SOUNDING BOARD is an outlet for opinions on good and crazy things going on at home (wherever I may be). All are welcome. You are not expected to bring anything except your common sense & sense of humor.
'If the automobile had followed the same development cycle as the computer, a Rolls-Royce would today cost $100, get one million miles to the gallon, and explode once a year, killing everyone inside.'
-Robert X. Cringely (from geek wisdom)
SOUNDING BOARD
Friday, November 07, 2003
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One boring Friday
Sometimes, I really wish there are days we could skip by clicking the move-to-the-next-day key. Today is one of them. Unfortunately, and this does not surprise me at all, I just realized that I have been dreaming of having access to that kind of key for a couple of days now.
When I was in Singapore (stayed there for a year and a half, not so long ago), I used to hangout in a small café called Beehive. The first time I sat there, sipped my coffee and puffed a couple of sticks, I said to myself ‘this is it’. I was there almost everyday/night especially when I’m into those I’d-rather-talk-to-myself-than-talk-to-these-people moods. There were even a couple of times when I brought my books there to study, while Jason (part owner of Beehive) plays his (and mine too) favorite CDs. However, and somehow it surprised me, Beehive was instrumental in transforming me into a social animal, in a way. It surprised me because I figured I wouldn’t be talking to people I don’t know at all if I were in Starbucks or Seattle’s Best. And making some friends in a totally different country is also a big deal for an anti-social animal such as myself. So Beehive became a place where I hangout with a handful of Singaporean friends.
Unfortunately, because of its poor location, Beehive closed down a few months before I went back home. It was surrounded by hawkers' area, and if you've been to Singapore for quite a long time, you'll see that even rich people flock to the hawkers. It's not uncommon to see BMWs parked in front of hawkers in Singapore, with fashion-conscious Singaporeans having snacks seemingly unmindful of the late afternoon heat.
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Somehow it always pisses me off that I have to endure the heat even when inside airconditioned public transport. They're just not cold enough. Worse, when you take a shuttle to work, people don't even complain about it, as if it's a very natural thing to fan yourself to death. As usual, I always turn out to be the bitchiest (excuse me for the term) passenger who would perennially complain about it. Taxis are even worse. Most of them are poorly maintained and so it's not uncommon that I get nauseous after a 30 minute bonding episode with the stinking seat fabric. Unfortunately, and I'm not surprised at all given our track record in public transport maintenance, I've also encountered several instances when the MRT's aircon system makes me wonder if it would be better to just open the windows. And whoever designed the stations must have failed to consider the air circulation. Just stand in any of the stations even without moving and you'll immediately feel humid and sticky. There's just not enough air circulating.
You could say, of course, it's better to have *that*, than to be stuck in even more humid and stinky aircon buses. Maybe people seldom complain about these things. And it sucks.
SOUNDING BOARD
Monday, November 03, 2003
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A challenged democracy
It was a disaster waiting to happen. The attempted impeachment against Chief Justice Hilario Davide of the Supreme Court by the Lower House of Congress may have released the Sword of Damocles that could usher in the most critical wound to an already chaotic democracy.
The pride of having successfully overthrown two presidents through 'people power' may have facilitated the Filipinos' acquired inclination to use extraordinary means to effect change in governance. One thing that may have been forgotten along the way is that extraordinary means are meant for extraordinary circumstances. The case being made here is that we have not reached that point that warrants extraordinary means. The 'initiative' of congress may, to some, reflect a working democracy in terms of checks and balances. However, the Constitution mandates the Commission on Audit (COA) to ensure legal and acceptable use of the Judicial Development Fund (JDF). Nevertheless, and granting that even COA's determination of the legality and acceptability of the use of the JDF is questionable, an impeachment proceeding is not necessary at the moment.
I have always believed that development (economic, social and legal) reforms rooted in a strong judicial branch is the best way to go. No matter how chaotic the legislative and executive branches are, swift dispensation of decisions emanating from the Supreme Court down to the lower courts will ensure a solid foundation for reforms. After all, the Supreme Court is the final interpreter of the Constitution.
The inability to strengthen an independent Judicial branch during the past administrations is one of the main factors behind 'development inertia' in the Philippines. There is always hope over the horizon but the penchant for using extraordinary means is one of the factors that could take even the modicum amount of hope left among the people. With this kind of attitude fuelling interest group politics in the Philippines where one group cancels the other, I would not be surprised if, after ten years, the country is still faced with the same basic challenges on governance.
posted by Allan at 11:25 AM (GMT+8)
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