Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES

If there is anything that the 12 hearings conducted by two powerful congressional committees on the ABS-CBN franchise clearly showed, it is the gross misunderstanding and simplification by our lawmakers of how the mass media system operates in a modern society. They accused ABS-CBN of being so powerful as to be able to make and … Read more

If we grew up around monuments, chances are we no longer remember what they commemorate or signify. But, since they occupy space as physical objects, they may serve as convenient meeting points, or as perches for birds. This seems to affirm the author Lewis Hyde’s point: “Successful monuments become invisible.” But, for those who are … Read more

Even if a vaccine becomes available by early next year, the pace at which people could be immunized would not be fast enough to permit a return to some semblance of pre-COVID-19 times. And even assuming the discovery of a cheap and effective vaccine, experts doubt that this will spell a quick and total end … Read more

The phrase “open season” aptly describes the situation we are in today. Merriam-Webster defines it thus: “1. A period when it is legal to kill or catch game or fish protected at other times by law. 2. A time during which someone or something is the object of sustained attack or criticism.” The period typically … Read more

Using an Emilio Aguinaldo photo to represent Andres Bonifacio, or—which amounts to the same thing—mistaking Bonifacio for Aguinaldo, seemed like a sick joke, a flagrant example of historical ignorance. But, I wouldn’t be so harsh. Perhaps it was just the unfortunate result of a harassed researcher’s futile effort to fight drowsiness in the rush to … Read more

One of the unforeseen consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic is the way it has conditioned the public to obey police orders without question. Law enforcement, not public service, has become the dominant motif of governance. The original rationale of emergency quarantine measures—the protection of public health—has been reconfigured as the protection of public safety against … Read more

For as long as her physical condition allowed her, my wife Karina insisted on regularly visiting Sen. Leila de Lima at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame. Nearly always short of breath because of her congestive heart and flooded lungs, she would take deep breaths from the medical oxygen tank she carried … Read more

The adjective “novel” was the first thing that struck most people about the early name given to the coronavirus that causes the disease we now call COVID-19. That word, in its common usage, is a synonym for “new.” But only a few were sure that that was all the scientists at the World Health Organization … Read more

Something extraordinary caught my attention the other night while watching the closing graphics of the CNN weather report. It was a map showing the quality of the air for each country in our part of the world. There, in light blue, signifying purity, was the figure “1” for the Philippines. I took a quick glance … Read more

Every government likes to think of itself as the all-seeing arbiter of what needs to be done to protect the people from a catastrophe like the coronavirus pandemic. But even in the most tightly managed societies, this capacity for control and overarching wisdom is illusory. It is no match to the inherent predisposition of society’s … Read more