Understood

I had this final rites from a provincial org just last Saturday. The days before the event, I really never understood its purpose. I kept deconstructing it. I always question it. I thought that the certain stage of membership could not really attend total loyalty to the organization.
But after the final rites, it really made sense to me. Now I beleive that agalma could explain this--that someone outside something--a ritual, a belief or anything similar-- is always not percieving thing with the right eyes, so prejudices arise.
I have these co-applicats who really were not very tempered when it comes in expressing their dissenting opinions. One--whom irritated me much--talked about liberalism and other Marxist stuff--that actually did not make sense in that very situation.
The fact there was, me myself, did not feel the right to practice freedom of expression and democracy. I had to play by their rules because I took the choice to participate in that activity. So basically it is my prerogative to quit if I don't like the things that were expected to happen.
I realised that there is better to understand things when once you are inside it. It is an agalma thing...

Wasting their Chances

I, myself, am sometimes guilty of this, depending on the object of reference.

Sometimes, or most of the times I get resentful with those students who really have the resources, capital and all the means. They are fortunate that their parents provide them with this and with that. They have laptops, computers, super-fast DSLs and all the conveniences that help them to move a lot more easy with things at school. At least their efforts are maximized and not compromised with the hassles that these conveniences counter. If they really want to get down on their academics, they can easily deal with things that are needed to be taken care of.

On some instances, I feel the grudge on people who really have the means, all the resources and the convenience but sadly do not envision their acts towards academics. Also those who do not provide the rationality of their choice in failing to adhere from the expectations on them, as students, to get involved in the production of knowledge or at least acquisition of it as a minimum (at least to puppet knowledge). This is very irritating if you would find out that many of these people are in state-subsidized universities.

These people pass state university exams, for example UP. This university is known for having the exams quite tough pass, too tough to admit all who aspire. However, I know of some people who passed the exams are just wasting, spoiling their privilege. Just because they passed the exams, they have the right to bullshit everything, then consider themselves as people of high intellectual capital, and do nothing. They just pass the exam. They just got high with the single damned exam.

Evan the title ‘Iskolar ng Bayan’ is not entitled to everybody. Not everybody who passed the exams deserves it. It should be constantly earned.

What is sad about this is that: there, outside, there are more people, who I think, deserve more of our positions here in the university, especially those apathetic students. Some people outside should have been in the place of some of us because of the exam. Some of them needed the access to our educational system more than the apathetic students maybe because it is relatively low-cost and the academic excellence and freedom, which seem to be hard to be found all in the same school.

The people whom I referred to as apathetic are wasting a lot of advantages, which are entitled to them. Subtly, there is the need that these advantages are to be paid back with their expectations as students, or, at least a little modest will of it.

What more irritates me is that some of these students reason out of such dispositions towards academics with the freedom of choice, celebration of autonomy or maybe they would say: “I have the right and the means, why should you care?” That has got to hurt.

Please DO NOT get me wrong about this. I do not hold grudge against these people whom I criticize. This is not a hate letter and I do not curse people and resort to a class damnation. I just want to raise a query to scrutinize thing that fail to reach out stigma because we blur our vision towards freedom. Freedom is good. However, the question is, do we really deserve it? I myself do not want to give a damn on others choices and dispositions but I criticize on the rationality or the logic of these choices. Do their freedoms parallel their duties and expectations?

What I want to point out here, as I was saying a while ago, that we need to take a look out of own milieu—that our actions are still subject to a bigger social structure. Some people use golden toothpicks however a large chuck of population try to endure uncertainties and high levels of danger just to be fed for a single meal.

Think about it!

*Healthy and responsible antithetical comments are accepted. I want to hear from your perspective.

I just thought

I admit I was a little carried away on what I had discussed about the marginalised workers in UP Diliman. I was writing without really being eclectic--or even considering about the word 'balance.'

I was thinking if we are going to fight for the rehiring of those janitors, what happens to the current janitors who where hired by carebest? I think they will be laid-off also... So I thought to solve the problem will still end up another problem. If they will be rehired there will be still workers that will be displaced off their jobs. The thing there is that, pursuing their interest will still employ actions, that will affect to the current workers, the problems that they themselves had also suffered.

But I have nothing against those displaced workers because they actually were working in this institution for more than decade--some more that that.

I am not withdrawing anything from the previuos blog entry but somehow I think of these...

Things are just not that simple.

7 am class gets sentimental

Today's Sociology 10 class was one of the mushiest experience I have ever... had... in a good way ha...

The class was really fun... having Neeks as the intrsuctor thoughout the semester... We felt sad though because she will be taking her graducate studies outside the country and she will be leaving before the end of this sem.

Well I got admit I really learned a lot from the class. Though I am a Sociology major, my high sociology subjects could not foster such a very interesting manner of handling the discussion... because sometimes higher sociology subjects can be pure pain... I thought a while ago the the class was a live talk show having the stage audience giving their testimonials and all those mushy things... I understood what they really felt.

I appreciated that people really are invited to be imparted with sociological thoughts and try to take it inside thier ... because I know of some that really are very resistant to such issues.

The class a while ago would be the last meeting for this sem... Sad... But we, the students, will be still doing our think piece and other req. activities and will be sending them thru email...

Anyway, I wish that my classmate would think that Sociology10 is worth taking... And also good luck to Neeks for her graduate studies... See you around na lang sa mga susunod na taon... Kukunin ko si neeks na prof pag magoffer ng higher socio.

That's all! Tuloy ang buhay!