Quote Originally Posted by [archie] View Post
OK lang debt but not to the point of bankruptcy.
I think a major indicator of the level of bankruptcy is that it took us almost thirty years to pay it back and reduce debt to an easily serviceable level again.

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Also, as a side note:

We decry the criminality now, saying that things were better under Marcos? Right.

I had a grand-uncle who was a police general under Marcos. Had any problems? Call him, it would be fixed, no questions asked. No one could complain... because under Martial Law... who could you complain to if you weren't connected to those in power?

Know the primary source of protein for fish in Laguna Bay back in those days? Neither do I, but a good secondary source was whoever was dumped over the side of a boat in the middle of the night.

With all the billions spent on hardware, and with the millions in kickbacks spread between Ver and his cronies (I have in-laws in the military), did they manage to end the communist insurgency? They didn't? Really?

As a side note, guess why we had so many coup d'etats during Cory's term... and why unrest occasionally surfaces within the ranks... because the same old-boy network in the military that supported Marcos stayed in place after he was ousted. And it's only now, decades later, that we're finally starting to hold them responsible for the billions of pesos of public money they waste on kickbacks and corruption.

Again... corruption is acceptable? How much is? What level should it be at before it becomes unsustainable? Right before hyperinflation occurs or right after? Or after the country becomes an international pariah thanks to the public execution of a political exile? Where would Marcos have turned? To the US, who could no longer publicly support him? To China or Russa, after being a staunch opponent of Communism? The only "what if" scenario that would even remotely work out is one wherein Marcos doesn't declare Martial Law.

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Mind you, I had a relatively happy life under Martial Law. We lived in constant stress right afterwards, due to the coups, the unrest, the economy. But those are growing pains. For an upper-middle class shielded from the harsh realities and problems of the Philippines, being forced to face the consequences of Marcos's mistakes and sins was a big slap in the face.

The Philippines is still not in great shape. And so far, we have not had a single President who can hold a candle to someone like Lee Kwan Yew (and laughable to say that his quotes are from ABS-CBN... since they're taken directly from his own book). But then, neither could Marcos. Sorry.