A presidential pardon that’s unpardonable; The toxic byproducts of worship
A presidential pardon that’s unpardonable; The toxic byproducts of worship
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Philippines
A presidential pardon that’s unpardonable
Editorial
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
The president has a message for us all: Crime pays, said the Manila Philippine Daily Inquirer in an editorial. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has granted a full pardon to convicted plunderer Joseph Estrada, a former movie star who was elected president in 1998 and proceeded to rob the state treasury of millions. Why did Arroyo pardon him? She hasn’t given us a single good reason. Arrested in 2001, Estrada never acknowledged his guilt, much less expressed remorse or repentance, and he never gave back the money. Arroyo can hardly cite humanitarian reasons for the pardon: Estrada may be 70 years old, but he was not doing hard time. Instead, he was under house arrest in his well-appointed villa on the beach, and he was frequently allowed to leave to visit relatives or get medical care. Is Estrada’s six-year detention, under such comfortable conditions, punishment enough for the crime of plunder committed by the highest official of the land? Obviously not. Arroyo simply may have wanted to divert attention from her own misdeeds—after all, she is currently being investigated for allegedly accepting bribes and kickbacks. And for some reason, Estrada himself remains a popular figure in some circles. This pardon is not about justice. It is solely intended to help prop up a regime that is being pummeled by scandal after scandal.
India
The toxic byproducts of worship
Jaideep Mazumdar
Outlook India
Surely the goddess Durga would not approve of her worshippers’ behavior, said Jaideep Mazumdar in Delhi’s Outlook India magazine. Each year, Hindus build hundreds of platform tents, decorated inside and out with metal, plastic, and flowers, to house brightly painted clay idols of Durga and her children. At the end of the five-day festival, the idols are immersed in the nearest body of water—and left there to rot. This year, authorities in Calcutta set up huge trash bins where worshippers could dump their debris at the close of the festivities. Apparently, hardly anyone was so civicminded. When the festival ended last week, the banks of the Ganges made a sorry sight, clogged with litter, including a large amount of plastic. Next year, authorities plan to enforce anti-litter regulations more stringently. And they’d do well, too, to ban the use of synthetic paints containing lead and zinc, which pollute the river and destroy aquatic life. The endangered Ganges dolphin, for example, suffers every year in the wake of the Durga festival. Idols will have to be immersed, but there are decent and environmentally friendly ways of doing so.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
What to know when filing a hurricane insurance claim
The Explainer A step-by-step to figure out what insurance will cover and what else you can do beyond filing a claim
By Becca Stanek Published
-
How fees impact your investment portfolio — and how to save on them
The Explainer Even seemingly small fees can take a big bite out of returns
By Becca Stanek Published
-
Enemy without
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
Trump surrenders in Georgia election subversion case
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries chosen to succeed Pelosi as leader of House Democrats
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
GOP leader Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker may really be in peril
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Are China's protests a real threat for Beijing?
opinion The sharpest opinions on the debate from around the web
By Harold Maass Published
-
Who is Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist who dined with Trump and Kanye?
Speed Read From Charlottesville to Mar-a-Lago in just five years
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Jury convicts Oath Keepers Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs of seditious conspiracy in landmark Jan. 6 verdict
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
A look at the White House's festive and homey holiday decor
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
Bob Iger addresses 'Don't Say Gay' bill, says inclusion is part of Disney's values
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published