What is happening in the USA is definitely none of my business, but allow me to give my 2cents worth about President Joe Biden’s decision to terminate the 20-year US occupation and war in Afghanistan. He said: “I am the President of the United States of America, the buck stops with me.” That did not … Read more
“La Solidaridad”, that valiant fortnightly of the Propaganda Movement bid its readers farewell on 15 November 1895. Its maiden issue was dated 15 February 1889, and against all odds, it survived for almost 7 years. Graciano Lopez Jaena was its first editor, then Plaridel (Marcelo del Pilar) took over. It had distinguished contributors like the … Read more
In the days of Lapu Lapu, the “umalohokan” (town crier) was the main source of breaking news. As soon as towns people heard his gongs and horns, they quickly gathered around him to hear the latest which could be new laws of their datus, instructions of barangay elders, or the goings-on in neighboring settlements. The … Read more
How ironic; the current unemployment rate in the USA is 10 per cent, very high for American standards, but at the same time, there is a labor shortage. In agriculture, specifically in the fresh produce sector American farmers have to depend on migrant labor. It is impossible to mechanize the production of vegetables, fruits, myriad … Read more
When I woke up that morning, my grandmother was not in her bedroom. Where did she go, without me? Then the doorbell rang; I scurried to the window in time to see her walking down the driveway in her usual brown frock, but on flat shoes. How strange that she had not taken the family … Read more
He wrote in English to the editor of the “HongKong Telegraph”, but did not sign his real name. “Yours faithfully, Philippino”, was how he ended. Curiously, the date line was Manila, 1 February 1892, although he was still in Hong Kong. His second homecoming was in June. Rizal’s letter began with, “Owing to the great … Read more
The Spanish-American War of 1898 was described as inter-imperialist by no less than Lenin himself because it was a grab for existing colonies. That was how Dr. George Aseniero, eminent Filipino historian and authority on Rizal, began his brilliant paper, “The Game of Great Powers: Rizal on Imperialism.” The Spanish-American War was not fought in … Read more
San Pedro Calungsod, patron of sacristans and overseas Filipino workers (0FWs), was a mere adolescent when he was killed in Guam by natives called Chamorros. Born in 1654, during the habagat season, Pedro was killed in the summer of 1672. He was barely 18. He died defending his master, Fr. Diego Luis Sanvitores, a Jesuit … Read more
Luna, Arquitecto is not exactly an art book, it is more of a secular decretum that distills social history; it is also a tender and inquisitive life story of a tortured soul whose creativity and technical virtuosity raised the bar of Philippine architecture. The dedication page immediately jabs one’s curiosity— “In memory of the little … Read more
None of the Filipino trade unionists who attended the 1924 Conference of Transport Workers of the Pacific in Canton (now Guangzhou), China were communists. One of them, Domingo Ponce, disclosed that they were totally unaware the conference was convened by communists, until they heard speeches praising the 1917 Bolshevik revolution in Russia. At the turn … Read more