LIFE’S INSPIRATIONS: “… The one who has knowledge uses words with restraint, and whoever has understanding is even-tempered…” (Proverbs 17:27, the Holy Bible).
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WHY ARE PINOYS FOND OF SAYING “P…. I.. M.”? Can anyone explain to me why, in various localities in the Philippines, Filipinos are fond of greeting friends and close relatives with expletives like “oy, p…..i.. m.”? Is it reflective of the cursing character of our countrymen, or, is throwing these kinds of invectives to relatives and friends, especially those whom we have not seen for a long time, simply is a form of endearment?
And, have you seen how easy it is for Filipinos to be blurting out, when trying to emphasize a point or two when they are talking with others, “walanghiyangbuhayito, oo” (or, loosely, “this is a truly wretched life, yes”)?
Then, isn’t it a reality of life among many Filipinos, particularly those on the countryside, that on occasions when they are greatly angry, or, conversely, when they are truly happy, they usually express their anger or happiness with hyperbole, or a statement with too much exaggeration?
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“HAYOK SA LAMAN”, “GAHAMAN SA KAPANGYARIHAN” & OTHER FILIPINO IDIOMS: Now, let me give you some examples of what I am trying to say here. When a person has the habit of sneering, he is referred to in Filipino as someone with “tawangaso” (or one with the smile of a dog). On the other hand, when a person is a miser or a scrooge, he is called a “maputiangtainga” (or one with a whitish ear).
Then, when a person is obsessed with too much sex, whether that person is a man or a woman, he is often referred to in Filipino as “hayoksalaman”. When the obsession pertains to holding political power for a long time, that person is called as “gahamansakapangyarihan”.
When an offender does something truly heinous or bestial which no other person must even think of doing, those in authority or in high government positions normally quip, “inunahan pa akongdiyablongito” (roughly, “this evil person beat me in doing it first”), not really intending to do the heinous or bestial act himself or herself, but merely to emphasize the heinousness or bestiality of the offense that no one should try to do it again.
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DUTERTE’S TRUE INTENTON RAPE JOKE: My honest belief is that, this was what Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte meant when he said that those who raped an Australian lady missionary, a beautiful lady in her own right, several years ago should not have raped her ahead of him.
I think that Duterte was not in fact joking when he said that, but was merely expressing great disgust and anger on the rapists who ravaged the Australian woman. Then again, he was not even suggesting that he should have been the one who should have raped her first.
What Duterte truly intended to mean, judging from the speech patterns of Filipinos we have just discussed here, was that, no one should be raping anyone, anywhere, at any time. That is all there is to it, really, and it is an insult to the Filipino way of saying things to interpret it otherwise, in a manner intended to discredit Duterte as a front-running presidential candidate.
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PLEASE WATCH OR LISTEN: “Tambalang Batas at Somintac”, a news-commentary radio program, aired at DZEC 1062 kHz and other Radyo Agila provincial stations, at http://www.eaglebroadcasting.net/radyoagila and at www.youtube.com (type DZEC Radyo Agila Tambalang Batas at Somintac 1062 Live), 6 to 7 in the morning, Philippine time. Phone: 0922 833 43 96, 0918 574 0193, 0977 805 9058. Email: batasmauricio@yahoo.com.