DECENCY IN THE TIME OF TIKTOK

Class and breeding — no, not Jane Austen’s matchmaking obsessions or the survivalist’s fantasy of repopulating Earth after a zombie apocalypse, but something else entirely.

- RICARDO T. PAMINTUAN

I'm referring to class as elegance, taste, restraint. I’m picturing Audrey Hepburn having Breakfast at Tiffany's, not Tony Montana (a.k.a. Scarface) soaking in a huge tub wearing bling and smoking a cigar while the champagne chills in a bucket of ice.

Breeding means good manners, civility, the ability to argue without sounding like a Twitter troll with unli data. It’s Shakespeare's

In the Philippines, breaches of decency play out like recurring gags in a sitcom: the driver who cuts across five lanes, the politician who pockets public funds with all the subtlety of Gollum clutching his ‘precious,’ the bystander who live-streams an accident instead of helping out.

"bearing,” a lawyer's “countenance,” or a crossword puzzle solver’s “mien.” In other words, it’s not just how you shine under the spotlight, but how you carry yourself when you're simply in the background.

In the Philippines, however, “class” may be confused with “cash.” A Maybach in the driveway (along with a fleet of luxury vehicles) is brandished as proof of refinement, even if the owners are being investigated for graft before the Senate. For that matter, not knowing what a Maybach is does not make one plebeian.

True breeding is quieter, more refined. It’s success without the cheer team or coterie of sycophants; education without condescension; disagreement without decibels or violence. It means your parents raised you well.

The trouble is, somewhere between dial-up Internet and TikTok, something got lost in translation. Today, decency is as rare as “honest politicians” — a fine example of an oxymoron, if you ask me.