“A good newspaper is never nearly good enough. But a lousy newspaper is a joy forever,” an old wisecrack goes. It resonated in the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) conference: “Watching the Watchdog: Re-examining Ourselves.”
Quacquarelli Symonds, a British organization specializing in education, confirms what most of us pretty much know or suspect. The quality of our education is falling.
Marcelo del Pilar left behind dozens of letters—altogether a wonderful read for Filipinos interested in history. Many of his letters were written in Filipino, especially those he wrote to his wife and his daughters, but these also include important, indeed historical, letters to Jose Rizal.
“Dengue season” is upon us, what with the onset of the rainy season. This is because the rains and floods create stagnant pools of water where mosquitoes bearing the dengue-causing organism breed. But in truth, as the Department of Health says, dengue is a year-round threat, since many households still harbor locations and containers where water may collect—drums, pails, tires, ponds, fountains, gutters, even vases—which even at the height of summer may host mosquito populations.
The flash floods that recently submerged large parts of Manila and Quezon City were not totally unexpected, and everyone should have been prepared for the eventuality considering that floods caused by heavy rains have practically become an annual experience for commuters and motorists during the rainy season.
I write this in reaction to the letter titled “Casiño a leftist but not a genuine nationalist” (Inquirer, 5/25/13).
This has reference to Gen. Ramon Farolan’s column titled “A sense of urgency” (Inquirer, 5/27/13). I fully concur with the wise assessment of the general—there’s urgent need for the Philippines to build up its defense capability. Indeed we need well-equipped fighting forces for credible defense until foreign allies come to our succor. My [...]
Only a year and a half ago, the world crossed a historic threshold: Global population breached the 7-billion mark.
Any way you look at it, the increases in water rates by the two water concessionaires, Maynilad and Manila Water, are too much and unconscionable. Imagine, Maynilad is increasing its rates by P8.25 per cubic meter, and Manila Water slightly lower. To the average household, that would be an increase of P250 a month. That’s highway robbery! Many poor families earn less or only slightly more than that.
The good news is that we have a president who won’t be cowed by bullies. President Benigno Aquino III made it abundantly clear in his Independence Day speech last Wednesday.
Buhay and An Waray partylist groups are being stripped by the Commission on Elections of congressional seats already awarded to them. The seats are being reserved instead for the Senior Citizens party-list group. Understandably Buhay and An Waray are crying foul. What will happen to them?
In his memoirs “From Third World to First—The Singapore Story: 1965-2000,” Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew recounts that when the island state was forced out of the Federation of Malaysia, his first concern was to build an armed forces from scratch. There existed the danger presented by Malaysian armed units stationed within Singapore.
