if you think the Philippines is poor..

[woulfe27]

correct. the philippines is poor and it will get even poorer in the years to come. lalo na pag presidente na si lito lapid (or bong revilla, or jinngoy) hehe

[DT]

I can't really say if our country is poor or not...There are things the Philippines is rich in but somehow our leaders aren't able to manage the available resources too well...And sadly, they have to glorify our OFWs as "heroes" of the sagging economy...Come to think of it, if there are enough decent jobs or opportunities in our country, would you think one would risk working in a far away land and be separated from his/her family?..I thought so too.

Let me share a favorite quote of mine about personal wealth:
"Wealth is a person’s ability to survive so many number of days forward…or if I stopped working today, how long could I survive?”

OT: i'm here in NY now and i'm interested in where i can get a decent meal for $2.25. but, hey, that was 2001 right?

[Mguy]

OT: i'm here in NY now and i'm interested in where i can get a decent meal for $2.25. but, hey, that was 2001 right?

Chinese take outs are usually cheap. I stayed in NY but over the Weschester Area in White Plains early this year. You could get a decent meal (rice + 1 viand) for $3.99. I'm sure you could find some other cheap place but a real meal there would cost you from $10 to $20.

Spent most of my time eating at the deli or Mcdonalds.

BTW, the guys at NY find it hard to believe that I have 2 nannies here back home because the labor there is so expensive.

[moneywhiz]

OT: i'm here in NY now and i'm interested in where i can get a decent meal for $2.25. but, hey, that was 2001 right?

just read the direction i posted.....the $2.25 half-chicken meal in 2001 could be $3.00 now


airshaq......$8-$9 for half chicken is kinda steep

[badkuk]

actually a lot of african countries as far far worse off than us. sa somalia, kahit anong oras, pwedeng magkaroon ng tribal war/ethnic cleansing. kung mura ang buhay dito sa pinas, buy one take one dun B)

*relative* to our asean neighbors, however, kulelat pa rin tayo. reason? the infamous "pwede na" attitude

[Alpha_One]

*relative* to our asean neighbors, however, kulelat pa rin tayo. reason? the infamous "pwede na" attitude

Nah, it's because we're currently in a "trial and error" period of the nation's history (which I think is coming to a close). Remember, between the mid-Martial Law days and the Cory days, the economy was significantly slowing down (and shrunk in the '80's!).

Part of the current problem is that the politicians don't have the political will to tell the people what's good for them (the corruption is another issue, but not as big). We can't have this "I will defer to the people" attitude all the time, because your people tend to be unreasonable sometimes.

[woulfe27]

Nah, it's because we're currently in a "trial and error" period of the nation's history (which I think is coming to a close). Remember, between the mid-Martial Law days and the Cory days, the economy was significantly slowing down (and shrunk in the '80's!).

Part of the current problem is that the politicians don't have the political will to tell the people what's good for them (the corruption is another issue, but not as big). We can't have this "I will defer to the people" attitude all the time, because your people tend to be unreasonable sometimes.

corruption issue is not as big? JDV owes $200M (excluding interest) to the Phil govt and obviously has no intention of paying up. To me, $200M (stolen by one corrupt politician alone) is very big.

[badkuk]

alpha_one:We can't have this "I will defer to the people" attitude all the time, because your people tend to be unreasonable sometimes.

very true; eto nga ung argument ni socrates(or was it aristotle) in pushing for a republic form of government. i'm sorry to say this, pero some people just don't know what to do with their freedom. imho democracy only works if people can be depended upon to think and act for the common good, and be responsible for their actions

the corruption is another issue, but not as big

ay, dito tayo magkatalo sir alpha :D

[Alpha_One]

ay, dito tayo magkatalo sir alpha :D

I knew that would be misinterpreted...

...should be "slightly smaller issue" (by microns, hindi naman nanometers).

[Isuzoom]

Eh paano kasi itong mga stupidong politikos instead na help nya mga squating mag sariling sikap inaalagan para forever mag squating para sa vote nya for election. With this kind of mentality, paatras tayo instead forward. I hope and pray na matamaan ng lintek ang mga tadong ito!

[oldblue]

the Philippines is rich. We have more malls than hospitals. san ka naman nakakita starting from Monumento Malls na, then in between almost every MRT stop -> Malls hanggang dulo ng Edsa which will be the biggest & grandest mall ever, the SM Mall of Asia. Yun mga taga-America, hindi nyo pa kasi nakikita yun SM na tinatayo sa Reclamation, it will definitely take your breath away.

If you've been to Megamall, they have 2 buildings: A & B.
But this under construction mall consists of five bldgs. A to E. shuttles will be fielded just to get from one bldg. to the next. the front of this mall is a circumferential road similar to QC circle: the purpose -> dun iikot lahat ng buses of EDSA!

now If I were the SM tycoon himself, why would I build malls of "epic proportions" kung wala naman pambili nor pang-kain ang mga pinoy?

even sa mid-terminal station ng MRT, which is SM City yun opposite lot nya, They're (the Ayalas) building the new nature mall of Q.C. -> perhaps 2x or 3x greenbelt 3.

let's face it, yun mga pinoys na nag-decide to stay dito, madami din ang happy. Malls here are like oasis in the desert. We like to spend on places that we view as paradise.

yes, corruption is rampant here. but corruption malamang hindi naman lahat napupunta sa masama. popular & multi-branched business franchises (like the regular stores in the malls) are owned by political clans or powerful families. go figure! hehehe

[Psalm136:2]

If you've been to Megamall, they have 2 buildings: A & B.
But this under construction mall consists of five bldgs. A to E. shuttles will be fielded just to get from one bldg. to the next. the front of this mall is a circumferential road similar to QC circle: the purpose -> dun iikot lahat ng buses of EDSA!

now If I were the SM tycoon himself, why would I build malls of "epic proportions" kung wala naman pambili nor pang-kain ang mga pinoy?

Eto rin po ang point ko. What makes the Phillipines rich/will be richer; is one's vision. Mr. Sy and the rest of these mall kingpins have optimistic vision for our country. Ang hirap kasi sa nakakarami sa atin, we're looking at our present situation, we're not looking beyond. Kung nakikita nating naghihirap ang bansa, why don't we do something about it? I mean, in our own little way. Mahilig tayong magreklamo sa problema, ayaw naman nating gawan ng solusyon, lagi na lang; "trabaho ng gobyerno yan".

Nation building is not only government's responsiblity, madlang pipol mismo ang makakagawa nito. Bakit isa-isang nawawala ang mga multinational companies? Or bakit nalilipat sa Thailand ang karamihan sa mga production facilities from the Phil.? Dahil na rin sa mga "union". We're letting ourselves be influenced by these so-called "cause-oriented" groups. Kagaya ng mga politiko, ginagamit nila ang kamangmangan at kahirapan ng nakakarami for their own agenda.

Kaya nga bihira ngayon ang "permanent job" dahil iniiwasan ng mga companies na mapasukan sila ng union. Sinong apektado? Syempre ang kawawang Juan dela Cruz, na walang ginusto kundi ang makapag trabaho lamang. Just my 2 cents.

[explorer]

the Philippines is rich. We have more malls than hospitals. san ka naman nakakita starting from Monumento Malls na, then in between almost every MRT stop -> Malls hanggang dulo ng Edsa which will be the biggest & grandest mall ever, the SM Mall of Asia. Yun mga taga-America, hindi nyo pa kasi nakikita yun SM na tinatayo sa Reclamation, it will definitely take your breath away.

yeah, henry sy has very rich at the expense of poor contractual employees who have to look for their jobs after 5 months because henry sy doesn't want to regularize them.

[oldblue]

yeah, henry sy has very rich at the expense of poor contractual employees who have to look for their jobs after 5 months because henry sy doesn't want to regularize them.

that is true sobra mautak yan SM, d ka na puede magtrabaho ulit dyan, ganyan din ba sa Jollibee?

I think they're doing this to eliminate syndicates for putting deep penetration "criminals" hehehe

[urvan_rollin]

the philippines is not that poor. kaya din nman ntin bilhin kng anong meron ang ibang asian countries. the problem is with our CORRUPT AND ROTTING politicians! 99.9% of our countries money is pocketed by our politicians! kawawa tuloy tyo. i cant even believe what ive read on a website before saying that during the early 1900 to the 60's, the philippines was one of the wealthiest and most advanced country in asia. my nagbebenta kya ng time machine sa quiapo? but i still believe we still have a chance. all we have to do is cooperate. and maybe kill this corrupt politicos!

[mmanson]

the philippines is not that poor. kaya din nman ntin bilhin kng anong meron ang ibang asian countries. the problem is with our CORRUPT AND ROTTING politicians! 99.9% of our countries money is pocketed by our politicians! kawawa tuloy tyo. i cant even believe what ive read on a website before saying that during the early 1900 to the 60's, the philippines was one of the wealthiest and most advanced country in asia. my nagbebenta kya ng time machine sa quiapo? but i still believe we still have a chance. all we have to do is cooperate. and maybe kill this corrupt politicos!

tsk mabigat nga yan bro. sana magbago na tayo.

[jonski]

There are still people who are homeless and have nothing to eat in the richest nation on earth. The problem is...we always expect the government to feed and house all of the population.

[Blackraven]

There are still people who are homeless and have nothing to eat in the richest nation on earth. The problem is...we always expect the government to feed and house all of the population.

These are what you call "leeches" (which has mentioned by Alpha One a few posts earlier)

I also agree on the "militants" part.

Yup I do hate them. Araw-araw palagi sila complain ng complain...angal ng angal.....pero what else do they do???

They really fail to analyze the system well......or they fail to understand why things work this way is because their is a system.

In any case, they just push their own agendas.

[Syuryuken]

Tama si bad driver maraming mayayamang pinoy ang problema mas nakararami ang walang trabaho (o ayaw magtrabaho), mahihirap na pamilya. Sila yung mga umaasa na lang sa ibibigay ng kapwa nila tao at pamahalaan.

Ang nakakabuwisit pa sa ibang mga pinoy yung mga anak ng anak pero hindi naman kayang supurtahan. Yung ama nanghihimas ng manok sa umaga habang yung ina nakikipagtsismisan sa kapitbahay

[pup2]

I actually consider it a bad sign na sa Africa pa tayo ico-compare para masabing hindi tayo mahirap. True, poverty is relative but just being considered next to a 4th world country is a huge fall from where we used to be.The problem is not with the people who are rich enough to post here and have internet access. As someone said, isang problema din ang wealth distribution. It's in the slums, rural areas, and marginal income areas where problems are. That being said, totoo naman yung comparison dahil kahit papaano there are TVs and basic appliances in the slums. Pero sana naman taas taasan natin ang standards kung saan dapat tayo i-kumpara.