Typhoon Rolly and Ulysses
1. Delayed Government Aid and Bayanihan
#CagayanNeedsHelp trended on Twitter after the circulation of videos of people
screaming for help as they were about to be drowned from the intense flooding in their
area which urged netizens to seek for help from private sectors as they expressed their
anger at the delayed government response (not final yet)
a. Virtue - People felt a sense of helplessness for they wanted to help but were not
physically able to. This is due to the extensive measures needed to rescue
people and the bad weather conditions. This is why people resorted to social
media by asking for help from those who are capable. This is an act of Virtue
because people recognized that rescuing the victims without having the right
knowledge to do so is immoral for it will only result in more casualties. In this
situation they have chosen the sweet spot known as the golden mean wherein
they did not ignore the cries for help but also did not dive headfirst into danger
when they knew they were not equipped for it. However, one must note that
these people must have done this out of habit and not from external pressure.
Furthermore, rudely criticizing the people in charge on social media is unethical
in the view of Virtue Ethics.
b. Deontology - During the incident, everyone on social media was boosting these
videos in an attempt to seek help for their sake. This would be considered moral
in Deontology if they had done this out of moral duty and would do this again
when presented with a similar situation. However, the aggression of openly
bashing the officials might not be the Kantian way as this means people are
allowed to speak ill of anyone and deem it as a moral act. Even if this meant
catching their attention, what’s important in Deontology is choosing the right
methosd regardless of consequence. In this case, sharing and bringing attention
to the problem whilst following social media etiquette is the right thing to do.
