On my way home after lunch today, I was surprised with the number of students gathered around the gate of Southwestern University. What's more surprising is the multitude of ROTC uniformed students lining in formation. Obviously, someone "big" is expected to come.
Then, as if by on cue, all the girls started to shout (or more appropriately, shriek) on top of their lungs. That's when I realized, today is the day that the university is awarding an honorary doctorate in human kinetics to Manny Pacquiao.
Of course, the decision of the university is not without objection. Some professors are questioning the conferment. "Dr. Aparicio Mequi, dean of the graduate school of Foundation University and a former chair of the Philippine Sports Commission, said on Friday that while Pacquiao had brought honor to the country through his victories in boxing, the planned conferment on him of a doctorate in human kinetics (honoris causa) might be a violation of a policy of the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd)," an Inquirer.net report said. (Click here to read the entire report)
I will leave it up to the CHED to determine the validity of that honorary doctorate. My only question is, what's next, Congressman Pacquiao?
When Pacman decided to run as congressman before, he enrolled in a college course (after passing the equivalency test of DepEd for high school), taking up political science. That was before the election, probably to show that he is doing something to counter his critics that he is not built for politics. After he lost by a large margin, it was not pursued anymore (unless the school excused him for months when he was training for his de la Hoya fight).
Now, with the doctorate, there is no need for him to pretend to enroll in a univeristy. If you have a drop out (Erap) for a president (and another one, an evil corrupt alien calling herself as president), why can't you have a doctor, albeit an honorary doctorate on human kinetics, run for congress?
Or maybe Manny doestn't need the title anymore. He previously registered as a resident on a remote (at least compared to Gen Santos City) area, a move that critics believe is in preparation for his second try at politics. Why the transfer? He has a house in Gen San, he is frequently in Manila and in the US for his trainings and fights, so why register to vote in a remote area?
We can only guess, of course. Maybe there is no Darlene Custodio-like opponent who would beat him to humiliation again; or maybe money talks more in that area (as compared to Gen San again, as money talks everywhere in the Philippines, especially during elections, and especially in the halls of Malacanang and Congress)? It's not so hard to imagine.
You are considered a national traitor if you wished that de la Hoya would win last time (like I did), but maybe a humbled Pacman will realize that just because he is a great boxer, it doesn't mean he can win all his fights. I hope this time Hatton shows him that.
If Manny really wants to help his country, as he claims to be the reason why he is running, there are a lot of other ways that he could do so. He can get inspiration from other super stars, with the like of Jet Li and his One Foundation or many other Hollywood stars (we are sadly lacking examples of stars in the Philippines).
If he is bent on running, his kind of friends already showed us the kind of politician he will be. Mike Arroyo, Chavit Singson, and Lito Atienza? God bless this country!
Patuloy na umiibig sa Pilipinas,
At naniniwala sa Pilipino,
Froilan Grate | GreenMinds
www.NoBystanders.blogspot.com
After a short break from blogging, I have decided to transform this blog into something that would represent my true reasons in having this blog in the first place. Thus the birth of NO BYSTANDERS.
I felt that the original site was a bit self centered, first with the URL "everythingfroi;" and second with the site name "A Glimpse of Poy's Crazy World," when in fact this site is not about me but rather of my thought, views and advocacies. Things that are bigger than me.
So why NO BYSTANDERS?
I got the inspiration from reading Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point. In the book, the concept of Bystander Effect was discussed, and basically what it says is that people tend to help or to act less when they know there are other people who might do it (I will try to discuss the two concepts later and in succeeding posts).
And upon reflecting on the concepts of "the tipping point" and "bystander effect," I came to realize that these concepts aptly explains some of the basic social problems that we have. Take for example GMA's stay in power. Why is it that after so many scandals, she is still in power. People power fatigue maybe? Maybe we have not reache the tipping point? Or is it the Bystander Effect at work?
Same goes for all our environmental problems. I believe people are not acting because they believe somene will do it anyway.
To explain futher the concept of Bystander Effect, below is an excerpt fro Wikipedia:
"The bystander effect is a social psychological phenomenon in which individuals are less likely to offer help in an emergency situation when other people are present. The probability of help is inversely proportional to the number of bystanders.
The bystander effect was first demonstrated in the laboratory by John Darley and Bibb Latane in 1968.[2] These researchers launched a series of experiments that resulted in one of the strongest and most replicable effects in social psychology. In a typical experiment, the participant is either alone or among a group of other participants or confederates. An emergency situation is then staged — examples include smoke pouring from a vent in the room, a woman falling and becoming injured, a student having an epileptic seizure, etc. The researchers then measure how long it takes the participants to act, and whether or not they intervene at all. These experiments virtually always find that the presence of others inhibits helping, often by a large margin.
There are many reasons why bystanders in groups fail to act in emergency situations, but social psychologists have focused most of their attention on two major factors. According to a basic principle of social influence, bystanders monitor the reactions of other people in an emergency situation to see if others think that it is necessary to intervene. Since everyone is doing exactly the same thing (nothing), they all conclude from the inaction of others that help is not needed. This is an example of pluralistic ignorance or social proof. The other major obstacle to intervention is known as diffusion of responsibility. This occurs when observers all assume that someone else is going to intervene and so each individual feels less responsible and refrains from doing anything.
There are other reasons why people may not help. They may assume that other bystanders are more qualified to help, such as doctors or police officers, and that their intervention would be unneeded. People may also experience evaluation apprehension and fear losing face in front of the other bystanders. They may also be afraid of being superseded by a superior helper, offering unwanted assistance, or facing the legal consequences of offering inferior and possibly dangerous assistance."
So in writing this blog, I proclaim to the entire world:
I refuse to be a bystander!
And I will make it my life's mission to be an example to the world, or at least to my circle of influence, that they too can choose to be not a bystander. Then, probably, we might see a better world someday.
Patuloy na umiibig sa Pilipinas,
At naniniwala sa Pilipino,
Froilan Grate | GreenMinds
www.NoBystander.blogspot.com
From the Ecowaste Egroup:
This Action Alert came from Ann Leonard (co-founder of GAIA) who helped the EcoWaste Coalition a lot in terms of introducing us to grantmakers in US who are into public health and environmental justice issues. The Time Magazine in its 6 Oct 2008 issue cited Ann as one of the "heroes of the environment" for her work on Zero Waste and, of course, "The Story of Stuff." Thanks in advance for your support. Manny C. Calonzo
Dear Friends,
You all know that U.S. consumption rates are out of control and driving much of the ecological devastation on the planet. With 5% of the world's population, the U.S. uses 30% of the world's resources and creates 30% of the world's waste.
I created the film The Story of Stuff to inspire people in the U.S. to think about the hidden environmental and social impacts of our out of control consumption patterns here. I have been delighted that many teachers have adopted it for use in classrooms in the U.S. and around the world.
Recently though, a high school teacher in Missoula, Montana showed he Story of Stuff to her high school biology class. An irate parent complained to the school board, which late last month voted that showing the video violated district policy-in effect banning the film.
You can read about this growing controversy here:
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2009/02/11/news/local/news03.txt and we will post updates to our blog at www.storyofstuff.com
This is a dangerous precedent.
At a time when every reputable scientist and organization agrees that the future of the planet is at risk, educators need to help students to think critically about the causes and consequences of environmental degradation, especially climate change. School textbooks and mainstream media have failed to adequately address the environmental crises we face, and teachers like Kathleen Kennedy in Missoula should be commended for seeking out alternative materials like The Story of Stuff to encourage critical thinking and action for sustainability.
Fortunately students, parents, and teachers in Missoula and elsewhere are organizing to demand the school board revere its decision. Please join them!
Please take a minute to send an email to the Missoula school board to ask that they reconsider their vote. I've pasted a sample letter below or you can write your own comment.
Email the school board at publiccomment@mcps.k12.mt.us and send a copy to the local newspaper, the Missoulian, at newsdesk@missoulian.com. Please blind cc me at ann_leonard@sbcglobal.net
Stay tuned and thank you for helping!
Sincerely,
Annie Leonard
The Story of Stuff
Patuloy na umiibig sa Pilipinas,
At naniniwala sa Pilipino,
Froilan Grate | GreenMinds
www.NoBystander.blogspot.com
Just wanna share an experience tonight when I called my credit card's customer hotline:
Me: Hi. I would like to know what will be your dollar conversion rate if I purchase online tonight?
After 20 seconds...
Supervisor: Good evening. This is _____. I was informed you are asking about our forex rate?
Me: Yes.
Supervisor: Sorry Sir but we don't ahve that data. You can check it after your transaction is posted.
Me: How can that be? If your charge me $1=P60, can I complain after that?
After 5 minutes...
Supervisor: Sorry again Sir if we can't guarantee the exact amount.
Me: It's ok. At least you made an effort. I just don't like it when your agent tells me there's nothing you can do without trying. Thanks again for the effort.
+++++++
Moral of the story? I don't know (hehehe). Maybe never give up on your right? I'm maybe hard headed, but only when I know it's my right. When things go wrong, never be afraid or be shy in asking for the Supervisor or the Manager.
When there was a problem with my order in Chowking, I asked for the manager, he apologized and gave us complimentary food. Same with Pizza Hut.
When I was in Cebu, I ate at Mang Inasal. Supposedly, it's unlimited rice. But I have to wait for 30 minutes for my extra rice. Malamig na ang sabaw ko. Worst, I see the kitchen staff playing with dishwashing liquid in the kitchen, spraying it against another staff, including the food being served. Also, the same people who handle the food also handle the money and clean the table. A big no-no in food business. I called for the manager, she recognized the problem and offered to refund my food. But I know it will be charged to the staff so I refused, but I told her to fix the problems or else I will report them to their Head Office. The next day, I went there again, everything was how I asked them and I was treated like a king.
I called Bayantel to complain about my bill. The agent was arrogant and when I asked to talk to another agent, he dropped the line. I called again and asked for the supervisor. She apologized and promised to investigate and asked for my initial concern. Right there and then, she waived the items in my bill that I object to.
I have thousands more of these stories. Maybe I'm hard headed, maybe "walang hiya." But for me, there's only one reason for this: I refuse to accept what is not right and is not just.
I will never say, "Hayaan mo na, para walang gulo..." when I know I am right. But also, I will not hesitate to say sorry if I know it's my fault (some of my friends will object to this haha!).
So, I leave you with these quotes:
Silence to apathy is betrayal.
Thanks for reading. Good night!
I recently gave a talk on Environmental Protection and Preservation to the faculty and students of College of Immaculate Conception in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija. It's a month long celebration of CIC's Social Responsibility with the theme "Kalikasan Ating Kinabukasan... Kilos na! (KKK).
It was a challenging talk. I usually have my trusted PowerPoint Presentation with me, but this time, I have to do without it... almost. Because there were about 2000 students, the only venue that is available is the open gymnasium with broad daylight that made LCD projection almost impossible. But, as one teacher aptly put it, it was a blessing in disguise as the students were forced to use their creative imagination as I describe my set of photos.
What I initially feared as a challenging talk turned out to be one of my most memorable talks to ever give. The students were all excellent, they were all cooperative and participative despite the technical glitches and the heat.
I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the entire CIC community for the warm welcome you have afforded me. I hope something positive will come out of this event. I'm looking forward to seeing CIC be the first plastic-free school in Cabanatuan and in Nueva Ecija.
For participants to my seminars on Ecological Solid Waste Management, you may download the presentation below:
LGU's and Communities: click here
Students and Private Companies: click here
For LGU's and companies interested to avail of the workshop, please contact us at 4345381 or froilan(@)greenminds.net.
Permission is granted for all non-commercial use of these files.
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