Ay! Naku po...

Taking cover 'neath the flyover

2010-05-11T07:46:00.002+08:00

I took this photo below the Katipunan flyover that has become a refuge for the homeless. This just really wrenches my heart.

Yes, this is some people expressing their version of road rage

2010-04-10T06:26:00.003+08:00

Well, I certainly don't agree with Jason Ivler's killing of a motorist but evidently he is a loose cannon. He engaged cops in a shootout and as much as I do not like cops that was a clear sign of guilt on his part. Now if his mother is aghast about the way her son has been treated while in custody, I'm not sure what to say since I am not aware of all the criminal laws. Having said that, when we have guys who are supposed to be in prison running for public office (why the fuck that happens underscores how corrupt and stupid this country is) then okay, maybe it is wrong to handcuff the guy. Whatever. But the sight of the event pictured above -- a rally for Ivler on Friday April 9 along Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City -- is real bizarre. Only in the Philippines.

So much for Frosty the Snowman

2010-03-30T07:06:00.002+08:00

Why we should junk the Party List system

2010-03-29T17:09:00.004+08:00

After the last national elections, I sat in the office of my boss to discuss some work when his nephew walked in. Turns out that the nephew won a congressional seat via the party list system. I kept quiet and listened to them talk.

"So, Tito... siguro naman kailangan ko na ng mga bodyguard?"

I couldn't believe I heard that. What the fuck do you need bodyguards for? Meron ka bang kaaway?

"Yes, kailangan na." concurred the uncle. The boss man then went on to say that he -- the newly minted and undeserving congressman -- was going to get a car as per a deal with someone.

From there, talk moved on to a possible date with the daughter of a rich family. Maybe an arranged marriage or something to consolidate their power base. I felt sick to my stomach.

Then when talk moved on to moving to a new building, the uncle said that they had gone over-budge. The building needed some work to which the nephew replied, "Bayaran na lang natin ng value meal sa Jollibee."

I wanted to go ballistic on this guy.

We should junk the Party List system and more. We do not need people like him passing laws that are only good for themselves.

Does anyone care?

2010-03-27T06:27:00.004+08:00

Do people actually read this? Is this even effective? Stores should give out huge discounts if customers come with their own bags. Months after Typhoon Ondoy, no one even remembers anything. I still see people throwing stuff about and the indiscriminate use of plastic and their disposal. We never learn. The message is at the bottom of the bag --- just where humanity will be when mother nature gets real pissed at us. I wonder though, "reduce the Earth's destruction".... is there something wrong with that phrase?

Growing low-oxygen zones in oceans worry scientists

2010-03-09T07:37:00.000+08:00

WASHINGTON — Lower levels of oxygen in the Earth's oceans, particularly off the United States' Pacific Northwest coast, could be another sign of fundamental changes linked to global climate change, scientists say.

They warn that the oceans' complex undersea ecosystems and fragilefood chains could be disrupted.

In some spots off Washington state and Oregon , the almost complete absence of oxygen has left piles of Dungeness crab carcasses littering the ocean floor, killed off 25-year-old sea stars, crippled colonies of sea anemones and produced mats of potentially noxious bacteria that thrive in such conditions.

Areas of hypoxia, or low oxygen, have long existed in the deep ocean. These areas — in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans — appear to be spreading, however, covering more square miles, creeping toward the surface and in some places, such as the Pacific Northwest , encroaching on the continental shelf within sight of the coastline.

"The depletion of oxygen levels in all three oceans is striking," said Gregory Johnson , an oceanographer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Seattle .

In some spots, such as off the Southern California coast, oxygen levels have dropped roughly 20 percent over the past 25 years. Elsewhere, scientists say, oxygen levels might have declined by one-third over 50 years.

"The real surprise is how this has become the new norm," said Jack Barth , an oceanography professor atOregon State University . "We are seeing it year after year."

Barth and others say the changes are consistent with current climate-change models. Previous studies have found that the oceans are becoming more acidic as they absorb more carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

"If the Earth continues to warm, the expectation is we will have lower and lower oxygen levels," said Francis Chan , a marine researcher at Oregon State .

As ocean temperatures rise, the warmer water on the surface acts as a cap, which interferes with the natural circulation that normally allows deeper waters that are already oxygen-depleted to reach the surface. It's on the surface where ocean waters are recharged with oxygen from the air.

Commonly, ocean "dead zones" have been linked to agricultural runoff and other pollution coming down major rivers such as the Mississippi or the Columbia . One of the largest of the 400 or so ocean dead zones is in the Gulf of Mexico , near the mouth of the Mississippi .

However, scientists now say that some of these areas, including those off the Northwest, apparently are linked to broader changes in ocean oxygen levels.

The Pacific waters off Washington and Oregon face a double whammy as a result of ocean circulation.

Scientists have long known of a natural low-oxygen zone perched in the deeper water off the Northwest's continental shelf.

During the summer, northerly winds aided by the Earth's rotation drive surface water away from the shore. This action sucks oxygen-poor water to the surface in a process called upwelling.

Though the water that's pulled up from the depths is poor in oxygen, it's rich in nutrients, which fertilize phytoplankton. These microscopic organisms form the bottom of one of the richest ocean food chains in the world. As they die, however, they sink and start to decay. The decaying process uses oxygen, which depletes the oxygen levels even more.

Southerly winds reverse the process in what's known as down-welling.

Changes in the wind and ocean circulation since 2002 have disrupted what had been a delicate balance between upwelling and down-welling. Scientists now are discovering expanding low-oxygen zones near shore.

"It is consistent with models of global warming, but the time frame is too short to know whether it is a trend or a weather phenomenon," Johnson said.

Others were slightly more definitive, quicker to link the lower oxygen levels to global warming rather than to such weather phenomena as El Nino or the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, a shift in the weather that occurs every 20 to 30 years in the northern oceans.

"It's a large disturbance in the ecosystem that could have huge biological changes," said Steve Bograd , an oceanographer at NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center in Southern California .

Bograd has been studying oxygen levels in the California Current, which runs along the West Coast from the Canadian border to Baja California and, some scientists think, eventually could be affected by climate change.

So far, the worst hypoxic zone off the Northwest coast was found in 2006. It covered nearly 1,200 square miles off Newport, Ore. , and according to Barth it was so close to shore you could hit it with a baseball. The zone covered 80 percent of the water column and lasted for an abnormally long four months.

Because of upwelling, some of the most fertile ocean areas in the world are found off Washington and Oregon . Similar upwelling occurs in only three other places, off the coast of Peru and Chile , in an area stretching from northern Africa to Portugal and along the Atlantic coast of South Africa and Namibia .

Scientists are unsure how low oxygen levels will affect the ocean ecosystem. Bottom-dwelling species could be at the greatest risk because they move slowly and might not be able to escape the lower oxygen levels. Most fish can swim out of danger. Some species, however, such as chinook salmon, may have to start swimming at shallower depths than they're used to. Whether the low oxygen zones will change salmon migration routes is unclear.

Some species, such as jellyfish, will like the lower-oxygen water. Jumbo squid, usually found off Mexico and Central America , can survive as oxygen levels decrease and now are found as far north as Alaska .

"It's like an experiment," Chan said. "We are pulling some things out of the food web and we will have to see what happens. But if you pull enough things out, it could have a real impact."

E-trikes. E-yeah!

2009-12-05T20:18:00.000+08:00

A move in my school, the Ateneo de Manila to help save our world.

How do you like my hat?

2009-11-29T18:52:00.001+08:00

This picture was taken from inquirer.net and shows a Bontoc woman crossing the Rice Terraces that are in danger from climate change.

Who's hungry?

2009-08-25T19:05:00.000+08:00

Me hungry!

2009-08-10T09:14:00.001+08:00

I don't pay for my bills. The people, este, friends of mine do.

The (Angry) Sign of the Times

2009-08-07T06:49:00.003+08:00

Got this in the last few days on facebook and through my email. Man, I know it's so uncouth but it would still be great to put something like this in pedestrian areas where the traffic sign says, "Don't cross" but people still continue.

I'd love to see this too though in from of the Senate, Malacañang, LTO, and Customs, where it says, P***** Ina Mo. Sige.Magnakaw (o mangurakot) ka pa."

Ang itapon mo ay babalik din

2009-08-07T05:19:00.000+08:00

The heavy rains and strong winds brought by typhoon “Kiko” turned Roxas Boulevard into dump site yesterday. The incessant rains combined with the wind and high tide in Manila Bay to rise beyond the seawall and deposit garbage onto the sidewalk and the road that stretched from Roxas Boulevard, particularly from Padre Faura to the United States embassy making it nearly impassable for motorists.

A team of sweepers had to use special equipment to clear the streets.

It was reported that discarded slippers or flip flops comprised much of the garbage that came mostly from the Cavite and Parañaque areas.

Waterworld

2009-07-13T21:42:00.001+08:00

This photo was taken by an Associated Press photographer last July 4 at the city of Liuzhou in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. If you ask me this is pretty frightening because what affects them there will befall us too.

Sex in my city

2009-07-01T11:35:00.005+08:00

Do you get involved or not?

I have for neighbors a live-in couple. Nothing out of the ordinary except the guy cheats on his girlfriend all the time. He's even been tossed out but the girl forgave him and took him back in.

The twist there is when the guy was booted out, the girl's best friend (female too) moved in to help defray the cost of the rent of the apartment.

Now the girl left to work in Canada and now the best friend and the guy were together and well, nature ran its course.

The guy true to form was still keeping his relationship alive with other girls and when the best friend found out she was in tears and way upset. They fought in their apartment and in the streets yelling so that everyone can hear. of course the neighborhood gossip girls talk about them now. How can you not hear when they're frigging noisy? Even if you don't want to listen it's like they're fighting, gabbing, and having sex with the microphone on.

Stupid Canada girl in the meantime has been sending money to cheating boyfriend to pay for certain expenses. Cheating boyfriend instead used it for dates and whatever.

The Landlady knows of everything yet does nothing. Best friend and cheating boyfriend still living together. Stupid Canada girl knows nothing. Whether they all have no balls or are pussies is actually a source of entertainment.

Who needs reality TV? It plays out everyday here all the time. Live fighting. Live shouting. Live sex.

Bwahahaha

Helping Hayden Kho

2009-06-17T08:14:00.002+08:00

Will Hayden Kho still be able to practice what he does?

In the event his career in medicine or whatever in the blue hell he does is over, here are possible career shifts:
1. Porn star
2. Videographer
3. Dancer in Eat Bulaga
4. A spy for the CIA
5. Come up with a flick titled like "50 First Dates"
6. Serve as an study in water torture

Kapal ng face

2009-05-29T12:58:00.006+08:00

Ang kapal naman ng mukha nitong si Afuang. How come all of a sudden we're seeing all these people who present themselves as the paragons of righteousness?

Nag-pose pa for a photo! Bwisit. What a shithead!

Grandstanding politicos who are one to talk. Starlets who don't mind baring their skin for movies and pictorials then cry when an illicit video comes out.

You won't find any sympathy here.

You deserve it, Katrina. Suck it up.

And boo to the general media that has nothing better to do. Pati si Mayor Lim isa pa. Bakit hindi lahat ng pirated dvds and cds ipa-raid mo on a daily basis? What hypocrites!

Digging us in a ditch even more

2009-04-02T20:25:00.002+08:00

I never understood how the Department of Public Works decides what roads need repair.

Take for example P. Tuazon Boulevard. Across the stretch from 15th Avenue to Kalantiaw in Project 4, there are multiple diggings and cementing.

Normally that is good but the roads they've messed up aren't even bad to begin with.

In one area near Mercury Drug Store at the Metrolane Supermarket, whoever is responsible for the diggings never even bothered to but all the earth they picked up in some dumpster. It's just there -- one huge mound of dirt!

Even along EDSA there are all these diggings going on.

Why on earth didn't they do this before when they were first cementing the roads? Why can't they all work with MWSS and Meralco in putting everything that needs to go beneath the surface before they cement it once and for all? Minsan bagong semento then within a few months huhukayin ulit!

Syempre meron kurakot na naman.

God, save us from these incompetents and thieves in government. Please!

2009-03-08T22:00:00.002+08:00

Went to the wake for Francis Magalona Sunday night. I was friends and semi-barkada for a while back in the early 1990's so I just had to pay my respects as a friend and a fan. I was shocked to see some people callously taking photos of the coffin with their digital cameras and mobile phones. WTF! One of the attendants told those visiting idiots not to do so. Tangina no. Sa mga kupal na magpo-post ng mga pictures noon. Sana matodas na rin kayo. Kayo naman ang kukunan ko.

The message is clear...

2009-02-13T17:57:00.004+08:00

This is what Ateneo students feel about you. No to cha cha. I've had enough of bad government year after year and president after president. We should have never gotten independence. We've proven to be incapable of even governing ourselves.

Where can I get me one of these?

2008-11-20T13:33:00.002+08:00

And now the Philippines needs to find someone similar. I've had enough of a corrupt government and system that has destroyed this country.

Why are there people like these?

2008-10-02T21:32:00.006+08:00

Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.

I first came upon that famous line while in high school and never in a million years did I think I'd fall for something like that.

Late last year a man -- an Ateneo alumnus at that -- wanted to meet me and offer me a job instead of leaving for the United States. That explains why I stayed. This was December 27 of last year and even without lifting a finger, he offered to pay me -- even if I had not begun any work -- come January 1, 2008. He also threw in a mobile phone and a car plan.

I officially began work for him on February 15 but he never gave me what he promised me. Not even the salary he promised me. Instead, he gave me only 75% of what he said with another promise that he'd make it up after six months. Of course, I believed him.

That is not the worst. This man who made his fortune in some industry was more obsessed with his image. Now if that doesn't get the alarms ringing then color me stupid. He's loves to talk and say things that he doesn't even mean the moment. He has this penchant for promising or saying things that is good for today but untrue the following day. Then the day after that he'll change his mind again. In fact, he changes his mind as often as he changes his underwear. At least he should change his undies everyday, right?

One time he was telling me how he will support Sen. Richard Gordon's bid for the Presidency. A couple of days later while having lunch at the Hotel Intercon, he told Johnny Ponce Enrile that he should run for President and that he will fully back him. I shot him that incredulous look that he caught. He looked at me and said that he meant what he said. Okay.

After two months of paying me my salary, he told me one day that he will no longer pay me and I will have to look for my own funding. Ah, waittaminute, I didn't stay here in the Philippines to look for some corporate sponsor to pay my salary. Let me tell you that I went through seven months of hell working for one of the most insincere persons I've ever seen. Politico talaga. -- all talk; all insincerity. Punyeta.

We had no opex (operational expenses) and we had to squat in another office. He couldn't even get the board incorporated! The one member he got who is the president of an accounting firm he kept out of the loop for a while. When I woud try to invite that man, my boss would say, "If ___ does not give money (sponsorship/funding), then he's out." And I am putting that nicely because he threw in some choice expletives.

Then he brought in two foreigners -- one an Australian and the other a German -- who were both idiots. The latter claimed to be a marketing guru. Tell me, how can someone be such when he created a marketing plan for our company without fully knowing the whys and wherefores of our operations? Furthermore, he kept insulting our culture and people. He even insulted two events groups in front of everyone. The funny thing there is the hotel where we held our event conducted a background check on this German and he isn't who he says he is. He is a sham. And my former boss whether joking or not would try to suck up to this German by saying that they should have won World War II. Hey, fat man. That is not funny.

I think they should examine my boss' brain. He is one piece of shit and shit of questionable character. He even spends time at Couples for Christ! During board meetings he invites people on a whim. Then they throw a monkey wrench into the plans. Complicating a matter that isn't that complicated to begin with.

It got to a point where his constant flip-flopping (which is about every day) and his insincerity (you should see him speak about people when their backs are turned) became untennable. If he could do that to others then he could do the same to me.

The person I actually replaced had exactly the same experience with him and maybe there I should have paid attention already. Towards the last month of my unfortunate tenure, he was paying me less than half of the 75% he was giving me.

I resigned from my work which I really regret taking. What I've written about is only the tip of the iceberg. The fat man refused to give me a contract and in spite of that, he would deduct taxes from me. He doesn't even know my tax account number.

How do I feel?

That fat fuck should get his comeuppance. Spare us.

Danger Roads

2008-08-05T12:32:00.004+08:00

On my way home from a two night stay at the Dusit Thani Hotel, I snapped some photos from my vehicle.

The first of which is the trash atop the island crossing EDSA and the former Pasay Road. What an embarrassing eyesore.

The second is an accident at the corner of McKinley Road and EDSA. I'm sure glad I gave up riding them bikes.

More proof that there's no life in Mars

2008-06-27T07:20:00.004+08:00

This from today's Inquirer.... the Taguig City government ordered the closing of the Embassy Super Club at the Fort after one of the DJ's allegedly mauled a patron. So mayor Tinga, where's the logic in there? Did you read the statement by the complainant, he was beaten because he didn't listen to the DJ rapping? Does that sound in any way plausible to you?

"We cannot allow these incidents of lawlessness to paint a negative image of our city. People should feel safe here," said the good Mayor. But following your logic, our national government gives us Filipinos a negative image, shouldn't they all step down too?

And if a cop from the WPD hits an ordinary citizen can we shut down the police force?

Sure the Embassy has been known for some fights inside and outside for rich folk who have nothing better to do so was a case ever filed against these people? Or did they get away because they have money and influence?

We have buffoons in government, I tell you. No wonder our country is like this. We're run by buffoons.

Digging a ditch

2008-06-17T11:05:00.003+08:00

I have no clue what's up with these never-ending street diggings. And then they never put it back the way it was. I chanced upon this hole in the street being filled with sand by the men working on it. You know how they flattened the sand? By driving their battered Toyota Tamaraw over it several times. I was trying to get a shot of the vehicle and the plate number but the car I was in was moving and there was oncoming traffic.

Gold or Tinsel. Thanks Mr. Beltran!

2008-05-29T20:42:00.005+08:00

When I first heard that Crispin Beltran passed away, I wasn't sure what to feel. I hardly agreed with his views but I respected them. As the saying goes, you'll never know what you've lost until it's gone. I was at the Tower Club at lunch today when I read this in the opinion column of Business World. And honestly, I felt bad after reading Mr. Azurin's well-written column. I believe that we lost a great man.(from the May 29, 2008 issue of Business World)

Strategic Perspective
By Rene B. Azurin

Gold or tinsel

No doubt unintentionally, a stark contrast presented itself to all of us in newspaper front pages last May the 21^st. On that day, the Inquirer headlined the untimely death of Representative Crispin Beltran and noted that he died the poorest of all members of Congress, his net worth barely P50,000. Side by side, the Star headlines screamed that President Gloria Arroyo’s riches had increased by P11 million during the past year, her net worth now amounting to P99.6 million.

The picture of Mr. Beltran’s tiny, unpainted one-bedroom bungalow — the leaking roof of which he was trying to fix himself when he slipped and fell — conveyed, it seems, the very same message to all who saw it. Here, it spoke vividly, was a member of Congress on his seventh year of being entitled to discretionary allowances of some P20 million a year and pork barrel funds of some P70 million a year, and he had taken none of it for himself, even just to provide a slightly more comfortable home for his family and a utility vehicle for their convenience. Tellingly, in the statement he filed of his assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2007, Mr. Beltran listed, in addition to the aforesaid bungalow, only two barong tagalogs, one pair of eyeglasses, a cabinet, and some shirts as his only assets.

Mrs. Arroyo, in contrast, was reported to have declared real and personal assets amounting to P100.2 million in 2007. These included cash of P11.3 million, stocks worth P62.9 million, cars of P6.9 million, and personal jewelry valued at P3.4 million. More significantly, she declared that her net worth increased by P11 million in the course of the preceding year. Since the President’s official salary amounts to only P693,000 per year, the question must be raised, where did the rest of her 2007 earnings — amounting to some P10.3 million — come from?

If Mrs. Arroyo earned interest at the rate of, say, 7% on the cash she held at the beginning of the year, that would mean interest earnings of only about P740,000. Since she declared that she had "no business interests" whatsoever, this implies that she must have realized an income of some P10.3 million on her investments in stocks. That means that she must have sold enough shares in 2007 at a subs-tantial profit to earn for her something like a 19.5% aggregate yield on her entire portfolio. My goodness, I think many dabblers in the stock market would like to know who the manager of Mrs. Arroyo’s stock portfolio is — assuming it is being held in a blind trust and managed by a trustor — so that they can follow his nifty buying and selling moves. (By the way, unless Mrs. Arroyo’s accountant had been allowed to revalue her stock portfolio to reflect market value rather than acquisition cost and to use these revalued figures to compute for Mrs. Arroyo’s net worth, those gains would have had to have been actually realized through documented sales of shares for that income to have been taken up in Mrs. Arroyo’s official statement of assets and liabilities.)

Mrs. Arroyo’s officially declared net worth was reported to be some 50% higher than when she first assumed the presidency. This means that, even based on declared figures alone and ignoring any yet unproven allegations of under-the-table income, Mrs. Arroyo has managed to become personally wealthier while presumably wielding the powers of the presidency only for the public welfare.

On the other hand, Mr. Beltran obviously took great pains to see to it that his financial lot did not improve as a consequence of his being gifted with the emoluments and privileges of an elected congressman. Clearly, Mr. Beltran scrupulously avoided spending a single centavo of public funds on his own private needs. This kind of behavior is highly unusual — this is putting it mildly — in a high elected official. What this says about Mr. Beltran is that not only was he a genuinely honest man but also that he was a man of great character.

Mr. Beltran may not have had any gold in his cupboard but he was clearly a man worth more than his weight in gold. Without question, he was a man to be admired and emulated and, to my considerable regret, I did not have the privilege of knowing him. I have only myself to blame for this; perhaps I did not seek him out because I disagreed with his views on various issues. But, I agreed with him completely when he articulated on the floor of Congress the fundamental issue he thought needed to be addressed: "We all know that the Arroyo government is boasting of the so-called improvement in the economy in the past few months. I won’t scrutinize data on inflation, peso-dollar exchange, GNP, GDP, and others. The only question of this representative is — do our people experience this so-called development?" This, of course, is the heart of the matter for government.

It is too bad that a man like Mr. Beltran has not yet been placed in a position to feasibly vie for the leadership of this nation. The question suggested by the interesting contrast between Mr. Beltran and Mrs. Arroyo is whether we should choose our leaders on the basis of the gold in their character or the tinsel of their accoutrements. Put another way, should we choose golden men who live their principles or tinsel politicos whose surface glitter hides their lack of any real worth? Put yet another way, should we choose someone whose views we do not agree with because he is a good and honest man or should we choose someone of questionable character because he or she happens to represent the group to which we ourselves belong or tries to mouth the views we ourselves subscribe to?

The Filipino people have been settling for tinsel all of these long years and have been rewarded only with grief. The time has come to sweep away the worthless stuff and demand only on the gold.

Do your part!

2008-05-29T08:12:00.003+08:00

Get this widget!

On the government diverting from real issues

2008-05-26T08:29:00.007+08:00

Let me make myself clear... I am all for the betterment of Filipino's lives. The non-stop rise in oil and gas has jacked up prices for almost everything.

What the government has been trying to do -- the reduction of fees and return of monies wrongly paid to Meralco -- I agree with. But sometimes I wonder if it's because the government is truly concerned about the Filipino's welfare. Is it because the Lopezes are viewed as opponents by the government? The timing sure is suspicious and diverts from other issues. I saw this harassment during FVR's time when he went after Lucio Tan.

And now there's this proposed "free text messaging" that will take away business from telcos. Okay, I'm not going to pretend that I know much about the issue except ask why? If it says in the contract that it's a free service then maybe it must be made free. Maybe. Clearly this must be studied instead of grandstanding in the media. The telcos say that this has already been ruled in their favor as a "special service" and not a basic service by the Supreme Court some two years back. The government must be more circumspect in coming out with statements like this because it is not business-friendly.

Government sources cite that the average Filipino family spends Php 60 on text everyday and it would be good for them to get some relief.

See here now, text messaging is NOT a basic necessity. There are more pressing concerns -- alternative fuel sources, food, healthcare, jobs, education, and the environment. With the Rainbow Warrior preventing the unloading of coal in Paglibao, Quezon, they seem to be doing far more for environment. Here in Manila, LTO cops only check on smoke belchers when they feel the need for it or as some say, "when they need money."

The other night I was watching the DVD "The Battle for Manila" -- a World War II documentary and as it says in history books, the Philippines was highly coveted because it was rich in resources. And now, we're only rich in government officials who are rich? How does a former military man have several millions of pesos in the bank?

Geez!

Need for change

2008-05-26T07:51:00.004+08:00

It's all about human rights and basic necessities.

Some things never seem to change at State U. I took this photo last Sunday, May 25 along Manuel Roxas Avenue in UP.

So you wonder why people want to run for public office?

2008-05-20T11:21:00.004+08:00

Did you all see the report on the collective worth of our senators?

Php 2 billion!

I can understand the others having money because they were born to rich families but the others? C'mon! The rich get richer while the poor get poorer. The rich senators like to pass laws that favor themselves.

How on earth do the others have that kind of money?

Here's the story from the Tuesday May 20 edition of the Inquirer:

Senators worth a collective P2B
By Gil C. Cabacungan Jr.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:54:00 05/20/2008

MANILA, Philippines -- The collective net worth of the senators of the land rose by seven percent last year to P2 billion with Senate President Manuel Villar as the first billionaire member of the chamber, their official statements of assets and liabilities as of December 2007 showed.

Villar topped the list with a net worth of P1.041 billion (up 13 percent from P921.4 million in 2006) while jailed Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV continued to be the pauper among his deep-pocketed colleagues with a net worth of P2.6 million (from P2.3 million last year).

Based on the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s computations, the net worth of all the senators rose by P137.3 million to P2.051 billion in 2007 from P1.914 billion in 2006, with 19 senators posting increases in their fortunes.

Decliners

Only four senators saw their fortunes decline in 2007 -- Juan Miguel Zubiri (down to P23 million from P43.3 million in 2006), Manuel Roxas II (down to P110.7 million from P140.3 million), Maria Ana Consuelo “Jamby” Madrigal (down to P146.5 million from P148.9 million) and Francis Pangilinan (down to P13 million from P15.4 million).

Roxas tumbled from the No. 3 spot to No. 4 on the 2007 list while Madrigal stayed at No. 2.

Zubiri dropped from the No. 9 rank to No. 14 while Pangilinan fell from No. 16 to No. 17.

Unchanged

Sen. Joker Arroyo’s fortune was unchanged at P11 million at No. 21.

Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. surged to No. 3 with a net worth of P118 million from P107 million in 2006.

Just a tad shy of the P100-million mark was Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile with P98.9 million, up from P98 million in 2006.

Rounding out the top 10 were: Miriam Defensor-Santiago (P89.4 million from P76 million in 2006), Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada (P83.2 million from P83 million), Pia Cayetano (P76.4 million from P76.2 million), Loren Legarda (P45.99 million from P41.4 million) and Edgardo Angara (P44.1 million from P41 million).

The poorest

The rest of the senators and their rankings were: Rodolfo Biazon (P28.2 million, No. 11); Panfilo Lacson (P27.3 million, No. 12); Richard Gordon (P27 million, No. 13); Alan Peter Cayetano (P16.2 million, No. 15); Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III (P14 million, No. 16); Gringo Honasan (P12.2 million, No. 18); Lito Lapid (P12 million, No. 19); Aquilino Pimentel Jr. (P11.5 million, No. 20), and Francis Escudero (P7.5 million, No. 22).

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20080520-137632/Senators-worth-a-collective-P2B

SM Mega Mall snatcher

2008-05-18T16:55:00.001+08:00

2008-05-18T16:12:00.003+08:00

If you're looking for a copy of An Inconvenient Truth, it's available locally on VCD and DVD. The VCD costs Php 75 while the DVD is around Php 275.

More than watching the documentary and being moved and troubled by the startling revelations, you should be galvanized into action. Too often we think that it's the job of government agencies to take the lead. But waiting for them is like waiting for Godot.

Do your part now.

God bless us all.

An example of yearly chaos on the streets of Metro Manila

2008-05-13T06:26:00.007+08:00

The rains are here and the new school year is almost upon us. And there are a number of major thoroughfares still under construction.

I've always said that the urban planning for Metro Manila has been bad. There seems to be no foresight when it comes to urban renewal. I recall when it was said that the flyovers would alleviate the growing traffic situation back in the late 1980's and early 1990's. I had just started to work in Makati in the early 90's and there was no traffic whatsoever. If there was it was only because of the mass construction going on.

A light rail system was proposed and I still wonder why this was not a priority as it took awhile before it could happen. There are provincial bus terminals along major roads or in mall areas (see the bus terminal along P. Tuason and Daily Supermarket or the one fronting Ali Mall in Cubao). And there's the ever-constant bus problem along EDSA. The government promised a phase out but this of course will not happen. We're a Third World country for crying out loud. Nothing gets done here!

But back to the roads, take for example 20th Avenue in Project 4, QC. It took awhile to put asphalt on this major thoroughfare yet like other cemented streets, the government and its agencies would rip up the road on an almost yearly basis to install pipes or whatever. Now why didn't they install this the first time around? When they're done with whatever money-making scheme they have they don't even put the road to its original state. And during the construction, there are no traffic enforcers to aide in the flow.

Ah, here's another jab at the traffic police and aides. Instead of "directing" traffic, they hide in corners or some other area of concealment to catch erring drivers. If there's an opportunity to make some money off them, they will. It's all about the money, folks, in this hopelessly corrupt country.

In Marikina they've begun to remove all fixtures along sidewalks to make way for a generic one regardless of area. They have this rule that regardless of a house's elevation, they'll make sure that the sidewalk is six feet above the ground. So you suddenly have home owners who cannot park their cars inside until they have a cement ramp in their driveway.

I understand what the government is doing, but they should at least contour it so as not to inconvenience people. But they do not care especially in the land of Bayani Fernando. I hope this Gestapo-heir doesn't win in the next elections.

And get this... some subdivisions are half done when it comes to this new generic sidewalk plan of the local governments. Why? They have to renegotiate. Syempre. More money.

That's how they do it. Start a project, take the money and underpay people then stop when they run out of money.

I have nothing against the betterment of roads and infrastructure. I question the timing which is always bad (they could argue that the money isn't released on time). Why wasn't it planned earlier? At this point, I feel that the money should go to other more pressing concerns such as education, healthcare, the environment, and better public transportation.

We are governed by the selfish and the incompetent. Not to mention people with no balls as they change from one political camp to another to suit their most immediate needs.

Is the LTO listening?

2008-05-06T01:13:00.003+08:00

The LTO should look into the condition of the taxi cabs that ply our nation's roads. For those who don't usually take cabs, they wouldn't know if a meter is rigged. Some cab drivers say that if they want their meters fixed, they pay some of the techs at the LTO a one time fee to make sure that they are able to cheat passengers by at least 20 bucks per ride.

Moreover, many old cabs aren't taken care of. They stink and smell of body odor. The air conditioner of others lack freon. And if it isn't any of the two, they smell of LPG gas.

About a month ago, I was waiting for a cab at Greenhills. There was a line and two tourists waiting ahead of me. A cab parked by and when the foreigners asked to be taken to Metrowalk, the driver said it was going to cost Php 200! I butted in and told off the driver who sped away. The tourists were plenty grateful, but how many fall prey to these unscrupulous drivers?

The MMDA: A roadside headache

2008-04-27T15:00:00.004+08:00

I think that the people who head the Metro Manila Development Authority are a bunch of retards.

#1 the U-turn slots
As if many of our motoring laws are already unjust and plain stupid, they make things harder for people to get around. Remember when if you had to go to Eastwood coming from either Marikina or Quezon City you had to make that u-turn underneath the Ortigas flyover? If the traffic on the southbound lane didn't get you, the northbound lane slowed everything to a crawl.

With gas already expensive, they just made things harder. Now they brought back the old U-turn slot but one wonders why it took so long? Maybe they just aren't bright over there at the MMDA.

The u-turn slot along Katipunan Avenue corner Aurora Boulevard is another example of the genius of the MMDA. Imagine they placed a u-turn slot right in front of two schools (PSBA and St. Bridget), the entrance to the LRT, and a jeepney stop. And you wonder why it's always traffic there.

2) The islands in the middle of EDSA
As if Manila's main thoroughfare isn't already clogged they put some islands -- bus lanes -- outside Robinson's Galleria, in front of Camp Aguinaldo and Camp Crame, and in front of Macro along EDSA between P. Tuazon and Main Avenue. They aren't well marked and were accidents waiting to happen. When they did occur, the MMDA leadership said that people should learn how to drive better.

People should sue the crap out of the MMDA. What was their solution? To put luminous stickers on cement barricades -- even using the outer part of the stickers that is normally discarded. To see what I'm talking about check out those cement barriers underneath the Santolan flyover.

EDSA is to small for any more structures to be put up.

Now if they placed those traffic enforcers to do their jobs which is directing traffic as opposed to hiding then pouncing on erring motorists, then the flow might even be better.

Remember in the aftermath of Typhoon Milenyo when the stupid government took to task billboard owners fro accidents caused on the streets? That's why they're called accidents. But it is those same billboards that practically keep EDSA lighted.

What about those street lamps that cost millions to put up? Most don't even have their lights on.

And that color pink is a freaking eyesore. Where does the MMDA Chairman go painting the metropolis in his wife's party colors? That is not your property, Mr. Chairman. You're a public servant. So quite acting like a fascist dictator. Oh he is, right?

I appreciate the discipline he is trying to impose but his totalitarian ways harken back to a different era. And why is it that in Marikina all the construction going on there is being done by his company? That's conflict of interest.

Well, we all know that our corrupt administration is coddling the Chairman and looking the other way.

An Inconvenient Truth trailer

2008-04-26T20:49:00.002+08:00

An Inconvenient Truth

2008-04-26T20:33:00.005+08:00

If this message doesn't get to you then you're already dead.

Film critic Roger Ebert wrote: "In 39 years, I have never written these words in a movie review, but here they are: You owe it to yourself to see this film. If you do not, and you have grandchildren, you should explain to them why you decided not to."

http://www.climatecrisis.net/

Watch the film.

Read the book and the literature on what you can do to help.

Spread the word.

I'm going to do my part.

Will you?

Things you can do:
1) Walk or commute more and carpool. This helps reduce carbon emissions from vehicles. If only we had a more efficient traffic management and public transportation system then this would be even more viable. I'd recommend using the MRT but since it's packed like a sardine can almost the whole time during its operation hours and there aren't enough trains to quicky service the people then this is a not a great option.

2) Lessen your use of paper. Use software to store data and documents. Even your billing statements can be sent via email. This will lessen the cutting down of trees.

3) Making use of environment-friendly technology. use fluorescent lights and make sure that when you purchase electric appliances thatthey are energy efficient. Turn off and unplug any appliances that you don't need and aren't using at the moment.

4) Buy fresh food because it requires les energy to prepare and store.

Rice-ing prices and taking stock

2008-04-23T10:45:00.003+08:00

It looks like the rice shortage isn't only the Philippines' problem.

America, the breadbasket of the world, has been hit as well and faces many similar problems asthe Philippines.

The Asian Development Bank yesterday addressed the media in Singapore and said that "the era of cheap food is over." Managing Director Rajat Nag added countries should temper their reaction to the dwindling rice supply by saying there is enough for now. India and Vietnam have curbed exports and to placate domestic concerns and demand forcing even a further surge in prices.

The rise in prices of basic commodities is in part because of several factors:
- growing disposable incomes
- high fuel prices
- erratic weather
- poor yields in wheat harvests

I'll even venture to add the ever-growing population that puts an even bigger burden on economies.

This is from the New York Sun:
http://nysun.com/news/food-rationing-confronts-breadbasket-world

Between the increasing warnings of the effects of global warning and all these problems that are beguiling society, it's time to be informed and to act on things where and when I can. The other day on my way to work, the radio talk show the cabbie was tuned into discussed the harmful effects of refrigerators and other appliances yet also offered tips on what people could to help. And for all the bad rep of AM radio talk -- hey, I enjoy dramas too -- it makes for interesting food for thought. Just have to sift through all the useless stuff.

Major retailers in America are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. There are even reports of -- this will sound so familiar -- hoarding!

At a Costco in Mountain View, California, a customer asked in abject exasperation and thinly-veiled anger, “Where’s the rice? You should be able to buy something like rice. This is ridiculous.”

Welcome to a third world problem, California.

I've constantly had to tinker with my monthly budget what with all the rising prices. Here's what I'm doing to beat the crunch:

I don't have too much food in my refrigerator or on my shelf. I have just enough to last me a week.

I only cook when I need to. I oft get from a neighborhood food store. That way I spend less on electricity/gas and don't keep to many left-overs.

If I spend on something pricey, I make sure that I save elsewhere.

I'm varying my diet -- eating a stream of veggies, fish, meat, and bread products every other day. Now I have to keep myself healthy so I don't get sick.

A Memo for Memorials

2008-04-20T13:23:00.000+08:00

Warning To Memorial Plan Holders

by Neomi Olivares

In 1991, I purchased for my husband and myself individual memorial plans from Loyola Plans, Inc., through an agent who assured me that our funeral requirements would be taken care of when our time of departure came. The sales agent assured me that the following benefits would be supplied by Loyola: a casket, the required transportation of the remains, the chapel and other services. The agent said that I nor my husband would not have to pay a centavo more at the time of our death. Our plans were paid on a 5-year installment plan and fully paid in 1996.

Last July 2007, a very poor relative of mine suddenly died. Because his widow could not afford any thing at all, I decided to donate the casket that went with my Loyola plan. (I would not need any casket since I had purchased a cremation plan from another company a few years ago.) When I called up Loyola Plans, Inc., I was told that my plan is not a life plan that provides a casket, chapel and other services, but is only a "form of insurance" that would provide some funds to purchase whatever is affordable at the time of my death. They pointed out that the "base value" of our plans is only P8,000 each, plus 10% interest accumulated per year since its full payment. Based on this, the current value of each of our plans as computed by Loyola Plans last October 2007 was P24,000.

At first glance, P24,000 sounds great. But I was shocked to learn that the cheapest funeral package at Loyola Memorial Chapels, the sister company of Loyola Plans, Inc. which acts as its servicing mortuary, is P50,000. This was the price in 2007.

What does this mean? It means that at the time of my death, were it to happen today or years from now, the funds provided by my memorial plan would never be sufficient to cover the cheapest funeral package at Loyola Chapels. In other words, the pre-need package as presented to me by the Loyola sales agent in 1991, led me to falsely believe that my funeral needs would be fully supplied at the time of need and that my family would not have to spend a single centavo more. If I had known that my family would have to cough up an additional huge amount at the time of my death, I would have never purchased this plan which they call now as"insurance".

My case is by no means unique. Since this thing happened, I have discovered from relatives of deceased plan holders, that they were forced to upgrade their parents' or other relatives' memorial plans at the time of their death either because (a) the monetary of their plans was not enough to pay for the current value of the funeral package; or, (b) the casket presented was too ugly or the chapel too small. (I personally most of these people and can supply their names and addresses, if necessary.) The families of the deceased plan holders had to pay excessive amounts to upgrade their plans. (I attended another wake last April 3 and got to talk to a daughter who told me that her family upgraded a P50,000 plan to P129,000 because she said that the casket was not presentable at all.)

To shorten this very long story which is remains unresolved up to this day, let me summarize the actions and events that have taken place in our pursuit to make Loyola Plans, Inc. honor the pre-need package it sold to me in 1991.

1. On Aug. 24, 2007, I filed a formal complaint with the the Pre-Need Section of the Securities and Exchange Commission versus Loyola Plans, Inc.. My specific charge was: "manipulating and shortchanging its planholders', including my husband and myself.

2. The lawyer of Loyola Plans and my husband and I have had two hearings at SEC to discuss the matter.

3. Loyola Plans at first adamantly stuck to its guns that our contract did not promise to provide the casket, chapel, etc., but only promised to act as administrator to purchase a casket, chapel, etc. out of the amount or prevailing value of my plan at the time of death. Later, however, it drew up a separate "Undertaking" which specified some memorial services to be provided to me and my husband, but limited the availment thereof to only a year from the time of its execution.
This was ridiculous and totally unacceptable to us! Was Loyola being deliberately stupid to put down in writing that I or my husband would have to avail of the funeral plan within a year? Besides, we did not want to accept only some services, but every single one of the services enumerated in the original contract.

4. Our other option was to surrender the contract and avail of the present cash surrender value--which Loyola computed only as 50% of P24,000. At first, I considered this option, but later decided to pursue for the second time a revision of the Undertaking mentioned above. So I revised the Undertaking, specifying every single service mentioned in the original contract.

5. However, in March 2008, Loyola Plans refused again to "renegotiate" the Undertaking. It has not taken any other action to assure me of that it will give me the services I'm entitled to per the provisions of the contract at no additional expense on the part of my family. At present, we are at an impasse.

Friends, let my experience be a warning to all planholders. I suggest you do the following:
1. Locate your memorial plan or contract. Make sure it is in a readily accessible place where your family members can quickly find it when the time comes. Also, make sure you give them proper instructions on how to make the proper availment.

2. Carefully go through every provision of the contract. Verify the provisions with your particular memorial plan company. See them personally so that you can secure necessary names and telephone numbers. And write down these numbers and give copies to your family.

3. Determine whether you are satisfied with the memorial services to be given to you. If so, say so to your family and tell them not to upgrade. If not, and if you have the lotsa money, then do the upgrading of your plans NOW, while you're still alive and able. Otherwise, your family will spend no small fortune in upgrading at the time of need.

Do you want to vote for someone who is a legend in her own mind?

2008-04-18T16:49:00.001+08:00

So much for saving lives and protecting and serving the people

2008-01-08T14:56:00.000+08:00

Last December 13, 2007, a fire nearly razed the apartment I was renting in Project 4, QC. To date there is no sufficient explanation about what started the fire. Well, there are rumors but ANP is not about rumor mongering.

Around 8:30 in the evening my landlord rather nervously shouted that there was a fire. For the first time in my life, I panicked. Not because everyone was caught off guard but everything I own in this world is in my apartment including my life's works. To lose them would not only be unthinkable but a huge blow to my morale and well being.

The first thing I did was call my dad for help then I stuffed my laptop, videocam, passport, wallet, Zinedine Zidane France jersey and some discs (containing my work) into a duffel bag and backpack. I had to forcibly grab my dog that hid under the bed and push her out to safety. The flames threatened to engulf the entire neighborhood and put a huge damper on the Holiday cheer. People were clambering over the roofs of the other houses to get to safety. They were carrying everything they could possibly carry; adrenaline giving them an extra dose of strength to carry the improbable. A neighbor's roof was unable to support the weight that it gave in with a hideous and sickening roar that added to the panic and chaos.

I stood shocked and felt totally helpless. It isn't so much about being materialistic but damn... that's everything that I own.

The first fire trucks (they had QC markings) arrived some 10 minutes after I had gotten out. To my horror, they had no water! That snapped me out of my stupor. I immediately gathered my neighbors to combat the fire using pails, garden hoses, jugs of mineral water, and cube ice! Thank God for firewalls because the inferno would have devoured everything in the neighborhood. With us at the wall fighting the fire (the firemen just stood by smoking cigarettes), we had a chance to keep it from spreading into our side of the street until help arrived. The blaze wasn't something that was going to be easy to put out. It had already razed several dozen houses in the area and as it tore through a nearby squatter area it was like pouring gasoline into the conflagration.

I'm not sure how long it took but after a spell, the fire trucks from the Chinese Volunteers arrived. Mercifully, they had water.

It was a surreal moment. There were people up on the roof taking videos of the fire with their camera phones. There was no police line to hold back the onlookers or even direct traffic. Home owners who saved what they could would throw their belongings to the ground and rush back to grab whatever they could. With their belongings unattended, opportunistic thieves wasted no time in pilfering whatever was left of their lives. Two looters were caught but were let go since there was no time to take them to the precinct. Instead they were slugged a couple of times in the face to leave them with a telling reminder of their crime. Now whether that would have effect on them we'll never know.

My two brothers soon arrived separately and began helping save what they could of my belongings. After that they climbed up the roof to help with the fire fighting.

By 1230, the fire trucks incredulously began to pull out despite the fire not totally put out. Their fire chief said that it had been "contained" and posed no further danger. I grabbed him by the hand and pointed to the embers that were floating skyward. Obviously the fire wasn't out. If there were smoldering embers that were floating into the night sky that meant the fire was still feeding on some things. Just as the fire trucks (there were 16 of them) were pulling out, the blaze roared back to life and rose high. These firemen were unreal. Some of them went around the neighborhood asking homeowners for juice. Yup, juice. Not water!

The walls of the apartment were smoking. If left unchecked, it could have exploded and let the fire inside the compound walls. By now, we had been fighting the fire for like four hours and I could feel my body and all its unused muscles aching. I was drenched with sweat and water and black from the smoke.

Two more fire trucks arrived and by 330am the fire was finally put out.

The apartment was a mess. It was black and sooty from the fire. The ceiling and the roof damaged from both the fire and water. The whole place smelled of smoke. Some of my belongings were destroyed from either the rush to save them or from the fire. I lost some precious items to looters.

I wasn't able to sleep anymore that day and immediately began to clean what I could. My body gave in from nearly seven hours of fire fighting and fatigue that I would be bogged down by a fever for nearly two weeks.

There are still moments when I wake up at night to check if I am still alive and that there's no fire threatening to take my life and what I own. If anything, that moment of clarity that spurred me to action was a sign from God not to take things for granted.

I came away from that experience with more distrust and disgust in our police forces and fire department. How many times have we heard about firemen looting the homes they were supposed to save? How many times have we heard about cops not being where they are supposed to be?

I never liked them. And I never will.