Nothing conjures such vile contempt from society more than the image of the male genitalia openly displayed in all its glory.

Of course, I’m speaking in general terms here, for I know that such contempt only exists because it is the reaction that society dictates and deems appropriate; in fact, I reckon that surreptitious individual reactions might really range from drooling to a little arousal to outright thoughts of being banged by the almighty phallus.

Okay, that hit really hard. To those of weak hearts, I must warn you: It hits harder as you read further.

I don’t know what is in the mighty penis that elicits such ostentatious reaction. Is it its shape and the way that it protrudes from the male midsection? Are they afraid of its ability to grow in size given the right motivation? That’s what I’m trying to find out.

They say that malice exists only in the mind. This is the main argument that novelty singers bring up whenever they release songs riddled with double-meanings that get the moralists outraged. It’s as if we buy that Aray is not about a woman taking in a big one down there or that Jumbo Hotdog really is about processed meat. Well it is about meat alright, but of a different kind.

If malice exists only in the mind, then that means that the image of a big fat dick triggers it; making the penis a symbol of some sort. But what does the penis represent that gives it such influence over the mind?

Of course, the organ that we have between our thighs symbolizes one major thing: our biological sex. It’s what our doctors look for in that ultrasound monitor to determine whether that organism inside a womb is a boy or a girl. If we follow this train of thought, then the very thing that the penis might represent is maleness which translates to masculinity and ultimately power.

The penis as a symbol for power is not new to a lot of us; after all, a number of other symbols for power are phallic in nature. The scepter, the royal symbol for absolute rule is a phallic symbol. High-powered firearms, which represent military might, is a phallic symbol. The World Trade Center, that symbolized corporate America’s might before 9/11, appeared as two big penises jutting out from the Big Apple; again, phallic symbol. I can site as many symbolisms as I can here and ironically, they would point back to the root of it all: The penis.

The equation of the phallus to power can probably be attributed to the traditional role that the penis-bearer (for lack of a better term) plays in the act of reproduction. In bed, the male is traditionally the dominant entity that controls the trials and tribulations of coitus. This is evident in the terms we use today in relation to copulation: screwing, penetrating, inserting, drilling, etcetera. All of the terms point to the male genitals invading that of his sex partner; though in my opinion, this is truly just a matter of perspective. We can choose to say that a man’s member is being enveloped by the vagina (or anus, if you’re queer) instead of the other way around, right? And what about fellatio, or good’ol cock-sucking? The penetration of the mouth, being the very orifice where we consume our sustenance, and the way the act is usually performed (with the “it” kneeling down) is a very powerful display of power. Sodomy is another manifestation of the penis’ relationship to power, with stories told that this very act is used to affirm the chain of command in chauvinistic organizations like the military.

So I guess that answered my question earlier. Penis is power. This might be the very reason why a few months ago, a number of holier-than-thou individuals got enraged by an exhibit by Mideo Cruz in CCP (Cultural Center of the Philippines) that includes an installation with a wood carving of a penis sticking out on a poster of Jesus Christ.

To be honest, I don’t know why I wrote about the penis and went all academic about it given that there are millions of other more interesting topics to write about. Blame it on the Vagina Monologues; maybe my hands just heeded the answers of billions of cocks around the world yearning for attention. By the way, there’s no pun intended on that last statement.

*Photo credit belongs to penny-arcade.com. The image is that of Mara, a recurring summon in the Playstation game series Persona.

They say rules are meant to be broken, and to some extent, I do believe it. For how many of the greatest men and women in history achieved their greatest moment if not for trawling the path others refused to take?

Society is a social illusion. We are all born into little imaginary boxes, classified into a number of categories and labeled to everybody’s heart’s content. At birth, doctors pronounce us as either a baby boy or baby girl even before we officially get our names. Before we can even grasp the concept of religion, we are already a Catholic, a Muslim, or under any other religious group (at least until we are old enough to decide for ourselves). Our nationality is basically out of our control as it is mostly attributed to where we were born. Yes, society gives us a sense of stability and a sense of equality wherein rules are the main attraction.

I am not saying that society is all that bad; without society, we’ll all be in anarchy. We will be solely driven by our instincts to satisfy our own needs and it will be like Survivor where we will all be cunning and ruthless.

What I’m trying to say here is that society should respect the uniqueness of its people. A society that frowns on tattoos and piercings for example, is a society that limits its people’s channels for self-expression. A society that takes down an art exhibit just because of a penis mold stuck in some religious group’s icon’s image is not a society that encourages free-thinking. A society that still refuses to give same-sex couples equal rights as their straight counterpart is a society that is blind towards the reality of its people.

Honestly, I actually don’t know why I am writing about this piece now. Probably it’s because I’m so tuned in to recent events that I begin to see how messed up the society that I currently live in is. What I have is a society that holds foreign ideals and fads in great esteem but abandons its heritage. What I have is a society that censors art for offending sanctimonious bigots and declares Carlo J. Caparas a national artist. What I have is a society that refuses to recognize the LGBT community by preventing them from entering politics through the party list system.

There is something terribly wrong in a society that puts Manny Pacquiao to the pedestal, and even in public office. There is something terribly wrong in a society that lets him host a TV game show, where his co-hosts squirm at every instance because it’s just that hard to fill in his dead-airs. There is something wrong in a society that thinks that the sport of inflicting pain on another human being using the fists is the fast lane to success. Well, I’ll be damned but I think Pacquiao is the very representation of what’s wrong in our society.

They say much of how a society acts is based on its culture. Loosely, culture is the consolidation of individual beliefs of a group of people. Given these relationships, to change one’s society is to change its culture, ergo we need to change our own individual beliefs. So to do this, one must remain independent from the thought of the many. The next time you see, hear or feel something wrong from the popular opinion, learn to disagree. Beg to differ.

*Photo credit belongs to http://www.artofthestate.co.uk

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Just want to share with you guys some of the things that I find interesting on YouTube:

Juana Change
The topic of politics is inherently boring, but Juana Change’s skits are so well thought off you couldn’t help but get your gray matter fired up. I’ll share this clip of her skit on the topic of the RH Bill and how her subtle ways expose the hypocrisy of the church:

Word of the Lourd
Searing commentary with sarcasm rivaling that of the Jessica Zafra captured on video – what more can you ask for?

Kathy Griffin/Wanda Sykes
I wish the local stand-up comedy industry can emulate these two– with routines full of wit plus a bit of social commentary on the side. I have been to a few comedy bars and all I noticed is that the Filipinos are still not past their slapstick addiction; I’m afraid this is a manifestation of our educational system’s failure to equip our people with the faculty to analyze complex concepts which are important in appreciating humor.

Cinematic Game Cutscenes
I just love seeing the fantastic environments in the latest installment of Final Fantasy or the epic opening movie of the Suikoden series. It’s my little escapist indulgence every once in a while.

HappySlip
Our very own Christine Gambito and her slice of life depictions of the Filipino daily life is a winner for me. And did I mention that she plays all the roles by herself? Well except for some that is filled in by the cutie KevJumba 

OMG Facts
My daily dose of trivia, just in case I get chosen to play in Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Did you know that you can actually die from popping a zit?

The Annoying Orange
Maybe it’s the infectious laugh (that I somehow find a little sexy, weird right?) but the Annoying Orange’s humor never fails to amaze me. Even if the guest for the day's fate is almost always inevitable (Knife!), the lines are just too witty to let go. About the murderous theme? I’m just pretending I’m playing Fruit Ninja :)

Motivational Videos
Nothing specific, I just love watching things that can pep up my mood ala The Secret. I also look for some self-hypnosis videos, especially ones that are for stress relief. I just download them and transfer them to my phone and plug the headphones in when I go to dreamland.

How To Videos
Instructions with visuals are always better than just plain steps written on paper. I learned a lot of things from these videos, this one below is how I learned how to load film on my Holga Lomo cam:

Talk of the Town
If I see something on Twitter/Facebook that I missed, I immediately search it on YouTube like this poor toddler run over and ignored by passersby in China (WARNING: Very disturbing video!):

A couple of weeks earlier, I hit rock bottom; my dad and I were not in good terms, I missed my boyfriend’s birthday, my mom nagged that I don’t visit her anymore and the most impacting of all - I got a “nasty surprise” from work. In short, I was in the hell week of hell weeks and everything was spiraling down. Of course being a practitioner of The Secret, I tried to gather all the strength I have to pull back my derailed life to the correct track but I failed at each attempt. It’s hard to see the silver lining when you can’t even see the cloud’s edges.

They made it sound too easy in The Secret, the process of shifting thoughts. Maybe it was supposed to be that way but my inner masochist probably loved basking on negative emotions too much it won’t let me shift gear. So the days dragged on and I was like a living zombie full of angst everywhere I go.

The thing about me is this: punishment really brings me down. It really does not deter me from doing things that made me deserve it in the first place. My previous bosses took a while before they noticed it but after they realized it, that’s the time I believe I started doing marvels for them. I hate this part of me, being so high maintenance. I can probably blame it to being a Leo, the reason why I get invigorated only with prodding; it seems that my motivation is directly proportional to the current state of my ego (and my ego only eats praises).

So there are a lot of things that were running in my mind then until that Thursday when we had our strat planning with our Quality and Training bigwig, Sarita. She flew in from India to check on us and she indirectly contributed to my current drive to excel and do well in my endeavors.
Okay, it is not in my nature to kiss ass. Actually, if you’ll survey my previous bosses, they would probably describe me as a rebel. But then I know great leaders when I see one; and as a former communication student, it always fascinates me how some carefully chosen pep words can really boost a person’s wilting morale. It’s a skill that I would want to emulate once I move a step higher in my career ladder.

So, attending the strat planning gave me a lot of eureka moments. One activity made realize how it is easier to critique things than to appreciate them. It’s a simple truth that most of us, including me, fail to realize especially when I’m with friends who seem to make it a hobby to lambaste other people on a regular basis. If only we can look past each other’s shortcomings, then maybe the world can be a better place.

Sometimes, recognition is never too much either. Who doesn’t like it when you get a good pat on the back? Positive scripting too does wonders for the working soul. Of course everybody has challenges, which is why I dissected the way she presented our inadequacies to our faces without sounding demeaning – another golden skill I would love to learn how to do.

As a general observation, I think activities like the strat planning are important just as our LEGO last August did wonders for us. But of course, one cannot expect everyone to take it that way and with that my answer is “different strokes for different folks”. Personally, I think the whole experience was more of an exercise in self-discovery – with the main goal of getting everyone moving towards excellence by motivating from within instead of pushing from the outside.

As a digitally social being, I tweeted about my newfound energy brought about by the said activity. With that, a friend asked me if I know how long my invigorated state will last. Honestly, I don’t know if there is going to be a point where I will backslide. But for now what I know is this: I should just continue feeding the fires of positive energy burning inside and feel the insatiable desire to move forward.

*Photo credit belongs to healthylifestyleplus.com.