“Great! That’s it!” Nick Joaquin (aka Quijano de Manila), the Filipino National Artist for Literature clapped his hands. Under the light of the tiffany lamp his eyes sparkled. “That’s it!” he repeated as though we could all read his mind. “What? What’s it?” I asked. We were sitting around the centre table at Los Indios … Continue reading A Valentine Memory
Standing Up to a Strongman
Contributing Op-Ed Writer By MIGUEL SYJUCO DEC. 11, 2016 A rally in suburban Quezon near Manila, on Nov. 30, to protest the re-burial of the late Ferdinand Marcos at the Heroes’ Cemetery. MANILA — Dusk set silver-gray over the crowd gathered in a park here on Nov. 25, but the banners and placards could still … Continue reading Standing Up to a Strongman
Filipinos Are Outraged at Attempts to Rehabilitate a Late Dictator as a National Hero
Joseph Hincks Nov. 30, 2016 Richard James Mendoza—Pacific Press/LightRocket/Getty ImagesFilipino activists during a rally against the secrecy-shrouded burial of late Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos at the Heroes' Cemetery on November 18, 2016. Rallies have been staged across the country by those outraged at attempts to lionize a man who killed, tortured and stole billions Susan … Continue reading Filipinos Are Outraged at Attempts to Rehabilitate a Late Dictator as a National Hero
First Impressions of New York December 1963
By the 31st December 1963 New York was in the grip of what was to become one of its longest and coldest winters on record. It would continue, almost unabated, until late April. But, despite the big freeze and despite the sense of guilt and shock that still pervaded the American psyche over the recent … Continue reading First Impressions of New York December 1963
ONLY MASS CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE CAN BLOCK MARCOS’S BURIAL
I am reposting this article so more people will have the chance to read it. I am hoping its author, Herbert Docena, will not mind my doing so. I am glad to see he is a young man who may never even have experienced the worst excesses of the Marcos years. But he has read … Continue reading ONLY MASS CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE CAN BLOCK MARCOS’S BURIAL
Recovering Things
by Conrado de Quiros in the Philippine Inquirer Presidential Commission on Good Government chair Andres Bautista proposes that the Department of Tourism turn Imelda Marcos’ jewels into a tourist attraction. Might as well make money off them, he says, until they are auctioned off. The idea sucks. Bautista may have good intentions but he lacks … Continue reading Recovering Things
The Philippine Economy in the Martial Law Years
EDSA People Power Monument. FILE PHOTO I am posting this article by Cesar Polvorosa Jr. who is a business school professor of economics, world geography, and international business management in Canada. He is also a published writer in economics, business, and literature. Polvorosa is, arguably, also the most knowledgeable person to have written on the … Continue reading The Philippine Economy in the Martial Law Years
Elisar Cabrera and Andy Edwards on FrightFest TV discussing Ibiza Undead
My son, Elisar Cabrera, discussing his latest film, the brilliantly reviewed "Ibiza Undead". Elisar inherited his love of comics and horror from his Dad, Filipino National Artist Ben Cabrera (BenCab). The film will be shown at other Horror Film Festivals around the world before being generally released early next year. See it if you dare!
The Killing Time: Inside Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs
I thought it important to reprint this article by Rishi Iyengar from Time Magazine as an ominous warning of what could come if there is no end to these extra judicial killings. It is worryingly reminiscent of the years 1971 and 1972 when a spate of murders and bombings, blamed by President Marcos on the … Continue reading The Killing Time: Inside Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs
A BURIAL & A LIBRARY
I am grateful to John Silva who gave me permission to publish his post on my blogsite. Its relevance here is obvious. Falsifying history is doing a great disservice to future generations. Libraries serve us to offer us the truth so we can, hopefully, learn from successes or failures of generations that came before us. … Continue reading A BURIAL & A LIBRARY
Caroline Kennedy: My Travels 