Condemn the Sinner

Days have passed since the pictures of massacred bodies in Maguindanao shocked everyone in the evening news and in the papers. But the same intensity of outrage can still be felt. This is going to be the case until the real perpetrators have been put behind bars.

Institutions, especially the media, have released their own statements of condemnation. Ideally neutral and objective, media this time cannot close their eyes to the horror and their hearts to the anger. Their own have been in the center of the murders. A terror attack to their profession and their cause.

And while the world is watching, this government again fumbles to find an answer that would silence the doubters in thinking that it can give a prompt resolution to the mess. Instead, fears of a whitewash is imminent considering the perpetrators' connection to Gloria Arroyo and her cohorts.

If the media wants its justice, then it should never cease in its vigilance. It should tirelessly monitor the progress of the case, especially the actions and decisions of this government towards it. This country is tired of propaganda and media management that this government so well have applied. Condemn the sinner, but let justice be delayed - by processes, rights, and any other delaying tactics that the Ampatuans lawyers can think of. Sooner or later, the public have forgotten, and the perpetrators can do about their business, with impunity.

All because this government, for one reason or another, will not act appropriately.

With the magnitude of the crime, we should condemn the sinner. No, it's not against the Church to do it. The Church assumes the sinner is still human. In this case, the "sinner" is not. It's an animal that must be shot before it can do anymore damage.

Moves on Manny

All this brouhaha against Manny Pacquiao is nothing more than just cheap shot on the man who has given glory to the Filipino people with his historic win against Cotto. While dominating on the ring, he appeared defeated on that Mass video with Jinkee Pacquiao. And the media had their day.

Manny was right when re requested not to focus on the Krista issue instead of the win he just achieved. But media was not to give us on such a juicy angle. The thing is, the guy has reached a pinaccle of success that people deemed all his moves should be put on a microscope for the public to see, and to judge.

If that is the prize for being famous, then being famous is not all that cloud nine. Clearly, Manny has to battle this out for himself. But what is troubling is this culture on how we treat our famous people. A taxi driver I rode once made a judgement on Pacquiao based on this Krista news, and not on the fight. The media has affected masses mentality.

But just like Roach when he interrupted a meeting of Pacquiao and Villar in Baguio during the former's training - he didn't give a shit, Manny should do the same. He should not give a shit. Cheap shots remain that way, cheap. And all the cheap shots in the world would not change the fact that he is the biggest name in boxing in the world at the present.

But what about this Krista girl, who shares the same judgement? Clearly she hasn't achieved anything Manny-like. She will be judged for sure by what has media pictured her to be. But that is just the consequence of poor decisions, for her.

Cheap shots for Manny, and even for Krista will die in the end. What they did, if ever they did it, should, of course, not to be condoned. But that is not the tragedy of this. The real tragedy is our mentality that a famous personality should be prefectly clean. That is not living in the real world. These people are precisely that, people like you and me.

So I don't really give a shit about those issues. The win Pacquiao achieved is too big for that issue to share the same limelight.