"I’m praying for you.” Thanks asshole!
What people like to forget is that some prayers just aren’t good enough to make it through even a loving god’s QA team; never mind what happens if it’s Old Testament day at the office.
(that aside, ‘United Nationalist Alliance’ sounds pretty creepy to me, anyone know where they actually fall in local politics; and whether it’s just a translation artifact that makes them sound like some sort of fascist thug squad?)
Ah, so he hates us and wants to kill us and thinks we’re all vile, evil, irredeemably bad. So bad that a god had to sacrifice itself to itself in order to work up the will to forgive its own creation.
Gotcha.
Gotta say, I’m not impressed by a guy who used to damage people’s brains for a living running for office.
Christ, what an arsehole.
He already holds office as a Representative. He’s running for Senate.
I’m no fan of Manny’s views but can we please squash this prejudice of seeing professional fighters as bloodthirsty, moronic bullies?
He was raised as one of six kids from an extremely poor family in Mindanao, a province famous for its violence. He heard gunfire every week as the local Muslim rebels battled Philippine soldiers just miles away from his home. He started boxing as a way to escape that poverty, taking on every fight he could so he could send half the earnings back to his mother.
This is a common story for many fighters. In the absence of wealth, educational opportunities, and white privilege, athletics is often the only way out. That’s why the hungriest fighters are often the best fighters.
I think we can call out Manny while reminding ourselves to view the man in his context.
But beyond that, there are lots of really amazing, smart, humble fighters out there. You just don’t hear about them because the typical fan doesn’t care about performance as much as they do about personality. Roman Gonzalez has been lauded as the greatest P4P boxer for a while now but he will never have the same PPV potential as Floyd Mayweather because he’s a really nice Nicaraguan guy that doesn’t have anything bad to say about anybody.
“I rather obey the Lord’s command than obeying the desires of the flesh.”
This reminds me a bit of an Orson Scott Card rant I read once about how of course everyone knows all men are attracted to other men, but overcoming that attraction by obeying God’s Laws is what keeps civilization afloat, so everyone must comply.
They are professional brain damagers. That’s one of the two ways to win a fight. I’m not saying they’re bloodthirsty morons. I’m saying they make their living giving people Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. And most often are victims of it themselves.
Sure the guy has an inspiring story of rags to riches. Too bad he excels at a sport where the point is to literally damage someone’s brain badly enough they fall down unconscious.
Pacquaio may have had an inspiring story, but today he’s aligned himself with Tyson Fury, and he’s going to deservedly get the criticism that warrants.
I’m more impressed by the gay people from his neighborhood who put overcame all that and people like Manny.
The objective of boxing is to cause the other guy more injury than he causes you, and you win instantly if you cause him enough brain damage that he can’t stand up again.
Yes, there are boxers who work hard at their craft. It’s still barbaric, including the boxers, the promoters who exploit them, and the audiences who watch them, and the fact that it may be the only way for a poor guy to get out of the slums doesn’t make it less barbaric. Yes, most boxers are doing real fighting, compared to professional wrestling which is as much showmanship and fake choreography as it is real fighting. It’s still not a real sport.
That quote caught my eye too. Weirdest coming out post ever.
Look, no one is saying that boxers are worse than animals,* just that boxing is the noble art of inflicting brain damage. Which it absolutely, incontrovertibly is.
*whistles innocently
squash it? Drive it into the ground? Obliterate it with the mighty fists of control and violence? I’m afraid not, no.
What about those animals that scientists have observed in homosexual relationships? What are they worse than, plants?
Um, not sure it was a lame apology. Manny has merely expressed the Asian base-line on LGBT rights. The Phillipines is by far the most pro-LGBT community in Asia, but when 4.42 billion people in the region (incl. the Phillipines) do not support discrimination protections, recognition of relationships, or gender expression rights and in almost half of Asian states, same-sex activity is criminalised (Malaysia’s opposition leader is currently in jail for sodomy), Manny has not affected the status quo in the least. I say that to correct the idea that his apology was lame. Whether you agree with Manny or not, his apology was not necessary in the Phillipines (where he is running for senate). I believe this makes his response more genuine - as it gained him nothing.
And some minor corrections, Manny is not pursuing politics, he is seeking a senate position after almost 9 years of elected service. While Manny is Evangelical Christian, he is not running as an Evangelical Candidate, he is a member of the current Vice President’s United Nationalist Alliance. Also - again - Manny is respected as a politician because of his massive contributions to Philippine politics (including substantial charitable donations) in contrast to gangster politics, corrupt officials and downright criminal conduct (you would be amazed at the number of Asian politicians who are murderers, heck, head over to Indonesia). The chances of his statements affecting his politics is almost nil. Hence, again, I think it unfair to label his apology lame. I think his track record as a politician in the Phillipines earns him an better consideration.
I live everyday under the threat of arrest for publishing my viewpoints, I find it remarkably unfair that a politician that is willing to address his foibles when they cost him nothing politically is so easily dismissed, when politicians across asia are ignored despite their egregious acts of harm and self-interest. Very vitriolic and pejorative report Xeni. When I see an article about Najib Razak putting Anwar Ibrahim in prison for Sodomy I might take an article like this more seriously.
John - Kuala Lumpur
So why make the swipe at him running for political office solely on the basis of him being a fighter?
Yes, let’s shame people on their career choices, especially ones made out of desperation. Let’s shame sex workers, sanitation workers, and fishermen who plan on running for office, too.
Then there’s the string of comments calling boxing “barbaric” that you liked.
It’s clear what you intended to mean and I guess I shouldn’t be surprised at the reaction to combat sports here. Would you also blame the recidivism rates of black male criminals on their “barbaric” communities without viewing it within the context of oppression and white supremacy? Or any problematic and backwards attitudes they may have about women and race relations? Honestly, I feel like I’m hearing a bunch of old white people denounce rap music as nothing but a glorification of violence, drugs, and promiscuity when the reason those tropes exist is because of systematic racism.
But obviously you think people can be judged solely on the basis that they’re professional fighters which precludes them from ever having a valid opinion about anything but punching them in the face. Apparently, judging someone’s character and morality is some on and off switch and we instantly have to completely invalidate someone based on flaws he needs to work on. Forget about the 195 homes he built in his home province of Mindanao.
By the way, Muhammad Ali is considered a hero today for his support of black pride, unfiltered criticism of police brutality, and opposition to the Vietnam War even from the beginning of the war when it wasn’t cool to protest it. But he’s also on record saying homosexual and interracial relationships are abominable. You ready to throw him under the bus, too?
