Everything I know about Truth and Justice, I learned from Comic Book Heroes.

(WARNING! GEEK CONTENT! For those who might not know who Dr. Strange is, feel free to look him up here; details about the animated film can be found here.)

It was a time of crisis. A malevolent being of pure energy, Dormammu, had returned to Earth, bent on conquest and destruction. In its way stood Doctor Strange, and his contemporary Wong. Their mentor, the Ancient One, had just died in combat. Someone needed to take ownership of the Eye of Agamotto, an artifact of immense magical power, and assume the title of Sorcerer Supreme, to combat Dormammu.

"Take the Eye of Agamotto, Stephen. Take it, and become the Sorcerer Supreme."

"I do not want this power, Wong. I refuse to take it. I am sorry."

"It is because you do not want it, Stephen, that the Eye belongs to you."

These are approximately (apologies for any inaccuracies, if you happen to know the exact lines let me know ASAP) the lines from Doctor Strange: The Sorcerer Supreme, an animated film recently shown on HBO. It is a story about power and destiny, and about the fates of those who lust for power, and those who respect it enough to refuse it.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it?

Certainly, in our world today there is no malevolent being of pure energy, bent on conquest and destruction; instead we have defiant politicians of pure greed, bent on political conquest and self-preservation. Feel free to supply names here. Of particular interest is how Dormammu gained a foothold into Earth from his otherwordly prison: using his vast powers, he lulled children to sleep, in order to create an alternate gateway between his place of exile to our world. Not unlike how some politicians have used their vast wealth and resources in churning out one political ad after another, one jingo after another, to lulling people into a political catatonia. And what better opportunity there is to steal an election: when everyone's unconscious.

Of course, one might argue that buying is not the same as stealing; in any other case that would be correct, but during elections, a bought vote is a stolen vote in every sense of the word. It is a vote that was earned by preying on the weak and taking away their only prized possession - their inborn right to pursue their own liberty and happiness by way of voting a leader who can and will help them achieve this - and leaving them with barely enough to survive the ordeal, whether it be a house and lot in some forsaken wasteland far removed from friends and family, or some piddling meal for the day. It is a violance against the Filipino citizen worse than rape and murder, it is an affront to Filipino freedom worse than unjust imprisonment, it is a slap in the face of Filipino liberty worse than torture.

Last February 25, we had given out shirts to volunteers and supporters in attendance at Araneta Center. Its message was simple: "I am a Filipino, My Vote is NOT for Sale!" Simple words, yet such a bold statement it makes. I hope we continue to spread this message of hope throughout the country as May 10 draws near.

As for Noy and Mar? Well, it's easy to see where the parallelism is here.


"Take the candidacy for President, Noy. Take it, and become the next President of the Philippines."

"I do not want this power, Mar. I refuse to take it. I am sorry."

"It is because you do not want it, Noy, that the Presidency should belong to you."


Cartoon heroes can speak the truth too. And when they do, it is indeed priceless.

Of Young and Old

Bumped into my 1st Grade teacher, Mrs. Garcia, the other day while I was doing the paperwork for claiming my academic records from Ateneo de Manila University. She was as bright and sunny as I remember her, despite having already retired from teaching. Funny, and flattering, if I may say so, that she had asked me for directions around the college campus, mistaking me for a student. (Granted, I was wearing wardrobe my son had selected while I was getting dressed, a Superman logo shirt and casual shorts - interesting how Liam has beter fashion sense that I do, at the age of two.) Surprising though that she recalled who I was just by me mentioning my nickname, a skill I unfortunately never developed during my teaching days.

I had joked that Ateneo was kicking me out, and when I saw that she thought I was serious, I clarified that I was asking for my academic credentials to be transferred to the University of the Philippines as part of my law school application - and in completing this, I could no longer request for my records from Ateneo from that point onwards.

As we went along our separate ways, I couldn't help but think on how long ago it was when I was in her classroom - 13 years! Time seems to have been kinder to her than most others.

At the very least, it's been kinder to her than to my student records. It took the Cashier's Office about half an hour to locate my info; even then they had to contact the Registrar's Office to confirm the details. Even so, I think I'll miss those moments, given the hellish stories I've heard of UP's processes.

~ ~ ~

Most certainly, time has been kinder to Mrs. Garcia than it has to Gilbert Remulla. It seems that rather than sharpening his perception of reality, time has dulled it even more. What other reason could there be, other than this, for him to persistently kick the dead horse that is the Hacienda Luisita issue?

In fact, this seems to be his campaign strategy: Bash Noynoy and hopefully look good.

The veracity of his claims aside, there's one glaring problem to this strategy: his own Presidential candidate and bankroller, Manny Villar.

To date, there are 3 major controversies involving Villar: the C-5 road extension, the landgrabbing issue in Bulacan, and a similar road extension project in Iloilo. And now there's the issue of Villar allegedly paying the NPA "revolutionary taxes" to campaign in rural areas where the NPA operate.

Where is Remulla's fiery challenges in the face of these controversies? Where is Remulla's fierce sense of justice? Where is Remulla's stinging exposes and repartees?

Wherever those things are, they're not likely sharing the same space as Villar's bottomless bank accounts.

See, Remulla, it's this simple: You fight for "truth and justice," you fight for truth and justice wherever the fith takes you. At best, you do no shy away from the fight when it takes you to where the money flows everlasting.

The words of Ernesto Maceda ring true today as they did when they wre first uttered: "So young, and yet so corrupt."

Getting Things Straight

My acceptance letter from UP finally arrived by mail last week, and so I endeavored to drop by UP and let them know I was interested in enrolling this school year (LOLZ, as if I'd pass up an opportunity like this!).

I got to the Office of the College Secretary, handed the letter (and asked them to signed a receiving copy, force of habit), then for convenience's sake, I was asked to complete a few forms. While I was completing the forms, I noticed that one of the documents I had to submit was an official transcript of records.

I asked the lady behind the counter, "Miss, didn't I already submit this before I took the entrance test?"

She checked my file, and found that my transcript had the words "For evaluation purposes" written on it, and thus wasn't acceptable; it either had to be unmarked, or had to explicitly say, "For the University of the Philippines." Good job to my alma mater for messing that up, even after I told them not to do that.

Thanking her, I gave my wife Karen a quick call, as we were supposed to have lunch before I took my pre-work beauty sleep, and she told me to get the transcript request done first. 10 minutes later, I'm staring at the Registrar's Office windows in Ateneo de Manila as they close the shutters and take their lunch break for the day - with me not getting the transcript request done.

C'est la vie.

In any case, it was good that I asked when I saw something odd. Had I assumed that my previous document was sufficient, I would have had egg in my face come April 15, the deadline for documents submission. Not the best of ways to start out a career in law. ;)

~ ~ ~


Interesting factoid: Manny Villar's campaign spending is roughly equivalent to the GDP of Niue, a self-governing nation with a free association with New Zealand. For the GDP it generates, Niue has free WiFi for all its inhabitants. For Villar's spending, we get annoying TV/radio jingles and rehashed game show segments. Something's not quite right here.

Another interesting factoid: The oft-cited Pulse Asia Survey citing Manny Villar as the "most trusted" presidential candidate is not entirely accurate; at the very least, the survey was done at the same time that a Pulse Asia survey showed Aquino and Villar neck-and-neck. Certainly that does not apply today.

Let's also consider our timelines: Pulse Asia "trust rating" survey was done Jan. 22-25. Session discussing the C-5 controversy was done on Jan. 25, with Enrile's "bribery" charge leveled on Jan. 27. Villar makes his 1-hour speech and 30-second exit on Feb 2. Seriously, with survey results so far out of the context, how can anyone take it seriously?

And now this: http://ping.fm/6ohVQ

So, let's get this straight: You want to become President, presumably to help the poor, but you're willing to dupe and lie your way to the Presidency?

Geez. The lady at the Office of the College Secretary at UP Law seems to have more integrity and desire to help than you.