The term we use to describe hyper-sensitive people here in the Philippines is balat-sibuyas, which literally means “onion-skinned”. The analogy is that just as onion skin easily comes off, Filipino people are easily hurt.
I aim to derive another analogy using the onion. Attempting to get a message across to Filipinos creatively is like peeling onions: it makes one want to cry.
Go watch the video “20 things I dislike about the Philippines” in one of the links below, and watch the tears start to roll down, and the onion skins start to fly.
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Video link on Channelfix site
One of the last links remaining on Youtube
Jimmy Sieczka, the guy talking in the video, is the latest target of the ridiculous emo reactions of our balat-sibuyas kababayans who never fail to rise to the occasion whenever somebody comes along and says something that puts Filipinos in a “purportedly bad light”.
Predictable as ever, hyper-sensitive Filipinos showed their penchant for shooting the messenger, and ignoring the message. “Oh he’s not Filipino, why should I care?” “If I ever see you on the street, you’re a dead man!” “Your own country has its own flaws, so why focus on ours?”
Do all these sound familiar?
In a radio interview featuring Jimmy on Thursday morning, March 15, with Mo Twister, Mo himself said there should have been a 21st item to dislike: the NAIA airport! Well, we may never know what Jimmy actually thinks of Cebu’s airport, but it’s safe to assume that had he been based in Manila, not only would have the NAIA airport definitely made the list, a 20 list item would have been too short.
Seriously, people! It’s satire! It’s sarcasm! We should be smart enough to know that we are supposed to take things like this with a grain of salt! As many of us here in GRP like to say over and over and over, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, literary devices such as sarcasm and satire are lost upon Filipinos. Whether they choose to ignore it, or really don’t get it, the result is the same. They come out looking stupid.
To their credit, Filipinos wouldn’t show this much rage over it if it weren’t true. Then again, the over-reaction to Taylor Kitsch confusing the Philippines for Indonesia shows that onion skins start flying once the Philippines is mentioned regardless.
Filipinos never fail to show their trademark indignation that masks a lack of substance underneath. Yet once again, we fail to grasp a more important question: so we know what’s wrong with the country, what are we doing about it?
For the record, the video was funny more than anything.
А вы, друзья, как ни садитесь, все в музыканты не годитесь. – But you, my friends, however you sit, not all as musicians fit.
It’s all true what this guy is saying. The truth hurts! There is no way around it. I’m embarrassed to bring in a guest from my US friends just to see the dirtiest country. What is the government doing about it? How could they correct all of these neglect and eye sores? If the place is dirty, people don’t deserve and don’t get respect. How could they? people just pissed, litter, & spit everywhere they wished.
On the other hand, let say the place is clean and organized like “the fort”, “McKinnley Hill” they are clean, people are embarrassed to litter. They deserve respect because of the environment is clean and respectable.
Solution: create tough laws against littering, spitting, shitting, pissing, using public place as their personal bathroom/kitchen, pass the Epal Law to prevent eyesores from politicians propagandas, pass the RH bill to avoid unwanted pregnancies that your children could end up beggars in the street.
ang alam ko po my batas n po tayo dyan kaso kulang lang sa implimintasyon.;)
that’s because most filipinos are morons. they can’t even vote for the right people during elections, how can you expect them to recognize something as complex as a satire?
Those who would be “outraged†by this video are hypocrites. The guy is just speaking out loud what most of us think of privately.
Since he’s a foreigner, a lot of people will call for him to be called persona non grata. If he was a local, people will say that he’s being unpatriotic
If there’s one thing you can call him, it should be HONEST!
I feel sorry for Jimmy. He resides where he is forced to be sorry for the flaws of the country.
This reaction is to be expected out of ordinary Filipinos. But what bothers me more is that even our leaders can’t even listen to reason. In the news last night, the undersecretary of DOT belittled the poor guy and said, “for every 20 things that he does not like about the PH, I can think of 2,000 things that I like about it.” And they are even contemplating on summoning the guy to have him explain or say sorry.
Such ABNOYs!
Correction it’s 20 million not 2,000. And those DOT dirtbags even demanded the deletion of the vid and it did. Hypocrite scumbags masking their sorry state of this country with their lame excuse.
and what’s funny is the same people who are crying foul over this video are gushing all over the other video produced by the same team entitled “20 things i love about the philippines”, when that video is clearly also a satire! they love the philippines because of pirated dvds, unsanitary food preparation, the fact that you can urinate everywhere etc etc. damn, these filipinos can’t even distinguish between a real compliment from one that is meant to be a joke. i am so ashamed to be associated with these people!
I believe most of those retards ranting on the video are 12-16 year old kids. If not, I’ll never wonder why. Our country is surrounded by morons.
Haha! True, Fantards of the “Pinas!”
Yeah, my eyes are peeling when I read the youtube comments.
‘Tis no doubt that they can’t stand a petty slur against them and yet they go into great lengths just to ridicule foreigners.
Because Lourd and his clones were not enough. lol
In fairness for the video, I found no traces of bashing. Just straight telling-off of the in-your-face facts. Funny to some extent.
The only thing that bothers me is that he made a culture comparison. It’s true that the US has a lot better stuffs, so I wonder why can’t other Filipinos strive for the better.
Actually, Filipinos who are “balat-sibuyas” about this video are very few.. (at least in my circle), so to say that Filipinos are very insensitive in general is not fair. My first reaction when i saw this video was “oo totoo nga to” (all the video showed was true), and laughed, hoping that this message would reach the concerned public officials esp P-Noy.
Those onion-skinned flips better go back to high school and understand the difference between racism and criticism.
I LOL at all those negative post about this video! It’s true what he said.. If we pinoys want to do something about it then why don’t we change for the better? What are we waiting for? the government? If something wrong happens we blame the government being corrupt and all, yet we are waiting. like what JFK said ask not what your country can do for you but ask what you can do for your country.
Yeah you’re absolutely right. I think it is time that all citizens living in the pinas should participate in the affairs of the state by running up programs for free to people out there who need to know how to create for a better society. There’s just so much class inequality due to miseducation as well, and those that are more prvileged don’t even have the initiative and social responsibility to treat the workers with fairness and reasonable income.
Hence, the exodus of many who are trying to eke out a living elsewhere. So much to lambast against the gov’t, but the people who they ruled are as much or even a lot worse off than they are. If only, there’s someone or some few out there potentially running up in politics possess the humanity, wisdom and responsibility towards other citizens such as Benjamin Desraeli (look him up if you’re curious).
My favorite part was when he said in the Philippines “you’re not actually required to finish the project you started. It’s like everything in this country is under construction.”
This is true even for the apartment building my dad had built in the Philippines. When I saw it I was like “is it finished? There’s no ceiling in the bathroom.” We lived in one of the rooms for a month vacation. Everything is either incomplete or incompetently built. Some stairs in the Philippines has steps that are too small for any regular sized feet and there is no standard size steps. It’s like rulers were never invented.
What Jimmy Sieczka’s saying are all truth. We must face the reality. I think he’s video must serve as a wake up call for the government. I am also a Filipino and I don’t want to lie to myself. I am actually seeing what he mentioned in his video. Instead of taking it negatively, why don’t we just take it as a constructive comment.
In order for us to lure tourists and investors, we have to show them that it’s really more fun in the Philippines and not more annoying to be in the Philippines.
A little harsh, but yeah, totally agreeable. Pinoys really can’t understand sarcasm, we didn’t grow up with that kind of thing. To tell you the truth, sarcasm is as American as apple pie. Video was funny as hell, I was laughing my butt off. I’m sure the dude in that video loves the Philippines. This place, regardless of what’s to dislike about it, is home – not just to us, but to foreigners who love the place too.
Well the guy has a point about his piece. Instead of hopping mad and blowing off our top shouldn’t we ask ourselves what can be done so that foreigners will have a positive perspective on our nation?
On a unrelated note(YMMV) if the King in Yellow wants us to stop criticizing him or at least tone it down he must show some positive or suffer his mind that stuff.
Hehe! I liked the video because it confirms what I have been ranting at all my life.
Try to Six Sigma the Philippines and you’ll be hounded as a Pinoy-basher. This country has obsolescence as a birthright.
I kept laughing the whole time because what he said (in the video) is so true. For those who keep on saying things about Jimmy Sieczka, watch the video first. And oh, ‘dislike’ is much different than ‘hate’.
I still believe it’s not for a foreigner like Jimmy to voice out/broadcast his personal observation in public. True his observations were valid, but for the last 3 years he has been in the Philippines, he should have had the decency to understand and know the Philippine government is trying their best to turn things around for the better.
As a foreigner it is not my business to dictate Filipinos they stop using skin whiteners. What valid reason do I have for that? If Filipinos wanted to look like Michael Jackson then who am I to stop them? It’s not my money anyway!
Whatever Filipino do to themselves, their country; whatever they do with their lives is non of my business. It is everyone’s freedom of choice that is important here.
To think that Jimmy comes from a country where civil rights and freedom of choice is paramount tells me he actually meant harm to the country more than anything else.
I agree the people must help the government in its effort to improve the country, and by that we should let them do it at their own phase.
If we keep shooting down every program they implement simply because to our its not enough or they are not like what every foreigner expect then we are not helping them at all.
Foreign or not, he has the right to complain. He is working and living in the Philippines, it means he pays taxes and adds economic value to the communities around him. I think It’s his right to complain about the living conditions there. Filipinos always wants everything sugar coated, Jimmy’s bluntness is part of his American culture and you have to take that into consideration. If you watch their other videos on their site you can find that they are not doing this to incite hate, anger or harm. I’ve recently watched their documentary called “sexpat” and it goes deep into the sex tourism that the DOT has said to be untrue. They seem to have a mission to incite change for the better.
The Jimmy guy just happened to be a foreigner who pointed out what is wrong with the country, and some people took notice. It had to be that he pointed it out, and all for the better. Filipinos have been saying the same thing about their own country and nobody in the government wouldn’t take notice, let alone do anything. Other Filipinos tried to do something about their own communities and yet get shouldered off by the local governments.
I hope Jimmy does it again and add more to the Hate list.
Why was this provocative article buried under GRP’s “Glitz and Glamour” rather than headlined? I almost never read the vacuous “Glitz and Glamour” articles.
It raises many points of importance.
Does someone with a visa have equal rights to free speech, or not? I’ve been told to “go home” when I strike a nerve. Yet my kid’s future rests on the Philippines being progressive. I’m here legally. I import all my wealth here. What’s with the resistance to my ideas?
Sarcasm is largely lost on Filipinos. And satire. This is a function of an education system that teaches things, teaches limits, rather than teaching young people to laugh, to read, to love ideas, to be different, to aspire, to see the foolishness in how we live. The Bible should be Kafka’s “The Castle”, not the King James rendition of a historical reference book that really stretches the imagination.
Another excellent piece.
And that would be a mistake. Every part of this blogsite is as equally important as the headline.
My mistake. Vacuous to me. I don’t care about Manny Pacquiao’s projected bankruptcy or Bela Padilla’s bikini or aging singers from America or wherever Anne Curtis is from (the Philippines is the only market these antiques have left, Rolling Stones excluded), of bouncy stewardesses or the President’s love life.
I care that the Department of Education is stuck in the muck. And that so many Filipinos believe ridicule is a proper social expression.
If they are equally important to the Philippines in your eyes, I have no complaint whatsoever.
The Glitz and Glamour section of GRP is not the typical one you will see elsewhere. You would realise this if you actually bothered to read it.
Well, then give Fallen Angel’s fine article headline treatment then, if they are all the same. Sideline positioning is subordinate. I only read top-line stuff. You know, like yours.
And how about saying to me, your guest reader, “thanks for the suggestion . . . but here’s our rationale” rather than bopping me with the dissy comment. Christ almighty what does it take to find some courtesy in this place? Or benefit of the doubt even.
I was making what I though was a constructive suggestion, and complimenting the author.
Joe
Which part of what I said do you consider “bopping you” or a “dissy comment”? Are you going to start crying foul of being mistreated here again? What the heck?!?
Why are people so focused on getting respect after criticising this blogsite?
Despite all the stuff you wrote about me in the past Joe, I still treat you like any other commenter here. In fact, I have grounds to kick you out for badmouthing me in your blogsite but I don’t bother doing it. Now you are starting to stir up something again. I was simply responding to your comment, the one that insinuated that FallenAngel did not get the treatment he deserved.
In the first place, why do you think FallenAngel’s article has been sidelined ? I just told you that all the articles are treated equally important. So what do you mean by sidelined? All the categories get the same exposure when the webmaster shares it on the Facebook page. In fact, the articles on the sides get more airtime because they don’t get bumped down as quickly as the ones on the headline. Did you even consider the fact that it was actually FallenAngel who specifically asked that his article be put on the Glitz and Glamour section? I guess you didn’t.
You have not even considered the idea that maybe it’s just you who thinks that the Glitz and Glamour section is not important. I publish some of my articles in that section. Some of them even became massive hits.
BTW, you were NOT giving a recommendation at all. You were assuming that FallenAngel is being mistreated.
Joe, thanks for the compliment and the comment. But let me make one thing abundantly clear. It was my discretion, as the author, that this article fall under Glitz and Glamour.
Since you’re open-minded, then let’s play along that line. Not everything regarding celebrities is vacuous nor shallow. Like Ilda said, everything in the site is equally important.
It would also be easier for our readers, like you, if we did classification instead of dumping all our stories into one big pile, don’t you think? That would be more organized, and neater. Tell me if you like browsing blogs that look disorganized. You don’t, right? 😛
We encourage you then, as an open-minded person that you are, to read as much as you can in this site, because you’ll never know where you may find a gem of an article especially if it’s not among the headlines. And you’ll never know where you’ll find an issue that strikes a chord with you.
That being said, there’s no need to make an issue where there is none.
Fallen Angel, I appreciate the explanation. I erroneously thought that all articles got headline treatment, then were subsequently posted in the side-bar subject headings. I never read the side-bar articles and only stumbled on your article because I skimmed the “comments” section.
I would categorize the subject matter as something other than Glitz and Glamour, I suppose. Bur it was your call. I also think the side bars are not positioned as well as the top-line postings. But that is just a personal observation, and I have no idea if it applies to others.
Sorry for the side-track. It is a very pertinent article to me, an “outsider”.
Joe “Open Mind” America
@joe: short explanation – you have no admin rights, or say in the editorial decisions in this here blog. ’nuff said.
@Parallax
Hirap to deal with people who have a victim mentality. They can’t admit when they are wrong, which is why they tend to think that people are “mistreating” them.
Parallelaxe, thanks for butting in after the matter was laid to rest. As your crackerjack mind will recollect, I am an ardent believer that blog owners can do whatever they want with a site. Remember when I was defending Filipino Voices against the “censorship” charge you wild-eyed Antis were throwing up. Now GRP censors . . . or, in my vernacular, edits their publication. I recognize GRP’s right to do the layout however they wish. I have a right to an opinion, however. Right? I do have that right, don’t I, o’ keeper of blog morality, lover of trosp?
@ilda: da pinoy’s victim mentality can be contagious to those who do not resist (specif. by using their brains properly). even joe got the bug.
@joe: see below for a quick slapping.
you’re welcome, joe “i’m so open minded i don’t wanna hear it” america. (what, no one is allowed to remind you just to make sure you don’t miss the point?)
you were defending the removal of expressions of dissent that were spot on and reasonable. no wonder fv is DEAD.
i don’t speak for them, but i do know this – you, or anyone else, can’t get away with creating issues where there are none. in any case, your poor attempt apparently wasn’t removed. so you don’t really have anything to complain about, do you?
so do i. life isn’t fair.
don’t be jealous of trosp. only YOU deserve my leather whips.
Weak.
pwned.
Agree. National Artist F. Sionil Jose wrote an article, “Why we are shallow”, and I think it also explains why we have super skewed priorities. Getting angry over things we should consider as constructive criticism, getting delighted over things that should actually be changed.
This is extremely true. Look at the Cebu councilor who wants the guy banned now?
As a foreigner, I don’t even dare leave honest comments on Filipino news sites or forums. I might end up banned.
First time I’ve seen the clip. It is actually an eye-opener for us that we do have a beautiful country, but as people, we abuse it.
Hindi naman sya ang unang “umalipusta” sa bansa natin. Remember Claire Danes? That was what, years ago? So it only means WALANG NAGBAGO. It actually got worst!
Yes it is a bit too rough but when you think about it, he was simply stating facts. Facts that even Filipinos actually mention on a daily basis.
Yes, there are more than 20 reasons to love the Philippines, but we should not turn a blind side on what slowly corrupts our country. Those little “basura” we like to throw in the streets shows how disciplined we are.
In my principle, and I guess most here would agree, strengths are to be continued and passed on, while opportunities needs to be corrected.
Although the guy in the video seems at lost, I agree with almost all of his observation. We have lots of homework to do, not just the government, but the citizen ourselves need to solve the problems mentioned by the guy. One thing though, the guy used lots of offensive words that negates his intention to make points. He looked more of an uneducated commentator rather than a qualified critic.
Last news is that a Cebu councillor wants Jimmy declared persona non grata.
If they’re getting him to leave Cebu, he’ll be more than welcome to live in Baguio. Anybody who wants him out for speaking the truth is a dirty rat who would rather live in filth and squalor (which is what local politicians want for Filipinos – to live in filth and squalor).
number of americans residing in Dumaguete. American Organization in Dumaguet, if any.
ay mabuti naman at may naglakas loob na nagsabi ng totoo ako ay 20yrs na hindi nakauwi sa pinas tiga america ako ng nagbakasyon ako sa pinas noong nalalakad kami ng ate ko ay yung isang lalake ay humarap sa pader at umihi kaya nagulat ako dahil noong araw hindi naman ganito dito sa lugar namin .ang dami ng tricycle angbaho ng amoy ng usok ng tricycle ang daming basura sa karsada .kaya imbis na magalit tayo ay gumawa tayo ng paraan para hindi mapintasan ang pinas ..ang kasama kong amercano ay gustong sumama sa akin sa pinas pero ayaw ko at sabi ko sa kanya ay maramin npa na galit sa kano baka makidnap sya .dapat ang barangay ay kausapin ang mga tao at pagsabihan na linisin ang kapaligiran..