Monday, June 8, 2009

Moral Fiber, Anyone?

No one would win a boxing match without a referee. No debater would be proclaimed winner if he has not impressed the adjudicators or the judges. But unlike a boxing match or a debate where there is someone who would act as a mediator, in any argument most of the time no one really wins. Because in an argument most of the time no one wants to lose, and if no one wants to lose and no one would be in the position to intercede, the persons involved would just continue to defend what they think is right and worse would end up bad mouthing each other.


We live in a civilized society. But sometimes we act in ways that could only be seen during the barbaric days. We do have bad days and sometimes we can’t control our tempers when someone or something upsets us. That’s a natural phenomenon among us humans. We tend to give in to our emotions without even thinking. We say what we want to say. We’re not even ashamed to curse people and dig deep into his or her past. And then what do you get? Yes, you got to prove your point and you have voiced out your concerns but don’t you think it’s a little bit a disgrace on your part to have created a chaos? Don’t you think you’d be remembered for that? In your dreams!

Our country has given us almost all the freedoms one citizen is free to exercise. Among these freedoms are the freedom of speech and expression. But these freedoms are not without any limitations. When we say or write about something or someone we must always be responsible and respectful of the subject matter.

But what is the standard we must take into consideration when we deal with the limitations of these freedoms? That I am not perfectly sure.

Our standards depend on our orientation and the standards set by the society we are into. It depends on the level of maturity we have, our age perhaps and the prejudices we have. Standards likewise evolve, either by time, custom or usage. Having said that, our standards are relative. In no absolute terms that any standard of right and wrong has ever been written in any book.

Freedom of speech and expression has always caused a lot of controversies in the past and it continues up until now. No wonder there are a lot of unresolved cases on the issue. And it’s because we do not have absolute terms definitive of the extent of these freedoms.

I guess I’ve said too much already so I’d like to go to the matters I’d like to give emphasis. What I just want to point out is that we shouldn’t be too harsh in judging what others are doing for he or she does it in accordance with his or her standards. If he or she might have caused you harm or have embarrassed you in anyway, be the one with the good moral fiber. What do I mean by that? It’s like the bible passage, “kung binato ka ng bato, batuhin mo ng tinapay!”

Be the one with the good heart. Be the open-minded one. Retaliation will not do any good to you and to your adversary. Call me a hypocrite, martyr or stupid but I’m speaking from my own experience and conscience. It’s not about being true to yourselves and speaking what you really feel but it’s about looking or creating something good about the situation. Maybe it’s a wake up call. Maybe it’s time to reconsider and recognize the flaws and imperfection in what we do. By doing so, you have not only overcome the criticism but you have proven that you’re the one with the good moral fiber.

17 Headbangs:

Unknown said...

Amen to that!

Anonymous said...

actually i agree. pero nangyayari ang mga bagay na ito dahil tayong mga tao ay nabuhay na may tinatawag na "pride". may kailangang ipagmalaki at ipaglaban.

nangyayari dahil pag may umapak sa dignidad natin nasasaktan at nasasaktan pa din tayo. human reflex ang umapila at ipagtanggol ang sarili.

nais man nating gawan na lang ng maganda ang sitwasyon minsan ay mahirap talaga. hanggang may nananakit, hindi rin puwedeng lagi na lang hanapan ng maganda ang sitwasyon at hayaan nilang saktan tayo. kailangan minsan ipaglaban din natin ang sarili natin.

pero choose your own battles...and choose wisely.

nice post homer :D kaya ka nanalo sa blog of the week eh. talaga namang u deserve it! hehe.

HOMER said...

@yuuki hehe hallelujah!!

@chikletz Tama po din ang iyong sinabi chikki ehehe!! normal lang naman ang ipagtanggol ang sarili kahit siguro sino naman na tinapakan ang dignidad hindi para manahimik lang. Sabi ko nga we are humans and normal sa atin ang magalit.

Pero ayun nga po kanya-kanya lang yan, kanya-kanyang pisi, kanya-kanyang limitasyon at ang limitasyon natin ay naaayon sa mga standards natin sa buhay.. kung kaya pang hanapan ng maganda hanapan kung di kaya saka ipaglaban at ang paglaban ay dapat nasa tamang lugar at panahon. Kung kayang pagusapan, pagusapan, kung hindi sya sige ipaglaban..

Sabi mo nga choose your own battles.. Dont drag yourself to a level lower than your opponent.

Salamat chikletz! :)

SEAQUEST said...

Nice Post...Tama naman matuto bawat indibidwal ng kababaong-loob...Congrats...Godblessyou more

Xprosaic said...

Nakakagutom naman yan...fiber! jowk! jijijiji At my end, I believe mostly in that... but sometimes, there are also situations where I also consider "a tooth for a tooth, an eye for an eye"...It really depends with whom I encounter... Minsan kasi kahit batuhin mo na ng tinapay ayaw pa rin tumigil kaya ayun... backhoe na sa susunod ang ihahagis ko... jijijijiji

bampiraako said...

Good point!

Sa panahon kasi ngayon naglalangis na sa kababuyan ang moralidad ng nakararami. Sana nga matikman nila ang inihahain mong breakfast cereal na to.

Tulungan kita.hehe.
Congrats pala! Ang galing mo!

jei said...

Homer, I've been there a lot, believe me. I hate confrontations and instead of having a major match of words, I learned the art of zipping my mouth. Let's just say that I'm not really good in oral communication but even if I have the knack of conversing, I would still prefer to shut up because argument for me is just a waste of time.

I also experienced being in the middle of an argument. I prefer to stay in the middle because aside from not wanting to waste my time having useless arguments, I also don't want to take sides. Pero mahirap din pala ang pumagitna, mas delikado pala ang ganun. I was the middleman but that didn't exclude me from judgements and doubts from both sides. Kakaloka!

jei said...

By the way, CONGRATULATIONS pala for winning the poll.

ShatterShards said...

Not only should you choose your battles, you should also put thought in the manner that you fight your battles. What's the point of winning if, in the process, you compromised your beliefs? At tama ka, huwag bababa sa lebel ng kalaban mo.

HOMER said...

Unang-una sorry sa late replies hehe!! kkauwi kolang..

Anyway

@seaquest yupyup!! dapat madami tayo bawang ngayon madami aswang ehehe are we in the same track? hehe joke tama kababawang loob is the key to our relationships with others

@bampiraako tamatama ipamahagi ang moral fiber na yan.. :) Thanks! po!

@jei Ako siguro mabibilang din ang arguments ko kasi usually hindi naman ako ang nagsisimula. Saka natutunan ko din sa English prof ko nung Highschool na its better to zip of your mouth when you have nothing good to say. Usually when we open our mouths thats the time na nagsisimula ang gulo. Thanks Jei

@shattershards Tama tama the first thing you have to remember is in every battle usually the winner is someone who have fought honestly and with dignity ang part of this as youve said is to never have compromised one's belief and principles. Well actually may susunod akong post re this one, sana I got to have the inspiration to write it asap Thanks shattershards! :)

HOMER said...

@xprosaic you have a point sabi ko nga depende yan sa tao eh, depende sa orientation mo, pero everything should be done with caution and it is only at times of desperate circumstances that desperate measures should be taken.. hehe!! thanks!

paolo said...

well said

Ice said...

Impressive piece you've written. Strangely from where I am from, the elders would promote "talk less but think more". Where as in the western countries, they promote more on freedom of speech.

Cayy Cayy said...

Sumobra nga ang freedom of speech dito sa pinas.
Kung nagkataon kaparehas ng batas natin ang sa iba, baka rehas na ang kaharap ng iba saatin.
Naiiisip ko ung panahon ni marcos noon :)

HOMER said...

Thanks paolo! :)

@Ai Shiang Yup the way we act on a certain matter depends on the society we live. As the society evolves we evolve too. Remember that there are stages in our history where people are liberal at one point and conservatists at the other. Thanks for the comment

@cayy so buhay ka na panahon ni macoy? hehe!! :)

<*period*> said...

i hate the term moral fiber...makes me think of becoming a vegetable

HOMER said...

@period to each his own.. :)

Post a Comment

C'mon give me one crazy and awesome head bang!!

 


Design by: Pocket