Way back in college, one of my favorite subjects was Epistemology and Philosophy of Science. The theories, though may sound to contemporary science as relatively naive allowed me to view life and beliefs for that matter as relative. Throughout time, I guess one thing led to another- when faced about things that are new to me, I always try to give things the benefit of the doubt- I formulate a long series of what if’s and weave in my mind other theories that could have justify such an act.

It is only a few years ago that I realized, that somehow in the brutal state of affairs of the corporate world, sometimes close mindedness and egoism that are often mistaken by some people as “wisdom”, really did the trick.

Despite of this realization, I guess I am still incapable of formulating another mask for the sake of building a reputation that this society may view as “competitive”. A lot of times, I wonder of moving back to where I have been accustomed to. Writing, working alone, dealing with clients remotely and studying management practices that no one in this country dare to implement.

When I look back a decade and a half ago, I always wonder why the Philippines despite of its huge pool of intelligent, hardworking and idealistic human resource is still incapable of competing to its counterparts in Asia. Now I understand, that those who are on top, the old, experienced and the “wise” always force the new bloods to follow reality as it appears to them.

The government should not be fully blamed; and corruption must not be viewed as the Devil, who is always blamed when bad things happen. Just like Christianity, or any form of religion for that matter, the things that people often see as good, do not really function as it is expected to be.

Within the ranks of business moguls, of top minds and institution, lie the unspoken reality of commerce. The tool that initially promised economic liberation and improved social and human conditions act like a thief in the night. No one will really know what happened, or who they really are, unless you have come to know the world of the thief themselves.

Reality for those in power have continued from generation to generation in this poor country. When someone attempted to do things differently, introduce change or simply work in the most honest and efficient manner, gods in this society put them in a trap and lock them until they have become one of them.

The naive and goody-goody yuppie, afraid of another long litany of “what-you-should-do’s” eventually decides to follow the culture, and slowly as he grows old, he eradicates the reality that is known to him.

It is quite frustrating to understand how things really work. What’s worse, being in a state of dilemma of patterning the self to the archaic obsolete culture; versus just letting the self  and eventually the company adjust in accordance to the needs of time.

One of the Communication Theories that I particularly became interested at when I was still doing my Masteral’s Degree was the Face Negotiation Theory of Ting-Toomey in 1985. This theory have undergone multiple alterations, in which most recent update was in 2005.

I just came back from a meeting that have made me agitated for a couple of days. It was primarily about an issue that is political in nature, rather than technical, which should have been the case.

Talking with their boss somehow made me anticipate that our discussion would be more professional and helpful in nature. Surprisingly, all she did was place the blame on our company for the fact that two of our application development dependencies are under their umbrella.

Instead of acknowledging that they lack the appropriate coordination and initiative between their people, what she did was blame me for simply not talking with the “right person” (even though there is really no one who knows how to solve the problem).

Whats worse is that despite the fact that I have already addressed the issue to their appropriate point person, the aforementioned  simply do not want to make the effort of solving the problem. Perhaps they are waiting for a red carpet rolled down before they lift their asses out of their swivel chairs.

This experience made me remember the Face Negotiation Theory in which most of the conflict that is associated in business to business transactions (B2B) are primarily concerning identity management on an individual and cultural level.

Faces are defined as the various facets of individual and cultural identities, serving as a public image influencing the way the society views and evaluates them relative to its respective norms and values. Conflict within B2B partnerships normally happens when corporate or individual face is threatened.

On my experience, regardless of the fault that is clear on the client’s end, their big boss still decided to place the blame on our company in order to save the face of her subordinate, their team, and eventually their division. Despite the testimonial and factual evidence provided by the Project Sponsor which is the same company as hers, she still opt to do the act that she thinks is relevant given her disposition, that is to save the face of her team.

Given the fact that face negotiation is a natural human behavior, it still pisses me off to realize that there are really very few people who have the guts to simply accept their fault and move forward.

On my perspective, mistakes should not be viewed as something to be ashamed about, since it is with this respect that companies improve, develop their processes and acknowledge the need for change.  When people or organizations for that matter, start to think that they are perfect, superior and infallible, the state of complacency that could sadly go down to deterioration and incompetence could happen.

It is only mature, professional and sound to accept mistakes when they happen. The picture only worsens when people deliberately try to find a workaround that is obviously lame. I hope people belonging to multinational companies start to see this emerging subculture within their ranks.

Knowledge stops when ego rules.

The past few weeks, the Philippines had been hardly hit by two super typhoons: Ketsana and Parma. Thousands of families were left homeless; millions were lost from infrastructure wreckages, submerged properties and damaged businesses; and hundreds of lives were taken. The response of both local communities, international governments and private sectors and other institutions were overwhelming. A handful of people donated cash, goods, clothing and President Gloria even offered the Malacanang Palace as a refuge for those who have submerged homes most especially those living in Marikina, Taytay and Pasig.

A lot of perspectives were already written, reported and expressed regarding the philanthropic act of may volunteers. This is another perspective viewed in a different angle: neurological and philosophical.

A lot of people were amazed of how Filipinos help one another in times of need. The media have also swarmed on Facebook and Twitter accouts of both local and international celebrities reporting how helpful they have become in times of tragedy.
Viewing this state of human affairs in a different light, one can ask how come so many people felt that it is imperative for them to donate to those who were victimized by the typhoon. The concept of altruism states that some people make a deliberate pursuit of taking care of the interest and welfare of other people. On a neurological perspective, the study of Jorge Moll and Jordan Grafman, neuroscientists at the National Institutes of Health and LABS-D’Or Hospital Network (J.M.) states that by using functional magnetic resonance imaging, it appears to be that when doing altruistic deeds, the mesolimbic reward pathway of the brain is lighted. This brain region is also the one which usually lights up in response to food and sex.

Given this claim, it could be said that philanthropy could be viewed as a determined disposition that is highly governed by natural, biological and physical laws. It could be viewed as an act that is no different to natural inclination to survive, or an act that could please the self.

When an act is viewed in a highly deterministic manner, the concept of freewill is eradicated, hence the notion of moral ascendancy becomes questionable in itself. As argued from the neurological study above, it could be implied that the act of philanthropy is a natural response of human nature, therefore people who helped or assisted the victimized should not be placed on the pedestal.

Watching the news, looking at photos uploaded on Facebook regarding their so-called volunteer experiences, and blasting e-mails promoting their so-called philanthropic act, somehow diminishes the value of the act of helping. On a side note, human nature still desires the need to be credited, thanked and even applauded for the help that they provide to the typhoon victims.

However, heroic acts of soldiers who risked/lost their lives could be said as an act that is incomparable to the so-called volunteers; albeit when viewed on the ethical theory of Kant (the Categorical Imperative), it could be argued that the act of saving is only within their “duty”. Consequently, doing their duty is something that is expected from them, and should not be viewed as a recalcitrant act worthy of praise.

The rule of the Taliban from 1996 to 2001 had denied Afghan women almost all basic human rights: security and protection from all types of danger, health and medical assistance, personal development and even freedom of expressing themselves. Afghan women are forced to cover themselves from head to toe, and even mandated to cover their eyes.

The rule of Islamic extremists in the country have made women second class citizens, and at worse having a disposition similar to slaves. Afghan women who used to be doctors and teachers were forced to beg and prostitute themselves just to feed their families.
When the Taliban fell in 2001, changes in terms on the political and cultural disposition of Afghan women have started to improve. The new Afghan consititution demanded that both men and women must have equal rights before the rule of law. In effect of this, women are now allowed to work, and the government no longer forces them to wear burqa and are even allowed to hold positions in the government.

Despite of this, women repression is still prevalent in rural areas. Many families still restrict their own mothers, wives and sisters to create their own life. They are still forced into marriages and are still being denied a basic education.

Most Afghan women are still being burned down or are even being poisoned to death on attempts of going to school or welcomming democratic ideas that are against their normative Islamic views.

While women in other parts of the country are celebrating their individuality, freedom, personal develpment and triumph, other women in the Arab region are still battling for their basic human rights.

The feminist ideals of political and social equality in currently at democratic and liberal countries though decades old appears to be a utopia that every Afghan woman desires to attain. Religious extermists in the Arab region and other parts of the world have always belittled the intrinsic value of women and have been treating them as an object serving the purpose of men.

Religion still remains as a source of evil that have inflicted pain for centuries. Despite the developments of human knowledge, goverment, science and technology and various endeavors, aged-old problems are still dominant and are perpetuating in various areas of the world which could be unknown to us until recently.

The fight of women for equality and freedom is a classic and ongoing battle. When free and educated women like us think about Prada or Channel, there are women in other parts of the world who think of marrying a 60 year-old man just to feed her brothers and sisters who are starving to death.

His heart raced wildly against his chest. Perspiration rushed down his forehead, down his eyelids- his sight blurred. It was a split second, yet he knew that it was a distraction- a diminutive mistake that could not be avoided- the interplay of his biology and the laws of physics.

He opened his eyes anticipating a defeat that he wanted to rationalize that would not transpire. He froze. The rush of air pressure against his nape- it was in parallel with heightened dread. A hard object violently landed his head- the pain was sharp and lingered hastily all over his body.

He tried to regain his composure but another force hit him, and another and another. His pale body landed the moss-filled floor of his old high school. He stared at the fluorescent seemingly embracing his mind with fear and helplessness- from there he knew it was all over, he lost.

The dry wind and the sand of the sub-Saharan desert moved like a symphony- the oneness, the united purpose. Warm rays of the sun made the sand glow with magnificence- the rush of the eastern monsoon on an early December elicited a stature of dominance to the abandoned place. Gabriel slowly opened his eyes- recollecting what he was on an absolute past. His eyes dilated, uncertainty and fear plastered his face. He reached for the back of his head- his hair damp with blood were mixed with sand. Staring at his scarlet hand, he knew it was not a dream.

Gabriel stood up like a dying lamb at the middle of furnace. The pain on his head was gone- he touched his face- he could not feel anything. He raced the desert- attempted to empty his psyche of dread and pain- but from it escaped none. Gabriel sat down and tilted his head up- the brightness of the sun did not hurt his eyes.

“Could it be that I’m…” Gabriel wanted to dismiss the idea.

“But I always thought that if it really exists, it should be more than this”

Gabriel shook his head. He knew this place could not possibly exist. Or maybe it is time that his subjective reality governed by the law of probability must be overhauled.

Is this the proof that he have waited for so long?

(To be continued…)

The highly capitalistic society that one thrives in measures one’s worthiness in terms of the job that one has: the label, the paycheck, the amount of satisfaction together with the professional advancement that is being incurred in the aforementioned, matters a lot.

Swallowing my huge ego, which is by the way, only me is aware of and deciding to once again enslave myself in the so-called proletariat group, makes me ponder on how can this whole capitalistic bullshit be lesser evil.
Fortune 500 companies owed its success from various industry best practices that are overwhelmingly flooding western countries. In countries like the Philippines, a lot of corporations and small scale businesses though aware in principle of this so-called ethical ways of doing business are shall I say too financially gluttonous and could be at times too conservative in ways of handling their businesses.

Being a modern-day slave in the fast-paced world of information and technology, where people only primarily concern themselves about profit, status and ego, it is evident that individuals in this sector only concern themselves on what is tangible: running a company based primarily on numbers, measuring employee satisfaction relative to incentives and company outings, and bribing their employees of pizzas, lots and lots of pizzas.
CEOs and Directors often brush off things that in principle should really make their businesses more profitable and eventually attain a Brand that is recognizable and would be respected in their specific market niche.  A few variables affecting industry dominance include corporate culture, employee satisfaction, code of ethics, a lean and competitive operations protocol which in management scholars suggested could be attained through various paradigms such as the balance scorecard, six sigma, and the likes.
Although a significant amount of scholarly literatures have already been produced, Filipino-owned and managed companies, simply fail to step-up. If not for our foreign direct investments, mergers and acquisitions, partnerships and the likes it is very likely that Filipino owned and managed businesses would soon find themselves bankrupt.

One of the industries best practices that I wish to emphasize is the role of employee satisfaction. A number of managers view this as only limited to money, perks and pizza; maybe this frame of thought would work in a group of people who are view things the way their bosses do; but it should be noted that sub-cultural diversity is prevalent in the workforce, hence the Content Theory. On the other hand, the Process Theory view the way a specific employee feels happy and satisfied about his job, does not necessarily translate the same to another.
Equity Theory of Adams (1965) suggests that employees can be motivated when managers observes closely the level of effort that other people invests in their job, and rewarding them accordingly. As such, instead of implementing a standard incentive plan, and a mandatory company outing perk, managers should be assessing each individual and identify what is the best form of reward that could suit them. The Equity Theory of Adams stresses on the role of fairness and equity, and could be a good paradigm to be used in terms of understanding work motivation. In the same manner the theory of Vroom (1964) called Valence, Instrumentality and Expectancy (VIE) argued that motivation at work has a correlation between effort and reward. In relation to this other variables such as each person’s abilities, traits, role perceptions and opportunities all affect the way the aforementioned view their job.
The two mentioned theories together with my perceptions could be considered as only the tip of the iceberg. Corporations in the country need to view their workings as not primarily about the money. All businesses involve people and these are not fixed variables that could be manipulated and  can be predicted at will. At times, it is not about the money or the pizza, it is about understanding what your employee really wants- and what can you do in return in exchange of the millions of pesos that she brings into your bank account.

The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said that the only constant thing in life is change. More than two years ago, one of my closest friends went back in the country to take a vacation from her work. I must say, I felt like nothing had changed ever since we graduated from high school.  Princess went back to Dubai and continued with her career for the next two years. It was only three weeks ago that she came back and spent her early vacation due to the death of her father.

My first glimpse of her was the physical: she wearing her house clothes, her long curly hair hanging down, and eyes filled with hidden pain. I have to spend a couple of seconds internalizing the fact that, she indeed is already home.

Princess is one of the most special people that I had met in life who made me appreciate the ideal and the most simple things. Whenever she’s present, she is capable of bringing into reality a utopia that I only embrace in books and movies. I always view her vacation back here as a chance to relive those few little good things.

A week after Princess’ father was laid down to rest, she together with our old high school friends were supposed to celebrate her birthday, but strangely, things were suddenly not as it was before. Our friends started to formulate excuses and became very busy. I guess this is really what you get when you grow old. People opt to do other things, and they just simply… changed.

Quite frankly, I never expected my old friends to grow “cold of things”. I did not anticipated that I have to force them to see a friend who had been away for such a long time. Exchanging their Calculus Master’s class or being with “the boyfriend”, for the night was back then simply out of the question.  The old me figured that if there is a one unforgivable friendship crime that one could commit, this should be it.

Maybe I am just being too sentimental of things, or maybe I just became too cheesy, but I must really say that Princess’ vacation this year is really not what I expected it to be. It was rather sad and painful.

Circle of Fire

The photo above is the second night of Princess’ father’s wake. All of my old friends were present here, this is our only photo where we were complete for the past two years.

Circle of Fire

This photo here is Susy and Princess’ birthday, minus two people.

The fact that people, or more particularly friends’ way of viewing change is a perhaps upon realization, is an inevitable state of affairs; though another realization albeit already a cliche, surprises me:  its just hard to accept the truth when you met it face to face.

Do you still remember the day that you were circumcised?

Did you feel any pain during the procedure?

Maybe you did, maybe you did not. My youngest brother told me that the healing process is more painful than the actual process itself. Of course there is anesthesia, and the nurse or doctor provided you the assurance that she or he knows what she or he is doing, and the entire process is really safe and hygienic. The doctor perhaps used his newly sterilized tools and made you sit in a clean white linen while keeping your mind adrift by giving a little chit chat.

But what if let us say, that instead of letting you sit in a squeaky clean bed, the doctor decided to have you seated in a dusty old wooden stool; and instead of scissors and knives, you saw thorns, broken pieces of glass and perhaps an old and rusty razor blade; would you still wish to continue? And just as you think the situation could never been more worse, you’re parents forced you to do it not because you’re a boy, but because you’re a girl.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is the process of removing partially or totally the external female genitalia for cultural, religious or other non-therapeutic reasons. More often, girls undergo this procedure due to their parents’ initiative, in which self-consent of the aforementioned are deliberately disregarded. FGM is practiced widely in Africa despite the endeavors against it by the World Health Organization (WHO).

WHO estimated that a total of 100 to 140 million girls and women all over the world are currently circumcised.  In Africa alone, three million girls are put at risk of FGM every year.  FGM is generally classified into four types, in which first is what they call “Clitoridectomy” or the partial or total removal of the clitoris; second is the “Excision” or the partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora with or without excision of the labia majora, or the lips that surrounds the vagina. “Infibulation” is another process wherein the vaginal opening is narrowed through the covering seal which is done by cutting and repositioning the inner and sometimes outer labia with or without the removal of the clitoris.  Finally, pricking, piercing, incising, scrapping and cauterizing the genital area is also done to women who are required to undergo FGM.

FGM is a generally done as a form of following the norms of a respective society.  Such has been viewed as an imperative in order to have a girl grow to someone who the society expects to be highly favorable most especially for making the girl bankable in the marriage market.  Advocates of FGM believe that through this process, women will have the more appropriate sexual behavior, which will assure their virginity and marital fidelity.  The procedure is also believed to decrease the woman’s libido and would help her do away with sexual acts, as of course when the vaginal opening is covered or narrowed, the aforementioned will be refrained from omitting any sexual acts prior to marriage.  And finally, what could be more worse than having to open the closure of the vagina on the process of intercourse; like having to undergo the FGM process all over again.

FGM is normally associated by its advocates to ideas of purity and beauty, together with modesty and femininity; which is a very illogical and inhumane frame of thought and archaic perception towards women.

It is quite a shame that despite women are treated like men’s equal in most parts of the world, there are still a significant percentage of the society who still views them as objects. The perception that women needed to keep their hymen intact as such serves as a sole measure of their value never lost its place in the long list of fallacies that some cultures still wished to keep until present.

When some women in some parts of the West or in Asia rallied for their statutory rights, others battle for their lives and chase their dreams in vain. Perhaps women’s battle in this world would never seem to end. As long as there are dogmas, and obsolete and damaging norms, together with the rotten perceptions of highly archaic and inhumane patriarchal society, women still remains to be in danger.  The need to raise awareness of FGM as advocated by WHO must be furthered; otherwise people in other parts of the world will start and stop their disgust, anger and empathy in articles and pictures.

A few months ago, the country has been bombarded by campaigns promoting awareness of the most dreaded virus of human immunodeficiency, or more commonly known as AIDS. Earlier this month known director Pecque Gallaga’s son went out to the public and told to the whole country that he is positive. I was able to watch a short portion of his interview in a late night program in one of the Philippine’s local channels, and I can say that the way he looked at his disposition is very optimistic. I must agree, Filipinos would not know the gravity of the virus if positive people would go hide themselves from the public, or treat the sickness as a sort of death sentence.

According to statistics an estimated 33.2 million people all over the world are HIV positive, in which 2.1 million people including 330,00 children have already died. The population of infected people is highest in sub-Saharan Africa, which in effect contributed a lot in terms of retarding the growth of the country’s economy, and destroying their human capital.

Although there are already treatments for AIDS, such only serves as a bandage for the disease, for there is really no cure. In the Philippines, the Department of Health has already noted an 84% increase on the number of HIV/AIDS cases since 1984. Furthermore, Manila Bulletin claimed that 59 of new HIV cases had been tagged in October this year, in which 19% of the cases involved young people within the 15 to 24 age bracket; followed by 27% of individuals involving 25 to 29 years old. These numbers could be seen as highly troubling as it is clear that it is often the case that the youth are the ones who get infected by the virus.

Sex is still a natural biological activity that is deeply condemned by the church most especially for partners that are not yet married. In effect of this, people, or more particularly children who have their hormones wild more often choose to give-in to the need to explore this urge, without doing it in a safe manner.

What’s worst? The church condemning the use of contraceptives claiming it is a perversion on the law of God. The use of condoms, which is probably the closest thing that a person can have to protect him or herself is still taboo, hence making its purchase over the counter still appear awkward.

The natural inclination of people towards the act of exploring their sexuality should not be viewed as a mortal sin, nor be viewed as an act of folly. The fact that the human body is chemically wired to feel elated sensations, translating to the simple premise of human race perpetuation should not be viewed as an act made out of weakness. The act of protecting one’s self against the emerging sickness of the current state of affairs of society that is made about by the overwhelming patronage to early sex is only logical. The acceptance of the now liberated disposition of the Filipinos should now be seen as a norm; rather than intellectually masturbate how this happened, it is much useful to think what can our institutions do to protect the welfare of the citizenry.

Perhaps not until the country has tried to break its chains from the church, the more the country would reduce itself in the state of medieval stupidity. The fact that the need of the society changes, together with existing paradigms and frameworks, such would necessitate a moral guideline that is fit on the needs of times. To see the rightness or wrongness of an act based on religious foundations, is bound to create more and more poison that some people would choose to keep, and kill them slowly.

The campaign of HIV/AIDS awareness is a call that the youth has to make. The virus lurks at the bar, at the university, at the office, or maybe just right beside your current partner. The times has changed, and so we needed to be the same. To think freely and to act freely comes with a price, and that is learn to protect one’s self and to not view the virus as a sort of myth that is only fit for hookers or transgenders.

I have the feeling, for some reasons “death” wants me to fear him (lets just assume for the sake of amusement that he is a male).  A week ago, I witnessed two separate accidents, in which I saw two people died; and not a week has passed yet, the van that I am riding to Ayala got hit by a Jeep in the ever traffic exempted Pasong Tamo, what the odds huh.  Last Saturday, I learned that my Mom just got the results of her medical test, confirming that she has breast cancer.

Well, don’t get me wrong, I really feel devastated the day when I learned about my Mom and I really wish that if I can just have her cancer instead (though this is an entirely different sentiment). But strangely, I got mixed emotions when people dread death; looking back on the two separate accidents that I witnessed, when people at the bus realized that those people lying face down on the Imus road were already dead, I pondered if I shall have fear, or just shrug my shoulders and say, that this is just part of life.

Perhaps, people like me always wonder on the meaning of life; if its really worth to think that my value as a person will be measured by my everyday experiences and utilities that I may or currently giving to people. Is it worthy to say that I can find “meaning” if I chose to, if I change my frame of mind? Is it worthy to say that my subjective reality is enough opium for me to take-in, giving me temporary euphoria, when all this time, I know that all of these process are just causes and effects, interactions that even if I desire to not bound my self to do, would still continue in full operation.

Death perhaps is one of the events that I look forward to- where I will cease to be and will rest ad infinitum.  It is the culmination of perhaps my acknowledgement of defeat of my physical body, of my boundless mind, of the hopes and dreams being fed up by media and lot of social relations. The event is not a negative thing as I view it, nor I desire to battle with when I grow old. For me death, is perhaps the highest philosophical experience that I can ever have. To speculate against my own breathe the  being or non-being of a higher force; to look back and accept my frailty, despite my big ego; and to finally put to rest all of my plans and responsibilities. Death is my ultimate surrender; death is my most sought-for peace.   Though to terminate my own life, despite the not-so-good things in full bloom right straight into my face, is something that I am not contemplating to do, in virtue of my utilitarian ethical foundation.

A number of times, people ask why I am a sucker in going to school; at 25, I am taking my doctorate degree; and I got high every time I read harvard business review.  I always have the feeling that I will be dying soon; though ofcourse hunches are never reliable. Though, for the sake of amusing  myself, I’ll just probably include that in this set of gibberish.

Most people wanted to be immortal in different forms.  Leave their mark in the world through off-springs, through earning various awards, being recognized in the industry they are in, being read or featured in books, build a monument perhaps.  People always have the desire to “be”; and dread the unbeing. Well, to leave a mark as I see it, is nothing but to continue this non-sensical chain of causes and effects.  The cycle of life, the fear of death, the desire for power, the yearning of happiness, being insane because of “love”; all these are just plain instruments that will further shy us away on the truth as I see it, as the absurdity of existence.