Mong Palatino is a blogger, activist, and former legislator. He can be reached via his email, mongpalatino@gmail.com.
Mong Palatino is a blogger, activist, and former legislator. He can be reached via his email, mongpalatino@gmail.com.
Introduksiyon sa aklat na ‘Strengthen the People’s Struggle against Imperialism and Reaction’ na binasa noong Pebrero 8, 2019, UP Diliman, Solair Ang problema kay Jose Maria Sison ay naglatag siya ng mataas na pamantayan kung paano suriin ang pulitikal na kalagayan...
Love also holds the key to survive a ‘Groundhog Day’ in Congress. Love in the form of knowledge that what matters most is the movement of people working for social transformation outside the halls of Congress.
1. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Utopian vision of society but eerily familiar to those who are living in the 21st century. 2. Utos ng Hari by Jun Cruz Reyes. Stories of the everyman in the urban, survival as resistance, the common tao and his struggles against...
Of all the films in all the cable channels in all the world, they had to show the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day inside the members’ lounge of the Philippine House of Representatives. Seeing the character Phil Connors enduring an ‘eternal recurrence’ in the movie...
But a real existing rightist is rendered hidden from public gaze. When citizens encounter a rightist politician, they fail to see a person already succeeding in imposing his dogmatic political beliefs in the bureaucracy. They don’t even see him as a political actor with ideological bias.
Vow of poverty. Activists are encouraged to live simply, but unlike priests, they don’t have a vow of poverty. They don’t fetishize poverty; instead, they work with the poor to fight the structures that engender oppression in society. Indeed, activists renounce...
Adulting is commonly understood as an act of taking a new and bigger responsibility in life. It also refers to a millennial who defied expectations by suddenly performing an important task in the household or community. In many ways, it is being self-aware and...
After his arrest in 1977, Philippine communist leader Joma Sison was presented to the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. He could have negotiated his release with his fellow Ilocano by pledging loyalty to the ‘New Society’. He could have altered the course of history by...
It was inspiring to meet Americans who uphold solidarity as a full-time advocacy. Internationalists in the most positive sense who, at the same time, have also pledged to fight side by side Filipinos in overthrowing the yoke of neocolonialism and feudal oppression in the Philippines.
Beyond the instagrammable image of a fierce-looking activist with a clenched fist is someone rationalizing and constantly reaffirming his fidelity to radical politics. Activists are stereotyped as dogmatic simpletons who derive a perverse pleasure in organizing...
The UP Third World Studies Center organized a research workshop on 'Violence, Human Rights and Democracy in the Philippines.' I submitted a short essay in response to the workshop question: "Based on your knowledge of and experience in your locality, do you think...
1. Too Much Happiness, Alice Munro. Impossible not to empathize with her strong female characters, their pursuit of fulfillment and freedom, their overcoming of various tragedies and other challenges in life. 2. How to Travel with a Salmon and Other Essays, Umberto...
What does it mean to live in the era of neoliberalism? It is to recognize that the world is a mess and that I, as an individual, can fix it by being responsible for my life. So far, nothing perverse with this line of thought. Then we add this in the equation: If...
This new book proved how Lenin’s ideas on imperialism never became obsolete as these continue to serve as a guide to understanding the geopolitics of the world today.
Lakbayan ‘transports’ the struggle from the remote to the center.
The global ‘Occupy’ movement emerged in the aftermath of the financial and housing crisis that destroyed jobs and displaced millions. It denounced the inequities of the present, the irrational decision to boost neoliberal policies, and the callous attitude towards...
Isa pong malaking karangalan ang mapiling tagapagsalita ngayong araw na ito. Ispesyal at di malilimutan ang pagtitipong ito. Para sa mga mag-aaral, lubos ang kasiyahan dahil natapos din natin ang kolehiyo sa kabila ng maraming pinagdaanang pagsubok, hindi po ba?...
It is common to hear some scholars complain about the Left’s lack of vigor and creativity. They follow this up with an unsolicited advice urging the Left to change its paradigms, replace its language, and overhaul its methods. These condescending but hopefully...
The most important peace document submitted by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines contains seven parts and is 82 pages long. Here’s a summary of the proposed Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms or CASER: The preamble links the...
*Summary of my contributed essay to the worskhop organized by the Third World Studies Center of the University of the Philippines-Diliman and the Conflict Research Group of the Ghent University. The workshop's theme is “Politics and Power in the Philippines:...
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