What Can We Do to Stop People Harming Others?

Have you imagined our world without laws? What do you think will happen if there are no laws? Without laws, the world will be much worse and more chaotic. Extensive stealing, throwing trash everywhere, smoke belching and other activities that are contrary to the law will be prevalent. There will be no discipline at all. And each nation will not become a better place to live in.

When our professor asked us the difference between legitimacy and legality, I began to think carefully because for me, they are just the same. During the class discussion, he explained how these two terms differ from each other. I learned that legitimacy is acknowledging or recognizing the authority because there is something in return, while legality is concerned with laws. Without legality, the world will be no peace and order. While listening, I realized that knowing difference of legitimacy and legality is important because it enables us to understand the role of laws in our lives. In the Philippines, legality loses its sense because it is not being practiced properly. For example, admit it or not, when we go against the traffic law, we give some money to a police so we will not surrender our driver’s license. I have nothing against the police but this is the reality. Unfortunately, this is happening in the real world.

Laws have an important role in our lives. They are fundamental. They are here to guide and protect us so they should not take them for granted. However, most of us do not abide by them since we are not oriented about them. Laws should be practiced properly by us, so they could be effective. We should take an extra effort to follow these laws to keep our country peaceful and orderly. On the other hand, law-makers should be a combination of metaphysical, decisionist and democratic, rather than a realist. Laws should not be made as a result of self-interest. They should be "people-centered". In other words, they are focused on the good of the people, to serve them in a just way. Our professor shared that we should be the protector of human progress. We can have the peace and order tand even justice, once we learn to understand the importance of the account of law.

Why Do Some People Think They Know What's Good for Others? What Makes the World Dangerous?

I believe that the nature of the human person consists of two sides: the good and the evil. However, the good side weighs more than the other. People think they can do something good because they can. They do good things, like helping those who are in need, because they give them a sense of fulfillment. Doing so can make him or her feel good about themselves. In addition, the environment is a factor that influences the people to be good because of the moral values that revolves within it. However, there are some circumstances that prevent them from doing good. There are times when they are forced to do bad because it can affect their well-being. For instance, when children disobey the order of the elders, they tend to lie because they don’t want to be reprimanded. People can also do bad things for their benefit.

Conflict is justifiable when people think that what they are fighting for is right or is good for the others. Our world leaders do everything to address the concerns of the people, to end global conflict and violence, because everyone is already affected. They even come to the point wherein they set aside their differences and try to bridge the gap between them and the others. By doing these things, I think that they can somehow end this global concern. Unfortunately, there are others who do not participate in the leaders’ advocacy. How will the global conflict and violence end if these people continue to challenge the world leaders’ orders?

The world leaders can promote peace among all nations by being humble enough and selfless. Like what my classmate Claude said, I think that this is a difficult task for the leaders because this kind of act makes them swallow their pride. But I honestly believe that this is a better solution. In this way, it would be easier for them to reach out to others. Through their humility, they would be able to listen more to the voice of the people, to work together and to understand each other, to resolve their issues. If only all the world leaders will be like this, peace is being achieved.

Why Does Politics Turn to Violence?

In class, Professor Bugarin said that violence and war are embedded in our culture. Unfortunately, they are considered as a cultural phenomenon. As we grow up, our family and school environment teach us the moral values and the ethical standards because they want us to become better individuals. Through these moral values, we are able to learn about the difference of what is right from wrong. However, isn’t it ironic that the world is becoming more violent and people are more engaged to war? As a matter of fact, whenever I watch news, there are reports about mass killings and murders and I hardly see news about people doing good things to others. It seems that some of us have forgotten about the moral values and the ethical standards.

Economics, territorial ambitions, evil leaders, political ideologies, and strategic concerns are factors that trigger violence among the different countries around the world. Adolf Hitler had these factors in himself when he was still alive. These factors made him a very powerful man. He used his brain to achieve his dream. During his time, a lot of people died because he allowed violence to reign in order to get what he wanted. He conquered Germany and got rid of the Jews. Some people had no choice but to follow him because they were afraid of him. Good thing I was not born at that time yet because I don’t think I would have survived.

I think that “evil things” happen around us because we are not brave enough or scared to stand up for our rights--- for what we believe in. Yes, it is our duty to follow or obey orders of our leader/s. However, if we feel, know and believe that they are not good for everybody’s welfare, we have to practice our right to object and say “no”. Perhaps, it is time to end violence and war because they have caused so much chaos in our lives. But the question is, can we do this?

Honestly, I’m quite worried because this kind of culture goes on and on. I’m wondering about how our future will turn out if they continue to shape or control the society.

How Is Internet Changing the Way We Live?

Professor Teehankee once said that the geeks and nerds will rule the universe one day. This can be true because nowadays, the Internet completely dominates our lives. On one hand, the Internet is very convenient because it has information that we need to know. Gone are the days when we spend hours in the library, looking for the right books to satisfy our curiosity. Today, the answers to our questions are just one click away because Yahoo, Google and Wikipedia exist. On the other hand, it becomes an avenue for us to keep in touch and updated with our loved ones and friends who live abroad through electronic mails and social networking sites such as Facebook, Multiply, Twitter, Tumblr and Friendster.

The Internet has affected my life in various ways. It helped me see the world in a different way and learn more about different things through researching in Yahoo, Google, etc. The Internet has become a part of my school life and without it, I might have not survived. And like I said, it is a tool for me to get connected with my relatives and friends who live far from our home in Laguna or the Philippines itself.

I believe that the power of the Web 2.0 can be harnessed by giving more people opportunities to learn about it so they can create designs, programs or softwares that can make Internet surfing, researching, job hunting and the like more accessible. By teaching more people about Web 2.0, there might be programs or softwares that can cater to those who don't have full access to Internet (and it includeds those who have special needs). These can help them learn how to use the computer and have Internet access in a much easier way. As a result of this, the digital divide can be resolved too.

Since I have mentioned the positive effects of the Internet, now it’s time to look at its negative effects. For instance, the use of the social networking sites allows us to express ourselves and let the world have a glimpse of what is happening to our lives. But, if we are not careful enough, it can be damaging. They can be used as a tool to invade our privacy. That is why using them can be scary at times because what we post there might earn a point against us. It can give some people who look at it a wrong impression about ourselves. Therefore, when we use the Internet, we must be careful in everything that we say and post to avoid things like this. It should be an instrument to build positive relationships with others and not otherwise.

How Can We End Poverty?

What we saw on the previous master lecture was quite related to this topic: poverty. The master lecture started by showing us pictures that are quite similar to the real-life scenario outside of Brother Andrew Gonzales building, the tallest education building in the Philippines. The pictures portray the life of the people who are living under the poverty line. In the pictures, we saw houses made of pieces of wood, metal and the like put together so they could have a place to stay. These pictures were not pleasant to look at and they made me realize that I’m luckier than one hundred million people (or more) because I get to study in a good school, live in a nice house, eat good food and sleep on a comfortable bed.

Poverty has been a worldwide concern and those who are in power keep on thinking about the possible solutions to solve it. But as years go by, it becomes even worse because more people suffer from it. In the Philippines, there is a growing number of people who can’t afford to go to a good school, who are homeless, who seldom eat food. Since we are education majors, our professor gave an example that is related to our field. I couldn’t agree more with what he said in class, “everybody has the right to be educated, but not all can go to good schools”. The people who didn’t have the opportunity to receive quality education end up doing nothing or trying things or job that make them completely forget their dignity, as long as they can have money to survive.

I have learned that the reason why we experience poverty is because we don’t have a structure or economic policy to improve our third world state. There is something wrong with our structure and we, together with our government, need to exert more effort to help our fellow Filipinos who are greatly stricken by poverty. We should work hand-in-hand so we can come up with the best and possible ideas and to solve our country’s problems in a more systematic way. In addition, we should learn to love our own, so we can have a better future. By loving our own, we can somehow improve the current situation of our country. For instance, if we buy our own products, our condition of our economy might change in a positive way and the unemployed would have jobs. It can also motivate us to produce products that can compete in the world market. We are talented and creative people. We should make use of our talents and creativeness to make the Philippines a better place to live in. This is possible if we begin to teach the next generation to appreciate our own culture. I strongly believe that it is our responsibility to help them develop a sense of Nationalism, and enhance their potentials so they would be able to contribute something beneficial for our society. We should always keep in mind that the future of our country is in their hands.

Why Are Some People Better Off than Others?

We cannot disregard the truth that in reality, there is inequality. The professor in our master lecture said that it is inevitable. There are a lot of opportunities for everyone but inequality still exists. Globalization may have helped the people live a comfortable life but not everyone benefits from it. For instance, the rich gets richer while the poor gets poorer. Those who are educated get good jobs but the ones who are not remain unemployed. The developed countries enjoy the best things in the world whereas the developing countries suffer from poverty or hunger. In a sense, life is definitely unfair.

I learned that our society has been dominated and shaped by capitalism. Our lives mainly depend on them since they provide us the things that we need and want. However, because of competition, instead of focusing on the welfare of the people, some of them become more concerned in producing more and reducing the price of their goods in order to sell in the market and make more money. Sometimes, it results to obliging the workers to work overtime and even receive low salaries. Although it may bring some positive effects on our economy because we try to compete with the international market, it also has negative effects in terms of the motivation of the people at work since they get no real benefits at all.

In France, the professor shared with the class that the workers who are on strike enjoy the rest of the day. They don’t go to work and they spend the whole day eating baguettes, strolling in parks or reading books. But in our country, even if the workers are on strike, they continue working because they have to earn money for their family. For this reason, their strike is useless and defective. By comparing these two scenarios, I realized that the professor has a point when he told the class that incidents like this happen in our country because the people lack political will. Our fellow Filipinos have the opportunity to fight for their rights, but they are not brave enough to do so. They may be afraid of the consequences such as losing their job. Due to our country’s current situation, I think that earning money matters most than anything else.

In my opinion, inequality among us can be lessened if we will try to come out of our shell and show the whole world what we can do. I believe that we need to strive harder in order to live a more comfortable life or get a job. Even if inequality exists and it is inevitable, we should not feel hopeless. Do something for a change.

How is the World Organized Economically?

Our life is like a pie. It is divided into three parts--- economics, social and political. They are interrelated with each other because they satisfy our needs and wants. However, although they are interrelated, the economics part takes the huge slice of the pie because it is where the things that are essential for us to live belong. The basic needs like food, water and shelter are found in this area. We need these things in order to survive. The social and the political, on the other hand, have equal slices. The social part enables us to interact and build relationships with the people me meet in our everyday lives. Meanwhile, in the political, we practice our right to negotiate with others so we can get what we want. The exchange and division of goods happens here.

In class, we define economics as the “production and distribution of goods and wealth”. However, these are not produced equally because they are scarce or limited. Adam Smith once said that a man, by nature, is selfish. Though we may not be fully aware of it, we become selfish because we want to have what is best for us. At times, we are like crabs; we don’t care what the others feel, as long as we are happy and contented.

In the article that we read, the world is divided economically by means of the three periods in history: Liberalism, Neo-liberalism and Marxism. Each one of them has different perspectives on economics, and they have changed people’s way of living. For example, when the invention of the machines was born, the production of goods and wealth increased. The unemployment rate grew because the machines were doing most of the job. Because of these machines, there was an abundance of goods and wealth and they were somehow beneficial, most especially to the elites and the entrepreneurs, who became even richer as they received more money, while the others were not. For this reason, some were forced to be involved in illegal operations to support their well-being. As Peterson mentioned in his article, “growing inequalities drain people’s sense of inclusion in a global community; increase feelings of frustration, despair and resentment; reduce the likelihood of people working together for common goals.”

From our class discussion, I learned that we should learn how to listen to the voice of those who are greatly affected--- the poor. They are the ones who suffer because of our selfishness and own desires. We should think beyond the box (critically) so we can find the best alternatives to help them have a more comfortable life. Like what Nash proved to us, we could work together for a greater good. We don’t need to be like crabs in order to survive in this world. If we only compromise, we will be able to solve this global concern.