A collective inability to harvest INSIGHT from our own history

Written on Wednesday, July 16th, 2008 at 9:02 am | by benign0

And so it starts — a history of infamy continues to be swept under the rug true to form in a society that would rather drown their sorrows in Wowowee than pull their shit together and LEARN. It’s no wonder that we remain an utterly stunted society in all aspects of what it means to be a “society”.

House Committee on Transportation chairman Rep. Monico Puentevella reportedly said that:

Whether it’s 45, four or five, I don’t think we should dwell on the past […]

He was referring to the Lloyd’s report of how Sulpicio has figured in no less than 45 accidents since 1980. Indeed, our politicians reflect their constituents.

How serious are we about implementing change? This continues to validate my eight-year-long assertion that we are an unreflective society — possessing a collective inability to harvest INSIGHT (is there a Tagalog word for that concept?) from its own history.

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About The Author: benign0 is the Webmaster of GetRealPhilippines.COM and has once been described as "one of the most enthusiastic hecklers of the politically-passionate" by a respected journalist.

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3 Responses to “A collective inability to harvest INSIGHT from our own history”

  1. Jon Limjap on July 16th, 2008 10:50 am

    Insight and reflection both translate to the same word: pagninilay. I would surmise “insightful” or “reflective” might be translated to “mapagnilay”.

    Of course there are words that will demonstrate our dear Rep. Fuentebella’s statements regarding this matter:

    kapalaluan
    kalapastanganan
    kawalang-pakundangan
    kabobohan

  2. Patricio Mangubat on July 16th, 2008 4:33 pm

    A recent study revealed that Filipinos have very short memories–about 3.5 days. We remember events for this short a time and forget about them and go on with our lives.

    Pagninilay, as Jon said, only applies when a Pinoy is faced with personal difficulty. This difficulty could only be love or emotion-related or something involving family matters (marriage, death, etc.). However, when faced with politically sensitive issues, Filipinos don’t reflect; they just act. Sometimes, they act irrationally spurred by emotions caused by the times (EDSA 1, EDSA 2, Katipunan revolt, May 1 rebellion).

    Have we learned a thing or two about Sulpicio? No. As I wrote earlier, this matter will be swept under the rug. And Pagasa will again be blamed for it. Sulpicio Lines will get away with just 50 million pesos paid for in damages.

  3. benign0 on July 16th, 2008 7:30 pm

    Well maybe that is indeed the fate of our lot — to repeat the same mistakes over and over again until something truly cataclysmic happens (as if that one ain’t it yet).

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