Dr. Jun Ynares

Salute to PAGASA, and media

The parade of major weather disturbances was unprecedented. Even our elders in Rizal could not recall when the country had to contend with six typhoons in a month. Kristine, Leon, Marce, Nika, Ofel, and Pepito battered Luzon and portions of the Visayas, leaving a deadly trail of deaths, dislocation, and damage to private property and public infrastructure.

Congratulations, America!

The people of the United States have made their choice for the next President of that powerful country. They did so in an election which many saw as one of the most “interesting” in contemporary American history. It was a “bare-knuckle fistfight,” said one of our colleagues who is now a US citizen and living close to the capital, Washington, DC. By “bare-knuckle,” he probably meant “intense,” with the protagonists using many “offensive” words from the dictionary which were hardly ever used before in US presidential campaigns of yesteryears.
Despite the intensity of the presidential contest, the US is now ready to usher in a new administration. 

In defense of Filipino ‘resilience’

Last year, we noted the appearance of several articles in the World Wide Web that were critical of the idea of the Filipinos’ remarkable quality of resilience. They were written mostly by younger members of the millennial generation. We understood their objection to what they said was a constant reference to the ability of our countrymen to “bear hardship,” saying this seems to them like a negative trait.

First woman POTUS?

The United States is currently holding its elections for the next President and Vice President of the world’s most powerful country. The electoral process, which began with early voting a few weeks ago, will culminate just barely a week from now. Next week, on Nov. 5 (Nov. 6 in the Philippines), the counting of the votes will begin and the rest of the world will watch with bated breath as results come in. Election experts and observers say this is one of – if not “the” – closest contest for the highest elective post in the US. 

‘Bayanihan’ as disaster management model

We were privileged to be invited to make a brief presentation at the recent Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (APMCDRR), an event spearheaded by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). Our participation in this event allowed us to hear President Bongbong Marcos Jr.’s timely call for collaboration to mitigate the impact of climate-related disasters.