“If God exists, all depends on him and we can do nothing against his will. If he does not exist, everything depends on us.” — Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus. “Life, as we find it, is too hard for us; it brings us too many pains, disappointments and impossible tasks.” — Sigmund Freud, Civilization and its Discontents.… Read More »
“I’m telling the Filipino people, not me, it’s going to be bloody, because I will not sit there as president and just like any other regime, say, ‘That’s all I can do.’ If you put me there, don’t fuck with me.” “Am I the death squad? True. That is true.” —Rodrigo Duterte. One of the endearing qualities of… Read More »
“The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall./We cannot be sure of having something to live for unless we are willing to die for it./Above all, always be capable of feeling deeply any injustice committed against anyone, anywhere in the world. This is the most beautiful quality in… Read More »
“Any life when viewed from the inside is simply a series of defeats.” — George Orwell. Writing is a never-ending struggle; to say otherwise is dishonest. There are challenges to deal with: subject matter to write, a catchy title, clear and appropriate words that will form a sentence, convincing argument, structure and content, writer’s block, ideal time to… Read More »
“They are the most fatalistic people in the face of the earth, which is why they’re willing to live under lousy leaders.” — Vladimir Putin. “We need heroes, people who can inspire us, help us shape morally, spur us on to purposeful action.” — Robert Coles, Lives of Moral Leadership (2000). By Rey Moreno There are seventeen presidents… Read More »
“Is it true that human beings are fundamentally cruel? Is the experience of cruelty the only thing we share as a species? …To be degraded, damaged, slaughtered—is this the essential fate of humankind, one which history has confirmed as inevitable?” —Han Kang, Human Acts. “…if only you will not begrudge lending your ears…those which you are accustomed to… Read More »
“I’ve reached the end of this great history/And all land will fill with talk of me:/I shall not die, these seeds I’ve sown will save/My name and reputation from the grave,/And men of sense and wisdom will proclaim,/When I have gone, my praises and my fame.”—Abu’l-Qâsem Ferdowsi Tusi, Shahnameh. My name is Manuel Ortega. I am a foreign… Read More »
By Rey Moreno Filipinos believe strongly in miracles. I remember when I was a boy a rumour was circulating of an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the window of a bungalow-style home in the north side of the town proper. One night some of our neighbours decided to check out if it was true. I tagged… Read More »
“Oh yes, suddenly I realized what a good thing death can be, how just and fair, like a disinfectant, or a vacuum cleaner. — Olga Tokarczuk, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead. One of the great fears of our existential being is the fear of death. So much so that we don’t want to know… Read More »
“To be abandoned by God was worse than to be punished by Him. Better an unjust God than an indifferent one.”—Elie Wiesel. “Evil is unspectacular, and always human.”—W. H. Auden. A festive night, for sure; the glitters of the occasion are overtly evident. The rich and famous start to arrive in their chauffeured-driven limousines. It is one of… Read More »