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I wrote the following a month ago, when I was outraged by a reply I received to my invitation to express a reaction to the murder of Musa Dimasidsing. This is also a response to Manuel’s hunch regarding the lack of blogger response to the MILF ambush of a military convoy and subsequent killing of 14 military soldiers with the beheading of 10.

I submit that the lack of blogger response may be, in part, due to apathy. Here is my article, unedited, which I never published, until now.

Do we really need to confine ourselves and say, “but I am a scientist, I don’t do politics.” Since when do we need to establish identity in order to show our outrage? In order to show our humanity? Someone replied to my invitation to express their reaction to the murder of Musa Dimasidsing with a simple, “I am politically apathetic”. Pardon my outrage at this apathy. I know this blogger to be admirable and a wonderful human being. And I may not be able to blame him because of his apathy. But my goodness, is this what has become, even of educated writers here in The Philippines?

To say that, “I am a technology blogger”, and yet I ask, are you not a Filipino? Are you not a human being with a human heart? Which comes first, technology, our own humanity, or our own country for that matter?

I’m sorry, but I cannot accept this. If you identify yourself more as a technology blogger than that of a Filipino, or even just a human being, with compassion, then I’m sorry, but you may need to reassess your priorities.

This is life. And this is death. If someone can’t spare 1 minute to write one simple line saying that he or she is outraged, then what hope do we have to bring our country forward from all this madness?

I’m angered. Apathy is evil in disguise. I’m sorry, but that excuse just doesn’t work for me. Don’t dare complain when things in this country go sour, because no laptop will be enough to stop the tide of cynicism coming from the corners of our own educated elite. Even the poor, with all their inequities, have more pride, when they go to the steps of COMELEC, or Malacanang, and shout from the top of their lungs, the outrage that they feel.

What is the tipping point for any person, whether they are an engineer, a computer scientist, a doctor, or a nurse. When is the tipping point, until they will take some sort of stand? When a family member is gunned down? When they are victims of corrupt officials? When they are denied their rights? When they are illegally detained?

Do we really need to wait?

So, I’m sorry Mr. Technology Blogger, but even I know that this apathy is what will bring down our own nation. When one cannot take time out for one simple sentence.

All we ask is one sentence. to say, “I am outraged”. Mr. Musa would be much obliged.