taught or even encouraged in schools. Right now, I want to do this provocative entry to ask, "Fact or gossip: Is the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines the best in the world?" Yes, you read that right. Hilario G. Davide Jr. said that last 2018 and I'm still laughing at it. I've decided to write this common-sense post to actually contest the idea that, "The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines is the best in the world."  I'm laughing at some things Davide Jr. had said such as, "It' is the only institution in the world where the public office is a public trust." However, this man is terribly wrong because, around the world, we see the doctrine where public office is a public trust. Thomas Jefferson also said that public office is public trust -- way before Davide Jr. was born into the world! I really laughed at their claim o

I think one of the most interesting must-reads is Amy Chua-Rubenfeld's book Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mother . I bought that book during my MBA days and gave it a read. I remembered seeing the movie The Joy Luck Club  which analyzed four different stories by Amy Tan. The Joy Luck Club explored the plight of Chinese women back then such as how they were often forced to share a husband, how gender inequality was an issue and the mistakes made by Chinese parents. There was the part where the two mothers frequently competed on who was better. "My daughter is a first-class pianist!" "My daughter is a chess prodigy!" Amy Chua, having been born during the Generation X generation, did show her mistakes as a boomer when she wrote Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mother with her Jewish-American husband, Atty. Jed Rubenfeld.  Amy Chua was born to Chinese-Filipino parents. I guess the whole Chua surname already speaks volumes. She had already violated the older Chinese rule of never int

The song "Dayang Dayang" was given a parody cover called "Dayang Daya". Oftentimes, the song "Dayang Dayang" is thought to be Indian. Instead, it's arguably said to be from Muslim Mindanao or was brought in either from Malaysia or Indonesia. Historically, some of the settlers in the Philippines were Malaysians and Indonesians. So, it's probably safe to say that most Filipinos of brown skin descent are mixed Malay and Indonesian. I was even reminded how I mistook a Malaysian woman for a Filipino woman. Back on topic, the parody song has an introduction that says, "Kami Bumbay galing sa India..." (We're Bombay coming from India). I even tend to refer to Indians as Bombay--something I ended up tactlessly saying during my first trip to Singapore. Many times, Filipinos tend to use Bumbay not as a racial slur but to simply refer to an Indian. Some Filipino-Indians don't even mind being called Bumbay for a reason. I guess they got accust

People can be so delusional into thinking nothing wrong can happen on Christmas. Two years ago, some parts of Visayas were hit by Typhoon Ursula (Phanfone). Last year, there was no Christmas celebration because of the devastation brought by Odette. Yet, I guess not so many have thought that Christmas never made COVID-19 suddenly disappear. Christmas didn't stop the Second World War either. I decided to do a history review lesson. This time, it's about how cheerless Christmas hit the Philippines during the reign of Manuel Luis Quezon. It was during the time of Commonwealth America. We had the Allies and the AXIS forces. Sadly, the AXIS forces, under Japan, took over the Philippines. It was at that time when the Japanese emperor was still believed to be divine. Later on, Emperor Hirohito himself renounced his so-called divinity. Today, the Japanese monarchy is as symbolic as the British monarchy. It's December and Christmas celebrations were prepared. Unfortunately, the Empir

I think one of the biggest problems of Filipino-Chinese schools and their Chinese education is the method. I remembered how we were taught zhuyin and pinyin wasn't really taught. We had to memorize long sentences. More often, Chinese language teachers tend to act like we were in China than the Philippines. It wasn't until later that I developed an interest in learning Mandarin. I developed a sudden taste for Chinese media. It was there I learned about the existence of another dialect known as Cantonese. Pinyin was barely taught. Instead, we were taught zhuyin which was still widely used in Taiwan. Zhuyin was the standard Chinese alphabet. Then there was pinyin which is the proper Romanization.  We need to take a look at the history of pinyin with the late Zhou Yougang. He was born on January 13, 1906, and died on January 14, 2017 . As I was using the Tao Li, I got curious and Googled the inventor of Pinyin. I'd dare say that the inventor himself is a plain genius. I do have

Today marks the anniversary of the formation of Odette. I remembered having a cheerless Christmas. I was in no mood to say Merry Christmas until January came. I couldn't get over celebrating Christmas and New Year in January . Those dates were on December 25 and the final day of the 12th lunar month. I wanted to put up some Christmas decorations but the house was still under repair . Living rooms and some bedrooms were still under repair. The good thing though was that electricity was restored. I did enjoy doing some clean-up work. The disaster was unenjoyable. The repairing soon became enjoyable. It was because every repair meant something to do after the disaster . Project Lupad My hometown of Cebu was devastated. Much of Visayas was ruined. I could remember how both former president Rodrigo R. Duterte and former vice president, Atty./Mrs. Maria Leonor Gerona-Robredo did separate scouting. I was thankful for whatever help both did for the less fortunate. This reminded me of the d

  Granted, I'm not a fact checker and I'm just here to blog on facts over gossip. I've noticed that dealing with idiots on Facebook can be tiresome. I'll confess I've lost my cool many times when it comes to insults. What I foolishly never realized is that if people start to be disrespectful and throw insults--it could be a clear indicator of being a disgraceful loser. That kind of behavior is very common in the Trust Me Bro crowd. When asked for a source, they're most likely to say, "Just trust me, bro." If they feel they're losing the argument--they start getting disrespectful and start making insults. They can go from name calling or any form of Ad Hominem or personal attack . I remembered how often I lost my cool. I could remember whining, crying, or acting like a child. However, if there's one thing worth thinking about, shouldn't I be laughing instead that my opponent is insulting me? It's because if my opponent starts insulting

It's indeed the gossip that went on for a long that the regime of the late Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. was a legitimate parliamentary government. I remembered arguing with someone on Facebook who's apparently a political science graduate on that issue. Another one was a 60-year-old former OFW dancer (and his name keeps changing ). It was all about when I asked for empirical evidence to defend their claims. I decided to write this post hoping to at least shut the mouths of those two boomers who still gossip about it. It's more than time for the truth to come out, especially if their source is most likely summarized in three words, "Trust Me Bro!"  Examining the way the Marcos parliament was run I could go ahead and keep pointing out that it wasn't. I was referred over to the House of Representatives  website which talks about the formation of the Batasang Pambansa which is translated as the National Legislative in English.  When martial law was declared, the Consti

I guess gossip hardly dies, right? The British Royalty did install Princes Charles as King Charles III. I have watched a few episodes of the British royalty which is but symbolic now. A rumor that came out decades ago was the alleged paternity of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. I guess no matter how much one shouts it--some people will either never get it or refuse to get it . This is a rumor that Prince Harry's real father is allegedly a certain James Hewitt, a former British army officer. Yes, the late Princess Diana of Wales did confess she had an affair with Hewitt. However, the timeline doesn't add up to the bizarre (and obviously false claim) of Prince Harry's alleged paternity! From The Daily Beast , Hewitt blamed the media saying these words, "It sells papers. It’s worse for him, probably, poor chap." I really can't help but agree with Hewitt on that statement that it's all about selling papers. Gossip is very juicy. Sitting down to discuss facts in

As Christmas approaches, another case worth revisiting for history vs. gossip is the Vizconde Massacre. I watched Crime Investigation Asia uploaded on YouTube. I wrote about the documentary Give Up Tomorrow -- a documentary that explores the irregularities while pursuing justice for the late Chiong sisters, Jacqueline Jimenea Chiong and Marijoy Jimenea Chiong. I feel compelled to write about the Vizconde Massacre. For more than 10 years, I used to believe that Hubert Jeffry Pagaspas Webb, son of Freddie Webb, was guilty. It turns out that according to Crime Investigation Asia --it was really a trial by gossip . In my case, I want to call it a trial of Trust Me Bro.  I still read comments about how footage of Hubert in the States could've been "easily tampered". Yet, those who comment haven't presented the evidence. I guess if I asked for their evidence, they'll just say, "Trust me bro!" Granted, photo editing was still in its infancy back then so how cou

Head Topics This is pretty much another part of history, not gossip. It turns out that the White Gold Ruins have collapsed . Before that, there was already some demolition going on. It really has become a painful site. For the 1980s to 1990s children, the whole place may have had a lot of nostalgia associated with it.  I could remember how often I was excited to go there. I could remember the children's department (which I think was the third or fourth floor). It was the simpler days back then. There were also arcade games that were meant to make people spend more money. There was my memory of mascots of various fictional characters like Darth Vader from Star Wars (which scared me), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Santa Claus (and I used to think he was real). I also remembered some of the rides there like the mini-train ride. That was what I associate with the White Gold Ruins the most.  There was also another urban legend or gossip. Robinson's had the snake-man legend. Som

This is one topic I felt like I wanted to write down here. It's all about the boomer generation with people resistant to change. Boomers are typically born from 1946 to 1964. Having been a millennial (born 1991-1996) meant there were changes that would happen. Some things that are common today were luxuries yesterday. It was during the 1990s to early 2000s. I could remember being stuck with some obsolete technology back in the 2000s. It was a real challenge (actually) since I had to deal with a lot of boomers. A lot of boomers held the seats of authority. They can be parents, uncles, aunties, caretakers, and teachers just to name a few. I remembered wanting to have a personal computer. It was rather a convenient tool actually. I simply wanted to have that PC because it made encoding easier. What would the typical boomers say? Well, they say, "Back in our day, we had a typewriter so stop complaining and use the typewriter just like we did!" Then they get mad when the typew