Falling ratings of Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo

It comes less of a surprise for the public to know that Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo (GMA) gets bad ratings for her work in the executive office. According to the survey on February 20 to 23, 2009 by the Social Weather Station Inc. (SWS,) her disapproval rating fell further to a net rating of negative (-) 33 (26% satisfied and 59% dissatisfied.)

“The President’s latest net satisfaction rating is lower compared to “poor” -24 percent (29 percent satisfied, 53 percent dissatisfied) in December and poor -27 (27 percent satisfied, 54 percent dissatisfied) in September.”—-Philstar (03/17/09, Sy, M)

More than half of the Filipinos don’t approve of GMA’s performance, in spite of Malacanang’s wish that the president be given appreciation for unrecognized “accomplishments.” Pres. Spokesman Lorelei Fajardo cites Arroyo’s work of insulating the country from the impacts of domestic and global economic crisis.

Many Filipinos feel this is untrue because the full blown effects of the financial crisis are yet to come. Even without the global crisis, the Philippines has been reeling in widespread poverty with about 40% of the population facing hunger each day. Her approval rating has been bad compared to past presidents Corazon Aquino, Fidel Ramos and Joseph Estrada. With the presidential election coming in 2010, the public appears to extend their patience for GMA,—opting to let her corruption-riddled government to pass. (Photo Credit: AP/ Aaron Familia)=0=

RELATED BLOGS: “Corruption scandals hurting Filipinos under Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo” Posted by mesiamd at 1/29/2009; “Not as a lecturer or as a judge,” EU thinks RP must do more to curb corruption Posted by mesiamd at 1/29/2009; “Corruption and apathy: where will these lead us?” Posted by mesiamd at 2/10/2009

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Obama gets a low grade from Wall Street economists

Midway thru Pres. Barack Obama’s post-election 100-day honeymoon period is an erosion of popularity. In spite of his “heroic” effort in trying to steer the US to the “right “ track, the new president gets a failing grade of 59% from majority of 49 Wall Street economists polled. According to the Wall Street Journal Survey, financial thinkers are dissatisfied with Obama’s economic policy. The Dow Jones fell close to ¼ of its value at the 7 weeks of his administration.

Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner who assumed his position in the Obama cabinet in spite of evading to pay taxes has a poor grade of 51%, while Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke scored better, with an average 71.

The changing result augurs badly for Obama who has enjoyed extraordinary popularity before and after the election. The high expectation is there, but he is tumbling down from the sky putting down his public approval to about 60%—quickly in just a few days. Considering the media’s slobbering love and public admiration for Obama, the downward trend of his approval rating is unexpected.

It’s a concern that Americans who disaprove of his policies are rising. The trend is a significant negative twist on how the public perceives his performance even if he was heralded as the hero who’ll deliver America and the world from economic woes. There is strong doubt if Americans can spend their way from bankruptcy by borrowing at the expense of current tax-payers and the next generation.(Photo Credit: tsevis) =0=

RELATED BLOG: “Fearless economic forecasts” Posted by mesiamd at 3/11/2009

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Survey says a rising number of Americans have “no religion”

The poll made by Program of Public Virtues of Trinity College in Hartford, CT between February and November last year reported that only 76.7% of Americans identified themselves as Christians, a 9.5% decline from the 86.2% in the 1990’s. Most of the attrition comes from non-Catholic denominations. The percentage of Catholics has significantly increased in the Southwest, greater than in the Northeast, shifting attention to the needs of Hispanics in the Roman Catholic Church.

Additional findings of the American Religious Identification Survey include:
1. Americans claiming “no religion” is up from 8.8% in 1990 to 14.2% in 2001 and 15% in 2008
2. Between 2001 and 2008, 4.7 million Americans claimed to have “no religion”
3. Northern New England is ahead of the Pacific Northwest as the least religious section of the country, with Vermont, at 34% with “no religion” leading all other states by 9 points.
4. 90% of the decline among Christians comes from the non-Catholic segment of the Christian population, mostly from mainline denominations, including Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Episcopalians/Anglicans, and the United Church of Christ. Source: http://usnews.com/ (03/09/0, Gilgoff. D)

This may represent a changing culture—- the rising secularization of United States where having “no religion” has turned to be more socially acceptable than a decade ago. The demographic shift among believers and non-believers may affect the way Americans think, vote, and live on issues like abortion, stem cell research, same-sex marriage, euthanasia, and education among others as liberals, leftists, and secular progressives veer away from the Judeo-Christian tradition which is the cornerstone of the moral and cultural values of America since it was established. (Photo Credit emardaalvinbabista) =0=

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Filipino hope & optimism

If only to prove that Filipinos are among the “happiest” people in the world, the poll by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) conducted last December shows that our kababayans are as optimistic as ever. Despite the gloomy picture of the economy, about 30% of Filipinos expect things will get better in the next 12 months. The positive outlook eases the worry at the time when the country was celebrating the Christmas holiday and the coming new year.

Economic pessimism, meanwhile, remained high in Metro Manila, worsening to -37 from -33. It eased to -21 from -28 in the Balance of Luzon, to -13 from -17 in Mindanao, and -15 from -18 in the Visayas. It eased to -8 from -22 among the class E; to -22 from -30 among the ABC classes; and stayed at -24 among class D, the survey found.—GMATV.News (02/02/09)

The basis of the bright outlook which rose 4% percentage points from three months ago is unclear. The government attributes the people’s hope to resiliency. Palace officials say the poverty-alleviation programs set up by the administration are giving the people some breather.

Yet, since economic hardship still remains high and indicators don’t generally support bullish confidence in the country, cultural and psychological factors may be at play to influence the survey’s optimistic result.

We rightly laud our innate positive mentality which helps us cope with the economic crisis. But we have the temptation to look at reality in a blurry prism, sometimes with a tinge of “denial.” Our country is mired in a protracted “crisis” which makes it tempting to rest painful issues at the back-burner. Perhaps, the survey should not bring us that much of hope if we understand our situation more. (Photo Credit: Usman Farooq)=0=

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