Why we can't move forward with Gloria at the helm

Democracy, that invention of the Greeks, remains an illusion in this great country of ours. The reason is more historic than anything. Our brains are not wired to accept the Western model of democracy. In fact, we Filipinos have a warped sense of democracy. We are confused of what it really means. It's really not our fault since, if you read our history, we were forced to accept this Western version of democracy as our own. Filipinos, prior to the colonization of these islands, had their own governance paradigms, except that a foreign bacteria with a cross in it killed that indigenous concept.

Take for example, our concept of "constitutionalism" and "democracy". Many of us equate these terms as synonymous to each other. For many, an action is democratic when it works within constitutional frameworks. Say, if we want to oust an illegitimate president, we should first file an impeachment. That's democracy.

How about ousting a president through the exercise of the people's rights? Say, a revolution? Or say, a coup d'etat? For us, that's not democratic since it does'nt operate within the constitution. But, are these actions not democratic at all?

How about that phrase " the AFP is the sole protector of the people"? That's in the Constitution, yes? If the AFP exercises its mandate in the Constitution and protects the people against a government that harms and injures them, and take, say, a militant action and forced a government into exile, this will be constitutional, yes? And it would be democratic, yes?

For many, that's not democratic. Why? Because that paradigm postulates on violence. Ah, so, for an action to be democratic, it must both be constitutional and non-violent.

What if the government itself creates and fosters an atmosphere of violence that interferes with our exercise of our inherent democratic rights, would it not be democratic if we oust that government through People power? That's not democratic, some would argue, because the only constitutional way to do that is thru elections or impeachment. Form a political party. Support partylist groups (as if they have a stronger and louder voice than the trapos). Move on. We can't do anything. It is not democratic to exercise our inherent rights to free ourselves from a tyrannical regime, since the sole way of doing that involves a little violence. And if an action is violent, that is not democratic.

How about an independence campaign or an anti-dictatorship campaign, would that be democratic? Surely, that is. Even if it involves violence? Yep, it is. One may do that because that's a movement against an anti-democratic or pseudo-democratic government. So, if I move against Gloria now, the same way I did against Marcos, would that be democratic, given that I see Gloria as the head of a pseudo-democratic regime, like Macoy. Nope, many, like ex-COMELEC chair Christian Monsod, would argue. You can't. Why? Because that's anti-democracy.

So, what do I do now? Wait for the heavens to fall to me and my family. Do nothing. Write in the blogosphere. Rant everywhere. Have sex. Chant if you may. Work. Have faith in partylist groups. Run in the elections. Pray. Go to sunken garden. Beautify your Facebook. Make friends in Friendster. Plurk thousands. Sulk. Wait. While my country burns and thieves go amuck, I'll wait for 2010. Move on. You can't do anything.