Tourists and locals

Most tourists avoid newspapers while on holiday.  They go away precisely to escape the world rather than to wallow in its problems. But there are some who cannot begin the day without reading the papers even if they know that nothing they read will give them any assurance that the world is at peace and … Read more

A chance at rebirth

Because it is Easter, my mind like everyone else’s inevitably turns to the unending project of rebirth, to the quest for a higher self, and to the possibility of self-fulfillment.  I mean this in respect both to ourselves as individuals in search of perfection and as a nation in search of progress. Any day, of … Read more

In praise of Dolphy

Four TV broadcasters are among the top 10 senatorial preferences of the public, says the latest Asian Research Organization (ARO) based on its survey of 1200 respondents conducted in March this year.  Noli de Castro of “TV Patrol” ties for 1st place with Senator Ramon Magsaysay Jr., Korina Sanchez of “Balitang K” shares 3rd place … Read more

The art of widowhood

As young boys growing up in a small town, my friends and I used to attend almost every funeral in the community.  We would climb the highest tomb and from there observe the unchanging patterns of grief. We wondered who would wail the most, and who would pass out.  We took note of the words … Read more

Robin Padilla and the Mindanao question

Before me is a copy of the 1999 masteral law thesis of Soliman M. Santos Jr. for the University of Melbourne in Australia.  It is titled “Constitutional Accommodation of a Moro Islamic System in the Philippines.”  Its specific focus is the challenge of secession from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. Here is the man who … Read more