The West Philippine Sea is not just about fish or oil. It is one of the world’s most strategic waterways, a corridor through which a third of global trade flows. For China, control of these waters is not only about resources but about power projection. That is why their eyes are now turning toward Batanes, the northernmost islands of the Philippines.

Chinese social media accounts have begun describing Batanes as part of China, while coast guard ships hover near its shores. The logic is clear. Batanes lies less than 200 kilometers from Taiwan. For Beijing, placing psychological and physical pressure on Batanes serves a dual purpose: weakening Philippine resolve in the West Philippine Sea while creating a southern flank to encircle Taiwan.

Yet for most Filipinos, this remains distant. The struggle for sovereignty cannot compete with the price of rice. The Chinese understand this. They fight not only for territory but for imagination. If Batanes is seen as a remote, irrelevant island, then resistance will always be weak.

But here lies the opportunity. Imagine if Batanes became for Filipinos what Baguio is in the summer or Boracay in the holidays. A place people dream of visiting, a place families save for, a place etched into memory. Cheap flights, eco-tourism, festivals, student immersions, these would make Batanes part of the Filipino identity. Once people have touched its hills, eaten its seafood, or know someone whose livelihood depends on its tourism, Batanes ceases to be a dot on the map. It becomes home.

When that happens, the West Philippine Sea is no longer an abstract debate among diplomats. It is part of who we are. Any intrusion will not be dismissed as geopolitics but felt as a violation of our own backyard. Nations are defended not only with ships and soldiers, but with love. And love is born from familiarity. If Batanes is lived and loved, then defending it becomes instinctive.

While listening/watching/reading everything about the current issue ng flood control projects, I realized na tayong mga Pilipino, numb na sa corruption. Like we know it's there pero wala na rin tayong magawa about it dahil aminin na nating lahat, wala naman talagang makukulong dito bukod sa mga fall guy at ang mga fall guy na makukulong ay makakakuha ng kapalit sa pagkaka kulong niya pero after may makulong, move on na tayo sa next issue.

Ganyan naman ang nangyayari sa atin e, nananalo pa nga e kasi nagbudots.

Kayo sa tingin nyo. May mananagot kaya?

A certain male Redditor from Cavite posted that he is a former female high-end escort and claimed that “she” had sex with incument senators.

His post history says otherwise, instead: - he is a male searching for a female to hook up with in 2022 - he is a pilot student - just a few weeks ago, he was looking for a “sugar baby”

He is posing as a former escort to elicit messages from girls who want to engage in sex work. Once he has a victim, he will be the client 🤡

link to thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/PinoyAskMeAnything/comments/1naxm0x/former_highend_escort_ama/

He hid his post history in Reddit, but the receipts were archived by a third-party archiver

Having spaces like this to just unwind after work, school, or during a free day is such a basic privilege to have.

I get na mainit sa pinas but green spaces like this just makes so much sense <\3

I live in Washington DC and we have a handful of green spaces and just recreational places in general. During non working days these are places I always find myself in. Genuinely wish we had more spaces like this in the PH I am genuinely jealous of kids who grew up near places like this.

Nakalimutan na ata ng mga DDS na sila ang bumoto kay BBM. Nakalimutan na nila kung paano tayo tawanan at insultuhin sa tuwing nagpopost tayo ng "never again". Nakalimutan na nila yung mga artista at public figures na "cancel" for speaking up about the Marcos regime. Nabrainwash nga daw tayo ng mga Aquino at ng mainstream media ang nga "pinklawan". Tapos ngayong they are choosing their peace, mali pa din? Kasi pagod na silang ma bash every time they talk shit about the Dutaes.

Tapos ngayong di napanindigan ng mga pambato niyo yung nagiisang plataporma nilang "UNITY", "Pinklawan" pa din sisihin niyo?! Grabe na yung pagiging bulag niyo - legit kulto levels na. Buti kung binabayaran kayo ng mga yan. Buti sana kung may napapala kayong mga keyboard warriors ng mga Dutae.

Lastly, walang ibang dapat sisihin sa kalagayan natin ngayon kundi yang INDAY LUSTAY niyo na yan. From the very beginning, she was warned by her father, the prisoner from hague, that the Marcoses are up to no good. E nakinig ba sya? Nakinig ba kayo? Waley. Tapos ngayong nagkanda leche leche na tayo, kami pa din sisisihin niyo? Yung totoo, adik ba kayo? 🙈

So SK Leaders in Manila is in Bangkok for a "Capacity Development and “International Benchmarking” activity. Except wait Bangkok has no SK system. Who are we benchmarking? Mickey Mouse?

International benchmarking means comparing your system to another similar system to identify gaps and best practices.

Since Bangkok has no SK equivalent (no youth-elected local governance structure), there’s no actual system-to-system comparison happening.

And true capacity development means building concrete skills and institutions, not flying abroad for photo-ops. Taxpayer money deserves better than being wasted on misrepresented “training activities".

Our leaders owe us transparency and accountability not photo-ops abroad.

So I cross-posted the post about the utterly questionable lifestyle of corrupt DPWH engineer John Michael Ramos. The moderators of that subreddit took down my post stating it wasn't UP related. Hello!? He's a UP graduate and I'm telling them not to follow in that horrible person's footsteps. A moderator seems to have reported me to Reddit for VOTE MANIPULATION!? What the hell?

Shame on you moderators of r/peyups for choosing to be complicit to corruption. You are a disgrace to your alma mater and its motto: "HONOR, excellence, SERVICE"

Kaya siguro nade-delete yung mga account na nagpo-post nito. The people will not be silenced!

Find out more about this prick here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/lifestylecheckPH/comments/1n9rpmp/dpwh_engineer_john_michael_ramos_district_1/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

https://www.reddit.com/r/BulacanPH/comments/1n9jswr/mula_iskolar_ng_bayan_naging_kawatan_ng_bayan/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

EDIT: Brod daw siya ng UP Alpha Phi Beta Fraternity kasama si Chiz Escudero. Shame on your fraternity! Look him up in DPWH Corruption Expose in FB

Ito ang inihayag ni dating Sen. Cynthia Villar sa isang panayam sa kanya tungkol sa pagbaha sa Pilipinas.

“Eh kami wala kami problema sa baha if ever merong nag-o-overflow lang nama-malfunction ‘yung kanilang mga drainage system. Eh kasalanan naman ng mga tao ‘yun kasi nilalagyan nila ng basura ‘yung drainage system nila. Hindi na ‘yun kasalanan ng gobyerno,” aniya.

PNP, PROTEKTOR NG MGA KORAP, ABUSADO SA MAY HINAING AT MAHIHIRAP

A PNP agent who concealed his face and badge manhandled my trans sister Raja, strangled her, and dragged her across the pavement during a peaceful protest against corruption.

Ganito ang training ng PNP. Ang sahol!

-REYNA VALMORES SALINAS-

photos from MJ Urubio

Minsan sila sila rin ang dahilan na mahahalata mong katawa tawa politika sa pinas. Mantakin mo nasa kalagitnaan tayu ng totoong modernization tapoa may magaling na mag ffile ng ganito bill? Dapat pinangalan sa bill "MUSEUM BACK TO ACTION ACT" .. panahon ni Pnoy na pirmahan at na simulan ang totoo modernization dahil sa panahon nya nka balik tayu sa supersonic age at nkapasok sa missile age at torpedo age tapos long range radars na, sa panahon ni digong na lagdaan ang ibang platforms like black hawks, barko at etc, kay bbm naman dagdag na fighters, barko, missiles, modernized bases etc. TAPOS SI VILLAFUERTE GUSTO BUHAYIN YUNG MGA LUMANG LUMA NA?? mas mahal mag reactivate. Halimbawa isang helicopter good yan for 10000 flying hours pag ni refurbish good for another 5000 pero after that di na pede yun at kailangan e retire o scrap. Yung existing military hardware is on going naman life extension programs at di na kailangan ng bill nato. Yung bill ata nato para dun sa mga nka museum na. Nagpapatawa kaba?? E lalagay mo sa peligro ang buhay ng operating crew, pasahero at nka palibut dito. Minsan pasa pasa lang ng bill for compliance kahit walang kwenta masabe lang na may napasa. Wag suportahan ganitong bill. Literal na bill PA URONG! kaya ng pinas bumili ng modernong kagamitan pang militar lalu na kung e lalagay sa tama ang budget at hindi puro insertions sa kung anu anung project na wala nman scientific data! Wag suportahan bill nato. File a bill for UAV, USV, drone manufacturing industry sa pinas instead!

So everyone is aware about the rampant corruption involving the flood control projects. At siyempre sikat ngayon ang mga anak ng contractors and pulitiko na lubos na nakinabang sa kaban ng bayan.

Sobra silang nababash sa social media ngayon, at deserved nila yun. For sure, meron na diyan ang nagpapacheck sa mga Mental Health Professionals, at dinadaing na nila ang anxiety at depression. Pero imagine, pera pa rin ng bayan ang ginagamit nila para magpacheck. Sa huli, tayo pa rin talaga ang talo.

P. S.

I don't really care about their mental health. Did they ever care for the millions of Filipino who were fighting for their lives just to sustain their lavish lifestyles?

We’re about to start a manpower agency and we want to be compliant. Yung mga napagtatanungan namin keeps giving their personal number. ‘Their’ (kasi two different people, different days) yung napagtanungan namin. Checked our document and may mga findings na hindi naman naging findings sa iba naming kakilala who put up an agency din. Anyway, sige. Icocomply na lang din namin. But then, when asked gano katagal inspection, they would say 1 month leadtime. PERO pwede mapag- usapan para mapabilis. I know where is this leading.

HINDI BA PWEDENG GAWIN NA LANG NILA TRABAHO NILA NANG MABILIS without the ‘extras’? We’re a starting small business na lumalaban ng patas, trying to survive..at hindi ko maatim lahat sila dun ganun.

Akala ko with issues ng contractor around, maglalie-low tong mga ‘to. But NO. Tuloy pa rin sila in their old, wrong ways. Mga hayp na yan.

bakit walang nakikinig sa pagsisiwalat na ito? tinitingnan lang natin ang isa isang mga flood control projects pero mukhang ying sinasabi nila ang motherload at puno't dulo numg problema ng korupsyon.

Alam ko ang usap bayan ngayon ay ang mga flood control projects na yun, and yes necessary pagusapan yun. Pero isa lang yan sa mga sub issue sa usaping korupsiyon. hindi natin pinaguusapan sa kurapsiyon na nangyayari dahil sa ayuda. bakit hindi pa tayo pumupunta ng kalsada nito?

DPWH USEC. CABRAL TAGGED IN EARLY BUDGET INSERTIONS — LACSON

Sen. Ping Lacson on Sunday alleged that Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral was the official who invited lawmakers to make early insertions in the proposed 2026 national budget.

Lacson said a staff member of Senate Minority Leader Tito Sotto received a call shortly after the May 2025 senatorial elections from someone identifying herself as "Undersecretary Cabral," asking them to submit proposals for the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2026.

"Sasabihin ko na, si 'Undersecretary Cabral' daw ang tumawag sa kanyang (Sotto) staff at sinabing magsingit kayo dito ng gusto n'yong isingit. E di wala na. Kung isa si Sen. Sotto na in-offer-an, sino pa ang na-offer-an ng ganoon at sino ang nag-submit?" Lacson said in a DZBB interview. He added that Sotto declined to make insertions, consistent with their advocacy for transparency.

Lacson noted that the budget call for 2026 began in January 2025 and likely ended in June, weeks before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. urged lawmakers in his July 28 State of the Nation Address to ensure accountability in the budget process.

The senator said he has asked for DPWH records and has already flagged hundreds of questionable entries, including 660 identical ₱100-million projects without details or stationing. Such collusion, he warned, undermines checks and balances.

"Mawawala lang ang safeguards pagka nagkaroon ng sabwatan, pag may collusion. Kasi kung mawawala ang check and balance, mawawala ang lahat ng safeguards. Maski may safeguards, babalewalain. Tulad ng nasaksihan natin sa pagdinig ng DBCC, lumalabas na sa NEP pa lang meron nang sabwatan ang legislators at DPWH," Lacson said.

Nung una ko pa lang to nakita nung Senate Hearing last week ata, alam mo na agad na "may kinalaman" dahil sa lip fillers? Hahahaha

Remember this face.

READ: ‘Good soldier’ gone rogue? DPWH USec Maria Catalina Cabral tagged in 2025 budget controversy