For Once, An equal Footing: Botong V. Francisco and Francisco V. Coching

This article first appeared in the Books section of Vibalfoundation.org.

What do you intend to achieve -- especially if the points of comparison are consequential -- when you juxtapose two entities simultaneously similar and dissimilar? Is it to highlight the perceived superiority of one to the other, or to bust the myth of their disparity in candor and value?

Of Aspirations and Acceptance

This is a solicited blog entry for Vibalfoundation.org.

"Would it be fine if we offer you a position different from what you're applying for?" asked the man who picked me up at the reception as he pressed an elevator button I was too nervous to take note of. "Yes, of course, that'd be fine", I replied without thinking. Normally (meaning, during casual debates with friends), I at once heat up and spoil conversations with my antagonistic take on things; my cynicism runs high even in an otherwise genial talk. In a professional setting, however, I become an altogether different person -- a very accommodating or, sometimes, even servile one -- and very rarely during such formal conversations do I give no for an answer. I'll suffer for this sooner or later, I know.

Broad Understanding of Several Academic Fields Versus Specialization

I wrote this following my six-month stint as an OFW.

Since its conception and through its development, formal education has remained, for all its flaws, the mainstream means by which we develop as a civilization -- the part-dictated, part-volitional method through which we pass on knowledge and wisdom to succeeding generations. But as with other variables in society, education does not work in the same way for every society in terms of effects and effectiveness. So to answer the question whether students should possess a broad understanding of many academic subjects rather than to specialize in one field of study, it depends on which society is in question.