It is always convenient to begin with statistics and earth-shattering number of magnitude of earthquakes in this previous months. For this column, and for this topic, however, let’s do it in another way.
Such was the hope of families and friends of the 58 massacred victims when they visited the crime scene three months after the carnage. It was one of the most excruciating moments for everyone, even among the curious who went along with over 300 individuals who trooped to see for themselves and feel the dread.
Despite historian Ambeth Ocampo’s call not to think in black and white, that’s mostly what happened to the conversation surrounding Elcano y Magallanes: La primera vuelta al mundo, the controversial animated film about the Spanish expedition. Two sides have clearly been delineated.
The opposition may have roundly lost in the last national elections, but for progressive forces there was a glimmer of hope in the local government arena where a crop of junior politicians won over established dynasties in some crucial positions. One of these is Vico Sotto, with his boyish good looks and down-to-earth style, who was elected mayor of Pasig City.
Last August, the Department of Health (DOH) released a statement that from being a polio-free country, the Philippines is now at high-risk for polio virus transmission. Until last month, the said office already declared a polio epidemic.
Almost everyone I know who lives in Manila is excited for the upcoming Van Gogh Alive multi-media immersive exhibit set to open later this month. Van Gogh is undoubtedly one of the most popularly known painters of all time and his body of work one of the most easily recognized. It is thus no surprise that this event has generated plenty of buzz.
“You were more than nine pounds when you went out of my womb. You almost broke my pelvic bones. But I have exhausted myself during the delivery for you to experience the world. And I don’t ask anything in return,” my mom said [in non-verbatim] during one of our rare talks.
The film Joker has played into the agenda of people of various political stripes. Conservatives have stoked up fears of it instigating mayhem on the streets, there are liberal voices who criticize its depiction of mental illness or its supposed glamorization of “incel” tendencies. Each assessment can be examined by the individual watcher if they are so inclined. But what I want to address here is whether it is the progressive masterpiece that some claim it to be. I think it is not.
Earlier this week, an online community page named “Lapu-Lapu” maliciously vilified me and our news site Davao Today as “fake news and NPA sympathizer”. Such accusation and vilification against me and Davao Today is purely baseless.
Dengue cases in the Philippines had already risen to more than 229,736, and according to the Department of Health (DOH) from January 1 to August 17 this year, deaths resulting from Dengue had already hit 958.
