Saturday, May 31, 2008

MANNY AS AN ACTOR

Manny Pacquiao funny pictures - Manny Pacquiao as AragornManny Pacquiao auditioned for the role of Aragorn...
Manny Pacquiao as Gollum...got the role of Gollum "my precious title" instead.
courtesy of the creative people from Philboxing.com



Hey don't get me wrong. I'm a huge fan of Manny click the tags and see for yourself. This is good-natured humor only. I sourced these photos from Philboxing.com.

WAYS TO BEAT MANNY PACQUIAO

TRIPLE TEAM HIM - MARQUEZ PREFERS THE COJONES!

SEND SOME REINFORCEMENTS AND DISTRACT THE REFEREE!!!
photos courtesy of the creative people from Philboxing.com

Friday, May 30, 2008

LAKERS VS CELTICS

If these historic and legendary teams meet again in NBA Finals, it would be great! I waited for years to see this match up and now I have an opportunity. The L. A. Lakers are already in the Finals eliminating the defending champions (click me for info). The Boston Celtics must do its part then tomorrow (it leads 3-2 over the Pistons). Wow, the rivalry is back (most likely, no offense to Detroit Pistons fans - Rip is still questionable for Game 6).

Thursday, May 29, 2008

CHANGE DORAMA: ELECTIONS IS THE ONLY PERMITTED LEGAL WAR

courtesy of Fuji television



So says Asakura Keita’s (Takuya Kimura – the King of J-dramas according to sources) election manager in Japanese dorama CHANGE. Life has changed a lot to the afro-haired school teacher. The death of his politician father and brother forced him to run for the ruling party in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. However, Keita has no interest in politics preferring to gaze at the stars instead whenever there’s an opportunity. With the by-elections decided, the party boss Kanbayashi Masaichi and his ambitious secretary Miyama Rika (Fukatsu Eri) felt he should succeed his father as the young Asakura is both youthful and good looking, and would appeal to certain block of voters. Besides, the party needed to defend its parliamentary seats. The persistent urging of Rika and Keita’s wish to spare his mother from politics (she was the other choice) made him decide to run (besides he thinks he's not going to win anyway). On the other hand, master election manager Nirasawa arrived vowing a victory --- the short but grueling campaign has begun for the afro-haired school teacher.

I enjoy watching political dramas (e.g. West Wing) and this one is no different. Change dorama is still on-going (third episode as of press time) and it has already exceeded my expectations. I saw how Japanese conduct their campaign (they use a van and travel around the city and candidates wear a sash bearing their name for example) and I expect to learn more about Japanese politics and the workings of their Diet (Parliament) in future episodes.

The Japanese are good in developing cliff hangers toward the end of an episode – that’s why I prefer to watch finished series than on-going ones. Episode two of Change left me and my father hanging – there’s episode three in Veoh but it has no subs yet. Hahaha…I think one of the subbers has an exam so the release of the third episode might be delayed – no problems though. Thanks to the fan subbers I get to see excellent series such as this.


Update:

Excellent series...watch the final episode as the actor does a twenty minute uncut speech! Compelling towards the end...

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

WHERE IS THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH?

It is in CHINA.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

INTERESTING

I have a great find that I'll share tomorrow. It is a very interesting item as for the "elections" article I'll publish it soon.

POWER PERSONIFIED



As if Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 Allegro con brio (known in our country as “Standard” soundtrack) isn’t powerful enough – add an emotional and power packed conductor such as Karajan (I think he is minutes away from head-banging) and the piece becomes even stronger. Just look at Herbert Von Karajan in action - picture of intense concentration and probably internalizing what the piece is all about. Understanding the piece and what the composer was trying to convey to his audience is the key in successful presentation of classical music. WOW just look at the guy! He is unbelievable!!!

I want to add Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 allegro con brio in the playlist for I really developed a liking for the piece – soon hopefully – please take time to listen, okay?

Beethoven Symphony No.5 Allegro con brio is a needle that sticks to your butt to keep you from being depressed. No, really it's an effective anti-stupor remedy.

Monday, May 26, 2008

PAST REVISITED

Updates:

RGMA’s Big Time Balita mellowed at lot but the stereotyping still exists every Saturday when the character Bai is present. Very smart, RGMA VERY SMART!

It has been several days since I successfully kept my schedule. Of course, minor adjustments are still needed to be done as I have a tendency to overrun one activity in favor of another. I don’t want that to happen again save for important activities that need extra time.

I still haven’t found any suitable guitar version of Beethoven’s Pathétique. My busy schedule prevents me from scouting other video sites thoroughly.

I decided not to publish any journal tributes to my mother as it is too personal. The most important thing is she knows that I love her.

Well, that’s it holders I have kept you updated with the happenings in our beloved blog. Stick around I have more interesting topics. To be published soon “Elections is the only permitted legal war”. What?

Sunday, May 25, 2008

PANDA SNEEZING



Its friend probably hasn't taken a bath yet hence the reaction! I think Pandas are cute definitely not weird as the uploader noted.

RETHINKING A REVOLUTION

This is an old article frankly examining the Negros Revolution. It was only last year's Cinco De Noviembre celebrations I heard of Papa Isio - most history books don't include the poor babaylan. Thanks to Bombo Radyo I learned of the unsung hero of the revolution as the celebrations and records tend to focus on the hacienderos - he deserves much more than he is given right now. On the other aspects of the article, I'll comment later. Here's the commentary courtesy of Sunstar:


November 4, 2006
Severino: Cinco de Noviembre: Revolution or Hacienda?

By Gil Alfredo Severino
Think Economics

LET it be known that the "Movimiento de Cinco de Noviembre, 1898" (November 5, 1898 Movement) is not about Generals Juan Araneta and Aniceto Lacson. In the Actas Del Gobierno Revolucionario de Negros Occidental (The Revolutionary Government of Negros Act), a Severino was there, Don Melecio Severino who proposed the election of officials, they were:

President -- Aniceto Lacson
Delegate of War -- Juan Araneta
Delegate of Hacienda -- Eusebio Luzuriaga
Delegate of Government -- Simon Lizares
Delegate of Development -- Nicolas Golez
Delegate of Justice -- Antonio Jayme
Delegate of Agriculture and Commerce -- Agustin Amonabar
Secretary -- Melecio Severino
Sub-Secretary -- Fortunato Hugo
Military Commander -- Rafael Ramos

These officials have the means to be formally educated, thus the enlightened class who can afford to construct monuments and the political networks to name streets in their honor.

We must never forget, however, that without the countless participation of hacienda (sugar farm) workers, it is impossible to launch an attack leading to the surrender of the Spanish Casadores Colonel Isidro de Castro on November 6, 1898 (Bacolod Public Plaza was named, thus) and the last Spanish flag was folded on November 8, 1898, never to fly again in Negros.

It is unfortunate, that not a single monument was ever dedicated to their memories, not a single street or purok down south was named after the sunburned "terrorista" Dionisio "Papa Isio" Magbuelas.

At least, Lapu-Lapu has a fish and a Cebuano City. Perhaps, this humble essay can be an eulogy of some sort, these "little people" deserved.

A revolution is to overthrow existing social order, violent or otherwise. Where do we place the Negros Revolution of November 5, 1898? In the first place, the first act of President Aniceto Lacson was to telegram the Malolos-based Emilio Aguinaldo government about the victory and proclamation, but never asked for instructions.

The Agoncillo-Constantino interpretation is that the hacienderos never trusted the "radical" Aguinaldo ever since.

His revolutionary feats are destructive to their properties. Besides, Ilonggo scholar, Dr. Cecile Locsin-Nava further concluded that the Aguinaldo Government cannot guarantee a market for sugar anyway.

So, on November 12, 1898, a week after the proclamation, aware that the American Cruiser Charlston was docked in Iloilo, the movement eventually hoisted the American flag at the Bacolod City Hall, perhaps among the first in the country to express public display of American affection.

The Babaylanes led by Papa Isio who was to contend with hunger, poverty, criminal consequences and their longing for the "kaginhawaan" (salvation) had the bravery to burn haciendas with foreign conspiracy. Hoisting an American flag is an abomination!

What came out of this Cinco de Noviembre Revolution? The Malolos Government pressured loyalty, the Babaylanes were a hostile threat, Spanish revenge is still a possibility (Lacson, Araneta, et al, got amakan canons) and the Americans are shrewd enough to recognize the Philippines depending on the signing of the December 18, 1898 Treaty of Paris, US$ 20 Million for Spain and the Filipinos were not even invited to attend the signing.

This needs re-thinking. Cinco de Noviembre is an ideological vacuum and a market dependency.


Saturday, May 24, 2008

IN DEFENSE

Manny Pacquiao has been under attack from several pseudo-boxing writers recently and even I got sick of it. However, Nick Alejo of Philboxing.com threw a counterpunch that sure got the attention of those hacks. He exposed their true intentions and their actions in one of the best anti-Pachater article.

Pacman ranks #4 in my P4P list...
Pacquiao only fought over the hill mexican legends...
Pacquiao never fought an A-level black boxer... ledwaba is not a black boxer...
I believe Guzman will beat Manny Pacquiao...
Pacquiao is avoiding Guzman...
Pacman will escape to 140 to fight Hatton to avoid Guzman...

Did I get your attention Paclanders?

Sometimes it's annoying, but oftentimes it's funny reading these kind of articles. Lately, these type of write-ups are springing like poisonous mushrooms on the WWW. Either these writers are real Pac-hater, pacfan-hater or just plain flat envious of Pacquiao's on and even off-ring accomplishments, but honestly, i'm more inclined to believe that these self-proclaimed boxing experts are just intentionally writing negative articles about Pacquiao in order to get more hits on their websites/blogs. They are playing with the thousands of passionate and emotional pacfans, and I'd say they are succeeding. (mistakes are from source)

It is also entertaining and at the same time amusing how Pacfans oftentimes fell victim to these absurd articles. A writer would invent... err... write a negative article about Manny and all the Pacnuts/Pacmaniacs (as these writers refer to us), would leave comments at the bottom of the article.

Just to remind you guys, the more hit a website generates, the better for them. When I say hit, I'm referring to the unique IP that is registered once you enter a website. In layman's term, it means when you click their website link, you give them that precious hit they've been drooling for. So the more you reply to their non-sense articles, the more you visit their blogsite, the more hits they get. The more hits they get the better for their site ranking. So, instead of reacting violently and posting your sentiments on their blogsite, why not try to refrain from clicking their website link. Avoid browsing their website like you avoid your officemate who brushes his teeth 2x a week. This way you save yourself from possible hypertension and heart attack, while at the same time depriving them of your precious hit.

Going back to some of their absurd articles, how can a person say Ledwaba is not black because he didn't fought like Ali or Sugar Ray Leonard? Last time I check, black is under the category of color not style. They can always make a case that it was only a figure of speech but as far as I'm concerned it will always look like they're looking for ways to discredit Manny's accomplishments.
SOURCE

By the way to say Ledwaba is not black is to say Michael Jordan is white. I know who wrote these anti-Manny stuff but I won't say it or he'll become more popular. This is not the first time this Pachater dished out diatribes against the Filipino boxing icon. I stopped reading write ups from this nitwit a long time ago and hopefully other people would do so too in order to teach this guy a lesson. He is not going to make money at my expense!

STOP MAKING THINGS UP!!!

Please read the following account of the Negros Revolution. The article quotes from a work of Modesto Sa-Onoy a local historian:

November 5

The revolt began in Central and Northern Negros in the morning and by the afternoon had spread to other towns such as San Miguel and Cadiz. In Silay, Lt. Maximiano Correa, commanding the Spanish garrison, had ten Spanish cazadores (Spanish, literally, "hunters") and seven Filipino civil guards. They were entrenched inside the municipal building, but surrendered without a fight when they realized that the townspeople were determined to burn the building to the ground should there be resistance. The Silay parish priest, Fr. Eulogio Saez, a businessman named Juan Viaplana and Jose Ledesma persuaded the Spanish forces to lay down their arms, but in order to save face, the lieutenant had it appear in the official records that the capitulation was the result of a bloody battle with "dead and wounded littered all over the field of battle". Ten Mauser and seven Remington rifles were surrendered by the Spanish garrison. Later, a Filipino flag embroidered by Olympia Severino and her sisters was hoisted by the victorious townspeople.

Haha...The lieutenant has a career writing telenovelas for Univision! This was probably their practice and I don't regret my decision doubting Pigafetta's Battle of Mactan account. This Spanish Lieutenant made things up knowing there were Filipino witnesses present how much more Pigafetta whose accounts no one could corroborate? I can't blame Correa - the Negrense people OWNED him!

I wonder what he wrote in that account maybe it goes something like this:
We were surrounded by fully armed indio soldiers (reality - angry townspeople probably carrying sticks and stones literally and some rebels) probably a thousand against us brave 17 men in Silay Church. After hours of brutal skirmish none of our brave Guardia Civil were killed but the indios suffered more with dead and wounded littered all over the field of battle. Viva Espana, we lost but our dignity is intact.
Much like Battle of Mactan 1000 Mactan warriors vs. 49 Spaniards and some reinforcements by Humabon. According to Wikipedia only three of the Spaniards were killed.

In reality this might be what happened:

“The hijos de perros are surrounding us Teniente what shall we do?” asks Guardia Civil one.

“We are going to fig---, “replied Lt. Correa

But Teniente.” Interjected the Padre

“No padre. A man has got to do what is asked of him. Vi----va Es…there…are so many of them. We surrender Padre. Tell them not to burn the church. Keep those torches away…”

Excuse me I got carried away. This historical fact amused me.
Not everyone is happy with Cinco De Noviembre - who and why - you will know hopefully tomorrow.

Friday, May 23, 2008

WAKE UP!!!

I complained about that racist RGMA program "Big Time Balita" and I hope the stereotyping stopped as the show was moved in the late afternoon with a new title. The Bisaya stereotype character Bai - the show's clown only appears on Saturday. I will not let say whether the hateful program has actually stopped I'll have to confirm it first. I felt relieved at the moment for its weekday program has no Bai in it and therefore no disgusting joke would come his way - after all he usually says he is the representative of the Bisaya people. However the genius at RGMA made his character dumb. So the envoy of the Bisaya is stupid as the program suggests. Though I'm not a Bisaya I was appalled by "Big Time Balita" lack of respect towards non-Tagalog Filipinos. I'll check tomorrow and I'll lash out if the outmoded comedy style is still used.

Speaking of racists clowns here is another one:

Ma. Consoliza P. Laguardia
Chairperson
Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB)
6th Floor President Tower
#81 Timog Avenue Cornewr Sct. Ybardaloza, Quezon City
Phone: 925-5006, 925-5007

and

Purificacion C. Valera Quisumbing
Chairperson
Commission on Human Rights (CHR)
Phone: 928-5655, 926-6188, 929-0102
Email: drpvq@yahoo.com

With copy provided to the Honorable Senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr.


This is a protest letter against the film, ‘Sakal Sakali Saklolo', written and directed by Jose Javier Reyes, which opened on 25 December 2007 in movie houses all over the Philippines, and a petition to have it banned.

Hereinbelow are some important facts.


1. There is an excerpt from the said film that goes like this:
Yaya to grandchild: "Ayaw ug dagan, basin madam-ag ka."
Grandchild: "Kadyut lang, nagduwa pa ko."
(Grandfather with bulging eyes grimaces incredulously at the Visayan words of his grandson.)
Yaya: "Anhi dinhi."
Grandmother (with a pained expression) to Grandfather: "Carlo, did you hear that?"
Mother: Ay naku Ma. Nakuha ho niya ‘yon sa yaya niya. Sinabihan na namin si Susan na huwag niyang Binibisaya si Rafa. Dapat Tagalog."
Grandmother: "But the boy should be talking in English."
Mother: "Hayaan niyo na sa eskwelahan matutunan ‘yon Ma. Dapat Tagalog kasi Pinoy ang anak namin eh."

2. The above excerpt is defamatory, discriminatory, racist, and an open insult not only to all Visayans but all non-Tagalogs as well. It conveys the message that if a person is not Tagalog or Tagalog-speaking, then he or she is not Filipino. To ask a rhetorical question, are non-Tagalogs aliens in their own country?

3. The Philippines is a member of the United Nations and thus its Government institutions including the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) and Commission on Human Rights (CHR) have an obligation to implement and follow the UN's declarations. (See Appendix A) Moreover, the UN has voted to declare 2008 to be the international year of languages. The film directly contravenes UN declarations.

4. Senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr., speaking for Visayans who have complained to him, has rightfully denounced this film in public (Annex B). In line with this correct action by the Senator, have petitioned the honorable Senator Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. to call for a Congressional hearing regarding this issue of discrimination and hatred against non-Tagalogs, and possibly sponsoring an anti-hate and anti-discrimination bill to protect the non-Tagalog peoples of the Philippines from the hatred and discrimination of Tagalistas.

We therefore protest this film and petition that it be banned from the movies and TV.

Dr. Jose Palu-ay Dacudao (sgd)
On behalf of Save Our Languages Through Federalism, Inc, Foundation (SOLFED) and myself as an individual.

You know what the movie exposed - hypocrisy. One of the film's staff is supposedly a staunch advocate of equal rights which I think is only applicable if his own kind was involved. Be more consistent next time, how can we give you equality when you can't reciprocate it with other people different from you?



CONSTITUTIONAL DETECTIVE

I'm glad SOLFED has a website for I only get my language related articles from Defenders of the Indigenous Languages of the Archipelago (DILA) before. Now I have multiple sources. Yahoo!

Please read this very interesting article from Save Our Languages Through Federation (SOLFED) website.


The Lies of the 1934-1935 Constitutional Convention
Dr. Aurelio S. Agcaoili

The summer of 2007 in the Philippines was a date with history.

Like a detective, I did some exercise in disjunctive syllogism, the one that I taught in many convent schools, catholic colleges and seminaries, and in graduate school. Now I can announce: I did some sleuthing regarding the proceedings of the 1934-35 Constitutional Convention.

I pored over the records kept at the Lyceum Library, the National Library, the Supreme Court Library, and the Laurel Foundation Library.

I urged librarians to help me, giving them some clues to the problem I wanted to solve, pouring out my heart to that feeling that has something to do with how scholars did not do us justice by not telling us exactly what happened between the deliberations about the 'common national language provsion' of the 1935 Constitution by going back to the original documents of the proceedings. Even Andrew Gonzalez, with his Language and Nationalism, did not seem to have gone to the original records, judging from his discussion of the matter.

So what we have got is secondary information, some commentaries of commentaries of scholars commenting on the works of others. For instance, in his treatise on the 'evolution' of the Philippines national language, he simply reports, as follows: "The clamor for a national language as a symbol of solidarity and unity received official recognition during the 1934-1935 Constitutional Convention. The committee on official language presented a proposal which went through three drafts, in essence mandating the search for a common national language based on the existing Philippine languages. The committee on style, under Quezon's prodding, made a substantial alteration by stipulating that the common national language be based on one language rather than on many" (Language and Nationalism, 1980: 24).

Here we see that Gonzalez never bothered to look into the proceedings. The references listed at the end of his book did not mention anything about the Convention's proceedings; he relied, as is the case of his discussion, heavily on Aruego's 1936 account of the 1935 Constitution (The Framing of the Philippine Constitution, 1936).

I have grown weary of the language struggle so what I did was to revisit the records.

I first went to the National Archives and the National Library, two of the record-keepers of our memory as a people. Then I went to the Lyceum Library, to the Supreme Court, and lastly to the Laurel Foundation.

More than ten years ago, I had the good fortune of poring into the records kept in these government agencies when I was trying to understand the idea of the Philippine Revolution-or more appropriately, Philippine revolutions-from the point of view of the small man, the one who does not have the authority, the one whose desire was to love the homeland as a gentleman would love his woman. In short, I was interested with what scholars call today as "a history without authorities, " if by "authorities" we mean the big names, the big actors, those who played center stage roles in the drama we call the Philippine revolution/s. I had by this time grown suspicious of the self-conceit of heroes and their paid hacks. I had by this time begun to refuse to accept that idea that 'the revolution' was declared and finished by the Tagalog Republic.

By this time as well, I had read accounts of Ilokano katipuneros committing themselves to the cause of the revolution-in Ilokano, and with their own blood! Some of the surnames I could easily recognize including my own-surnames that were never mentioned in that 'national because nationalized'- and then eventually made 'natural' because already 'naturalized' , as is the case of Tagalog as P/Filipino-accounts, in a dogmatic form, of Zaide, Agoncillo, Guerrero, and Constantino.

You look into the history books fed to the minds of the young from the grades upwards and then in the university history courses, you have the same story, a grand and master narrative of some sorts, with the predictable names and the predictable incidents, minus the mulct and the dirt and the betrayal in the social drama that became a myth for the central and mainsream view of what Philippine history is all about. Never mind that in this grand and master narrative, the rest of the peoples of the Philippines, who had since the incursion of the invaders, been staging revolts, however unsuccesful these were from the point of view of the Tagalogistic notion of 'revolutionary success.'

This is the same tragic story we see in the story of the making of Tagalog as a national language and its being rammed into our throat until today by the monolingual Filipinos who know only Tagalog and who are reading the complexities and vast possibilities of the Philippines experience-and experience that necessarily tells us, to borrow Arnold Azurin's exitentialist and phenomenological phrase, that we are morally obliged to pursue our 'being and becoming.'

Here is what I found: That there was conspiracy, connivance, and collusion in the declaration of Tagalog as the basis of the national language.

As I write this, it is Thanksgiving in this land of our exile, and I have a lot to thank for-- such as this discovery of the triple cancer-the tripod of a C that continues to gnaw at our mind as a people, depriving us of that collective memory that should have been history's gift to us who try to keep on remembering.

But no, there are criminals of the Constitution, as the esteemed Vicente Albano Pacis declared for at least three times in his commentary on the national language situation, on the state of English language teaching in the country, and the ramming into our throat of the Tagalog language that, like the chameleon, continues to change color depending on the political, epistemic, and cultural ecology of the homeland.

First, the Gonzalez account of someone's account that there were three drafts that led to the 'framing' of the national language provision of the 1935 Constitution is lacking in perspective. The technical development of all the provisions of that constitution went through four 'drafts', with the fourth draft considered as the final draft and which was approved by the delegates of the convention, to wit, the title of that Fourth Draft as appended in the 1965 Proceedings of the 1934-1935 Constitutional Convention put together by Jose P. Laurel and published by Lyceum: "Appendix K-4: Final Draft of the Constitution of the Philippines, as approved by the Constitutional Convention on February 8, 1935."

Second, here is what is found in the Laurel Proceedings, which is not found in the version published by the House of Representatives: a first, second, third, and fourth draft of the Constitution.

Third, I must take note here that there are two accounts of the convention, one kept at the Supreme Court Library, and another that is put together by Laurel and is kept at the Laurel Foundation Library. The Supreme Court version, published by the House of Representatives between 1965 and 1966, does not contain the other drafts of the Constitution but only the final fourth draft and the proceedings beginning 1934 and ending in 1935.

Fourth, in terms of 'completeness' of the records therefore, the Laurel Proceedings contains a wealth of materials that reveals to us the kind of manipulation that happened during the convention. (I will continue to expose these manipulations by presenting documentary evidences and conjectures. )

It is not therefore true to say that the crowning of Tagalog as the glorified language of the land came as a logical choice of the people as represented by their delegates. This myth has to be unravelled for what it is: a myth that contains all the contradictions to our claims to linguistic justice and cultural democracy. In some of the accounts of Pacis, first at the Daily Express and then at the Inquirer, he recalled that right after the work of the convention was completed, many people who were in the know had been clamoring for the publication of the proceedings. This was an honorable way to check of the veracity of the proceedings and of the provisions of the 1935 Constitution.

That request was never granted.

The publication of the 1934-35 ConCon Proceedings happened only 30 years after when many of the delegates were long gone, senile, or had lapses in memory and judgment. Think of the kind of reaction and counter-reaction if these lies and manipulation were exposed as soon as the 1935 Constitution was approved.

The dishonesty of those involved was something.

The continuing linguistic injustice committed against the peoples of the Philippines at this time is an addendum to that dishonesty that became the basis for Tagalog as P/Filipino, that schizophrenic language of the center of power, commerce, education, and now media.

Think of academics schooled in this monolingual mindset, as is the case of many of the Tagalog teachers in the United States, many of them ignorant Ilokanos passing themselves off as Tagalog, or academics who cannot afford to have some intellectual breadth and depth-and resonance. One even had the temerity to say that we need to drumbeat Tagalog, a.k.a. P/Filipino as a 'global language' to, among others, avoid 'regionalism. ' In cases like this, we need to pray to the anitos and ask for patience so that these linguistic idiots will come to their senses.

Fifth, let these drafts from the Laurel Proceedings tell you of the ruses that happened.

First draft: Article XIII, Sec. 2: "A national language being necessary to strengthen the solidarity of the Nation, the National Assembly shall take steps looking to the development and adoption of a language common to all the people on the basis of the existing native languages."

Second draft: Article XIII, Sec. 2.a: "The National Assembly shall take steps toward the development and adoption of a common national language based on the existing native languages, and until otherwise provided by law, English and Spanish be the official languages."

Third draft: Nothing on Article XIII. Other parts of the draft of the Constitution had provisions. We must note here that the second draft was to be 'polished' for style-but not for substance! -by the Committee on Style chaired by Claro M. Recto. We note here that in the third draft, only those provision that have revisions for stylistic reasons were to be reviewed so that these provisions could be incorporated as part of the final, fourth draft. In the case of the provision on the national language, that was not mentioned, there was nothing, and thus, logically, the second draft is deemed that which was to move to the final, fourth draft.

But, here is what we have got:

Fourth draft: Article XIII, Sec. 3: "The National Assembly shall take steps toward the development and adoption of a common national language based on one of the existing native languages. Until otherwise provided by law, English and Spanish shall continue as official languages."

Now, we see a hand-or some hands.

The sleuthing continues.

FIGHTING BACK!!!

Language preservation warriors win on this one:


NCCA junks WIKA, Almario from language & translation committee

The National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) has disqualified Wika ng Kultura at Agham, Inc. (WIKA) headed by Virgilio S. Almario from the coveted National Committee on Language and Translation (NCLT).

It can be recalled that Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino (KWF) Chairman Dr. Ricardo Ma. D. Nolasco filed a petition to declare as null and void the NCLT elections, citing grounds of (1) failure to communicate with stakeholders, and (2) gross under-representation of the sector and mass disenfranchisement.

Non governmental organization Save Our Languages Through Federalism Foundation Inc. through its representative for the National Capital Region (NCR) Santiago B. Villafania has intervened supporting Nolasco's petition and "adopted the arguments of the KWF calling for a failure and/or nullification of election for non-fulfillment of membership qualifications and for not being registered with SEC for one and a half years."

"There is gross misrepresentation of the ethno-linguistic peoples of the Philippines in the NCLT committee as is clear from the KWF protest letter that lists the interlocking directorates of Tagalog writers that control the committee. In particular, the non- Tagalog Peoples of the Philippines have been left without a valid voice. This gross misrepresentation of our peoples could be regarded as an outright violation of the United Nations declarations on Human Rights, in particular linguistic rights, to which the Philippine Government is signatory to. In brief, the Philippine Government has an obligation to adequately represent all its ethno-linguistic peoples in its governmental bodies such as the NCCA," Dr. Jose Ma. Eduardo Dacudao, SOLFED president said.

Source

WRITING EVERYDAY

I have this intense motivation to write everyday. Not just in my blog but also in my journal. I feel my day is well-spent once I write. I feel this sense of accomplishment. After all, my purpose is to leave something for posterity ( I love reading my entries anticipating sporting events like the World Cup and Pacquiao’s upcoming matches and the ecstasy I feel when my favorite team wins or when Manny WINS – I enjoy reliving those moments). It is not just writing for writing’s sake but the love of writing. I feel like everyday is a good day to write. Sometimes ideas come out when I’m about to sleep so I have to jot it down so I will remember my message. I can’t let go of an idea simple or not I’ll just have to expand on it the next day. A blue notebook holds most of these ideas – some write ups never get to see the light of time but most do. Some ideas just need more time to polish. Writing everyday is also a form of discipline for me. No matter what happens I just have to find time to write so as to develop time management skills and fight my bad habit of procrastinating.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

ANOTHER BUSY DAY

I'm still getting used to my new schedule. Hopefully, I could adjust as soon as possible preferably tomorrow. I should learn to stick to schedule as I get distracted sometimes. Time management is the key. I have several write ups to share but I don't have time to type them. I promise it will be different starting tomorrow.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

HEAD HURTS

I have to take a rest for a have a headache and boy, it is troublesome. My schedule for the entire day was ruined. Well, I'll write tomorrow. Don't worry though I feel much better now. The pain has eased but if I continue surfing it will recur again. So it's bye-bye for now - my health comes first. Thank you for reading my blog.

Monday, May 19, 2008

NATIONAL PASTIME AS WRITTEN

Written on the back pages of an old notebook:

June 27, 2005 – National Pastime – Unprotected sex (reaction due to sudden increase in teenage pregnancies in the country) borrowed from Pol…

July 8, 2005 – Some jerks bombed London…37 people killed as of this writing…

September 11, 2005 – Manny Pacquiao…knocks out Hector Velasquez of Mexico. I’m excited for the (upcoming) Pacquiao – Morales rematch…

November 4, 2005 – So it has been 10 years since Rabin (Israeli Prime Minister) was assassinated …

January 10, 2006 – Headlines: NEDA doesn’t know who to help because there are too many poor (translated from the fictive language Filipino – the weirdest headline ever). Life is harsh when you are poor that’s why I don’t want to…

January 22, 2006 – Pacquiao beats (kayoed) Morales 2:32 of the tenth round. God is Great!

The old notebook keeps tab of history. Just some snippets for the author realized his journal keeping has been a hobby for more than five years already (excluding some notebooks which were unfortunately destroyed or disappeared. Due to privacy reasons some paragraphs were edited.) The author is thankful for keeping a journal – for he wants to record history as it happens and annotate it if possible.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

THINKING OF YOU DRIVES ME CRAZY


Hah…Love! Nothing drives out people’s emotions than love. What else can combine ecstasy, anguish, agony and pleasure at the same time? Speaking of crazy love life, nothing can compare to this two people from the Japanese drama – Nodame Cantabile.What would the world be without love? I wouldn't even dare to contemplate. I don’t care what they say I won’t stay in a world without love – same here Peter & Gordon, same here.

(The song's real video was the first N’sync video I ever saw – it was when the word boy band was written all over JT’s face. In fact, I thought JT looked pitiful in that video. I didn’t know then he was one of the famous members of the group. So much for Emimem hating N’sync, he copied their mental hospital concept in his first hit video “The Real Slim Shady”.)


Friday, May 16, 2008

WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME, TELL ME, TE-TE-TE-TE-TE-TELL ME?


One of the simple joys that I have is watching cute girls dancing (wholesome manner of course I respect women). Thanks to the so-called Korean “wave” I got treated to one. Meet the Wonder Girls with their single “Tell Me”. What can I say? They dance gracefully and one of the girls is really cute (the one with glasses on the first scene). Their song is really catchy and their dance moves funky – they created a storm in their country (2007) akin to what Sean Kingston and Soulja Boy tracks did to our country last year. For some, the girls’ dance moves are too sexy but for me I’ve seen sexier and it looks tame to me (what’s with those people?).


Korea girl group, Wonder Girls has been creating a buzz lately in Korea with their pop song, “Tell Me” and seen lots of rave reviews being created about it.
The opening of the dance which sees them swaying their shoulders and then moving their arms in V-shape style was conceptualised respectively by Sun Mi and Ye Eun. The “Tell Me” dance looks simple but when you actually do it, you would find it difficult to coordinate your arms and legs together.
And to prove how big of a hit it is with people, just do a search for “Wonder Girls Tell Me” on Youtube and you can see all sort of people imitating it. High school girls, policemen, military personnel, fellow korean celebrities have all done it. Have you? Source

I’ll just stick to Soulja Boy for I’m a guy, ok? Yooooouuuuuuu! Soulja Boy Tellem…


However, someone said (or told me, pun intended) their song “Tell Me” is a rip off from an old American chart topper “Two of Hearts” by Stacey Q (that someone is older than me of course for I recall few hit songs from the 80s and I hate that decade I don’t know why but I feel so powerless – is it because I’m too young then?) I will post the two and you decide. The news really dampened my enthusiasm. If it weren’t for one of the girls I wouldn’t bother to watch it again. Why didn’t they tell me…tell me…te-te-te-te-te-tell me? Oh well, I still enjoy the video though.


Thursday, May 15, 2008

A TOTALLY DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE


Ahhh...You know I’m always interested in listening to classical pieces outside their native instruments. For example, what it’s like hearing Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 or Beethoven’s Pathétique on guitar? However for purists, it is sacrilegious to do so but for me it isn’t, after all, it is still music. The treatment will be different of course but I like trying new things. Luckily, Youtube has provided me with one – Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 on guitar interpreted by Japanese power player Kazuhito Yamashita. (Unlike the piano, playing Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 on guitar is totally mice-free hehe.)

Liszt and Yamashita have something in common, here’s the observation:

Just as Franz Liszt created new repertoire and technique for the piano by transcribing Symphonies and Operas and then developing new techniques with which to play them, Kazuhito Yamashita took a similar path in the early 1980's and so revolutionised the world of possibilities on the guitar.

By transcribing well known pieces of orchestral music for solo guitar he has encouraged a trend which could make classical guitar much more appealing and accessible to concert programmers and the general concert going audience. Source

Please take time and listen to this genius at work – exhibited by his performance of Liszt’s rhapsody. Boy, it sounds fantastic and the guitar – I feel like it is going to sing in the manner Yamashita played it. Although, it is a totally different experience but it is a fine one indeed. Next piece, Beethoven’s Pathétique played on guitar I can’t wait to share it with you. Hopefully, I could find one.

LETHAL COMBINATION COUNTDOWN BEGINS

The countdown begins today for the much-awaited Manny Pacquiao-David Diaz fight on June 28, 2008 (June 29 – Philippine time). Press conference was held yesterday. I wish Manny – Good Luck!

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

LEBRON JAMES HAS NO REGARD FOR HUMAN LIFE

“LeBron James with no regard for human life!”

The NBA playoffs are heating up and the games are getting even more exciting esp. yesterday when LeBron James threw himself up the air with reckless abandon slamming the ball against the hapless Kevin Garnett. No wonder the commentator said those words. Who wouldn’t? If the NBA Defensive Player of the Year caught him, LBJ would be humiliated. However, King James refused to be intimidated and delivered that statement dunk to prove they are back in the series! On the way to the hole, James eluded three defenders challenging KG and the result is the classic LeBron power jam.

There are other noteworthy matches: New Orleans Hornets (led by CP3) vs. San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers vs. The Utah Jazz (series tied 2-2). If there are interesting moments, I will cover it on my basketball blog.

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

WHEN BIG MOUTHS OPEN!

There is usually trouble when NBA players open their mouths. Want to know what some players are saying? Then, what are you waiting for? Click me.

FIRST FUEL THEN FOOD!

If you think fuel hikes is a pain what about this? Financial Times takes a look on “Why are food prices rising?” This is a worldwide phenomenon that I hope will be discussed objectively, impassively, and thoroughly esp. in our country - the land of pain. When the problem catches national attention some sectors would cry out "Gloria Resign" as if that would solve the problem. It is time to concentrate our energies on the real problem.

Friday, May 9, 2008

SPARROW UNIT UNLEASHED IN UNITED STATES!

Washington – AP (Ameliorated Panhandlers) President Bush is attacked by a sparrow for more:

The animal kingdom expressed their displeasure of President Bush today by pooping on him during a news conference. A lone sparrow, possibly sent by Al Queada, made a daring daylight attack on President Bush while the liberal media did nothing to prevent the attack.

Former Republican leader Tom Delay was overheard to say, "that wouldn't have happened if the Republicans ( CORRECTION Democrats - ed.) were in charge."

Neocon activists throughout the country have been everywhere online one upping each other on how they would have handled the situation. One poster on the website Iammoreneoconthanyou stated, "I would have jumped and taken the poop so the dear leader didn't have to brush it off." Some questioned where was Nancy Pelosi was, what did she know and when did she know it.

The sparrows have now been listed as a terrorist organization. (link)




The Evil Sparrow Hits Bush

Just in:

In addition, the sparrow was caught by the brave men of the security forces. Our insider said the bird is “no bird brain at all” when pressed for answers it reportedly replied “Coo! Coo!” AP defense analyst intimated that it might be a coded message and all transmission of it should be suppressed at the moment.


Ameliorated Panhandlers reporter --------- contributed to this report from --------

RUN FOREST RUN!!!


Mama, what am I going to do?
What will you do if you see a huge crowd running for their lives and you don’t know what’s going on in the first place? Will you run with them or not? This is the dilemma facing several persons on this video. What will I do if I were on their shoes? I’ll run of course it is better to be safe than sorry.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

"STEVE NASH WITH ATHLETICISM"


I heard one basketball commentator describe New Orleans Hornets’ point guard Chris Paul as such. CP3 (his nick not related to C3PO or to CPU) led the Hornets to a 2-0 lead versus the San Antonio Spurs in the second-round of the NBA Playoffs 2008. Paul had a monster game 30 points and 12 assists.

I’m really impressed in Paul’s great playmaking ability – he is a pass-first point guard – a rare player in a league where scoring usually is king. Also, CP3 has the great gift to control a game. He knows when to let his teammates in and when to take over (and we have seen that in crucial situations when he needs to step up - the guy usually does).

A commentator called CP3 “Steve Nash (NBA’S two-time MVP) with athleticism” and I agree. He’s even better than Steve, at the moment, since Paul’s team is leading the series against the Spurs (while Nash’s team Phoenix Suns lost again in the playoffs to the Spurs). His efforts have been recognized as he placed second in the MVP balloting to eventual winner Kobe Bryant of the LA Lakers.

The Hornets and Spurs split their regular season clash and their playoffs series won’t be any different esp. as it heads to San Antonio for two games starting tomorrow. How CP3 responds on the road should be interesting to watch – I can’t wait.
Interesting fact: In high school, Chris Paul scored 61 points to honor his slain grandfather. One point for every year his grandpa lived.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

I EXERCISE MY RIGHT TO IMPLICATE MYSELF

Today we’ll look at some fun-loving dumb people who took some disturbing images and smart enough to put their faces in. Told you there’s a God of Justice.

The people in this video are self-styled fun lovers.

“For fun let us upload this video on Youtube and we could take the credit! Let’s show our faces so we too can be famous ya-ha!”

(To the tune of Beethoven’s Symphony No.5 yeah the one in Standard appliance commercial) Du-du-dumb!

“I’m the man I just took some can out of this guy’s azz. Yeah veyveh!” How does it feel to be well-known? Thank you for providing evidence. For good taste, I will not embed the video. You may thank your lucky stars!

However this guy isn’t so lucky.

But as always it is U.S.A. all the way – No.1. Check this video out. It is about a U.S. Marine throwing a puppy off a cliff. The marine was identified later as David Mortari – he appears prominently on the video and having fun about his act.

“Sir, I’m going to throw some puppy off the cliff, sir!” (When I was in the ROTC, I remember an officer telling a cadet “Gardemit, cadet! Sandweetsh your sentence with ser” Ahhh Military English is a different subject in itself.)


I’m not surprised at his conduct at all. There are people on Youtube defending the guy and some are even saying he’s cool. All I can say he is dumb for taking the video in the first place so he was identified. I don’t know if he was punished and I’ll not be surprised if he wasn’t. Even if it’s false, he’s dumb enough to insinuate something despicable to most Americans. For some, this is more disturbing than killing people and starting a war.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

HEAVENLY DAYS


My lonely eyes lit up the first time I saw her in the drama My Boss, My Hero (writing on a quill makes one romantic) – Yui Aragaki - the Japanese superstar. I fell for her character Umemura Hikari for she suited my type of woman – sweet, smart but tough. Was it love at first sight? Not exactly more like infatuation on the first eight episodes. Why was it that the more I watch her, the cuter she gets? (rhetorical question please don’t answer) In the last episode, she became even more beautiful with her long hair and that innocent, flirtatious smile (is there such a thing or is it just an oxymoron?). I know I must share this or I’ll explode (or fart whichever is realistic).

Unfortunately, the kimchi girl with rabbit teeth still won as far as my heart is concerned but I still admire Yui-chan still. It is probably because I haven’t gotten over her character Hikari and when I see her playing other roles I don’t like it.

Monday, May 5, 2008

THE SOLUTION II

Is the situation that bleak? Is it really going to happen? It will, if we don’t act now and publicize the issue. The more people aware of the dying Philippine languages situation the more people will get involved. It is the awareness of the issue that could be the first step of saving our other languages – it was when I learned of this condition that I got involved. Everyone esp. those of the “minority” tongues should get involved.
It’s good to note several politicians are conscious of this and are acting fast though I prefer short term and feasible solution first at the moment. Federalization is a long process and I’m not sure whether it would happen (change in the system of government) soon. But it is the best solution.


Ethno-linguistic minorities
in a federal government

By Prof. Fred Cabuang

IN a surprising move, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel and other senators recently sponsored a multi-party resolution for the federalization of the Philippines. It proposes the creation of states that will establish 11 centers of finance and development in the archipelago.

These states are Northern Luzon, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Bicol, Minparom (Mindoro Oriental, Mindoro Occidental, Palawan, Romblon and Marinduque), Eastern Visayas, Central Visayas, Western Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Southern Mindanao and BangsaMoro (Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, (Shariff Kabunsuan) Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi).

WE ARE A DYING PEOPLE II

Some people with hidden agenda won't believe this but this is a fact: Non-Tagalog Philippine languages are dying. Need more proof? Hah! Just in time!

Even Kapampangan and Pangasinan are now

DYING LANGUAGES

By Rene Q. Bas

Experts expect Kapampangan and the Pangasinan language—out of the 10 major Philippine languages—to be extinct 20 years from now.

How can this happen? It’s easy to visualize how our Negrito (or Agta or Aeta or Ata) fellow Filipinos can disappear completely from the scene. (See “Negrito (Agta) languages’ descent to extinction” below by Prof. Fred S. Cabuang.) They die and their languages go with them forever.

Experts give different figures about the number of our languages. Most say there are 120 living languages and 175 in all including our extinct languages.

The eight major languages, according to number of speakers, and their percentage of the total Philippine population are: Tagalog 29 percent, Cebuano Bisayan 21.17 percent, Ilocano 9.31 percent, Hiligaynon Bisayan 9.11 percent, Bicolano 5.69 percent, Waray Bisayan 3.81 percent, Kapampangan 2.9 percent and Pangasinan 1.01 percent.

Language experts are agreed that languages spoken by less than 300,000 persons are endangered. They can become extinct soon enough. They see that within 20 years both Kapam-pangan and Pangasinan will no longer be spoken by a native speaker.

That the other non-Tagalog languages could also someday be in peril is indicated by the steady decline of their native speakers as a part of the population. In the past 20 years, Cebuano speakers have been reduced to just about one-fifth of the Filipino people. They were one-fourth less than 10 years ago. Ilocanos were 12 percent of the population in 1948. They now make up only 9 percent of the population. The Ilonggos show the same decline…

Source


Institutionalized genocide is another term to describe it.


Related links:

The Solution
Yeah RIGHT
Dying People

Sunday, May 4, 2008

THE LONELY, RISKY SACRIFICE

This is a Los Angeles Times article on the Filipino Diaspora.

They nurse the sick in California, drive fuel trucks in Iraq, sail cargo ships through the Panama Canal and cruise ships through the Gulf of Alaska. They pour sake for Japanese salarymen and raise the children of Saudi businessmen.

They are the Philippines' most successful export: its workers.

Three decades ago, seeking sources of hard currency and an outlet for a fast-growing population, then-President Ferdinand Marcos encouraged Filipinos to find jobs in other countries. Over time, the overseas worker has become a pillar of the economy. Nine million Filipinos, more than one out of every 10, are working abroad. Every day, more than 3,100 leave the country.

Philippine workers sent home more than $10.7 billion last year, equal to about 12% of the gross domestic product.

The current president, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, calls them "the backbone of the new global workforce" and "our greatest export."

For the sake of supporting their families, the overseas workers endure years of loneliness. Some, especially maids in the Middle East, suffer beatings and sexual abuse. In countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, they are jailed for running away. Yet the Philippines has grown so dependent on remittances that the thought of doing without them is frightening.

latimes

It is a job of the government to send our workers to much safer places in the world. Sending them in countries where there is a huge possibility of being harmed is unbelievable and makes some lip-serving people complicit to the crime committed against them. This was written in 2006 but the news feels fresh as if nothing changed...nothing really ever changes in the land of pain.

PATHETIQUE IS NOT PATHETIC

Hey guys (and gals)! Please check out my own listening station at the right margin of the blog. Yup, it is one with the title Holding On Listening Station. I recommend the two classical pieces most especially Ludwig Van Beethoven's Pathétique or its formal name Piano Sonata No.8 in C minor, Op.13 -"Pathétique" - 2. Adagio cantabile - an incredible romantic piece. This is the second movement of the maestro's Piano Sonata No.8. I described it as romantic though experts say it is "tragic" or accurately put the sonata's tragic sonorities motivated the publisher to name it “Pathétique". A pretty sad piece as if one is waiting for his lover that could never return or trying to meet someone that didn’t prosper. Yeah, it’s tragic.

Facts are boring says copyblogger. But at the risk of being that I’ll still give you guys some facts about the sonata.

Beethoven's Piano Sonata op. 13 in C minor also known as " Pathetique " is by far the most well-known work from his early creation, composed in 1798 but published in 1799 and dedicated to prince Karl Lichnowsky. Some sources attribute the title to Beethoven himself, while others state that the title was given by the publisher of the sonata, who was so impressed by its tragic sonorities that he proposed Beethoven the name Pathetique.


The sonata has three parts.

  1. Grave: Allegro di molto e con brio
  2. Adagio cantabile
  3. Rondo: Allegro

LINK


Saturday, May 3, 2008

DONDE ESTA SISTER ANGELA?

It seems Hanataka-san’s letter attracted many pure-hearted souls (including some priests) willing to help the nun even though the sister has no problem. Because of this development I became an instrument in the reuniting of two buddies. Here are the letters:

Dear Researcher,

Hola!

I’m Padre Salvi (name withheld to protect his privacy) and I’m presently a rector in a church somewhere in Nagasaki, Japan. I can’t help but notice the plight of the poor nun named Sister Angela and the teenage Japanese boxer. I am willing to help her for she belongs to my flock. If it isn’t too much I would like to know which convent and what town is she staying in Japan. I would be helpful in assisting the nun find her true calling since I have EXPERIENCE in handling cloister affairs – being head of several ones during my stay in Filipinas. I’m Español by the way but I consider myself Filipino (Peninsulares if you don’t mind).

My personal info and other relevant data that you might need are in the attachment (including my Friendster account – add me up @ ilovemynuns@yahoo.com). Por favor, inform me ASAP as I do not want to move to Afr….er… as there are still many Japanese souls need saving.


Muchas Gracias Mi Amigo,

Padre ------ Salvi

P.S.

Sister Angela is still in her 20s right?

Dear Padre ------ Salvi,

Hola Padre con Margarita con carne! Dios Mio (I wonder how many conjugations are left in my vocabulary)! Peninsulares? Saludos a Todos Hudas, Barabas, Hestas!

Joyful, joyful day! Alleluia! Hanataka-san is God-send! Thanks to him I received a letter from you. You are Padre ------ Salvi, no kidding? Una vez Padre, let me explain my joyous mood. Earlier, I got an e-mail from a certain Padre ------ Damaso who is also interested in helping the nun and he said just in case you’d email me I must inform him. I asked him why is he so sure? He said nothing brings you out of the wood work than a DISTRESSED sister. Padre Damaso apparently has been looking for you for years – something about his daughter that he wants to talk to you. He is waiting for you DOWN UNDER (not Australia).

As per instruction (“Feel free to provide my email add and address in Japan to other D-------- brothers.”), I gave it to Padre Damaso, himself a D--------. He also gave me his unequivocal instruction to provide you his e-mail address which is seeyouinhellsalvi@kittymail.com or his multiply account Damasotra.multiply.com. Have a happy reunion.


Hasta la vista! Victoria siempre…

Researcher

P.S.

Please let Padre Damaso’s mail cool a bit first for I almost got burned when I first handled it. One gallon of water is enough to cool it off.

Disclaimer: This work is fiction. It doesn't pertain to real persons or events if it does it are purely coincidence and call the police.