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Jumping Jologs
They call them “Jumping Jologs” because they jump around in mosh pits and well, because they’re jologs. And they call them jologs because …?
There are two derivations. The more complex derivation says that “jolog” was originally spelled “dyolog,” which could be broken down to daing, tuyo, itlog – pretty standard fare for poor people. “Dyolog” quickly morphed into “jolog” but the connotation remained the same: poor people.
Others insist on a different derivation. “Jolog” they say is derived from “Jolina Organization,” a derisive name for people who exhibited the kind of tackiness that was exemplified by Jolina Magdangal – a teeny-bopper who, in the early part of her career, affected an over-the-top fashion sense. As a sidelight, her fashion has mellowed since then and you’d be hard-pressed to google a picture of her back when she could’ve given Boy George a run for his money.
Being called “jolog” therefore, meant that one was as tacky as Jolina.
Now of course there is a huge difference between being poor and being tacky (I mean, Tessa Prieto is tacky but she isn’t poor), but in the fermenting plant that is the Filipino psyche, it was inevitable that the two would eventually become soul-sisters, almost synonymous with each other. Naturally, people Tessa Prieto who are unquestionably rich are labelled eccentric, or avant-garde, or even fashion-icon.
So now, “jolog” carries the hybrid connotation of having no class and being poor. Incidentally, a similar process previously resulted in the word “bakya” carrying exactly the same signification as jolog: poor and tacky.
So, Jumping Jologs (or JJs) is how UP students have come to refer to people they consider poor and tacky – tacky being defined as espousing an aesthetic that is at variance with the preppy fashion currently in vogue in Diliman.
The jologs aesthetic it seems – remember that what constitutes the “tacky” aspect of jologism is prolly very fluid considering it is based on fashion tastes – is currently roughly equivalent to the emo aesthetic, as this blogger describes it.
I loathed every last one of them black-wearing, bangs-dangling, and multi-pierced jumping jolog in there. There, I said it.
And of course, Jumping Jologs were the ones who crashed, and almost literally crashed, the other night’s UP fair concert.
The Construct very succinctly described what happened:
It was clearly us versus them. The educated versus morons. The burgis versus the masa.
A description that is borne out by this video posted by vlogger Cokski Blue (who, when he graduates, no doubt will be snapped up by a media company for his skill with a vid-camera) :
At 0:18, you see the charge of the JJs; at 0:43, you see the JJs start rushing the corrugated sheet fencing surrounding the fair area; from 1:03 onwards, you are treated to visual evidence of how mosh-pit dancing skills can be put to a more practical use.
It’s an ugly scene that seems to justify the us vs. them mentality. The temptation is strong, therefore, to view this as a scene from Tolkien’s imagination.
But Orcs, apart from being iredeemably evil, are also NOT related to Men or Elves (altho the Silmarillion does say that Orcs were totured and mutilated elves, there is much evidence pointing to Orcs as being created independently of them); and of course, orcs were considered inferior life forms, typically enslaved by others such as Sauron and Saruman.
JJs, on the other hand, are prolly not Evil, are indubitably human, and should prolly not be considered inferior life-forms.
I realize that what was being called out was orcish behavior, and that the use of the word shouldn’t be taken literally. Having said that, the word used – if not the choice of words per se – might reveal an underlying frame of mind: a way of looking at “others” as opposed to how we view the “us.” I don’t know about the Plurker I linked to, but read The Construct.
I believe it was a defining moment for the UP community. We have always regarded ourselves as the future leaders of the country, the advocates of democracy, and the protectors of our fellow Filipinos especially the masa. Last night was different though. It was clearly us versus them. The educated versus morons. The burgis versus the masa. This criticism shares the same play on semantics of labeling as the April-May 2001 protests with “EDSA 3? versus “the May 1 Siege.” It’s still the same rift between the middle and lower class.
In this passage, a clear division is being made between the “us” and the “them;” the UP students within the beseiged fences, and the ‘outsiders’ trying to get in; the presumptive leaders within, and the peasants to be led without; the paladins inside, and the uneducated masses needing protection outside.
Kinda dovetails neatly with the kind of disdain that led to them being called JJs in the firstplace, doesn’t it? Revealing too, of how at least some of the youth being educated on taxpayer pesos perceive others not so fortunate.
And combined with this succeeding passage:
This event, I think, will come under great scrutiny of the University officials. In the advent of crimes committed to members of the academic community by “outsiders” (the Veteran’s Bank robbery, the rapes, the thefts and robberies, etc…), I think that they will be considering “closing” the University and limiting its access to UP people. Sure, we’ll be like Ateneo or any other coño private campus, but check the demographics today. What’s the difference?
One gets the sense of outrage from The Construct: HOW DARE THEY BITE THE HANDS OF THE PEOPLE WHO WILL ONE DAY LEAD THEM AND PROTECT THEM? KATY BAR THE DOOR! DON’T EVER LET THESE INGRATES IN! This, unfortunately, seems to be the subtext here.
Ah well. This sense of disconnection with the people called JJs makes me wonder if these “future leaders of the country” will be able to ever look at the ‘masa’ with anything other than condescencion. And when the ‘masa’ ever work up the temerity to bite the hands of their benevolent leaders and protectors, will they shut the ingrates out as well?
If I remember correctly, one of the most hated acts of Marcos was the closing off of the Mendiola bridge. The same bridge where Cory Aquino allowed the slaughter of protesters. Both acts were justified on the basis of “security.” Will UP do the same – however lesser in scale? More the point, will UP students – with their various pro-poor mantras – allow that to happen?
(Read Bar the Door too.)
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Written by rom
Rom is a twenty-one year old experiment. She began life with the notion that she was a Filipino-Chinese Ilongga. Now, she just thinks of herself as Ilongga, having realized that she has failed at being Chinese. At least that's what her aku told her upon learning that she had fallen in love with a Filipino.
Filed under: Musings, News · Tags: jumping jologs, Peyups, UP, UP fair
23 Responses to "Jumping Jologs"
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[...] Jumping Jologs [...]
UP class 2009/2010/2011 have just been given a live-for-real lesson in mob-behavior — e.g.: unpredictability of what starts a surge; the dangers presented when a surge has started.
A major lesson is less of “…don’t start one (mob-action)” and more of “…don’t be the target of one”.
Bravo on your anti-elitist post! Unfortunately, a lot of those UP students will eventually graduate to become as elitist as UP n Grad.
As for ‘jologs’, i always thought the etymology was derived from Jolina.
[...] there, so I couldn’t give an objective evaluation of what happened, but the posts written by Rom Sedona and Alex Maximo – as well as the account of Tiffany Chua – got me [...]
Orcs? In my time, U.P. D is full of orc-like human beings (you want t see bautiful UPians, go to a UP in the province), so orcish talaga, as in am-papangit! Baka ngayon hindi na sila orcs, at least sa tinging nila.
Besides, only Jologs go to UP Fair on Valentines.
Surely there are UP students who currently believe that their calling is to sacrifice their life to spread Christianity among the poor, and some who already expect that they will soon be headed overseas to earn a living (and be grateful they won’t have to pay Pinas income taxes). For different folks, different strokes … so , I also am not surprised that among the UP students is Construct.
Here is a quote from another UP student. This guy sounds more accepting of JJ’s and how things already are and I think he reflects over 70% of UP students. Of course, I have no data to prove this:
Why he went to the fair
and his take on the jologs went like this:
There’s really a need for a cross-over culture like what they have in the US. Why don’t you all try being Jolog, joining gangs, loitering in malls. Maybe you’d feel better. Also, you need to be basagulero. I’m sure many of you can afford the dental work.
(BrianB kind of suggests this when he mentions “basagulero”.)An interpretation of jolog-invasion of UP Fair2009 is to conclude that hooliganism has come to Sunken Gardens and UP territory has been disrespected. Those with Tondo street-smarts will remind UPians not to tolerate such disrespect. So the action for UP-Fair-2010 is for UP’s fratboys to be ready. If security again proves inadequate in 2010 and the fences are breached, then the UP-fratboys go into action with dos-por-dos, bats and chains.
An Orc Hunting Season should be proposed. Or at least an Orcs’ Night for the next fair should be allotted. We can then shoot them with rubber bullets. Or just throw stones, rocks, and what-nots once they are inside.
Deym!
And then, there is “the-other-cheek” option (labelled Capitulation by others). This can translate into UP providing a college-scholarship to whoever threw that chunk hit the head and sent into the Intensive Care Unit one of the UP Security personnel. Reason : accuracy.
[...] Smoke, Jologs “carries the hybrid connotation of having no class and being poor. Incidentally, a [...]
I dunno, guise. Rioting and throwing stones does sound pretty tacky.
OneTamad: but isn’t that what tibaks do, albeit under different circumstances and for different reasons?
Surely you aren’t saying that hopped-up kids bent on mayhem and destruction in the name of a good time are on the same level as activists guided by an arguably-outdated ideology? I mean, come on. Being liberal is one thing, but saying that getting mad at a horde of rowdy teens smacks of elitism is an entirely different matter.
It’s not so much us vs. them (except in the literal sense of them throwing rocks at us,) but more of not fucking each other’s shit up. On a street level, it’s as simple as walang siraan ng trip.
OneTamad:Nothing wrong with getting mad at rowdies. But see, if we do what they do, and we call what they do tacky, then, we’re tacky ourselves, right?
Oh and, tibaks don’t fling rocks for ideology. they do it because they’re overpowered by their emotion (Like Mar Roxas said he was when he shouted putang ina) and – in the rallies I’ve been in anyway – because throwing things earns cool points.
Welcome them if they behave, shoot them if they start trouble.
Sure, stands to reason. But how many of the bloggers (and people at the fair, for that matter) make it a habit to throw things for cool points or whatever?
OneTamad: not a lot, I would imagine.
ron: welcome to the House of Smoke!
[...] went on to jump at more general conclusions and that probably caused the confusion especially with Smoke’s interpretation of my second to the last paragraph as rage. (Consider this blog as a [...]
Consider this as wake up call to all of you who call yourselves students U.P. (yeah, all that warm feeling that goes with being U.P. students and all, automagically perceived as “matatalino’s”). This is a symptom of a society steadily breaking down in front of your eyes. Inspite of a lot of leaders that may have come from U.P., our country is still in the trash heaps of the world. So don’t kid yourselves too much by talking about “class”, us vs them and other imaginary “levels in society” that you kid yourselves with. As long as the Philippines remains a third world country and as long as the number of uneducated masses is the overwhelming majority, the University of the Philippines failed on it’s mandate/purpose.
This is my take on this. The UP Fair’s main target market is the UP students. Just like in any school fair, this is a once-a-year chance for students of the school to enjoy consecutive nights of concerts and performances by different OPM bands. Fortunately, this event is made open to the public, not only to UP students. Students from different schools, people from all areas and all other visitors are welcome to attend the event if they want to. The least that is expected from EVERYBODY is to behave well and not cause any trouble or harm to anyone. However, these so-called JJs, as seen from the video, have caused trouble and have been causing trouble to the UP fair for a long time now. Cellphone and wallet-snatching, rumbles and throwing of objects are not unheard of, and these are the reasons why some UP students and visitors are not enjoying the fair anymore. Sure, it is the organizer’s responsibility to secure the event but it is expected of everybody to not cause trouble. This is the main reason why some UP students, if not a lot of them, and other visitors look down upon the JJs, because they are ruining the UP fair because of what they do. It is not a matter of economic standing, but a matter of disgusting behavior that cause harm, and from last February, even death.