SONA Maging Honest Naman Tayo!

I didn't get to watch the SONA 2006 (I was at work, hay). But I was told that PGMA is still doing the same damn thing she does every year in her SONAs--pausing so evidently and regularly to wait for the crowd to clap in praise. This is actually sad, when you think about it. Pausing to wait for the crowd to clap?! Let me sum up all the mixing emotions I feel about this ridiculous act into a single word--PATHETIC.

So anyway, just like last year, and the year before that, we are once again being bombarded with promises and scripted presentations to merely entertain. But these are not what we need to hear during SONAs. Although I do take great pride in Manny Pacquia, the Mt. Everest team and the winners of the SEA Games, the SONA is not the right place to glorify them. There are other avenues for that.

I absolutely agree with my dad when he said that she was mentioning achievements that she did not do! That's just not right. There are a lot more other things that the people wanted to hear from her that she neglected to announce.

Perhaps it is not unusual for presidents to announce nothing but good things during his or her State of the Nation Address. But this fact does not make it right. The people do not need promises that have no hopes of coming true. The least that they can give us is honesty (even an iota of it).

How can a person go up on stage and tell everyone that the poverty rate has gone down when millions continue to be hungry every waking day of their lives? How can a person boast about our economy steadily rising when no one can feel any betterment in their lives?

And then promises continue to pour. And they're not even the usual promises, no, this time she goes up a notch telling everyone that she'll be doing something extravagant and amazing. Great! I mean, really, that's great! The problem is, she didn't say how she's going to implement her proposed programs. And where the hell are we going to get money for those? We are trillions of pesos in debt!

Oh, wait, I know... let's do that thing that we always do when we need funds... GET THE PEOPLE'S MONEY! That's just grand. I'm sure the people would looooooooove to give their money to the government and not seeing any improvement whatsoever in theire lives! Oh yeah, people will definitely be lining up the gates of Malacanang to offer this government their hard-earned and barely-enough-for-their-subsistence money!

...

The sad thing really is, after all the name-calling, after all the protests, after all the ranting about the government, its witch-queen and her cohorts, there's really nothing for us to do... but pray.

Well, maybe if we pray hard enough, and really mean it, we might just all witness a grand miracle before we die.

The Pastor Has Guts!

I got an email with this particular title and loved it. I thought it fitting to post this piece here than in the other blog. However, I've researched about this and found that the email, although based on actual events, is quite inaccurate. Below, you will find the actual prayer offered by Reverend Joe Wright during a session of the Kansas House of Representatives (not the Senate, as circulated in the emails). According to snopes.com, this letter is actually a version of another prayer written in 1995 by Bob Russell for the Kentucky Governor’s Prayer Breakfast.

Heavenly Father, we come before you to ask your forgiveness. We seek your direction and your guidance. We know your word says, "Woe to those who call evil good." But that's what we've done.

We've lost our spiritual equilibrium. We have inverted our values. We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your word in the name of moral pluralism. We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.

We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle.

We've exploited the poor and called it a lottery. We've neglected the needy and called it self-preservation. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. In the name of choice, we have killed our unborn. In the name of right to life, we have killed abortionists.

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it political savvy. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it taxes. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us, oh, God, and know our hearts today. Try us. Show us any wickedness within us. Cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of the State of Kansas, and that they have been ordained by you to govern this great state.

Grant them your wisdom to rule. May their decisions direct us to the center of your will. And, as we continue our prayer and as we come in out of the fog, give us clear minds to accomplish our goals as we begin this Legislature. For this we pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

Mano Pope

An excerpt from The Philippine Daily Inquirer news report (June 28, 2006)...

Headline: ‘Pope knows about Garci scandal,’ says Bishop Cruz

‘Height of hypocrisy’

The Tanggulan Youth Network for Civil Liberties and Human Rights said the abolition of the death penalty law was the “height of hypocrisy.” “That the spate of extrajudicial killings continues unabated renders the abolition of the death penalty law a mere token act to boost Arroyo’s image,” said Alvin Peters, convenor of Tanggulan.

Dion Carlo Cerrafon, Student Christian Movement of the Philippines (SCMP) chair, said “it seems that the value of human life is the least concern of the administration.

Amen!

Isn't It ironic? Don't You Think?

I just read the Editorial of today's Philippine Daily Inquirer. I was browsing through it, which by the way I haven't really finished reading yet because I thought I'd rather write this piece while I still can since what I'm doing is not legal around here (using the internet other than for work-related purposes), and the very first paragraph made me wonder at once.

In verbatim, the paragraph goes... "JUSTICE Secretary Raul Gonzalez said the other day that “you can’t avoid collateral damage” in the conduct of the government’s all-out campaign against the communist insurgency. He said the loss of civilian lives might be unavoidable in the all-out war."

Off topic: he's been unleashing ridiculous comments again all over the TV and radio. Might I be given a chance to say that THIS GUY IS CRAZY! Disgrace to the profession!

However, his statement above is not as crazy, because it's true. Indeed, in an all out war, it can't be help that there will be civilian casualties. What I find ironic is this...

GMA has been pushing for the abolition of the death penalty for the longest time, right? And yet, she keeps declaring war with different groups!

See the irony?

I think the whole point of abolishing death penalty is to value life. On the other hand, the whole point of a war is to destroy lives!

Argh! When will this madness end?!

This woman has been playing both sides ever since she started politics. Did you all know that?

She was a member of the Liberal Party in her early political days, and then I think she went and joined another party. My point is, this woman has no sense of loyalty. And yet, we so openly trusted her to sit in the highest position of the land. Because really, no matter how much we say that the 3 branches of the government (executive, legislative and judicial) are equal...that's just in theory!

I didn't go to the EDSA 2, as people call it. I've always thought it was ridiculous. And now... can we now accept that it truly was? We overthrew a president that was practically illiterate, a gambler, a chronic drinker and womanizer; but he was a good man. He may not be the best, and God knows I really didn't want him to be our president, but he was a good man. He was an idiot, but at least he didn't go out and kill people.

But good man wasn't enough for us. He had to be clean. He had to have no more than one wife. He had to have no other children except from that one woman. He had to be perfect. So we threw him out and replaced him with an intelligent woman. A crazy b***h who's trying to hold the entire country by the neck! Who only won vice president because she danced cha-cha on stage everytime she campaigned.

And really, isn't THAT the biggest irony of all?

Death Penalty Finds Its Death

With a 16-0 vote, the Senate approves Senate Bill (SB) 2245, which will repeal Republic Act (RA) 7659 or more popularly known as The Death Penalty Law. RA 7659 imposes the death penalty, as maximum penalty, on certain crimes in the Revised Penal Code. Among these crimes are murder, rape (when certain aggravating circumstances are present), kidnapping (especially when the pupose of which is to extort ransom), and robbery (where the following crimes are at the same time committed: homicide, rape, arson, intentional mutilation).

Should the Bill become a Law, all criminals on death row will automatically be benefitted by it; thus, their sentence will be lowered from Death to Reclusion Perpetua (which is not exactly a Life Imprisonment, rather it is actually 20 years and 1 day to 40 years). This is what is called a Retroactive Effect. This means that it was as if the penalty of those criminals on death row has always been Reclusion Perpetua to begin with.

Now, here comes the people from the red corner and the people from the white corner. Naturally, in all controversies, there will always--ALWAYS--be at least 2 sides. The same goes in this issue. On the one hand, many victims of these heinous crimes do not approve of abolishing death penalty. On the other, many people believe that life is something God gave and that He is the only one who has the right to take it away.

Question: On which side of the ring are you?

I'm all go for the abolition of Death Penalty. "You don't know how it feels to lose someone so horribly," someone might say. True. Perhaps if I did go through the same torment as those who have lost their loved ones because of another's senseless killing, I might also be constrained to want the killer to die as payment for what he's done. An eye for an eye. But, just because I'm full of rage and would want the killer to pay for the life he has taken with his own life, it doesn't mean that it's right.

If you've seen the film Dead Man Walking, you might remember Sean Penn's character (totally forgot the name) being given the chance to say his last words in front of the parents of the victim he's killed. He said he was very sorry for what he's done and believes that nobody has the right to take a life for whatever reason. For whatever reason. Even if someone probably really deserved to die... nobody has the right to take a life for whatever reason.

Miriam-i Nang Matang Pinaluha

Don't wonder why I'm writing something about her now. Didn't you hear that she's all over the press saying she might not finish her term in the Senate because she's going to resign? I don't know if she's serious. I heard my parents talking about her. They said she's only probably saying that to get some attention; because nobody's talking about her anymore. I don't know. I'm still giving her the benefit of the doubt, but it's difficult to take her seriously anymore. Remember that whole I-will-jump-off-a-plane-head-first-if-Estrada-is-arrested incident? Yeah, well, he was arrested and when she was reminded of her statement, she did this ridiculously evil laugh and said, "I lied". I thought, "that's it. she's crazy." Honestly, I don't even know why she was still elected in the Senate. I think it's time for her to go home and rest with her family.

You know what though, I'm feeling generous. Let's just be reminded of her achievements long, long ago when she was still thinking straight.

Miriam Defensor-Santiago was valedictorian in Elementary and High School in Iloilo. During college, she became the first female editor-in-chief of the UP student paper called The Philippine Collegian, ending a 50-year-old male dominance therein. In 1965, she graduated magna cumlaude in her degree of Bachelor of Arts; while come 1969, she graduated cum laude from UP-College of Law.

From 1983-1987, she presided in the Regional Trial Court, Branch 106, Quezon City. Thereafter, she worked in the government until 1991. In 1988, she was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for government service. She ran for the presidency twice but lost both times to Fidel Ramos and Joseph Estrada, respectively. She also ran to be Senator 3 times and lost only in the 2001 elections.

If you'd like to go into some more details about her. Just click her picture and you'll be directed to the source of all these information.

Expensive Education

Article XIV, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution states (in verbatim): The State shall protect and promote the right of all citizens to quality education at all levels and shall take appropriate steps to make such education accessible to all.

The word "shall" makes this statement not merely declaratory but mandatory. The Constitution mandates the State (the government, as used here) to make sure that the right of all Filipinos to "quality" education should not be compromised; and that education should be accessible to all. But I think we're all aware that this is not happening right now.

"The continuous rise in tuition fees for all school levels, both public and private, has remained a major financial challenge for today’s parents. Some of them placed their hopes in educational plans for their children, and yet, pre-need firms like the College Assurance Plan (CAP) and Pacific Plans were no help at all," said Susan Obedoza from Center for Women's Resources.

The Philippine Star reports that according to Commissioner on Higher Education (CHED) Chairman Carlito Puno, 99 colleges and universities have filed petitions for tuition fee increases. Of those 99 colleges, 35 are seeking increases beyond the 7.6-percent ceiling increase set by CHED.

The problem is education has become a business franchise. People build schools not to extend knowledge but to make lots and lots of money. All right, I concede to the fact that if you want good education, you should get very good professors. Otherwise, there's just no point, right? And that entails releasing big amounts of money, just so we could get the best. But if we move our stare somewhere below the tuition fees in our statement of account... BOOM! MISCELLANEOUS FEES!

How huge is your miscellaneous fees?! You know, maybe there should be some sort of convention for students just to discuss miscellaneous fees. I'm shocked every time I look at my statement of fees, even if they break it down, I still can't accept the fact that I'm paying for something that I barely see and use.

So if I'm all pissed about my school fees, which my parents can pay for (albeit crawling just to get money), what about those who are going insane thinking of where they're going to get their food, let alone money for tuition.

Ang wish ko lang is that sana, kahit mangurakot ang mga nangungurakot sa gobyerno natin, maglaan naman kayo para sa mga taong pinangungurakutan nyo! Ang kapal ng mukha nyo! Buset!

An Intro of this Blog

Better late than never, right?

I had initially planned to have an introduction for this blog before posting an actual opinion/reaction of stuff. But I figured that the Batul issue sparked too much of my interest to let it wait. So I posted that as soon as I could.

Anyway, Motion to Dismiss is the title of this blog because, aside from the brief (and quite revealing) intro situated right under the title, I had planned to use this as my reaction/opinion online journal regarding politics, the law, and social issues. Personal thoughts regarding random stuff will be placed in another blog, which I hope some of you will get to read as well. Suportahan nyo ko ha! hehe.

Motion to Dismiss is part of the subject Civil Procedure which covers the processes and remedies that a lawyer/person can avail to fight his/her case in court. Knowing this procedure will give an aggreived person more edge in his case... to help him win or get the best of what he deserves. A motion to dismiss is a request where one party asks the judge to terminate the case because of the presence of a ground or grounds that will make the case "un-triable" (that's not actually a legal term, I'm just trying to make it easier to understand).

Hopefully, I have enough brain, energy and perseverance to keep this blog going. And if you have any reactions, violent or otherwise, I would appreciate them all. I would also appreciate it if you could pass the word on about this blog. The more people who reacts and gives their opinions, the better.

Thanks!