Jack The ScribblerJack The Scribbler

Modesta Abella, 99

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:36:21 +0000

One night, when I was about eight, I snuggled in bed with Nanay and Tatay, asking her to scratch my back which was peppered with bungang araw. The last time I saw her, she was unable to recognize the grandson that she sang to sleep that same late summer evening more than three decades ago. Read more ›

Fischer on the trouble with Nietzsche’s dictum

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 17:03:57 +0000

The trouble with Nietzche—who in any case never prescribed instructions regarding conduct while being hand-cuffed on chilly floors in undignified circumstances—is that you can never be sure when he’s doing some levity or not. Read more ›

Bongbong Marcos on the family business

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 15:26:58 +0000

“When I saw what my father went through in 1986 I didn’t want anything to do with politics,” [Bongbong Marcos] says. “I wanted to make money.” Read more ›

Rodrigo on the Manila Chronicle’s coverage of Magsaysay’s plane crash

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 14:27:43 +0000

An Honesto Vitug photograph of Magsaysay’s family beside his casket, published on March 20, 1957, won an international award for photojournalism (worth $6,000*). It was a close-up of the hands of the widow and her three children clasped together in grief; the background, made of Magsaysay’s mourning dresses, was completely black. Read more ›

I went to Jakarta and all I got was an outrageous cellphone bill from Globe Telecommunications

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 00:51:13 +0000

Now I just want to ask: What exactly is going on, Globe? Is this the way you treat a customer for 13 years? Read more ›

#justasking: does Manila really have one of the world’s worst airports?

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:27:47 +0000

“The terminal for Philippine Airlines flights is OK, but the others are shocking. I take my own food to that airport for dinner,” said Martin, who was interviewed by Kristiano Ang for the same article. Read more ›

Make me an offer I can’t refuse: Granta Magazines for sale

Robert JA Basilio Jr. — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 04:08:39 +0000

I’m selling some of my Granta Magazines as shown in these tweets and pictures below. These are my spare copies and I chose to buy them because I then thought and felt that I, and only I—being a sensitive, kind, and intelligent soul—could appreciate their contents. Read more ›