Left Flank

With only one group claiming responsibility, a non-event no one takes seriously, the most generous conspiracy, the Glorietta mall bombing as boon for the Arroyo administration meme, is hardly a compliment for Filipino politics.

(View photos at Glorietta Blast.)

Only slightly less appealing are either the «fire insurance» theory:

Does that mean that the government set the fire itself? Not necessarily, it would be premature to conclude that. However, the situation today can be likened to a case where you have roaming bands of arsonists. Given that terrorist threats are commonplace today, any President in a pickle and interested in self-preservation can simply relax his/her vigilance and let the terrorists do what comes naturally to them, knowing full well that the political windfall would go to him/her. He/she knows that in matters involving National Security where secrecy is involved, negligence is hard to detect.

Or, the puppet-master theory (a version of which Manila Bay Watch espouses, too):

It is more believable to suppose that another force is trying to exploit the growing rifts between President Arroyo and Speaker Joe de Venecia.

From my observations of the country?s political scene, it is clear that the aim of the bombing is the turning of the political crisis currently enmeshing the nation into real chaos.

This kind of situation has more benefits to terrorist groups or ultra-Rightists.

The goal of these groups is to hasten the polarization of the different political forces.

But, it's war-gaming as usual for US troops, even if shopping is curtailed.

«It will not affect our exercises. We will continue with the bilateral relationship that we have established. We will continue to do things in a normal fashion and continue our training,» Colonel Ben Mathews II, commander of the Marine Aircraft Group 36 and Talon Vision 08 exercise co-director, said on Saturday.

«Again, it was sad that this occurred but I don't think this should stop the continuing exercise,» he said.

«My concern is, of course, the welfare of my marines and sailors and our Philippine counterparts. We will take appropriate measures. We need to ensure we are safe and that we continue to do our bilateral exercise,» said Colonel John Mayer, commander of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and amphibious landing exercise co-director.

The venues of the exercises as well as humanitarian missions -- held inside the Clark and Subic freeports, Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Crow Valley reservation in Tarlac, Ternate in Cavite and Laguna -- are not going to be changed.

US troops based in Clark will be restricted within the economic zone during the 15-day exercise until October 30 but this, said Mathews, has always been the policy from the start of ground-air integrated training under Talon Vision.

Asked if he was allowing any troops to go out of Clark, he said: «Well, no. We are keeping our marines and sailors here in Clark. But we have been doing that since the start.»

«There are so many opportunities for our marines and sailors here to buy things and to eat at the nice restaurants and to enjoy the facilities that we don't really see the need for them to go out,» Mathews said.

Yet, the FBI is helping Philippines authorities nonetheless. Such official nonchalance in itself could be significant.

The most ridiculous commentary on Filipino politics, though might be this: «An alternative theory in the investigation into the Makati bombing is that it was accidentally set off by incendiary material inside the building.»

Make that clumsy employee president!