If kids could have a country or city of their own, free from the unexamined prejudices and pernicious habits of the adult world, what might it be like? What values would it highlight? What forms of human activity would it promote? Of course, there is no such country or community in existence. Writers have tried … Read more

There is nothing we can do to stop natural phenomena like typhoons, earthquakes and tsunamis from visiting our country. They are part of Nature’s system. But there is a lot we can do to prevent them from causing death and destruction—that is, from becoming disasters. Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as a “natural” … Read more

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, who took a leave from her Senate duties because of illness, surprised everyone by filing at the last minute her candidacy for the presidency in the 2016 election. On the same occasion, she sprang an even bigger surprise on her young awestruck fans: Bongbong Marcos is her choice for vice president. … Read more

The Commission on Elections had its hands full last Oct. 12 and 13, receiving the certificates of candidacy of at least 37 individuals vying for the presidency in the 2016 national elections. Jostling with the known and the lesser known were the completely unknown, claiming equal right to run for public office. The term “nuisance … Read more

Since I have been filing my income tax in Pampanga for some years now, I feel duty-bound and entitled to cast my vote at my old precinct in Betis, where I spent my childhood. I continue to list our ancestral home in this province as my permanent residence even if I have lived and worked … Read more

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