War in Mindanao

It’s find it ridiculous, to say the least, what is happening in Mindanao right now. So many casualties brought on by this all-out war declared by the MILF against the Arroyo government and everybody who comes in their way. Men, women, children. Old and young. No one is safe from the MILF’s wrath.

I pity those people in Mindanao caught in the middle. And I am really furious with the government for using the Bangsamoro deal just to jump start (again) their bid to change the constitution. Look at the cost of this Cha-Cha. So many lives destroyed. So many dreams are shattered.

Is it really worth it? Will the country get any better after the Charter Change?

I knew it!

The Bangsamoro deal/MOA is a prelude to the Charter Change! GMA is a sneaky, conniving b$%ch! Clearly, the Philippine government will go to great lengths to be able to push down our throats the Charter Change that will benefit GMA and her sneaky, conniving f$%%king allies!

I just hate how these people would lie and connive just to dupe the citizens. Instead of serving the people, they are serving themselves, benefiting from the blood and sweat of the masses. Poor people are getting poorer each day while the ones in league with the powers that be are getting richer and richer.

I can go on and on about the pock marks this government has done and is doing to the country. And about that Bangsamoro deal leading to the Cha-cha. But it will all boil down to this… we are f*cked!

Earthquake in Southern California

An earthquake with a magnitude 5.4 that registered on the Richter Scale rocked the Pomona, California area this morning. No casualties were reported (thank God) but the earthquake was felt across Southern California.

For all the bloggers in this area, take care and I hope all of you are doing fine.

*Photo courtesy of www.monstersandcritics.com

2008 SONA and GMA’s last minute attempts to save face

It is really funny to watch how and hear about Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s last minute attempts to save face. The State of the Nation Address is coming up and she is doing her darn best to scrounge for something that she can tell the nation that she did for the country. Just imagine these…

• She “appealed” to Petron to make a price roll back when just a few days ago, the fuel companies implemented a price hike.

This is what every Filipino has in mind: if she can arm wrestle the fuel companies into doing price rollbacks, why do it only now??? And what’s with the price hike, the fuel companies are lamenting their profit loss, when they can really forego the 1.50php in the first place? Shady, isn’t it?

• The peso is gaining the upper hand versus the US dollar.

Just last week, the exchange rate averages 45php:1usd, what with everything that happened during the typhoon Frank. And then just this morning, I was surprised to see that the peso grew stronger. I doubt if that is really the reason why the exchange rate dipped like that. If you just read the news, you will know that the economy of the country is making a nosedive. So the stronger peso was brought about by something else.

• The energy subsidy for Meralco clients.

Nakakatawa! As if the 500pesos subsidy will really solve the energy problem. The government is good at providing temporary solutions, press releases… But few have really materialized. Few have provided permanent solutions.

That’s just three of the last minute attempts of GMA to save face. Let’s see what “accomplishments” she will brag about in her 2008 State of the Nation Address.

Do you read?

I love reading. Anything that catches my interest, I read. Even if it’s just a brochure or a flyer from a real estate company, I read it. Reading gives me additional knowledge. It also brings me to new places I’ve never been to. When reading a novel, I get to meet interesting and mysterious characters. I get to meet the author of the novel. Reading also makes my rather sluggish and boring days more interesting. It adds color to my life.

You’d probably ask why I am writing about books right now. I just read the column of Susan Ople in Tempo (Manila Bulletin’s small broadsheet). She talked about how kids these days read less than kids of yesterday. When there was no internet yet, the kids either play outside their homes or stay inside to read. I speak from experience. When I was a kid, I would raid my grandma’s library and read the novels there. I love Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, the classics, Shakespeare and Archie. I remember wishing for grandma to give me all her books. I came from a middle class family where traveling to foreign countries or to Visayas and Mindanao was not the tradition during summer and holidays. We usually stay home and I would either go play with my cousins or read. I loved (still do) reading more than the former. I might not have physically traveled to foreign countries but because of the books that I read, I got to know different states in America, Italy, England, several Asian countries and more.

Susan Ople is telling her readers to read to kids. I believe that kids are missing so much when they opt to play internet games instead of rubbing elbows with The Little Prince. They should at least get to read the classics. Do they even know Rumpelstiltskin? I remember asking a cousin of mine if he knows Shakespeare, or even Archie, and was disappointed because he doesn’t read comics at all. But when you ask him what Ragnarok and other online games are, well, he is the expert. My brother at least knows some of the classics, have been an Archie fan and have read Hardy Boys. But like other kids of his generation, he’s more into games and anime. Which is really sad, if you think about it.

Do you read to your kids? Do you even read books yourself? If you don’t, take the time to read. It will change your perspective of life. It will give your day a new meaning. It will make a difference in your kid’s life, and in yours.

*Originally posted on July 6, 2008

Sulpicio Lines’ accountability

We were all devastated when we learned of the tragedy that happened to MV Dona Paz in 1987. According to Wikipedia…

The official death toll on the ferry is 1,565 although some reports claim that the ferry was overcrowded and that the true death toll at least 4,341.[1] The ships would put the death toll at 4,375 although admitting that only 1,568 were on the manifest (still more than the licensed maximum of 1,518). The 21 (or 24) survivors from the ferry had to swim, as there was no time to launch lifeboats.

Sulpicio Lines owned the ill-fated MV Dona Paz. Two more tragedies befell two more of their ships i the following years after that. And then the MV Princess of the Stars capsized during the typhoon Frank. Just like with the MV Dona Paz, more people died but only a few were listed in the passenger manifest.

I was just wondering, when will Sulpicio Lines lose their license after all these tragedies? Or more precisely, when will this company be made accountable for all these blatant breaking of the law? Yes, the company didn’t want all the tragedies that happened but isn’t this just a little bit like history repeating itself, specifically with what happened to MV Princess of the Stars?

I do hope something will be done to this company soon.