1. Empiricism explains the claim to see is to believe.

I agree with this claim to the extent that most ideas are formed only when they pass through the senses. But as to the point that intangible ideas, like God, faith, and salvation, are dismissed because they are not perceptible, I vehemently disagree with this claim. Reality as well as meaningfulness is not based solely on their verifiability through the senses. As the book The Little Prince mentions, What is important is invisible to the ideas. 2. I disagree. Faith must go hand in hand with reason. This is the stand of my religion (Catholicism). Philosophy supports religious knowledge in so many ways. Gods existence, for instance, may be explained in the Five Ways of St. Thomas. Mystery and the Sense of the Sacred and the Holy may be explained by the philosophy of religion of John Hick. Faith by itself, according to John Wisdom, is an interpretative act. Theology is grounded on philosophy. The latter serves the former by explaining its dogmas and various religious tenets. 3. On the basis of ones family background, the basic elements of ones ideology and character are formed. The family is the basic autonomous social institution. It reflects the State in its micro fashion. The ideological framework therefore of the parents, as influenced by the State, is passed to the children. This will be deeply engrained in them. Virtues (or vices) likewise will be taught to the children, either theoretically or by example. On the basis of prevailing economic condition of the country, learning or pursuit of knowledge may take some form. If the country is rich, generally knowledge will flourish. If the country is poor, there will be no chance for pursuing higher form of excellence inasmuch as efforts will be put in acquisition of more basic needs, like food, clothing, and shelter. 4. In contrast to scientific beliefs, superstitious beliefs are not based on verifiable facts. These are ideas explainable through supernatural means. While in sciences, the answer to queries is found in nature itself, in superstitious beliefs, the explanations are done upon reliance on mythological personalities. Atang, kulam, and karma are some examples. These beliefs come from the desire of the people to explain natural phenomena like sickness and death. While myths are unscientific, some of them were proven true. Like for instance, in the ancient times, people believed that the sun is a god that gives life to the world. While the sun is not really a god, it is the source of life and sustenance of all living things here on earth. Life spurs curiosity which is necessary for the advancement of science. It gives color to the otherwise dull pure science. Thus, life would not be better without these superstitious beliefs. 5. I disagree. An opinion is a statement of judgment or view about a particular subject which may not be factual or certain. Rudimentarily, it is a personal appraisal of anything. As such, opinions do vary from person to person but to say that no opinion is better than any other is a misconstruction. Assenting to such notion would destroy the flow of any intelligent discussion or inquiry concerning anything from scientific to philosophical concepts.

Now and then we would hear opinions ranging from nonsensical to outright stupid. Opinions like these ensue more often from religious or spiritual point of views where statements lacking even an iota of empirical nor rational sense are brewed so to explain what are so-called miracles or unexplainable events. So are racist and chauvinistic opinions such as white people are superior to people of other racial background or women should not be allowed to vote. More importantly, opinions matter most in the medical field where a doctors opinion makes a faith healers method of curing a person look foolish. Equality in opinion would strip authority from an expert and would render the rigorous study of medicine useless. 6. No, we dont always get accurate information from the mass media. Media in any form is a transmittal of information to large audience which is overseen by people who are not exempted from human fallibility. True, the media industry, especially the news broadcasting business, requires a stringent process of acquisition and filtering of information before passing it out but other media sources do not apply such strict measures and are more prone to dissemination of false information. The Internet for the most part of it offers materials which are posted by ordinary people. One obvious example would be Wikipedia which is often cited by students in making their papers but is in fact editable by anyone who has access to the internet. Yet the inaccuracies in the articles found in the mentioned site do not stop people from relying on it in making their homework and even corporate presentations. But more than this, numerous TV advertisements shamelessly promote commodities (from beauty products to laundry powders) through creatively deceitful commercials. Theres a simple way to protect ourselves from false information that is to be always skeptical and critical of the data we receive, to look at the bigger picture and perusing a story in both sides of the coin. 7. 8. The justice system in the Philippines is often ridiculed as just-tiis system with its turtle-paced resolution of cases. Its supposed to be the bulwark of liberty, the protector of the poor against social oppression yet Filipinos would say that justice is served only to those who have the means. The judiciary system is a social organization not impregnable by corruption or politics. Juries are sometimes swayed by politicians or powerful people to manipulate the development of cases in to the benefit of their selfinterests. Putting that aside, there are instances of innocent people going to jail and the offender roaming free because of the lapse in judgment in the part of the Judge or Jury. Evidences are sometimes not enough to persuade and convince the judge of the guilt of the culprit especially when the corresponding defense is overwhelming. The Judges task however is to be objective and detached in determining the guilt of the accused. Yet the truth is sometimes overshadowed by the skillful manipulation of facts, evidence, and argumentation of lawyers. Judges dont reach certainty in their resolutions because they were not present in the unfolding of the events; they only rely on witnesses and evidences presented before them whose validity is yet to be weighed. All in all, the verdict of the court is just knowledge arising from mostly a rationalization and intuition in contemplating and weighing the evidences.

9. Ideally, politicians as well as government officials should always tell the truth. But of course people lie. People lie for so many reasons people lie to impress other people, to escape controversies, and to cover other lies they made up. On the other hand, when the act of honesty endangers the welfare of the people, I believe that the latter should be given more weight. In my opinion, the act of lying in this case is not intended to deprive the people of their right to information rather it is a paternal act on the side of the government to prevent greater harm on the people. 10. Assuming there is only one God, the reason why there are so many religions is because we cannot know God. All the confusion about which religion is the right one stems from our inability to have a direct, physical contact with God. The belief in God is essentially a spiritual and emotional phenomenon founded on axioms which are predominantly not provable but taken as true at face value. It is a purely subjective experience so strong that people tend to evoke it in others. However, since it is a personal feeling devoid of concrete material demonstration, none can agree as to what God actually is. Xenophanes once wisely said that if oxen and horses were able to depict their gods they would do so in a manner that would mirror themselves. Most of religion worship and attribute person-like qualities to their respective God/s which varies according to peoples culture and liking. People have conflicting views about themselves and their environment and this is reflected in their religion.