The Crime had Victims

There is not enough money in the national treasury to properly fund critical social programs. Programs which, if funded, actually save a few people from death. Not theoretical death...actual "no more breathing", "buried in the cold hard ground" death. And those programs save a lot more people from suffering in general. The convicted former president stole some of the money from that already inadequate supply. The fact that he was convicted means that you no longer have to say "alleged" when talking about the crimes. He really did steal public funds.

If you dug deep enough, how many people would you find that actually died, or at least experienced greater suffering, as a result of the theft? And how many of those same people, or their survivors, still see Estrada as their hero, totally unaware of how his theft caused their suffering?

There are many "victimless" crimes in the world. This was not one of them.

A Second Look

This is actually a comment I posted on Ricky Carandang's blog http://www.rickycarandang.com/ (one of my favorite websites, and about the only one I read regularly). I thought it would make a good comeback article:

Here it is...

Just to toss something out there, I might be changing my opinion about Neri. I haven’t quite decided yet.

In the paper today, Pimentel said “Neri is now an object of pity and scorn. He can resign, but I think he is more worried about his physical safety.”

Ricky, would you say it’s true that Neri was actually so afraid that it made him physically sick? Maybe we have been a little too quick to judge him. Clearly Neri is battling some personal demons. First, I’m pretty sure he is struggling with his own convictions about right and wrong. From the little I know about him, he seems to be a good and honest man with strong moral convictions. But he also seems to be a man strongly driven by loyalty.

Secondly, he seems to be a pretty smart guy, and I think he may be influenced by his own predictions of the chaos which may result from his testimony. People have been predicting all manner of terrible outcomes, including the ouster of GMA. The thought of people marching in the street again as a result of his words may be a little intimidating for Neri.

Finally, of course, there is the fear of retribution, both physically and legally. If it’s true that the police set up operations around his house, entirely without request, that was clearly meant to send him a message. And legally, the judicial system in this country clearly favors the subject of allegedly libelous comments, rather than the utterer (is that a word?). The truth never seems to be a defense in such cases here. If you say something unflattering about someone in the Philippines, it doesn’t seem to matter whether you can prove your statements or not.

I don’t know if any or all of these are factors influencing Neri’s recent actions. I’m just tossing it out for discussion. But I do intend to hold final judgment about the man until after his next appearance before the Senate.

I also think he needs continued encouragement and moral support. It shouldn’t matter whether his president falls or not. Some things just have to be done because they are right.

One more comment: It was reported in the Inquirer that Neri was about to talk in closed session, but Joker intervened. Joker of course has denied this. But once again, his choice of words are cause for suspicion:

Asked if he had tried to prevent Neri from talking, Arroyo said: “That’s terrible backbiting.” Notice that Joker did not say “no”.

Do loyalty and personal gain always have to win in the Philippines? How bad would a situation have to be before leaders like Joker, and even functionaries like Bunye and Saludo say “Enough is enough. I can’t be a party to this”?

Do these people have no honor?

Gonna Give It Another Try!

I'm back! I haven't actually gone anywhere. Just kind of lost the motivation to put my thoughts on paper (figuratively speaking). I guess I ran into the "what's the use?" wall.

But enough of that. I've been posting quite a few comments on other people's blogs, and I got to thinking that I should start putting them on my own again. So here goes... (by the way...I think I'll try to write shorter essays this time. Some of my previous entries got kind of wordy.