Opinion

There are few things in life that can transform a perfectly reasonable Filipino into an aggrieved Elizabethan actor quite as quickly as a traffic dispute. The most demure women become tigresses. Soft-spoken gentlemen discover that their vocal cords have capabilities they never knew existed. People who would ordinarily apologize when someone steps on their shoes suddenly develop an unshakable conviction that the entire road system has been personally entrusted to their care. And the language. My goodness, the language.

The latest vow of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to defend the peso with the country’s foreign exchange reserves and policy tools invites a question: Has his administration forgotten the costly lessons of the 1997–1998 Asian financial crisis?

Christmas is coming, and with it, the annual homecoming of thousands of overseas Filipinos eager to reunite with their families, enjoy familiar food, visit favorite destinations, and celebrate the holidays in the Philippines.

There are few things more amusing than watching otherwise sensible adults become unreasonable over a basketball game played by people young enough to be their children. A missed free throw becomes a character flaw. A referee’s call becomes evidence of a conspiracy. A victory is proof that an entire institution is superior, while a defeat is something that requires immediate explanation. The players may be the ones on the court, but the people in the stands often behave as though their own futures are at stake.

Woke up this morning hoping for a reset, with my circadian rhythm hopefully back on track after weeks of near-sleeplessness, due in part to bodily changes occasioned by advancing age and to the ayuda economy, which has gone from bad to worse to overdrive. I cannot believe what has recently been printed in both legacy news outlets and portals like the one where I currently work, or the level of absurdity that has pervaded the country. When I ask any reasonable person what ails the Philippines, with its rich resources and poor economic performance, the retort and the discussion that follow quickly turn absurd. The survey firms Pulse Asia and OCTA have a four-word answer: the cost of living. Two-thirds of the country say the most urgent issue is inflation, and that “public sentiment . . . is being shaped primarily by economic strain and the rising cost of living.”