The BU Beacon

Christopher Dominus Kyle Carullo | Angela Fajardo | Ardeline Gestre | Maxinne Angela Raneses

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The Iron Throne

Opinion | Ardeline F. Gestre

October 9, 2018

For so long the Philippines have been under the law that states that if the president fails to do his responsibilities or becomes ill or die, the next rightful person to be the successor is the vice president however, that law might change.

Recently after house speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo authored a house committee draft for federal transition skipping Vice President Leni Robredo as the successor of President Rodrigo Duterte came up with quite a stir in social media and in congress which ignited heated debates.

To some, this sounds like a great idea of giving Senate President Tito Sotto the role to become president should anything happen to the president in May 2022 but to others this is waste of time, which causes confusion to others leaving people with a query. If the vice president doesn’t take over then what will become of the vice president?

With the allegation of the president being ill it is already a question of whether who will replace him. But it has already been clear to the public that the president doesn’t feel comfortable with Vice President Leni Robredo taking over after calling her weak, the president feels more secure if Bongbong Marcos took over. The feud between the Liberals and PDP has been going on for sometime now and this issue can be depicted as an opportunity for power.  

Of course, the Liberal party does not approve of this and the camp of the vice president calls this situation completely ridiculous. At this point the Philippines is turning into the hit series, Game of Thrones where every kingdom is competing to be the rightful heir to the iron throne. He whoever sits, becomes king of all.

The notion of playing president of course is not an easy task with every administration having their triumphs and defeats the person next in line surely has big shoes to fill. Governing the entire nation isn’t as easy as being class president, it takes courage, determination and good leadership skills to do it, as the constitution says anyone can be president and there isn’t much requirement to be considered a candidate and at this rate anybody can have the ball.

Being a democratic country for so long and jumping to become a federal nation is indeed a big leap to take, but it appears as though it is a risk the country is going to make. It is after all what the government thinks that is best suitable for the people of the Philippines. It is of course a huge adjustment for everyone and this transition is not going to take place over night. It is a process where the citizens will have to start again from scratch and understand new protocols.

Every political party aims to make this proud nation a better place but of course it also means sending their best candidate to do the task and each of them wishes to earn a seat at the big table. The pressing issue is still unclear as to who will be the next presidential successor and the federal charter is still a draft which means it still needs to undergo due process before being passed on the constitution. With that being said the present constitution is still in act and it states that in the absence of the president the vice president must take over until electing a new president. One thing is absolute, whoever becomes supreme ruler and sits at the iron throne must secure the betterment of the nation and its people.

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An unwanted silence

Editorial

The president is perceived as a tough guy who does not tolerate anyone who questions his decisions as the nation’s leader. It is rather an unlucky ordeal if one is considered his critic. The opposition is quite known for being extremely oppressed by this administration. The target opposition this time around, are the students.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines recently publicized a list of universities who have students that are allegedly in on “Red October”, a something that is rumored to be planning the ousting of President Rodrigo Duterte. Most universities included in the list are found in Metro Manila. And of course, opinions have formed from left to right.  Some have already spoken up against the accusations, denying that, even though their students express strong feelings against the government, they are not keen on resorting to ways to change the situation of the country in means that are against the law and will have negative repercussions. Also, there are the opinions of the “DDS”, or the avid supporters of the president. Their claims are that, especially since there are state universities included in the list, these schools are ungrateful for the free education they are receiving from government.

This attempt at silencing critics have gone too far. Firstly, the general act of “silencing” critics is such a no-go, especially for a person of authority who should have no room for mistakes. These critics are there for that exact reason: to point out what’s lacking for the development of our country. However, here comes the DDS, interrupting the voices of the truth to defend their boss, silencing those who they call attention seekers.

Not only does this list give humiliation and a bad reputation to these schools, it brings great danger to the students, as well. History is on its slow pace of repeating itself. Back in the 70’s, the Marcoses had a trick up its sleeve: the Martial Law. And during this dark period, those who were allegedly conspiring against the government would either be arrested, tortured, or magically disappear. Sounds eerily familiar, doesn’t it?

Sadly enough, some Filipinos don’t see the quite obvious similarities of the two administrations. Besides this issue with the universities, there has been reports that a woman, who bravely questioned the president in front of a crowd during a campaign that was disguised as a relief visit, has not returned to her home and is now missing.

If this is not a more blatant reason to be worried, what else should happen to have everyone be awakened by the dangers the Philippines is under? #

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Run the other way

Opinion | Maxinne Angela G. Raneses October 8, 2018

Mocha Uson has been a notable public figure since before she became the assistant secretary of the Presidential Communications Operations Office. It is common knowledge that before she began meddling into politics, she was an entertainer. She became known for being a solid Duterte fanatic, and being the lucky girl she was, the president favored her enough to grant her a position under his wing.

Uson’s time as asec was eventful, to say the least. Not to mention, it was not a very appealing time. Besides her Facebook page “MOCHA USON BLOG”, her job made it easier for her to express her love towards the president, and her extreme hatred for those who oppose him. Her hatred was extreme enough for her to turn to drastic measures, earning her title as a spreader of fake news.

Most Filipinos rejoiced when news broke out that Mocha Uson resigned from her post in the PCOO. It meant there was less BS from the administration, other than what came from the president himself. 

There was, however, only approximately 7 seconds of rejoicing, because rumors flew here and there that the reason she let go of the position she used as a privilege instead of an obligation, was because she had plans to run for a higher position in the government.

Millions of Filipinos, especially on the internet, showed their opposition against such notion of electing someone with a foul mouth and a bad habit of speaking before thinking.

Just recently, it has been confirmed that Uson has plans for a seat in the Senate. The choice, however, is still in the hands of the Filipino people. #

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Miser Art

Opinion | Angela E. Fajardo October 8, 2018

“Medicine”, “Engineering”, “Law”, are some of the career paths that most South and South East Asian parents tell their children to pursue. More often than not, when the children have the passion for art, they quickly dismiss it by pushing the idea that art can always and just be their “hobby” while also implying that they will never succeed if they pursue art. 

The notion that there is no money in art has never changed in the Philippine setting. Most Filipinos fail to tag art a as a full time career. When an artist says they do commissioned pieces, the person at the other end of the conversation will rebut by asking what the artist’s full time job is, not realizing that it is, in fact, art. 

But why has our society’s treatment to artists and their profession never changed despite the fact that the industry has always been a key factor in this nation’s progress. 

Just this year, Jameson Blake, an actor, posted a tweet asking graphic artists for a “favour”: a logo for his upcoming YouTube channel called “LucidExpress,” in return the artist would not be getting a payment, rather, a worthless shout-out on his social media accounts. 

Though twitter users were quick to point that his channel’s name was cringe- worthy, the backlash that Jameson got from graphic artists trumped those tweets. 

The Jameson Blakes’s in our society do not realize that shout- outs cannot feed artists. Where does this assumption come from?  Our society has always looked down on this industry because of the belief that humans do not need art to exist, only the sciences and the maths. That is why people value art less. 

We see the manifestation of this never- ending issue even on our televisions. Shows that are not based on reality but the imagination have never developed when it comes to their special effects. The audience is not satisfied therefore frustrated with the quality of Filipino fantasy series, creating an impression that our country’s artists are way behind and less talented from the foreign artists. 

In fact, Filipinos can produce Hollywood- quality special effects; the only problem is that they are not paid enough to maximize and use their full potential.

Humans are surviving because of the sciences but living for the arts. It is high time we value one no less than the other. #

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The New Candy Store in Town

Opinion | Christopher Dominus Kyle C. Carullo October 8, 2018

The number of people continuous to grow and the needs and wants of the people becomes more hard to satisfy.  The needs to satisfy these cravings in forms of entertainment, information and other personal needs of socialization to other people. The continuous discovery of new culture and brand new concepts in some places.

It is quite observable that the usual methods to satisfy these cravings is having a new competition in the street, just like kids whenever there is a new flavor of sweets or something more colorful suddenly rise, their strong desire to obtain that treat becomes even stronger to the point where they go on tantrums to get what they want.

Unfortunately these type of reactions is very much similar to the way people behave in our day, with the continuing advancements in our technology these cravings suddenly became easy to satisfy. A new platform or medium that is so powerful a single click can change a person’s life.

The social media is the place for all we need, a new sort of candy store in a form of digital coding’s that continues to feed our sweet tooth with everything we need. Admittedly these social media sites truly is a head turner that once we heard where it came from, it just becomes impossible to not look at it or where to look it , it shall always be there.

It possesses the element of “Timeliness,” “Accuracy,” “entertainment,” “Education,” and more of whatever you  want you’ll find it there. The rise of social media sites is a wonderful invention where it connects people more closer and provide any information with the single click of the button.

I can still remember the time where my neighbor is outside talking to his husband from another country, and they’d use Skype or the video call from messenger just to see each other with a distance of miles and miles away. It is just so cute seeing them that way, making the far people closer that usual, although it is not the type of close they were expecting but that little need of presence for a moment was replenished.

It is limitless type of access to any information with its freedom to show or express any emotion, and the fun part is that it is not even controlled by our government so post, share, like, tweet, and many other social media terms.  This is just another form of freedom people got to enjoy where they can truly express their own thoughts. It is just like a candy store filled with free goodies for kids where they can just take a bag and g for more if that is what they desire.

Providing many people with the kind of satisfaction, these truly made the trick. Little by little these social media platforms continuous to expand, grown and evolve. Starting from a concept of just wanting the chance to share fun memories to a new medium sharing not only photos or simple videos but movies and other series.

My friend was just so disappointed that there had been no series of the specific program on YouTube, until one day there was a link given to her leading her to a social site where the whole series of her liking is found in that page. By mere observing these you can clearly see how far the human race had taken life and it’s communication, making things easier and faster to quick and instant. Amazing and mind blowing  as it is but besides that very useful and creative  concept, the invention is a realization why mothers control the intakes of sugar, candies and other sweets to children, because not only is addicting but is also bad to one’s health.

These limitless access had given us a toothache, that even if we are so tired and exhausted we still have that strength to lift the phone, tablet or laptop to check those happenings online not realizing the that it had already kept us awake for hours and we still have work in the morning. Headache, stiff necks and messed up face all because of that funny moment where while we are reading texts in our phones, it just  suddenly falls, and that ironic feeling where instead of feeling rested and at ease we all still feel tired and exhausted in the morning.

That very unhealthy actions where it just had to be a must for us to check what is happening online to give us that sense of belonging giving us the point that at least we know that or we know something, because if not, it is a feeling of outcast. Similar to what sugar rush does, it is unexplained why we act or do things that is beyond our field of explanation, but with the sense of we did it, it just does.

Regardless of the true purpose of it, like candies it should be regularly controlled by oneself to avoid any consequences. Despite it’s wonderful benefit to individuals, we should still remain cautious of our actions, with it’s incredible speed one false information and you could immediately misled by it. Always be cautious because like candies, just because they are sweet they cannot harm you. #