Blah, I just don't get it. What's all the fuss about that anti-GMA in-your-face heckler from Cavite State University? I was watching the news, when I saw the report where she was being hailed as some sort of "role model" or something for her bold move to "express her sentiments." Crap. And it got into my nerves when I saw no less than the likes of our very own University Student Council Chair Marco de los Reyes and other USC Councilors hailing here as some sort of hero(/heroine). Yet more crap. Don't our councilors have anything better to do? Rather than make up false heroes and role-models, shouldn't they be brushing up on their manners? Heck, if it was my graduation, things would have been different. If I had seen her unfurling a protest banner in the middle of the ceremony, I'd have not only raised my hat (I think the term is mortarboard, right?) to her, I'd also have sent it flying into her face. Oh no, she has no right whatsoever to debase the solemnity of the ceremonies, and disregard the opinion of others to insist on her own She has no right to express herself at the expense of her fellow graduates and their parents who either have differing views or are sick and tired of politics. If she had no respect for Gloria, then she should have at least respected her fellow graduates and their parents. And besides, if she really was defiant and 'brave' and wanted to express her sentiments against the president, why did she have to go up on stage and shake hands with GMA? She could have told Gloria in her face to resign or given her a lecture on governance for all I care. Take yer crap with you. I'm having none of it. To clarify things, I am not a pro-administration lackey.Who likes Gloria? I certainly don't. But if Ms. Maria Theresa Pangilinan had any qualms about having what she calls a "fake president" as the guest of honor, then she could have done two things: 1. Opposed during the meeting of the School Board (She is the Student Gov't Chair), or written to the university administration or something. 2. Or if that fails, then she could have protested all she wanted in front of the Admin. Building all day. That's freedom of expression for you. She has got to know her limits. Her rights end where those of others begin. If I were a fellow graduate, while she has the right to freedom of expression, I have the right to a solemn, orderly, and pleasantly memorable graduation. And so do my parents. She just ruined the entire ceremony; what right does she have to do that? And besides, while she has her constitutionally-granted right to express herself, there is such a thing as a proper time and place... a proper venue... a proper forum... She could have at least waited 'til the end of the program, then she could have heckled and shouted at the president all she wanted. We shouldn't be acting like children, intimidating and hurling insults at people we don't like. What she did wasn't commendable; it was condemnable. What she did wasn't brave, it was brash. What she did does not, in any way, stand for the beliefs and attitudes of the Filipino yout; it spoke of immaturity, impetuousness and the hell-may-care attitude of the activist and militant youth. And she had this to say: "What I did was to stand for what many Filipinos believe is the truth - that she (Mrs. Arroyo) cheated to win the presidency." Now, is that how a 'university student' - let alone graduate - acts and thinks?
To dish out glittering generalities? To act solely and impulsively on 'belief' and perception (and not think of proof or validation)? Shame. We - this goes to all the youth - should me more critical - not only of those in power, but others as well - and more mature. What we have in this country is a love for trumpeting our rights and civil liberties, but a lack of civility - that one basic ingredient for a well-ordered society. And we this glaring lack when a citizen diregards public welfare... when someone smokes even in crowded places, when someone turns the city into one big garbage dump, and when somebody acts without thinking or giving consideration to other people. If our USC hails Ms. Pangilinan as a role model, then I'd beg to disagree. No thanks. I'd rather be a deviant. And be damned proud of it. Labels: ragings |
