I don’t usually comment on current events, but there’s something patently ridiculous about this little hostage crisis currently unfolding in Manila:
The head of a day care centre in the Philippines has seized a busload of his children, saying he is demanding better housing and education for them.
[ ... ] “I am so sorry I took these children in a violent action to call the attention of the Filipino people to open their minds to the police reality,” he said.
[...] Officials said Jun Ducat [the hostage-taker] was involved in a hostage-taking incident using fake grenades 20 years ago.
You rarely see anyone take hostages of the people they are trying to help, but I guess the notion of staging a dramatic hostage negotiation from inside a bus in the middle of the crowded streets of Manila was just too much to resist. The biggest question on my mind: is this Robin Hood going to actually do anything to those kids if his demands aren’t met? Seems to me like there’s a logical disconnect in threatening to kill these children if they aren’t given better housing and education. On the other hand, this guy is clearly operating on some different plane of reasoning so maybe it makes sense to him.
The second biggest question on my mind: is it customary for day care centres to have ex-hostage-takers on their payroll? Might not be the best kinda guy to be taking care of your kids, know what I’m saying?