The latest Bayanihan Pulse study by iVolunteer Philippines paints a vivid picture of a volunteer sector in transition—rooted in tradition yet rapidly adapting to the realities of modern life. Conducted between June and July 2024 with 406 respondents, the research reveals a sector defined by youthful energy, growing gender balance, and a deep cultural commitment to service. Yet… Read More »
The Enchiridion of Epictetus, by Stoic philosopher Epictetus (50 – 135 CE), opens with a straightforward truth: “Some things are in our control, and others are not.” What you control are your beliefs, opinions, impulses, desires, fears, perceptions, and responses. What you don’t control are others’ beliefs, opinions, impulses, desires, fears, perceptions, and behaviours. I tend to compartmentalize, which is… Read More »
The customary onslaught of promotional materials reassuring a tear-jerker movie continues to thrive in Philippine movie industry. Even if the line-up of cast is imposing enough to grab one’s curiosity, this overdramatic strategy keeps on resurfacing inordinately just to pull off the box office bottomline. No wonder this pitch has been deeply inveterate in Filipino psyches that often… Read More »
Depiction of women in film affixes the ubiquitous mindset of the masses about the female species. Every image projected on screen accedes to the audience’s percipience to freely redirect and validate them into cultural norms and beliefs. The efficacy of cinema creates a ripple effect on societal practices. Hence, the contretemp rests on whether the filmmaker takes the… Read More »
Spain is the latest country to take part in the growing “It’s about time!” international effort to protect children from the myriad harmful effects of social media. Speaking at the World Governments Summit 2026 on Tuesday, February 3rd, Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, declared that social media has become a “failed state.” Sánchez then announced plans to ban… Read More »
The Philippine alphabet has gone through a peculiar transformation of writing system during the evolution of the country’s national language. Undeniably attached to its long history of foreign influences, having been colonized by Spain for centuries and the United States of America prior to the Second World War, the shifting consensus on national language reflects a history of… Read More »
Over time, movie audiences have been treated with multitudinous films specifically made “based on a true story.” This claim often sparks interest to analogize how the film breathes life into the lead characters and recreates scenes that may seem unimaginable to many. Whether the cinematic attempt lends credence to the real story or not, the obligation rests solely… Read More »
Have you noticed that nobody talks about the future anymore? What’s there to say when hyper-technological advancements are decimating professions and industries with no rebound in sight (Full disclosure: I view AI as a human replacement tool—employers requiring fewer employees—and not a productivity enhancement tool.), shifts in geopolitical relationships that were thought to be solid now feel like… Read More »
Czech dissident and playwright Vaclav Havel who would later become President of the Czech Republic, wrote in 1967 a satirical play ‘The Memorandum,’ which parodied bureaucracy and society’s adherence to communist rule. Havel critiqued the system by utilizing an invented language “Ptydepe” to magnify the incomprehensibility of bureaucratic jargon or newspeak which disallows ordinary citizens from living in… Read More »
The concept of Catholicism interspersed with the pursuit of Rizalism proffers a stark contradiction, notably if one is drawn to the historical facts that led to the martyrdom of the Philippine national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. Delineated images of oppressive friars during the 19th century elucidated by Rizal himself in his novels do not seem to augur a… Read More »