The 2009 Nobel Prize for Economics has been awarded not to an economist but to a political scientist who refuses to be boxed by disciplinal boundaries.  Elinor Ostrom, a professor of political science at Indiana University, is being recognized for her path-breaking research on economic governance, particularly the administration of what are called “common-pool resources,” … Read more

In our daily lives, we expect government to be the source of capabilities that are beyond the reach of individuals. We accept its enormous power over our lives, trusting implicitly in its ability to use this power for the common good. This trust, so easily given, is however also easily shaken.  It took only two … Read more

We all know by now that while typhoons and earthquakes are natural phenomena (“acts of God,” as insurance firms refer to them), the disasters they cause are largely shaped by the way we live.  Some disasters are traceable to gross negligence and ignorance, others to irresponsible risk-taking.  Some are by-products of greed and incompetence, while … Read more

Contemplating the massive devastation wrought by last week’s floods, many of us are prompted to do two things we do not ordinarily do.  One, we start to “count our blessings” and re-assess our values. Two, from our self-absorption, we slowly wake up to our responsibility to help maintain the delicate balance between our way of … Read more

Narcissus is the beautiful young man in Greek mythology who fell in love with his own image.  Havelock Ellis, the British psychologist who became famous for his writings on the psychology of sex, first used the term “narcissism” to designate a condition characterized by selfobsession and an extreme thirst for attention and admiration.  Freud, who … Read more

When Marcos declared Martial Law in September 1972, my wife Karina and I were both just 26.  We were university instructors freshly embarked on an academic career. Our first-born, a boy, was barely two and had just learned to walk by himself.  The rest of our children, three girls, were born after Martial Law.  Today, … Read more

As my previous columns on politics may have shown, I am one of those who squirm each time I hear people reduce Philippine politics today into a fight between good and evil.  I view this way of thinking as a residual habit from traditional society.  And so to hear it from modern Filipinos who ought … Read more

The interesting term “trapo,” as presently used in Philippine politics, is a fusion of two words – “traditional” and “politician.” In the beginning, the preferred word was “tradpol.” But this contraction fell into disuse because, I suspect, it lacked the pejorative power of “trapo,” a piece of worthless cloth meant to wipe off dirt.  Over … Read more

The Philippines is probably one of the few remaining countries in the world for whom the United States government’s every word functions as a cue in domestic politics.  Our obsessive American orientation is legendary.  For a long time, we were known as a nation that allowed its presidents to be chosen, and dismissed, by America.  … Read more

There’s a popular French saying, “plus ça change, plus c’est pareil.” It means, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” This ironic observation is a testimony to the enduring nature of structures.  Events in everyday life may suggest unending flux, but the fluidity can be superficial, masking the unshakable character of an … Read more