Travel has many purposes. The travel writer Rick Steves categorizes travelers into three broad types. First, there’s the tourist, who seeks the excitement of shopping, sightseeing, and snapping selfies to share online. Next comes the traveler, eager for immersive experiences, hoping to blend in as a temporary resident in another country. Lastly, there’s the pilgrim—one … Read more
The day after Bishop Ambo David returned from Rome as one of the newly appointed cardinals of the Catholic Church, he visited my dear friend Dodong Nemenzo at the Philippine General Hospital to anoint him. Dodong’s son, Fidel, had earlier shared with me that his father, whose health was rapidly declining, would see a priest … Read more
While many nations, particularly the wealthier ones that profited from its early forms, now reject globalization and its consequences, the Catholic Church, under Pope Francis’ leadership, has chosen a path of acceptance of its challenges and an openhearted embrace of its myriad victims. Seeing itself as a “field hospital” that prioritizes care for the marginalized … Read more
We are so accustomed to seeing spouses and siblings from the same families dominate our political system that we often view the government itself as a family, with its top officials as the nation’s parents. This perspective makes it unsettling to witness open quarrels between the president and vice president. Public disputes, personal accusations, and … Read more
Budgetary allocations for select government offices, commonly termed “intelligence” and “confidential” funds, are typically exempt from standard auditing procedures in order to preserve the secrecy of the operations they support. While such exemptions may be justifiable for safeguarding national security and law enforcement objectives, their application to civilian agencies without clear security functions is harder … Read more
Despite an onslaught of typhoons relentlessly battering the country over the past week, the headline-grabber was former president Rodrigo Duterte’s dramatic appearance before the House of Representatives’ powerful quad committee. This super committee has been digging into a host of contentious issues—from the extrajudicial killings linked to Duterte’s war on drugs to the crimes tied … Read more
Donald Trump did not win by a landslide. It only appears as if he did because of the large number of electoral votes that separates him from Kamala Harris. Though he also won the popular vote this time around (unlike in 2016 when he became president despite losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton), the … Read more
What I term “Dutertismo” goes beyond the populist, authoritarian approach typically associated with former president Rodrigo Duterte. More specifically, it refers to a form of presidential rule that seeks sweeping exceptions from the standard application of the law, under the premise that extraordinary measures are needed to address urgent threats to the nation. In essence, … Read more
If the United States can hold peaceful, orderly elections on Nov. 5 and inaugurate a new president without prolonged legal or political battles, it will mark a major success for American democratic institutions. Such an outcome would send a powerful message to the world: that free elections, even in highly polarized climates, remain a credible … Read more
In sociology, corruption has a straightforward definition. When it involves government officials and employees, corruption simply means the failure to distinguish between the interests of the government and those of other entities in society, such as family, private businesses, religious institutions, or political parties. In other words, it is the inability to separate one’s duties … Read more