Filipino workers should not be blamed for US oil rig blast–officials

 

Bravo Mr. Cuisia for taking on the cudgels of our beleaguered oil rig kababayans, especially that three of them lost their lives!  Sometimes, the ugly head of discrimination comes into the picture, and that's the only reason I could think of why some media reports, especially from the US, would want to paint a bad picture of our kababayans.  Nakakainis lang talaga basahin noh pag nilalait ang ating mga OFWs!

Filipino workers should not be blamed for US oil rig blast–officials

Celebrating Bonifacio's Heroism

 

Bonifacio reveals fervor in writings

In Social Studies class twenty years ago, we had a class debate on armed revolution vs. intellectual revolution against the Spanish, the former being led by Andres Bonifacio, whose heroism we celebrate today, and the latter, by Jose Rizal, our national hero.  I remember being assigned in the intellectual revolution group and I believe we were able to convince the class that the intellectual revolution led by Rizal was instrumental in the downfall of the Spanish.

Looking at it back now, I think Bonifacio also played a very important role during that dark era of our history.  He showed bravery in the face of a colonial power who had overwhelming power over, in terms of military prowess.  At least with the KKK, Bonifacio led our countrymen to tear their cedulas and cry against the injustices imposed by the Spanish at that time.  Bonifacio is the proper symbol for people in protest since his courage and fearlessness were apparent in a time when standing up against the authority can mean certain death.

Not Too Happy About the Quezon City Business District Idea

 

Sometimes I don't understand why our government, or at least, this local government we have now, seem to be angry against parks or trees or anything green.  I remember during the term of Mayor Atienza when they bulldozed a park and built a parking area for buses!  This time, the QC government wants to sell all the greenery from the Wildlife Park to the Manila Seedling area to the Veterans Memorial Hospital, all those are the last remaining expanses of greenery QC has, and transform it into something like the Fort.  The Fort is not green at all.  Have you actually seen the place?  Yeah, it's sosy and cool to be there but it's all cement and there are no freakin' trees!  There are some trees but they look like they're choking on the pollution.  All the cool Serendra ads saying, oohhh, we're so cool here with trees and you can go jogging around BGC is all bull really.  I actually pity the people who run around BHS.  They're gonna die of asthma or some form of pulmonary disease inhaling all the fumes from those cars!

I feel sad because that scenario is going to happen here in QC, in a place very near my home.  Maybe some people want it to look upscale like the Fort but don't be fooled by all those seemingly cool buildings. It still pales in comparison to how green, let's say, KLCC Park is in Kuala Lumpur or even Singapore for that matter.

At least leave the Ninoy Aquino Wildlife Park and the Manila Seedling Foundation land from it.  Of course, the deal may be done, even as I'm writing.  And we wonder why we our city looks like Venice after a downpour - we want to turn every green space into cement and steel!

Looking Forward to Next Year's Marikina Sapatos Festival

 

I don't think it was lack of marketing since I'm sure I read about it somewhere, but I feel bad that I missed this year's Marikina Sapatos Festival.  I admit I am guilty of preferring to buy foreign brands, thinking that wearing them gave me more cachet and made me look more sosyal than most people. 

I love shoes and I have lots of pairs in my room and frankly, where I am now, I wouldn't mind buying something locally made - and I am also curious if the ones made in Marikina are indeed comfortable and look fashionable too.  Anyway, soon as the next shoe festival comes in, I'd surely take time to check out the goods there.   I do hope they have sneakers and nice slippers.

Teacher kills self after losing all his money in scam

I am only an amateur player in the local stock market and I can tell you that I have never experienced doubling my money within a one month period.  Frankly, if a genie appears before me, I would ask him to show me at what points the market doubled its income and which companies did, because that would be the only time, Ponzi schemes like this one by Aman Futures Group could have legitimately earned their money.  But of course, genies don't exist and mere mortals like me who play the stock market for 'fun' don't double their money in a month's time.  Maybe in 3 years but in one month?  That should've have rung alarm bells on the investors.

What makes me sad though is that these people could've invested it in the local stock market and help propel the growth of many of our local companies.

 Teacher kills self after losing all his money in scam

Thousands gypped in P12-billion scam

A sucker is born every minute - and yet they all succumb to the same sin - greed.  All of us are guilty of it.  We always want more - even if the promises are unrealistic.  Pyramid scams have been with us for more than a hundred years and we actually know how they operate, but because of greed, the rational side to our nature flies out of the window.

As they've always said, if something is too good to be true, then, most likely it's a scam!

Thousands gypped in P12-billion scam

Not Too Happy With the Strong Peso

I read in the news today that the Philippine peso would strengthen to 39 pesos next year.  That's really bad news since the conversion will then go down to 37 pesos for us - Paypal and Western Union do not really follow the printed conversion and we'd have to pay for their service too, that's why it's that low.  Problem is, everything is expensive nowadays.  All the prices of basic commodities are just through the roof!  Before long, Manila will be one of the more expensive capitals to live in in the world.

Anyway, the strengthening of the peso is indeed a challenge for us so the only way to fight it is to set up a local presence which we have started with FABE magazine and the FABE studio.  We still have to look for another possible local business next year that can bring in daily sales.

Whew, the challenges never end!

Being Kind to our LRT and MRT Commuters

This article by respected sociologist Michael Tan is such an eye-opener!  The last time I rode the MRT was way back in the late 90s and I would often joke to the young kids now that the now very busy Quezon Avenue station was a very quiet station during my time - I remember I would be the only one going down in that station.  Of course now, with McDonald's and KFC there and so many other stores, it is a very busy area!

I don't know how the government could've overlooked the handling of the MRT and the LRT.  The truth is, to get good service, you'd have to pay for it, and the very cheap prices of the tickets I think, don't give them enough money to even maintain the trains.  I read about an MRT train catching fire - thank God walang namatay - but I hope we don't wait till a real accident happens!

I love what Mr. Tan said here about being kind to the commuters who have to endure this hell.  Talking from my side - I mean those who drive their own cars - we're also suffering from the bad traffic too and the expensive cost of gasoline!  As to when the suffering will end, whew, there should be some good guy out there who can run the MRT and the LRT well, but I have this sinking feeling that we'd all have to bite several bitter pills first!

Kindness and LRT/MRT

Games We Played When There Was Still No Ipads or Facebook to Entertain Us

Like any other kid, I enjoyed long holidays like the one we're having now!  Well, for schoolchildren, we'd have a longer vacation we call sem break and it would be about two weeks tops and it would run through the November 1 visiting of the dead ritual that most Catholic Filipinos perform.

Nowadays though, you wouldn't find kids out in the street playing siyatong or buwan-buwan or  tumba lata - and in a way, I do feel sorry for them - and I feel bad that today's parents are not even teaching their kids the games they played when they were younger.  Even freakin' jackstone!

Anyway, I loved playing siyatong as a kid. You just needed two sticks to play it with and a possibly a sandy topsoil so you can make that vertical mound needed to launch the smaller stick.  I wasn't particularly good at playing this since my hand-eye coordination was very poor, but it was fun anyway!

I also loved playing buwan buwan which was a variation of the patintero.  Since it was full moon these past few days, those were the days we played this game since we could play it at night, with the full moon and all!  You didn't need anything to play this game, just a stick to put a line were the "it" can walk and follow and 'touch' the people inside the circle (which resembles the shape of the moon - hence the name).  

Tumba lata was another fun game we played and I hated being it because I was really a bit slow as a kid but I enjoyed it when I was NOT the "it"!  It was a bit of a mean game I remember now and one really had to be quick to escape being caught or have one's slippers get caught in the circle which 'houses' the can.  What the rest had to do was to throw their slippers and make the can fall and the 'it' had to put the can back in the circle AND catch anyone who dares get his or her slipper back!  It was a fun way NOT to be obese!