Out of my mind

This is my column today at the op-ed section of the Manila Standard Today. Television enables people— particularly candidates during an election—to reach more people faster and more efficiently. However, it also magnifies defects and can produce mixed results. Television can be a cruel medium. Because most households in this country own a television set, we already expected candidates for national positions to take their cause to the people via the idiot box. I guess what we did not expect was the level of gimmickry and absurdity that would be used in this effort. In an ideal world, our politicians should be harnessing the awesome power of this medium to convey their platforms and define who they are. Too bad our politicians seem more bent on entertaining us and showing off whatever miniscule talent they have in comedy, dancing, or acting. Thus, watching the first cuts of our politicians’ television ads is really anything but enlightening or educational. The current campaign ads are, a...

I came to know about the latest wrinkle on Kris Aquino's life last Friday at the birthday party of my best friend. I was amazed to discover that on something so private, there was just so much that was known to people outside of showbiz. From the snippets that I got last Friday, the marriage is allegedly going through a major crisis supposedly because James had an affair with someone who works at this business chain known for cosmetic enhancements. I've written about Kris Aquino in this blog before. Actually, the post was really more about that magazine (K) that is a copycat of Oprah's O magazine. Along the way, people got the impression that I am rabidly anti-Kris. There's this Kris Aquino fan that continues to leave messages in this blog accusing me of being envious and jealous of her (or his) idol. I normally wouldn't mind publishing the comments if only this fan does not have this notorious habit of repeating the comments - as in this fan repeats the sam...