Exactly, the professor softly repeated when he finally snapped out of what seemed to us as momentary depression. We know that the problem is not coming from the outside, he said. No foreigners to blame this time. We realize that the problem is within ourselves, but we do not want to admit it. It is so convenient for us to blame the government for its corruption, the politicians for excessive politicking, the terrorists for the hostage crisis, the military for not catching the terrorists, the Church for moral degradation.

So convenient that it has become a habit, the professor continued. We leave ourselves out of the picture, he said, even if in fact we ourselves made the picture. We elected the politicians�

Sir! We objected. We cannot be blamed for the mandate of some really bad politicians-we weren't even born yet when they were elected into office. It was your generation, sir, who put them where they have been for the past few years, making pretty bad policies. Those policies failed to address the issues in society, such as poverty and corruption. Poverty drove many into becoming bandits. Corruption allowed the budget meant for upgrading the military to go elsewhere. Poverty and corruption altogether bent most people's morals.

We cannot be at fault, either, my outspoken seatmate added, for the true color this newly elected government is showing this early in its office. We weren't even registered. Had we been registered, we could have changed the world. Now, thanks to those fortunate enough to be registered, we all have to bear the consequences they determined for us through their unwise votes.

Ah, the professor countered, his old spark back after the newspaper drained it from him. We were all sneering at him, baring our fangs, feeling smug at the thought that we were able to drive him up against the wall with our argument.

But you see? This is what I've been telling you all along, he said. There is something very wrong in us Filipinos, in the way we think, and in the way we deal with things. Blame others, resigned to the fact that nothing can be done about it. So convenient, that it has become a habit.

Everyone in class just bit their lips and silently allowed him to prod on.

Such mentality has been the trend for generations, and it probably would remain as it is for generations more to come, unless we take drastic measures upon our hands, he declared.

Bloodshed, Bonifacio-style? We sheepishly asked through biting pangs of guilt and defeat.

The professor squared himself and took a deep breath. He was gearing up for his ultimate argument. True, he agreed. Gone are the days of Bonifacio, because the idealisms they fought for are now lost. The very designs he wanted to rid the country of have become too engraved in our system to be erased by any revolt. Any future revolutions of that kind or by peaceful means will ultimately be no more than temporary remedies to the Filipinos' extremely short memories. What we need is an entirely new generation, not one that sprung up from idealistic traces of the old corrupted lineage. In short...