The Irony of Complaining About Expensive Onions While Overspending on Unnecessary Stuff

It's already a new year and I want to harshly greet people with a lot of debts a "Happy New Year" (read here). I'd like to write this one because of this cartoon from The Manila Times emphasizes the irony of the situation. Last Christmas season, I raised the issue of whining about inflation because of the need for lavish celebrations (read here). What do you expect from people whose spending is poorly prioritized? If you're living paycheck to paycheck then why are you wasting the paycheck? That's the question that I can irritatingly ask because of how payday traffic can be so bad. The check arrives? They shout, "YEHEY!" They start to spend here and there, and if they can't afford it, they add credit to credit!

Why do you think they're complaining about the prices of onions? The cartoon from The Manila Times would reflect the irony. The person may have been too busy buying stuff that they don't need now (like I don't need the latest iPhone or video game console), buying luxury brands, and spending for the sake of it. It's like during payday when some people decide to do a barkada (peer) blowout at a very pricey place. I can't determine the prices of the items since I hardly buy designer clothes.

What I could assume is that the person who was crying, "Ang mahal ng sibuyas!!!" ("The onions are so expensive!!!") isn't complaining about the price per se. I think the person has run out of money from buying all the unnecessary stuff. In short, by the time the person remembers he has to buy onions, he has no more money to buy onions. The cost of onions at PHP 600.00 per kilo wouldn't be so bad if the person forgone buying all the unnecessary stuff first.

I guess all the whining that happened last Christmas was because of an overspending lifestyle. The paycheck arrives and they waste the money on what they don't need. By the time they need to buy onions, they end up realizing, "I have no money to buy onions anymore!" That's why they end up whining about onions being expensive. What may even be funnier if such people are also against importation of agricultural products during times of shortage (read here).

Toxic Positivity: Shielding Our ECONOMICALLY OUTDATED Constitution

ABS-CBN News I thought about what life was like in the late 1990s. It was a boomer vs. millennial clash . I remember how often I kept complaining about high school during the K+10 era. Even worse, the real problem why I hated school was that school cared more about grades for the sake of grades , instead of teaching students how to get good grades based on learning first. What may have compounded it is that we've had boomer parents who thought that fatigue is a badge of honor . What I realized is the common problem of toxic positivity . We have the "good vibes only" or "everything will turn out right in the end". Sadly, life doesn't always turn out that way. You can tell a terminally ill cancer patient that, and the cancer patient would die anyway. No amount of toxic positivity ever fixes the problem. This time, I'd like to rant once more about how toxic positivity has been used to defend the outdated 1987 Constitutio of the Philippines. The classic r...

Hussam Middle Eastern Cuisine's New APM Prime Mall Location

It was sad when I went to Ayala Center Cebu to eat at Hussam Middle Eastern Cuisine. They had closed their office at Il Corso. They moved out of Ayala Center Cebu at the end of January . I remember talking to someone who said that the old location can be "very hard to find" when you enter the mall. Right now, I remember how trying to find Hussam in Ayala can be comparable to trying to find the magic lamp in Aladdin's Cave of Wonders. That's what I felt back then, I ate at Hussam back in 2024 . Ayala Center Cebu probably had a low visibility problem. They had their soft opening on Black Saturday. They missed the Hari Raya Puasa date, a holiday for the Muslim population. This time, the use of glass walls makes it obvious to passersby that it's a Middle Eastern restaurant, that grilling is underway, and that it's certified halal . The place still maintains the same pristine cleanliness I recall from Ayala Center Cebu. The place's transparent glass windows ...

How is IBON Foundation Viewing and/or Representing FDI in Their Articles?

Some time ago, I wrote about why I can't take IBON Foundation seriously . As the battle for economic charter change is on, I believe it's time to tackle them again. They're tweeting here and there. Okay, I'm no researcher or organization. However, it doesn't mean that I can't do some basic research, share the research of others, and read other books. Even an intellectually stupid person can actually make sense if they gather the best materials. I even recall someone I know who's not intelligent but he actually spoke well about career opportunities, in the very school where he wasn't performing well! Trying to understand IBON's data presentation I would like to address how IBON Foundation presents FDI growth. They would say stuff such as the claim job creation weakened despite FDI growth . I was looking at IBON Foundation's claim (above) where it says that job creation allegedly weakened despite FDI inflows. Sure, they named sources but do they ...

A Destructive Obsession with Ayuda (Cash Handouts)

IBON Foundation Yesterday, I decided to write about how Pinoy Pride won't help pay that enormous PHP 13.42 Trillion debt . I thought I'd probably take a bit of a break to do some more research. However, I feel the need to write this post today since one of IBON Foundation's articles says that there's a destructive fetish for foreign investment . Then, another of IBON Foundation's articles says that there's money for Ayuda . I really feel insulted reading these since I'm a Masters Degree graduate in the School of Business and Economics. This really shows the destructive obsession with ayuda (cash handouts) and protectionism. IBON Foundation Above is one of IBON Foundation's charts. Some people on Facebook have gone as far as to call them Birdbrain Foundation. So what if there's money for ayuda or cash handouts? The problem here is that "think tanks" like IBON Foundation want to make it look like ayuda is more important. If asked to account ...

Why I Don't See IBON Foundation as a Real Economic "Think TanK'

It's one thing to criticize presidents for their performance. It's another without analyzing the data. Sure, we need to study mathematics but the way it's presented can be a reason why it's hated. I felt that high school mathematics focused too much on numbers. Mathematics, in all its aspects, is part of life. Trigonometry is part of life. Calculus is part of life. Statistics is part of life. Speaking of statistics, I was thinking about how IBON Foundation has given its assessment of Duterte's administration. This isn't to say that outgoing President Rodrigo R. Duterte hasn't made mistakes. Rather, this is to point out how IBON Foundation has that tendency to be illogical. IBON Foundation (click to enlarge) This data by IBON Foundation was gathered. I'm not saying that the figures are lies or manipulated. My problem with how IBON Foundation works is their failure to account for the cause and effect more often than not. Malaya Business Insight It's ...

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