By Jan Vicente B. Pekas
Perhaps our inclination towards basketball has left many of us in the dark of the happenings in the world of sports but the world cup, the biggest sporting event in the world is nearing its climax. Only a couple of teams remain and very soon, our social media will be filled with all things soccer, or football as the rest of the world calls it. There is still time to hop on the bandwagon and get on with the times.
One of the great things about watching soccer is the fact that you won’t get disturbed while watching the matches. There are no commercial breaks within the 2 halves of the match and you can focus on the field without being disturbed. However, in this world cup that is held in the U.S. They introduced hydration breaks. Within the match, players would stop playing for 3 minutes.
In those 3 minutes, they can sneak in commercials in a sport that has long been played without one. 3 minutes long it may be, but the revenue earned amounts to millions. Not to mention the absurd ticket prices. Passionate fans must spend thousands of U.S. dollars just to watch their countrymen battle it out on the biggest stage.
This absurd commercialization in this sport that started out with commoners presenting such a disgusting disparity with its history. Common fans cannot support their team with the absurd ticket prices. Even the way the sport is played is being tampered with for the sake of sneaking in commercial breaks.
Going back to our home, I can see condos and gated subdivisions being built on our mountains. Trees cut down and ancestral lands violated for the sake of “development”. Here in Tuba, condos are starting to pop up as hills are cleaved to make space. As you make your way in Marcos Highway in Tuba, one second you can enjoy a wonderful scenery and the next you see mountains split apart, bald spots where luscious trees should be many.
There is a need for stronger resistance against the “commercialization” of our lands. The history and connection of the local people to these lands are more valuable than any profits that capitalists present for the sake of “developing” the area. Don’t be duped into thinking that you must make way for a necessary invasion against nature and our home. That in order for development to occur, you must abandon the same lands your grandparents and their grandparents have once roamed.
Just as these lands have provided for generations of Cordillerans, there is now a need to reciprocate. Defend these lands against private corporations that do not care about its connection to the people.
Cordillerans are tied to their lands, violation towards it is equivalent to an attack on our souls. **
