The Bad Economics of Romanticizing Filipino "Resilience" (AKA Toxic Positivity)

Financially Fat I was partly inspired by Odette to write this blog. It was during Odette that I realized (at a whole new level) that complacency is deadly . The picture above on the Financially Fat Facebook page may seem funny. However, this is also written on the Facebook page: We’ve romanticized resilience for far too long. . In the Philippines, or even in international media, “Filipino resilience” is often praised after every typhoon, flood, or crisis. Smiling through hardship. Laughing amidst loss. It sounds inspiring—until you realize it’s also become an excuse . . An excuse for poor disaster response. An excuse for subpar infrastructure. An excuse to stop holding leaders accountable. . We shouldn’t glorify the ability to endure what no one should be enduring in the first place . . Resilience should not replace responsibility. Hope should not replace action. And smiles should not replace solutions. . It’s time we stop clapping for survival—and start demanding systems that pre...