As headlines scream of bones and remains (sacks of them!) found in the murky depths of Taal Lake, I find myself a little put off by another one of those confessions tagging a cop to a gruesome operation.

It’s the stuff of movies I cringe at. And yet real life it is, elsewhere in the world and in good ol’ Philippines, the place we call home.

From crooked cops to corrupt businessmen/politicians to seedy dealings and dark secrets, our everyday world is filled with enough excitement to topple cinema. Yet no cinema verite can probably ever cover our trials and tribulations as Filipinos.

In the case of the missing sabungeros alone, many issues come to mind that we keep discussing with no recourse in sight.

Gambling, cheating, extrajudicial killing, bribery, betrayal of public trust and so on — the whole thing reeks of wickedness and depravity and while we do not claim to be paragons, this glimpse into human decay is jarring, to say the least.

What do our lawmakers plan to do about all this? Striving to impose order in a world beset with trouble can be impossible, but it would help if we can feel even a modicum of assurance that our leaders are trustworthy and capable.

I recall a piece I wrote back when then Senate president Tito Sotto clashed with then senator Manny Pacquiao. It was about the death penalty, with the Pambansang Kamao once again citing a Bible passage to defend his position. (He had done the same against the LGBTQ+, and suffered the immense backlash).

I wrote that column in August 2019 with the title: “What’s lawful and moral?” I wondered aloud how should one separate one’s moral values from his duties as a leader. I have yet to find the answer.

“When one is a senator, for example, he is a senator of all — whether gay or straight, religious or atheist, Christian or Muslim, rightist or leftist. He has to consider this when he pushes for something that he deems ‘good for the people,’” I said.

When a flawed justice system combines with the fallibility of man, we risk a lot — and leaders are often left struggling with their own moral compass.

It’s a question we ask today about many things around us, as we recall issues raised, year in and year out, with no solid solutions in sight. It’s because we never learn, and we spend our time arguing over who’s right or wrong, or worse, getting back at others instead of paying it forward.

We might as well put our hopes in their watery grave.