CRAZED: The Foolish and the Weak
As promised, I'm posting liks to Ms. Patricia Evangelista's Crazed column for today, 19 November 2004.
Link to article in Philstar.com here.
Cached link (in my geocities account) here, in case Philstar's article is offline (Philstar.com doesn't archive articles older than a week).
An excerpt:
I used to say that my generation had a special mission of our own. We are accused of being a generation without an identity, and maybe there is some truth in that. It has been said that every generation is defined by a cause. But unlike the last generation who rallied on EDSA, this generation does not have a definite wrong to correct, or a distinct institution to oppose. But we grew up with the Ninja Turtles, Spiderman and the Power Rangers – we want to be heroes too. So we fight our own battles, we slay our own demons. We find our own causes.
...
Today, I write knowing that much of what I stood for and defended was untrue. I am a writer; I trade by my word. I have been in the business for less than five months, but I grew up knowing that truth is a journalist’s only weapon. A writer’s power goes only as far as her credibility. As I write these words now, I am filled with both helplessness and anger. More than the fact that I was deceived, it is infinitely more painful to be responsible for others’ deception. My responsibility is to correct that untruth.
I still have a cause. I may be the least person now with the credibility to speak of serving the country, but I will try. There are many who warrant the praise that Faye has unjustly received. In time, I’ll take up that cause again, in the hope that this one failure will not taint the names of all those who still deserve their recognition. I stand for my convictions, and can only wish that my doing so would in some way aid this cause.
In a world where change is the only thing that’s constant, there are a few things that I still count on. I count on my family’s support. I count on my friends’ understanding. I count on the sun rising in the morning and setting in the evening. Most of all, I count on the idea that all people are basically, inherently good.
After all that has happened, it’s hard to hang on to even that. But I’m nineteen, and I guess it’s a good thing that I’m not-quite-grown-up yet. I still believe in the goodness of people, and the greatness of the Filipino. It is one of the few truths that no lie, however big, can ever blot out.
Thank you, Patricia, for your idealism. Perhaps someday idealism will indeed be able to change the world.
Link to article in Philstar.com here.
Cached link (in my geocities account) here, in case Philstar's article is offline (Philstar.com doesn't archive articles older than a week).
An excerpt:
I used to say that my generation had a special mission of our own. We are accused of being a generation without an identity, and maybe there is some truth in that. It has been said that every generation is defined by a cause. But unlike the last generation who rallied on EDSA, this generation does not have a definite wrong to correct, or a distinct institution to oppose. But we grew up with the Ninja Turtles, Spiderman and the Power Rangers – we want to be heroes too. So we fight our own battles, we slay our own demons. We find our own causes.
...
Today, I write knowing that much of what I stood for and defended was untrue. I am a writer; I trade by my word. I have been in the business for less than five months, but I grew up knowing that truth is a journalist’s only weapon. A writer’s power goes only as far as her credibility. As I write these words now, I am filled with both helplessness and anger. More than the fact that I was deceived, it is infinitely more painful to be responsible for others’ deception. My responsibility is to correct that untruth.
I still have a cause. I may be the least person now with the credibility to speak of serving the country, but I will try. There are many who warrant the praise that Faye has unjustly received. In time, I’ll take up that cause again, in the hope that this one failure will not taint the names of all those who still deserve their recognition. I stand for my convictions, and can only wish that my doing so would in some way aid this cause.
In a world where change is the only thing that’s constant, there are a few things that I still count on. I count on my family’s support. I count on my friends’ understanding. I count on the sun rising in the morning and setting in the evening. Most of all, I count on the idea that all people are basically, inherently good.
After all that has happened, it’s hard to hang on to even that. But I’m nineteen, and I guess it’s a good thing that I’m not-quite-grown-up yet. I still believe in the goodness of people, and the greatness of the Filipino. It is one of the few truths that no lie, however big, can ever blot out.
Thank you, Patricia, for your idealism. Perhaps someday idealism will indeed be able to change the world.
This entry was posted
on Friday, November 19, 2004 at 08:37.
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'atta girl! Well said. You're just 19. You have a long way to go. Just a reminder to you that being a journalist entails more work than just writing and believing.
ting-aling on Friday, November 19, 2004 10:36:00 AM
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I did not know that they do not archive articles. Sigh. Anyway, I linked this to my post.
Ardythe Santos on Wednesday, November 24, 2004 1:52:00 PM
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