"Remember the Congress of 2011!"

I have often wondered why there are holidays that celebrate downfalls and defeats of empires, institutions and battlegrounds when these events do not seem to have any cause for celebration. There are plenty of examples in world history where these debacles are feted and celebrated on the date of their occurrence. The Fall of the Bastille, in France; the Fall of the Roman Empire; the Fall of Constantinople and in the Philippines some defeats that we celebrate are the Fall of Tirad Pass; the Fall of Corregidor and the recently celebrated Fall of Bataan.

I racked my mind for possible explanations why there is this universal penchant for celebrating major setbacks in history. One quite obvious reason is that there are lessons to be learned from it so that they may not be repeated. Another is the creation of a rallying point as in “Remember the Alamo” where quite a number of heroes were slaughtered when the red flag was raised by General Sta. Ana. From another viewpoint it may also be the instilling of pride with the troops and the population to celebrate the victory against the foe. It is also possible that reliving the pain and the anguish of a defeat brings out a catharsis of sorts and that the angst it produces elicits aversion towards war and consequently the renunciation of all the evils associated with it...or it may be the masochistic delight from the vicarious experience of having undergone pain and suffering manifested in a good cry evoked by a martyred wife, an abused child in telenovelas and movies. Oh how we love to nurture our hurts...empathize and relate with the downtrodden and the oppressed.

Of recent vintage is the Fall of Moral Sense in Congress.

Shouldn’t we include this in our list celebrated defeats? The Fall of Moral Sense in Congress...a rout like no other. What reason shall we ascribe to its celebration?  I would liken it to the Fall of the Alamo as it was a total slaughter save for a few. A day of infamy which should be remembered as the day when the forces of evil overwhelmed the forces of light...this is the kind of evil ascendancy that will continue to perpetuate the moral degeneration of our country which started from the ascension of Marcos into power. The cry should be “Remember Congress of 2011” so that the villainy of those who were supposed to be our alter egos in government will forever be etched in our minds and could be a call to arms against the betrayal of our faith and for a reformation of our government institutions who have fallen into deep ignominy.

The immoral lesson learned here is that crime does pay and the perpetrators of it are being honoured for it to boot. This is a tale told innumerable times during the Martial Law days when the dictator and his conjugal accomplice together with the powerful in the military and those who lived under his patronage brazenly abused their evil provenance.   

Many of those born during those times; the Martial Law Babies, have lived their lives thinking that these are how things are and did not know any better. The examples have been set and consequently emulated by many. Many of us parents had a hard time shielding our children from the effects of the display of evil in our midst.  And now 216 congressmen have affirmed and endorsed this way of life. And so it will live on; the Martial Law Babies are middle aged now and have children of their own but the same corruptive atmosphere pervades.

I shudder to think what follows.