“The words are not good for the secret meaning, everything always becomes a bit different, as soon as it is put into words, gets distorted a bit, a bit silly—yes, and this is also very good, and I like it a lot, I also very much agree with this, that this what is one man’s treasure and wisdom always sounds like foolishness to another person.” ― Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha
The Mindanao problem is ultimately a POWER problem – the power of one group over another. It is a problem of colonization. The fact that there was a law called the Legislative Act 4197 or Quirino-Recto Colonization of Mindanao Act, which was enacted on 12 February 1935 is very telling. The Commonwealth considered the Act… Continue reading Federalism for All: Chance for lasting Peace
On 23 November 2009, exactly 13 years ago, Andal Ampatuan, with his armed paramilitary security, with the complicity of some policemen, massacred 58 people, including 34 journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a New York-based NGO that promotes Press Freedom for the world, described the killings as "the single deadliest event for journalists in… Continue reading Ampatuan / Maguindanao Massacre: 13 years hence
Before the turn of the millennium, the Philippines was called the world's texting capital. For the past five years or so, the Philippines is being called the Social Media Capital of the World. Is it? https://youtu.be/hSxOv22mfHQ The Philippines has consistently topped the charts in Time Spent on Social Media: ========================= This is an “extended version”… Continue reading Is Philippines the World’s Social Media Capital ?
Imelda 'Aimee' Morales's book Alignment: Lessons in Writing was launched on Oct 24, 2020. Accompanying the book launch was a seminar by FLOW writers on various topics related to the book. I gave a talk on Teaching Grammar: Is it necessary?Many people are saying that Grammar is not important anymore. In internet groups, people who… Continue reading English Language: Is Teaching / Learning Grammar necessary?
Last year, I was asked to do the Inspirational Talk at FEATI University during its annual English Festival. The theme of the festival was "Digital Learners Promoting English, the Universal Language." Back in 2014, I was asked to do the Welcome Remarks on its annual English Festival. The theme then was "Promoting English, the Lingua… Continue reading Learning English the Digital Way
Misinformation or Disinformation is now more commonly called Fake News. But Mis/Disinformation is nothing new. World media, including Philippine media, have been doing that for a long time.While going through my old computer files, I saw this note I wrote to my classmates in a Media Literacy graduate class almost 20 years ago: ******** Feb.… Continue reading Fake News: Media Distorting Reality
With the Philippines being called the “Social Media Nation of the World” or the "Social Media Capital of the World", it is but logical to suppose that social media affect the country’s elections, esp. the presidential elections every six years. In a Dec 2019 SWS survey, almost a fourth (24%) of the Filipinos get their… Continue reading Social Media, the Philippine Elections & the Mindanao Vote
Postprandial Musings, 2.0 