Very Easy to Say, "I'm Sure!' and Be Wrong, Am I Right?

I guess that foolish old man did the right thing to block me on social media. The old man remained incorrigible while having his toga display, apparently getting a doctorate. An earlier post I wrote was about the misuse and abuse of CTTO. I even wonder who in the world is Merkado CTTO? It's very easy to use CTTO to look smart. However, real studies need more than CTTO but several sources. It should be several valid sources and not just sources you agree with. I was laughing at this old man in a toga (who has thankfully blocked me after I tried to refute his errors as a nobody) who tends to use CTTO. I think he was also fond of saying, "I'm sure!" and then it ends up with several stupid claims.

Such people would be in what might be best called the MARITES Pyramid of Learning (read here). These people's best sources can be summarized as "Trust me bro" or "Just trust me". In the case of the meme I made, the peak of the pyramid is, "Just trust me or (insert insult)." Those who use insults hoping to win the argument aren't worth getting angry over. The big truth is that, according to the Positive Writer, using insults to win an argument is just plain stupid. Sure, I can get irritated. There's the chance I'll blow up. However, just because I got irritated or lost my cool doesn't change the facts. Though I'm told to keep cool because such people are plain incompetent.

It would be very easy to say one is sure of their claims. However, when challenged, it's very easy to go to the MARITES Pyramid of Learning. It's because insults make one feel good and feel like they've won. It could go as "I'm sure you're really stupid!" The person saying it might not even be aware of how many stupid claims he or she has made while saying, "I'm sure of it!" I can't really imagine how much error was made while the person kept saying, "I'm sure of it!" Or "I'm sure of it! If you don't believe me then you must be very stupid!" What a brilliant argument, right?"

There are many instances of how "I'm sure!" is blended with the MARITES Pyramid of Learning. I could name some examples which can be very cringeworthy:

Criminal investigations have been messed up because of this. First, we have the Vizconde Massacre (read here) and then we have the Chiong Sisters case (read my review on Give Up Tomorrow. Both cases were handled by judges who mishandled evidence by dismissing them. For example, retired judge Atty. Amelita G. Tolentino should've had the pieces of evidence examined before dismissing them. Didn't she say that the quality of evidence is more important than the amount of evidence?
Gossip that the Chiong Sisters are still alive is another. It doesn't matter how much evidence is presented that Debbie Jane Chiong-Sia isn't Jacqueline and that Amelie R. Arquilliano-Chiong isn't Marijoy. Some people still continue to insist that they are. I guess not even taking them to the schools where the two studied will convince them. Maybe, they'll say the school fabricated the records--a serious case of slander that might land them in jail if they insist on it! I can imagine STC could file a case against such people as it can damage the school's reputation.
Some boomers still continue to insist that the Marcos Years were under a parliamentary form of government (read here). The evidence can be seen that there was a parliamentary without a parliament. The modifications still made the late Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. a "president with powers". There's no president with powers in a real parliamentary system. Some even say it will make the Philippines worse even after being shown how parliamentary countries fare better. When confronted with evidence, they will still say, "I'm sure Marcos years were parliamentary!" with a series of poorly handed evidence.
When people who go against FDI start to cite examples how it supposedly destroyed other countries. When asked for evidence, chances besides sources like IBON Foundation, they would start to use CTTO. If CTTO doesn't work, they start hurling insults such as, "Just admit it you're going to sell us to China, you moron!"
The same also goes for the late Flor Contemplacion (read here). Some people still salute the film The Flor Contemplacion Story as a masterpiece. They would say something like, "I'm sure Flor was innocent!" even after evidence was presented by forensics. The late Fidel V. Ramos later renewed ties with Singapore after he supposedly wanted to cut ties with it. I even heard Rodrigo R. Duterte later repent of his reckless act of burning the Singaporean flag in protest.

I'd like to conclude that it's very easy to say I'm sure. But one can be sure but be dead wrong. That's why I'd like to say, "Are you sure? Give me a valid source!" Because for all we know, the best source is from Trust Me Bro Factcheckers.

[OPINION] Why Do Some Filipino Boomers (Some Are EVEN Fact-Checkers) Insist that the Marcos Years Were Under a "Parliamentary System"

This is a screenshot I got on Facebook. The Tweet is courtesy of Raissa Espinosa-Robles, who I hear is a marites or a gossiper. I'm not denying that there are some truths in what she said. It's true that the Marcos Years have their well-documented human rights abuses. However, Mrs. Robles still continues to insist in the myth of a parliamentary system under Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr.'s regime. It's not just Mrs. Robles but also some Filipino boomers who keep saying, "Are you crazy? We had a parliamentary system under Marcos." I could show them some evidence like Marcos' severe lack of legitimacy to disprove the parliamentary systme. I even wrote about the snap elections because Marcos was a president with powers (read here ). Under a parliamentary system, the president is purely ceremonial. The president is just a door opener and credentials receiver! Benigno Simeon A. Aquino Jr. and Salvador "Doy" Laurel both challenged the legitimacy of Marcos...

The 1986 Snap Elections Would Also Disprove the Myth of the "Marcos Parliament"

Anti-charter change proponents love to use Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. among their reasons, to defend their stand. The argument is that "charter change must be evil" because Marcos used it--a fallacy of Guilt by Association . Please, even Atty. Maria Leonor Gerona-Robredo's supporter Andrew James Masigan supports charter change! Now, we must look at Marcos and remember another significant event. It's the 1986 snap elections and why it's also proof that we never had a parliamentary form of government. February 7, 1986, was when Marcos declared snap elections. Two years before the snap election, Marcos even declared that the Philippines was never a parliamentary government under him : The adoption of certain aspects of a parliamentary system in the amended Constitution does not alter its essentially presidential character . Article VII on the Presidency starts with this provision: ‘the President shall be the Head of State and Chief Executive of the Republic of the Ph...

The Late Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Cojuangco Aquino's Chinese New Year Proclamation

It's disheartening that the Facebook page Tuloy Lang Tayo (which fortunately only has 358 followers) said that Chinese New Year should be discredited. The page is also supportive of Atty. Maria Leonor "Leni" S. Gerona-Robredo. Does the owner of the page even know that the late Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" C. Aquino was the person who declared Chinese New Year, a holiday? The Asia Society gives this detail on Noynoy's declaration: It was the very first time that the Chinese New Year was celebrated in the Philippines as a special non-working holiday which gave the opportunity to both Chinese-Filipinos and Filipinos in the country to enjoy the celebration. This became possible because of the Proclamation declared by President Benigno S. Aquino III , stating that this "is a manifestation of our solidarity with our Chinese-Filipino brethren who have been part of our lives in many respects as a country and as a people." Further details from Asia Society als...

Real Talk: Chinese Filipinos ARE Still Filipinos

It's the Chinese New Year once again. Some ignorant people have their ill feelings towards Chinese Filipinos, never mind the long history of Chinese immigrants who have become Filipinos. A simple classroom history lesson to a Google search, will tell us what it meant to be a Filipino. What does it mean to be a Filipino? It's often said that Filipino is more of a nationality than a race. Here's the definition of what it means to be a Filipino: 1 : a native of the Philippine Islands 2 : a citizen of the Republic of the Philippines 3 : the Tagalog-based official language of the Republic of the Philippines Filipino adjective According to the current constitution, these define what makes one a Filipino: Section 1. The following are citizens of the Philippines: [1] Those who are citizens of the Philippines at the time of the adoption of this Constitution; [2] Those whose fathers or mothers are citizens of the Philippines; [3] Those born before January 17, 1973, of Fili...

The "Star Witness" Davidson Rusia

It's Time to Free Paco Now Comparing one's perspective when one was in high school vs. the present can be a daunting thing. For example, I could get told that, "Maybe the person wants to be friends with you already. Maybe he realized that you were only teenagers and your fight was nothing more than a childish quarrel." As a 13-year-old who got into the case--I once admired what Davidson Rusia did. However, after hearing that Paco Larrañaga was innocent--I was really shocked. Yes, Paco was really in Manila when the crime happened (read here ). Why was David even allowed to testify when he wasn't even qualified? That's what the documentary Give Up Tomorrow highlighted. Atty. Florencio Villarin, who may be retired now due to his advanced age, also stated that in Case Unclosed. A lot of people were interested in what he had to say. At first, I thought Paco was wrongly tagged along with guilty people. However, what Solita Collas-Monsod said in Give Up Tomorrow , ...

Learn the Facts, Not Gossip, from Reading Lee Kuan Yew's "From Third World to First"

The Straits Times I could remember ordering the book From Third World to First ( sometime after electricity and Internet connection got restored) in January. I wanted a copy of the book but it's that hard to secure. So, I used Shoppee to order the book shipped from Indonesia . There's so much misinformation that I read on Facebook about Singapore. No, I'm not just talking about using the late Flor Contemplacion as an excuse. Instead, it's all about Singapore's development. I felt that my best "Christmas Gift" (it was bought with my savings, not given) was having a copy of this book. It was written by none other than the great statesman, the late Lee Kuan Yew, the father of Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. There are a lot of misconceptions about Singapore's progress. Some people have written on Facebook gossip about Singapore's progress. These are the following gossips I could read on Facebook such as: Singapore only opened to foreign di...

Indigenous Dance in Dayuan District, Taiwan

In the quest to know more about Southeast Asia's indigenous people--Taiwan can become a hit destination. This would look like a group of Filipino indigenous dancers but they're from Taiwan. This long dance number may show how the Taiwanese government may have been treating indigenous tribes better than the Philippines. One article I wrote was about how some Filipino natives now have to travel to Taiwan to learn indigenous weaving . Just watching this video makes me think of what the Inquirer cited about Taiwanese indigenous people: TAIPEI—In communities of the indigenous Amis tribe across Taiwan, locals say lima for five, pito for seven and mata for eye, just like Filipinos . In southern Taiwan’s Alishan mountain, the Tsou tribe calls the community’s meeting hut a kuba, strikingly similar in design to the Philippines’ kubo . Whether in language, architecture or way of life, links among indigenous peoples of the Philippines and Taiwan are undeniable, with...

Why I Think Banning the Mention of Hitler on Facebook is STUPID

Getty Images It's crazy how reporting a comment with the word "Hitler" can get anyone banned. For example, this is what I found on Quora : They should be allowed. there are quotes of his that are not in praise of hitler but showing how he thought so that people are critical of their current leaders . For example, here’s a quote by him “ How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think.” This is a perfect example of why Hitler quotes should be allowed; to show how dictators think and how people should be critical. Yes, he started a giant war and murdered people but censoring what he said will only help the next dictator start more wars and murder more people because people forgot about Hitler . This is why the First Amendment is so important: it’s about communication and freedom so that we all make better decisions in the future. I just told someone that Adolf Hitler seized the means of production and I got a strike. Like what? I wonder what ...

The Paternity of Sergio Osmeña Sr.

More than 10 years ago while I was a college student, I remembered one of the topics raised was who in the world was the father of the late Sergio Osmeña Sr.? I remembered my Humanities subject while I studied at the University of San Carlos (USC) during my summer classes. I immediately took summer classes after I finished my associate's degree and proceeded to take my bachelor's degree in business administration. We had a field trip at Casa Gorordo in Cebu where one of the curators said, "Just who was his father?" There was a wild guess it was the late Pedro Lee Singson Gotiaoco. The Freeman I heard from someone, back in college, that neither Tomas Osmeña nor the late John Gokongwei Jr. admits to being related to each other. Gokongwei Jr. is a great-grandson of Gotiaoco. A Sunstar article about Juana Osmeña mentions this one about the past 145 years ago which may verify their mutual claims: SCIENCE has settled almost a century-and-a-half-old mystery -- history and g...

Paco's Witnesses Risk EVERYTHING

One of the greatest injustices that happened is how Francisco Juan G. Larrañaga aka Paco was unfairly arrested with six others. There were already several witnesses that could testify that Paco was in Quezon City . I'm amazed that some people would still believe the faulty Supreme Court Decision, this person who only goes by "Nam Nam" even says that the log book and the photos may have been tampered with. Yet, there were more than 30 witnesses who knew that Paco was in Manila when the crime happened. Just watching Give Up Tomorrow made my blood boil at how faulty the justice system could get. It's amazing how these vital pieces of evidence were ignored soon after Paco's arrest on September 15, 1997: The pictures of Paco and his friends were dismissed because "they could've been tampered with". Never mind that the judge didn't order the evidence examined. Plane ticket schedules were also ignored. I love the way that Solita Collas-Monsod described...

A Business Graduate's Random Blog on History and Gossip

Search This Blog