New arrangement for visitors

Hi Ellen!
Thanks. It’s better this way, we can get rid of nuissance elements na siguro mga bayaran. More power to you. Keep writing!
Best regards from Japan

I’m glad you are taking measures to preserve decency here. Welcome back.

Ellen,

Rizalist writing in his blog is absolutely spot on: there was no coup d’état. I don’t believe there was even an attempt to launch a coup d’état. However, I am inclined to believe that there was an attempt to incite fellow officers to commit mutiny. Coup d’état or even just attempted coup d’etat is very different from inciting to mutiny.

But at the rate things are going, in the scheme of things backed by Gloria’s own overreaction with her SEO, she and her government have just provided the grounds for the already dissatisfied and confused elements in the military to organize and attempt a coup d’état in the not so distant future.

Gloria herself wreaked havoc on the last remaininng fibers of a semblance of government.

Those who ask her to step down have a legitimate reason for doing that – Gloria’s mandate is heavily tainted with fraud but Gloria herself and her government didn’t have to push the level of discontent in the military this far. She’s listening to bad advisers.

People are not dumb, they react because they believe it’s their right to exercise freedom of speech. Overall, their reactions were not based solely on one criterion: hate of the president! Their reactions were a manifestation of what Gloria poor and putrid governance and not, as one blogger put it just raw emotions.

No, Gloria’s continuing provocation of the people, the corruption (need I remind everbody here of the Bing Rodriguez affair that actually involved Mike Arroyo?), the abuse, the mismanagement, etc. from day 1 of her ascension to power have added to a litany of very serious charges already weighing against her, i.e., plotting to overthrow a duly elected president of the Republic, attempted coup d’état (with MajGen Espinoza that was luckily waylaid by the mutiny of the other generals with whom she herself had conspired long before the impeachment of Erap), inciting to mutiny (Angie and company), breach of the Constitution (with Davide), thwarting the Rule of Law (election fraud), etc., and now the worst move she could make: EMERGENCY RULE, a covert declaration of Martial Law!

When you cross-check these elements against the people’s reactions today, you will find that the people overall have reacted, surprisingly quite lamely!

Gloria knows her people – she believes that her people can be easily cowed (and she’s right to believe that!) – she’s been advised by trapo members in her government to cow her people – so she cracks the whip. But she is playing a dangerous game here. She may cow a segment of society today but she is absolutely wrong to believe that she can vanquish the power of resistance of those who believe deeply that she’s wronged the nation. In the midst of all these people, there are trained, disciplined and armed components – the military.

Gloria has shown nothing but veiled contempt for the institutions of the Republic. She’s dealth with both civilian and military institutions as if they were spoils of war to do as she pleased. She’s so politicised the military, corrupted their ranks, disillusioned their members and has treated them like her private army. Not content with alienating them from their solemn vow, i.e., protect the Republic and the people, she’s converted the fighting men after decorating them with stars into mere ladies-in-waiting, to pay homage to her in her court at Malacanang.

In other words, in a political and social environment where you expect your president and her government to uphold the Constitution and respect the law and do not, people can no longer be expected to go by the rules. When they start seeing that institutions are being dismantled, that freedom of speech is being relegated to history, you cannot expect the people to continue to LOVE their president or obey and follow her. No! That will be the height of idiocy…

Just received this e-mail from a member of a cybergroup I belong to:
“gloria is now asking advertisers to pull out of the tribune to kill the paper.
we may not always agree with the editorial policy of that paper but we cannot allow GMA to kill it. as the cliche goes we may not agree with somebody but we cannot abridge his/her right to say it. moreover an abridgement of free expression anywhere is a threat to free speech everywhere.
one concrete way for OFW’s to frustrate glorias effort at muzzling the press is for most of us worldwide to take paid email subscriptions of the tribune. this can be arranged with the circulation office of the tribune and we can campaign for this worldwide in all the internet fora we can reach. this effort should also be
broadcast in print and other mutltimedia outlets for it to have the maximum impact psychologically on GMA and her psychopants. and of course it will provide financial succor to the beleagured tribune.
we may not like what Ninez writes all the time but her feistiness and dedication to press freedom should not be left without support – unprotected from the malicious mischief being wrought by the lilliput in malacanang.”
I seconded the motion – sent a reply that I am buying subscription to the Tribune.

Welcome back Ellen! Salamat naman at nagkaroon ng mekanismo para ma-regulate ang ilang mga di-kaaya-ayang entries dito sa blog na ito. I guess you really need to have some form of regulations and control. I wouldn’t call it a security measure (is there anything to secure at all?). Parang state of emergency din ‘yan, kapag nagkakagulo na at marami nang hecklers, kelangan nang maghigpit ng sistema. I am not suggesting that the new system being implemented on this blog is a similar manifestation of GMAs state of emergency. Naniniwala pa rin ako na ang paggiging mulat, bukas, at responsable ng mga bloggers ang magbibigay ng tunay na kulay at kahulugan sa webblog na ito.

As to GMA, I am sure she has her own gauge or political barometer that would tell her that it is time to step down. My advice to her… ‘wag na sana niyang hintayin pa na mangyari ‘yun. GMA is not only destructing herself, but moreover, the Filipino Nation as a whole (nothing personal here, I know she has done a lot of good deeds as well). The socio-economic and political state of the nation is clearly indicative of her failures in governance (siyempre hindi lang siya ang may kasalanan nito, kasama rin ang mga maling sistema-patakaran-desisyon ng pamamahala, kasama rin ang iba pang liderato na patuloy na nagpapahirap sa masang Pilipino, kasama rin ang mga pangkaraniwang mamamayan na patuloy na nananahimik at walang pakialam… at higit sa lahat kasama rin ako na patuloy na tumatakas sa pagkakataon na makialam at mag-alay muli ng sarili sa gawaing pagbabago).