I have always thought that there are three important aspects of a car:
#1 A Good Engine
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A car is a “vehicle”, a machine designed to transport things, in this case people. A car should have a good engine in order to take people where they want to go.
#2 Safety Features
One of the leading causes of death on a global scale are traffic accidents. They can happen to anyone and they do. One can almost say that no one is safe from them because, since just about needs to travel in this day and age, we all run the risk of being caught in a traffic accident. That is why it is very important for a car to have good safety measures. When, and not if, one’s car encounters an accident, reliable safety features can ensure one’s survival.
#3 Longevity
It’s important for me that my personal vehicle lasts a long time. I want to be able to use it as long as possible and share a lot of adventures with it. If I wanted a car that wouldn’t last very long, I would’ve rented a car instead.
Everything else on a car are, at best, only secondary features for me. Is it’s interior uncomfortable for me? Well, I can always install better seats and other features so I can make my ride more comfortable. Do I dislike it’s current color? I can get it repainted to suit my preferences. Does my car feel not like myself? There are always accessories I can buy and install to make the car my own and better fit my personality.
Unfortunately for many typical Pinoys out there, this is simply not the case…
For some, their seats and upholstery actually matter more than the engine as they simply don’t understand the latter. Then there are those who couldn’t care less about the car’s safety features as long as their car is the right color. Lastly, there are those who would ignore an otherwise long-lasting car since they don’t have a “feel” for it.
I’m not saying it’s wrong to have personal preferences, but as I’ve come to discover, our choices often speak for themselves and the image they project is not a pretty one. More often than not, our choices present us as a shallow-minded people because we all too easily go for things that may seem obvious but lack substance in the long run. And indeed, it isn’t just our choice for cars and vehicles that best represents our shallow-mindedness as a people.
You can see our shallow-mindedness in the way we like cheap and stupid comedies but often fail to understand smarter comedies that make one think. Another way you can tell that is our dramas that are more about emotionalism rather than good character dynamics. Lastly, note how our romantic comedies amount simply to teen lust rather than life-lessons such as learning to love oneself first before loving another and learning to let go of people whom you know won’t be able to make you happy anyway.
What’s worse, is that our shallow-mindedness is essentially worked into our culture itself and is one of the chief reasons our country is in dire straits. We easily lose sight of important issues because we get distracted by superficial events such as the marriage of certain celebrities, the personal troubles of famous people and, last but not least, the often irrelevant shenanigans of various individuals. Indeed, for a lot of typical Pinoys, a person’s name, appearance, economic status and fanfare matter more than things like genuine achievements, competence, expertise and wisdom. They miss the things that aren’t obvious but very important as they get sidelined by matters that are of little or no importance whatsoever.
Note for instance how there are those who find it easy latch unto a person’s physical appearance when countering them instead of presenting them with a well thought-out counterargument. You can see it also in how a lot of our celebrities are simply just “pretty faces” and nothing more. What’s worse is that you can find this as well in how we select our politicians what with some being chosen solely because they are popular or have some trait that is easily visible to the masses even though they lack any real substance on a deeper level.
Look, don’t get me wrong ladies and gentlemen, there is nothing wrong with everyone being a little shallow from some of the time. There is also nothing wrong with a few people being shallow all the time. The problem occurs when just about everyone is shallow all the time. By focusing too much on superficial aspects and irrelevant issues like the lurid sex life of an aging celebrity of questionable talent, we not only waste precious time, we also run the risk of losing sight of things that do matter such as the occupation of our islands by Chinese invaders, the threat of terrorism in Mindanao and the natural disasters that all too often pop out of the woodwork when we least expect them to.
We can always indulge in shallow-minded fun in our free time. Heck, I do it too and I’m probably worse than you. However, let us not lose sight of what is important and remember to value the gift of wisdom. Because, at the end of the day, there’s more to this world than what seems readily apparent and that there are things that are not just easily explained or understood. There are things that, unless you think about them deeply, you will never fully understand them.
Truth be told, many of the Philippines’ problems are often hard to understand and their roots are quite vague and may require one to see more than what is obvious and their solutions often require a considerable amount of thinking in order to be addressed permanently. Unless we can see beyond what is shallow, then I can assure you that our nation will remained doomed for decades to come. Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to undo the years of shallow-minded conditioning the local mainstream media has imposed upon us and look at our country with greater clarity rather than the sugar-coated but all too often rotten fake paradise that is all too often presented to us.
I HAVE RETURNED TO LAY WASTE TO OUR ENEMIES!
I live in California since 1986. Built my “retirement home” 4 years ago in the Philippines with the plan of retiring there once I start using a walker. But as revealed by the recent political media fights, there are so much negative energy there that’s its almost infectious. Changed my mind: I’m retiring here in the U.S. Philippines will still be my #1 tour destination.
Gin3,
I feel you on your change of heart of not retiring in the Failippines. This country was once an affordable and relatively safe place to retire for foreign and local (Balikbayan) expats, especially when the U.S. bases were still here.
These relative safety and affordability haven’t been the case since 1992 when the Americans left, according to the number of expat retirees I’ve talked to who are contemplatively still living here. The cost of living started going up when the government started an Overseas Foreign Worker (OFW) campaign, to send millions of Fliptards to other countries and encourage them to send their remittance monies back home.
The government then gave generous business accommodations to Chinese (local and foreign) to build shopping malls, subdivisions, condominiums, hotels and restaurants, resorts, and name-brand motor vehicles for the growing buying power of OFWs and expats (Balikbayans and foreigners) who aspired to live the good life in their country someday .
This economic trend gradually destroyed the local Fliptard-owned businesses because they’re not allowed to join, nor unable to compete, with the government officials and Chinese businesses that were literally monopolizing the Failippine economy.
With what little money they had left, these former Fliptard business owners had no choice but to join the growing ranks of OFWs before their saving run out. Those Fliptards who couldn’t afford to leave the country were force to commit social injustices–illegal, unethical, and immoral acts—on others just to survive and keep up with the growing consumer mentality of the entire country.
These are the reasons why the Failippines is no longer a viable choice for many local and foreign expats; they have to keep their guards up to protect themselves from the growing number of Fliptards who are increasingly becoming financially desperate each day.
Aeta
Well style can be superficial to some people and make/break for others; but I can guarantee you the top SUVs ranked HERE have top-class engines/safety features.
Some people limit their choices to beauty, brains or kindness when they can actually have AOTA.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law–justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.” -LJC Mt23
Yeah we can be guilty of kababawan; just don’t let it be the only thing that defines us.
Hence i am all for RA 10390: People’s Television.
http://www.manilatimes.net/possibilities-for-a-real-peoples-television-finally/266743/
but the two giant networks? the oligarchs?
its because people in the Philippines operate on one collective brain cell that the entire country pulls from.. and their main goal in life is how to get money. it will never change… I wish I never went there..id be rich now..but I got a lot of pussy..thats the main reason men go there.. you don’t see married retired white couple moving there do you?
Actually, I do.
Most retired, white couple who go to the Failippines are missionaries. The rest would rather not take the chance of getting scammed, robbed, or murdered.
Compared to Thailand, you don’t even see that many single, white, attractive men and women visiting there. The Failippines will always be a Dirty Old Man’s (D.O.M.) paradise.
This is true. I am a Caucasian, younger (under 40) foreigner and I recently came back from the Visayas. The only males you see in the Philippines (generally) are ugly/ fat/ slob/ old males who are rejects from their Western countries. They exploit the desperation of the poor Filipinas who want out. With a few exceptions, foreigners who go there are trash.
Can we protest instead of complaining on the internet. It will do good on the frustrated people that is fed up with this country.
Who do you protest to in the Failippines and actually see something done about it?
Filipinos fail in critical thinking, judgement and common sense, one reason might be one has no clear idea on how to function in a severely damaged and dysfunctional society. Just to exist here is enough to give you a serious mental breakdown. A good mental exercise might help engaging in sports or meditational activity,simply pick up a book and read to take the mind off stress. Make yourself useful than stare at an idiot box all day.
You can blame the bible for that (lacking critical thinking).
According to the bible there is just one vision and when one doesnt follow that one vision, then hell will wait for you.
And that implicitly also rules out common sense (logic and knowledge). When the bible must be seen as the only ‘truth’ then what you see in the Philippines is what will happen.
I didnt and dont meet many pinoys who question the bible.
I find it amusing that how can one quote the Bible here word for word and and still Filipinos can’t figure out why they are so Fucked up and why their government is so corrupt.
Camara,
People who quote the Bible all the time, and tailor its verses as catchall phases in all aspects of life, don’t have a good grasp of reality.
Aeta
I’ve lived here in CDO since 2008, and the one enduring endearing trait I’ve come to admire about most Filipinos is their patience, especially when it comes to the public service, the endless queues, the grinding idiotic paperwork ‘requirements’, the various hoops and hurdles everyone has to go through.
Patience is the one virtue that will see us through in this crazy, shallow-minded bizarre zombie world of money, power, privilege etc etc.
Without patience, life would just be ‘nasty, brutish, short’, and full of endless pain and curses.
The beauty all around us would simply fail to impress us.
Beautiful country, beautiful people but they are too money hungry, I went there once and I added a lot of them on my FB account and next thing you know most of them were asking me for money for birthdays, graduation, even to get them a new cellphones and sneakers. I helped a few times but then it was too much and I closed my FB account. I kept close in contact before but now I keep my distance. Sorry!!
Eddy,
You’ve described what motivates the Fliptards very accurately: money. No one can argue that point.
Aeta
Cars are better designed nowadays. They have safety features. Cars have self diagnosis equipment; computer controlled; and other features that promote safety in driving…
Cars are designed, for a length of years usage, and certain mileage. If they design a long lasting car. Our car industry will go bankrupt.
Our shallowness was due to our watching too much trash TV shows. Instead, of watching informative TV shows, which are not available in Philippine Media. The Philippine Media, made it sure, that all TV shows , dumb down the Filipino viewers. Surely, we become shallow minded. The “Bakya” crowd and TV shows; like Kris TV, were placed in the prime time viewing; when most Filipino TV viewers are watching…
They want everybody to think like YellowTards.
We almost all become YellowTards !
I would like to back-up a little from some earlier statements I’d made, like.. “More than ‘education’ itself, it is the ‘thirst for education’ that is the most important attribute we Filipinos must have”; and, “Until the more fortunate, the more enlightened, the more capable among us.. and Government.. do something to bring this about, the country will be stuck in her blissful ignorance”. These are harsh statements that betray quite a bit of frustration which are more in line with the “Failippinines” and the “Fliptards” that both ‘Aeta’ and ‘d_foresaken’ are wont to talk about. To, somewhat, mitigate my statements, however, the overwhelming majority of our citizens must themselves, pull back from the influence of bad politicians who want them to stay where they are.. that they may be used; pull back from the corrosive and mind-numbing TV fare like ‘Tubig at Langis’, Dolce Amore’ and ‘Eat Bulaga’.. that the networks and their producers could be forced to ‘up their game’ and present more uplifting and enlightening programs; and perhaps, these, citizens, themselves, realize this, and find some time to read books.. that they might continue to improve intellectually after school and break out of a ‘functional illiteracy funk’ which I believe to be the real bane of today’s Filipino. Finally.. all this effort will be less fruitful or even wasted if Government, itself, believes that such is not the case, and simply let things go on the way they are now.
That would be the real tragedy.
The shallow of the highs and the depths of the lows.
I am half-Filipina and half- African American.
I was born and raised in the Philippines but now live in Ny.
Sad to say, but it is the truth. A lot of my country men just see the superficial. A lot can not even tolerate constructive criticism. The moment you say something wrong about our country, some immediately get angry at you. They do not think that for our country to improve, we need to face the truth.
If you comment on something, some would say they will just leave everything to God. Do not get me wrong, I believe in God also but if you do not do the work and just rely on God, nothing will ever happen.