Ganito Sila Sa Makati
Here's the CCTV video of the Makati mayor's scandal with the Dasma guards who did not want to make him go out the gate that's really closed based on the village's private policies:
I've been listening to a lot of podcasts of Stefan Molyneux who talks a lot about parenting as a cause of violence in society. I think this incident really goes to show how parenting plays the biggest role in one's character.
These kids, being that their family is in Philippine politics, grew up around the idea of being deserving of or being entitled to authority. Or maybe that it's okay to be above the law because you have a different plate number or because you have a siren on your car. They experienced this firsthand growing up. This is exactly what they've been groomed to do.
And I don't really care what interpretations we may have of the footage. The government, in general, should always only be our servant and never our master. Keep in mind that the guards are voters and taxpayers too. They probably have 12-hour shifts and part of their paycheck is cut so that it can go to the spending discretion of politicians like Binay. We should be clear on the inherent role of politicians as public servants and not as entitled and snooty aristocrats.
And you know what's really sad? These people will not lose in the next elections. They have the money and machinery to render these incidents irrelevant and easily forgettable. Just look at how the media has already been clarifying that the Mayor didn't actually do anything wrong. It's crazy.
In a conference I attended recently, a Starcom Mediavest Group executive talked about how outdoor and TV advertising are still the strongest in terms of promoting brands in the Philippine market. Having this insight, you'll really see why politicians spend so much on streamers, posters, billboards, and TVCs. And many of them do so long before the campaign period through private endorsements or when they disgustingly attach their name or face in a public project.
They should be having debates and town hall meetings and not meetings where they bring celebrities and dance around like it's showbiz. They should be talking about and spreading copies of their platform and specific pledges and not fliers with their annoying faces. We should push for legislation that prohibit public servants from using marketing propaganda or from putting their names/initials in public projects. The penalties for those who break it should be instant impeachment. They shouldn't have the privilege of keeping power in spite of abusing it.
When I was young, my father taught me to wear my seat belt, make pedestrians and pedestrian lanes a priority, and never honk your horn to express anger (he always uses the example that in the place where he stays in the US, people rarely use horns unless it is an emergency). I was taught never to be disrespectful to guards because they are only doing their jobs. These are courteous habits that my father instilled in me.
And when you see others who engage in road rage, or useless loud horn honking, and curse at others on the road -- you'll see that these violent behaviors are almost always a result of parenting. That's also why when I saw the video above, the first thing I thought about was the kind of environment Junjun Binay was raised in.
Let's focus on the inherent role of government. They are meant to always only be our servants and never our masters. Regardless if your job is a CEO or a security guard, politicians should see you equally as a taxpayer they should serve.
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