Of course there are similar stories in the pages of newspapers around the world. I myself survived 15 years in Los Angeles, home of drive-by shootings, the Manson Family, the Watts Riots, and the Hillside Strangler. Low grade violence and the threat of the Big One hitting at any time were integrated into the lifestyle and psyche. Yet the randomness and sheer ferocity of some of the violence we see in Manila are somehow even more shocking. Laboratory studies show that overcrowded conditions cause aggressive behaviors in both cats and rats, to an extent far exceeding the aggression exhibited when there is plenty of space.
Overcrowded conditions create chronic anxiety and contribute to aggressive behavior.
The inhumanity in Manila doesn't just play out in violent incidents. The business world itself is not a very nice place, especially when it comes to the way Filipino Captains of Industry treat the working class. Just to give one example, the thousands of girls who work in certain large department stores are mercilessly exploited and treated like serfs. The next time you feel like going ballistic about the lack of customer service that characterizes such places, bear in mind that the employees are not allowed to talk to one another, must always remains standing, and earn somewhere around a hundred bucks US a month for working 50 hours a week. They live with constant insecurity related to the fact that they are fired en masse whenever labor organizers are suspected to be in the neighborhood, generally every six months or so.