Shaun T. Dy's Business & Economics Perspective Blog

I could remember growing up having thrifty parents while surrounded by people who had extravagant parents. It was when I studied in a rather pricey school that I felt so out of place. There were the "cool kids" who were spoiled brats. One person I knew was easily given what he wanted. Another I knew felt he was cool because his parents gave him what he wanted. I remembered an idle talk that we had such as how I was bullied for not having the nice stuff other people had. Another said that so and so was richer because they had this and that. It was common to say so and so is the rich kid because he or she had the latest video game console or a luxury car. It made me so green with envy that I wanted a Limousine or a Mercedes Benz just to impress those spoiled brats. My thrifty parents said no to such requests--telling me one day I'd understand. A conversation I had with my mother was based on the people I envied. I gave reasons that so and so was rich because: They have very

I remembered the time when I saw the video of Little India Healthy Cuisine. I was excited when I first heard about it would open in One Pavilion Mall (OPM)--which I heard got closed due to poor performance. Later, a branch opened in SSY Lahug. Little India Healthy Cuisine would be much different from the other Indian restaurants in Cebu City. The big difference is not just vegetarian but also in being sattvic.   Trying to understand Little India's sattvic food For the sake of those who don't understand what satvic means--you may want to listen to this video before scrolling down. If not, read on if you understand what it means. The idea of sattvic would be to avoid animal flesh and pungent spices. It would be typical for people to go to an Indian restaurant and order some garlic naan or onion paratha. Such dishes are known in places like Bollywood Tandoor, Cherry's the Spice, Bharat Spice, and Hyderabad Dine-In since they're non-vegetarian. Vegetarian dishes in non-vege

Back then, I could remember Chatime when it hit Cebu IT Park (and I may prepare to write about it soon). Now, I feel like talking about how Jolly Bubble Milk Tea might be another unique experience. I remembered how Chatime had its snack meals such as the delicious chicken chop sandwich or the hamburger. Though I wanted to have those--they're currently not available in contrast to their main product line which is tea. Now, I would like to talk about another Taiwanese-style milk tea which is also one of my favorites. It would be Jolly Bubble Food and Beverage Tea. This is a restaurant that I'd dare say kills two birds with one stone. It's because it provides both a delicious meal and some milk tea at the same time. I could remember how I would go to IT Park to eat out. It would be like I go to eat at Army Navy in one moment then cross over Chatime to the next. Maybe, I could talk about how I go to eat at Bharat Spice at one moment then go to Chatime for a drink. Chatime's

There's a saying that there's no elevator to success--take the stairs! It's a problem when people overspend--they ignore basic economics. I confess that I was an overspending teenager, I did flunk my first grading in economics back in high school (though I got better in college with economics during my stay at the University of San Carlos-Main Campus), and I only have a total of 12 economic units in my academic life. My thrifty parents had the habit of not giving me more allowance which caused me to re-evaluate my spending habits. It made me eat canteen food and re-evaluate my actions. Though, I also nearly fell for some get-rich-quick schemes too. Then I almost participated in one but withdrew earlier than expected. This brings me back memories of cartoons that I watched as a kid. Maybe, one can remember some Hanna Barbera sitcoms such as Top Cat  and  The Flintstones to name a few. Top Cat was always up to some idiotic schemes which usually backfire at the end of the epi

Assignment Point 2022 is just around the corner. It's really something to think that some Filipinos still don't understand economics. I remembered talking about the need for economic liberalization. However, the common misconception about foreign direct investment (FDI) can be linked to nonsense such as, "Why will you let them invest here? Only they will get rich!" This is baloney when you've got access to the rich digital media to access real great constitutional experts who made their country great. I would be referring to great men such as former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir bin Mohamad, the late Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, Deng Xiaoping of China, Kishore Mahbubani the former dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore. Maybe, we can also talk about how foreign investments played a role with the administrations of Fidel V. Ramos, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and the late Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III (Noynoy).  Foreig

Nobody can dare deny that China has become a big superpower. I remembered I went to China last 2007 (which would be more than 10 years ago). China had become such a huge metropolis of power that I'm amazed at it. I was thinking about how Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing were truly magnificent cities before the pollution problem (which should call for eco-capitalist measures). I was thinking about how I never realized China was once dirt poor.  Did you know China used to be so dirt-poor? The "economic legacy" of Mao Zedong was a disaster with the so-called "Great Leap Forward". It was a great leap forward all right--a great leap forward to ruin. Mao seeking to avoid the use of foreign resources to launch China proved disastrous. The 1970s would see a dramatic change when Deng Xiaoping finally took over the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The beginning of the rise of Communist China under Deng's new political policy would pave the way to China becoming a great s

During the late 2010s, I remember one of the greatest things I got into was Mexican food. I remembered a delicious Mexican restaurant opened in I.T. Park Cebu but it was later closed down. From what I heard, the owner closed it down out of grief and I don't blame the person for it. Years later, there was El Taquito at SSY which I also enjoyed. However, El Taquito is now located on Governor M. Roa Avenue in Cebu City. I would like to talk about the Red Lizard--Taqueria which has branches in SM Cyberzone, IT Park (where I usually get my deliveries), and Ayala Center Cebu.  I had quite a wild imagination thinking the restaurant was founded by a retired wrestler. I thought Red Lizard was a real luchador or Mexican wrestler. On the contrary, the character of Red Lizard is as fictitious as Jollibee's mascot, an anthropomorphic bee named Jollibee. Further research showed that Red Lizard belongs to the Abaca Group of Companies founded by Jason Hyatt and his Chinese wife Anna (whom he m