By the end of April 1899, the enemy was moving steadily northward from Manila in hot pursuit of Emilio Aguinaldo and the Malolos government. Luna, who was then chief commanding general of Central Luzon, ordered all his commanders to be ready at their stations and await instructions from his headquarters in Calumpit. During a particularly trying period, Luna was informed that General Mascardo had disobeyed Luna’s orders by leaving his headquarters in Guagua to attend a fiesta in Arayat.Historians differ on the reason for Mascardo’s trip: One source says he was attending a fiesta, another says he was bathing, and yet another says he was courting a beautiful lady in whom Luna was also interested. Whatever the reason, Luna dispatched a telegram ordering Mascardo to return to his headquarters in Guagua immediately; he also reprimanded Mascardo for leaving Guagua without permission.
Mascardo may be long gone but his attitude is still prevalent among Filipinos. I'm no historian myself either. What I want to stress is that whatever reason Mascardo had--he should have never left Guagua without permission! Unfortunately, some people follow Mascardo's mentality with their finances. I even wonder if Mascardo had a habit of complaining about the cost of needs but never about the cost of wants.
It's typical for people to complain about the rising prices of commodities. We must realize that everything is at a supply and demand scale. No amount of insults done against economists will ever change the laws of supply and demand (read here). One can call demeaning names to economists but we can never change the laws of supply and demand. The irony is that while complaining about the increasing prices of necessities--they're actually spending on branded goods!
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