The string of headlines involving Filipinos overseas prompted an AP Crowd member to post :
This has been a recurring question which needs candid answers. Frankly, this is a question of metaphors. We are all “slaves” and we are all “owners”. We are all “producers” and we are all “consumers”. The difference lies in how we prioritize and select the areas of life where we are both “producer” and “owner” – and where we are both “consumer” and “slave”. On one end – we can be a consumer of information, just watching ABS-CBN, or INQ7, or GMA – or we can be producing our own content. We can be a slave of ABS-CBN or we can be a slave of FOX News – the question is which master gives higher pay and pats you better in the back. Why the fuck will you stick with a thankless master?
Clearing the Confusion on “Giving Away”
Who’s “giving who”? Who’s “we”? Do the oligarchy own us? Do “they” own us thus the metaphor of “give them our best nurses, our best doctors and our best engineers.” ? Does the Philippine state “own” us and by allowing “us” to go overseas, we are being “given away”? Obviously, that’s how the Philippine state and its feeling entitled vested interests think about the matter. I beg to disagree with the implication that I am a property of the Philippine state – much less the oligarchy. I vote with my feet and exercise my option as a free man to walk away and pursue my own happiness – and if that means going overseas, so be it.
Praktikalan yan, labanan yan ng pera. At the end of the day it boils down to money – you can’t sustain an advocacy if you don’t have money. You’ll be stupid to fight a losing battle locally. Odds are not in your favor – oligarchs have more money, influence, connections. which means you can be denied of a job anywhere anytime – you will be wiped out. That’s not a fair fight. The oligarchs and their deep pockets can feed as many tontows as they want – you can’t compete in that arena because you don’t have money. The protectionist economy is also skewed – the oligarchs have the money, you don’t.
Get a Life
Meanwhile, you need to make a living, you have to pay the bills – the mortgage, tuition, grocery, clothes, vacation, pension plan, health, taxes, investments, etc. You happen to have a valuable skillset – but the Philippines does not have industries or companies that can pay you the amount you think you are worth – but there are companies overseas who can – why limit yourself to a retarded Philippine economy? pay sucks. company sucks. colleagues at work suck, You are willing to be a minority share if a foreign VC comes in – but the constitution will not let you. If you get the oligarchs as a Venture Capitalist – save yourself the trouble – get the fuck out they will own your idea, your company, and you will go nowhere.
So, why stay? To enjoy in the Pinoys’ deluded affirmations of being “heroic”? – Heck what do you think of going overseas – a walk in the park? – And may gana pang manghingi ng pera – it’s a feeling of entitlement gone berserk. The pinoy family is a mini-welfare state – does that really works for Pinoy families? How many times have we come across the PLDT-Palamunin Dahil Tamad. On a matter of scale and complexity – scaling up the welfare-centric model of the Pinoy family does not work well with nations. A welfare state built on more free lunch – does not augur well for innovation and wealth creation.
While my countrymen are asleep in lalalalala land, dreaming of “free” condoms, “free” education, “free” health, being altruistic with money that does not belong to them, many choose the path less taken – fraught with peril – and which demands perseverance and humility. If ass wiping ain’t gonna teach you humility, I don’t know what will. But you see, that humility pays off – when one blends in more ingredients – foresight, creativity. In an enabling environment – sky is the limit, be what you can be. Question is do you know what you want? Are you comfortable in your skin? Because if you rely on other people to tell you who you are, and what you should be doing AND you take that as gospel truth without processing and validating it – reality will come back to bite you – real hard. You can lose big time. Still that’s fine – losing is part of the deal – and so is climbing out of a pit.
There’s a World Out There – Get Out of the Effin Basement
To level the playing field – many have taken the option of going overseas, some temporarily, some for good. With their skills and credentials in tow, they brave new shores and allow new seeds to grow and prosper. It’s not a bed of roses and many fall by the wayside. Still, those who took the pain, took the gain. Tough times never last, but tough people do. They use the “failures” as one more way of how not to do things. They soak in knowledge, experience, money, full protection of freedom of expression and human rights by adoptive governments – and continue the battle from outside the box called the Philippines – get to live and bullsyet another day. I don’t wanna be in Ampatuan’s company, that’s for sure 
Pinoys have this proverb that goes “ang nakikinig sa sabi sabi walang bait sa sarili”. Indeed we listen to others, but the decision to accept or reject the facticity and soundness of the information presented belongs to the decision-maker – the individual.
The message of this FIlipino proverb has been lost in translation. HILONG hilo.
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