Randy David | PUBLIC LIVES Apolinario Mabini is primarily known as the “brains of the revolution,” Emilio Aguinaldo’s brilliant adviser, who guided the leader of the revolution through the essential steps of political consolidation and state formation after the June 12, 1898, proclamation of Philippine independence from Spain. But, there is another side of Mabini that is less appreciated. In … Read more
The other day, my 14-year-old granddaughter, Julia, who serves as my weather vane for things that go viral on social media, showed me a YouTube post. “What’s this about, Lolo?” she asked. It was a video clip of a scantily clad female dancer doing what looks like the “twerk” with a man in a yellow … Read more
Two leading lights of the Nacionalista Party (NP), Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV, have formally declared their intention to run for vice president in the 2016 elections. A third member of the party, Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., is also expected anytime soon to announce his availability for the vice presidency. … Read more
One of the readers of my column, Abel Manliclic, raised an interesting point when he wrote to ask if claims made in political advertisements are covered by the same truth standards to which commercial ads are subjected. He then rattled off the incredible achievements that one probable senatorial candidate claims for himself in his political … Read more
Compared to the dictatorships that flourished in Southeast Asia and Latin America in the 1970s and 1980s, the martial law regime that Ferdinand Marcos inaugurated in September 1972 might have been the most benign. To say that, of course, would not comfort those who were brutalized and victimized by martial law. Nor would it blunt … Read more
In mature democracies, people run for president or prime minister because there are fundamental priorities or goals they want to pursue through the political system. As these are typically complex and interconnected, no one can realistically aspire to accomplish them by oneself. Thus, modern politics involves the organization of a lead group called a party, … Read more
In mature democracies, people run for president or prime minister because there are fundamental priorities or goals they want to pursue through the political system. As these are typically complex and interconnected, no one can realistically aspire to accomplish them by oneself. Thus, modern politics involves the organization of a lead group called a party, … Read more
Who killed Marwan? How was he killed? These and many other questions are supposed to have been answered by the various official reports issued on the Jan. 25 Mamasapano incident. But a recent statement by President Aquino has prompted renewed interest in the details of that tragic encounter. In particular, contrary to the official Philippine … Read more
Last Tuesday’s nightmarish traffic in Metro Manila’s major roads forced commuters to do what many of them have forgotten: walk home. Walking to and from work has become such a rare phenomenon in the city that some residents try to recover the health benefits from this lost habit by marking time on treadmill machines inside … Read more
Confronted by the sudden influx of migrants fleeing from the war-torn and impoverished countries of West Asia, the Middle East and North Africa, Europe has responded in two fundamental ways—one, out of fear; the other, out of love. The first has taken the form of barbed-wire barriers to keep aliens out of Hungary’s borders. In … Read more