Benigno
benignojoaquin@yahoo.com
22 April 2006

I remember the time when I can sit down and enjoy reading this forum. The past few months however, the dialogues have been reduced to name-calling, insults left and right, and just plain ridiculous. When someone goes against or challenges someone’s posting, they are reduced to what, stupid burglars and liars? This is still a forum, where people of all beliefs, political or otherwise, can exchange ideas. No one person is running the show here. I’m assuming were all adults.

Mr. Delfin -
I like being called Benigno, it is what my birth parents gave me. My e-mail address says my birth name and not my adopted name. I haven’t tried hiding. If I used Ben Garcia, how many people do you think share that name with me? I went through twenty-three years of military service being called Garcia this, Garcia that. In my senior years, Benigno will do just fine.

Ms. Ric-
Pontaoe can go to the blazes for all I care. And I’m sure I’m not alone with this. I think you’ve been very forthcoming with who you are. I’m not a genius with computers but I’m thinking your e-mail address says your name. It is nice to read intellectual postings with substance, again. Thank you.

Ms. Ric
mcescher4yr@yahoo.com
22 April 2006

Sororities and Fraternities are certainly bountiful here in the US of A and Philippines. Imagine the hardships all parents go through just to send their children to college. We try to instill in them values we grow up with but very different to theirs. We cross our fingers and hope that they’ll make the right choices. And when they get to college, all sorts of shenanigans to lead them astray bombard them. We, baby boomers, had our share of problems going to college, but today’s college students have it tougher and rougher tenfold.

Most universities/colleges are doing away with these fraternities/sororities, but they’re not doing it fast enough, nor are they enforcing much of their rules against it. Sadly, they are still being run underground and hazing will continue unless vigilant administrators step up to their roles. How many dead college students must we see in the news to get everyone’s attention?

I encourage our readers to freely express their ideas and engage others in a debate on issues in our Forum section but I must enjoin our Forum writers to desist from attacking others with unfair innuendoes as we try to keep the editing to the minimum.

Let’s keep the forum focused on ideas and thoughts, and resist the temptation to impugn other writers’ integrity.

Also, how others express themselves should not matter but rather the ideas and thoughts expressed. In fact, writers should feel free to write in Pangasinan or Tagalog dialect, and should not feel limited to English.