Stop calling it a hero’s burial

Batas Mauricio

I BELIEVE we can all avoid much of the contentious discussions the country is having right now on the burial of President Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, by not calling it a “hero’s burial” or a “state funeral.” I suggest we can just call the burial just that–a burial.

After all, even the slogan that Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos displayed in her black shirt during the vigil of Marcos loyalist at the Supreme Court starting on Monday, said just that-“ilibing na,” which means, in all candor, “just bury the remains.”

Yes, just bury the remains! Bury those remains according to the law that mandates the burial of former presidents in the Libingan, and according to whatever the procedure, if any, of burial that may have been outlined in the law. That way, arguments will wane and cease. Unless, of course, someone doesn’t want to bury not just the remains, but even the issue of whether or not Marcos is a hero.

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Is former President Ramos out to destabilize and ultimately destroy the government of the man whom he goaded to run for president in the May 2016 elections, barely some 100 plus days after the man, President Duterte, was installed in Malacanang?

This is the question that is painfully gripping the hearts and minds of many Duterte supporters at the moment, in the light of Ramos’ two pronouncements in as many weeks about the Duterte government, both of which were given prominent media coverage.

Indeed, there is no other way that those pronouncements could be viewed by any observant citizen. In the first pronouncement, Ramos said the Philippines is a losing state under the first 100 days of President Duterte. In his second statement, Ramos said the Philippines is a sinking ship.

Even someone who is not as schooled as Ramos in the art of “psy-war operations” can see that his statements were not just calculated to cause, but have already caused, not only  jitters and fluttering stomachs, but grave and dire forebodings as well that something terribly bad is about to befall the Duterte administration, perhaps his ouster from power.

To everyone, picturing someone or something, especially a government, as slowly going under water is like inviting desertion even by his closest friends and allies, if these friends and allies wouldn’t want to sink with the sinking ship, too. It is intended to create an image of Duterte as having turned into a lame duck leader, capable of being replaced right away.

The trouble here is that, Ramos seems an expert on these things. He did this in 1986, which resulted in the ouster of former President Marcos. He did this again in 2001, which saw the ouster of former President Estrada. Surely, Ramos can still do it today, his ripe old age, notwithstanding.

The question, of course, is, why would the likes of President Ramos do this to a President that he, Ramos, himself groomed to become the leader of this country, despite his clear lack of a national constituency at the start? Why would Ramos turn against his own choice? The possibilities are amazing, as they are frightening to many.

One big possibility is that Ramos is orchestrating another revolt–his third so far—against a sitting president. This kind of a scenario would most likely result in the removal of President Duterte as president. But then, why would Ramos want to jettison the man he helped become president?

Could it be that, as many suspect, Ramos is merely doing the bidding of powerful hands, like that of the United States of America, whose iron-clad grip on the Philippines for so a long time now is being threatened by Duterte’s dislike for anything American, including its current president, or by the country’s growing close relationship with Russia and China? Today more than ever, Filipinos need to pray for God’s guidance and protection!

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Yes, 41 year-old Hollywood actor and Oscar best actor awardee Leonardo DiCaprio is right when he said “it is all up to us” to find a solution to the impending worldwide death and destruction coming from global warming and climate change, and yes, he is right in saying many politicians and world leaders are misleading the world by telling us there is really no global warming.

Indeed, it is only going to be us, concerned citizens of the world, who should be acting now, or right away, to stave off the forthcoming death and destruction–the kind that had been predicted to happen thousands of years ago, both by scientists, and by those who are studying the biblical pronouncements on the matter.

But then, would it be enough, as DiCaprio is suggesting in his justeleased documentary film “Before the Flood,” for man to stop using palm oil-based products, replace our reliance on beef and chicken with vegetables, and use our power of suffrage as a tool to install leaders who are committed to fighting global warming?

With due respect, I am sure that the suggestions that we listed here, and the others which Agence France Press reported at 8:22 a.m., October 16, 2016 (see http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/825784/dicaprio-issues-climate-action-call-in-new-documentary), were all meant to find a solution which could hopefully make a dent somehow against global warming.

Unfortunately, however, even an outstanding advocate like DiCaprio seems unable to comprehend, again with due respect, that there is a very strong spiritual angle to global warming and climate change, ignoring, deliberately or not, that the Bible actually contains prophecies about severe and extreme weather aberrations that could destroy the world and kill mankind.

This inability, or perhaps outright refusal of DiCaprio and all other big names in the movement against global warming and climate change, to recognize the indubitable or undeniable connection between environmental degradation and spiritual strength or maturity of man accounts for the awesome failure of all their efforts against global warming.

This is unfortunate, especially in the light of the huge amount of money, now estimated to be in trillions of dollars, that have been spent in the fight against the environmental malady. The question now is, when will DiCaprio and others learn the truth that global warming needed to be fought not only using all the strategies they are employing now, but even the principles enunciated in the Bible?

What are these principles? I can suggest two. The first one says that global warming and climate change is a curse from God which is given to a people who no longer listen to, and no longer obey, Him (which means, who no longer read the Bible). This can be found in Deuteronomy 28:15 and 22-23, as our “Life’s Inspirations” today shows.

The second principle says that the rains, floods, and strong winds will surely come, and will cause death and destruction, unless people will truly listen to the words of Jesus, our God and Savior, and carries them out carefully. This is found in Matthew 7:24-27. I am therefore asking DiCaprio and all other big names in global warming to incorporate these two principles in their programs of action.

E-mail: batasmauricio@yahoo.com