Tea at Trianon: On Corruption in the Philippines

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Tuesday, September 16, 2025

On Corruption in the Philippines

From my cousin's blog, Sensible Surgery and the Classical Physician:

The worst thing the (first) Marcos administration did was that they made corruption a standard practice. In any government agency where bids are made and contracts are awarded, it is “SOP” (standard operating procedure) that a certain percent of the contract amount will go back to the congressman, to the governor, to the head of the office, etc. Only around 30% is spent on the actual project. Corruption is normalized and expected. No need for whispers or back room deals.
[...]
Corruption is so enmeshed in our system that it would be near impossible to find a leader that has not benefitted from it or is not participating in it. But I do believe that they do so in varying degrees as well. A leader who has never been accused of corruption is a start (or if they have, only to a minimal degree). Not having any proven connections to corruption, pending court cases, or criminal convictions is another (albeit a low bar). Such leaders and politicians do exist. Jessie Robredo and his widow Leni was certainly among those people. Vico and a few handful other Mayors fit the criteria. NONE of the sitting senators do with the exception of Risa Hontiveros. Bam and Kiko by sheer family connection and length of career have probably benefited from the system, but certainly not to the degree of a Jinggoy Estrada.
As for policies, there are many good ones in isolation, but what’s more important is to support and enact policies that go toward the same direction and which fit a unified vision. Rolling back the VAT to 10% is a good idea, so is putting the budget on a blockchain. Both policies lead to a smaller more transparent government. In contrast, a policy that gives more budget to such and such an agency or a law the approves the construction of new infrastructure may NOT always be good, because it only leads to the government getting bigger, requiring more resources, and ultimately going deeper in debt. (Read more.)