Corned Brain, a Filipino Style

It is true, Filipinos are known for being happy people, but the irony of it all is that Filipinos also tend to make jokes and laugh on one’s death.

In the recent encounter that happened in Negros Occidental, innocents were killed by the long-running bloody hands of Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)—19 people were killed, including a student-leader from University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) Alyssa Alano and journalist Rj Ledesma.

Horrifying, innocent lives were taken, back-to-back accused as members of the New People's Army (NPA), when in fact they're not—already denied by the Communist Party of the Philippines. Yet, even if the discourse is all about one's death, how come that people would make fun of it?

Trolls and close-minded people spam the comment section with words such as “corned beef" together with laughing emoji on somebody's death. Not only making jokes, mocking the death, but rather questioning and somehow blaming them for their own death. One would question why they are there, and proceed to ignore the fact when answered then continue the mockery.

Now, it is not just about the claimed engkwentro between AFP and "NPA”, but rather how cruel it is for people online to click "haha” reactions on posts in relation to a death of someone fighting for the rights of many, doing what they can to show support to the local farmers. It's never been new—almost everything is misinterpreted by people who are not willing to listen and open their minds.

This is not just about trolls and nonsense words some people keep blabbering online—it is about how insensitive it is that even if one’s death is crucial enough, they'll find a way to make a joke, making it a source of laughter.

This attitude has always been evident ever since then, not only with the cases of death by so-called “NPA”—the churned minds of some continue to show even if it is a child's death during the extrajudicial killings. Nevertheless, the cruelty does not only involve those who were responsible for the killings, it also includes the people that laugh about an unacceptable death.

Even today, as similar cases continue to rise, the insensitivity among netizens continues to grow as well. This “corned beef" expression only reflects how inhumane laughing and mockery could be. The only thing that is “corned" here is the minds of people who keep their brain closed enough, crushing their own values—a Filipino style that is indeed not for daily use.