what is ur opinion abt this--Jeepneys, Passengers and the Economy: by TIM TAYAG
By neenasatine
@neenasatine (2841)
Philippines
January 28, 2009 5:24am CST
After being cut off by a jeepney for the nth time, I pondered (in between curses) the cause of such lack of discipline in our country. Jeepney drivers, along with other professional drivers of public utility vehicles, don’t’ follow rules because they just don’t. Their excuse is always that they’re just trying to earn a living. But aren’t we all? As much as I spend my time practicing the law of attraction and visualizing my personal genie granting my every wish, I still have to do some physical work to earn money. So why do they have more leeway for not following traffic laws? Why do red lights not apply to motorcycles? Why is the Clean Air Act not implemented on buses? Why are one-way streets not relevant to taxis? Why?!!Most critics of the government will blame the lowly traffic enforcers. They don’t implement the law and they take bribes. Maybe they are partly to blame because a friend of mine was able to bribe her way out of a ticket by offering an umbrella and a deck of cards. I personally gave payola in the form of a chocolate bar with a small piece bitten off. The guy was that desperate and so was I. But what about the passengers? When commuters flag down a cab or hail an FX in the middle of traffic or on the island in the middle of EDSA, aren’t they responsible for the congestion they cause? It’s like the age old question, “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?” Are undisciplined commuters causing jeepneys to be reckless or are the jeepneys heedless to begin with and therefore the passengers just follow?So what does this have to do with our economy? Hold on, I have a metaphor approaching. The jeepney is the Philippine economy. It stops inappropriately, it swerves, it’s overcrowded, and it badly needs an oil change. The government is the traffic enforcer. He’s underpaid, he’s criticized, and he’s got a big belly. The commuters are the Filipino people. They b*tch, complain, and blame the economy and the government for the situation and yet they cross the road to get on board despite the large sign that reads “Tawirin Makamamatay”. And the government leaders are riding in their SUV with their “wangwangs” and police escort (no metaphor here). So who’s to blame?
http://timtayag.com/?p=80
1 response
@bystander (2292)
• Philippines
21 Jan 10
well, that's the streets of manila, the microcosm of the entire country - chaotic, kanya-kanya, putting one over the other, blaring music, ear-piercing honking, etc. etc. well, you're in the philippines. all these things happen only here in our beloved country, which most of us have learned not only to love, but bear with its idiosyncrasies.
putting the blame on someone or anyone would be a tall order. unlike the macho driver who drives from lane to lane to put up one over his fellow drivers, when it comes to blame, it's an entirely different story.
as social psychologists put it, we cannot start changing for the better unless and until we admit to the wrong we have done. that is the situation in the entire country -- change will remain a dream until we all humble ourselves to admit to what is happening in our country... and admit our own individual and collective wrongdoings.
perhaps, when we have matured enough to face up to the consequences of our infraction, whether minor or grave, we can start seeing change, change for the better.
by then, the jeepneys will be be a thing of the past. and, almost forgotten, abusive drivers will have understood what discipline on the streets mean. that also goes for other motorists, whether private or what.
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