Rising to the occasion

Netnet Camomot .

JIM Paredes is 67 years old and that’s one of the issues raised against his sex video: You’re old! And you’re having online sex! Juice colored!

Other senior citizens will surely react to the focus on Paredes’ age, with grandchildren appalled at the idea that Lolo and Lola are still sexually active. The grandchildren should realize that to “go forth and multiply” doesn’t happen through Immaculate Conception, and the reason why Lolo and Lola have children and grandchildren is precisely because they had sex, er, made love.

Even President Rody Duterte once said, “When I take Viagra, it stands up.” But a senior citizen should be aware of Viagra’s side effects.

In the US, however, celibacy is starting to be the trend among millennials and the younger generations. The Washington Post’s research discovered that 18 percent of women aged 18-30 and 28 percent of men of the same age had no sex in the past year. Tawon pud oi. Kamingaw sa payag.

Per an AFP piece, US psychologist and family doctor Leonard Sax said, “Young men tell me that the video games, and the porn, are vastly better today than they were 20 years ago.” Sariling sikap again?

As for the American senior citizen, the no-sex group is 50 percent. If that survey were made in Pinas, Paredes would be among the other 50 percent of sexually active seniors.

Paredes’ case is a lesson learned not only for the seniors but also for anyone indulging in online sex. Once there’s such a video, nothing can stop it from going public. It’s almost like a political candidate who’s hungry for exposure since any publicity, whether good or bad, is still publicity.

Talk of publicity, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has emphasized the “prohibited places” for campaign posters, and these are “outside the common poster area, public places, and private places without the consent of owner.”

The “common poster area” is a long list, you may Google that if you see a campaign poster that’s nailed to a tree. In this Lenten season, the Pinoy may also see his fellow Pinoy being nailed to a cross a la Jesus on Good Friday, but that’s another story—there’s no law against that.

The Pinoy voter who’s not aware of Comelec’s rules on campaign ads will still vote for the candidate whose name recall is as strong as the voter’s favorite fast food outlet, soda, and smartphone. That’s when reality bites. Ouch.

Since some candidates running this year look familiar, thanks to their previous electoral victory, present campaign ads, or their political dynasty, the victory of an unknown newbie will be a miracle, much like Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday. Hallelujah!

And much like Paredes continuing to post on Facebook like as if nothing happened, with an attitude comparable to Mad’s Alfred E. Neuman: “What, me worry?”

That’s the problem with having a goody-goody image, the madlang pehpohl would expect him to be a living saint. But then, there’s the millennial asking, Jim who? Who cares, right? It’s simply another day in Paredes’ bathroom, er, in paradise.

There are millennials who must have listened to Apo’s “Batang-Bata Ka Pa” and added it to their Spotify playlist upon realizing they could relate with the lyrics, but without knowing who the Apo is.

And Paredes, who’s one-third of the Apo, may again listen to the song’s lyrics, too, to remind himself that he’s now a certified young at heart: “Batang-bata ka pa at marami ka pang kailangang malaman at intindihin sa mundo / Yan ang totoo / Nagkakamali ka kung akala mo na ang buhay ay isang mumunting paraiso lamang.”

The not-so-young political candidate also has to act as if he’s young at heart in order to convince the millennial that he’s worth voting for. But no need to emulate Paredes to prove he can still rise to the occasion.

There are much younger men with tiny “gadgets” whose rising to the occasion won’t be visible to his partner, so, good for Paredes for inadvertently proving he still has it, if only his relevance could survive after the sex video.

Paredes’ initial response to the video was, “Fake.” I guess he was hoping for it to disappear and for people to forget about it. But fake news has been proven to be so effective, it allegedly helped US President Donald Trump’s campaign, thus, ensuring his victory in 2016.

Well, the madlang pehpohl can hardly tell the difference between fake and real, so, good luck na lang.