Bobby Alexander Cypocalypse's posts with tag: real
 The Current Events section of Peyups.com gave rise to the prominence of a specific forum member, known for his "affront" towards the core of Philippine culture, rattling the status quo of what we are, in the context of that elusive quest for Philippine economic prosperity. He's known primarily by his username, Benigno (also the webmaster of www.getrealphilippines.com) and for the last couple of peyups.com meetings I've attended, he's been the subject of discussion among us, easily giving the likes of Revo and Discostu a run for their money. So what is it about him that catches every peyups.com members' attention? It's simple--his piercing views about the essence of being a Filpino, the things in us that can't make us....take-off to economic nirvana.
The Cypocalypse also has a knack for a making criticisms and Benigno perfectly fits the definition of one, though I would no longer expound my perspective on the righteousness of his agenda.
Like what I've stated a few months ago in an earlier blog, the key to economic prosperity divides the Filipinos into two forces--those who understand at hand the issue and those who have no freakin' idea at all. The sad reality is, the latter is so big compared to the former. Modesty aside, Benigno and I are among the two who belong to the former. Though personally, discussing issues as complex and as sensitive as that is not among my most legitimate fortes. Benigno can take the glory for himself but I'd rather be a silent observer on the issue. I still think I contribute something to the country even in the smallest ways.
In my circle of friends in peyups.com, those that understand the picture almost always come from the corporate (working) sector--they understand the picture because it's a part of their daily lives to understand the issue. It makes me more at ease interacting with them because, at least, when it comes to that issue, we're wired pretty much the same.
I don't claim to be among the most efficient yuppie though. I'm a critic of capitalism almost as I am a critic of communism and honestly speaking, I see a lot of soulless-ness in capitalism to make me a perfect capitalist slave (in fact, I may be far from it). Corporate people may then view me as a slacker from a comparative perspective but I can deal with that. My opinions are not anchored on alliances or affiliations. I have a pretty much independent way of thinking.
Though much like Benigno, for the past couple of years, I kept thinking of the issue and I myself have been wondering on the more feasible steps we can take to get things done. For one, I know that culture is a starting point. Yes, culture. It all starts there. Culture define our ethics, and before tangible measures can be done, ethics should be the primary consideration to look at.
When an applicant applies for a job interview, the interviewer is already assessing the applicant's ethical standpoint by making him answer questions. Ethics overrides, everything. A mediocre applicant with good working ethics can be trained. An intelligent slacker can hardly be trained. It makes a lot of difference.
We can view culture then, as a collective ethical standpoint of the Filipinos as a nation. If what we are as a people don't have the formula for economic takeoff, what do we do then? Do we change things? Where do we start?
It's hard to fight for a cause something as big as this because changing the status quo of what we are as a nation is the ultimate attack on our soul as a people--the ultimate nail to the coffin that doesn't look good on a lot of angles, but to only a few who see the bigger picture of things.
I kept on wondering about this myself. How do we start? Some atheists I know have showed dismay over the catholic church for holding us back, and as a spiritual deviant myself, I would imagine an attempt to diffuse the Catholic influence by infusing different ideas into the mainstream would be a good starting point. Ridiculously hard to execute but a logical choice for a starting point. What do we infuse then? Pragmatism? Rationalism? Empiricism? Dichotomy of religious rights over civil rights? Personally, I leave that to the powers-at-be. I can still contribute to the bigger picture in my own right.
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