Lawyers hit ‘Koreanization’ of RP

Uh-Oh. Now this one is appalling! Hell no way!

here's the clip

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By Delmar Cariño
Northern Luzon Bureau
First Posted 23:58:00 11/26/2008
inquirer.net

BAGUIO CITY – Lawyers attending a Supreme Court-mandated legal seminar here took to task the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its alleged failure to act on the proliferation of corporations suspected to be dummies of Koreans.

The lawyers said there is a growing public clamor for the investigation of corporations formed by local incorporators who actually fronted for enterprising Korean businessmen.

This is in violation of the anti-dummy law and the constitutional prohibition on the ownership of lands by foreigners, they said.

The lawyers, who attended the mandatory continuing legal education (MCLE) at Hotel Supreme here, tagged the problem as “the creeping Koreanization of the Philippines.”

But the SEC told the Inquirer that the lawyers were barking up the wrong tree since the power to prosecute dummy corporations belonged to the Department of Justice.

“The DOJ has jurisdiction over violations of the anti-dummy law since they are classified as criminal offenses,” lawyer Annie Tesoro, SEC director for the Cordillera, Ilocos and Cagayan regions, said.

What the SEC can do, she said, is to check and monitor if registered corporations complied with their articles of incorporation.

“We can file administrative cases against erring corporations en route to the cancellation of their registration,” she said.

She said the SEC has limited powers and thus, a criminal case filed at the DOJ could hasten the SEC’s administrative proceedings against dummy corporations.

She said the SEC had heard of bogus corporations purportedly put up by Korean dummies but the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) should conduct the probe.

The Korean topic was an offshoot of former Dean Merlin Magallona’s discussion on the Spratly Agreement and the baseline bill in relation to the definition of the country’s national territory.

Magallona said the Korean issue was an “expansion that has become alarming.”

Baguio is one of the cities in the country that hosts a lot of Korean schools, restaurants and other businesses, which grew over the years, mainly due to the influx of Korean students who wanted to learn English here.

But lawyer Galo Reyes, a former law dean, said the SEC appeared to have been lax in its campaign to stop dummy corporations from buying land.

“From San Fabian, Pangasinan to Pagudpod, Ilocos Norte, these corporations had acquired beach lots, home lots and condominiums,” he said. “What is the SEC doing?” he asked.

Air Asia X launch Stansted to Kuala Lumpur flights for 99 pounds sterling!

My my! if this is for real, Imma be goin' home every quarter whoaaaaaa!!!!!!! see y'all back home in my beloved Philippines!!!!!! whopeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee


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Air Asia X launch Stansted to Kuala Lumpur flights for 99 pound

Tuesday 25th November 2008

Budget Malaysian airline Air Asia X has announced that flights from London Stansted to Kuala Lumpur will start in March.

The services will run five times a week, with fares starting at £99 each way for economy and £549 per trip for premium.

£99 flights from Stansted to Kuala Lumpur

Air Asia Group CEO Tony Fernandes said: “AirAsia X’s London-Kuala Lumpur route is the realisation of a long-held ambition to open up affordable access between Malaysia and Europe for both ASEAN and European communities.

"We have an incredible route network and at £99, the opportunity for Londoners and Europeans to explore the ASEAN region has never been greater.

“Being a truly ASEAN airline, we are committed to promoting tourism and travel throughout and beyond that region. This new route will benefit everyone, enabling magnificent holidays in beautiful locations, encouraging economic and tourism activity, bringing in revenue and creating job opportunities.”

He also revealed that a new fleet of Airbus aircraft with leather seats and spacious cabins would be available.

The new route will be flown by an Airbus A340 aircraft, with space for 286 passengers including 30 premium seats.

Don Miguel's 1st Snow Day in Brussels

Yep. My 1st snow day in Brussels this one.  Despite having lived here for a year, this was the first day of snow for me.   (Today is the 2nd)  

The only other time it did snow here, was during Easter this year, and I was back home, enjoying the sun and the sea. 

Cheers

JP Morgan sees no recession in the Philippines in ‘09

JP Morgan sees no recession here in ‘09

November 21, 2008 03:37:00
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Investment bank JP Morgan said the Philippines would manage to survive an anticipated global recession next year and post a relatively decent growth of 4.0 percent.
“The Philippines is in a relatively strong position to weather the global downturn with the economy driven by private consumption and services, which are less vulnerable to external shocks,” JP Morgan said in a report titled “ASEAN Year Ahead 2009: Philippines Well-Positioned to Withstand the Downturn.”
It said there would be no recession in the Philippines next year despite a global downturn, as there were still bright spots for the economy, including the business process outsourcing industry, which will remain profitable.
It forecast Philippine growth this year at 4.6 percent.
The government’s estimates are 4.1-4.8 percent this year and 3.7-4.7 percent in 2009.
The government says the Philippines will likely have a slowdown next year but a recession is farfetched. It says that although the export sector is expected to suffer from weakening global demand, the Philippines will benefit from other factors, like easing food and fuel prices and a 20-percent increase in the national budget for infrastructure projects.
JP Morgan also said foreign exchange remittances of overseas Filipinos—one of the growth drivers for the Philippines—were likely to remain strong, contrary to speculations that these would suffer from job cuts in Western economies.
“We expect remittances to remain resilient due to the growing proportion of permanent overseas workers and deployed white collar workers,” the investment bank said in its report.
It said easing inflation, which could hit single-digit levels by the first quarter of 2009, would allow for a looser monetary policy, which in turn would support growth. Michelle V. Remo; edited by INQUIRER.net

(thanks again to my multiply buddy Rye the Man, xxxriainxxx for the forward)

Mellon: Philippines may gain from crisis

Mellon: Philippines may gain from crisis
November 21, 2008 03:37:00
Doris Dumlao

Philippine Daily Inquirer

The Bank of New York Mellon, a global leader in asset management and securities servicing, sees the Philippines to be in good shape, capable of hurdling, and even profit from, the global financial crisis.
“The Philippines is inherently strong, a potential beneficiary of these financial woes,” BNY Mellon’s chairman for Asia Pacific, Christopher Sturdy, said in an interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Thursday.
Sturdy, who assumed the post in June and is visiting the Philippines for the first time, cited the country’s adequate foreign exchange reserves, a sustained current account surplus driven by remittances from overseas Filipino workers, and its robust business process outsourcing (BPO) industry.
“It’s one of the havens for BPO, and as people come into tougher times, you need to be able to cut costs. Many people are looking at BPO, so fundamentally, you have some good things to trade on I think, in this country, in this economy,” Sturdy said.
“Having said that, nobody is immune from the foreign exchange volatility that’s been going on,” he said. “But it can be good for this country [which is] getting US dollars in remittance, so it can cancel out the negative side.”
BNY Mellon, which follows a “bank for banks” model, is a big global player in asset management, issuer services and treasury services. The US bank divested its retail banking interest in previous years.
Amid the US financial meltdown, it has been tapped to service the US government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), which is meant to take out toxic assets clogging the financial system.
Asked on whether a program similar to TARP could be applied in Asia, Sturdy said it would be good for the region, depending on the extent of the asset clean-up needed.
But he said banks in the region, especially within Southeast Asia, were in a better position now, having learned their lessons during the currency crisis of the late 1990s, particularly those on risk assessment.
“I think I’d like to be in the position of the Philippines, if I were a country, because you have some natural advantages and some track record in areas which may be important going forward,” Sturdy said.
BNY Mellon executive vice president Jai Arya said a crisis is often triggered by liquidity, not by capital structure. And contrary to the credit crunch now crippling the West, liquidity is not much of a problem in this region, he said.
“Asian financial institutions are far, far more liquid because they’re paranoid about liquidity,” Arya said. “As a bankers’ bank, most of the banks [in the region] have dollar accounts with us, and looking at the balances that they keep with us, it’s amazing how much liquidity they have and how important liquidity is to them. Even if it will cost them earnings, they are willing to keep high liquidity.”
In the Philippines, where it maintains a representative office, BNY Mellon’s biggest business is the servicing of remittances going through banking and non-banking channels. For remittances coursed through banks, it has a market share of 20-25 percent.
BNY Mellon has 16 offices in 12 countries in the Asia-Pacific, and has been doing business in the region for over 50 years.
It provides services in asset and wealth management, asset servicing, as well as issuer clearing services and treasury services.
It has more than $23 trillion in assets under custody and administration worldwide.
Copyright 2008 INQUIRER.net and content partners. All rights reserved.

(a look on the bright side: thanks to my multiply buddy xxxriainxxx, Rye the Man)

Orgy: a Reality TV (posted by my buddy Kupao!)

and just when we thought we've seen it all, here come's a post on a Reality TV Show:

ORGY


click the O-Word to get to his entry., Crazy navy guy this Kupao!

(the clip is fake, there's no such reality show, but whaddaheck)

Lost Luna work found

by Lito Zulueta

Philippine Daily Inquirer
November 17, 2008

MANILA, Philippines - A work by the Filipino master Juan Novicio Luna (1857-1899), believed to have been lost and missing for over a century, has surfaced and will be auctioned off by Christie’s during its Fall sale of Southeast Asian Modern & Contemporary Art on Nov. 30, in Hongkong, the auction house has announced.

“The recovery of an important and beautiful Luna will surely cause a stir on our art scene,” Ramon Orlina told the Inquirer. (Orlina’s sculptures are among those to be auctioned off.)

The found work is “Las Damas Romanas” (Roman Maidens), which will have a floor price of HK$8,000,000-10,000,000 or US$1,025,600-1,282,000).

Christie’s says the auction of the painting will surely be one of the highlights of the bidding.

“This extraordinary work was, until only recently, presumed lost as its whereabouts were unknown over a century since it was painted,” the auction house notes. “Its reappearance on the market now makes it one of only a small number of drawings, watercolors and oils by Luna that have surfaced in the past quarter of a century.”

Documentation on the work is scant. It was noted in the 1957 biography of Luna by Carlos E. Da Silva, and appeared as a faded black-and-white photograph from the file of the prewar art dealer and historian Alfonso T. Ongpin, which was reproduced by art historian and teacher Santiago Pilar in “Juan Luna: The Filipino as Painter,” published by the Eugenio Lopez Foundation in 1980.

The painting is an oil on canvas, 100 x 170 cm (around 39 x 67 inches). It is signed and dated “Luna Roman 1883” at the lower right.

Like “Spoliarium,” Luna’s most famous mural showing the corpse of a Roman gladiator being dragged in a chamber under the coliseum, “Damas” is also drawn from ancient Roman history but its elements are cheerful.
It shows two maidens on the steps of a building, one with her back reclining on a Roman pillar and the other, partly supine, holding on her leash, two frisky dogs trying to chase doves which are all around them, creating a merry scene of rest and languor. In the background is what appears to be a small shrine with incense smoke rising.

Allegory?

In his notes to the Christie’s catalogue, Ambeth Ocampo, Inquirer columnist and chair of the National Historical Institute, notes: “Should ‘Las Damas Romanas’ be seen at face value? Is it but a typical domestic scene in ancient Rome or does it have deeper, hidden meanings?”—much like “Spoliarium,” which Filipino propagandists and contemporaries of Luna in Madrid said was an allegory of the sufferings of
Filipinos under colonial Spain.

Ocampo takes particular note of the probable symbolic value of the doves, which he says, in ancient Rome, were given erotic connotations. “So, is this an allegory of restrained lust?”

Ocampo adds that there have been observations that the dark woman with the leash resembles Paz Pardo de Tavera, Luna’s wife whom he shot and killed in Paris, in 1802, in a fit of jealousy.

Is the painting, despite its cheerful scene, Luna’s way of painting his perception of his wife as a flirt?

“(B)ut unfortunately,” Ocampo notes, “Luna was not married when he painted ‘Las Damas’ in 1882. He had not even met his future wife at the time.”

Luna did the work while he was a student of the Spanish Academy in Rome. It was completed between his prize-winning works “Death of Cleopatra,” a silver medal in the Madrid Exposition of 1881; and “Spoliarium” which garnered the first gold medal in the Madrid Exposition of 1884. “Las Damas Romanas” itself won a Diploma of Honor at the Munich Art Exposition of 1886.

Against the dark interpretation of the doves, some observers have noted that the doves in Roman mythology really symbolize the divine. The fact that the two ladies seek to restrain the dogs from attacking the birds appear to highlight the sacredness of the divine. This makes it really a picture of the abundant richness of life, with humankind shown in harmony with Nature.

Perhaps it couldn’t have been otherwise. As a student in Europe’s classical academies, Luna was supposed to observe and sketch classical Roman architecture and artifacts as studies and the work may be a culmination of these observations.

“Christie’s is delighted to play a role in the recovery of ‘Las Damas Romanas’ and is honored to present this tour de force to collectors this season,” the auction house says. “This extraordinary work will be offered alongside 120 other works of Southeast Asian Modern & Contemporary Art, a category that provides a distinctive element in the art market of Hong Kong, and contributes to the full richness and flavor of the art from Asia, that Christie’s offers each season.”

Aside from the Luna and Orlina works, to be auctioned off are works by Antonio Blanco, Lao Lian Ben, Gabriel Barredo and National Artists José Joya, Ang Kiukok and Bencab.

But works by younger Filipino artists dominate the auction: Roland Ventura, Rodel Tapaya, Kiko Escora, Geraldine Javier, Renato Orara, Lena Cobangbang, Kawayan de Guia, Nona Garcia, Yasmin Sison, Wire
Tuazon and Lirio Salvador.

Christie’s Hong Kong Southeast Asian Modern & Contemporary Art Auction: Sunday, Nov. 30, Grand Hall, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center.

Viewing: Nov. 27 and Nov. 29, Grand Hall, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center.

©2008 www.inquirer.net all rights reserved

ABS-CBN buys 5% stake in Multiply

By Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:10:00 11/18/2008

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., through its unit ABS-CBN Global, has purchased five percent of global interactive website owner Multiply Inc. for $5 million in a bid to boost advertising revenues ahead of a projected economic slowdown next year, a company official said.

ABS-CBN Broadcasting is looking at raising its stake in Multiply, the operator of the social networking website Multiply.com, to about 10 percent over the next two to three years, for a total investment of $9-$10 million, ABS-CBN Interactive head Paolo Pineda said.

The initial purchase of five percent involves 2.5 million shares of Series P common shares at $1.9 per share.

Pineda said Multiply.com increased its membership to three million Filipinos worldwide this year from 1.5 million last year, and generates 400 million page views a month.

ABS-CBN Global distributes TV programs produced by ABS-CBN Broadcasting, and other Filipino-based content, outside the Philippines, principally on The Filipino Channel.

Multiply is a privately owned corporation based in Boca Raton, Florida. Its flagship website, which was launched in 2004, allows users to share pictures, video and music, and a venue for generating discussions, feedback and interest from and among its users.

Campos Lanuza & Co. said in a daily research note, “There is no exit mechanism at this point. Multiply faces tough competition with Facebook, MySpace, MSN, YahooGroups, YouTube.” Edited by INQUIRER.net

Filipino Debut in Belgium: Ina at 18!

I was the default photog at Ina's Debut last Saturday here in Brussels. The Belgian youth didn't have a clue what a Debut was, and they got a taste of it here.

Dream Last Night

I was dreaming again last night. hehe. I try to record what my dreams are, just for fun. Maybe someday i'll see a pattern or maybe am a dreamer like those guys in Heroes.

The first part was about my apartment here in Brussels. I just woke up and was about to leave when i noticed that something was wrong with the key on the keyhole. it wasn't the right key and it was sort of dangling from the keyhole. The right key was nowhere to be found. It's a good thing i locked the door that leads to the hallway, from the inside, because when I opened the door to the elevator lobby, there was a knapsack full of tools and a tool kit. Someone obviously is trying to break in, and just left for a moment, maybe to get more tools. Maybe he thought I was out of the country again.

I called security, (which must be the cops, because residential buildings in brussels don't have security guards 24/7 like we have back home). They arrived quickly and we were able to corner this bloke. The corridors of my apartment building changed to a tropical setting complete with plans and i barged in onto the guy and punched his face 5x, before the cops stopped me.

I woke up and it was only 5am. I thought i already had a complete night's sleep. So I went back to bed.

My next dream was about my hometown, Roxas City. We were having the famous barbeque of my childhood, Marc's barbeque by it's seaside restaurant at the 2nd floor, and all of a sudden we noticed the tide go up so fast. The water from the sea was reaching the entire floor of the restaurant, on to the street and continued to cross the street all the way to the bowling alleys. People were running away from the water. I remembered seeing one of my dad's collection volkswagen beetles parked near Marc's offices. (In my dream, I kinda remembered that they were away on vacation elsewhere, and probably left this car with their friend buddy, who lives beside Marc's resort) I ran up to the desk to get the keys to my Dad's beetle to save it from the water, but the resort people told me the keys were with Munich or Jack.

I decided to sprint all the way to my parents' house instead, thinking I have been running at the treadmill regularly anyway. (My childhood house is about a kilometer away from the beach, and hopefully the water doesn not get that far). Anyway, I was running along Arnaldo Boulevard and I remembered that some people invited me into their pick-up truck. They did not stop to drop me at my parents' house and continued on all the way to Tanque, a residential zone in my city.

I honestly don't know what happened next, hopefully the water did not flow all the way to my house. That would have sucked big time.

is all, folks haha. thanks for wasting your time reading all the way to here.

cheers

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Mike"

I still remember what one of my other filipino batchmates (who studied in Spain that year the same year I did) said to me, "Sorry to burst your bubble, Mike" that sort of thing doesn't happen.

She was based in Madrid, and I was studying in Alicante. We were chatting over yahoo messenger and she asked me what I planned to do after business school. I told her, that I would want to be based in Manila, but represent a Spanish company, earning in Euros.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Mike" was her quick retort to my answer.

Well, it's been almost 6 years now and it definitely wasn't my bubble that got burst (I held a job representing a spanish brand in Asia for four years, before I decided to move on) and indeed I got what I wished for. (I've moved on since, to do other pursuits)

I guess my point in this little anecdote is that, you should never let anyone tell you what you can not do. Look to the bright side, be always positive and just do it. Things will all come into place, with the help of the big Guy upstairs of course.

The Philippine Eagle . . . on the London Bus!

The Philippine Eagle Has Landed… on the London Bus!!!

Top

The Philippine Eagle Has Landed… on the London Bus!!!

In line with promoting its latest travel product – birdwatching – the Philippines Department of Tourism (PDOT) is taking it to the busy streets of London this November. Watch out for London’s iconic buses as they carry the Philippines banner across the city. 

Commuters and pedestrians in London will be exposed to the country’s campaign on a daily basis as 25 local buses, carrying the promotional banners, drive by the lively streets of the city. These buses are en route the popular streets of London such as Oxford Circus, Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge and High Street Kensington to name a few. These buses, that run most of the working day, arrive at a frequency of 7-10 minutes per hour on every bus stop. 

Penetrating the public transportation system of London is a highly effective way to promote Philippines tourism, with the very high population of commuters being exposed to it every day. According to research by CBS Outdoor, bus advertising is the most seen outdoor format around the city centre. There is no denying that this medium will increase visibility of the country’s brand campaign.

While these buses promote the Philippines as a birdwatching destination, they are, at the same time, also strengthening the country’s image as a place of diverse interests. Furthermore, many other countries also promote their tourism through this medium; thus, this is definitely a good way to present the Philippines as a place at par with any other popular tourist destination.

This campaign will deliver the message that the Philippines is definitely an option when it comes to travelling, with the many things that the country can offer – from birdwatching to scubadiving or simply as a place of leisure.

Breaking News: Michael Cricton Dead.

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Wednesday, November 5, 2008 -- 1:05 PM ET
-----

Michael Crichton, Author, Dies at 66

Michael Crichton, the author of the blockbuster
science-fiction novels "Jurassic Park," "The Andromeda
Strain" and "State of Fear," has died at 66.

Dream Last Night

I was wandering about my neighborhood (in my dream I live in either San Lorenzo or Urdaneta, or one of those villages in Greenhills, I can't remember which one exactly, but the village looked like any of them.)   Then I bumped into some people on the street and they had something urgent in their house that I had to check out -- I really can't remember this exactly.

When we got to their house, (it was a huge 70s house with about 4 or 5 storeys in all, but very well maintained, everything was sparkling new white with red and blue trimmings -- although the furniture, the shiny twisting metal  grills, and the interiors were all decidedly 70s)  they went inside a room and wouldn't let me in. Then through the slightly open door, they told me to wait at the living area, down two flights of stairs.  (The house had an open design and a very 70ies flight of white stairs in the middle connecting all the 4 or 5 floors.  Much of the house was eaten by the space taken up by what seemed like an atrium.)

I obliged and I went down as told, where I found two chairs, again in 70ies fashion and a television set turned on to some tv show I really could not remember.   

After what seemed like a long wait, the door  to the left facing me, beside the TV opened, and a tall, very Spanish Mestiza lady with really flaming red hair in shiny silk robes,  appeared.    She was eyeing me suspiciously as I was seated there rather comfortably watching TV.  I told her (in spanish) that I was waiting for the guys upstairs who told me to wait here.   She looked my way, frowned, and went on her way to go up the stairs, without even speaking a word to me.  

Confused, I went up the same flight of stairs where i went down on, and where the lady passed.   I could remember seeing the marble floor and stairs still, and there were cleaning ladies who were mopping the floor silly, even when it was very clean and shiny.   They did not mind me at all too.   I found it so odd, and the people I first bumped into and convinced me to go inside the house in the first place, where nowhere to be found.  

So I went out of the house and now I can't remember what happened next. 

that's all, thank you, bow!

OMG! Sarah Palin Pranked

Is this for Real???? OMG, this woman is running for US Vice President?  Johnny Holiday?  Joe the Plumber?  Cara is Hot in Bed?  and she din't get it? OMG!!!!   

Case in Point: Repealing the eVAT?

This is a point I want to bring across.  Sometimes when luminaries of an entirely different field, like former Justices of the Supreme Court, for example, try to lend their brilliant legal minds to matters of fiscal policy and economics,  things just don't jive.

Remember when the Supreme Court Justices (I'm not sure  which way Justice Cruz voted in this case, or if he even was part of the decision)  to keep ownership of the Manila Hotel in Filipino Hands, which said decision in turn rejected the winning bid of an otherwise prestigious international  conglomerate?  Manila Hotel then fell onto the lap of Mr. Yap, owner of Manila Bulletin. 

Where is Manila Hotel now?  I think many of you would share my observations of how Manila Hotel, once in the ranks of the world's most luxurious,  prestigious hotels, is now in a very sorry, embarrassing state.

And so we go back to why exactly I am writing this entry.  Justice Cruz, is opining that the eVAT law be repealed.   Does he demand of this because he has indepth knowledge that doing so would be good for the economy?   Does he mean repealing the entire Value Added Tax law or just the expanded part of it? In the case of the latter, it would only mean, a 2% difference, because the original VAT is still pegged at 10% after all.   This then brings us to the question, of how big a difference will it make if we repealed the expanded 2%?

Does he not realize that probably because of the eVAT, we are now better off in terms of fiscal balance and in dealing with the current Global Financial Crisis that's been ripping the western hemisphere like a shockwave?  

Corruption this, corruption that, 6 million dollars for the Generals who went to Moscow, yadda yadda,  . . . does that make an argument to disassemble an entire fiscal structure?  

I don't have the answers but I have these questions.  

Repeal the expanded VAT

By Isagani A. Cruz
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:43:00 11/01/2008

THERE is widespread disgust with the expanded VAT from all elements of the people, especially the senior citizens whose statutory benefits are negated by the oppressive law. For example, my wife bought medicines worth P2,703.57 that was reduced because of her age to P2,162.86 but in the same transaction was subjected to the expanded VAT of P259.54, making the total cost of her purchase P2,422.40. This lessened the 20 percent benefit required by the Senior Citizens Law to only 8 percent, wiping out as much as 12 percent of the original discount by only an implied amendment or repeal, which is not favored in law.

It is not only the senior citizens who are adversely affected. Even an ordinary meal advertised for only so much in the restaurant menu may embarrass a person who has ordered it with just enough of the indicated cost but is later also charged the expanded VAT. He may plead that he is only an ordinary wage earner with limited means but that does not excuse him from paying the additional tax that was authored by former Sen. Ralph Recto, whose grandfather would surely have opposed such an awkward exaction.

I imagine Don Claro would have dismissed the administration’s stupid excuse that the expanded VAT is necessary for the increased cost of government. We have enough other taxes except that they are not being paid by the powerful slackers who can invoke various pretexts for evading their lawful share in the upkeep of the government. The honest ordinary people do not enjoy that illegal convenience. It is the ordinary people, most of them from the middle class, who are directly prejudiced by the additional tax that is automatically imposed when they engage in ordinary activities like buying food and hiring services.

What makes the expanded VAT especially objectionable is that, contrary to its announced purpose, it is not being spent for “the increased cost of government,” as piously argued by its defenders. That apologia is a lie as everybody knows. Much of the expanded VAT we are paying is consumed for spendthrift purposes, like Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s junket to the United States last June. She delivered a speech at the United Nations that nobody listened to except her many pampered companions whose only function was to act as her claque. The cost of that excursion exceeded P50 million of public funds.

Only recently, the public that has been inured to the scandals of our public officials was still shocked by the incredible disclosure of the prodigal bounties given to the members of the Philippine police delegation in their over-priced but overrated mission to Russia. They could have kept their excessive allowance a dark and improvident secret were it not for the efficient inquisitiveness of the customs inspectors in that country.

The money involved in this latest exposé is the P9.2 million that an eight-man delegation from the Philippine National Police carried for its six-day attendance at the 77th Interpol General Assembly. Some of the delegates were accompanied by their wives. The specified sum for their official expenses was P2.3 million, but they also had the undeclared “contingency fund” of P6.9 million, consisting also of the proceeds from various taxes, including the expanded VAT dutifully paid by the less privileged among us. Their already retired comptroller said that Russia was an “expensive country,” as if to explain their extraordinary privileges for incidental expenses like shopping adventures and nocturnal entertainment at the ballet or elsewhere.

Unlike many inquiries conducted by the Senate that started with a bang but languished with a whimper, the investigation of their extravagant escapade swiftly ended on a positive note. After its one and final hearing, the committee on foreign affairs recommended the prosecution of the superior officers of the Philippine National Police for the grotesque offenses they have committed probably with the also guilty permission of the interior secretary. Congratulations to Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, chair of the investigating committee, and its other valiant members, for denouncing another band of vultures plundering the national treasury.

It is almost comical that the respondents are now claiming that the contingency fund entrusted to them was for the purchase of military and spy equipment, as if these were available at some talipapa in Moscow. And don’t laugh if they next refuse to say more on the ground that their defense is a national security secret covered by the executive privilege of their commander in chief. Also, mind you, the Supreme Court might agree.

To go back to my original gripe, part of their loot must have come from the proceeds of the expanded VAT that I hope will also be criminalized. Taxation must be exercised with a humane appreciation of the capacity of the people to cope with its requirements, not for the unfeeling need to raise revenues that are mostly used not to serve public needs but to cater to private caprices disguised as official functions. That is the rule in this country, where the majority of the people are exploited to indulge the pleasures of the untouchable few.

Roxas City nightlife rocks! ???

Because I'll be home for Christmas (I already made sure of this even if the plane fare I got is almost double what it normally costs), I started googling about Roxas City, my hometown. Guess what I found when googling Roxas City.  An Article by Bryan Argos, (not sure, but I think he was a classmate of my sis) hehehe

Yey! I feel like the small towner that I really am.   Cheers!

(Title is clickable to get you to the original posting of this article)

The Roxas City nightlife rocks!

By Bryan Mari Argos

Most of the time when I meet people during my travels and these associations have gone to Roxas City, their usual complain is, 'Walang night life sa Roxas City.' Well, partly, they are right, because in Roxas City, the nightlife is not quite the type that you can get accustomed to and know all about in just one night; and partly, they are wrong, because Roxas City does have an active night life, although not as active if compared to Malate in Manila, Eastwood, or Smallville in Iloilo City. The reason why most people don't quite find anything in the Roxas City nightlife is because they don't know where to go. For one to really enjoy the Roxas City nightlife, one has to at least go out with someone who is a native of the place. If this is not possible, the best alternative would be to walk around the city at around eight or nine in the evening and just immediately around the city plaza are bars that you can get into and have some beers in. This may not be very exciting at first, but the best way to go is to find a bar that you like and just stay there for the rest of the night. Bar hopping is not really a fad in Roxas City because most people in the City have their own turfs and you would find them in the same place night after night after night after night. In other words, if you get into a certain bar and find the crowd pleasing to your discriminating taste, then stay in that bar, because if you go to other bars, you are most likely to end up with a crowd that is either beyond what your pocket and hypocrisy could handle, or way behind your taste (that is if you do have taste). I'm not saying that bars in Roxas City are always at the extreme edges of the social penumbra; all I am saying is that when you find a crowd that you like in any of the bars, you are least likely to find any other bar in the city with the kind of crowd that you found comfort with in the first place. Now, for those of you who would really like to get into the Roxas City nightlife, whatever the cost, here are ten helpful tips that might come in handy.

1. Have at least three to five hundred pesos spending cash. This would get you a long, long way. Beer costs from 20-30 pesos in any bar and you can get a plate of decent pulutan for about 80-100 pesos. This leaves you with enough extra cash for a bowl of arroz caldo after the drinking session is over. Arroz caldo would cost you from 5-40 pesos depending on where you have it.

2. Have a ready smile always. People in Roxas City are very friendly and if you stay at a bar all alone, your smile might get you company. Roxas City folks are also very talky, so you can have a really nice conversation over a few beers. One thing though – do not offer to buy beers for your new found company, this can send out the wrong messages.

3. Either go back to your hotel early in the evening or early in the morning, say 2-3 AM. Be ready to stay out all night once you found the bar of your liking. You will most likely stay for hours on end.

4. Do not be too cautious. If someone you've chatted with and associated with offers to go to some other bar, tag along. Remember, the best way to explore the city's night life is if you have someone with you who is a native of the city.

5. Wear proper gimmick attire – I mean, no shorts, sandos, or rubber slippers. Most bars in the city strictly implement their dress codes.

6. Do not drink too much. This should be self-explanatory.

7. Look out for ads, streamers, and announcements for events in the various bars. Most likely, when there is an event in a certain bar, all party-goers will be there. This, however, does not always apply. As I said, people in the city find their turfs and stick to their bar choice no matter what.

8. Do not be an attention grabber – meaning, do not make 'eksena'. You can grab attention by looking good – attitudinal dynamics and attention grabbing antics like stealing the dance floor with weird dance moves or taking your shirt off in the middle of a party is definitely a no-no in Roxas City. This could get you the wrong kind of attention – maybe the kind that would leave you black and blue. Just behave, and you will be all right.

9. Videoke bars are a hit in Roxas City. Know a song or two; make sure those songs are rehearsed to impress. Just have some songs ready for an encore. However, refuse to sing when you have had too much to drink already.

10. Make sure you have a good soft bed waiting for you after your gimmick, and throw in a wake-up call in the morning if you need to wake up early, because if you get into the Roxas City night life, you will definitely find it really difficult to get out. It's not the beer that's addictive in the City, it's how people party!

There you have it folks. I hope to see you in one of the bars in the city one of these days!!!

Be rational; be insane… every once in a while! TTFN!

I love you all! Byers!

The Pablo Banila Bandwagon hahaha

Brought to everyone's attention by my multiply pal, doc carlos (carabaopower), I really did not know anything about this Pablo Banila Person until today. Out of curiosity, I discovered that he has frequented my multiply site as well with his countless multiply accounts. 

This is hilarious really hahaha. A quick checking out of his website (pablobanila.com) hints that he is some sort of a literary talent -slash- deviant and probably a student of Philippine Science High School in Quezon City.

Myriads of girls (and boys) have likewise been (stalked) by this Pablo Banila person and what is even more amazing is the fact that he has had more than 2 articles about him in our National Dailies. hahaha

I really don't mind him lurking in my site, after all, my entries are open for everyone in the worldwide web to visit.  he probably gets his kicks that way - either that or he's created some sort of a web crawler/phishing machine/ bot that can browse through multiply accounts over and over countless times per day.

here is the article that's come up in the inquirer about him. hahaha

Who in the world is Pablo Banila? 

By Bianca Consunji
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Last updated 20:36:00 10/31/2008

HE began as a series of mysterious avatars popping up on my Multiply viewing history. He didn’t bother me at first, because I was used to friendly strangers visiting my site. But when he began visiting on an almost daily basis—and under different usernames, although with the same avatar—I started to wonder who in the world was Pablo Banila.

Visits to his websites offered no clue. His avatar showed a creepy-looking guy with matted chin-length hair (think Severus Snape from Harry Potter) and a flashing sign that read, “Pablo Banila has a crush on you! That’s why he visited your website!”

That would have been almost flattering had I not already known that he had visited the websites of at least a hundred other people—all under different usernames and the same annoying avatar. He also has a dotcom, www.pablobanila.com, but it offers no clues, only rambling passages of text and close-up photos of himself.

People started complaining. “Please get a life, you pervert,” wrote one girl in her blog, after listing down his many usernames—pablobanila, ppaabblloobanila, rainbowinmycoffee, carrotperfume, laughingmankuze, edwardward, blackbetweenthestars, theblackbetweenthestars, etc. People left similar comments on that entry, saying, “OMG he viewed me too!” or “He views mine too, it’s so creepy!”

Others chimed in, “He views me every other day, more often than I check my own Multiply site,” while guys posted nervous comments like, “He checks me out too, and I’m a boy.”

So far, his visits to sites have been harmless (all he does is view homepages; he doesn’t leave comments), but creepy—there’s just no other word for it. Attempts to discover his identity have so far been futile. But identity aside, what everyone wants to know is, how does he find time to check out all those Multiply pages?

Is Pablo Banila actually a team of high school kids with nothing better to do?

Is Pablo Banila actually a group of college students doing a psychology research project for their thesis?

Is Pablo Banila a new Internet virus?

Is Pablo Banila actually just the government looking for suspected terrorists by combing through the pages of unsuspecting Multiply users?

Is Pablo Banila merely the victim of pranksters who are out to get him?

Or is Pablo Banila just really a sad person with no friends and nothing better to do?

In any case, Multiply users are waiting for an answer. But until then, Pablo Banila continues to stalk our websites—and our nightmares.

E-mail the author at biancaconsunji@yahoo.com

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update:update:update

edit delete reply miguel8088 wrote today at 7:08 PM hahah Genius, hats off to you Pablo Banila, great execution of a social experiment, well thought of indeed hahaha.

edit delete reply miguel8088 wrote today at 7:07 PM aha! and I think Pablo Banila does make sense in this retort after all, haha I lifted this in another multiply blog entry where he's replied. hahahaha reply edwardward wrote on Sep 27 As I have patiently cleared before, again and again: I am exploiting the concept of a "viewing history" as a problem of function. Public domain is public domain. If they feel harassed in any way it was because I keep exercising my right to view their public profile, AND they harbor an irrational fear and irritation against my scarecrow headshot LOL founded by a notoriety based on a shallow social validation. People read about accusations, libels, and death threats against me written in my very guestbook. As the "wisdom of crowds" would send lemmings to their final swimming lesson so does it lead human beings into biases. I am hated in exactly the same way other human beings discriminate Blacks, Muslims, and homosexuals. Interestingly, most of my most passionate haters honestly believed that I had a crush on them until I opened up a guestbook. They found out it wasn't only them. Most of them are kids who are not allowed to have a Multiply account in the first place. Wait until EVERYBODY exploits this method of "advertising" (: It turns out I'm the first one to execute a classic prank in a Biblical scale (100 million accounts viewed, worldwide). ~Pablo Banila is the next Slavoj Zizek

edit delete reply miguel8088 wrote today at 6:52 PM, edited today at 6:53 PM here's a reply i posted in one of frighteningly numerous blog entriess about mr. banila: miguel8088 wrote today at 6:49 PM Right on hhahhaha. after all the none of these people whom he allegedly stalked have their accounts set at limited viewing only by private contacts. Ergo: it's a free world. As far as i know, pablo banila, annoying as it may seem, has not committed any crime. if he adds you up, you always have the choice to ignore him. if you're freaked out because he's lurking at your postings (that's free for the entire world to view anyway), then maybe you should restrict access to your posts. just a thought hehe.  this guy, is a deviant, I guess, but hey, that's his personal choice after all.