“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
On those three days and four nights of February in 1986, so many of us thought that finally, we would see the dawning of a truly free, progressive and prosperous Philippines. On February 25, 1986, the Filipino people (mostly those in Metro Manila) with the help of a military faction, installed Cory Aquino as the… Continue reading Remembering EDSA
My name is Jamal Ashley. These are my given names. When I was in grade school and high school, I knew or heard of no one who had the name Jamal except for Sultan Jamal ul-Kiram of Sulu. But the Sultan's name was usually pronounced as Jamalul not Jamal ul-Kiram. Jamal is pronounced with the… Continue reading What's in a name?
About half of my life was spent on watching movies and TV. I am sure that all these writers, directors and actors shaped my life in more ways than I could have imagined. The year 2010 took away many of these great artists. Here are some of those that in one way or another influenced… Continue reading Remembering The Stars Who Passed Away in 2010
The Philippine Supreme Court (SC), in a very daring move, reversed the Court of Appeals and Regional Trial Court decisions and acquitted the accused, Hubert Webb et al, for the murder and rape of Carmela Vizconde and the murder of her mother and sister. This does not prove that there is justice in the Philippines.… Continue reading VIZCONDE – WEBB CASE: INJUSTICE FOR ALL
While browsing the web, I found a copy of this article published in Business World in 2003. To my surprise, I was quoted by the author. Actually, I think he got his quotes from a speech I delivered in 2000 at UP Los Banos. It's quite a good article. Business Mirror does not keep archives… Continue reading Resurrecting old ghosts of Mindanao
Today, I googled my name and was surprised to see that many people and websites cite me and my works. One of them is an article by veteran journalist Domini Torrevillas in her column FROM THE STANDS in the Philippine Star. It was dated October 11, 2008 She wrote: In my searches, I found a… Continue reading Domini Torrevillas quoting from my research paper on Filipino Identity
Postprandial Musings, 2.0 