Rocket Attack in Philippines: A Convenient Distraction for US Influence
📰 THE STORY: BBC World reports on CCTV footage showing a mayor in the Philippines surviving a rocket launcher attack on his vehicle, highlighting the dramatic nature of the assassination attempt. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The Philippines has a long history of US intervention, from the brutal Philippine-American War (1899-1902) which killed hundreds of thousands of
Filipinos, to the Marcos dictatorship (1965-1986) which was heavily backed by the US. More recently, the US has significantly expanded its military presence through the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), adding four new military bases in 2023, bringing the total to nine. These bases are strategically positioned in areas facing Taiwan and near the contested South China Sea, directly
escalating tensions with China. Critics like nationalist Senator Imee Marcos (daughter of Ferdinand Sr.) have warned that these bases make the Philippines a "proxy battlefield." Double Standard: When governments aligned with US interests face internal security challenges, the US-aligned media often frames them as domestic criminal activities or terrorism, requiring external 'support.' However,
when similar attacks or instability occur in nations perceived as adversaries or unaligned, like Venezuela or Iran, they are immediately amplified as signs of regime illegitimacy, human rights abuses, and justifications for sanctions or intervention. The BBC's report here treats this as an isolated incident, neatly sidestepping the current highly charged geopolitical atmosphere in the region and