View
To understand why people go to the streets and why the government of this country is under such a huge attack, one must look closely to the popular notion of a normal life in a Filipino family - that a man doing the productive work, while a woman as an ornamental consumer.
In a Filipino family, the role of the father is belived to be very important because without him the family cannot survive. "I have to take care of them. I am responsible. They are weak. Without me tehy would perish." These are just some of teh fatherly claims. Hence, he holds the highest authority in the family.
On the other hand, the mother nutures the child. The mother becomes the disciplinarian, the value giver, who tells what's right and what's not. In short, mother knows best.
But a small child recognizes what he sees more than what he is told. Words have less impact on him. A child sees his mother working around for him. He is told only that his fathers also works for him. When a father commutes to work, he has to leave early while the child is still sleeping and he comes home when the child s about to sleep. More often, the child sees his father watching TV, reading newspaper or taking a well-deserved nap. But to a child, these seem like sheer idleness. These experiences can hardly dispel the notion that his father is realy not up to much tasks. The father's work remains unseen and seems unreal, while the mother's activities are very visible, hence real. Now the mother becomes the carrier of the authority. While the child comes to doubt the legitimacy of the father's authority and may grow up to doubt the legitimacy of all authorities.
A child seeing his father at his place of work, with other strong men working hard, without him being aware of it, makes a deep impression on him. Such experiences make identification with his father seems worthwhile for a child.
Realization
I am not claiming that these observations are absolute and correct. I might not even have scientific basis for these. I am not saying that the a government that works in front of our eyes will shun people from going to the streets but this would at least lesses the occurence of demonstration. Afterall, the absence of tension is just as deadly as too much of it.
What the government needs to do is to recognize that unavoidable conflict exists, and it must not evade it. It must stand up and face real confrontation instead of giving demonstrators a dose of soothing syrup.
Yes, I may sound vague and too general. But the premises are simple, just the basics of life. Life is not about harmony. It is more of a conflict. Life results from an imbalance and the effort to establish balance. It is a conflict between thesis and antithesis, which is resolved in synthesis, which in turn generates a new antithesis for a new conflict. Without this process, life would come to a halt.
Next to sexual pleasure, one of the greatest experiences of life us climbing a mountain and growing hot and sweaty in the process then plunging into a cold lake. You may be shivering for a minute but what makes the difference is the sudden change from hot to cold. Where there is no tension, none is relieved.
But the present (and past) government wants life to run smoothly, doesn't want any difficulties. It wants the mountain to be lever and the pool to be lukewarm. Then it demands to be applauded. But what is the sound of one hand clapping? One hand alone strikes empty air and makes no sound at all.
5:20am (advanced by 23mins)
Election Day
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