The Late Miriam Defensor's Quote on a True Teacher

Mechel T. Santiago

Right now, I think about some people who made an impact on my life. Yes, I didn't do well back then. I confess that one teacher who flunked me in high school economics was the same teacher who helped me understand it! Here's a quote from the late Miriam Defensor-Santiago. People may call her disrespectful, unreasonable, etc. However, behind Miriam's feisty demeanor was someone who was still willing to step aside when she was wrong. Miriam made a tactless comment about China and then apologized.

I thought about my situation between two teachers. One was an unreasonable math teacher who terrorized ignorant students. The other teacher was my MDS-style teacher. The MDS-style teacher helped me through when I failed economics. That's why I end up saying that I'd rather have my MDS-style teacher any day over that unreasonable mathematics teacher.

I still remember how MDS did her tirades during the Corona Impeachment Trial. Impeachment trials are so cumbersome; that's why I prefer shifting from presidential to parliamentary. Some people are just pro-economic charter change but don't understand the bigger picture. As I looked into the education system, I thought, "Why aren't we getting more teachers like MDS?" The answer lies with the system. MDS became an advocate for constitutional reform.

The Philippine education system's long-standing problems are many. One problem I'd like to highlight is that the Philippine education system cares more about grades than learning (read here). I might rephrase it by saying, "We grade our students based more on what they're able to memorize than what they're able to learn." Sure, we need to memorize basic arithmetic and basic concepts. However, the problem is that we're engaged with too much memorization and too little understanding. Rote memorization can be helpful, but it can also be stressful. In mathematics class, it's often the argument, "When am I going to use this?" Sadly, the problem isn't related to just mathematics class but also every subject!

The result is that teachers end up terrorizing ignorant students. I'd dare say that such teachers become ignorant themselves. In fact, my crazy mathematics teacher is still teaching elementary math even after more than 10 years! As I think about my MDS-style teacher, she explains really well. The problem is that the Philippine education system is this...

Sad to say, but this is a caricature that speaks volumes. When the education system cares more about grades than learning, grades will either drop or become nothing more than a decoration (read here). Honestly, I've been having difficulty recalling some basic historical facts. I even forgot Jose Rizal's birthday last June 19! It's easy to remember martial law (September 21) but not other dates. I might even talk about science. I even have to Google to understand why storms hit during the -ber months the most. This may be why we've got a lot of ignorant teachers (the type to become terrors) over true teachers who desire to cure ignorance. It's because terror teachers are ignorant themselves.

When I think about it, MDS may be the best president the nation never had. Sure, I didn't like how she reacted when the late Fidel V. Ramos won, or when she chose President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., as her running mate. However, I always felt that the Philippines could've benefited from her Caring Tiger Mother persona.

Comments

COMMUNIST Vietnam Has Defeated DEMOCRATIC Philippines Again This 2025

Cổng thông tin Trung ương Đoàn TNCS Hồ Chí Minh A few days ago, I wrote about warning Filipinos that they shouldn't wait for more unmitigated typhoon disasters, before realizing that the Filipino First Policy isn't working ! There's a statement that says, "Just because being tanga (inattentive) is libre (free), doesn't mean you should be tanga!" Analyzing the different policies: why policies matter I found a Business World article on my Facebook news feed discussing the Vietnamese economy . In fact, it would be better to share some hard truths that the article offers about what really went wrong with the democratic Philippines compared to Communist Vietnam : DIVERGENT ECONOMIC MODELS Vietnam pursued an export-oriented manufacturing strategy which has proven significantly more successful over the past half century than the Philippines’ service-heavy, remittances-dependent model . Export performance alone tells a compelling story. Vietnam’s exports amount ...

Kabataan Partylist SERIOUSLY Needs to Learn BASIC Business from the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union

Foreign Trade University A few days ago, I wrote about Kabataan Partylist needing to learn economics from the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union . Otherwise, I'll continue using the Vietnam Youth Union for convenience. Speaking of which, the Foreign Trade University in Vietnam is actually a government-owned university (read here ). For this post, I decided to expand on a point, saying that Kabataan Partylist needs to learn from the Vietnam Youth Union on entrepreneurship . I pretty get jealous of the Vietnam Youth Union members with their practical early immersion. The National Defence Journal of Vietnam gives out this important detail of the Vietnam Youth Union: Fifth, enhancing the support of young intellectuals to get access to opportunities of work, research, develop ideas, products, and start-up to legitimately enrich themselves, the community and the country. Support the implementation of startup ideas and projects of young intellectuals in practice, making...

Using Controversial Bamban Mayor Alice Leal Guo as a Reason to Say #NoToEconChaCha is Logically Fallacious

I can't be sure if Alice Leal Guo (if that's ever her real name) is either a spy for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) or a criminal hiding from Chinese justice. As much as I'm now wary of the Philippines doing business with the CCP-- I believe that the POGO operations are actually run by Chinese criminals hiding from the CCP. The CCP isn't just notorious for its brutal policies on its citizens but also for crime . Do drug dealing in China and you may face the same fate as the three Filipino drug mules last 2011 . In my own speculation , Alice is actually an illegal migrant hiding from the long arms of the CCP. Either way, she's getting very suspicious. My stand will always be if a Filipino does wrong abroad--the law of that country will deal with that Filipino. The same applies to any foreigner who breaks the law in the Philippines--the Philippine law will deal with that foreigner. However, it's no surprise some people take advantage of the Alice Leal Guo issu...

Accepting Foreign Investments Isn't About Relying Solely on Foreigners

One of the biggest common mistakes about foreign investments is that it's all about "relying solely on foreigners" or "it's not going to develop the national industry". I agree that relying solely on foreign investments is not good. It's because if there are no local suppliers of local raw materials--foreign investments may have to rely purely on importation which isn't a good thing. Meanwhile, a nation will develop its agriculture and the like to provide raw materials for all kinds of buyers. It's pretty much a two-way street when it comes to investment. The late Lee Kuan Yew also talked about greening up Singapore along the way before it progressed. Singapore accepted foreign investments while it was still a third-world. However, it didn't neglect its own local industries. Reading through Chapter 4 of From Third World to First will tell us lessons about foreign investments. Lee saw them as the opportunity to bring in jobs, teach new skill...

Teaching About Jobs and Profession in Mandarin Chinese

For Chinese language courses, one of the best ways to teach basic HSK-1-3 Chinese is by introducing jobs and professions in Standard Chinese (華語). One may remember the Sesame Street song,"Who are the people in your neighborhood" song. The exercises should be done with vocabulary (matching up the Chinese to English), followed by sample conversations (question and answer). For example: Question:"接待員的工作內容是什麼?"(Jiēdài yuán de gōngzuò nèiróng shì shénme?) Translation: "What is the job of a receptionist?" Answer:"前台接待員的工作是預訂房間和查詢空房狀況."(Qiántái jiēdài yuán de gōngzuò shì yùdìng fángjiān hé cháxún kōngfáng zhuàngkuàng.) Translation: "The job of the receptionist is to make reservations and check for availability." My sample conversation is probably too long, and may fit the HSK-3 level instead. However, one may look for shorter answers then give longer answers progressively.

Alice Guo's Conviction Should NEVER be a Call to Shut Down Constitutional Reform

The Alice Guo saga seems to have come to an end, right? That's, unless of course something happens and she escapes again. This always made me laugh when I realized that, as I was writing my articles, I came across a Vietnamese girl named Ha Thi Thu Trang, aka Ha Trang, who resembles Alice. Right now, Ha Trang could come to the Philippines for a vacation and not get mistaken for the same person. Back on the topic, I would like to point out that I actually wrote a post on whether or not using Alice's controversy should be a call to shut down constitutional reform . Alice's now in jail, what's next?! I would like to let people know in advance, I'm not here to demolish Senator Maria Theresa "Risa" Baraquel-Hontiveros' efforts in getting Alice arrested. In fact, I feel grateful (in part) that Risa managed to expose Alice's lies, along with Senator Sherwin "Win" Ting Gatchalian in exposing Alice's dubious records. However, I'm going to...

Filipino First Policy Also Responsible That ONLY 2/10 Pinoys Have Emergency Funds

Yes, it's been a day since Typhoon Tino. It was a stormy, scary time, and I thought about how expenses were piling up after I was hit by Typhoon Odette . Thankfully, I had contingency savings at that time. However, with Uswan moving upwards and entering another area of the Philippine Area of Responsibility, I considered the issue of emergency savings. I thought about how Christmas can be the most stressful time of the year, with issues such as traffic caused by last-minute Christmas shopping . This time, I thought about some not-so-surprising statistics on Filipinos. It turns out that only 2/10 Filipinos have enough emergency savings . This should be considered disturbing, and this is another thing I failed to consider in my younger, more foolish years, according to the Philippine Star : Commissioned by insurance firm EastWest Ageas, the PURPLE Report conducted by consumer intelligence company NielsenIQ showed that most Filipinos only have P50,000 in emerg...

The Filipino First Policy May Actually be Encouraging Dummy Investors Instead (Even with the Anti-Dummy Law)

I wrote a post where I discussed whether or not Alice Guo (and I heard her real name is supposedly Guo Hua Ping) should be a reason to say "No to economic charter change." A certain idiot I've dubbed Porky Madugo even wrote this on his Facebook account: Back on topic, I would like to emphasize that the Filipino First Policy may actually be encouraging dummy investors instead of discouraging them. Some people may use Alice to say, "See, I told you so, you (insert demeaning name)! If Alice can enter so easily, what about we allow 100% FDI and China buy us all!" That's the logic of that certain Porky Madugo, whose name and picture I blocked, despite my immense dislike for his stupidity. If Alice has been faking it by lying she's a Filipino citizen (and sadly, this incident has been used to justify hatred against Chinese Filipinos), then the real root cause is this. The Filipino First Policy makes it too difficult for foreigners to do business in the Phili...

Profood International Corporation's Calamansi Ginger Grean Tea Concentrate

I'm someone who always buys local and imported food products. However, I tend to buy local where I go because eating local is usually more beneficial. I was buying some stuff last Sunday. I found this product which I haven't heard of yet. It's called Calamansi Ginger Green Tea. If South Koreans have their Honey Citron, then maybe we can say Filipinos have Calamansi Ginger Green Tea concentrate, which also contains honey. I gave it a shot, and it gives some relief for the throat. I drank Ginga Ginger Brew after I caught Omicron. That was the time when COVID-19 would eventually "get us all". I was looking for Ginga ginger powder but I wasn't able to find it. Fortunately, this food product ws available and it's helping me. I tend to get throat problems whenever the weather changes too much! I would drink it either lukewarm or cold, due to the weather conditions. The combination of ginger and calamansi helped me feel better. I would like to recommend this foo...

"I Couldn't Remember Why Vietnam Exceeded the Philippines Last COVID-19!" Might Be the "Best Answer" Ever

24h.com I wasn't planning on blogging today. However, I saw from my Facebook feeds, I found something in interesting on the ANC 24/7 Facebook page. This was what I found: I read the full story on the ABS-CBN website. One reason why I'm critical of ABS-CBN is how they're very anti-reform. They tend to treat the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines as if it's so holy and pure, as if not one provision of it must be amended! Oftentimes, Atty. Hilario G. Davide Jr. and/or Atty. Christian Monsod, are frequently featured when it comes to the welfare of the Philippines. Now, I'd like to share an excerpt from the ABS-CBN website, which makes me cringe. Balisacan replied that the pandemic caused a bigger contraction in the Philippine economy compared to Vietnam . “First, Vietnam over the last decade has been growing faster than the Philippines. Second, during the 2020 pandemic, our economy contracted by almost 10 percent. Whereas Vietnam contracted only a little. That pa...

Business & Economics Perspective Blogger

Search This Blog