Bicol Bus Crash Update: Ibalonians mourn the demise of George Evangelio
“Flash news lang ini pero mamundong bareta. Kaibanan sa nagadan sa banggaan kan Executive Carrier bus and Silver Star bus sa Pamplona si George Evangelio ta. Saro siyang late '70s na Ibalon na gikan sa Daraga and Aquinas. Sabi ni Arnel Astillero, na nakaolay na an eldest na aki ni George, an agom daa ni George ay irido, naka-confine sa sarong ospital sa Naga. An bangkay naman ni George ay nasa Funeraria de Nuestra Senora de Salvacion sa Legazpi (pakatapos ibalyo haling Funeraria Imperial sa Naga). Calling tabi sa mga nasa Naga and sa nakakabisto ki George. Me bareta akong paduman na da’a si Totoy Badiola. Salamat.“---Mighty Baylon, Davao City“An narurumduman ko ki George, he was a happy, hopeful and kind
person. I'm sure he led a fruitful and meaningful life.”
---Benny Rayco, Legazpi City
“Sincere condolence to the family of George and prayers for the speedy recovery of Beth. Her children need her in this most difficult time of their lives.”
---Ona Vigil-Baylon, Davao City
“I remember George as a very gracious host samo ni Arnel, even inviting us for drinks sa videoke bar nya sa taas kan old daraga market.”
---James Sabio, Albay, Philippines
“I first knew of George's fatal accident when his name was shown on TV. I had my initial doubts if it was our George of UP Ibalon. But when i saw Daraga, Albay across his name, I knew it was him alright. Mighty's text only confirmed it.
I dropped by today at her sis in laws canteen in Sagpon, Daraga, Albay where i last saw George maybe a year ago. She told me that George and his wife Beth was on the way home in the Executive carrier bus after the check up of her wife in Manila. He was dead on the spot while his Beth suffered fractures and had stainless implants but is otherwise in stable condition. Their check up was reportedly already delayed by one week because they were still waiting for collectibles, having been saddled by the medical bills of Beth among others. Condolence to the family of George.”
---Dan Daz, Legazpi City
“The only agendum at Kopi Meeting in Naga is to know how to help the family of the late George Evangelio. Let us all come. I am one of those who did not have the chance to meet George in his lifetime, but this tragedy in his family really touches everyone of us deeply.”
---Andy Gimpaya, M.D., Naga City
“Hello everyone! Ini po an latest na bareta ko. Divided ang attention kan pamilya ta si Beth, yaon pa sa BMC. Dai pa daa puede ibyahe. Si Joshua, eldest son, ang yaon duman. You may contact him through his cell phone 09175580099. He is with his uncle David Supeña. Sa Daraga, you may contact members of the family through the following numbers: Home: 435-3457; Gigi Canteen: 483-0136 (Bing Supeña, Aunt)”
---Arnel Astillero, Albay, Philippines
“This is indeed a tragedy, a family of six to cap it all. I don't know George, his wife, or any of his kids. Since Simon is studying in Goa, Camarines Sur, tell him to come to my parent's house and introduce himself---- to my mother specially, and my wife Rebekah who’s still there. I'll give him some contribution as well. Be safe.”
---Jose (Boy) Remo, M.D., St. Louis, Missouri, USA
"Kun maaraman ta su insurance company kan carrier; kun may kabisto, hil’ngon ta
kun pwede kita mag lobby for an early claim payment. On the family's end, kaipuhan mag-prepare ning mga documento to support the claim: birth certificates of George & family, burial and funeral expenses, police report, medico-legal report, medical certificates, medical expenses including projected expenses for Beth if there are future treatments necessary na resulta dahil sa saiyang injuries.
—Honesto Oliva, Naga City
"Let's all pray for George's soul, for the speedy recovery of his wife and for his whole family."
---Edna Fatima Balaquiao, Naga City
“Hi, Benny & Grace! Hinahapot ko pa si Naning Mariano kun puwede gamiton su account duman as conduit kan gusto magpadara nin tabang.”
---Apolonio (Mighty) Baylon, Davao City
“Itinao ko na sa padara ni Mighty through BDO. Cherry Uy padara man through RCBC… Atty Alan Badiola and Boy Inigo were also there. We stayed up to 7:30PM.”
---Mac Pavia, Pio Duran, Albay
“Naka-receive man ako ning text from Mayor Bem Dycoco kahapon about the accidental death of George. Si info na pigtao sakuya is kaipuhan daa ning legal advice kan family niya on how to get financial assistance/claims from the bus company. Nakaulay ko for few minutes by cellphone si David, brother ni Beth. Si David yata ang nag-aasikaso kan pagdara kay Georgefrom a funeral parlor in Pamplona to Legazpi ngunyan na aldaw. Ang contact number niya: 0928-4238888.
----Atty. Alan V. Badiola, Rawis, Legazpi City
“Condolence sa pamilya ni George Evangelio. May he rest in peace. Hoping for the complete recovery of his wife… I asked my sister Ritzy Bermillo of Balatas, Naga City to call Ann Mariano to send in my donation to the George Evangelio fund.”
---Totie Mesia, M.D., Astoria, New York, USA
N.B: George Evangelio's bier is presently at the Nuestra Sra. de Salvacion Funeral Parlor in Legazpi City, Philippines. Those who desire to help his family, please contact Joshua Evangelio (09175580099; 435-3457); Bing Supena (483-0136) or Andy Gimpaya, M.D. (Naga) )==0==
Trimming Down Princess Chunk
In New Jersey, Princess Chunk, a 44 pound snow-colored obese kitty with brown ears and knowing eyes was found and put in a shelter. She'll be in a diet to tame her ballooning lithe body before she goes to find a loving adoptive home. The overweight feline turned out to be a prince on closer physical examination. His real name is Powder (08/01/08). Credit: AOL/CourierPost/AP/Schell,A.
Figuring The Right Grammar of Pulse Asia's Survey
According to the new survey of Pulse Asia taken in July 11-14, 2008, two thirds (~64%) of Filipinos express gloom and pessimism about their personal situation in the next 12 months. Morale is low. Seventy nine (79) percent aren’t optimistic about the overall national situation. Three fouths (75%) consider themselves as losers (worse than last year,) compared to 59% four months ago.
These are outrageous numbers that fracture our confidence, numb our spines, and make our faces look ashen. Contrary to what Malacanang says, we may not need to validate the results for "ramdam na ramdam na natin ang resulta."
The State of the Nation Address (SONA) of Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo last July 28, 2009, ostensibly blamed foreign factors for the deterioration of the economy. There’s almost no admission of accountability and responsibility--- no mention of neglect, incompetence, or lack of foresight from our leaders. Surely, domestic factors such as pernicious corruption play a big role in the suffering of the people.=0=
Dreams of Gold Fizzles Before Beijing Olympics Starts
Nimble bodies flail up in the air, defying gravity. With agility, strength, and grace honed by pains-taking years of training, they roll-over, tumble, and ricochet like darting bullets at speeds that please the eye. Strained to the limits, their bodies go after the quintessential achievements in competitive sports. In the coming Beijing Olympics, athletes accept the risks of injury if only to nail a glowing moment on the podium for themselves and for the country they represent. The challenge for an exceptional performance is so strong that some would do anything to pursue it.
The strict discipline of training, exercise, and diet may not be enough to assure a medal. Politics, government interference, change of health, and even foul weather can stand on the way. All the preparations may altogether be wasted if the window of opportunity to compete closes prematurely.
Paul Hamm, USA’s top seed for gymnastics gold, knows it first hand. (Photo:NYTimes/SilvermanB) He bows out from the race at the eve of the 2008 Beijing Games because of a strained rotator cuff and a hand fracture that didn’t recuperate on time. The same happened to legendary figure skater Michelle Kwan in 2006 Torino Winter Olympics when groin injuries booted her out of competition, abruptly ending her dreams of gold.Nature has a way of demanding what must be for the body and the soul. Even the best of talented athletes are governed by the laws of injury and repair. It takes time for healing to proceed, be it in the mind or in the bone. =0=
Ibalonian George Evangelio dies with 11 others in a bus crash
“Three more people have died in a deadly collision between two passenger buses in Pamplona, Camarines Sur early Tuesday, July 29, 2008, bringing the death toll up to 11.Radio dzMM reported that three of the 30 injured passengers brought to Bicol Medical Center were declared dead hours after the freak accident.
Earlier reports said eight people died after two buses collided along a highway in Barangay San Ramon in Pamplona town around 3 a.m.
Police investigations said a Silver Star bus from Tacloban City took the lane of a speeding Executive Carrier bus from Manila, causing the smash up.
Three of the fatalities were passengers of the Executive Carrier bus and the other five were occupants of the Silver Star bus. The names of the fatalities were not immediately available. The police were still investigating the incident.” ABS-CBN/dzMM (07/29/08)
Among the dead is UP Ibalon’s George Evangelio of Daraga, Albay. His wife Elizabeth who suffers from cancer sustained multiple injuries and fractures which needed surgery at the Bicol Medical Center where she's recuperating. He left behind six young children namely Rey Joshua, 21; Simon, 15; Sheena Mae, 11; Veronica, 9; George Matthew, 6 and Gabrielle Nicole, 4. His remains will be transferred from Funeraria Imperial of Naga to his hometown in Daraga, Albay where a wake in his honor will be held.
UP Ibalon grieves and expresses sympathy to the family of the deceased and to the other victims of the fatal road crash. Ibalonians Apolonio (Mighty) Baylon, Totoy Badiola, Fatima Edna Balaquiao, Dulce Bernardo, Arnel Astillero along with other concerned members in Bicol enjoin everyone to pray for the repose his soul.
George Evangelio is part of Batch78A which counts among its members Frank Mendoza, Ging San Jose, Fatima Edna Balaquiao, and Vic Ubaldo. For more details of his wake and burial, Mighty Baylon requests UP Ibalon members to contact Adolfo (Totoy) Badiola in Naga. =0=
Bare Truth or Fairy Tale? (Is Little Red Riding Hood & The Wolf One And The Same?)
“Because tough choices were made, the global crisis did not catch us helpless and unprepared. Through foresight, grit and political will, we built a shield around our country that has slowed down and somewhat softened the worst effects of the global crisis. We have the money to care for our people and pay for food when there are shortages; for fuel despite price spikes. Neither we nor anyone else in the world expected this day to come so soon but we prepared for it.”
--- State of the Nation Address (SONA,) Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo, 2nd Regular Session of the 14th Congress Republic of the Philippines
28 July 2008
Be it for mom, a friend or an unknown soul, there's always a good reason to donate blood
"My pulse was bouncy like the gallop of a horse in the racetrack. I felt the familiar throbbing pain on my back and the squeezing sensation in my legs. Pallor and jaundice was obvious on my suffused eyes. I noticed my urine took the color of brewed coffee from Starbuck’s. --- I’m a patient now by Augusto F. Mesia, M.D.That’s how a patient feels when he’s running out of blood. All the time, in hospitals worldwide, there is a person like him who requires transfusion. The need for blood never takes a break.
Be it for the unknown soldier profusely bleeding from gunshot wounds, a farmer's child stricken with Dengue, an old man gasping for breath because of hemorrhagic shock, a mother who suffers from severe anemia of pregnancy and parturition, a baby whose bone marrow had shut down as a result of cancer and chemotherapy----they all need our help. Without the gift of blood, they can die. We’re prodded to donate blood especially in lean days when blood banks run low in their inventories.
The Department of Health (DOH,) hospitals, civic organizations, schools, churches, the military, and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) set aside days for blood drives so we partake in saving the lives of people. We need to appreciate the importance of voluntary (vs. paid donors) blood-giving.
In the harrowing days of World War II, in bomb-torn Europe, people organized blood donation parties to shed for the wounded fighters in the battle fields. People from all walks of life willingly lined up to give blood. Not all of us had this edifying altruistic experience. We share little history of blood donations like them. Therefore it makes sense that we campaign for aggressive blood-letting.
The yearly collection of blood per year in the United States is about 15 million bags of whole blood and about 5 million are transfused as blood components. These components are derived from whole blood which include red cells, platelets, white cells, plasma, cryoprecipitate, gamma globulin (IVIg) and albumin. (Source: The National Blood Data Resource Center, 2001, the most recent year for which data are available.)
Risk Estimates for Blood Transfusions in the U.S.
Risk per Unit
Human Immunodeficiency Virus--- 1: 2 million
Using p24 Testing
Human Lymphocytotrophic Virus--- 1: 3 million
Hepatitis C Virus--- 1: 2 million
Hepatitis B Virus--- 1: 200,000
Source: American Red Cross, BloodSafety.org
A positive development in the Philippines, Dr. Eduardo Pedrosa, Department of Health (DOH) regional coordinator for blood donation in Visayas said there is a growing public awareness of the benefits of blood donation. Celebrating July as a blood month, he noted a rise of volunteer donors and increased number of blood bags collected---from about 11,000 to over 18, 000 units in 2007 in blood-letting programs. Their target for this year is 22,000 units. ABS-CBN-Tacloban (7/17/08, Docdocan, J.)
Blood donation is labor-intensive. From collection to actual blood transfusion, the chain of work is centered on safety. Pre-donation interviews and physical examinations are conducted. The screening and matching of compatible donors have become so stringent that the risks of adverse effects from donating and receiving blood have been kept to the barest minimum.
Who can donate blood?
In general, people of good health, at least 17 years old, weighing at least 110 pounds may donate blood every 2 months (not as frequent as every ~56 six days.) Whole blood is harvested and processed using aseptic techniques from healthy donors which satisfy the criteria of medical history, current physical health, and possible contact with transfusion-related infectious diseases. These requirements which may vary slightly from country to country, make blood far safer now than at the time immunologist-pathologist Dr. Karl Landsteiner discovered the ABO blood groups in the early 1900s. Although there are obstacles to tackle, our local blood banks are working hard to improve its service so that blood could be made a notch safer for donors and recipients alike. =0=
Boundless Love
Animals are as caring and affectionate as human beings. In captivity, they never lose their protective instincts. They look after their babies just like human parents. In Alipore Zoo in Calcutta, India, a 24 day old baby giraffe gets a loving forehead touch from his dad. Photo Credit: AP/Das,B.
An 82% Drop In NY Times Profit Earnings: Why?
New York Times Chief Executive Janet Robinson blamed her company’s profit decline to the “US economic slowdown and secular forces playing out across the media industry.” Considering the sluggish business climate, she meant, the newspaper incurred high operational expenses and it lost some of its profit-generating advertisers.“New York Times Co. says its second-quarter earnings fell 82 percent from the year-ago quarter boosted by a one-time gain. Meanwhile, print advertising revenue continued to shrink.
The New York-based newspaper publisher says its quarterly net income dropped to $21.1 million, or 15 cents per share, which included 11 cents per share in buyout costs.” Breitbart.com/AP (07/23/08) Photo Credit: AP/Lennihan, M.
The National Association of America (NAA) likewise reported newspaper industry’s sharpest fall in print classifieds in decades, needing the boost of internet ads revenue to counter losses. In the first quarter of 2008, total ad revenues for newspapers amounted to $804 million, a 7.2 percent rise over Q1 2007's $750 million. But this is lower than the 22% growth rate from the previous year. ClickZ Network (06/16/08, Kaye, K.)
There's more to the drop in NY Times earnings than what the eyes can see. Critics say the newspaper has pandered heavily to the anti-American agenda of the secular progressives, leftists, and liberals who tolerate bias and unbalanced reporting. The newspaper isn’t the kind that subscribers have been used to reading. This certainly causes alienation particularly among disappointed conservatives who expect non-partisan coverage and fairness in reporting. A number of subscribers dropped out of advertising and readership, disillusioned by the perception that the newspaper is “biased, anti-American, and rabidly anti-Pres. George W. Bush.” There are those who complain NY Times gives lop-sided coverage for Barack Obama’s campaign in the current presidential race to the disadvantage of John McCain whose OpEd has been refused publication by the newspaper.
In 2003, there was Jayson Blair who resigned from the newspaper after being caught of plagiarism and fabrication. A few months ago, it printed innuendoes implying infidelity and wrongdoing in an unsubstantiated McCain-Vicki Iseman “affair.” The newspaper came up with the worst discouraging assessments about the Iraq War which made readers feel someone in America wanted the United States to fail. =0=
A Torture Chamber, A Safe-house For Travelers, A Street Named After A Bishop...Some Of Naga City's Notable Landmarks
Jose V. Barrameda, Jr.’s interesting account on some memorable landmarks in Naga City published in Bicol Mail this week (07/24/08, Barrameda, J.V.Jr.,) includes Penafrancia Avenue, the genteel paved road from Plaza Quince Martires at the city proper to the old Penafrancia Church. Though he didn’t describe much of what is in the stretch of the famed avenue, he gave us a glimpse of the old buildings that dotted the city in the past. Their historical significance proved very enlightening. The Naga Police Station in Barlin Street served as an infamous torture chamber where brave Bicolano heroes and martyrs met their unjustified deaths during the Spanish time. Barrameda wrote:
“During the mass arrests in September 1896, Florencio Lerma (who was also held in the Casino Español); Cornelio Mercado; Don Tomas Prieto, alcalde of Nueva Caceres; and Macatio Valentin were brought to and tortured in the cuartel by Civil Guards under the direction of Captain Francisco Andreu, chief of the Guardia Civil in Ambos Camarines, and Don Ricardo Lacosta, Spanish civil governor of the province. The horrific torture wrenched the first of two legally infirm confessions from the frail pharmacist Prieto which the authorities used as basis for the arrest, torture and prosecution of scores of Filipinos in the province, some of whom were also subsequently forced to sign fabricated confessions under extreme duress.”
The author then clearly described Casa Tribunal along Elias Angeles Street, an edifice of brick and wood where the municipal council (ayuntamiento) similar to that in Spain, transacted government business in Naga in the last quarter of the 1800’s. The building also provided free accommodations to travelers who came to the city. After the Spanish and American occupations, the Casa Tribunal served a different purpose:“Destroyed by American bombs in World War II… it was eventually rebuilt as a smaller wooden building that became the city police headquarters. After the century-old Spanish cuartel being used by the PC-INP burned down in 1978, the city government constructed a new building at the cuartel site which housed the Naga City Police Department. The former police headquarter building on this site became the Naga City Library until the latter’s transfer to its new, modern building in the City Hall complex.”
On the other hand, the Casa Espanol of Arana Street which was a social and recreational center of people of Spanish descent in Naga and neighboring towns had disturbing incidents when the Katipunan was discovered in Manila: “Civil Governor Ricardo Lacosta ordered to mass arrest all over Camarines starting in September 1896. The Casino Español became one of several holding areas for harsh interrogation and violent torture. Among those taken to the Casino were Antonio Arejola, Camilo Jacob (from the infirmary of the San Francisco Church), Florencio Lerma (who was subsequently transferred to the nearby Cuartel General of the Guardia Civil), Macario Melgarejo, Mariano Ordenanza and Manuel Pastor, and from Daet, Roman Cabesudo, Ponciano Caminar, Diego Liñan, Valentin Lipana, Gregorio Luyon, Adriano Pajarillo, and Pedro Zenarosa. Many arrests were made on mere denunciation by Spaniards in meetings in the Casino.
Two years after, in 1898, enraged Nagueños violently trashed the clubhouse during the bloody uprising led by Elias Angeles and Felix Plazo."
Today, our young generation of Bicolanos may never know of Casa Real in General Luna Street where as early as 1588, the place, facing Naga River, served as the residence of the alcalde mayor of Nueva Caceres who had jurisdiction over the entire Bicol peninsula and Catanduanes. Unfortunately, like the buildings Barrameda described, the Casa Real had been razed, torn down, and largely forgotten.Penafrancia Avenue was once called Calle Via Gainza, a famous city street memorializing Francisco Gainza, the illustrious Bishop of Nueva Caceres credited for establishing Colegio de Sta Isabel (Universidad de Sta Isabel) in 1868, the nation’s first normal school for girls. The great bishop also made curriculum improvements for the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary which became then, Bicol region’s top study hub for priests, religious, and lay citizens. As a pope delegate, Gainza was with the Bishop of Manila in opposing the stripping of the religious affiliations of rebel priests Gomez, Burgos and Zamora (Goburza) as sought by the Spanish government in Manila.
What was unclear though was why Calle Via Gainza which aptly pays tribute to the bishop’s admirable contributions to Naga City was renamed as Penafrancia Avenue. The reason for the change was unclear.
In our minds, street names like Calle Via Gainza could have been better left alone. In a way, they are sentinels of a period in history gone by. Retaining old street names helps preserve our cultural linkage with the past. In simple practical terms, the postman’s job of delivering letters is made easy when old street names are retained. Unless there’s an imperative to make changes, old names better stay as they are. As invaluable remnants of the old, they make us remember the richness of our past; they make us feel the meaning of history. =0=
Aurora Borealis' Intriguing Noises & The Heavenly Apparitions Of Light
The eerie mysterious glow of light and hissing roar of the wind observed in the earth's polar latitudes is called the Northern Lights aka Aurora Borealis, named after the enchanting goddess of Dawn (Aurora) and the North (Borealis.) Folklore surrounds the amorphous undulating kaleidoscope of colors. From time to time, they appear in the night sky more beautifully when the chilly winds of fall set in. Photo: US Airforce/Strang, J.
The cryptic sound from the bright polar horizon scares and puzzles human beings for millenia. Explorer Ernest William Hawkes, in his book The Labrador Eskimo (1916) has this to say about Aurora's mythic origin as the Eskimos have it in their tradition:
“The sky is a great dome of hard material arched over the Earth. There is a hole in it through which the spirits pass to the true heavens. Only the spirits of those who have died a voluntary or violent death, and the Raven, have been over this pathway. The spirits who live there light torches to guide the feet of new arrivals. This is the light of the Aurora. They can be seen there feasting and playing football with a walrus skull.
The whistling crackling noise which sometimes accompanies the Aurora is the voices of these spirits trying to communicate with the people of the Earth. They should always be answered in a whispering voice.”
Scientists have a better explanation for the spectacular light display in the sky. Vassilis Angelopoulos of the University of California, Los Angeles and his co-researchers in the THEMIS mission (Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms) said energy explosions are behind the bursts of light which occur a third of the way between Earth and the Moon. They are substorms, triggered by snapping “magnetic field lines” which cause the Aurora’s intriguing noises and heavenly apparition of lights. Associated Press (07/25/08, Dunn, M) =0=
Dolphy's Hindi Ko Ito Narating Na Mag-isa
With a bit of seriousness, a pinch of comedy, a dash of love, hope, and forgiveness, Dolphy, RP’s top comedian celebrates his 80th birthday on July 25, 2008 with a dazzling legacy book about his life entitled “Dolphy: Hindi Ko Ito Narating Na Mag-isa” which he dedicates to the Filipino Overseas Foreign Workers (OFWs.) Endearingly funny, self-deprecating, mature, and humble, this is what the apostle of laughter and reconciliation said of his fascinating life-story:
"Harinawa'y makapagdulot ng aral ang aking mga pinagdaanan….Kung kayo may nasaktan ko, patawarin niyo ako, at kung kayo ang nagkasala sa aki'y pinatatawad ko na kayo.” ABS-CBN, News.com (07/25/08 Buan-DeVeza,R.)
In spite of his foibles, it must be effortless for tinseltown’s most beloved jester to once again capture the hearts and dreams of many Filipinos worldwide whom he partly credits for his phenomenal success. Unlike his colleagues in TV and movies, Dolphy chooses to entertain people rather than be in the business of politics. The people respect and adore him for sticking to what he does best---make everybody happy.=0=
Employment Prospects For Nurses Further Dim As 27,765 Pass Licensure Test
Nursing, the Philippines’ over-represented and most popular profession has recently added 27,765 to its roster of board examination passers when the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) released the names of successful examinees on July 25, 2005. The number represents 43% of a total of 64,459 examinees who took the June, 2008 licensure test. The new nurses are expected to further clog the bottle-neck in foreign (OFW) and domestic employment which is experiencing a slump in job recruitment.
Hiring is expected to tighten owing to oversupply and lack of demand. The government needs a rational strategy to solve the growing joblessness among licensed nurses and those who fail to pass the board exam in the country.=0=
Sizing Up GMA's SONA: What The US Ambassador Wants To Hear Versus What The People Feel
More than a week before Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's (GMA) State of the Nation Address (SONA,) there was this type of conditioning the government wanted for its people. The pompous military, 6,000 strong, hammered peace on the people's mind even if according to them, there was no threat of disturbance. In a bewildering display of “respect for human rights,” police officers, in their scary gears and numbers, agreed to go on a human rights seminar. At the same time they assured the SONA will be a peaceful event.But barely a week before the speech, there are pictures of armed military men here and there, in full-battle regalia, readying for something that one could only guess as preparedness for mayhem. (Photo Credit: Malaya/SalvadorR) The story has turned symbolically worrisome. The government is fully aware of the people's widespread antipathy towards GMA, the most unpopular president since 1986.
There are reports of NPA ‘sparrows” who’d try to bring chaos at the SONA on July 30, 2008, giving advance warnings to anti-government protesters of what to expect if they venture out in the streets. Superficially, people can’t tiss apart truth, genuine public concern, and military scare tactics.
In a rather awkward statement, US Ambassador Kristie Kenney in Manila says she wants to hear GMA speak on the successes of her economic policies and the government’s in-roads in the peace process in Mindanao. The ambassador puts a positive spin on GMA’s SONA, but what she says doesn’t jibe with what the Filipinos are thinking.
"I think the President has made a lot of economic reforms and the Philippine economy has been doing well. I'm hoping she'll tell us more that she's continuing on that important point of her program."
“We are hopeful and eager to see a comprehensive peace agreement in Mindanao. I think that will be so important for all citizens of the Philippines, for economic growth, and we are ready to continue to be a dedicated partner in that search," Kenney said. Malaya (07/24/08, DeVera,E.)
Her remark seems a cheap shot at diplomatic correctness which most likely doesn’t reflect the Filipino sentiment at the moment. For sure Filipinos don’t want words that they can’t nibble especially if these words fall short of truth. They want a concrete plan of action which they can bring to their sleep: a solution to the hunger they’re facing. The people ask for accountability, a panacea for the rising prices of fuel and groceries, and they demand a resolution to the unsolved government corruption scandals---problems which simply don’t go away and leave the people numb in despair. =0=
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Dr. Fish Does Unusual Pedicure In A Foot Spa
Business-minded people don’t seem to run out of ideas. In the case of John Ho who runs a hair and nails spa someplace in Washington D.C., having a small carp-like fish called garra rufa (aka Dr. Fish) to do pedicure for his customers seem a good business proposition."This is a good treatment for everyone who likes to have nice feet," Ho said. AP/photo (07/21/08, Barakat, M.)
Before a standard foot care and grooming service, Ho's patrons are allowed a deep in a water tank where the gentle fish, numbering about a hundred, carefully nibble away dirt and debris from the skin surface. The fish acts like a natural razor, removing the exfoliating scaly skin while the foot thaws in mildly warm water.
For $35 and $50 per 15 and 30-minute service respectively, the ticklish fish pedicure is like the traditional stone rub (perhaps, the latter being more efficient,) which rids the foot of its shedding stratum corneum, the cornified outer skin layer. Whether the fish pedicure is sanitary and safe or devoid of any public health risks remains to be seen. =0=
Dark Knight's Blockbuster Bonanza, Zimbabwe's $100 Billion Dollar Note, & GMA's Dismal Popularity Rating
$155.34 million-Hollywood’s popular record-breaking block-buster entertainment “The Dark Knight” is Christopher Nolan’s dark sequel to “Batman Begins” which drew excited fans and profits in tinseltown on the first week of showing. Recently deceased actor Heath Ledger acts as the Joker. There are those who think the movie is too violent and may not be appropriate for kids below 12.
$100 billion note-To cope with a hyperinflation of 2.2 million percent, Zimbabwe’s Central Bank issued this latest huge bank note in a series of high money denominations, to deal with cash and food shortages leaving 80% of its people below the poverty line.
(-) 38%-Social Weather Station (SWS) revealed the dismal approval rating of Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo on July 18, 2008, making her the most unpopular Philippine president since 1986. It’s lower than her (-) 33% approval rating in May 2005, prompting Bishop Deogracias Iniguez, head of CBCP to advise the president to take her unpopularity “seriously.”
4,124-The number of US military troops who died in the Iraq War since it started 5 years ago, according to a recent count by the Associated Press on July 20, 2008.
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-No one has lost money in FDIC-insured savings of up to $100,000 in the last 75 years, said Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson who cautions anxious Americans of harder times ahead, but assures the soundness of the US banking system.
30 days-The expected time to retrieve the estimated 200,000 liters of industrial fuel and 10 metric-ton toxic endosulfan trapped in the sunken Princess of the Stars (threatening to pollute the Sibuyan Sea.) The projected cost of retrieval is $7.5 million (P318 million.)
87 drums
-Number of missing drums of toxic toluene diisocyanate (apart from the hazardous 10 metric tons of endosulfan and ship fuel in the Princess of the Sea) that need retrieval from another ship, M/V Ocean Papa, also grounded by Typhoon Frank.
2,167-Central Luzon’s number of dengue fever cases, a rise of 273% from last year’s number with two reported deaths as of July 21, 2008.
$1.42 billion
-Total remittance of OFW’s in May 2008, a 15.5% increase from last year’s. This is accompanied by the exodus of 533,945 Filipinos, a 39.5% rise in the first five months of 2008 who seek jobs abroad.
$145.59 million
-The amount of foreign investments withdrawn from the Philippines in June, 2008---a reversal to last year’s inflow investments totaling $871.41 million which entered the country. A total of $417 million from foreign investors left the country since Jan. 2008. =0=
Penafrancia Fiesta 2008
It’s in September when Bicolanos pay tribute to the Virgin of Penafrancia, the patroness of the Bicol region in the Philippines. Wrapped in lore and tradition, the age-old Marian devotion starts with the Traslacion, a religious procession which brings Nuestra Senora de Penafrancia’s brown image and the Divino Rostro (Divine Face) of Jesus to the Naga Cathedral marking the start of the annual nine-day prayers. Drawing enthusiastic crowds from all corners of the world, the feast of food, family reunions, prayers, parades, thanksgivings, and revelries, is highlighted by a colorful river procession of devotees and “voyadores,” marking the return of Ina’s ebony icon in her home at the Basilica Shrine. Photo Credits: Raph Garcia/Colnago/etal=0=
FESTIVITIES IN HONOR OF THE OUR LADY OF PENAFRANCIA AND DIVINO ROSTRO 2008Naga City, Philippines
GENERAL SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES
September 3 – September 11, 2008
5:00 PM - Solemn Novenary Masses in honor of the Divino Rostro at the Basilica of Peñafrancia
September 11
4:30 AM - Penitential Procession in honor of the Divino Rostro
September 12 (Friday) FEAST DAY OF THE DIVINO ROSTRO
4:30 AM - Penitential Procession in honor of the Divino Rostro
6:00 AM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Peñafrancia Basilica)
12:30 PM - TRASLACION Procession from the Basilica to Naga Cathedral
September 12 - 20, 2008
5:00 PM -Solemn Novenary Masses in honor of Our Lady of Peñafrancia (Naga Metropolitan Cathedral)
September 13 (Saturday)
5:00 PM Novena Mass
September 14 (Sunday)
5:00 PM Novena Mass
September 15 (Monday)
5:00 PM Novena Mass
September 16 (Tuesday)
6:00 AM - Pontifical Mass (Naga Cathedral)
Diocese of Virac
8:00 AM - Pontifical Mass (Naga Cathedral)
Prelature of Libmanan
5:00 PM - Novena Mass
September 17 (Wednesday)6:00 AM -Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Naga Cathedral )
Diocese of Daet
5:00 PM -Novena Mass
September 18 (Thursday)
6:00 AM -Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Naga Cathedral)
Diocese of Sorsogon
8:00 AM -Pontifical Mass
Diocese of Cabanatuan
5:00 PM -Novena Mass
5:30 PM -Union of Bicol Clergy Mass – (Cathedral Church)
7:00 PM -Clergy Night (Archbishop's Residence)
September 19 (Friday)
4:00 AM - Penitential Procession in honor of Our Lady of Peñafrancia from the Cathedral towards the South
(Downtown Area)
6:00 AM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass
Diocese of Masbate
8:00 AM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Naga Cathedral)
Diocese of Legazpi
10:00 AM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Naga Cathedral)
Military Ordinariate
5:00 PM - Novena Mass
7:00PM - Prayer Vigil (Adoracion Nocturna Filipina)-(Naga Cathedral)
September 20 (Saturday) Metropolitan Cathedral 4:00 AM - Penitential Procession in honor of Our Lady of
Peñafrancia from the Cathedral towards North
Bagumbayan Area)
6:00 AM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Archdioceseof Caceres)
8:00 AM - Concelebrated Mass
10:00 AM - Concelebrated Mass
3:00 PM - GRAND FLUVIAL PROCESSION
6:00 PM - Pontifical Concelebrated Mass (Basilica Diamond Jubilee Pavilion)
September 21 (Sunday) SOLEMNITY OF OUR LADY OF PEÑAFRANCIA
- Community Masses at the Basilica Church
at 4:00 AM – 8:30 PM and
Basilica Diamond Jubilee Pavilion
at 5:00 AM –11:00 AM
PONTIFICAL CONCELEBRATED MASSES:
Basilica of Peñafrancia
6:30 AM - For the Society of Jesus, Vincentians and Daughters of Charity
8:00 AM - Archdiocese of Caceres
9:30 AM - Diocese of Sorsogon
11:00 AM - Diocese of Legazpi
6:00 PM - For the Filipino-Chinese Community
The Bounty of Green River Formation: Hyping America's Vast Oil Shale Reserve
We’ve bad mouthed the use of oil because it pollutes the environment. Yet for a time, in spite of our need to clean up the atmosphere and help lessen global warming, we’re still stuck with fossil-fuel based technologies. Until we perfect our cleaner alternatives of solar, electro-magnetic, nuclear, wind, hydroelectric, hydrogen, fuel cell etcetera versus the use of oil, there’s always this temptation to tap the bowels of the earth for precious combustible hydrocarbons to fuel the world economy.
The United States of America is ambivalent about drilling, but right at the heartland, the nation which owns 25% of the world’s wealth, has a vast reserve of shale oil that boggles the imagination of dreamers, prospectors, and entrepreneurs.
Oil shale is hard to unlock and stubborn to get. That’s the downside. But if this reserve is extracted and utilized (with utmost care to spare the environment,) the benefit will not only be for Americans, but for the world as well. The fast growing economies of China and India alone have astronomically raised the world’s need for oil and there is little indication that it’s abating.“While oil shale is found in many places worldwide, by far the largest deposits in the world are found in the United States in the Green River Formation, which covers portions of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming.
The estimates of the oil resource in place within the Green River Formation range from 1.2 to 1.8 trillion barrels. Not all resources in place are recoverable; however, even a moderate estimate of 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil from oil shale in the Green River Formation is three times greater than the proven oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Present U.S. demand for petroleum products is about 20 million barrels per day. If oil shale could be used to meet a quarter of that demand, the estimated 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil from the Green River Formation would last for more than 400 years.” –Oil Shale Resources of USA, Source: ostseis.anl.gov/guide/oilshale/index.cfm =0=
"If you are poor, you are not likely to live long"
“There are many people in South Africa who are rich and who can share those riches with those not so fortunate who have not been able to conquer poverty. Poverty has gripped our people. If you are poor, you are not likely to live long.” –Nelson Mandela’s Message to the World on his 90th Birthday (07/18/08)
A towering symbol of anti-apartheid, an inspiration of decency, pardon, and resolute defiance against injustice, Nelson Mandela, 1993 Nobel peace prize awardee who served 27 years in jail, celebrates his 90th birthday on Friday, July 18, 2008, in his home with his family in Qunu, South Africa, 18 years after he was released from prison, 14 years after he was elected president in his country’s first democratic National Assembly election, 10 years after he married his 3rd wife Marcha Grachel, and 4 years after his recession from public life. Photo Credit: Habebe/AP
“This man, who had been vilified and hunted down as a dangerous fugitive, incarcerated for nearly three decades, would soon be transformed into the embodiment of forgiveness and reconciliation. Those who had hated him would, most of them, be eating out of his hand----the prisoner become President, in time to be admired by the whole world in an extraordinary outpouring of adulation.“ No Future Without Forgiveness (1999, Tutu, Desmond. p10.)=0=
A towering symbol of anti-apartheid, an inspiration of decency, pardon, and resolute defiance against injustice, Nelson Mandela, 1993 Nobel peace prize awardee who served 27 years in jail, celebrates his 90th birthday on Friday, July 18, 2008, in his home with his family in Qunu, South Africa, 18 years after he was released from prison, 14 years after he was elected president in his country’s first democratic National Assembly election, 10 years after he married his 3rd wife Marcha Grachel, and 4 years after his recession from public life. Photo Credit: Habebe/AP
“This man, who had been vilified and hunted down as a dangerous fugitive, incarcerated for nearly three decades, would soon be transformed into the embodiment of forgiveness and reconciliation. Those who had hated him would, most of them, be eating out of his hand----the prisoner become President, in time to be admired by the whole world in an extraordinary outpouring of adulation.“ No Future Without Forgiveness (1999, Tutu, Desmond. p10.)=0=
Wow Words For Al Gore's Climate Agenda
There is little argument against Al Gore’s call for a shift from fossil-fuel based energy sources to environmentally friendly fuel alternatives to preserve the planet. His ambitious target date for the next US president to accomplish this is 10 years. But those who know Gore and his gas-guzzling life-style know better. He isn’t immaculately in synch with his climate agenda making them suspect politics or hypocrisy to be partly behind his high-brow rhetoric. As a famed leader of the environmental movement, the Nobel prize-winner Gore joins California Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the Democrats, and Liberals to promote clean sources of energy by tapping on solar, wind, hydroelectric, and hydrogen power. Surely, this is good to the environmentalists' and green planet-savers' ears. However, for practical purposes, these energy sources aren’t well-developed to meet our present requirements. It will take sometime, most likely exceeding the timeline Gore has envisioned, before sanitized technologies will dominate our energy consumption.
Many experts believe the rational approach to the energy shortage is to do everything. We require all technologies and means: oil drilling, methane gas, coal, electro-magnetic, bio-fuels, and nuclear power (in addition to what the Democrats prefer) for us to be energy sufficient at this time. Others advocate to open USA's Strategic Petroleum Reserves to ease up the price of gasoline.Drilling oil in the vast continental USA, off-shore reefs, inland Utah-Wyoming-Colorado shales, and the Alaskan National Wilderness Reserve is basically what the majority of Americans want. They know these resources have to be tapped, sooner or later. They think it's cost-saving and time-efficient to have them set up ahead, anytime we need them.
But the lawmakers, influenced by lobbyists and interest groups, have been indecisively slow. People complain why these authorities aren’t listening. There appears to be a big gap to bridge between them and what the government decision-makers plan to do.
Hampered by the fear of adding more damage to the environment, the Democrats like Gore who resisted oil exploration, are being blamed for having dilly-dallied since 10 years ago, against the proposal of Pres. George W. Bush and the Republicans. As the energy crisis comes full-blown to a level which hurts, we’re caught flat on our noses. Many believe, had we started tapping America’s rich energy reserves earlier (as carefully as we can to avoid unduly adding to the destruction of the planet,) pipes could have been in place to gush oil needed to solve our present fuel problems. But excuses are commonplace in politics. The gamut of reasons why they can’t do the drilling now is as strong as our fear of global warming---as many as the bewildering explanations why oil prices continue to rise.
Overcoming political party squabbles and setting aside the environmental debacle, we must do everything to solve the present energy crisis. While we start cleaning up our planet of pollution and avert the deleterious effects C02 emissions in the environment, we can’t escape using oil for awhile. Without perfecting the technologies of other sources of energy, we can’t focus in tackling the issue of global warming right at the core. We’ve been trying to tap energies from solar, wind, water, and nuclear to run our industries and light up our cities. When done in a large scale, this will surely rebalance the equation of energy supply and demand. Alternative sources of energy will lessen speculations in oil futures---one of main reasons which drive worldwide fuel prices sky-high.
We’ve made in-roads to replace our cars with the hybrids, the plug-ins, the bio-fuel driven, and the ethanol-powered. Yet it will take sometime before clean, efficient, and less costly hydrogen and fuel cells will be in wide use to free us from our dependence on gas. Al Gore's audacious target is fine, but can we do it? When the private entrepreneurs and government doers ride the wagon, maybe we will.=0=
Mars Exploration: Inching Its Way To Find The Ultimate Proof Of Life
Space exploration is moving ahead to prove what we’ve long suspected. After years of myth and lore on what goes on in our solar system, a quintessential find might be in the offing. We’re at the brink of finding the most compelling evidence of life in Mars which could alter the way we look at ourselves and the space around us. Not long after the Martian Phoenix Lander successfully landed on the red planet, the instruments discovered solid ice. Water, its liquid form, had been regarded as a vital ingredient for life to thrive. This week, scientists showed us new photos of the Martian landscape’s interior: brown rocky plains, meandering riverbeds, and red dunes against a dry mysterious horizon.
In astonishing detail which delighted geologists, Mars revealed more lakes, pools, towering cliffs, stone-covered plains, sandy basins, and dendritic gulleys reminiscent of the Arizona’s Grand Canyon carved over eons by what might be the work of water torrents. Though the landscape looks sere, the awesome footprints of once flowing rivers are there. It’s said, the presence of clay-like substances called phyllosilicates, suggests liquid water percolated into the stony planet’s surface during the Noachian period, about 4.6 billion to 3.8 billion years ago.
"The big surprise from these new results is how pervasive and long-lasting Mars' water was, and how diverse the wet environments were," said Scott Murchie, Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM’s) principal investigator at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland. "Water must have been creating minerals at depth to get the signatures we see…What does this mean for habitability?.... It was a benign, water-rich environment for a long period of time," said John Mustard of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, who worked on the study. ScienceNews/Reuters (07/16/08, Fox, M.)
At the heart of our excitement, old controversies of space exploration roil. People of religion are wondering if finding life away from earth contravenes the teachings of faith. Those concerned with the economy think whether space travel is a waste of money which could benefit the millions of starving people on earth. Nations mull on what use we have with the mineral-rich real estate in Mars that will benefit mankind (Photo Credits: NASA, FUBerlin, DLR, AP, Reuters.)The bottom line: We’re getting the fruits of the hardwork, ingenuity, vision, and will-power of men who want to advance the frontiers of human endeavor. With new discoveries at hand, old theories must go for better understanding of the secrets which lurks in the ink blackness of space. =0=
The Ibalon Children
Alas! James Baldwin was right about children when he said:“For nothing is fixed, forever and forever and forever; the earth is always shifting, the light is always changing, the sea does not cease to grind down rock. Generations do not cease to be born, and we are responsible to them because we are the only witnesses they have. The sea rises, the light fails, lovers cling to each other, and children cling to us. The moment we cease to hold each other, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.”
I was in New York University Langone Medical Center psyching myself up, casting away worry while I was in the hospital. That was before I got my boost of two units of PRBC’s---irradiated packed red blood cells, blood type O pos, E-, K- Fya- Fyb- Jkb- S-, and CMV-.
Like before, the nurses complained of the blood bank’s difficulty for a compatible blood type. Vicious antibodies were wrecking my red cells. Testing and matching were hard. But I was unwilling to dwell on that. Instead, I quietly stared at the cerulean reflection of the shimmering East River below, 14 stories down my window, feeling the joy of that bright sunny summer day.
Before the Benadryl and Tylenol pills hugged my senses to sleep, I was miles away, dreaming of wonderful things the world had shown me. I was able to put my illness at the back of my head. I rested comfortably at the onset of the transfusion like the guy in that very old movie, Soylent Green, except, I was there not to die, but to pursue life.
Buried in my reverie, I had my laptop in front of me. I got emails streaming after the right electrical outlet kept the machine running. The one from Gods Lanuza was particularly interesting. He sent me a very late birthday greeting which was more than compensated by a few attached beautiful pictures. My Ibalonian pal showed his latest family picture with wife Julie Surtida from Vancuover, BC. Thia, his special little girl was with a profusion of blooms. The field of spring tulips was breathtaking. Looking at them, I felt I wasn’t in no immediate need of blood at all. Their fiery red color quickly bathed my pale ailing RBC’s to life.
From Manila, Dr. Arnel V. Malaya and his wife, the former Dr. Josie Canlas, sent me the picture of their only daughter Tintin, another Ibalon angel who lives in Katipunan Road, just a stone's throw from UP Diliman Campus. In her yellow blouse, cute Tintin looked so innocent and smart like the budding little lady next door. She was a toddler, barely able to rise from her crib when Arnel and Josie showed me her picture a few years ago.
In a separate file, I looked at the picture of 7-year old Andre Mesia-Romano, my nephew who arrived from Florida with her mom Annie a week ago to visit me. I wished I had Andre’s boundless energy and sharpness of mind. When he knew my laptop’s audio wasn’t working well, he handily fixed it so he could show me his favorite videos. The smart little boy from Jacksonville’s Trinity Grade School reminded me of Garrison Keillor’s loving thought about children: “Nothing you do for children is ever wasted. They seem not to notice us, hovering, averting our eyes, and they seldom offer thanks, but what we do for them is never wasted.”
Close by in Long Island, New York there was this picture of Bingbing Badiola's little Brandon with loving dad Dave. I remembered Mommy Franz Badiola and her Ibalon brood in a recent reunion: Annelee Badiola-Lojo, Adolfo (Totoy) Badiola, Monette Septimo-Badiola etc.---and their families.Then, I dug into the calmly family picture of Dr. Yasmin Paje in Canada (see top photo.) One of my favorite Ibalon dames, Min exuded her grace and maternal instinct to the hilt---far more than the mothering and deanship she showed us when we were in UP. Her three smart children, including only boy Alfonso, had grown so fast under the care of Poppa Joel Banzon, the doting father of the brood.
All the photos made me impervious against fear and doubt. I went home strong and energized after the procedure. It was good I had that small cache of pictures which I wanted to show you in this wall. I recalled them all---those who continued to touch and brighten the way for UP Ibalon’s next generation. =0=
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