General Info

[QUOTE=GoodEnough;1429715]If anyone needs a metaphor for the utter contempt in which the public is held here, this one should suffice for a while. GE[/QUOTE]Another way to conceptualize this is to ask why Filipinos don't speak up, why they put up with such crap. It's not only the failure to speak up when government or corporations screw them over, they also don't speak up with each other when somebody screws over others. Cutting lines in a pharmacy (or anywhere else) is reinforced by average, low-wage clerks, who just go ahead and wait on the line-cutter. But I also can't remember other customers complaining either. Similarly, jeepney and FX drivers pack their vehicles so full that some passengers truly travel in pain-and often the driver overloads the legal passenger capacity painted on the outside of the vehicle. Bus drivers and their hawkers do likewise, even to the point of putting frail passengers in unsafe standing positions in buses that sway and abruptly stop and start, just to jockey in front of another vehicle or to scoop up yet another ticket paying passenger. But nobody complains. Possibly the cultural taboo against causing others to lose face? I would sooner believe it's a class divide dynamic: average Filipinos are just so accommodated to the wishes of the Church, the colonials, the occupying Japanese, and the dynastic families that they accept it as their fate-or perhaps know in practical terms that they can't really change things anyway. And eventually the have-nots just mimic what they see the haves doing.

[QUOTE=Skip Kost;1430873]I believe there are only 20 or so countries that have official ambassadorial relations with Taiwan, and most are small, insignificant countries. In Europe only the Vatican City has official relations, nor do Australia, Canada, or the U.S. Those that go as far as the Philippines and insist that Taiwan is a province of the PRC are essentially kowtowing to the PRC, who instruct countries that want relations with themselves (PRC) that they must acknowledge Taiwan as a PRC province. Larger countries obviously call the bluff of the PRC, but the Philippines is hardly the only kowtowing country. Even the U.S. closed down its embassy several decades ago under pressure from the PRC. I don't recall the exact history, but I think it more or less coincided with the UN awarding the PRC a permanent seat on the Security Council.[/QUOTE]The United States switched diplomatic recognition from the Republic of China (ROC) to the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1979. The ROC kept China's seat and membership of the UN (and permanent UNSC seat) until 1971, when it was succeeded by the PRC. The One-China Principle, i.e. Taiwan is a part of China and Beijing is the government, is a requirement for any country to establish diplomatic relations with the PRC. Countries have some wiggle room, using such terms terms like "acknowledge","understand","take note of", while others explicitly use the term "support" or "recognize" for Beijing's position on the status of Taiwan. I've found no evidence that the Philippines "insists" this. Is it kowtowing for a state to "acknowledge","understand", or "support" Beijing's position? Up for debate. Malacanang Palace directly speaking to the Taiwanese leadership re any issue would be a breach of the One-China Policy / Principle. Same holds true for any other state having diplomatic relations with Beijing.

[QUOTE=Skip Kost;1430895]Another way to conceptualize this is to ask why Filipinos don't speak up, why they put up with such crap. .[/QUOTE]Well, that part of the conditioning is encoded in their genes.

Never doubt those in power. Like. If they are senators, they cannot do wrong. LOL vote them in repeatedly. Even when they squander the country.

[QUOTE=Hutsori;1430900].[/QUOTE]And some conspiracy theorist state that since PNoy is semi-Chinese, he is kissing China's butt. So he may repeat word for word what China wants to say, including stating that TW is a province of China.

Well. Hypocrites. If they treat TW like that they should ban anybody from working there. Now they couldn't do it right?

PS: that the PH Govt cannot talk directly to TW govt is like the same story what PH Govt used, when refusing to talk to the HK Govt, when the bus story happened. When the HK Chief called to talk to PH President, despite the gravity of the issue, and the death of the HK Tourists, the PH president refused to talk to him saying he is breaching protocols."you are not the head of state, so I will not talk to you."

Yah right. The get that legal jumbo mumbo / protocol part right. Always

[QUOTE=Skip Kost;1430895]Another way to conceptualize this is to ask why Filipinos don't speak up, why they put up with such crap. It's not only the failure to speak up when government or corporations screw them over, they also don't speak up with each other when somebody screws over others. Cutting lines in a pharmacy (or anywhere else) is reinforced by average, low-wage clerks, who just go ahead and wait on the line-cutter. But I also can't remember other customers complaining either. Similarly, jeepney and FX drivers pack their vehicles so full that some passengers truly travel in pain-and often the driver overloads the legal passenger capacity painted on the outside of the vehicle. Bus drivers and their hawkers do likewise, even to the point of putting frail passengers in unsafe standing positions in buses that sway and abruptly stop and start, just to jockey in front of another vehicle or to scoop up yet another ticket paying passenger. But nobody complains. Possibly the cultural taboo against causing others to lose face? I would sooner believe it's a class divide dynamic: average Filipinos are just so accommodated to the wishes of the Church, the colonials, the occupying Japanese, and the dynastic families that they accept it as their fate-or perhaps know in practical terms that they can't really change things anyway. And eventually the have-nots just mimic what they see the haves doing.[/QUOTE]You are speaking on the perspective of freedom loving western people. Many countries in the world are name sake democracies only. People do not have power. If they start voicing themselves they will get into trouble with police harassment etc and can be taken to jail. In effect many of the countries act as authoritarian government where only the rich and powerfull with connections can do whatever they want.

Another problem is too much population and less infrastructure forcing people to crowd buses and trains. When you are poor you learn to accept the fate. Having said that Phi people are one of the friendliest people. In spite oftTheir poverty willing to share what they have and eager to help others.

Even in the provinces the buses, vans are crowded. Bus stations can be compared to local fair with hawkers, food vendors, children running amok, only thing missing is the Ferris wheel.

[QUOTE=Skip Kost; 1430873]I believe there are only 20 or so countries that have official ambassadorial relations with Taiwan, and most are small, insignificant countries.

The Filipino insisting that his countrymen are critical to Taiwanese manufacturing is apparently unaware that many, if not most, of the PRC's electronics factories are owned by Taiwanese.[/QUOTE]Very true, and ALL the countries do have significant business with RoC, aka Taiwan.

Taiwanese own tons of factories in PRC and SEA, starting and moving them according to local salary levels.

Dear Friends.

I am planning my first ever trip to Phil. Is in contact for some girls (chatmates) and expecting a bash soon when I reach Phil. I am confused on a point what is correct I'd for the girl which shows she is not minor. What is expected in hotels or resorts? I asked most of the girls about I'd and got funny reply like school I'd, or I'd from any private institution, some simplly say no I'd required. I know a passport is most conclusive, but most of the girls do not hold a passport.

Please help me what I'd to look for?

Regards,

KHEKADA

Oh, I see. They must be using the broken one that came from Dumaguete. A week and a half ago I went to the LTO in Dgte to get my DL and couldn't because they said their printer was broken and was going to Manila.

[QUOTE=Nightrider1; 1429843]Read this in a Phil blog and thought it was worth posting here as just another example of why the Phil is, and will remain a third world country. Not that we care when we are between the sheets with some sweet Filipina.

For those unfortunate enough to live in AC aka the RH, be aware that the so called LTO office at SM is broken.

They will not tell you that they are broken. Instead they will run you through the fake medical exam and collect your money. Then they will tell you to take your documents to window 1 to get your new drivers license. Only then will they tell you they are "broken".

Apparently they broke their single printer and have no backups and have no maintenance agreements. So they are looking for someone who can fix the broken printer.

So when you show up at window 1 to finish your processing you are told to go find yourself another LTO to do the work they cannot do.

I asked them why they didn't post a notice or inform those that appear to obtain a renewal that they are "broken". As usual in this back end of the Philippines it appears to be beyond their basic ability to comprehend.

They did claim that they hope, no promises, to actually be able to do their job sometime in the next month. However knowing the local area, that is likely to meant next year. .

Just another day in the RH.[/QUOTE]

I went out to test if you could buy this in phils withour prescription from a doc. At Mercury drugstore around the corner from Outback Steakhouse close to Ascott Makati entrance you could by as many 250mg or 500mg Zithromax pills as you like. Atleast so it seemed. I bought 6x500mg at the price of approx 150php per tablet as my usual precaution.

So then I guess this goes for the rest of the Mercury's around as well. Other brands were not tested as I suceeded in my first attempt and got what I looked for.

Some time ago, I had malaria, which is about the most miserable disease on planet earth.

It was eventually cured after many years. So I am a bit paranoid about getting it again.

So whenever I am in a developing country, which includes all of SA Asia, I take doxycyclin every day as a prophylactic.

When I have discussed the results of my STD situation with sex health professionals, they commonly point out that doxycyclin is also a good prophylactic with the bacterial forms of STI. So maybe that is providing some form of protection.

Pete Benetar wrote several posts about pharmaceuticals which will provide protection against some STIs.

So since this last trip, I now combine doxycyclin with Amoxycillin, and that should provide protection against most of the bacterial forms of STI.

The reason why I post these figures is because many, or most, governments in developed countries publish misinformation about STIs. They greatly inflate the statistics, and / or the likelihood of catching an STI. I assume that this is to minimise the load that STIs place on the government funded national health system. So this creates unwarranted fear in your perception of risk. By publishing my statistic, I hope to provide some reliable information on which you can make your own decisions.

As a side note. If you look at the photos which are posted in the photo thread, you will see that a significantly large proportion of the guys are bareback, which might tell you something.

G.

Of the 440 or so women that I have sexed bareback in my report, about 20% were Australian. 35% American, and the remainder in SE Asia.

[QUOTE=Noddy; 1430342]Is there anything you believe you do different which offers more resistance to STD's, apart from following a good HEALTHY diet?

I can concur with your report, however I once got an STD, my only caveat is I get a bad tummy no matter where I travel worldwide except Africa where I originate, must be the water. How clean the bottled water is anybodies guess. I am a heavy vitamin C user, never ever take any pharmaceuticals at all, not even for headache.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Skogis;1431129]. I bought 6x500mg at the price of approx 150php per tablet as my usual precaution.[/QUOTE]What exactly are you doing with the Zithromax? Are you doing it with medical advice?

Seems from your use of the word "precaution" that you are popping this heavy duty drug hoping that you will be protected when you inevitably encounter a woman with an unexpected "germ" of unknown origin but I would be pleased to be corrected if I have a wrong impression.

As a person with a higher degree in Science, I fear that you are not doing your relatively young immune system any favors as well as wasting your time, but that's just MHO after having discussed the pros and cons of Zithromax quite recently with my friendly urino-genital specialist.

Every now and then, something happens which gives us a real laugh.

During my last trip, I had organised a 3 day photo shoot while I was in Cebu.

On the first day, at about the right time, the mamasan turned up with the models. We took down particulars, and checked I'd for age etc.

Then the girls bundled into the big bathroom to get themselves ready.

After a while, there was an agonised wail. When I checked, it was one of the girls complaining about the rotten taste of the toothpaste.

When I checked the toothpaste tube, I found that, in ignorance, she had used the KY jelly. We all had a laugh at here expense and then we got on with it.

Life never gets tedious.

G

[QUOTE=Khekada; 1430936]Dear Friends.

I am planning my first ever trip to Phil. Is in contact for some girls (chatmates) and expecting a bash soon when I reach Phil. I am confused on a point what is correct I'd for the girl which shows she is not minor. What is expected in hotels or resorts? I asked most of the girls about I'd and got funny reply like school I'd, or I'd from any private institution, some simplly say no I'd required. I know a passport is most conclusive, but most of the girls do not hold a passport.

Please help me what I'd to look for?

Regards,

KHEKADA[/QUOTE]Don't be shocked if many girls don't have any ID, or bring some home-made ID.

Some carry the I'd they were issued when they worked in Super market (which means they are possibly quite over 18.) and some fake it to get their sister into bar etc. Etc.

If in doubt, walk away. Asking for I'd may give you deer-in-headlight looks.

[QUOTE=Sammon;1430916]If they start voicing themselves they will get into trouble with police harassment etc and can be taken to jail.[/QUOTE]I would be interested to learn of instances in which people complaining about line-cutters at Mercury Drugs or jeepney drivers overloading the passenger limits of their vehicles have been taken to jail. Please do share the details if you know of some actual cases. I always appreciate learning from surprising evidence.

Recently I learned about some aspects of the informal economy that suggest Filipinos are not always so docile. A natural laboratory exists in the Monumento area of Caloocan City. The sidewalks are packed with various unlicensed vendors selling clothes, shoes, toys, electronic accessories, fruit and vegetables, and so on. At night many more roll in carts and literally block one or two of the traffic lanes of Rizal Avenue in the area under the LRT station. But many vendors are actually organized into member associations, and there are some overarching umbrella groups that represent various informal sector groups throughout the metro area. Political candidates recruit votes from the vendor associations with promises that they'll protect them from police enforcement if they're elected. But the candidates make lots of conflicting promises, so this kind of protection is only good for a few months before and after the election.

But one interesting strategy is that some female vendors have extended affairs with police officers as protection against police raids. These women often do not conceal the affairs from other vendors, who then use this knowledge to blackmail the officers, many of whom are married.

I realize this seems to contradict my earlier post. Perhaps organizing does have its advantages, even if individual Filipinos are quite fatalistic.

[QUOTE=Gangles; 1431179]Every now and then, something happens which gives us a real laugh.

During my last trip, I had organised a 3 day photo shoot while I was in Cebu.

G[/QUOTE]All that and no photos G? Oh my!

One young lady with whom I have been holding discourse, usually with clothes on but ocassionally without, has demonstrated to me why Filipinas are tending towards chubbiness in great numbers.

Over the course of a week, during which was have chatted frequently daytime and night time on skype she has gone exactly nowhere. She has remained in her room, has eaten meals in her room, has chatted and thats about it. She asked me why I'm always drinking water. I ask her how much she drinks. She says maybe one glass per day.

Ask her what excercise she does, she says none. Then she says wait, I shower I brush my teeth. I think she was being serious. !

Ask her if she doesn't want fresh air she says no.

Ask her if she won't benefit from excercise she says no.

Ask her if she knows of the curative benefits of drinking water, she says no.

It would be sad if it wasnt true. The girl is 18 and now 50kgs. Heading to 60 soon I'm sure.