A Farfetched Story: Is it true?
A reader left this comment on my first post on the Faye story. Perhaps we should still take the 'Faye' story with a wee bit of scepticism. Indeed, her story came out in the front pages of some Philippine broadsheets (i.e. the Inquirer, 8 November 2004). But as we in government would prefer, things should be in black and white. Things can be better proved with the appropriate paper trail. But still, I do give Ms. Faye San Juan, as a person, the benefit of the doubt. Her travails may be farfetched, but she sure has the guts to face the public with her claims.
Angelo
Anonymous said... (Name appears below; commenter seems to have no blogger account, but was polite enough to leave a name. -JABR)
DOES TRUTH NO LONGER MATTER?
The FAYE story at first glance appears too good or "cute" to be true. The incidents surrounding
the successive misfortunes of mother and daughter in their Australian sojourn are stuff for movies . The struggle to find money to make the trip, the emergence of a villain character who caused mom and daughter intense pain and suffering turning them both penniless , the tremendous sacrifices and sheer persistence to pursue the goal to participate in the contest, then the climax of the story, the victory of the suffering and the weak and lastly the emergence of a hero, a saviour in the person of the Japanese diplomat who helped in their repatriation back to R.P. - all of these episodes so glaringly fictional typifies the fairy tale-ish Cinderella mold and anyone with a resonably inquisitive mind will have second thoughts on the veracity of the story. But why did it find it's way into an editorial space of a national newspaper? All because of the source , the Bread of Life Ministries. The fact that Bread of Life is a Christian organization it is deemed to tell facts and not have the audacity and moral recklesness to publish fabricated stories. In other words, despite the many inconsistencies and imperfections, many "bought" the story because of the source. This is never a wrong assumption except when the Bread of Life Ministries slammed the door on the media and ordinary folks when confronted with questions that seek to clarify the veracity of the story. Such silence is disconcerting. A Christian organization is acting like a fly by night company running away from a scam operations when confronted by an investigation.
Given that Bread of Life had shut its doors to the public, we can only rationalize and use a fair measure of logic in coming up with an answer.
In my own opinion, the Faye story is very likely a hoax. Consider these scenarios :
a. If the contest was represented by 57 countries, did Faye represent the Philippines? How was she chosen? Was there a selection process held in Philippine high schools ? Was the Phil Dept of Education involved? Or did Faye join the contest as a private citizen? If she went on her own as an individual she would not have the credentials to represent her country. So why was she trumpeting to the world that she won it for the Phils? And why was she surprised that the RP embassy did not support her - she went on her own without the govt's saction in the first place.
b. Does anyone have proof that the contest ever happened ? Where was the venue in Australia? What date did the contest take place? Who sponsored the contest?
c. Filipina stealing their passports, luggage and tickets.. Who was this Filipina? Was she a passenger in the plane, a relative , a stranger? How could it be possible for one person to steal all your money unless she robs you at gunpoint.
d. Selling clothes for food. For those of us who have been abroad in the U.S or Canada and Australia, it is normal to see clothes donation bins in strip malls. Donated clothes are then sorted and cleaned and the good ones sold at second hand stores and proceeds are given to charity. A charitable organization manages this operation. In such an advanced country like Australia people don't steal clothes off your backyard clothesline. Poor choice of a storyline. The writer has no clue of the western culture.
e. And lastly, why did Faye’s mother conceal her daughter’s achievements in Australia and Indonesia? Was there something to be ashamed of?
The inconsistencies and exaggerations goes on and on and the longer you read the story the more incredulous it becomes. Given the above points alone, I have every reason to believe that the Faye story is bogus. It reads like one, it feels like one and with the refusal of Bread of Life to explain their side, it smells like one. The admission of someone to be the real Faye only satisfies one side of the coin. We need to prove the other side and a certification from Australia and Indonesia that these contests did happen dispels the myth. We are still waiting but the response is not forthcoming which means that the contest did not happen. One poster even in another forum suggested that perhaps the Bread of Life with its international network conducted the contest. Nice try.
The sad part is people seem to take the Faye story in stride and say , well, it doesn't matter if Faye is not real, what is important is the message. This kind of mentality does not speak well of the person's sense of personal values. Deception is not exactly inspiring. Some people have taken the Faye to story to further God's truth in Scripture. What a tragedy. An international math website ( NET MATHEMATICS http://net-mathematics.wikiverse.org/) had posted Faye's story on their in the news section only to pull it out when the debate on its authenticity started hitting the web. What a shame. Have we become a country where truth no longer matters?
G. USHBAN
11/10/2004 12:59:44 AM
Angelo
Anonymous said... (Name appears below; commenter seems to have no blogger account, but was polite enough to leave a name. -JABR)
DOES TRUTH NO LONGER MATTER?
The FAYE story at first glance appears too good or "cute" to be true. The incidents surrounding
the successive misfortunes of mother and daughter in their Australian sojourn are stuff for movies . The struggle to find money to make the trip, the emergence of a villain character who caused mom and daughter intense pain and suffering turning them both penniless , the tremendous sacrifices and sheer persistence to pursue the goal to participate in the contest, then the climax of the story, the victory of the suffering and the weak and lastly the emergence of a hero, a saviour in the person of the Japanese diplomat who helped in their repatriation back to R.P. - all of these episodes so glaringly fictional typifies the fairy tale-ish Cinderella mold and anyone with a resonably inquisitive mind will have second thoughts on the veracity of the story. But why did it find it's way into an editorial space of a national newspaper? All because of the source , the Bread of Life Ministries. The fact that Bread of Life is a Christian organization it is deemed to tell facts and not have the audacity and moral recklesness to publish fabricated stories. In other words, despite the many inconsistencies and imperfections, many "bought" the story because of the source. This is never a wrong assumption except when the Bread of Life Ministries slammed the door on the media and ordinary folks when confronted with questions that seek to clarify the veracity of the story. Such silence is disconcerting. A Christian organization is acting like a fly by night company running away from a scam operations when confronted by an investigation.
Given that Bread of Life had shut its doors to the public, we can only rationalize and use a fair measure of logic in coming up with an answer.
In my own opinion, the Faye story is very likely a hoax. Consider these scenarios :
a. If the contest was represented by 57 countries, did Faye represent the Philippines? How was she chosen? Was there a selection process held in Philippine high schools ? Was the Phil Dept of Education involved? Or did Faye join the contest as a private citizen? If she went on her own as an individual she would not have the credentials to represent her country. So why was she trumpeting to the world that she won it for the Phils? And why was she surprised that the RP embassy did not support her - she went on her own without the govt's saction in the first place.
b. Does anyone have proof that the contest ever happened ? Where was the venue in Australia? What date did the contest take place? Who sponsored the contest?
c. Filipina stealing their passports, luggage and tickets.. Who was this Filipina? Was she a passenger in the plane, a relative , a stranger? How could it be possible for one person to steal all your money unless she robs you at gunpoint.
d. Selling clothes for food. For those of us who have been abroad in the U.S or Canada and Australia, it is normal to see clothes donation bins in strip malls. Donated clothes are then sorted and cleaned and the good ones sold at second hand stores and proceeds are given to charity. A charitable organization manages this operation. In such an advanced country like Australia people don't steal clothes off your backyard clothesline. Poor choice of a storyline. The writer has no clue of the western culture.
e. And lastly, why did Faye’s mother conceal her daughter’s achievements in Australia and Indonesia? Was there something to be ashamed of?
The inconsistencies and exaggerations goes on and on and the longer you read the story the more incredulous it becomes. Given the above points alone, I have every reason to believe that the Faye story is bogus. It reads like one, it feels like one and with the refusal of Bread of Life to explain their side, it smells like one. The admission of someone to be the real Faye only satisfies one side of the coin. We need to prove the other side and a certification from Australia and Indonesia that these contests did happen dispels the myth. We are still waiting but the response is not forthcoming which means that the contest did not happen. One poster even in another forum suggested that perhaps the Bread of Life with its international network conducted the contest. Nice try.
The sad part is people seem to take the Faye story in stride and say , well, it doesn't matter if Faye is not real, what is important is the message. This kind of mentality does not speak well of the person's sense of personal values. Deception is not exactly inspiring. Some people have taken the Faye to story to further God's truth in Scripture. What a tragedy. An international math website ( NET MATHEMATICS http://net-mathematics.wikiverse.org/) had posted Faye's story on their in the news section only to pull it out when the debate on its authenticity started hitting the web. What a shame. Have we become a country where truth no longer matters?
G. USHBAN
11/10/2004 12:59:44 AM
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on Wednesday, November 10, 2004 at 01:16.
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