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Comments

1. #1
   On July 12th, 2004 at 10:42 pm, PAUL said:

   Guess it’s time to pull all U.S. troops out of the Philippines.

2. #2
   On July 12th, 2004 at 10:47 pm, Rus Steel said:

   It seems “weasel” isn’t included in the translation dictionary at:

   http://www.foreignword.com/dictionary/Tagalog/

   BUT!– “appease” and “monkey” return.

   How ’bout:

   “Payapain Matsing”

   Disclaimer: Grammatically speaking, I’m absolutely certain this is a horrendous insult to the language.

3. #3
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:00 pm, Colin said:

   If this story holds out I wonder if it will invite more terror against Filipinos… not in Iraq but in Saudi Arabia. It’s my understanding that the vast majority of manual labor in Saudi is performed by expatriates - mainly from the Philippines. If the goal of “al Qaeda on the Arabian Peninsula” is the removal of the Saudi royal family through the creation of economic chaos it seems to me that they would surmise from these events that the Philippines can be intimidated. The natural reaction, then, would be to start kidnapping Filipinos in Saudi Arabia and demand their total withdrawal from the Kingdom, thus severing the backbone of the Saudi economy. Seems Arroyo may have opened quite a Pandora’s Box.

4. #4
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:21 pm, Michael said:

   The problem, of course, is that once you negotiate with them, anytime they discover a new demand, off comes another head.

   It weakens the entire civilized world’s fight against such barbarians.

5. #5
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:21 pm, Wind Rider said:

   AQ demanding that Filipinos leave SA would be suicidal in terms of support from any of the run of the mill Saudis. Colin is right, the ex-pat Filipinos allow that country to function. They all left, and the place would be mayhem in short order. It’s definitely an outside labor supported economy - most of the jobs the Filipinos fill are ones the Saudis consider themselves too good to do, or simply can’t do.

   Actually, if the AQ demands that most foriegners vacate SA were to come true, the country would literally come to a standstill. That doesn’t bother them, as they want to revert to a full blown 6th Century (tents, camels, roaming the desert) sort of existence anyway.

   And if the real labor force in that country were to pull stakes - they’d get that in pretty short order.

6. #6
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:25 pm, Manny said:

   Not only did she open Pandora’s Box in the Middle East but also at home in the Philippines. They have the Abu Sayaaf to deal with.

7. #7
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:45 pm, Cerberus said:

   What Arroyo said: “In response to your request, the Philippines … will withdraw its humanitarian forces as soon as possible”

   What the Islamic Army heard: “Please don’t hurt us, we don’t have the spine to take any casualties. In fact, if you threaten us any more we’ll just surrender our country to you. Allah is great.”

8. #8
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:55 pm, Wil Cruz said:

   Well,duwag(coward) would be nice considering that the Phil gov’t is willing to save one man’s life without any thought of the consequences it would bring.

9. #9
   On July 12th, 2004 at 11:58 pm, jeff said:

   Where is Imelda now that we need her?

10. #10
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:02 am, Wil Cruz said:

    Where is Ramon Magsaysay would be a more correct choice.

11. #11
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:23 am, Turkeyhead said:

    I was really hoping the Philippine government would stick it out, but they went and pulled a Spain. It’s sad.

12. #12
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:38 am, Matt S. said:

    I have to wonder if this took the Bush administration by surprise. Bush made a personal call to Spain to try and get them to stick it out. No real word of an effort from the Bush administration to the Arroyo administration. Perhaps they didn’t include me on the memo though…it happens. Balikatan cannot and should not be forgotten. If nothing else it should serve as a reminder as we go forward of what can be done working together.

    The Bush administration needs to do whatever it can to support the remaining allies we have in Iraq and Afghanistan. Tony Blair comes to mind…

13. #13
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:49 am, Francesco said:

    I guess balikatan has given way to another Filipino tradition — bahala na (come what may).

14. #14
    On July 13th, 2004 at 1:11 am, Marc said:

    Thanks for the mention in the post and also for the link on your blogrolll. Your the greatest Michelle.

    As is the norm here most of the media has moved on from the feeding frenzy they enjoyed over the weekend. Of the three major dailies here only one has the story on its main page (online).

    And from the tease headlines the situation is as confused as ever. From the Philippine Star:

    All times Manila Time (12 ahead of EST)
    07/13 10:15:32AM
    “Philippines to withdraw troops form Iraq ’swiftly’ amid hostage drama.”

    07/13 10:35:22AM
    “Philippines position ‘unchanged’ on Iraq.”

    07/13 12:10:39AM
    “Philippines denies early troop withdrawal from Iraq to save hostage.”

    On again - off again, this government does more flip flops than Kerry on a good day. With a situation as serious as this, one would think they could speak with one voice. Unfortunately, this is an every day occurence in the Philippines.

15. #15
    On July 13th, 2004 at 1:43 am, Museum Curator said:

    Gosh, that quote by Arroyo is probably the most pathetic thing I’ve seen this year! How weak and feeble it makes him and his country look. As others have said, it now will only embolden the thugs to take more hostages. Incredible!

16. #16
    On July 13th, 2004 at 2:02 am, Slabsides said:

    Michelle,
    You are right on. I bet a lot of Pinoys/Filipinos worldwide are disgusted and embarrased. I mentioned this same thing at my blog.

    I grew up hearing stories about Filipino guerrillas in WWII that my late uncle brought back. He landed at Dulag with the 7th Division, killed enough Japs to win a Silver Star at Dagami, and was wounded during the drive up western Leyte to Ormoc City. He’d say how the Filipinos were “tough bastards who gave the Japs hell.” And I’d bet they were no slouches in the head cutting department.

    So this is a real drag to find out about. I guess the ROK will be happy to replace the 50…..

    Slab out.

17. #17
    On July 13th, 2004 at 2:19 am, Mike H. said:

    I don’t like to predict, but here goes… The next head threatened in SA will have the caveat that Abu Sayaaf will cease to be a target.

18. #18
    On July 13th, 2004 at 4:25 am, Larry Uloth said:

    It begins to look like hostage taking is part of the ground rules. So when do we publish a list of Muslim holy cities (the last two of which are Medina and Mecca) that will be destroyed one by one until our demands are met ?

19. #19
    On July 13th, 2004 at 6:26 am, wretchard said:

    I believe the Tagalog word for weasel is “alamid”, although I wouldn’t bet the bank on it. However, the word doesn’t convey the same sense because “alamid” I believe, connotes a kind of lightning fast animal. The word you are really looking for is “balimbing” which means a kind of spineless, whining, lily-livered quisling. Ironically, some Filipino politicians wear it as a badge of honor.

20. #20
    On July 13th, 2004 at 7:31 am, McGehee said:

    Seeing the title on this post made me laugh (ruefully). On another blog I commented on a post about this, wondering what was the Tagalog for “dhimmi”.

    Considering what the dhimmi are, the Tagalog for “surrender monkey” probably works just fine.

21. #21
    On July 13th, 2004 at 8:26 am, Marshall said:

    How can Arroyo think this will have any consequence other than inviting more of the same? She has just signed the death warrant of other Filipinos in the Middle East as far as I’m concerned.

    I expect this type of behavior from non-British Europe, but was surprised the yellow streak extends that far east.

22. #22
    On July 13th, 2004 at 9:10 am, Chris said:

    Since they now have broken down and let terrorists effect policy, of course they invite more on themselves.

    Here is what I think will be coming soon…Al Qaida will kidnap more Filipinos, Spanish, French etc.. and next time the demand will be “Kill all the Americans in your country or there will be a beheading!” And some will comply, Americans will be killed while others are “terrorized” and attacked, told to go home, by the local populations, even if their governments don’t go along with it.

23. #23
    On July 13th, 2004 at 9:50 am, Digger said:

    A short history of the Philippines as understood by an ex US sailor who has in-laws that are Filipino.

    1) America lifts yolk of Spanish rule from PI (The country name Philippines comes from King Philip of Spain).
    2) America turns over control to Filipino rule giving them their independence.
    3) America fights against Japanese and is forced to retreat resulting in the “Bataan death march”.
    4) MacArthur returns and liberates PI (Philippine Islands) from vicious Imperial Japan rule.
    5) America puts Filipinos back in power once again and sets up bases to defend it.
    6) Filipinos allow a lunatic, greedy dictator (Marcos) to take control for decades without fighting for their own welfare.
    7) Philippines limps along remaining a 3rd world country while other more devastated countries during world war 2 grow into thriving economies (i.e. Japan, Germany, most of Europe).
    9) People finally oust Marcos.
    10) Philippines thanks the US for the defense of their homeland and infusion to the economy by kicking the US out of Subic Bay and Clark Air Force base in order to try and convert them to some sort of industrial complex or a Disneyland Philippines (it was actually bantered about, don’t laugh).
    11) People elect a corrupt B movie star with no governing experience for president (Estrada).
    12) Somehow get rid of Estrada and put in power Arroyo, who initially seemed optimistic but has done virtually nothing.
    13) With the US out of the country a thriving terrorist network forms in southern Philippine islands. Also involved with several plots (including assisting Ramsey Yusef with 93 WTC bombing and an abandoned attack of hijacking 10 planes and blowing them up over the pacific).
    14) Arroyo seeks US help with extremist terrorists in south PI. US obliges. Corruption throughout country continues and Arroyo has done nothing to quell it.
    15) Arroyo and PI government shows appreciation for all the aid, support, homeland defense and liberations of their country by America by caving and showing how much they truly don’t understand they are setting themselves up to end up back under a dictatorial regime or totally at the mercy of threats.

    Oh, well that’s how I understand it all anyway.

    I love Filipinos and have been there numerous times, but IMHO it’s time to cut ties with them. They seem to not want to develop further and would rather just remain a corrupt 3rd world country with officials who continuously rape the coffers of the nation.

    It’s sad to see a people resign themselves to such treatment when they have such potential.

24. #24
    On July 13th, 2004 at 10:13 am, Digger said:

    uuuh..that should be “yoke” not “yolk”

    hah!

    *goes to fry up some eggs for breakfast*

25. #25
    On July 13th, 2004 at 10:43 am, DriftWood said:

    so perhaps our helping hand to the taliban and saddam over the last 20 years yielded the same result. live and learn…

26. #26
    On July 13th, 2004 at 10:46 am, Walter E. Wallis said:

    I often give thanks for Pinetuba, for having made retention of Clark and Subic Bay no longer feasible. Just before the eruption, they were set to double our rent yet again, and idiots here were going to commit millions more to new construction.

27. #27
    On July 13th, 2004 at 11:02 am, Ofc. Krupke said:

    Drift, it would be quite a feat to support the Taliban over the last 20 years since the Taliban didn’t exist 20 years ago.

    Boy, those neocons sure are tricky!

28. #28
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:33 pm, dzogo said:

    How do we miss MARCOS & IMELDA!
    Of course, it is always easier to blahblah from the safety of our Homeland, and let someone’s else husband/father take the (head) fall

29. #29
    On July 13th, 2004 at 12:34 pm, Erik said:

    digger wrote:

    “It’s sad to see a people resign themselves to such treatment when they have such potential.”

    Well said. I was in Manila this past February, and being there got the frustrated sense of a country that had the potential to be another Asian Tiger and yet just never can quite get over the hump. This latest appeasement is a good example as to why. Frustrating … damned frustrating.

30. #30
    On July 13th, 2004 at 4:47 pm, Jack Wayne said:

    What other result is possible? We have been emasculating the military power of other nations for years. It has appeared to be in our best interest to do so. Now we get mad when they simply don’t have the military (or stomach) to put troops in the field. The question you should be asking yourself is what level of military do we want even our friends to have? To date the answer is “very little”. If we are truly faced with a global terrorist threat (I think we are) then our calculation must be - do we have enough strength to go it alone? Is it regrettable that our neighbors to the north have an army smaller than the police force of New York? How many men can the Japanese put in the field? Our policy since WW2 has been to get stronger and encourage our allies to become weaker. The process has accelerated since the democratization of Russia. It’s no use whingeing now that we don’t have many allies that can support us in the field.

31. #31
    On July 13th, 2004 at 6:19 pm, Wil Cruz said:

    Wrong,Jack Wayne,the problem of our allies is that they depend on America to defend them.Look at Canada,they used to have a large military ,their leaders thought it’s not worth it because a) they can’t afford it (which is debatable) b) we have the US to protect us in case of war so they cut the Defense budget through the years until what remains of the proud Canadian military,same thing in Germany,Belgium and surprise,Great Britain.Don’t blame the US for their stupidity.

32. #32
    On July 13th, 2004 at 11:32 pm, Tom Kearney said:

    One point unaddressed by Malkin and all of the commentators is this, what exactly did the Philippines have at stake in Iraq? Do you let a human being die for the sake of solidarity with the United States? Let’s face it, Bush was wrong to invade Iraq at the time and under the conditions that he did. Why should we then expect other countries to line up and let their troops and citizens become walking bullseyes because of Bush’s mistake?

    Just imagine if instead of invading Iraq last year, Bush took half of the troops used to fight in Iraq and put them into Afghanistan to clear out the remaining Taliban and put the warlords into line? Then, having gotten the job done right in Afghanistan, he wins a second term and is able to get greater international cooperation for taking out Saddam and ensuring a peaceful transition for a post-Saddam Iraq? Oh, if only!

33. #33
    On July 14th, 2004 at 1:44 am, Erik said:

    Here’s the blog headline of the day on the subject:

    Gloria Arroyo has no Balls

    at http://gweilodiaries.com

34. #34
    On July 14th, 2004 at 2:11 am, lorimer said:

    The sovereign Filipino nation is starting to believe the world is not the United States of America, that the US is just another sovereign country, co-equal with the rest.

    We fought with you in wars and our hearts also bled for you on 9/11. Your seemingly win-win foreign policy since the end of the second world war has been the cause of your current major concerns, including mid-east and terrorism. My poor country does not owe America anything but overpriced loans. The Filipino honor is intact although some of our government officals’ aren’t.

    Nonetheless, we will fight with you in wars in the name of freedom and equality and our hearts will bleed for another 9/11 (God forbid!). But we believe saving the life of an ordinary Filipino still makes a difference these days.

35. #35
    On July 14th, 2004 at 4:39 am, lorimer said:

    This is the sentiment of my people:

    http://www.inq7.net/brk/2004/jul/14/text/brkpol_12-1-p.htm

36. #36
    On July 14th, 2004 at 5:42 am, nathaniel lean said:

    digger: we revolted against and about to overthrow Spain. sensing this, Spain sold the country for $20M to U.S.A. Of course, we also revolted against U.S.A. They were more superior militarily even then.

    Tom Kearney, are you an American? you might be the only thinking one (in this forum anyway).

    Arroyo did not make the decision. The people did. We Filipinos would have pressured our government to stayput, if we know this is a just war. One life is more important than cooperation in an unjust war.

    The arguments against my country in relation to the Iraq war and being there doesn’t make sense. We could easily say more of the same relating to U.S.A. But it’s non sequitor.

37. #37
    On July 14th, 2004 at 7:46 am, wretchard said:

    Lorimer,

    The article you linked to quotes Crispin Beltran of Bayan Muna, which is avowedly left-wing, and people of the same persuasion who are PARTY LIST congressmen, i.e. unelected, appointed to the position. Don’t try to palm them off are representatives of “your” people.

38. #38
    On July 14th, 2004 at 9:18 am, Chris said:

    Tom Kearney and nathaniel lean,

    It is obvious that you are among the people out there that just do not get it.

    The Iraq war was not about whether or not Saddam himself was involved with 9/11 or had direct Al Qaida ties, which he did and opponents of the war choose to ignore. It was about fighting the terrorist support structure everywhere it existed. Saddam did use WMD’s on his own people, even if it was years ago. Saddam did obstruct the UN weapons inspectors, Saddam raising money by selling oil to our ALLIES in France, Germany and Russia. He was a psycho and so were his sons, his whole regime.

    He was the one that invaded Kuwait a decade ago and so demonstrated that he was not oppoesed to starting a war. He was paying Palestinians to bomb Isrealis.

    If we had just gone into Afghanistan and cleared out the Taliban, they would have gone to the next sovereign nation that would give them asylum. Wanna bet who would gladly do it? I know. Wanna bet who would have taken the opportunity to sow the remnants of the terrorist groups together under his own control? Don’t think Saddam would do that? Join the real world.

    We used him. He made himself a willing target through non-cooperation with UN mandates and his hideous human rights record. So we took him out and used his country as the staging ground for our troops. How else could we put 160,000 troops and equipment smack in the middle of whole Islamofascist part of the world? We had to invade somebody and Saddam made sure it was him by his actions.

    Now, even the terror groups in neighboring countries are limited in what they can do. There have been ZERO follow up attacks on western soil. The governments of Iran and Syria have their government supported terror groups on a tight leash because the allies do not have to ramp up their war machine…IT IS SITTING NEXT DOOR AND READY TO FIGHT.

    That is why the Phillipines and other nations should support the war, for the overall effect and projection of a united front against terror tactics. We showed that attacks like 9/11 will not be viewed as criminal activities to be investigated and tried. They are acts of war and if your country condones it then you are part of the danger to free people and we will NOT turn the other cheek. And we will not make some token show of anger.

    These groups have been relegated to kidnapping individuals and hiding in holes. If Saddam’s regime was still going strong they would be free, in training, in Iraq and neighboring terror friendly countries, they would have financial support and they would have already launched follow up attacks over here. Saddam would have made sure of it, because he enjoys being a part of that, of giving the finger to the free world. He has proven so again and again.

    I firmly believe my family is safer because of the war and Iraq and that security was bought with the blood of the men and women that fight over there. I will not spit on their sacrifice by subscribing to a theory that they have accomplished nothing by their sacrifice. The evidence is all around me everyday in the total lack of smoldering, crumbling skyscrapers.

39. #39
    On July 14th, 2004 at 2:23 pm, george said:

    I believed that the Philippines’ stance would have been different if not for the over 1 million Filipino overseas workers in the Middle East. These workers would be such an easy prey for the Islamic terrorist because they have no one to protect them. It’s easy for someone in the safety of the continental United States to say that such and such countries are weasels but I think that if the shoe is on the other foot that their opinions would have been different. I am proud to say that I am a Filipino that served honorably for 26 years in the US Navy. My ancestors just like Michelle’s, suffered three longs years of Japanese occupation for sticking up with the United States during WWII and fought till victory was achieved. I’m disappointed that Ms Malkin would jump to the conclusion that the country her parents dearly loved are weasels.

40. #40
    On July 14th, 2004 at 11:55 pm, Rald said:

    Cris

    It’s not about terrorism, that American fighting for, but World domination. control of fossil fuel is the main purpose. Why Afghanistan because the pipeline pass thru from Russia to Turkey. Why Iraq because that’s were the biggest oil reserve in the World.

    Hope you got the point on fighting terrorism is only cover up on the real motives, clearing the way is the first step.

    While We, Filipinos worldwide prayed for the release of the hostages, Our leaders condemned the act of Terrorism.

41. #41
    On July 15th, 2004 at 4:08 am, Lorimer said:

    wretchard,

    Leftists or otherwise, the Filipino nation is all united behind saving the life of our countryman. We think letting Angelo dela Cruz die because of a cause that lacks justification is wrong.

    Your Jimmy Swaggart-minded president can say anything defending his decisions to wage his war on terrorism in Iraq. Be it because of oil or the paranoia over the presence of WMDs, but be it at the cost of American lives only since Americans are mainly thinking of their own selfish interests disguised as win-win foreign policies anyway. Iraq is neither our war nor the entire world’s. It is only Bush’s.

    My heart goes out to the families of the 650 plus American soldiers and the tens of thousands Iraqi citizens who have died since the start of the war which nobody will ever win. So many lives wasted because of the decisions of only one man. Such waste.