Talk of the town is the newest pastoral statement of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines. Most of the documents were expected, but what had sent people speculating and gesticulating is the part on the impeachment. The controversial part is this:

We are undoubtedly for the search for truth. (But) we are not inclined at the present moment to favor the impeachment process as the means for establishing the truth. For unless the process and its rules as well as the mindsets of all participating parties, pro and con, are guided by no other motive than genuine concern for the common good, impeachment will once again serve as an unproductive political exercise, dismaying every citizen, and deepening the citizen’s negative perception of politicians, left, right and center. (as quoted from PCIJ blog)

This has been misread, and the CBCP had to do a press conference just to clarify the message. So almost all news bannered “CBCP not supporting impeachment”.

I have only two comments on this matter. One, the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines, as represented by the CBCP, is a skeptical Church, untrusting the political institutions that could have brought about the truth behind the uncertainties of our times. It is somehow a representation of how the majority (how big is this majority I do not know) views our political institutions, which is also expounded by One Voice. But the wording of its statement, instead of clarifying has instead left a lot of people in confusion. Many thought that the bishops were trying to please everybody, but ended up pushing nothing on the table. Its members were even accused of being bought off by the Fortress by the Pasig.

So to clarify: the Church is not inclined to support the impeachment given the same circumstances that had brought the impeachment to the garbage bin last year still exists; thus the truth will never come out in such an activity.

Which leads me to my second comment: the statement is a BIG implied insult against the House of Representatives and the Congress as a whole. For if it was a credible and trustworthy body, the Church would have not said it that way. But it is there, represented by the clause “For unless the process and its rules as well as the mindsets of all participating parties, pro and con, are guided by no other motive than genuine concern for the common good“. Very, very clear. Very, very clever.

In a previous post, I had speculated that the current impeachment will end up like last year, and pragmatically called for anti-Arroyo groups to campaign for an impeachment Congress in the elections next year. Nothing will come up with the current Congress, and it seems that the CBCP shares this view.

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I failed to see Manolo Quezon’s The Explainer. I was watching the reformatted ANC yesterday, and I was wondering about that show. When I arrived at the office, I found out through a blog post about the show. And the fact that the Dean was a guest, I was very disappointed. And since I slept here in the office today, I failed to see the replay.

MLQ3 presented the links to the materials shown in the show in a blog post, and I think it was a very good play on convergence between a TV show and a blog. In a reply to a comment, he expressed reservations about the legal exposure of ABS-CBN about The Explainer blog. I think what he means is that what information can he post on the blog that will not conflict with ABS-CBN’s copyright. But I think what he did with that blog post is the right thing to do: post the links to the materials used, and let the user read them as they please.