UP plagiarist & Pork Scam: Indictment vs. Nation
VOL. XVI NO.54 September 28 to October 4, 2013
LIFE’S INSPIRATIONS: “…`Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the Lord. `Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool’…” (Isaiah 1:18, the Holy Bible).
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UP PLAGIARIST & PORK SCAM: INDICTMENT VS. NATION: Can we blame UP alumnus Mark Joseph Solis for stealing a photo and submitting it as his own in a photo contest? Can we blame lawmakers who are accused of stealing P10 billion in pork barrel allocations? In a sense we can blame them, but the real indictment is not just against them, but against the entire Filipino nation. Such stealing by our youth—-and stealing by our elders— are now happening simply because, as a people, we no longer teach ourselves the values and the ideals that matter.
We have been told that we should train our children in the way that they should go, and when they grow old, they will never depart from it. We have been told that we should teach our youth in the training and instruction of the Lord. We have been told that we should instill in our children that there is an ever-powerful and ever-knowing God, whom we must love and obey with all our hearts, our minds and our souls.
Yet, no Filipino family is doing this anymore. No Filipino family is discussing God regularly anymore. No Filipino family is talking anymore about God’s commands and values. No Filipino family is taught anymore to abide by God’s rules. And so, since God is no longer taught to our children and to all of us, we grew up, are still growing up, and will continue to grow, without fear and love of God, capable of every mischief and evil.
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THE PRIORITY IS NO LONGER GOD: In fact, if the truth be told, our children are now exposed to talks among close family members focusing on how to raise money at all costs, how to subjugate and prevail over foes, political or otherwise, using all available means, including buying justice, how to ensure a lifestyle of power, pomp and luxury, even at the expense of, and using the money really intended for, the poor and the marginalized.
The overriding objective now of many Filipino families, rich and poor alike, is to earn, earn, and then earn some more, regardless of the means of earning. And so, we see men and women in government shamelessly pocketing government funds, like pork barrel allocations in billions of pesos, intended for the poor. We see men and women willing to work abroad, even if that would mean separation from their children as they are growing up, and even if that work would result in the eventual break-up of the family.
The priority is no longer God and His commands. The priority is now money, money, and still more money. He who earns, even if with the aid of the devil, is given the title of an “honorable” man or woman. He who does not earn, even if he is doing it because he does not want to dabble in the systemic plunder, malversation and graft and corruption of many, is simply stupid and is often ridiculed and despised.
