DO FILIPINOS USE LOGIC? The Answer is ...Fascinating!

Pea delivers a blunt, self-critical deep dive into what she sees as a widespread deficit of critical thinking among Filipinos. Drawing on personal childhood stories, family conflicts, and viewer-relatable scenarios involving foreign partners, she catalogs the specific logical fallacies most common in Filipino culture and explains why they persist — arguing that Filipinos are taught what to think, not how to think, and that the consequences range from comical superstitions to genuinely dangerous medical decisions.

Pea frames the video as her ongoing commitment to showing "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" of the Philippines, and says this one falls squarely in the uncomfortable truth category ​

• She warns foreign viewers that this matters to them directly: if you're going to live with or among Filipinos, you'll encounter "an alien way of thinking that can drive you nuts"

Belief in supernatural creatures is widespread and sincere, not just quaint folklore ​

• An "alarmingly high number" of Filipinos genuinely believe in elves, dwarves, and flying monsters with magical powers — this is more common in the provinces but not limited to them
• Pea challenges this head-on: no one has ever caught an elf, produced a skeleton, or recorded convincing footage, yet in 2023 over 50% of adults treat these as real
• She contrasts this with Western folk traditions like the Tooth Fairy, saying the difference is that adults in the West don't actually believe the Tooth Fairy is real
• Despite nearly every Filipino now having a smartphone with access to the world's knowledge, people don't bother to look things up

Foreigners calling Filipinos "childlike" may mean more than sunny dispositions ​

• Pea always assumed the label referred to Filipinos' optimism and eternally positive outlook
• She now suspects it also refers to gullibility — just like a child will believe a giant rabbit delivers candy once a year, Filipinos will believe almost any rumor by the time it reaches the end of the street
• "No need for evidence, no need for proof — just say it. The loudest voice wins."

Harmless superstitions become dangerous when they replace reason — personal stories illustrate the stakes ​

• Witch doctor story: When Pea was about nine, she had a persistently high fever. Her mom's home remedy (blazing leaves on her forehead) didn't work, so she took Pea to the local witch doctor. His treatment: smearing saliva all over Pea's body and blowing on the top of her head. Pea recovered on her own, which only reinforced her mom's belief in the witch doctor. Pea's point: what if it had been a life-threatening illness? A high fever lasting days is serious, and she survived "no thanks to the witch doctor."
• Choking boy and the cat: At a fiesta, a boy started choking on food. His mother's response was to run around looking for a cat — because she believed rubbing a cat's paw on the child's neck would stop choking. Forget the Heimlich maneuver; just trust the superstition. The boy survived by coughing the food out himself. Pea adds sarcastically that you'd better not thank the cat by kissing it, because it's also believed that kissing a pet will make you go insane.

Illogical thinking isn't just a "female thing" — Pea's own brother and mother demonstrate it ​

• Pea's ex-boyfriend showed up at her family's house looking for her. She had explicitly told every family member not to give him any information or her phone number under any circumstances
• Her oldest brother gave the ex her phone number in exchange for a piglet and a sack of rice — "my privacy was sold for a baby pig and some food"
• When she confronted her brother, his defense was that since the ex hadn't called yet, no harm had been done. Pea gave him an analogy: "What if I put a loaded gun in your baby's crib but she didn't fire it yet? Does that mean I didn't do anything bad?" He immediately understood the gun analogy was wrong but completely failed to connect it to his own betrayal
• Her mom jumped to the brother's defense and ended the argument by warning Pea not to sing while cooking or she'd have bad luck and never marry anyone
• Pea's comeback: "Here's my superstition, Mom, which is much more useful and accurate — you will have bad luck if you stick a fork in a toaster. And it's backed up by evidence and data too."

Foreign partners pay the price for faulty reasoning ​

• The "cursed" car: A foreigner's wife wanted to sell their fairly new car after having three accidents. She was convinced the car was cursed. Her family confirmed the curse. Despite it being only two years old and them facing a big financial loss, she was adamant about trading it in. "Not one single thought about the ability of the person driving it."
• The upside-down rice cooker: A guy got yelled at by his wife for storing a washed rice cooker upside down to drain and prevent bacteria. His wife insisted that setting a rice cooker upside down means the family will suffer famine — even in their modern Western home with a three-car garage.

Practical reasoning is also affected — the soy sauce story ​

• Pea's college roommate used to buy tiny single-serving pouches of soy sauce and walk to the store almost daily to buy one
• Pea explained that buying a whole bottle would be cheaper and save all the trips. The roommate said the bottle was "too expensive" — despite spending more money on daily pouches
• The roommate had no clue what Pea was talking about, so Pea just gave up

The five most common logical fallacies in the Philippines, with examples ​

• Ad Populum (appeal to popularity): "The bread and butter of the average Filipino." If enough people believe something, it must be true. Example: believing that attending multiple funerals in one day will cause your death, simply because your neighbors believe it. "Reality isn't a popularity contest."
• Argument from Authority: Questioning elders is not the Filipino way. If Grandma says you can't clip your fingernails when it's dark or you'll have bad luck, you obey. Challenge it and you get: "It is known" — meaning you're a fool for asking. "Where's your evidence? Where's your research? Grandma don't need no stinking research."
• Argument from Incredulity: "I can't smell germs so they obviously don't exist." People will share drinks with someone who has hepatitis because they can't perceive germs. Don't waste food, even if it's contaminated.
• Ad Hominem: The go-to defense when you can't refute an argument — just attack the person's character. Pea's own experience: when she complained about trash on streets and beaches, Filipinos called her a traitor and troublemaker. "Not one of them dealt with my point. Not one of them could refute anything I said. To heck with the trash — just sweep the subject under the rug."
• Is-Ought Fallacy / Wishful Thinking: Filipinos assume that whatever they want to be reality will be. Prime example: gambling. People plan how to spend lottery winnings in advance because they're convinced they have a good chance, instead of looking at the actual odds. "Even when we claim we can't afford a bottle of soy sauce."

Pea's disclaimer and closing argument ​

• Not all Filipinos are illogical, but the percentage who are is much higher than she'd like
• She means no disrespect to people with harmless superstitions like lucky charms and bad omens
• Her core argument: "Bad reasoning leads to bad decisions, and it might be time to put away childish things" so Filipino society can progress faster
• She invites viewers to share their own anecdotes about wacky thinking in the comments

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