The 11th hour

The 11th hour showed us the history of humankind from the start of life through history and how it evolved to the present moment, in which the ecosystem is in great harm. The 11th hour, I must say, is similar to the documentary I have watched when I was in High School, the documentary of Al Gore, entitled "An Inconvenient truth". Both of the documentaries opened the eyes of many about the current state of our ecosystem. The difference is An Inconvenient Truth only tackled the issue of global warming, while the 11th hour showed solutions on how we could save ourselves, which gives a sense of optimism. 

The 11th hour showed the different opinions  and comments of different known thinkers, environmentalists, scientists in the world. One of them even stated that the technology in the modern world is not the problem that causes this environmental degradation, but it is the lack of good leadership from politicians who benefit from the huge companies and industries that are causing many of the problems, that is why politicians do not block the way of these corporations in doing such business. 

The 11th hour presented to us the natural beauty of the world and the abuses that they had experienced. It is obvious that the planet earth is not doing well: polluted air, poisoned bodies of water, dying forests, depleting natural resources,and so on and so forth, but the documentary assured that the ecosystem, the nature, the planet, will be fine, instead it is the humankind that should be worried, that should be concerned because people depend on these natural resources to live. And if these natural resources run out, people will suffer.

Photo source: (http://www.google.com.ph/imgres?um=1&hl=en&  safe=off&sa=N&biw=1262&bih=658&tbm=isch&tbnid=spBj_exJALQ8kM:&imgrefurl=http://www.themagazine.ca/2008/05/21/the-11th-hour/ &docid=LlsJW5wKXO7m5M&imgurl=http://www.themagazine.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/The-11thHour.jpg&w=448&h=336&ei=EoF1T_XRCayXiAfn_PTvDg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=549&vpy=183&dur=1424&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=152&ty=118&sig=111393368460830435329&page=1&tbnh=130&tbnw=173&start=0&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0)

Philippines is poor -- Why?

Philippines is underdeveloped because it is located close to the equator, it is ethnolinguistically heterogeneous, its population has a high Catholic and Muslims proportions, and because it is an interventionist country. Being an ethnoliguistically heterogeneous country is a factor of underdevelopment because diverse societies produce more poor policy management. Because different tribes and different ethnic groups produce competition on who is the better group. And they have different culture. Also, being an interventionist country plays a big role in underdevelopment. Because here, people rely on foreign policies they are dependent to. Such in the Philippines case, it is the United States. Philippines rely on the United States’ alliances, they follow what is asked to them to do, they serve the foreigners, and makes the country open for them without asking for anything. Unlike when going to United States, that U.S Visa is needed by every individual. Church is also a factor that is causing underdevelopment. The church is affecting the economy by intervening with the laws the government pass, such as RH bill, which is really necessary to implement in order to balance and control the population of the country. It is also a big factor because the Church influence Catholic Filipinos, and there are a big percentage of Catholics in the Philippines. Same as with the Muslims, high proportions of the Muslim in the Philippines is also a factor because in this case, Muslims, who do not like the administration, terrorizes the country. They kidnap people, especially foreigners which is affecting the tourism side of the country. Both Catholic and Muslim show poor government performance and low tax rates. And lastly, government is also a factor, because with interventionism, citizens are entrusting the government to hold and control their properties. And this power given to the government, are often keys to temptation that leads to corruption.

Photo source : (http://nimg.sulekha.com/others/original700/philippines-poverty-2009-8-25-4-10-53.jpg)

What is Development?

Development is a broad word with many factors that have to be incorporated in order to find its true meaning. Development has many subsets such as social, economic, and even personal.

Development for me is a gradual advancement of things through an identified series of progressive changes by enlarging, expanding, and especially refining to become advanced or to improve.

It is an approach that gives the poor individuals the ability to gain for themselves and their families to get the things they want, and especially the things they need. Development is a process in which helping the poor families learn how to participate in controlling their rights and the benefits that they get from the government, is involved. This is the meaning of development for me because I think that development is a progress, in which certain goals are present, such as elimination of poverty, reduction of unemployment rate by providing jobs, and reduction of inequality. I got this definition from the previous lectures from the other subjects related to Development that I had taken.  

Photo source : (http://whatisdevelopment.net/devlop1.jpg)

What I've learned from the past

I remember reading a book about globalization for one of my previous classes, because we were required to read articles about globalization. And it was very striking to me because I learned different theories about globalization. These separate theories have their own different idea for a society.

The first theory was "Neoliberalism". It is the dominant theory in the society, market, and economics as well. Open trade is seen as the best way to make profit for a country. But I think neoliberalism is about individualism. Wealth is the indicator of success with the means of no government intervention. Our market is controlled by corporations - they are the ones in control of us all. We are all giving these corporations the opportunity to be the leading political power. As they make policies and influence how we live. With neoliberalism, these corporations are quickly gaining more power and wealth than the world's smallest countries. And I dont think this is a good thing. 

The second theory was "Development". Development is needed by two-thirds of the world, that's why institutions such as the World Bank and IMF are created to cater for theses countries in need. These institutions have a lot of responsibilities to give back in order for developing nations to progress, they first must focus on its economy. Development is where everyone has enough to get by, and in which states are involved in ensuring the people's welfare, social safety net, and that no one falls below the poverty line.

The development theory and its plans and programs are necessary. Yes, it is impossible to have 0% of people falling on the poverty line or way below it. But they are not to blame, it is not because they are lazy or anything in that line of reasoning, but rather it is because of the government. I think that it is the government's duty to pull them above the line, but the government is not showing enough efforts in helping these people battle poverty. I do not blame it solely to the government, but the people should also do something for their own betterment. 

The third theory is the “Earthist” theory, in which local development and environment is prioritized. It is where justice for earth, for humans, and for the interdependence of life is important, and where people help others in decisions.

The last theory is the “Postcolonial” theory, it is the way of looking at the history through the eyes of the people who were taken advantage of, like the marginalized and the colonized. It is in which a community sees individuals as the most important factor in decision-making. It rejects the idea of Westernization and promotes the idea of respecting own cultures. And also it is where the community is actively involved in governance and political process.