Great post OP. I wish I had read this before my first trip there. To give you some background: I was just getting into redpill, relatively short white guy who was disillusioned with western women and looking for something more feminine. When I first landed and experienced the sea of skinny feminine women eye-fucking me and advertising their family oriented-ness, I thought I was in heaven. It quickly went to my head and I saw every problem with rose-colored glasses. I blindly accepted a lot of the bullshit stories they told me because I wanted to. I ignored a lot of red flags when it came to the lying, manipulation, and drama. Anyone that's relatively inexperienced and going there for the first time should read your post as a fair warning. I laughed out loud from how accurate some of your points were. I'd like to add my experiences to some of those.
31. Low time preference:
This was the one of the things that drove me crazy about Filipinos. They will come to you asking for money for a problem because they never save a penny. The weeks leading up to this they're posting pictures of going out to expensive clubs, eating out, and so on. They get a bonus and spend it on a feast for their family, cockfighting and tanduay ice. If they just had a rainy day fund, 90% of their problems would disappear. I suspect this inability to save for productive investment is one of the reasons their economy hasn't quite flourished yet.
32. Manipulative family members:
I don't know how these people can live with themselves. I dated a filipina who had a cousin who never took life seriously, got knocked up, then dumped the kid on her parents and siblings. She'd dissappear for weeks and show up and act like nothing happened, asking for money to raise the kid. Another filipina had brothers who would do shabu (meth?), never work, then try to guilt trip her that she had a nice job in Cebu and never sent back money. I wish more Filipinos would take the attitude that people need to fix the problems they create, but then I guess that would take away some of the warmth they're renowned for.
45. Protectionist economy:
I think this causes huge problems for them. They put their ego ahead of practical issues. They shut down Subic (Clark was shut down voluntarily due to ash from the mt. pinutubo eruption if I recall) because they didn't like the symbolism of having a foreign military base on their soil. Well, they lost a massive chunk of easy GDP as a result, and many of the service industries in the area went belly up. They make it nigh-impossible to legally fully own a business there unless you've got a lot of money to throw around. That drives away foreign investment. The majority of Filipinos don't have the means or inclination to save up re: 31, so jobs are never created. A needless stifling of growth.
47. Issue of squatting:
Another impediment to growth. I was in Bulacan a few years ago and noticed pilons extending out in a valley. I asked the father of the girl I was dating what that was all about. Apparently president Arroyo gave China rights to some islands in the South China Sea in return for them building a rail line between Manila and Angeles. Angeles is a hub for interasian flights, and serves a large expat community. This convenient link would have allowed substantial growth for the economies in Manila and Angeles. However, there was too many squatter villages living along the rail line, that popular support killed the project. At least, that's the story I heard.
A few more things:
94. Take anything a guy whose married to a Filipina says with a massive grain of salt. These guys usually never grow out of the rose-tinted glasses phase and are dyed in the wool blue pill. I was guilty of this for a while. They perpetuate ideas like relieving tampo with supplication. I remember on ROK a few years back a guy who married a filipina said they were sexually conservative, and I laughed my ass off. Same goes for 50-something westerners who just landed in Cebu to run a BPO who get their end wet with a hot 20 year old and instantly fall in love.
95. Not that you should be looking for an LTR, but they are probably the most careless women on the planet when it comes to hiding red flags. You can easily spot pros if they live in Angeles or Pasig, have lots of older men "liking" their facebook or instagram posts, posting photos with the back of a guy in the background or if they have pictures in a nice hotel while claiming they're poor. These girls are always cruising for a better option, yet get jealous at the drop of the hat and expect you to be 110% faithful. Many of them are more than happy to have an older guy that believes she's his little snowflake sending her hundreds of dollars every month while she bangs any hot foreigner who comes through her city. Using tineye on their profile pictures reveal them to be massive hypocrits.
96. Some of the best people you will meet will be the family breadwinners. There's usually a handful of people who are working hard and being exploited by the rest of the family. These people are too nice for their own good, but they're very trustworthy and welcome the friendship of someone who's not trying to get something from them. My ex's father went from a poor rice farmer who didn't own shoes and ate meat only once a year, to a man who was able to provide cars for his 4 children and start businesses for his less well off siblings. He was one of the most generous and wisest people I've ever met.
97. There's a Filipino concept called Utang no Loob, which basically means that if someone does you a favor, you're indebted to them. Read about it, never actually experienced it. The most I've ever gotten for doing massive favors was being able to sit at the head of the table. Just another expat myth. Not worth it.
98. You will be asked to tip for the most mundane things. Porters will grab your luggage without asking, carry it 20 yards, and expect a tip. Guys outside of malls will motion a trike to come forward a few feet and ask for a tip. I normally don't agree with this, but PI is an extremely poor country, and these guys are at least trying to work. There's not many opportunities for most of these people, and I think work ethic should be rewarded, even if it's only a peso or two. This is the most bleeding heart I get.
99. There is a massive disparity in the spectrum of women. You can find ultra poor uneducated virgins who dream of having a man to cook for and a house to clean, and upper class educated women who take being in the kitchen as an insult. When I dated a woman from the visayas, I never got my own drinks and was treated like a king. I also dated a "ramp model" who had a massive chip on her shoulder and couldn't boil an egg. I could never stand either long term. The feminity of the poor women is offset with an almost total inability to understand or converse about interesting or philosophical topics, and it gets boring FAST. The "model" or very upper class women are often raised with a maid in the house who does all the chores, and are used to being treated like princesses their whole lives. They can be super self-absorbed and lack many basic domestic skills. Many times they also have politician or powerful sponsors that might get jealous (even though they're married) about someone sleeping with their mistress, which is bad news for you.
100. Date a Warai woman (those from Samar) at your own risk. Be prepared for massive drama, jealousy, and dragging them out of fights.
31. Low time preference:
This was the one of the things that drove me crazy about Filipinos. They will come to you asking for money for a problem because they never save a penny. The weeks leading up to this they're posting pictures of going out to expensive clubs, eating out, and so on. They get a bonus and spend it on a feast for their family, cockfighting and tanduay ice. If they just had a rainy day fund, 90% of their problems would disappear. I suspect this inability to save for productive investment is one of the reasons their economy hasn't quite flourished yet.
32. Manipulative family members:
I don't know how these people can live with themselves. I dated a filipina who had a cousin who never took life seriously, got knocked up, then dumped the kid on her parents and siblings. She'd dissappear for weeks and show up and act like nothing happened, asking for money to raise the kid. Another filipina had brothers who would do shabu (meth?), never work, then try to guilt trip her that she had a nice job in Cebu and never sent back money. I wish more Filipinos would take the attitude that people need to fix the problems they create, but then I guess that would take away some of the warmth they're renowned for.
45. Protectionist economy:
I think this causes huge problems for them. They put their ego ahead of practical issues. They shut down Subic (Clark was shut down voluntarily due to ash from the mt. pinutubo eruption if I recall) because they didn't like the symbolism of having a foreign military base on their soil. Well, they lost a massive chunk of easy GDP as a result, and many of the service industries in the area went belly up. They make it nigh-impossible to legally fully own a business there unless you've got a lot of money to throw around. That drives away foreign investment. The majority of Filipinos don't have the means or inclination to save up re: 31, so jobs are never created. A needless stifling of growth.
47. Issue of squatting:
Another impediment to growth. I was in Bulacan a few years ago and noticed pilons extending out in a valley. I asked the father of the girl I was dating what that was all about. Apparently president Arroyo gave China rights to some islands in the South China Sea in return for them building a rail line between Manila and Angeles. Angeles is a hub for interasian flights, and serves a large expat community. This convenient link would have allowed substantial growth for the economies in Manila and Angeles. However, there was too many squatter villages living along the rail line, that popular support killed the project. At least, that's the story I heard.
A few more things:
94. Take anything a guy whose married to a Filipina says with a massive grain of salt. These guys usually never grow out of the rose-tinted glasses phase and are dyed in the wool blue pill. I was guilty of this for a while. They perpetuate ideas like relieving tampo with supplication. I remember on ROK a few years back a guy who married a filipina said they were sexually conservative, and I laughed my ass off. Same goes for 50-something westerners who just landed in Cebu to run a BPO who get their end wet with a hot 20 year old and instantly fall in love.
95. Not that you should be looking for an LTR, but they are probably the most careless women on the planet when it comes to hiding red flags. You can easily spot pros if they live in Angeles or Pasig, have lots of older men "liking" their facebook or instagram posts, posting photos with the back of a guy in the background or if they have pictures in a nice hotel while claiming they're poor. These girls are always cruising for a better option, yet get jealous at the drop of the hat and expect you to be 110% faithful. Many of them are more than happy to have an older guy that believes she's his little snowflake sending her hundreds of dollars every month while she bangs any hot foreigner who comes through her city. Using tineye on their profile pictures reveal them to be massive hypocrits.
96. Some of the best people you will meet will be the family breadwinners. There's usually a handful of people who are working hard and being exploited by the rest of the family. These people are too nice for their own good, but they're very trustworthy and welcome the friendship of someone who's not trying to get something from them. My ex's father went from a poor rice farmer who didn't own shoes and ate meat only once a year, to a man who was able to provide cars for his 4 children and start businesses for his less well off siblings. He was one of the most generous and wisest people I've ever met.
97. There's a Filipino concept called Utang no Loob, which basically means that if someone does you a favor, you're indebted to them. Read about it, never actually experienced it. The most I've ever gotten for doing massive favors was being able to sit at the head of the table. Just another expat myth. Not worth it.
98. You will be asked to tip for the most mundane things. Porters will grab your luggage without asking, carry it 20 yards, and expect a tip. Guys outside of malls will motion a trike to come forward a few feet and ask for a tip. I normally don't agree with this, but PI is an extremely poor country, and these guys are at least trying to work. There's not many opportunities for most of these people, and I think work ethic should be rewarded, even if it's only a peso or two. This is the most bleeding heart I get.
99. There is a massive disparity in the spectrum of women. You can find ultra poor uneducated virgins who dream of having a man to cook for and a house to clean, and upper class educated women who take being in the kitchen as an insult. When I dated a woman from the visayas, I never got my own drinks and was treated like a king. I also dated a "ramp model" who had a massive chip on her shoulder and couldn't boil an egg. I could never stand either long term. The feminity of the poor women is offset with an almost total inability to understand or converse about interesting or philosophical topics, and it gets boring FAST. The "model" or very upper class women are often raised with a maid in the house who does all the chores, and are used to being treated like princesses their whole lives. They can be super self-absorbed and lack many basic domestic skills. Many times they also have politician or powerful sponsors that might get jealous (even though they're married) about someone sleeping with their mistress, which is bad news for you.
100. Date a Warai woman (those from Samar) at your own risk. Be prepared for massive drama, jealousy, and dragging them out of fights.