By: Reyshimar Arguelles ANYONE can easily shrug off any form of tragedy as just a part of life. But only the most soulless, vile, and twisted beings online can leave a “Haha” reaction on a news report about what is considered to be one of the worst sea disasters Western Visayas has ever witnessed. Whether
August 6, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles LET’S take a break from the usual programming and discuss a different topic: me. Yes, it’s that kind of issue where I get to gloat and reveal the iconoclast for what he really is deep down. But this is also my way of taking a much-needed breather from writing boring, redundant, and
August 1, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles PRESIDENT Duterte’s order to close down the lottery operations of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office due to massive corruption had me thinking why people are drawn to the game in the first place. To some, buying a lottery ticket is treated as a rite of passage, much like a baptism or circumcision.
July 30, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles LIKE any public servant, the Office of the President is expected to disclose its plans for the year ahead, determine the problems that need to be resolved, and reiterate its main economic, social, and political programs. These while ensuring the nation that the current government is still as stable as a feather
July 25, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles REBELLION, in the words of the French-Algerian writer Albert Camus, begins when one has had enough of the current order and seeks to restructure reality to fit an ideal. It’s for this reason that Camus considered rebellion as both an act of negation and an act of affirmation. Simply put, you can’t
July 23, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles BEING in a country located within the Pacific Ring of Fire, we should treat typhoons as a normal thing. Unfortunately, we haven’t gone past the need to improve our weather monitoring capabilities and the way we respond to serious natural phenomena that could potentially cause widespread casualties and infrastructure damage. This has
July 18, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles THE United Nations Human Rights Council voted unanimously to investigate alleged extrajudicial killings or EJKs in the Philippines, and boy did this trigger the Duterte administration! But it’s not that difficult to admit that we had seen this coming from a mile away. Despite its withdrawal from the International Criminal Court, the Philippines
July 16, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles LINO BROCKA’S film “Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag” was a harrowing tale of the social realities that haunted his time and still haunts us today. It could pass off as an apt allegory of the nation itself as it is forced to resurrect its identity in the midst of widespread decay. Any
July 11, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles RICHARD HEYDARIAN seemed the misfit when he published a column for the Philippine Daily Inquirer. It was well-composed and could be his magnum opus in writing an insightful commentary about foreign policy. In writing the piece, he exerted the same amount of effort the Duterte government spends along the lines of foreign
July 9, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles I WOULDN’T mind watching a horror film or two, but when it comes to getting my fill of authentic and disturbing terror, I will have to turn to history. From Auschwitz to the September 11 attacks, history is rife with moments that may disgust you or make you question why humankind is
July 4, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles Only a graduate of Wanbol University could get away with saying the dumbest things. But it’s Wanbol University, which means to say, it’s an institution where you could still graduate even if you have an IQ less than that of a potato. And the fact that Tito Sotto was able to get
July 2, 2019
By: Reyshimar Arguelles WHEREAS the Philippine politics of yesteryear was largely defined by legal luminaries quoting from literature to debate important pieces of legislation, we are now treated to senseless brick batting tinged with sexual innuendos and low-brow, noontime show humor. But does it really matter if we call out our leaders to ease up
June 27, 2019