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Be prepared to update your calendar because
Congressman Juan Binimbol (Lone District, Freedom Island) has
introduced a bill to address some significant nonevents in the
country.
Many of these events do not
materialize but people talk about them incessantly, Binimbol says.
The fact that they become big news on radio, TV and newspapers means
they are significant to the people.
His red-letter days are
“working holidays” that may be observed individually or
collectively. Observance may take a minute (to reflect on the
occasion) or a day if an organization feels like it.
Says Binimbol: “Filipinos talk
a lot about events like coups, impeachment, constitutional change
and speakership fights, but they do not act on them. People begin to
believe these talks and add to them. My bill ensures a proper
discussion of these nonevents and stresses why rumors are important
in society.” Some of his suggestions:
Destabilization Week. In the
Binimbol bill, the third week of January is observed as
Destabilization Week. This is the time when the military or some
rightist groups raise alarms about phantom plots to unseat the
President. Their partners in the national police and the defense
department pick up the cue. The rumor takes a life of its own but,
eventually, nothing happens.
Binimbol says destabilization
rumors are important to put the government on its toes. The gossip
serves as a reminder that the government is doing something wrong
and the unhappy generals are likely to correct it. The bill
encourages columnists and editorial writers to spend the week
discussing the latest rumor and why a real coup could take place
this time.
Charter-Change Consciousness Day.
Feb. 8 is designated Chacha Day in the Binimbol calendar. Rumors
about the Palace seeking to amend the Constitution are rife at the
beginning of the year. Malacanang, of course, quickly denies them.
Chacha Consciousness Day encourages discussions on amending the
Constitution and why it is important, for example, to the
administration, the MILF and the nation.
Topple the Speaker Day. It is
useful, from time to time, to threaten the House Speaker with a
rebellion for poor judgment (why wage a Moral Revolution?) or
unresponsiveness (to demands for fast pork-barrel release). A
complementary observance is Unseat the Senate President Day that
occasionally gives Sen. Manny Villar sleepless nights. The Day is a
reminder that all glory is transient and the House and Senate bosses
are dispensable.
Bus Strike Day. Every so often,
bus operators complain about bus fare remaining stagnant while the
cost of gasoline rises. They threaten strikes that never take off.
On some days, a strike materializes but the public hardly feels its
impact. Bus Holiday Day sympathizes with transport owners and
drivers and gives them ideas on staging crippling strikes, such as
those in France and Germany.
Impeach the President Day. Once
every 365 days, it is possible for the political opposition to file
an impeachment complaint against the President. Not to do so would
be unpatriotic. The bill reminds the disunited opposition to attempt
impeachment even if it does not have the numbers in the House. It
gives them something to do. Impeachment Day shall be observed on
April 1.
Sunday funnies
WE wish to thank our readers who
have congratulated us on our new Sunday comics. We have devoted a
page to the funnies, along with two-page features that include
crossword puzzles, acrostics, sudoku, contract bridge, trivia,
quizzes and a horoscope for kids, teenagers and adults.
To be frank, many of our comic
strips and panels are a trip to the past, a homage to nostalgia. But
they remain popular, thanks to their timeless humor and the
promotion of King Features Syndicate, Inc. And they appeal to senior
readers of The Manila Times.
Popeye by Hy Eisman is synonymous
with spinach and the deathless love triangle around Olive Oyl.
Popeye has been made into a move with Robin Williams as the
sailorman.
The Katzenjammer Kids, by the
same cartoonist, was our first introduction to a German-American
family featuring the unruly but funny brats Fritz and Hans.
We remember They’ll Do It
Everytime when Jimmy Hatlo was drawing it but the humor remains.
There is no central character, but the situations are a slice of
Americana, some of them turned in by enthusiastic contributors.
The original sci-fi hero must
have been Flash Gordon, the nemesis of space baddies and
extraterrestial terrors. Flash inspired numerous product tie-ins in
our youth, specifically flashy space guns that created more noise
than harm.
Henry by Don Trachte remains a
baldie although chronologically he should be a senior citizen by
now. But change has come to Blondie, once a full-time housewife who
now works as a wedding planner, Nancy whose hair has grown spikes
and Archie’s girlfriends whose hair and clothes have caught up
with the current fashion.
The thick Sunday funnies are a
favorite weekend treat in most countries. We have added the comics
page, along with the daily syndicated editorial cartoons, for the
readers’ amusement. God created the world in six days. The seventh
is for worship and—we think—laughs.
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