Can Anti-Reform Social Media Gossipers Prove Their Anti-FDI Claims to Singapore?

I remembered seeing this meme on the Facebook page Philippine Anti-Fascist League (PAFL). It's obviously run by some bitter fellow. I heard this bitter fellow is just some student and he allegedly has a teenager administrator helping him. The meme might be an obvious poke at the education system today. Today, I have no intention to get a Ph.D. after I felt that the Philippine education system might be dumbing me down. The meme itself says that constitutional reform proponents' highest form of education is "Tell that to Singapore!" Ironically, these guys haven't really proven to Singapore their claims. The members of PAFL just rant nonsense on the pages. Some of them are members of economically absurd "thought leaders" such as Kabataan Partylist and the League of Filipino Students. Funny enough, none of them have ever bothered to tell that to Singapore. Are they too scared to be proven wrong or what?

I did write about which grandfather would you trust between Hilario Davide Jr. and Kishore Mahbubani. It's very easy to cite Davide Jr. with his words where he said he'd be the first to object if there'd be any amendment. Wait, didn't Article XVII say that the current constitution is open for revision?

Section 2. Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition of at least twelve per centum of the total number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three per centum of the registered voters therein. No amendment under this section shall be authorized within five years following the ratification of this Constitution nor oftener than once every five years thereafter.

The first question to ask is if you'd trust Davide Jr. or the late John Gokongwei Jr. It's easy to throw in the answer that it depends on the topic, am I right? That's why I raise Mahbubani of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Mahbubani himself is in the school of public policy making. Like Davide Jr., Mahbubani had experience as a former United Nations (UN) diplomat. I read about Mahbubani and decided that Davide Jr.'s best opponent is someone who is more or less on the same field as he is--a public policymaker.

There's this pathetic excuse like, "But the Philippines isn't Singapore." All the while, some of them directly quote from the late Lee Kuan Yew's book From Third World to First about the Marcoses. Is it me or is reading comprehension that bad in the Philippines? I read a lot of comments on Facebook daily which always talks about how FDI is evil. Once again, the words investors and invaders aren't synonymous. Yet, we can see this kind of meme on the PAFL page...

Even funnier and stupider is how PALF wants to make it look like investors are equal to imperialism in that new meme above. Wait, isn't this Facebook page already contradicting itself by merely being on Facebook? Facebook is an American platform. For all we know, some of the people who manage the page might be using an iPhone. People point out how contradictory they are but they say that they're simply "forced" to participate in it and that the last capitalist they hang is the one who sold them the rope. What excuse can they come up with hating landlords while they go malling to buy their equipment? Aren't these fools empowering the enemy?

Until now, they haven't really done the challenge. They said that Singapore only opened to FDI because the country has no natural resources. Yet, Singapore's model soon influenced countries rich in natural resources as stated in From Third World to First. Vietnam and India are countries rich in natural resources. Both countries opened and became economic powerhouses. If they want to be taken seriousy, they need to tell it to Singapore that FDI equals imperialism. Since the page actually glorifies Communism then why not tell it to Vietnam and China too as well, right?

When it comes to social media gossipers, they really have no source either. If they do have a very reliable source, it might just go with Trust Me Bro as its best source. They may also be citing some sources like IBON Foundation (which I've written that I can't take it seriously). Even worse, the page tends to prefer childish memes rather than actual facts. A lot of people who comment there have really low logic too

If they really want me to take them seriously then go tell their claims to Singapore. If Singapore believes them, I'd probably believe them too!

Open FDI Equals CHINA?!

This is an interesting drawing I found on Facebook. It's often used to portray people who look at the removal of the unnecessarily restrictive 60-40 shares ownership policy as, "The current president's gift to China." The same was done during former Philippine president Atty. Rodrigo R. Duterte. The same was also done with Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. It makes me think of stupid comments written by idiots on Facebook. It would be ironic if a lot of anti-FDI and anti-American rants were made not only on Facebook but also were typed using Apple gadgets of all things! They may be quick to use whatever irrational reasons. Some reasons can range from foreigners "unfairly" owning the means to produce equipment (read here ) and that they're simply forced to participate in the capitalist economy model to survive (read here ). However, I must ask if these guys were forced to use the luxury brands they're using (read here ). As the map shows, s

#SahodItaasPresyoIbaba Economics Will Ultimately Hurt the WORKING CLASS

Cartoonist Zach Some people claim to fight for the working class--while refusing to work themselves. Some people claim to fight for the working class--while supporting policies that will prove detrimental to the working class. One of these policies is #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba--meaning to raise salaries and lower prices. I wrote some time ago about why #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba doesn't work . However, I'lm still attacked by Ad Homimens and Nom Sequiturs. How's that even possible anyway? Economics isn't magic! If President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr.'s promise of PHP 20.00 kilo rice is absurd--so is the promise of #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba economics! Image by Sabrina Jiang © Investopedia 2020 I don't need a PhD in economics to understand cost accounting. The income statement would include salaries as part of the cost. The cost of goods sold includes salaries. Marketing and promotions include salaries. General and administrative would include salaries. Pa

Is Anybody Willing to Prove Filipino First Policy Has a Place in the Rising Asian Century for a Million Pesos, Tax Free?

Yesterday was the birthday of former president Carlos P. Garcia, who died in 1971. Garcia is often associated with the Filipino First Policy. Back in the 1990s, I remember how Filipino First Policy was taught in values education classes --never mind the glaring contradictions. The contradictions are that imported equipment was used, or that we can literally never escape the use of imported equipment. I wrote an article discussing why Garcia's Filipino First Policy has no place in the rising Asian Century . I haven't done academic work right now, having been disgruntled by the Filipino education system. Sadly, not even graduate school taught me the basics of stock market investment (such as equity funds) or how Cash 2 Go works. That's why some people say, "It's just a degree!" I often said, "Well your doctor went to college, your lawyer went to college, etc." However, it looks like a college degree may not be for everyone, under K+12! Some people are

Millions of Studies from the Trust Me Bro School of Economics Show #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba Business Model Works

Happy Labor Day anyone? It's this time of the year when labor groups like Kilusang Mayo Uno (literally the May One Movement) would protest. They would raise banners demanding #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba. For those who don't speak Tagalog, it means raising salaries and lowering the prices of goods. However, basic cost accounting will tell you that salaries are part of the cost of production . People ignore facts and choose their feelings a lot . I tell them that salaries are part of the cost of production (no need for a Ph. D for that, which I no longer aim to get) but they just sneer at it . They think the government has absolute control over the economy like magic . Members of Filipino labor groups may even say that wage hikes aren't inflationary even when evidence shows otherwise. The Economics Help website presents why doing so can actually worsen inflation: Wage Push Inflation. If labour is able to push for higher wages, despite lower growth, then we could get a combi

What's the Use of Complaining About Jollibee Acquiring Companies BUT Not Accepting Open FDI to Bring in COMPETITION to the Philippines?

Anti-Snowflake Squad Facebook Page I was checking across Facebook and noticed some idiots complaining about Jollibee acquiring companies. The same idiots turned out to be anti-FDI--the same group that converses with Porky Madugo and Mukhang Adik. As usual, I will not directly link the idiots (or even reveal them directly, they will reveal themselves) to avoid giving them clout. Here's a statement by Porky that may make anyone wonder if (1) he knows he's lying (which I think he is for some self-serving reason ), or (2) he doesn't know what he's talking about: The monopolization of business ruins the business. It degrades the quality of the business of a product. If you think monopolization is good, that's stupidity. It kills the competition and it kills the business. Well, as old saying goes: "capitalists are the only one will destroy themselves." Since when did capitalism mean killing competition? Isn't Porky supposedly a die-hard Communist? In the

La Salsa: The Delicious Filipino-Mexican Cantina at Lahug, Cebu City

La Salsa Facebook Page I've eaten at La Salsa Twice. I've tried eating at El Taquito (which is probably no longer operational in Cebu) and El Loco (which closed down years ago). I've eaten the Mexican American style of Red Lizard (read here ). La Salsa Filipino-Mexican Cantina offers a delicious blend of Mexican food for the Filipino customer. It's another experience for delicious Mexican-style cooking. I've tried their beef fajita and enchilada. These are some of my favorite Mexican foods. For my first two dine-ins--I felt the cozy atmosphere of a home . I expected the enchiladas to be thinner but they are thicker. Perhaps, it's a different enchilada than the one I ate years ago. Both are delicious in their own way. I enjoyed the huger serving of enchilada. Right now, it's still the soft opening. Some items won't be available at the moment. Based on my own personal review, I'd recommend this restaurant to anyone who enjoys fusion cooking. I love h

Forget About Open FDI, Let's Open #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba Stores Instead

A really disastrous decision! Before the Buwan ng Wika ends, I want to write about those who have been demanding "Sahod itaas! Presyo ibaba!" (Raise salaries, lower prices). Back in 2022, I wrote an article discussing why the demands for higher salaries, lower prices of goods, and handouts for all are a recipe for disaster . I could laugh at people who believed in the promise of PHP 20.00 per kilo of rice promise of Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. Before that, people had been demanding #SahodItaasPresyoIbaba during the reigns of the late former president Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III and former president Rodrigo R. Duterte. Image by Sabrina Jiang © Investopedia 2020 I did explain why the model doesn't work. In the cost of production, you need to account for everything that happens including salaries . Raising salaries during inflation can actually worsen the situation . It's because sticky inflation happens with cost-push factors (ex. cost of gasoline, co

A Fun Song to Start Learning the New Pinyin Sequence

I was looking for a song in relation to the BoPoMoFo. In my case, I'm prone to calling Pinyin "BoPoMoFo" until today (read here ). It's because Pinyin basically serves the same purpose as Zhuyin--teaching one how to read Chinese. I'd like to say that I got too comfortable with this old sequence: I may hate memorizing Zhuyin but I like treating Pinyin in the same sequence. The new table which uses the 23 initials-24 finals method (read here ) can be confusing. Some old-timers may have an easier time transliterating the Zhuyin into Pinyin. However, I still find the new sequence confusing. I may no longer remember Zhuyin (and I kept failing at it and kept memorizing sentences without understanding) but I can remember Pinyin. Except my memorization of the Pinyin was in the BoPoMoFo sequence. With more than a billion Chinese speakers worldwide--can we keep using the old books to teach Mandarin? That's why I wrote about why the old Chinese textbooks can't be us

"But the Philippines Isn't Taiwan!" is Just Another Lame Excuse to Justify Filipino First Policy

Atlas Institute for Internal Affairs Happy Double 10 to Taiwan! Chinese Filipino schools would take part in what's often called the Double 10 celebrations. October is the 10th month and it's the 10th day. I remember talking about how Taiwan succeeded by accepting FDIs and how the Filipino First Policy caused us to fail . The typical response I would get on American-made social media (of all places), such as Facebook, would be, "How many times do I need to stress that the Philippines isn't Taiwan. We are the Philippines! We are unique!" If those fools did a study, they may realize that there's a link between the Taiwanese aborigines and the Filipino aborigines (read here ). The Philippines should've learned from Taiwan during COVID-19 One of the best models for fighting COVID-19 was Taiwan. Sure, I'm more in favor of shifting to a parliamentary system and Taiwan is still a presidential country (with parliamentary features). Former Taiwanese president

The Pinaskohan Mentality is Keeping Poor Filipinos, POOR

Philippine Star Is it me or is the Christmas Season really that toxic in the Philippines? I wrote an article about the irony of early Christmas season with late Christmas shopping . I didn't think about writing this but is it me or do people like to ask for impunity during the Christmas season? Think about that toxic former friend or former romantic partner. You cut off that person because of the toxic behavior he or she shows. However, you meet at a public place during the -ber months. The person says, "Let's reconcile! It's Christmas!" I can be open to reconciliation with classmates with who I had a childish quarrel back in high school. So far, one of the people I had a childish grudge wasn't a toxic person. The reason why I feel I can reconcile with that person is because he's productive . The same can't be said for people who have a toxic attitude. What do several Filipinos look forward to during Christmas? Would it be just the spiritual signific

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