I returned a few days ago from a wonderful, restful vacation – a report on which will be forthcoming – during which time I was able to mentally reorganize and decide what I should focus on and how. And not a moment too soon; while we were away, our phones were already lighting up with news of the ongoing calamity being caused by the fascist seizure of power in the US (in that instance, it concerned the shutdown of USAID, about which I will have more to say later in the week), and things are going from bad, to worse, to catastrophic, almost hour-by-hour since.
It is time to pick a side and fight. Do we embrace the fascism, the discrimination, the corruption, the hate; or do we stand for reason, compassion, fairness, and moral care? Choose for yourself, but know this: If you do not choose the latter, we are now enemies.
Task and purpose. Every one of us who wish for a better world, a world in which everyone can at least live with dignity, had better figure those out and get to work. I’ve decided for myself, and I appreciate having had the luxury of some moments of peace far from everyday chaos to allow me to do that.
One small but important part of that package of actions for me is to make better use of this space, so this post is the first installment in what I intend to be a manageable schedule of regular updates. That will proceed as follows: On Mondays, a post containing links and a brief summary of The Manila Times editorials from the previous week; on Tuesdays, a similar post of my previous week’s columns; and on Fridays, something original and exclusive to this blog.
A brief explanation about The Manila Times editorials: Among my several roles at the paper, I am a member of the Editorial Board (there are about 10 of us), and I actually write three of the seven daily editorials each week. The process is that proposed editorial topics are shared in our private Editorial Board chat group; usually they are accepted without disagreement, but debate does sometimes happen, and once a consensus is acknowledged, whatever is written becomes the position of the paper on the topic at hand. I’m not going to identify which ones are mine (most people can tell, anyway), because I am not speaking for myself, but rather our learned collective.
Monday, January 27, 2025: Impact of climate change on children overlooked
Tuesday, January 28, 2025: Battling the two-headed dragons of poverty and hunger
Wednesday, January 29, 2025: Trump discrimination-based aid cuts must be condemned
Thursday, January 30, 2025: Encouraging private sector participation in development – Meaning, in this case, development that has traditionally been the responsibility of government and development institutions, such as large-scale infrastructure with a social element, healthcare, education, and environmental management.
Friday, January 31, 2025: China combines diplomacy and duplicity to dominate South China Sea
Saturday, February 1, 2025: Climate resilience is key to economic growth
Sunday, February 2, 2025: A timely partnership – This concerns the recent agreement between the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and TikTok to combat disinformation in the campaign for the May, 2025 midterm elections here.
A note on the paywall: Much of our content, particularly the opinion section, is accessible on a paid subscription basis, or by single-article access purchase (usually P30, about the cost of buying the actual paper). I make no apologies for this, nor will I go around the paywall as a matter of routine; this is, after all, the biggest part of my livelihood, as well as that of 300+ of my fellow workers.
However, I will be happy to make exceptions for deserving readers. If you are a student, a member of the clergy, or a non-profit researcher, and you would like to access something behind our paywall, please feel free to ask, and I will assist you.
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