Web log

“Utilize the blog while it is free,” said an editor of a local newspaper a few years back.

I learned to blog almost half a decade ago. First as a depository of my old and not-so-good articles published in some student publications, Voice of Talamban (VOT) and Today’s Carolinian (TC), during my university days on the early and late 1990s.

(I served as editor of VOT, official student publication of the University of San Carlos (USC) College of Engineering and TC, official publication of USC students.)

Now dead, both campus papers demised were also the time of the popularity of web log and online journalism.

Writing for campus paper then was the only visible and effective means for aspiring writers and critical thinkers to propagate their influences, prior to the advent of web log. It could have been different if blog was visible during those days.

Second, as the public figure of several progressive organizations (i.e., Anakbayan) during the late 1990s until the middle of the decade of the first decade of the current century, I wrote the progressive stand of the organization and submitted it to local newspapers for publishing.

So, I needed an online space to ensure a wider audience as well as a depository of published opinion pieces. Hence, the birth of binignitogchopsuey.

Until I realized web log is beyond depository of old and assorted ideas.

Though not often, I write some of my most important commentaries here. Since my exposure and social practice derived from the fact as a political and social activist, most of the articles here are a complete expression of the dialectical relations of economic, political and cultural analysis to issues as complex as societal change and as “shallow” as vacation and traveling.

I am writing this because, lately, I was able to take a look and awed by the elements of blogger.com which I found interactive and provided self-fulfillment.

For example, I found “Stats” as an important tool of my web log to monitor my audience, posts and traffic sources.

Surprised, my audience are scattered in ten countries. Still counting, topping the list is the Philippines with 658 audiences, following the colonial connection the US ranks second with 137. Counting countries instead of individual audience, my blog is present in European countries with Germany - 43, Turkey - 31, Russia - 18, and France and Italy with 15 each.

Latin America is represented by Colombia and Mexico, 20 and 13 audiences respectively. Surprisingly, the presence of China ranks last with 9 audiences. I wonder where my South East Asian readers are.

Most read posts are also included. Page views by Browsers and Operating Systems used provided a detailed statistics.

Like any “lazy” writer, I rarely re-write. I just write in a way that comes naturally, perhaps a glaring limitation of my blog. Not to mention some grammatical, sentence structure and language problems.

Beyond syntax, blogging is serious – dead serious. A blogger should use it to propagate not just the whims and caprices of individuals, but also our collective desires for a truly free and democratic society (and cyberspace) – while it is still “free.”

Coming out

Few days before the entire Christianity will reflect on Jesus Christ passion and resurrection, Ricky Martin, a native of deeply Catholic Mexico, confirmed the long time rumor that he is gay. The world did not lose a nanosecond of standstill. It was a confirmation of a decade-old gossip that he is, in fact, a proud homosexual.

Ah, rumor. Such is a lousy business.

Carefully crafted with full of honesty, he divulged in his website: "Today is my day, this is my time, and this is my moment. These years in silence and reflection made me stronger and reminded me that acceptance has to come from within and that this kind of truth gives me the power to conquer emotions I didn't even know existed ... I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am."

I don’t know if the acceptance is part of a series of press releases for his memoirs to be published soon to gain popular followers and earned tremendous profit in the process. Whatever the objective of his “coming-out”, it was a testament of bravery and honesty. To move on and be happy, one should sincerely and honestly accept the pain of believing in oneself. Not necessarily to the extent of letting other people salivate on it. Giving in to their pressures, is giving in to their wishes and gender discrimination deepens. It adds salt to the already wounded heart and soul.

Saying that her questioning may have ended his career, Barbara Walters interviewed Ricky Martin almost a decade ago and regretted trying to force (or coerced?) Martin to open up about his sexuality. A month ago, she said: "In 2000, I pushed Ricky Martin very hard to admit if he was gay or not, and the way he refused to do it made everyone decide that he was," she told The Toronto Star. "A lot of people say that destroyed his career, and when I think back on it now, I feel it was an inappropriate question."

And, perhaps in a sighed of disbelief, Walters tells him, "You know, you could stop these rumors. You could say, as many artists have, 'Yes I am gay,' or you could say, 'No I'm not,' or you could leave it, as you are, ambiguous. I don't want to put you on the spot, but it's in your power to do it."

Adel Tamano, a Filipino Muslim and candidate for senator was asked by my favorite anchorwoman about his sexuality. Live on television, my favorite anchorwoman cross-examined the poor Adel like a guilty suspect of a crime he never dreamed of committing, and politely he answered about the gender inquest. The anchorwoman should heed Barbara Walters regretting what she did to Martin.

I doubt if the anchorwoman will do the same thing to Noynoy, a candidate for president, given the fact that Adel is happily married while Noynoy is still a bachelor in his waning years. I haven’t heard anyone suspect Noynoy’s gender orientation just because he doesn’t look like one? It adds discrimination by means of one’s appearance. You don’t appear like one, you are not gay. You appear like one, even if you are not, you are a poor boy.

Typical of being honest, Ricky Martin or Adel Tamano could have asked those who interviewed them if they really are heterosexuals. But they did not. Such is a gift of human kindness and respect towards other people anchored on the basis that we are all one and the same. Equal.

In fact, if they are not cross-examined in public interviews, they are being portrayed as hapless human beings capable of entertaining the crowd in movies and television. What a poor way of self-preservation!

I know for a fact that even discreet individuals are proud of who they are. Who aren’t? Let’s take it from them and let us leave it that way. That is the kind of existence they wish to enjoy and that is the kind of respect they deserved. As long as they did not cross the thin red-line of human-to-human exploitation in all its forms then by all means embrace them like a new born child, incapable of inflicting wounds against anyone.

But the respect that should be showered (accorded is quite masculine, I might as well use the word ‘showered’) to them should be observed. For no one, not even one-self, can force himself/herself to believe that he/she is not, well, a heterosexual or a homosexual.

But the world that we are in is deeply feudal and macho that anything outside of it is exploited.

Gender and sexuality marginalization, discrimination and isolation in whatever form will continue as long as the fundamental and basic unit of its existence will prevail in our day to day life. In order for us to confront gender and sexual discrimination objectively, it is correct to fight gender discrimination on the basis of deeply rooted economic liberation hand in hand with other oppressed and exploited sectors and classes. For it will not only liberate an individual from the clutches of economic slavery, it will provide an all round cultural and political advancement and acceptance. Without that, no homosexual can claim to be happy in this world, save perhaps the likes of Ricky Martin.

Western academics call it heteronormativity or the superiority of heterosexuals against any other gender. It actually stigmatizes other forms of gender and sexuality as deviants and consequently confirms that self-expression is dangerous as long as it does not conform to the so-called ‘norm’. Thus it is utterly dangerous like ideological, political, race, religion, physical or even age discrimination.

But a heterosexual man or woman cannot claim to be superior on the basis of his gender or sexual orientation alone. Political and economic power moved the heterosexual man or woman to be supremely powerful and dangerous over all other heterosexuals and homosexuals.

On the other hand, I do not find it appropriate for one to divulge his gender orientation whether in public or privately not because there are heteronormative out there but because it vibrates indiscriminately to the already subjective society. For doing so is accepting the pressures of a biased society to give in to their wishes, pin down someone and isolate him/her in the process.

Is it really acceptance that we want while forcing someone to admit?

The current socio-economic and cultural set-up prohibits someone to divulge his/her gender orientation. For coming out, the brave ones are further discriminated. Such is the case even within the gay community or now aptly called the sexual minorities. You are only ‘in’ if you are discreet or scandalously straight acting. With that, I give honor to the effeminate, the transvestites, the transgenders and the newly formed group called baklita for they are the tsunamis in the eye of the storm.

Before you look at someone, or before that someone look at to him/herself as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, labyboy, queer, nilatch, paminta, bayot, baklita or whatever term coined in the process of gender isolation and discrimination, we must look at them, and they must look at themselves as human beings first and foremost. For no major consideration can guarantee gender isolation by looking at someone as your own image and likeness. The good Lord has a word for it: He created us in His own image and likeness. Others who studied God’s gospel consciously overlook a simple message.

We are all equal on the basis of our existence we can’t go any deeper than that.

Needless to say, economic, political and social considerations matters deeply on gender and sexuality question. For a poor homosexual is totally different from a rich one. Take it from Ricky Martin’s words, “I am a fortunate homosexual.” His economic and social status defines it and takes cue and shape from it. His stature in the world stage as gay musician will never be diminished because he has wealth to defend it and has status to prolong it – and influence us.

And such wealth and status will prohibit others to minutely alter his new found moment.

Earth hour?

It seems we are enjoying the one-hour Earth Hour?

Yesterday, around 7:30 in the evening, I was about to finish my 1000 meters freestyle or roughly ten laps of the 50 meters Olympic size swimming pool at the Cebu City Sports Complex when the Earth Hour participants eagerly awaited to switch off their electricity.

Meant to raise awareness on energy conservation, according to Wikipedia, Earth Hour is a global event organized by WWF, also known as World Wildlife Fund and is held on the last Saturday of March annually, asking households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change.

Earth Hour was conceived by WWF and The Sydney Morning Herald in 2007, when 2.2 million residents of Sydney participated by turning off all non-essential lights.

With the success of the Sydney’s lead, many other cities around the world, including the Philippines adopted the event in 2008. Earth Hour 2010 took place on March 27, 2010 from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 pm, at the participant's respective local time.

Such activity is incredibly innovative, every year since 2007, participating countries offered an hour of their precious time for mother earth. But then, switching off is not enough. We should be reminded that the electricity that we are using, mostly coming from the destructive effects of coal-fired power plants, major cause of ozone layer depletion.

In Cebu alone, we have three.

While the Philippines have a lot of indigenous, clean and green energy resources, it remains untapped due to pressures and politics from multinational corporations (MNCs). We remain reliant on carbon dioxide (CO2) emitting coal fueled power plants as a source of electricity.

However cheap the electricity generated by this carbon dioxide emitted power plants, it makes our life cheap and the earth hour cheaper if awareness alone on raising energy conservation is the goal. Condemnation for the use of destructive power plants, like coal, and advocating for the use of earth friendly renewable and indigenous energy sources, like hydro, solar, wind, should be in the agenda.

Geothermal and natural gas are heavily taxed by the government while coal-fired power plants like Kepco-SPC (Salcon Power Corporation) coal fired plants in the City of Naga, Cebu are being encourage by the energy department and the province of Cebu.

Unfortunately it reflects our governments policy on the use of renewable and energy sources, despite the abundance of natural gas and geothermal the Philippines remains committed to contribute to the ozone layer depletion.

In Naga alone, where I used to serve as consultant to both the rank-and-file and supervisory employees union, most of them are electrical engineers at the prime of their life, are not comfortable with coal fired power plants, experiencing first hand its destructive effects in the nearby communities and themselves.

In time of massive panic due to the erratic weather disturbance, energy conservation is laudable and necessary. Switching off our electricity usage for an hour coupled with our green and clean energy advocacy should be in placed. And in our everyday life, for example, we should limit our energy usage.

In the meantime, let us enjoy the Earth Hour, while transnational and multi-national companies around the world are signing agreements after agreements with host countries for the energy development using coal-fired power plants just so we can switch off the electricity that we are using – for an hour!

So that by the last Saturday of March 2011, we can switch off our electricity usage again and enjoy the privilege of being ‘in’ even just for an hour.