News Bits [09.22.09]

Cabinet who can’t back gov’t bet told to quit

Can the Government have a presidential bet??? The administration yes, but certainly not the Government.

And even if the administration party has chosen its pet… I’m sorry, I mean bet, Cabinet members who are not members of the administration’s political party or those who choose to support other than the administration’s candidate should not be forced to resign from their posts, unless they commit electioneering acts.

Malacañang’s call for the resignation of Cabinet members who refuse to support the administration’s candidate clearly shows that the administration seeks not the betterment of the Government but the perpetration of its rule.

There’s a world of a difference between serving with the administration and working for the Government.

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NP laughs off ‘Re-Villar-me’ tandem talk

For the sake of the Filipino people, please leave it at that. Let’s not equate popularity with good governance. Although, admittedly, political lineage cannot as well be presumed to result in good governance, let us not be hasty in adopting the extreme side of the coin. Be inquisitive. Be analytical. As they say, choose wisely.

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Reference: http://www.inquirer.net/

News Bits [09.18.09]

Catholic schools seek women’s law exemption

What happened to the virtue of compassion that you preach? Why don’t you practice them? Have you not, in your lifetime, been at fault?

Isn’t it true that you also refuse to accept children born out of wedlock? It scares me to think then of the type of education you will impart if your religious and academic freedoms entail you to discriminate and judge a person’s character and capability based on their past failings and shortcomings or, in the case of children out of wedlock, their parents’ indiscretion.

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Power failure will not stop polls — Comelec

What COMELEC assures us is that the power failure will not affect the conduct of automation. Oh surely it will not stop polls, but will it not affect the results? The assurance we need is that despite interruptions of whatever nature, the integrity of the results will not be affected.

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Reference: http://www.inquirer.net/

News Bits [09.09.09]

Mikey blames self for TV interview blunder

Of course it’s his fault. Whose fault could it be? He went there and answered the questions (or tried to). Why could his seeming stupidity and utter incapacity for coherence be blamed on someone else? Does he think it is a form of gallantry that he owns up to his blunder? Duh!

Maybe that’s how he was raised? Taught to never own up to a mistake he himself committed, to always pass the blame to others. Wow! The fruit of a poisonous tree.

He even believes he did the right thing because of text messages from friends. Birds of the same feathers perhaps?

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Ombudsman seeks to ‘protect confidentiality’ of SALN in new rules

Oh my! Even Wolverine will envy how hard the Ombudsman’s face is.

Oh by the way Sir, government people don’t file SALN because they trust you. They file that because they are required by law; the same law that requires you to make it accessible to the public.

I wonder whether the degree of difficulty obtaining copies of SALNs will differ for each personality (i.e., Administration and Opposition).

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Noynoy Aquino announces bid for presidency in 2010

The announcement the Filipino people has been waiting for. But then, how winnable is he?

Unless other presidentiables from the opposition do a Mar, Noynoy’s bid will not be as formidable as it should be. I’d like to see him unite the opposition, and fight the dark side of the force.

More importantly, and I think most would agree with me on this, that it’s far better seeing more of Shalani than Korina.

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Reference: http://www.gmanews.tv/index.html

News Bits [09.06.09]

49 governors back Teodoro’s Palace bid

With this kind of endorsement it looks like Sec. Teodoro moves a step further towards being the administration party’s standard bearer.

This makes things a lot more interesting considering that the opposition is encouraging Sen. Aquino to run for 2010.

If that happens, it’s Cojuangco vs. Aquino right?

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Arroyo declares Sept. 7 and 21 as non-working holidays

Oh this means I have more time to sleep and be merry… NOT!

Longer weekends = shorter deadlines. That translates to working on holidays. Yes I get paid for that, but geez what’s the holiday for then?

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Palace announces holiday exemptions

If BPOs and electronic industries are exempted from the declared non-working holidays, does it mean that their employees will get regular pay for work spent on a special holiday?

Sec. Remonde was quoted saying, “We all know that the operations of the BPO and the electronic industries are 24/7″ in explaining the grant of exemption. Sorry, but can you point out the connection here? People will still work sir. Their employers will just have to pay them higher. Is that what the real reason is?

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References: http://www.inquirer.net/ and http://www.gmanews.tv/index.html

ATM Anti-robbery System

Got the following email from a friend:

When a thief forces you to take money from the ATM, do not argue or resist. You might not know what he or she might do to you. What you should do is to punch your PIN in the reverse mode, i.e., if your PIN # is 1254, you punch 4521.

The moment you punch in the reverse mode, the money will come out, but will be stuck into the machine half way out and it will alert the Police (security) without the notice of the thief. Every ATM has it; it is specially made to signify danger and help. Not everyone is aware of this.

I’m not sure if this information is true, but I sure hope it helps a lot of people if it were. I don’t know in what way the police will be alerted and how soon they can respond. Maybe the guard at the bank can immediately act on it, unless he/she is in lala land. I also don’t know why depositors are not properly made aware of this feature. I surely wasn’t informed of such thing when I opened my account.

At any rate, be observant and mindful of your surroundings whenever and wherever you are using the ATM. It is our alertness and vigilance that will secure us from the evil that the system seeks to prevent.

News Bits [08.28.09]

Erap on re-election bid: age doesn’t matter

- Maybe it doesn’t, but Article VII, Sec. 4 of the Philippine Constitution does. Run Erap run… away from politics please. Stay in your house and take your Arthro. It might do you more good.

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Carlo J. Caparas mulls Senate bid

- Oh please do mull it over loooooooonger. Otherwise, we might as well start shooting for the film titled, “Massacre of the Filipino Nation”, directed by… you guessed it.

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LTFRB deploys night teams vs reckless bus drivers

- This is good. But how about reckless drivers during the day? And why only in EDSA? And why only now?? Adopting the better-late-than-never motto perhaps?

Reference: http://www.gmanews.tv/index.html

Pata Pata Pata Pon!

The first time I saw this game in my brother’s friend’s PSP, my first reaction was to ignore it. I didn’t know what type of game it was and didn’t quite appreciate its weird graphics. But when you are beset with boredom to the point when nobody knows what you’re capable of doing, well, this is what I got myself into. Now I thank boredom and its many causes.

It’s amusing at the start, then it becomes interesting, then outright addictive. The amount of times you play it accelerates into a crescendo of feverish nirvana.  With the rhythm and the fun it brings, you’ll surely find yourself pouring time and effort to get those darned eyeballs cross that pink post.  Dip yourself more and you’ll realize it’s not just a kid’s game that requires you to stay with the beat, but that it’s a strategy game as well in that you have to make do with whatever resources and Patapons you have to finish each mission.  Plus, if you’ve heard that video games boost hand-eye coordination, well, this one boosts your capacity to listen and react. And we all know as adults that listening before reacting makes or breaks a person.

With just 2 weeks of playing time, I now often find myself chanting its lines, stomping my feet to its beats, and searching the net for tips, tricks, cheats, walkthroughs, and what-have-you’s just to help me with the game.  One of the walkthroughs I found had this Q&A portion which I found really really funny. The question was how to know one has been playing too much Patapon. The answer it gave was when your son comes home, tells you he has fever, and you say “keep it up son.”  To understand this better, play the game.

Broke and Broken

In the life of this oak-bodied tree

It ought to sway as a bamboo would.

In times of raging storms and stifling heat

Firmly hold the ground its roots should.

For how else would its purpose be served

If it can provide no longer neither shelter nor food.

Yet it wills to bear fruit, still it shades its ground

Despite the sun that dries it off and winds that shake it down.

Listahan ng mga Nakaiinis na Bagay sa Buhay ng Isang Commuter

1. Driver na napakabagal magpatakbo.
2. Driver na nagmamadaling mamatay sa bilis ng pagpapatakbo.
3. Driver na preno nang preno.
4. Driver na lahat ng makitang nasa daan hinihintuan kahit hindi pumapara.
5. Driver na hindi nakakarinig ng pumaparang pasahero.
6. Driver na malakas ang pandinig pag nagbabayad pero nabibingi pag nanghihingi na ng sukli.
7. Driver na papalipatin ka pag magisa ka na lang at malayo pa ang bababan mo.
8. Driver na pipilitin kang lumipat kahit na wala pang malilipatan.
9. Driver na nagsasakay kahit punong puno na. (at sasabihin sayong may bababa naman sa malapit)
10. Driver na nagbababa sa gitna ng daan.
11. Dalawang drivers na magkukwentuhan pag nagkasalubong sa daan.
12. Babaeng ayaw umupo ng diretso kahit na puno na ang jeep. Pilit na ipinapaling ang binti patagilid para hindi makitaan kahit naka-jeans naman.
13. Babaeng walang pakialam kahit na humahampas na ang buhok niya sa mukha mo.
14. Babaeng nagbabayad nang pabulong at tamang tama lang para marinig ng katabi para kunin ang bayad nya at iabot sa driver.
15. Mga nagpapaabot ng bayad na ayaw namang i-extend ang braso para maiabot sayo nang mabuti.
16. Mga umuupo sa dulo ng jeep at nagpapaabot ng bayad kahit kayong dalawa lang.
17. Yun ikaw pa ang palalapitin sa kanya para kunin ang bayad nya kahit na nasa magkabilang dulo na kayo ng jeep.
18. Mga inaabutan ng sukli na ikaw pa ang palalapitin para maiabot sa kanya. (Madalas, gusto ko nang ibato sa mukha nila ang barya)
19. Lahat ng klase ng lasing na pasahero – mga nagsusuka, natutulog na akala kama ka, at yun maiingay at madaldal.
20. Mga pasaherong madaldal at malakas ang boses. (Lalo pa kung napapagitnaan ka nila)
21. FX na parang oven sa init.
22. FX na parang makakatetano. (mamamataan sa terminal ng MRT Quezon Ave. to Ortigas)
23. Mga magbabayad ng para sa dalawa kahit napakahaba ng pila.
24. Mga pilit na bubuksan ang pinto ng FX sa kaliwa kahit na may nakaupo na.
25. Mga nasa dulo at ayaw umusog.
26. Mga ayaw magbigay daan sa bababa.
27. Mga hindi nagsasara ng pinto ng FX pagkababa.
28. Mga nakikipagkarerang makasakay kahit nahuli sa pila.
29. Mga nang-so-solo ng aircon.
30. Mga sobrang lakas magpatugtog maririnig mo kahit naka-earphones sya.
31. Mga naglalaro ng PSP nang walang earphones.
32. Mga natutulog na ginagawa kang unan.

Banal na Santatlo

Yesterday’s gospel focused on the Holy Trinity. From my limited understanding, it pertains to the three personas of god, i.e., god the father, god the son, and god the holy spirit. This means that there is one god, but he/she/it has three personalities. The priest giving the homily admitted this to be one of the most difficult things to explain. I agree, for how can one explain in a manner that will be understood by all why a monotheistic religion insists that three is one.

This calls to mind a part in Bill Maher’s 2008 documentary entitled “Religulous” where he asked one believer to explain the Holy Trinity. The guy compared that to the capability of water to take the forms of ice, steam, or liquid. However, Bill saw the concept of the Holy Trinity as a space god who sends himself into a suicide mission.

While the water analogy may be, admittedly, a good analogy, it fails to explain how and why a supposedly monotheistic religion insists on rolling three different personas into one. After all, if all they claim is true, we would still be answerable to one and the same jealous supreme being who created us.

Not Sure Why, But I’m Back

I don’t know what came over me, but the social networking world just won’t stop luring me back into it. I’m not excited nor proud nor happy to do this, but I guess it won’t hurt. I don’t expect to have fun with it too. Just trying things out. At least I’m happy about that. Maybe, just maybe, it will be interesting enough to hold my attention, as well as my account. Sorry friendster. Nothing personal. Who knows, maybe I’ll have my current account deactivated sooner than expected.

Omniscience: The Antithesis of Free Will

This is a very much delayed reaction to the gospel and sermon during the last mass I attended. It’s about the transfiguration, and the 1st gospel was about god’s test to Abraham to sacrifice his only son for god. The priest explained that god did that to Abraham in order to test his faith before he is promised a vast kin. It’s a good story about faith. However, it seems to emphasize god’s mercilessness.

I was raised to believe that god is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. The idea of an all-knowing god was so fearsome that it made me behave even when no one else seems to be watching. But if god is indeed all-knowing, then he would have known what Abraham would do even before he asked him to sacrifice his only son. Knowing what Abe’s decision would be, god needn’t have let him undergo such excruciating agony of having to choose between his god and his son. To say that god tests our faith by throwing problems at us is unacceptable. Knowing what you would do even before you did it and still putting you through it is kind of cruel for me.

Even with the argument of free will, god would know (and most likely he planned it that way) what your decision will be. What kind of god lets one suffer by testing him over something the result of which it already knows. If you look at it closely, free will is worthless. Whether or not you have the capacity to choose between good and evil or love or hate, god already knows what you will choose. In fact, it has planned your life that way. It then leads me to think, if god knows how all things begin and end, it might have planned all things that way. As such, a man who refuses to believe in god was made to be so. And if that man dies without still accepting or believing in god, god willed it to be so. If that’s the case, then why would god punish such men to eternal damnation if it made them so in the first place? Such a god, I think you’ll agree, is unmerciful.

But then the faithful won’t question this. They’re hard-wired to accept god’s words (as taught by their priests) hook, line, and sinker. They’re made to believe that all that happens to them is a path towards god’s plan. And not following god’s words stray them off from that plan, from his grace, from his bounty, forgetting that whenever they falter, whenever they sin, and even if they don’t come back to his graces, it is all part of their god’s grand plan. All these assuming there is a god, and assuming further, that it is omniscient.

Friendster Account Obituary

I finally did it! I finally had the lapse of social sanity to cancel my friendster account. I’ve been deliberating on it for a few months already and I knew that it was just a matter of time (and a fit of introvert) to do it.

Why I did it? Simple. I just don’t see why I should continue maintaining it.  I never really had fun with it in the first place.  It was interesting at start, but sooner or later you grow out of it.  I’m still not sure if my social ineptitude is the sole reason for this decision, but I know it has a lot to do with it.

I’m feeling right now what I felt when I created the account a few years back.  I took the plunge into the deep sea of social networking and I managed to salvage myself out of it… at least from friendster.  After all, I still have this blog don’t I? But then again, blogging isn’t social networking.

Testimonial: I killed my friendster account and it’s exhilarating.