Comparing the 'Idiot Heir' and the 'Wicked Heir' (Part II)

This is the first of two parts. Second Part here: Comparing the 'Idiot Heir' and the 'Wicked Heir'. http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/3575141-comparing-the-idiot-heir-and-the-wicked-heir

Both Brought Grave Economic Woes

It is perhaps a matter of dispute whether Bush's handling of the economy, indeed, chiefly caused the ongoing global financial crisis that began in the US. Of course, the young Bush should still take some blame, mainly for the crime of omission by not taking steps to regulate sale in housing mortgage and curbing questionable private sector financial dealings and activities, and the 100% rise in national debt, in part due to war spending. The financial meltdown, however, came about from a confluence of factors marked by deregulation policies, which were also pursued by the Democrats under former President Bill Clinton. What is much less arguable, however, is that his tax cut policies has benefited the super rich to the detriment of those in the lower income classes.

A New York Times analysis of data from the US Internal Revenue Service shows that at least as far as the 2003 tax cuts are concerned, the benefits were sharply slanted towards rich Americans having incomes of $1 million and higher. The tax cuts led to a situation where the very rich roughly pays only the same income tax as those earning from $200,000-5000,000. Economist Andrew Brod of the University of North Carolina Greensboro writes that while the tax cuts stimulated the economy to an extent, they did not generate as much jobs as had been expected or promised.

Similarly, Arroyo who is an economist, can be partly credited for not bungling the Philippine economy during her years in power--with the traditional big help from the billions of dollars worth of annual remittances of overseas Filipino workers and immigrants. The vaunted official figures showing the resilience of the economy may or may not be genuine, however, what cannot be denied is the Filipinos masses suffered in real social economic terms during her presidency. According to the Wikipedia entry on Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo:

Studies made by the United Nations(UN) and local survey research firms show worsening, instead of improving, poverty levels. A comparative 2008 UN report shows that the Philippines lags behind its Asian neighbors, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and China, in terms of poverty amelioration. The study reveals that from 2003 up to 2006, the number of poor Filipinos increased by 3.8 million, with poverty incidence being approximately three times higher in agricultural communities. [37] With regards the problem of hunger, quarterly studies by the social polling research firm Social Weather Stations show that the number of Filipino households suffering from hunger has significantly increased during Arroyo's presidency. Her administration first set the record for hunger levels in March 2001, and beginning June 2004, broke the record again seven times. December 2008 figures saw the new record high of 23.7%, or approximately 4.3 million households, of Filipino families experiencing involuntary hunger.[38]

Both History's Worst?

Another striking parallelism is how both hold the record for the worst level of public perception and public satisfaction or performance rating. Bush has an approval rating of a mere 28 percent--said to be the lowest score in recent US history. While he started out with a popularity rating of around 50%, and climbing up to as high as 90 percent in 2001 (based on periodic Gallup, Fox News, and CBS News surveys), his November 2008 ratings went to as low as 20%-29%. He also appears to be in the running for the title of the country's worst leader. The administration of the 43rd US President was earlier rated as "failed" by over 81 percent of over 400 historians in an informal survey conducted by History News Network in 2004.

Arroyo, similarly--although faring much worst--not only holds the record for lowest level of public satisfaction but as well, the ignominious record for being the only Philippine President to ever score negatively in national surveys on the people's perception of her performance. Gloria Arroyo is the only president in the history of the country to ever post negative ratings based on various periodic surveys since opinion polling began over two decades ago, and as such, she holds the record for the lowest approval ratings in over two decades.

Beginning October 2005, her net satisfaction ratings, according to surveys conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS), have consistently been in the negative range. Additionally, a 2008 research study by Pulse Asia reveals that Filipinos regard Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the "Most Corrupt President" in the history of the country, even besting dictator Ferdinand MarcosFerdinand Marcos for the inglorious title.

Adieu, Bush; 1 1/2 years to go, Arroyo

The parallelism probably ends at this point, however. There will be no flying shoes at Arroyo, nor will there be a viable end in sight for Arroyo--in sharp, unmistakable contrast to Bush who was attacked by a journalist with a pair of shoes during a December 2008 press conference in Iraq, a month before he was scheduled to step down from office (on January 20, 2009).

Although it can be argued that the humiliation of a flying shoe attack faced by Bush approximates Arroyo's humiliation when she beat dictator Ferdinand Marcos as the "Most Corrupt President in Philippine History" during a late 2007 national Pulse Asia research poll, there will certainly be no flying shoes of physical disgrace for the incumbent Southeast Asian president--at least while she's still in power.

Arroyo probably deserves a flying shoe--"not once, but twice." Thousands of times, perhaps. But such a democratic expression of protest would hardly be allowed in the Philippines. Under Arroyo's reign, after all, activists such as Jonas Burgos, who happened to be the scion of press freedom hero Joe Burgos, and corruption whistle blowers either get kidnapped and threatened with death, such as Jun Lozada, or get killed outright, like what befell fertilizer scam complainant Marlene Esperat and Teofilo Mojicawere. Definitely, journalists in the Southeast Asian country do not have the nerves, nor will they be allowed by the military and police forces the opportunity to throw shoes at her. The Philippine military top brass, after all, was not only pivotal in Estrada's downfall and Arroyo's rise to the presidency: the elite class of generals has been avowedly supportive of Arroyo despite her constitutionally suspect installation and hard evidence of cheating during the 2004 elections. Then again, is it just a case of the Philippine version of the Secret Service being more vigilant, or possibly more loyal?

While George W. BushGeorge W. Bush has already stepped down as the 43rd US President, noontime of January 20, 2009, and relinquished the White House office to Barack ObamaBarack Obama, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will continue her 'extremely corrupt' and 'illegitimate' presidency, at least until the end of her current "term." Barring any death by natural health or genuine accident causes, Arroyo won't give up power any time soon. With the her camp's deviously relentless pursuit of perpetuating Arroyo's administration regardless of how majority of the Filipinos hate or hold her in high disrepute, the wicked heir of a morally deprived president will probably stay beyond her term. The administration's seemingly unceasing plans for a constituent assembly, or charter change, or Martial Law-type scenario via a full-blown Mindanao war could just succeed to make the rapacious EDSA II coup president the Philippines' permanent-till-the-she-devil-dies leader beyond May 2010.

Democracy Talk: Bush no Arroyo, Americans no Fiilpinos

Perhaps it's a cultural thing, with Americans being more respectful of the democratic institutions--unlike the Filipinos who are dominated by unpatriotic elite conspirators, or snooty but stupidly gullible mob, of EDSA 2. Or is it a question of democracy-consciousness, with the mega-corrupt brand of patronage politics that has easily allowed Arroyo to crush the four yearly impeachment cases filed in the Philippine House of Representatives not possible in Bush's US of A. The factor of the stability of democratic institutions, perhaps? Or is it simply the chasm of a difference between the minds of an "idiot heir" and a "wicked heir"?

Who was it who said that a "people deserve the kind of government it has"? It is a saying that has proved relevant time and time again, in whatever part of the world. Much as it hurts the author to admit, why the Philippine's Arroyo would most likely continue beyond her "term," while Bush already gracefully stepped down, is more of a politico-cultural thing. While there are certain complicating historical factors, it is a Philippine reality that the elites--society, religious, business, political, and lately, military--can ram their dictates on the general populace. As the weak masses deserve the elites, so does the Filipino nation deserves EDSA II and the Gloria Arroyo kind of government it brought forth. As for the United States, with its significantly more mature democratic institutions and a people that apparently know how to respect their political system, they also deserve a George W. Bush that might have erred big time, but nonetheless knows when to bid farewell to power.

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Photo Credits:

• BBC. How does the Bush presidency rate? 7 January 2009.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7783286.stm
  Paul Krugman. New York Times. http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/charts-for-17-column/
  China Daily. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2008-12/15/content_7302967.htm
  Diego K. Guerrero. http://kimatpower.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.html
  Edgeing. http://edgeing.blogspot.com/2007/02/george-w-bushs-iraq-debacle.html
  Extreme Mortman. http://www.extrememortman.com/category/bauer-power/page/2/
  Stillman. http://www.stillman.org/bushfam.jpg
  # http://www.pbase.com/zuproc66/image/1602967
  http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/tagalog/erap/start.htm
  http://www.ellentordesillas.com/?p=81
  http://www.ellentordesillas.com/?p=117
  http://www.sunstar.com.ph/specials/bush_visit/index.html
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_Macapagal-Arroyo
  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:George_W_Bush_approval_ratings_with_events.svg
  http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/04/27/politics/main613910.shtml
  # Rise and fall of Bush's approval ratings. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7814441.stm

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Note: First published at Jesusa Bernardo's Newsvine.com column Tue Jan 20, 2009 12:01 PM EST