The benefits of walking.
Walking is incredibly good exercise. Most walkers have less incidences of cancer, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. For weight loss, walking does not depend so much on speed as it does on distance. Around 100 calories (a bottle of light beer, for example) is lost for every mile walked.
Modern medicine advocates walking as it supposedly adds years to one's lifespan. Not to mention, walking facilitates a commune with one's environment, invites meditation, and improves one's mental health. Rene Descartes cobbled up his books Le Monde and L'Homme on natural philosophy in his mind while walking, I believe.
Walking-out is also a fantastic exercise of our democracy. The students who walk out of classes on July 10 to join the protest march to Mendiola affirm that, yes, academics are important, but education does not limit itself to the classroom. By walking out, we realize that teachers with masters and doctorate degrees are nice and dandy but the streets can be teachers too. One can only learn so much theory in the school setting. Praxis arises from participation.
Walking-out then becomes an exercise of the country's youth, to show that we will be responsible for where this country is going, that we will not stand idly while lawmakers railroad a constitutional assembly without our side being heard. Walking-out shows that we do understand what is going on, that we do not simply flip to another channel or plug our ipods on when someone talks about something more important than, say, celebrity gossip. More importantly, walking-out shows that we have a clear opinion on the matter, that we oppose this bastardization of due process. Through this simple exercise, we show that we are the rightful successors of the Philippines, and we are staking our claim before they sell our country to foreigners one island at a time.
Scenes from the July 10 walkout last year:
Come join the July 10 walkout. It's a street party where everyone's invited. It's good for the body and freedom of spirit.
Modern medicine advocates walking as it supposedly adds years to one's lifespan. Not to mention, walking facilitates a commune with one's environment, invites meditation, and improves one's mental health. Rene Descartes cobbled up his books Le Monde and L'Homme on natural philosophy in his mind while walking, I believe.
Walking-out is also a fantastic exercise of our democracy. The students who walk out of classes on July 10 to join the protest march to Mendiola affirm that, yes, academics are important, but education does not limit itself to the classroom. By walking out, we realize that teachers with masters and doctorate degrees are nice and dandy but the streets can be teachers too. One can only learn so much theory in the school setting. Praxis arises from participation.
Walking-out then becomes an exercise of the country's youth, to show that we will be responsible for where this country is going, that we will not stand idly while lawmakers railroad a constitutional assembly without our side being heard. Walking-out shows that we do understand what is going on, that we do not simply flip to another channel or plug our ipods on when someone talks about something more important than, say, celebrity gossip. More importantly, walking-out shows that we have a clear opinion on the matter, that we oppose this bastardization of due process. Through this simple exercise, we show that we are the rightful successors of the Philippines, and we are staking our claim before they sell our country to foreigners one island at a time.
Scenes from the July 10 walkout last year:
Come join the July 10 walkout. It's a street party where everyone's invited. It's good for the body and freedom of spirit.