The bad, ugly, evil are winning

By Alex P. Vidal

“You don’t always win your battles, but it’s good to know you fought.” – John Greenleaf Whittier

AS we have predicted before the year 2025 ended, the bad, ugly, evil will win over the Marcos Jr. administration after the latter failed to deliver its promise to jail the former before Christmas Day.

Each passing day in 2026, it is becoming increasingly difficult to clobber the flood control project bloodsuckers who have apparently succeeded in not only delaying their prosecution but also silencing witnesses.

Each passing week in 2026, the chances of not being able to neutralize rabble rouser and political dimwit Harry Roque, not being able to locate and bring home billionaire fugitive Zaldy Co, and not being able to provide justice to families of the missing sabungeros  (now that Atong Ang’s whereabouts couldn’t be determined anymore pending issuance of his warrant of arrest), are getting immense lock, stock, and barrel.

Once the key witnesses are gone—or have recanted—all the major players, the hippopotamuses of the most scandalous and biggest-ever corruption in Philippine history, will end up laughing their way to the valley of freedom, joy and impunity.

Anywhere we look today, it seems all the odds are stacked against the Marcos Jr. administration, not to mention the series of defections and expressions of disenchantment and disgust by individuals from various sectors against the slow and “apathetic” Marcos Jr. administration.

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Since launching a Pyrrhic battle against the flood control project myrmidons in his “mahiya naman kayo” (have some shame, you all) SONA speech in July 2025, only the Lilliputian Sarah Discaya and lesser-known DPWH earthworms and cockroaches have been arrested and jailed.

Because it is weak, indecisive, and slow, the Marcos Jr. administration is fast losing the moral ground to lead the campaign against massive graft and corruption in the Philippines.

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. appears to be relying only on two laway (saliva) Remulla brothers, DILG boss Junvic and Ombudsman Jesus Crispin, who are career politicians by any stretch of the imagination, if not 2028 presidential wanna-bes.

The president has been showing signs he doesn’t have a solid backbone to reinforce his loud and angry soliloquy against graft and corruption.

He has no sense of urgency and his threats against the plunderers and grafters are not being taken seriously.

In fact, what’s shaping up is the reverse; it’s actually the Marcos Jr. administration that’s being peppered by enemy Molotovs left and right, not the other way around.

For the time being, enemies of the Marcos Jr. administration are silently mobilizing their forces like a pack wolves and flamethrowers of Genghis Khan.

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COFFEE PROTECTS THE LIVER. Dr. Arthur Kiatsky says among people who had developed chronic liver disease from heavy alcohol intake, those who drank one to three cups of coffee per day were about 40 percent less likely to develop cirrhosis (characterized by a scarred liver with diminished function) than those who did not drink coffee.

A BABY PICTURE CAN PROTECT OUR WALLET. In a recent study, 88 percent of people who found wallets with photos of a smiling baby returned them…compared with 53 percent of people who found wallets with a photo of a cute puppy…48 percent, a happy family…and 28 percent, a contented elderly couple, says Dr. Richard Wisemen of of the University of Hertfordshire, U.K.

CHEW NUTS LONGER TO FEEL FULLER. A recent finding shows that people who chewed a small number of almonds 40 times before swallowing them felt greater fullness after the snack and for longer than those who chewed the nuts 10 to 25 times before swallowing.

SAVING OUR PLANET. Let’s feed the meter. Installing a water meter in our home is a great step forward. Once we start measuring our water usage, we will become more aware of waste and it will force us to think of ways to save water.

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SAVING OUR PLANET. Let’s litter away. Let’s keep litter, pet waste, and leaves out of street gutters and storm sewers that drain into natural water habitats. Pet wastes contain bacteria and viruses that can threaten fish, wildlife, and human health.

POTASSIUM PROMOTES HEARTH HEALTH. In a study of 2,974 men and women, those with the highest potassium-to-sodium ratios in theory urine were 50 percent less likely to develop cardiovascular disease than those with the lowest ratios. Theory: Combining a higher intake of potassium with a lower intake of sodium seems to be more effective than either alone.

VERTIGO LINKED TO OSTEOPOROSIS. In a study of 441 men and women, those with osteoporosis were three times more likely to have benign positional vertigo (BPV), an inner ear disorder that causes dizziness, than those with normal bone density.

GREEK WORD. The word ‘gymnasium’ comes from the Greek word gymnazein which means to exercise naked, which often was done in ancient Greece.

FIRST BED SCENE. The first couple to be shown in bed together on prime-time television were Fred and Wilma Flinstone.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor-in-chief of two leading daily newspapers in Iloilo, Philippines.—Ed)