BBM's Thorny Road To Malacanang

The 2022 election is fast approaching and this early Bongbong Marcos is lording it over in the latest surveys dwarfing the pinkdilawan's bet Leni Robredo, or the charismatic mayor of Manila Isko Moreno Domagoso, the never say die boxer turned politician Manny Pacquiao and seasoned political stalwart Ping Lacson.

BBM has been in the top form and nobody can deny that his alliance with the presidential daughter Sara Duterte is a perfect combination as they complement each other very well (Marcos having his bastion in Ilocos/Luzon and Sara's bulwark and stronghold are Mindanao). It was a political marriage made in heaven. Any rocket scientist can easily surmise that they can almost smell the sweet aroma of victory and Visayas becomes the proverbial eye of political activities where they have to double time courting voters. Well, Leyte is already a Marcos country too being Imelda Marcos province.

After Bongbong filed his certificate of candidacy and applied for the position that is the highest in the land, several people have been running after him either to disqualify or invalidate his chances of being one of the official candidates. One petition says he is a convicted tax cheat, another that he was the son of the former dictator, that he is morally unfit, that he was a drug problem and the most unusual claim was that he's dead. And they don't want him to make the cut for the following reasons: 

1. tax-related issues and his old failure to file his income taxes for four consecutive years. - however, his lawyers countered that they can't prohibit him from running otherwise the Comelec would have not allowed BBM to run for governor, congressman, senator, vice president, and now the President of the Philippines.

2.  he was convicted by a Quezon City court for his multiple failures to file income tax returns from 1082 to 1985. Personally. I believe the petition is bound to collapse once evaluated by the Comelec because it appears to be defective in form and offers an insufficient legal basis and is unlikely to move forward. 

3. Another petition to stop BBM from running came from Ilokanos themselves. According to them his failure to pay his taxes is a "willful intent" to evade his payment obligations which the group said is tantamount to "moral turpitude".The petitioners band together with the common desire to uphold the rule of law.

4.  Martial law victims and human rights advocates filed also a petition to disqualify him being the son of the former dictator. They also noted that historical revisionism on the abuses and corruption committed during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. may be exacerbated should his son be elected to the highest post in government.

5.  Another petitioner was Tiburcio Marcos who claimed in a petition that the real Marcos Jr. allegedly died, and the person who filed his COC is an alleged impostor. “For Tiburcio, the principal petition raised was identity, something to the effect that BBM is not BBM. 

All these petitions are water under the bridge now. as Comelec has junked the bid to cancel Bongbong COC. But what caught my eye was the petition made by another Marcos who was putting a shade on the identity of a candidate applying for the highest position in the land. I heard all this gossip before, I thought it was just an urban legend, but it has its way of resurrecting and haunting BBM no less. 

And now more questions arise. Was this all true? Was BBM really dead? If he is, who is this impostor applying as president? Or is it just a figment of somebody's fertile imagination?  Or was this a bad joke that turned worst? Or some kind of political ploy to discredit him or shake the wits out of him? 

Was BBM really stabbed to death in Sussex England by his classmate? Oddly there was no news of a body being returned to the Philippines. And what is that story where BBM has to undergo plastic surgery so he will look like BBM? Shades of President Hidalgo being cloned and impersonated by Mariano in Ang Probinsiyano.  A case of art imitating life?

And the urban story's plot thickened.  Other versions said he was killed in a street mishap in Manila.  And the third version was that he was kidnapped by a radical group and was brought to Mindanao where he was killed.

Whatever is the answer to all these questions the voting public has the right to know.  They need clarity and transparency.  As I said before, I am apolitical and I am not voting because of my work, but the news, fake or not is polarizing ... at times confusing.

In his blog, I remember BBM facing the urban legend thingy head-on. 

The former senator has already belied this urban legend.  "For real, this is me, as you can see, for the entire history of my life, I was in the public eye. So don’t worry, this is me."

I Love You Enough

 "You don't love me anymore".  How many times have your kids said that one to you? And how many times have you as a parent resisted the urge to tell them how much?

Someday when my children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates parents, I will tell them.

I love you enough to bug you about where you are going, with whom, and what time you would get home.

I love you enough to buy you a skateboard or a bicycle, when I know what you get with it are abrasions, bruises, or fractures.

I love you enough to be silent and let you discover your "best friend" is a creep.

I love you enough to allow you to wink to that beautiful girl in the neighborhood when I know it is too early for you to do it.

I love you enough to stand over you for two hours while you clean your bedroom, a job that would take me only fifteen minutes.

I love you enough to say, "Yes you can go malling with your friends on Father's day."

1 love you enough to make excuses for your lack of respect or the bad manners you show to others.

I love you enough to admit I was wrong and asked your forgiveness.

I loved you enough to ignore what every parent did or said.

I love you enough to let you stumble, fall, hurt, and fail.

I loved you enough to let you assume responsibility for your actions.

I loved you enough to accept you for what you are, not what I wanted you to be.

But most of all, I LOVE YOU ENOUGH TO SAY NO WHEN YOU HATED ME FOR IT.

That was the hardest part of all.

Ang plataporma at mga pangakong tinupad nina BAYAW at Kong Manhik-Manaog

How To Differentiate Constructuve Criticism From Bullying

We are living in a world where call-out culture or cancel culture becomes a fad.  It is the practice or tendency of engaging in mass canceling as a way of expressing disapproval and exerting social pressure.  It becomes a way to hold people accountable, a tactic to punish others unjustly, or a mix of both. It becomes a license where one can just freely say something about you and give you feedback, or unsolicited advice, especially on social media.

In an extremely polarized community, the fact of the matter is even giving feedback sounds so euphemistic given how so much verbal discourse here in Misso ends up in a heated free-for-all tug of war where resolutions are nowhere in sight. There are no boundaries and there are no limits and when the discussion becomes personal, we always end up in name-calling, harsh rhetorics, and derogatory insults.  We are in limbo since there are no clear-cut demarcation lines and we are teetering in a precipice where the difference between constructive criticism vis a vis bullying becomes blurred and fuzzy.

Let us call a spade a spade. If somebody is telling you you’re doing something wrong and could improve in some way, it is quite unsettling especially if the receiver is not prepared for it. Her frail ego is not ready even for a tame critique and surely she will feel she is being singled out.  But there are means and ways that show the difference between getting constructive criticism from someone, and being bullied. And this is what we need to find out.

First, we have to define the two. Constructive criticism is providing feedback in a manner that acknowledges both the positives and where there is room for improvement instead of solely focusing on the negatives. It is a tool that helps to improve and promote further development or advancement. Whereas bullying is an ongoing and deliberate misuse of power through repeated verbal tirades that intends to cause physical, social, and/or psychological harm.

To further show the difference these are the things that we need to consider.

1. Choice of words and your language usage. We should choose our words carefully to convey a particular meaning and nuance in our work and to influence the desired change. Constructive criticism should at least include some words of encouragement, optimism, and support. Bullying on the other hand focus on giving humiliating and cheapening exchange that concentrate more on the receiver's shortcomings and vulnerability.

2. Reading between the lines - When Coco lambasted Catriona as fat, it caught the ire of the netizens.  The words “weight” and “unhealthy weight” were rated as the most preferable terminology for doctors to use when discussing excess weight, and “morbidly obese,” “fat” and “obese” were rated as the most stigmatizing and blaming.

3. Tone, inflection, and timber- Tone can be modulated and processed well when giving feedback verbally in person. And the same restraint can't be said to the person behind Facebook or Instagram or in a comments section of Missosology. But tone can set the tune to differentiate helpful and friendly assessment and observations vis a vis all-out bullying. Being civil and genteel is one means to thwart our susceptibility going into the bullying territory.

4. Denotations and Connotations - Denotations are the actual definition of the word while connotation is the feeling invoked by the word. In Coco's situation, fat and weighty have the same denotation.   Weight' brings out positive feelings, but fat brings out feelings that are just a little bit condescending.  In the same way, if you described somebody as mentally challenged your reader gets one feeling, but if you use a loaded word like 'crippled,' the reader has a much harsher reaction.

5. Frequency and Repetition -  Constructive criticism are usually done as a one-time, big-time thingy, But in bullying, it is repetitive, uninterrupted, and relentless. When you get your point across you don't have to beat a dying dog until he is gasping for his last breath. Don't dwell and you have to move on. Stick on discussing things that need improvement and the exchange could end up as refreshing and motivating.

6. Loaded words and allusions -Loaded language (also known as emotive language) is rhetoric used to influence an audience by using words and phrases with strong connotations, to invoke an emotional response. The loaded statement as in the case of Coco saying that "Catriona is fat and Clara Sosa is fit" contains a hidden trap and it was envisioned to create a flurry of the emotional pyrotechnic display in the consciousness of the readers.  The booby trap succeeded as it created a wild emotional response worldwide but it backfired and devalue whatever stride Coco is making in her resume as a beauty queen.

Catriona Gray calls for pageants to protect queens' mental health: 'Know the difference and boundary between feedback and outright bashing'

 The Philippine Star has published Catriona's reaction, seemingly an offshoot of Miss USA's Cheslie Kristalleged suicide.  Written by Ayie Licsi, the article was published last February 22, 2022. Here is the link to the write-up:

Full Article:

https://philstarlife.com/self/303872-ca ... kBmfXeNoXo

The 2018 Miss Universe winner paid tribute to the late Miss USA Cheslie Kryst, who struggled with high-functioning depression before her untimely death on Jan. 30.

She highlighted how pageantry currently lives online, which is both a good and bad thing.

"Most of our platforms are now elevated to exist almost solely, if not for the most part, on social media, and it's great. It allows me as a representative to reach out to an audience to have an impact, to have their voices heard. But it also gives millions of people access to an individual," Gray said.

"There are two different sides of pageantry, there's either the really positive side—I feel empowered, I feel confident, I feel like I have a voice, I have a platform. And then there's the other side where I feel pressured, I've been the subject of bullying, shaming, I've been pulled down. I just think it's a really sad thing that it's so polarizing in that way," she continued.

Acknowledging that trolls and naysayers will always exist in the realm of pageantry, the singer called on fans, international organizations, and delegates to do their part in being mindful of mental health.

"If you're a fan of pageantry, please know the difference and the boundary between feedback and outright bashing," the Filipina beauty began. "Derogatory terms, harsh critique and unkind words are better left unsaid."

Gray added that she herself has been a victim of such negative speech online and said it can take a toll when the comments are in the hundreds.

"To organizational bodies and even pageant communities that exist online, please take a stand. Do not tolerate that type of commentary on your platforms. There are certain tools that you can utilize, filtering words or having social media managers that filter out the really below-the-belt, terrible comments. Just make the stand that this is not tolerable in our community," she said.

In addressing her fellow representatives and future delegates, Gray suggested they can reach out to fans of theirs who are actively putting down other contestants—something that she has done in the past.

"I encourage you to privately message them and just take the time to say 'Hey, I really appreciate that you're supporting me but please I hope that you would not use this platform to put down another contestant. Please just lift each other up.'"

Kwentong Jollibee Valentine Series 2022: 600 DAYS

A love that is real

is forever worth fighting for.

Find the real meaning of love.

Oinoy Humor