ABC 123

It's a pity Filipinos are not a thinking people. I hope nobody gets mad at me for saying so. I don't mean to malign my fellowmen. But I've noticed it, especially when I read, hear, watch about other peoples. We're not like the Germans who constantly,incessantly think and build, or the French who constantly create, or Japanese who constantly question.

It's not entirely economic. No, because the workers in Britain and the poorest of the poor in Prague are able to create masterpieces and generate works of genius.

It's language. Filipinos are linguistically unsophisticated.

Language is a very powerful tool. It is essential not only in the expression of thought, but in the very formation of thought. We fail terribly in this department.

I was in the MRT early this morning, and all around me were Pinoys - office workers, businesspeople, students. I wondered, what are they thinking? Are they processing anything at all? Can they? Can we? Can they ascribe proper words to the sensations that make up their experiences? Are they able to translate the jumble of brain activity into something "concrete", like words? Are they able to string these words into something comprehensible and cohesive? Or do these words just swirl like soup in their heads? Are they thinking as they sit there, or do they just...sit there?

Maybe my undergrad professor was right, that we live in--that we are--a somnambulistic society. Zombies. No, not really numb because we don't understand numbness; we have never been the opposite of numb. We're sleepwalkers, trudging aimlessly like sheep.

For a people with "high literacy rates", I think we're pretty stupid. Again, I hope no one gets mad. The problem is that we cannot seem to grasp language, English OR Filipino, much less use use it to our advantage or realize its role in our personal, cognitive development. We are unable to develop our use of both languages. One (English) is hopelessly corrupted, the other (Filipino) has been shelved in the past and ignored. What remains is dull residue, floating somewhere in between, neither here nor there. It has been excruciating listening to some of my classmates (most of them professionals) as they struggle to find the right words just to answer a really simple question. Sorry if I sound elitist, I don't mean to be. But language is very basic, and the fact people in their 30s and 40s with stable jobs and important positions cannot crystallize their thoughts is hard to fathom. Hey. I'm not perfect, either. I'm just as guilty. I've been realizing that I, too, have a considerable degree of inadequacy, language-wise. The same goes for math, which is also a language, as well as its applications in logic, physics and other sciences.

Could my former boss be right, too? That we are churning out a generation of mediocre citizens? People who no longer question, who have no ability to define and describe themselves and their environment, people who are stuck inside their own daily cycles with nary a thought as to why they are where they are.

We whine that we are poor and lacking in opportunities. Maybe so. But getting a job is not the answer. It is not even the beginning.

For how can we begin to move towards development whenmost of us cannot even begin to define development? How can anyone assess and plan for the future of cities when he cannot even describe his city?

There has to be a way out of this. There is an urgent need for some form of intellectual ferment in this country. Otherwise, there is no other way for us but to spiral down to decay and self-destruction.