Rakistang Aktibista 2: Rise of the Poseurs

Barely a year left before this decade draws to a close, my “old school” rocker status now burdens me with an Amador Daguio “Old Chief” kind of dread.

Although our Pinoy Rock godfathers and goddessmothers from the 70s and our New Wave/ Pinoi Punk brethren from the 80s do fall under the same general category, “old school” seems to have become a classification that today’s younger set more readily associates with “dekada nobenta” bands, albeit with a quaint naivete.

There are, of course, meatier indicators that can expose a music generation’s (both fans and artists alike) manifest ignorance of and/or contempt for the histories and traditions behind the musics they claim devotion to. While we might all be aware of the saying on how history repeats itself through those who have no appreciation for its lessons, we should be more aware of that implicit possibility embedded in the truism: That ignorants can also end up unfolding an entirely new history replete with epic fails that can surpass even the most idiotic idiocies of screwed-up generations past.

Even as Rock & Roll continues to prove itself the most dynamic and innovative of all musical languages, it also continues to inspire self-delusion in those ill-equipped to deal with its awesomeness. But it’s never too late to shift towards an intelligent “Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll” lifestyle (yes, it does exist) for as long as one is inspired enough to dig into history to obtain it.

(WARNING: Clicking on “read more” will activate the “Magical Mirror of Musical Truth and Other Holy Shit” – an “old school” relic that’s been proven deadly hazardous to poseurs.)

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Rakistang Aktibista (Side Notes on the 2009 UPLB Feb Fair)

This is a response to a series of comments that surfaced in one of my e-groups, so a backgrounder is needed first.

The recently concluded UPLB Feb Fair almost didn’t push through after tensions between the Chancellor’s Office and the University Student Council led to the latter’s inability to secure an early permit for the event. The fair only pushed through after dialogues between the administration and the student government led to the granting of an 11th-hour approval from the Chancellor on the day before the fair was scheduled to start.

Early this week, a blog entry from a disgruntled concessionaire (apparently also a UP alumna) was reposted in one of my e-groups. In the entry, the emotionally-wrought woman aired her frustrations over what she claimed was the USC’s lack of transparency in its business dealings with the fair concessionaires. She also criticized the arrogant demeanor and lack of professionalism of the USC’s activist leaders, especially during her narration of a heated confrontation with certain officers. She pointed out that given their elevated status as duly-elected officers of the student government and official representatives of the entire student body, the behavior shown not only towards her but towards the other concessionaires as well, was totally inexcusable.

The blog entry didn’t really focus much on the rift between the admin and the USC, so the comments posted in my e-group were mostly criticisms leveled against the USC’s activist leaders. It is against this backdrop that I wrote this rejoinder to some of the comments (snippets of which I’ve quoted anonymously just to contextualize some arguments).

I initially planned to post this in the e-group (which I’ve chosen not to identify throughout the piece) but given the length I came up with, I decided against it especially since the availability of custom visuals here would help me better emphasize some points.

And so…