Whether in the form of a nostalgic slice of life or a nonsensical clip that immediately brings good vibes, a meme has the power to help us get through difficult times.
The world’s first viral meme existed long before we even had a word for it.
During the Second World War, graffiti of a bald guy with a long nose hanging over the wall, accompanied by the words “Kilroy Was Here”, became an unlikely image of solidarity between G.I.s. …
Our society thinks your life should be saved first. Here’s why you shouldn’t feel bad about that.
After more than a year since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus pandemic, vaccination campaigns are finally underway all over the world. The overall goal is to achieve what scientists refer to as herd immunity, or the state in which a significant portion (around 60 to 70 percent) of the population has been inoculated in order to stop the transmission of the virus. But as we have seen, not all countries are on equal footing.
With a deep-seated conservatism in our nation’s culture, breaking the stigma requires a move toward open discourse.
Quarantine restrictions were put in place in March 2020 to prevent the worsening of the health crisis due to COVID-19. This, however, led to some irreversible repercussions, such as the 2021 baby boom projected by the University of the Philippines Population Institute (UPPI) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Based on their study, 2.5 million new unplanned pregnancies could emerge out of 2020–42 percent higher than the figures in 2019. …
Three internal documents from the Nayong Pilipino Foundation (NPF) show the extent and possible effects of the erection of the Nayong Pilipino Mega-Vaccination Facility by International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI), including environmental impacts and legal issues that may arise from it.
The Philippine National Task Force against COVID-19 (NTF COVID-19) has a new plan to vaccinate more people: building a mega-vaccination site in the Nayong Pilipino Foundation (NPF) grounds in Parañaque City with the help of billionaire Enrique Razon Jr. This plan has been the subject of intense media coverage in the past week, as the tirades between NPF…
How have new social behaviors strained the Philippines’ attempts at recovery?
On April 20, 2021, ABS-CBN data analyst Edson Guido forecast on Twitter that the Philippines would breach the 1-million mark for COVID-19 cases within the week. On April 26, this forecast proved to be accurate, making April one of the Philippines’ worst months in its battle against COVID-19. However, as the country continues to face an alarming surge in cases, vaccine rollout remains slow and insufficient. Mass testing, which is foundational to pandemic response, has yet to happen on a national scale. …
New research is proving that COVID-19 is mainly transmitted in enclosed indoor spaces — even when you’re six feet apart and wearing masks.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, experts have been largely divided on the primary mode of transmission of its causative virus. On the one hand, the World Health Organization (WHO) was adamant about COVID-19 being transmitted through droplets exhaled from an infected person’s nose and mouth, which would then drop to the ground and no longer be able to reach another person situated six feet away. The “six-foot rule” became influential in informing policies such as…
It’s the time of the year when streets and beaches are lined with students taking their summer break from another year of schooling — or would have been, if not for the coronavirus pandemic.
With the resurgence of COVID-19 cases especially in the country’s capital and surrounding areas, authorities have had to implement stricter protocols. With the way things are going, plans of restarting face-to-face classes are once again halted. It looks like Filipino students would have to learn remotely a little while longer.
Not like the Philippine education system pre pandemic was exemplary to begin with. In an interview…
Is the rise of the community pantry our quarantine spring?
On April 14, 2021, a small business owner named Ana Patricia “Patreng” Non set up a community pantry along Maginhawa Street in Quezon City. Above a bamboo cart, which she filled with rice, canned goods, and vegetables, she posted two cardboard signs. On one of them, she wrote, “Maginhawa Community Pantry,” and on the other, a now famous note: “Magbigay ayon sa kakayahan. Kumuha batay sa pangangailangan.” (Give only what you can. Take only what you need.)
In her original Facebook post, she also issued a simple call to action…
Being a country among the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, how far along are we into mitigating its effects?
In 2018, the United Nations reported that we only had 12 years to prevent “irreversible damage from climate change.” This came three years after the Paris Agreement, where around 197 countries collectively signed in to cut carbon emissions and reduce global warming to below 2℃.
Under the agreement, countries with the highest rates of emissions committed themselves to cutting their climate pollution and helping developing nations with their mitigation efforts. …
A coalition built on being anti-Duterte has to go beyond being just anti-Duterte.
From the early 1900s to the 1930s, the Philippines was essentially a one-party state ruled by the Nacionalista Party, which gave us Presidents Manuel Quezon, Sergio Osmeña, and Ramon Magsaysay. At the time, this seemed ideal — a way to unify a young nation-state under a common ideology.
But the Nacionalista Party was itself a tense arena, where delegates from different provinces competed for their own interests and rallied behind figures who had “winnability.” …
COMMONER
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