Retro Night

September 21, 22, and 23 were important dates for students of UP and other state colleges and universities. They launched a massive strike against the government's slashing of the budget for education and social services. In UP alone, various organizations ans student councils collaborated to organize activities for the three-day event. There were dorm camp-outs, walk-outs, fashion shows, educational discussions, film showings, and most importantly, the "Tsunami Walk."

The night before the September 23 March from Diliman to Mendiola, there was a retro-themed cultural night entitled "Walastik, Dehins sa Cuts, Repapips!" A lot of organizations were present there, all joined to support the mini-concert's aim of opposing the budget cut. There were also bands and groups from outside UP that performed to show their approval.

This was the first cultural night that I ever attended, and I didn't expect that I would enjoy it. It is amazing to see different performances aiming to voice out something socially significant. But more to the enjoyment is the message conveyed by the performances. It is not just a mere form of entertainment, but a show with a purpose of binding people with the same aspirations.


**photo by Wilbert San Juan**

A Struggle to the Top

UP has always been one of the leading producers of newly trained Filipino scientists, artists, researchers, and scholars. Yet with this vivid display of academic excellence comes an unfortunate disposition in terms of extracurricular activities. Since the University Athletic Association of the Philippines or UAAP was established, the Fighting Maroons has been competing in the various events that the association holds. It is a question though, why the university fails to stamp its mark on men’s basketball championships which is one of, if not the, most sought after titles in the UAAP.

UP has not been lacking of the moral support from its students; win or lose, there is a cult of Iskolars following their Fighting Maroons team, chanting the famous "U-ni-ber-si-dad ng Pilipinas!" cheer, screaming  with every point made by their favorite players. When the team wins, much much pride is being shown by the students, showing off that the university not only promotes academic competence, but physical capabilities as well. When it loses, which happens most of the time, they joke about the players having a hard time getting their heads in the game, when they have tons of acad works to finish. Supporters are most of the time hesitant that the team will lose. Not because the players are weak, maybe there's more to it than that.

The coaches and coaching staff of UP Fighting Maroons are not short of the capabilities of honing the potentials of the players in their specific fields. They themselves were trained and specialized in their lines of work, and therefore they are fitting to be trainers of the UP varsity team.

The players alone cannot be the reason why the team loses. They were handpicked and chosen to be representatives of the university, and more or less they do their best to show the talents they possess. The last thing that can be the reason to this dilemma, is the facilities for training.

We are very much acquainted that while the university boasts of its state-of-the-art facilities for science and technology, its facilities for physical development are deficient. The gym is almost disintegrating, and the new gym looks like it would still take a long time for it to be finished. It is not that this area of the university is ignored, but the deficit in budget tends to look more into the "more important" matters of the academe. They spend more on other things that would help the university sustain itself.

With the training grounds lacking, the players would have a hard time working on the best of their potentials. Not only the men's basketball team, but the varsity team in general. We are very proud when they top their respective events, boasting of honor and excellence they contribute to the academe, coy when they lose. Yet we do not know that in every participation they make in these competitions are the struggles of carrying UP Pride with them.

Ang SONA ni Mr. Wang Wang

(This entry is a combination of our experience in the vigil, the SONAng bayan, and the educational talk with farmers and workers.)

Almost one year passed since President Benigno Aquino III sat in position. When he was inducted as president, many Filipinos rejoiced, hoping that there will be a change in the rotten system of the government. His flowery words marked an impression on every man that can hear it. Everyone's expecting that he will be on the right path, as what he is always saying.

Is he?

The night before the SONAng Bayan, people from different organizations gathered in Vinson's Hall lobby to have an overnight vigil and to prepare for the next day's activity as well. They created paper masks of PNoy with words printed on his hat: "Papet", "Pahirap", "Pasista." They also created placards that displayed their protests against the system the president is implementing. We met new people, like Kuya Miko, Kuya Pepi and Ate Geri, members of Center for Nationalist Studies (CNS), who explained to us the reason why they're having the overnight vigil and the mob on the next day. We also watched an indie short film entitled, "Ang Sandaling Sadya Nila Lire at Isa."

"Walang pagbabago, sa ilalim ni Aquino!"

July 25, 2011: Morning on that day, President Aquino might be preparing himself for his second "State of the Nation Address." Most Filipinos were waiting for whatever plans PNoy would say in his SONA. But in Quezon Hall, UP Diliman, students and people from different sectors gathered to have breakfast together. But the Almusalang Bayan is not the only event that day. That was only a part of the preparation for the march through Sandigan Bayan - the place where the SONAng Bayan would be held.

While eating our pandesals and drinking our coffees, we gathered in circles and listened to Kuya Miko. He gave us informations about the bourgeois, farmers, and the current Philippine situation in general. He illustrated the "triangle" of the society. This triangle showed the ratio of social classes, starting from the landlords at the peak of the triangle to the farmers at the base. Farmers, in great number, are being controlled or exploited by their landlords, who, in small number, benefits most. Kuya Miko also explained why they were counter attacking PNoy's SONA. The voices of the majority - the farmers, the workers, and the poor - should have the chance to be heard by the Filipino people.

"Lupa, edukasyon, karapatan, ipaglaban!"

After the Almusalang Bayan and educational talk, we had our march through Sandigang Bayan. While marching, we kept yelling chants. The march was a fantastic sight; we saw the UP community joined the march, together with students from other schools like PUP. Farmers, workers, and other sectors also went to Sandigang Bayan. At the Sandigang Bayan, different groups performed, with the theme of protest and dismay. While we heard PNoy's speech through the speakers, we gathered at the center to witness the burning of PNoy's effigy (head of PNoy that looks like a rotten penoy). After watching various performances, we again gathered in circles, and listened to two farmers from Hacienda Luisita and a worker from Pentagon as they shared their experiences.

Listening to their story made us feel bad. We really don't accept how come these people experienced such cases: being exploited, fooled, tortured, and killed by their merciless bosses and landlords. How come these bourgeois benefit more when it's the laborer who works and works? How come these Cojuancos and others possess a big chunck of land that is really not theirs? How come farmers in our country don't have their own land? PNoy, what are you doing?

It's also disappointing that PNoy never mentioned anything about the welfare of farmers and the improvement of education in his SONA. Instead, his SONA was filled with criticisms on the Arroyo administration. Why can't he move on in the past? Why did he keep on reviving Arroyo's negative issues whereas did nothing to fix the effects?

My message to PNoy? Move on with Arroyo, dude. Stop playing with your PSP. Ruling the Philippines is not like playing Sims. You have to be serious with the issues - issues involving your boss, as you said, the Filipino people. Kill the bourgeois state of thinking in your brain. Feel the burden carried by the majority - the farmers, the poor.

A Response to Jo Goodwing Parker's "What is Poverty?"

I am dumbfounded on how strong you were able to express your feelings on that essay. Now, it's my turn to speak out my mind. Hope my response would have a strong and clear conviction to everyone just like yours.

http://streetkidspm.wordpress.com/2010/12/02/philippines-over-decades-child-poverty-hasn%E2%80%99t-changed-much-ips-ipsnews-net/

You gave not only me - but the other readers as well - a clear and detailed picture of what poverty really is. Many people (I admit, that includes me before reading your essay) who are lucky enough to not experience your condition may not understand the real meaning of poverty. We may say that it's difficult living on such condition. But we really don't know how difficult it is. By reading your essay, readers like me was given a vivid impression about what you are talking about. Our suggestions of help were proved to be shallow when you counter-attaked it with explanations that shows our suggestions giving you more burden. You mentioned about the health of your children. We may have suggested about health clinics for they provide "free" check-ups for the poor. But letting us know how far the health clinic is in your place gave me an impression of guilt. It feels like suggesting about the health clinics and other related things makes us show that you're dumb to not think about them. But I realize it's us who's dumber for we do not think about knowing your condition first before giving shallow - or shall I say, useless - suggestions.

You say that the reader should "listen" to you without pity. I'm sorry, but even if you cannot use my pity, I can't stop feeling it, not only for you but for the entire misfortunate people who are suffering from poverty as well. Please don't take my pity in a bad way. It's normal for people to feel sympathetic over something that is way too sorrowful than his or her condition. Infact, the pity that I feel (and maybe the other readers as well, I hope) serves as an eye-opener to the real conditions of the society. It slowly removes my ignorance about the problems of society; it makes me aware of the hidden tyrant that is secretly ruling the society and sucking not only the wealth, but the rights of powerless people. This feeling may be the anger that you are referring to your essay - the anger that will help us help you.

Let me connect your condition to the situations of people here in our country. Majority of the people here experience poverty, just like you. They suffer from filthy environment, foul odor, poor hygiene, and poor health. You're still lucky somehow because you still manage to pay a rent of $20 for your house. But here, most of the poor people here don't have their own houses. Some sleep on sidewalks, with cartons or newspapers as their bedsheets and the sound of vehicles as their lullaby. Add the polluted air that they breathe and the danger that they may encounter everyday. Some also dare to squat on vacant lots and even under the bridges, despite the fact that soon the government will sent them away and their houses will be demolished.

In other countries, farmers are rich. They own their lands. Their government treat them well. But here we can see the opposite. Farmers are treated as slaves. They work on lands which they do not own and thus owned by what we call landlords. These landlords don't feel any strike of sympathy over these unfortunate farmers. They put the farmers into hard labor while there they are, sitting pretty and enjoying every vanity that only them can afford. Worse, they don't give back what these hardworking farmers deserve. The farmers work and the landlords benefit; the landlords get richer and richer, while the farmers get poorer and poorer until they strive into their life and soon, die with eyes open because of hunger.

The system of rich sucking the poor does not only occur to farmers. It also happens on ordinary people just like you and me. Why do you think you suffer from poverty? Maybe you'll say that it's the government's fault. But that's too broad. Of course we must examine on the roots. We must know why. I'm not completely sure if the reason of poverty in your place (or in any part of the world) is the same as ours. But here in our country, it is voiced out by many demonstrators that certain rich clans have been manipulating the government. Worse is that our president is said to be a part of those clans. Privatization starts to take place on the government sectors like on education and health. If before, the funds were subsidized by the government and thus making the social services free or affordable to the people, now the responsibility is passed on to private sectors (which are owned by the clans I'm referring to a while ago). But these private sectors, of course, will not only think about the benefit of the people (or shall I remove the word 'only') but instead treat it as a business matter or money making. Some government sectors, if not immediately passed on to private sectors, experienced a cut on budget first. Then slowly, as the budget to keep the sector running gets lower and lower, privatization takes place. People will surely suffer from increasing fees without having their salary increased, and thus making them poorer and poorer.

Because of the foul actions these "rich people" secretly do, more people experience poverty. That makes a lot of people - including me - angry. But questions keeps revolving on my head. What can I do? What a fifteen years old girl can do? Should I join those people who bravely show their protest against the government, or will I just let them speak out what's on my mind? I have a lot of "valid excuse" for me to not join such acts, but the conscience bounce back at me. I remember you asked the readers on the last part of the essay. Can I be silent too, just like the poor people who hardly express what they feel? If only I'm brave enough, free enough, and supported enough to speak out everything what's on my mind, I'll do my best to defend the rights of every people that were treated as inferiors by those rich people. But I am not. I may sound ironic now, but I have no choice. And I don't know how long I will be like this. For others, I'll just hope that if they have the capability to act in accordance to this situation, they will act now. But for myself, for now I'll just pray for people like you - for everyone - that one day, the triangle will be inverted, bringing the poor people or majority on top.

Click, Yes! Click, Oh No.

http://shareyourlovelifestoryatthisblog.wordpress.com/2011/03/09/ldr-long-distance-relationship/

Modern technology can make or break a couple engaged in a long-distance relationship. Text messaging and calls, voice chat and social networking sites are some of the advances whose pros and cons are critical in a relationship that depends largely on communication. These have been successful in bridging the gap between lovers separated by school, work or other priorities. Cellphones, laptops and computers make it easy for them to cope up with the time they have not spent together, making them feel as if they are not far away from each other. 

Conversely, these can also hinder understanding, generally when one is unfaithful, or when there is a third party involved. Information on these modes of communication can easily be tampered by someone else to smudge on a good relationship, or it can be altered to cover up deception. In this case, lack of communication is not the problem but the faulty use of it. 

Technology is created to make our lives better, but if used wrongly or excessively, it would turn make it the opposite. This general idea can be applied in a long-distance relationship, but what's really important is the love and trust of the two persons involved. It is not merely in the communication or distance problems where the relationship lies, but in the manner of how you deal with it to keep your bond strong, even stronger.

Define Stupidity

Warning: This blog entry has contents which may be unpleasant to read. We just add those up for the mood to be felt accurately.. Our apologies. And in some cases that this may sound familiar to you, remember that these are purely coincidences. This is a fictional story written by a real and not that insane writers who won't ever write about their own mashed up lives. This is simply a descriptive blog entry, a requirement for English 1.

http://thewedordeadwager.wordpress.com/2010/07/25/girls-are-stupid/

Please don't read this. I'm begging you.

Okay, fine! You're persistent, huh? Do you wanna take a piece of damn sh!t on what I'm talking about here? Then go waste the seconds of your life. Read. 

He's breaking the sh!t out of me. Hell yea, what has he done to me? I wasn't like this before. Why did I... Why did I easily fall for a son-of-a-b!tch!? I hate myself. But no matter what I do, he's already stuck in my head. I even remember the time that I first noticed him. Yea, noticed him, not just saw him. I saw him maybe a lot of times before but only on that time, that what-the-hell time, when I first noticed that little brat. He's kinda cute, and his smile suites him. Behind those eyeglasses are his char- nah, awkward description. Let's just say big. Yea, his big eyes were staring at me. I don't know why. Why is he staring at me? Is there something wrong with me? I acted like I don't seem to notice but I felt awkward. Then that awkwardness shifted to the feeling of delight; I felt like flying. I smiled, and I started imagining things which I'm really dying to experience in reality. Uh, that crazy moment. It's all his fault.

Day by day, I was always inspired to see the sunlight. Well, not the sunlight really, but him. But sometimes I learned to hate the glistening sun and love the pouring rain. It used to be a big mess for me if it rained while I'm walking, but because of that stupid guy I learned to enjoy it. Wouldn't you enjoy it if you're with the one that you like under one umbrella? It's so damn fantastic! I thought my heart is leaping. But, yea, I had to control myself. Am I that crazy to let him see that I'm very happy? Nah, no way. Pride man, pride.

I hate you Cupid. Wish Venus never gave birth to you.

 Love, love, love. Are you really capable of making our lives miserable? Yes! I'm really, really, miserable, freak. I can't control myself. Why is he so sweet? You know, he speaks so gently. His voice is like a music that I wanna listen for life. His laugh is the craziest yet the best sound I had ever heard. His smile? Yea, it's like fire. It melted the arrogant part of me. I was tamed. And the best part? When I was depressed. When I felt like quitting. He cheered on me. He motivated me. And I felt like being hypnotized by those sweet words that he uttered. It's like nirvana.

 I was once dumbfounded. But now I am simply... dumb.

 And because I'm dumb, I asked him stupid things which I wished I'd never asked. We were so close then, but suddenly I observed that he's sometimes too busy texting that he ignored the whole damn world. Out of curiosity I asked who is he texting. And in a snap, he told me, "She's [insert b!tch's name here]. She's the one I'm courting."

 Fvck you.

 I was once drenched in total delight. But now, I experience hangover. Collapsed. I feel like being crashed under a 10-wheeler truck. And because of anger I can really carry that 10-wheeler truck and throw it to that girl. Yea, that b!tch. She's very, very lucky. I haven't had the chance to meet her personally but... whoever she is, if she hurts him, she'll gonna regret being alive. And I will kill her. 

Nah, just kidding. I'm not a murderer, babe. I can kill her in my mind but, are you an idiot!? I hate blood, man. It's disgusting. Same as I. I'm very disgusting. I hate myself. I hate him. Wish I'd never...

 Wait, he texted. "Hi, how are you? :)" 

Am I smiling? Stupid.

A Retrospect: A Realization

Outside the four corners of what most people call home, is where Joshua finds paradise. The echoing sound of his footsteps, the trickling sweat of his body, and the reverberating pound of his heartbeat: those were the things he loved the most when he spends his time outdoors. Indoors, it was a whole lot different. 

Being raised by his grandparents, he always lacked the attention of his parents who were working abroad. He became hard-headed, moody and selfish. When he doesn't get what he want, he hides under the dining table, banging his head hard on the wall, so hard that neighbors would hear the thumping on their side. His grandparents have never lacked in giving him and his brother Julio what they need, but to him it just wasn't enough. His brother has always been responsive with their situation, and from what people see, Joshua has always been behind his brother's cloak. While his brother excels in academics though, Joshua spends his time playing with neighbors and friends. He finds his inner peace when his nerves, muscles, and bones get to work. 

That was ten years ago. When his family moved to another place, he surprisingly morphed to another person. It was like he was reincarnated to someone better. He became established, serious and giving. His parents became more watchful of his behavior. He gained a lot of friends and was known by many not because of his bad behavior but because of his friendliness and benevolence. His humble abode has become not just a house but a home, a haven. Though he turned to a home buddy, he always find time to play outside, reminiscing the past that he had, and the present he has. For him childhood does not define a life, but just a part of it. 

We Had to Do IT.

• • Stalking, stalking, stalking. It's a very exciting yet awkward activity for those people who are strucked by the arrows of Cupid, or for those who just wanted to relieve their boredom. It is exciting in a way that your heart beats so fast just when you see him or even his picture in his Facebook profile; awkward because you're somehow invading the private life of a person. Maybe this is also the reason why both of us didn't want to stalk a complete stranger. But because Ms. Louj assigned a blog post which involves stalking to practice our descriptive writing skills, we built up our guts to look for our victim. Yes, we stalked.

    

    
    

    After a week deciding who to stalk (actually we almost came up with the idea that we're just going to describe our ideal man to make our lives easier), we saw this not-that-ideal-to-be-stalked guy in Math Building. He's tall, fair-skinned, and sort of emo-haired. He's only simple; he wears T-shirt and pants. We even saw him wearing a white T-shirt with a Boysen print in front. When we saw him he's on the second floor. He's just there, studying his notes and eating his cupcake. Then, the next day we accidentally saw him walking with his cream-colored umbrella. We followed him through the Math Building, and then he again sat on the exact spot where we saw him, doing what he does the last time. We followed him again through the third floor, and then we discovered that his classroom is Room 316.

    
    

    We only stalked him for two days that's why we only knew a little detail about him. But based on our first impression, maybe he's the serious type - a man with a few words. He's somehow mysterious; there's something in him that you really want to know. Because of that, even if we're already done with this blog, we might stalk him again. We are somehow humiliated that he became a victim of our stalking plot, but we had no choice, we hope he didn't notice that. Because of this activity, we discovered that stalking is not only for those who are smitten in love, but also for those who are dominated by curiosity.

Who am I in the Eyes of Ms. Louj?

It’s easy describing yourself in your own view. But when you’re describing yourself in others’ view without any idea on what they think about you, that’s a different case. Just like now, I’m having difficult time thinking on how I will describe myself in Ms. Louj’s eyes. But I have to do this one, so I’ll just hope that my description will be accurate. :)

I think Ms. Louj sees me as an ordinary girl and student only. I am not that pretty, but there’s always a smile on my face. I participate on the discussion sometimes, and I take down notes. Just like what I said when I introduced myself in class, I don’t have enough confidence to speak in front of many people, especially when I don’t know them. When I’m speaking my voice gets shaky, and I pause for a while thinking of “appropriate” words to use.

About my personality, well, I think Ms. Louj doesn’t have any clear idea yet since we haven’t been together except in class. I think she’s not the type of person who judges a person based on first impressions (and I hope she really is because most people say that their first impression on me is that I’m snobbish and unfriendly). But, if Ms. Louj would let me, I want to show to her who I really am, and I want to know more about her too.

- Vigel Ramirez ♥

Placard: Signs of the Times

July 7, 2011

"Feeling good about government is like looking on the bright side of any catastrophe. When you quit looking on the bright side, the catastrophe is still there. "

~P. J. O'Rourke

We went to the Vargas Museum to check on the placard exhibit. We're Freshies, and this was our first time seeing an art exhibit in UP. Even though we encountered a little rain, our time was not wasted at all. We haven't seen the whole of the exhibit (we thought all the placards are those on the Vargas Museum Grounds only), but it was amazing to see some of the works of artists expressing their views on the current issues the Philippines is facing. What we have seen already gave a strong impression of what the artists want to impart to the people.

This display is not the conventional type because it composes of placards, an innovative and direct way of conveying the artists' perspective on the political concerns of our nation.

  

They can't fool us all the time. This placard shows how our government, represented by our President Aquino, is being "secretly" monopolized by other countries. We are not completely in control of our country.

This promotes that indigenous people should be given their own say about the matters related to them. They should not be held down by politicians who take advantage over them. 

We are aware of the extrajudicial killings that are happening in the Philippines. The people responsible for these cover up the dirty policies that the advocates are fighting against.

Children are deprived of the right to be educated. Education is not any more a privilege, but a consumer right.

We are deprived of the peace we are asking for. It's like we're talking to other nations' asses. They won't listen even if we plead.

WITH THESE PROBLEMS AT HAND, WILL WE EVER BE LIFTED FROM THE CATACLYSMS WE FACE?

Truly, this exhibit has been an eye opener for us. The signs of the times have been  powerful media to spread the word about the disheartening situation of our country, the government we are subjected to. Through this, people's voices would be heard, their views would be seen. It is up to us to listen, to comprehend. They fight not for themselves, but for us. These artists are our present-day Jose Rizals. We should look up to them and to what they fight for.