WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP YOUR COUNTRY?

Of course we can do something to help our country even in small ways. But the question is, “ Are you willing to?”

You don’t need to become heroe and become popular in order to contribute something . All you have to do is to be a good citizen.

The following ideas are came from the book of Alexander L. Lacson entitled “ Twelve little things every Filipino can do to help our country.” Actually I do not know who is Mr. Lacson but I salute him because of his love for the Philippines – our country.

The content of his book is informative and very basic. What are these?

1. Follow traffic rules- Why is that the most important? The answer is simple. Traffic rul;es are the simplest of our laws. If we learn to follow them, it will be the lowest form of national discipline that we can develop. Since it is totally without monetary cost, It should be easy for us to comply with, and therefore should provide a good start.

2. Whenever you buy or pay for anything, always ask for an official receipt- If a seller does not issue an official receipt when you buy a product, the seller may or may not remit the tax to the government. Without an O.R. , there is no record of sale transaction, and the tax that you paid may not be remitted to the Bureau or Internal Revenue.

3. Do not buy smuggled goods- Buy local, Buy Filipino.- It may not be good economics to buy 100% local products. What I suggest is for us to take a “50-50” buying attitude. This means that we must develop the attitude of using 50 percent of our budget for local products and the other 50 percent for imported choices, Instead of always buying Hershey’s chocolates or toblerone, sometimes buy the chocobot -pure pinoy.

4. When you talk to others especially foreigners , speak positively of our race and our country- this is best addressed to the rich and the middle class in our country, who have contact with the outside world. It is they who talk to, dine or deal with foreigners either here or abroad. It is what they say or do which creates impressions about us among foreigners.

5. Respect your traffic officers, policemen, soldier and other public servants- There is nothing like the power of respect. It makes the person proud. It makes one feel honorable. At the same time, courtesy to others is good manners. It is seeing the value and dignity in the other man. It is, in fact, a mark of a most profound education..

6. Do not Liter. Dispose your garbage properly. Segregate. Recycle. Conserve- As Louise Armstrong says in his song: “ I see trees of green, Red roses too, I see them bloom for me and you and I think to myself, what a wonderful world.”

7. Support your church.

8. During elections, do your solemn duty- Honesty, more than a masteral or doctorate degree, is what gives credibility. And credibility is essential because it is a leader’s link to the people. It is what makes the people look to one direction, follow a common vision, and perform a uniform act. In short, credibility is what makes people follow the leader.

9. Pay your employees well- No exercise is better for the human heart than to reach down and lift someone else up. This truly defines a successful life. For the success is the sum, not of our earthly possessions , but of how many times we have shown love and kindness to others.

10. Pay your taxes- In 2003, 80 billion pesos was collected from individual income taxes. But 91 percent of this amount came from salaried workers from the government and private sector, people who had no choice since their income taxes were withheld mandatorily. Only 7 billion pesos of the 83 billion pesos came from businessmen and professionals like doctors, lawyers, accountants and architects among others.

11. Adopt a scholar or adopt a poor child- You can make a difference in the future of our country by making a difference in the world of children.

12. Be a good parent- Teach your kids to follow the law and to love our country- Today’s children will someday rule and lead this world. But whether they will be bad rulers or good leaders will depend largely on how we raise them today. Our future is in the hearts and minds of our children.

Cheating during exams

Cheating during examinations has developed into a crafty art with the employment of various ingenious devices ranging from copying the seatmate’s answers to remote control operations, Cheaters when caught will excuse themselves: “I cheat because almost everybody is cheating,” “ If you don’t cheat , you wont pass the exams; you wont get high grades ,” “ Cheating is just a little thing. “ some may say “ It’s better to cheat than to repeat. “

Cheating in all its form is immoral because:

a) Copying another’s work is a kind of mental or literary theft known as Plagiarism.

b) Cheating is an injustice against classmates who are deprived of their honor and excellence; against professors who usually base students rating on their written examinations; against society because the responsible profession and government positions may not be given to the honest and deserving persons, but to the stupid, the crooks and racketeers .

c) Cheating involves self deception for we shall never arrive at our destination by falsehood and dishonesty. “ Honesty is still the best policy.”

GO ABROAD OR STAY?

Can you answer the following questions?

Do you want to celebrate your birthday with your love ones?

Do you want to be present in the wedding of your favorite sibling which is considered as one of his or her happiest moments in life?

Do you want to be with your friends when going to the street party, watch battle of the bands, drink in your favorite bars and have fun once in a while?

Do you want to be with them and be amazed with the traditions ?

In times of calamities and sad moments, do you want to be there to give help, to comfort and to encourage?

In times of depressions , who will be there to give you words of inspirations?

In this cycle that we called life , our families and friends are more treasured than silver and gold. That’s why you don’t want to leave them even in a very short period of time—you feel comfortable near them coz you know they are just there --- safe and sound…

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Nationalism

We want to be loyal to our nation.

Let us recall the heroes and heroines who exerted maximum courage in fighting for our freedom. They are concerned citizens who used their courage in the name of our independence. Prominent of them are Dr. Jose P. Rizal who used his mighty pen to expose colonial abuses by his books Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, Andres Bonifacio for his fortitude with the Katipuneros, Tandang Sora who cared for the injured Katipuneros during the battle and many significant others.

They have done their all to show patriotism so we have to do our part not necessarily to be great and die like them in a battle but to do some services to our fellowmen like teaching them to be good citizen, to love our country and to be proud to be a Filipino.

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Another set of questions…

Do you want to become rich ? Are you willing to go abroad to earn money for a luxurious life?

Do you want to obtain a capital to start your own business?

Are there still ways on how to seize the opportunity to become rich in a place where the present economy is on crisis?

Starting your own business is one step to your millions but how can you make this if you have no capital to commence it?

Offer from business loan requires valuable collaterals before granted. There is no other way to catch huge capital aside from going abroad. Very small probability is to win in a lottery. Do you know that the chance of being stricken by a lightning is higher than winning in a lottery ?

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Some situations

Some professionals disregard all their records or credentials in expense of earning money . What I mean is that they never mind what kind of jobs are waiting for them. Most are really educated, some are M.A. graduate with thesis, thousands of seminars attended and numerous certificates and citations but then they are underemployed , instead of practicing their profession , they were just hired as a factory worker or a domestic helper. They are doing these because they are earning pretty much higher as compared to professionals here like teachers, principals, supervisors, office workers, managers to mention few.

Some doctors of medicine are studying again as a nurse and planning to go abroad since nurses are in demand in Canada, USA and other big countries. They are doctor of medicines but were hired as a nurse, they swallowed their pride, they become more practical to earn bigger figures of money. In a short period of time, they can make their bank account increased and their wallets become thicker.

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It is very obvious now a days that the country’s best manpowers are now moving abroad, they were attracted by higher salaries offered by other countries. High caliber teachers, medical specialist, computer programmers, engineers and even scientists grab the opportunity for they are being supported by others.

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Homesick…

Working abroad is really a sacrifice . A sacrifice especially to married people. Feeling of homesickness is inevitable . Some are successful but some have failed to endure the pain. They will surely miss their spouse and children. If there is no regular communication between the husband and wife, there is a possibility that the love for each other will fade. One of them might be tempted and search somebody else. The children will suffer. They may fail in school which is one of the signs of rebellion due to lack of guidance, the worst is—they might commit crime.

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Decision making is not easy . You really have to know what you really want to do in your life. Some of our decisions will or will not help us improve our life. We are not always good in decision making but we have to always remember that we are accountable in everything we do, we must be ready to face the consequences of our decisions in life.