Far From Neutral Notions - Philippine politics, culture and stuff

Much has been said, and even more mud has been tossed, regarding the acerbic wit of Malu Fernandez and her detractors. I’ve presented my one peso (roughly 2 cents) on the matter. Others, weighing in, have taken the high road, a path that I, not unlike Robert Frost, often wax romantic about but very seldom take. Like a certain captain of a certain 03-K64 Firefly-class mid-bulk transport with a standard radion accelerator core, I’m a fan of all seven sins, but most often, I’m partial to wrath. And in one of my rare moments of introspection, I actually bothered asking myself “why”. Could it be, as some may have suggested, mob mentality? Did I — and many others — lose track of the original issue, merely jumping on the bandwagon?

That observation has merit, of course. I’m not an OFW, and I do not have many close relatives or friends who are. In the past I have been critical of people who leave this, my country, for a hodgepodge of personal reasons, not the least of which is my disdain for the arrogance and near-instantaneous cultural amnesia most Fil-Ams I know possess. But then, I’m lucky enough to have never needed to leave (yet). I’m this way because, so far, I can still afford to be. I don’t know how it is to actually need to work abroad. I may not be directly in the same demographic that Malu Fernandez mocks, but I’m likely in the general area. By all rights, I shouldn’t be this angry, I shouldn’t have taken it personally, and neither should a lot of other people.

So why, then, the outrage?

I am neither joining the bandwagon, nor am I all of a sudden part of a mob and their mentality. I do not speak for the others, nor do they for me. That I have joined the fray does not speak for itself. I have my reasons, that I will try to make clear. I am this angry precisely because it’s a luxury that I can, but still only just barely. It rankles me to no end that people like Malu Fernandez can take that luxury for granted, when so much more can’t afford to care. It pisses me off that they’re in a position to make a difference and make lives better, yet they waste their time nitpicking about designer clothes. I hate the fact that, save for an enlightened few, being aware and concerned about what’s going on in this country is not a matter of course, but a matter of finance. I resent the decadence and haughtiness of the elite because there are many that have to resort to leaving everything they love behind just to put food on the table. I rage because they have the temerity to laugh about it, when we have to bleed for it.

The economic divide in this country is as large as it is oppressive, but that does not make that status quo right, nor correct. And it is the height of arrogance to rub it in. I took it personally because it is personal. I can’t eat my indignation and concern, and as much as I’d want to, I wouldn’t be able to say what I need to say or care about my country the way I do if I didn’t have a job or have food on the table. What luxuries I have came from my parents’ hard work, and to some small extent, mine. They toiled for years to give me what they can, to provide for me and my brother so that we can grow into our own. I developed my sense of nationalism and self-worth, self-actualization, without fear of going hungry thanks to them, and that means the world to me. What Malu Fernandez wrote is a spit in the face of all that. Because she never had that problem. She’s probably set for life.

So I do identify with the OFWs and their families. To take lightly what they go through and to belittle their simple joys is to take me lightly and to belittle my simple joys, and I will have none of that.

Your moment of Zen:

Well I woke up this morning
On the wrong side of the bed
And how I got to thinkin’
About all the things you said
About ordinary people
And how they make you sick
And if callin’ names kicks back on you
Then I hope this does the trick

‘Cause I’m sick of your complainin’
About how many bills
And I’m sick of all your bitchin’
‘Bout your poodles and your pills
And I just can’t see no humor
About your way of life
And I think I can do more for you
With this here fork and knife

(Chorus)
Eat The Rich
There’s only one thing that they are good for
Eat The Rich
Take one bite now - come back for more
Eat The Rich
I gotta get this off my chest
Eat The Rich
Take one bite now - spit out the rest

Believe in all the good things
That money just can’t buy
Then you won’t get no bellyache
From eatin’ humble pie
I believe in rags to riches
Your inheritance won’t last
So take your Gray poupon my friend
And shove it up your ass

Aerosmith, Eat the Rich

Popularity: 11% [?]