au.was.here.

i've said it before and i'll say it again...Trillanes is a stupid fool! sorry if that seems too harsh but i will call anyone that who tries at this point to try to topple this administration via a coup. (why not try something more original?!) it doesn't accomplish anything but create chaos that only puts the nation in bad light. bad for business, bad for the economy, bad generally for most everyone even if you don't immediately feel it. if investors pull out, valuable jobs are lost. and for what? for the desperation of a soldier turned overly ambitious to the point of running for senator when he is not even qualified for the job. really, what does he have to show for to merit that job?

being outspoken about the ills of an government is one thing...doing stupid things for the all the wrong reasons is another. i don't understand how some people cannot see through Trillianes's obvious motives. he may cut a dashing figure but how is it admirable when you endanger life and property for selfish reasons IN THE GUISE of patriotism? being a survivor of the original EDSA revolution myself and of the Marcos regime with it's accompanying Martial Law...it is laughable to me how people just throw this around, calling the temporary curfew and the "capture" of mediamen a prelude to Martial Law. it's like calling a firecracker evidence that there will soon be a nuclear explosion. i've been there and i've seen it happen before, and i promise the deluded young people who think they know that this is "it", that it is a far cry from the real one in the 70's and 80's. politicians and their cohorts are only overplaying it precisely because that is what they want people who don't know any better to believe. and the only people they fool are those who weren't there--the younger set. they are simply grandstanding. and Trillianes is turning out to be one of the worst in the lot i've seen so far. so new and yet so crooked already.

2010 is not too far away. why not wait for the next elections and VOTE! if you want change in your government, first be the change you want to see. it may sound cliche or you may think that it is ineffective but it is really the only way to go. you cannot control the world but you can control your actions and reactions. if you do not like corruption, do not participate in it! i've seen people complain about dirty policemen but these same people are the ones who BRIBE them for a simple traffic violation. and again for what? for their own convenience! they don't want to go and claim penalty and fix the darn ticket so they bribe the traffic enforcer.

gosh, i could go on and on... but if one will only stop to think about it, it is only sensible to be patient and to do our part as citizens. remember, even tiny drops will fill the bucket. because in these matters, 2 facts are glaringly evident: it is that 1.)change cannot come in an instant and if it does, it is short lived and unstable. 2) no government is perfect. no, not even in the land of milk and honey where Filipinos go to live the Filipino dream (and that is to live the American dream!) sigh...

i do believe in being pro-active, in standing up and risking life and limb for the nobility of defending human rights or fighting the ills of society (and i am proud to say i have done this before) but we have to fight it the right way in the right season and for the right reasons. for now, my personal fight it to teach these values to my children. to show them the ills of society and to warn them about persons and politicians like Trillianes. to make them learn how to be pro-active in the right way and to make them appreciate their nation. to make them aware of the reality that this nation may not be as great anymore but it is in their hands to make it so. to build their national identity despite the fact that some people are losing it by absorbing cultures other than their own more, speaking better English first even before they can speak good Tagalog. these are so simple yet overlooked! and we dare point the finger at the government...perhaps we should look at the mirror first...

credits: photos (with tanks) are from the BBC News website.