I wrote my Review of Related Literature. The whole day. Period.

Talk about growing up.

And when I thought I already have my freedom, I just learned that I still have to revise something. XD

You've probably heard that "taxi drivers are one of the most interesting persons to talk with when it comes to socio-political issues". Because they are those people who are fond to listen to the AM radio everyday, they are the ones who always have something to share when it comes to the latest headlines. Last night, while sobering up on the way home from Claire's TomatoKick  drinking session, I made a conversation with my taxi driver. We talked about Oil Price Rollback. Here's how the conversation went:

Me: Kuya, wala po bang rollback sa pamasahe sa taxi?
Taxi Driver(TD): Wala
Me: Bakit po, eh ang laki na ng rollback last week, 5 piso. Kahit yung plus 10 pesos po, hindi pa tinatanggal?
TD: Hindi. Sandali lang naman yan, pagdating sa susunod tataas na rin yan ulit.
Me: Hindi kuya, ang sabi nga meron pa ring rollback sa December.
TD: Oo nga, pero kaya lang naman nila yan ginagawa dahil lumabas na naman yung tungkol sa Fertilizer Fund.
Me: Ah, yung kay Jocjoc Bolante?
TD: Oo, pantakip na naman nila yan para hindi magalit yung mga tao.
Me: Yun ba yun kuya?
TD: Oo, dapat nga daw mas malaki pa yung rollback kasi mas mura sa world market.
Me: Eh kuya ang nagro-rollback naman petroleum companies, hindi naman gobyerno.
TD: Oo nga, pero may hawak pa rin ang DOE dyan. At di nila ma-rollback ng malakihan kasi maraming nakikikinabang dyan.
Me: *Quiet*

All throughout the conversation, I was trying to correct the driver's unfounded judgements like the judgment that this is being done for cover up, and that the rollback is just temporary. However, when he said that a lot of people benefits from it, I found myself thinking that that claim is valid. That judgement, while also unfounded, may be 70% correct. I did not rebutt him at that point for I think that he may be right when he said that.

Our professors in Political Science (or in UP in general) always tell us that what distinguishes us from the rest of the people who also has their own share of information/ opinion about politics is that we are not (supposed to be) gullible. Unlike non-polsci/ non-UP people, we do not believe immediately what the media says, we do not easily succumb to what the radio broadcaster thinks is right. We have to base our thoughts on empirical evidence, whether quantified or qualified. From those pieces of evidence, that's where we derive our judgements/ theories/ conclusions.

At the point when the taxi driver uttered "maraming nakikinabang dyan", what my instict as a PolSci student should let me do is to ask him for his basis on those judgements. However, I just remained quiet. Sad to say, some things in our society had been very prevalent that evidence is no longer necessary to prove them.

The conversation had a second part. It's all about the boundary system in taxis. Apparently, taxi drivers pay around 1,300 a day for their boundary. What is left is what they take home to their families. Thus, taxi drivers has no fixed take-home pay. On the average, taxi drivers take home 300 pesos a night. On lucky nights, they take home 500 pesos. However, on unlucky nights, he might just go home with just 40 pesos.


 

... used to be free. It was usually devoted for just one subject or for extracurriculars. Ever since Gloria introduced her holiday economics and had this republic act moving holidays that fall on a weekday to a Monday, UP had to adjust it's schedule for classes. Before, we used to had classes scheduled either MTh or TF. Now, it's TTh and WF. There's no mid-week gap.

Dear God... I miss mid-week gaps. I want 'em back!!! I need them badly. =(

When you do your enlistment of your subjects in the perpetually slow Computerized Registration System (CRS), the first thing that you will do when you click the "Enlistment" tab will be to update your personal information. They asked what my year is, and there you go, I clicked the number 4.

I perused over the subjects that I am to enlist. While there is a long list of PolSci subjects, my choices are narrowed down to just about 10 classes because I already took most of the prerequisites. Sadly, I already took the subjects that my desired professors are teaching the next semester.

About 199 (the thesis proposal class), I still don't want to take it yet this incoming semester coz I still do not feel that I am already ready for it. While I've taken the necessary prerequisites, I still do not think that I already have a specific topic which literature I am very familiar.

Excited? Hmmm... not that much. I just hope that I'll learn the most this year.  

It's almost 2 am, I am currently writing my 1st draft of my review of related literature. I wish to concentrate on this task. However, my concentration was suddenly disrupted by two noisy people shouting on the street 3 floors below.

And there, I witnessed a real drama. I didn't bother much with what they are arguing about but I could hear lines like: "Sinira nyo ang buhay ko!", "Buong buhay ko binigay ko sa inyo, ito ang igaganti mo!", and "Sige, lumayas ka at wag kang babalik".

This makes me think... there must be too much drama in Philippine primetime television today.

A lot of teenagers nowadays are getting pregnant unexpectedly. In the United States, one site reports that approximately 40% of women gets pregnant before the age of 20 (I personally feel this is exagerrated). In our country, a site says that one out of four women become mothers at the age of 19. And the rates are growing.

Teenagers who became parents at an early age, whose life becomes worse after that incident is not a new story. It is often featured in soap operas. It is often heard from a batch mate's story.  it is often being discussed in values education classes in schools. I don't think that the youth nowadays, especially with the impact of technological revolution and high exposure to media, are still unaware of such consequences: the consequences of having to work to get your child something to eat, the consequence of sacrificing your own studies, your own personal life and even your teenage life. You could not go out with your barkada anyore coz you have to attend to a baby, you could not afford to buy your own luxuries for you have to divert the money to your child's expenses. Added to that will be all the trouble you'll have with your parents and to other significant relatives. And the list goes on...
 
But why is it that a lot of teenagers still get pregnant? Are they really just ignorant? Or are they just too horny that they don't even want to use protection because of the reduced pleasure? Or are they just part of that very unlucky small percent of people who still get pregnant even with the use of condom?

The only answers that are rational for me are only three: 1. they might be not in their sane selves when they did the act. 2. they are just not too careful. 3. it is their choice.

my point is, if you wanna do it, add more caution.

the sem just started and the workload is already piled up already. for friday, i have to finish 7 chapters of heywood, and the first two books of Plato's republic. this is still light given the fact that my 2 other subjects are still not giving any assignments yet and that i still haven't met my professor for PI 100. Talk about 20 units! (It might be JUST 20 units for others even have 24... but still.)

Haaay... I can do this!

 

AN EXTERNAL RECYCLE BIN!!!

i saw this through stumble upon. i just thought that this doesn't really have that much purpose. why will you need 250 Gb memory for your trash? if you're trashing them already, then it must mean that you don't want them consuming your memory space already... so why bother keep them in a separate external "trash can"?

  
1. Last week, a senior student from the National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG) died out of an alleged fraternity hazing. I would like to emphasize the word alleged for sensitivity's sake. Because apparently, some vice-chancellor says we should not yet say that it was out of fraternity hazing because it is not yet sure. Although according to the news, the investigations leads us into affirming that it was really out of fraternity hazing. Btw, the name of the boy who died is Cris Anthony Mendez. He was supposed to replace the College representative of NCPAG in the University Student Council after the former rep resigned from his position. He was one of my classmates in one of my first subjects in UP: Polsci 11. 

I like patricia's article regarding this incident. Indeed, it is quite sad that this issue was treated very light in the campus where in fact, it is even worse than those other stuff that we rally for like tuition fee increase and the disapperances of some students. A life was lost this time.

2. The two students who were abducted last year, Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan, are still alive. This was according from a farmer, who is a member of the militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, who was able to escape from their place of detention. The farmer saw how the two student-activists were harshly tortured by the military. Yes, they say it is the military. Again, this is still an allegation (for the sake of sensitivity).

3. Smoking inside the campus is already prohibited at all premises. This was after an administrative order was passed that bans smoking inside the campus. I just wonder how will they iplement this given that there are very few police forces inside the campus, the security guards aren't even being followed when they say that you have to wear your ID, and the SSB aren't even seen as very functional. I still even see professors smoking on very public places such as the FC walk. If the professors can't be stopped by the security guards, what is the impetus for the students to do the same? I guess this will not really work given that the No ID, No Entry Policy was just shunned very easily and is not so strictly implemented today.

i am never a fan of customer service hotlines. but in the past month, i think i had been one of their most regular customers. i think they hated me somewhat, but not more than how i hated them. i had been disconnected from the cyberspace for about 3 weeks because our PLDT DSL suddently do not function. i follow-uped it in PLDT customer service almost day and night for almost 3 weeks. however, those poor call center agents always repeat the same lines written on their scripts: that they'll report it and put it make it urgent and will send a techician to our house in a span of 2 days. we waited 3 weeks for that! and the thing is, no technician went to our house. i don't know if our modem got repaired by them from a remote area or it just miraculously refunctioned. nonetheless, the promised 24 hrs lasted for 3 weeks and i hated it!

after PLDT, now i am a regular Globe caller. All of a sudden, i can't send any messages, eventhough i still have 284.00 in my credits. howevcer, i could call but i just can't send any message. the call center agent said that it was because i didn't deactivated my roaming service. he promised me 48 hrs for my fone to return into its normal function. i still have to see if Globe is more efficient than PLDT.  

living in the age of technology, it just pisses me whenever we don't get the kind of service that we pay for the usage of these innovations. conceding that they are very helpful when they do function, operators must also take into consideration the fact that their customers need an efficient and expedient assistance whenever they need it. i am technologically dependent, and i hated those two instances of hassle.

while musing over my lj friends' page and stopping by one of celeni's posts, i saw woodycakes' comments saying how cute the o.c.'s series finale was. it strucked my mind how long i haven't seriously watched my favorite shows in television. i've got no much time for that since i got a lot of things to juggle lately. i'm so excited to watch my dvds again! how i wish i got more time on the coming days.