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MABUHAY PRRD!

Friday, December 31, 2010

Allow God to give you His new life!

Verse: Song of Solomon 2:11-12

For, behold, the winter is past! The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds has come!

- It is time to begin to expect something new from God.
- The winter season is past.
- It is time for new life, new hopes and new dreams.
- Allow God to give you His new life!


PRAYER: Lord, thank You that the winter season is over in my life. I believe You for wonderful things. Amen.

Enjoy your day.


Thursday, December 30, 2010

Something Strange is Happening

All things in their own good time

FROM A DISTANCE By Carmen N. Pedrosa (The Philippine Star) Updated December 26, 2010 12:00 AM

Perhaps if the Askals had won the game against the Indonesians it would have been a nice Christmas gift to all Filipinos. But it would also have ended the story of the spectacular rise of a sport they had once excelled in but abandoned. That story still has to unfold.

Constitutional reform warriors of the CORRECT Movement, a group of young Filipinos suggest that the surge of football may not be all that coincidental but comes with a growing desire of Filipinos to shift to parliamentary government. Apart from other reasons, Filipinos learned football and the parliamentary governance from the Spaniards.

Maybe it is time to revisit the Spanish colonial era and find an explanation for this unexpected revival of football as the country’s national sport.

Spain’s colonial period no doubt had its abuses and was bound to fail. But there were other things going on at the same time. There were benefits we have not sufficiently acknowledged. For example, I was surprised to know that the legendary footballer Paulino Alcantara (with an unmatched record of 357 goals in 357 games) was born in Iloilo of a Filipino mother. How many know that the 13th Prime Minister of Spain Marcelo Azcarraga Palmero was part Filipino whose mother was a mestiza from Albay and his father a bookshop owner at the Escolta. These point to a need to revisit Spain’s influence on the country and how it shaped the nation. That does for sport as well as its system of government.

* * *

We still do not know just how the Askals story will unfold. A number of the players are also of mixed parentage hence the name askals – mongrels. But so far the omens have been good. For example, Simon McMenemy, the British coach who led the team very nearly did not accept the job. He was not sure that a team at the bottom of the heap, would be worth the trouble. But today, his opinion of the team has changed.

He is not fazed that they did not win the finals. The Philippine team moved to a respectable performance in football in Southeast Asia that it had not known for years. From the bottom to the Final Four of the 2010 Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup means the team has great potential. As he said the team might not have won the finals but it won respect.

“There were a hundred and one things telling me that I shouldn’t do it, but (I thought) when do you get the opportunity to coach a country like this… a sleeping giant that if it was to awake, it can really do some damage,” said the 33-year-old McMenemy, who became the youngest national coach in the world after taking the job. It was their spirit and determination that impressed him.

“So the opportunity to be in this situation really prompted me to take the job.”

* * *

When the Wikileaks scandal first broke out, I was told by friends they received text going around that former President Arroyo would be the subject of cables to expose how much money she made during her government.

I thought that was ingenious – who would be sending cables about President Arroyo and who would cable what to whom?

The machination to oust her was not a secret. There was a concerted assault to make her a weak president, weak enough so the people themselves would rise to oust her government. But she fought back.

More likely the cables will say that the attacks on her by Opposition elements and external forces were not succeeding and that they should be stepped up because she was a hard nut to crack. When President Bush met her on the side of an APEC conference he joked that he had heard she was difficult to oust. As far as I know the Manila-Washington cables have not been released yet. But cables so far released show that both “China, US perceive GMA as good leader.”

These impressions were contained in leaked cables between China and the United States. The exchange revealed that both countries, often at odds with each other about the Philippine government, agreed on this point: Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo “is a good leader because she had shown being in control.”

The leaked cable was dated March 5, 2007. According to online whistle-blower WikiLeaks the diplomatic cable was about “Progress in the Philippines, but More Needed”. The cable discussion between Eric John, then US deputy assistant secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP), and two senior Chinese diplomats Hu Zhengyue, then China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs director general for Asian Affairs covered Southeast Asia in general.

I think that is the more interesting aspect of the leaked cables. There is a mutual interest on the part of the competing powers in seeing a stable Philippines.

DAS John agreed with the Chinese officials that President Arroyo has stabilized Philippine leadership and had enacted strong fiscal and economic policies. But the two countries differed on priorities.

The US wanted more transparency in government as the key to its progress while China considered poverty as the main problem.

In a recent interview with some Chinese diplomats with this column they described US-Chinese relations as a “strategic partnership.”

The Chinese were more concerned with their investments to develop the agricultural system and transportation infrastructure. To them, poverty was the key challenge and that dealing with corruption only comes second.

I think the same debate is taking place in wider Philippine society as well but the coverage in oligarch-owned media has made it impossible to achieve a more coherent strategy for the country.

The best example of this incoherence is the national broadband network (NBN) project involving China’s ZTE Corp. and a railway system. The accusations of perceived corruption should have been confronted and dealt with but the projects should not have been put on the back burner. These would have immediately benefited the country’s development program. Had it been implemented asap.

Something could have been worked out within the broad background of “strategic cooperation.” But it may be that there are other considerations other than “strategic partnership” between China and the US as far as the Philippines is concerned. With the Arroyo government under siege throughout her term, the Philippines could not assert policy decisions to maneuver within the strategic cooperation. We can only speculate how we might have done better if we had the independence other countries in the region had. But instead it became a no-win situation.

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About the Author

Carmen Navarro-Pedrosa

Carmen Navarro-Pedrosa has written 13 stories on this site.

Journalist. Book Author.


58 Comments on “Something Strange is Happening”

  • Hyden Toro wrote on 26 December, 2010, 15:17

    I believe that, if we look at our past.We will remember, our greatness, as people. We don’t have to admire our Colonizers. We have to look at the accomplishments of the ancient Filipinos; who built the Banawe Rice Terraces. Spain established the: oligarcy-military-clergy ruling triad in our country. We still have it. Spanish rulers deluded the Filipinos; with a sprinkling of Roman Catholic Religion. Same way as our politician oligarchs are doing now.

    I don’t believe in attaching ourselves to countries…we must think on our own. Solve our own problems. Set our own destinies. Fire easily our own leaders, who cannot deliver their promises. From there; we can tell ourselves: the old things have passed…Free at last!!! Thanks God Almighty…We are Free at last!!!

    [Reply]

    Weizz Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 6:34 pm

    One way to get that is to do more research on problems facing our country. God is supposed to symbolize our path to progress, yet the current situation is quite the opposite.

    I’ll soon be an engineer, and I think I will do some research since I have been promised research funding by a company. Haha. Any suggestions? I have my own list, but inputs are welcome.

    My future aim though is something in the line of space tech or robots.

    [Reply]

    Hyden Toro Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 12:07 pm

    @
    You may be interested in Genetic Engineering. Scientific Field dealing with Human DNA and Genomes. Find some ways to infuse good DNAs into our Politicians. To make them think right. Maybe in Theoretical Physics Field, also. Delve deeply into the Unified Field Theory of Albert Einstein. Conduct an experiment on his Time-Space theory. To make the Batasan Pambansa and Malacanang Palace be sent to other Planets. So, that these politicians will not do any more harm on us…Noynoy Aquino can be a good priority…

    [Reply]

    Weizz Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 5:00 pm

    @

    I think you read my mind Hyden. Genetics is a fave subject of mine and genetics engineering would have been a choice subject if Pinas’ have better equipment. Have been reading up on the mysteries of DNA since HS. One of the interesting thing I read was that the DNA contains something needed for the next level of evolution. The one that will take humanity to the next dimension, so to speak.

    One of the things that kept popping in my mind is the exterior look of a spaceship. What better way to send them to other planets than this one. Haha.

    I might need lotsa power to conduct time-space experiments. But your suggestion duly noted! Tnx.

    Yalkish Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 10:57 pm

    Toro: The best way to not get attached to one country is to make friends with many countries. Instead of looking only at the USA, augment that with befriending the different countries of Europe, Japan, China, India, Singapore, etc. That way, one country cannot impose one singular agenda and instead, you can tell that country with an agenda: “We will take in whatever you propose that meets our requirements, and reject those which don’t.”

    [Reply]

    Hyden Toro Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 12:23 pm

    @ Yalkish
    Well said, and well thought. Filipinos are now beginning to think. …

    [Reply]

    ChinoF

    ChinoF Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 1:19 am

    We should stop seeing our former colonizers as our enemies, and see them what they should be: partners in growth. Yalkish has it right.

    [Reply]

    kickapoo Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 8:17 am

    Right on.

    There should be a nationwide social conscious effort to declare “what” exactly is a Filipino. Do it by phase:

    1. Define our nation – This involves laying out all of our descendants and the different governments used during their time.

    2. Define our culture – Lets admit it, we were never original. So is Japan. This means we should openly declare which cultural element we want other countries to associate with us. Jeepneys? heck no!

    3. Define the people – There is no such thing as pure Filipino race during pre-hispanic times. Pinoys are mongrels/hybrids. If destiny exists, then our country is destined to be inhabited by mongrels/hybrids. Check out the Philippine map, looks like an askal sitting down.

    I said “nationwide social conscious effort” because I desire the whole populace to be informed of these. So we all know WHO we are, WHERE we came from and HOW can we get out of this rut we are in.

    If each and every CITIZEN knows these, I believe we will all have a sense of cohesiveness. A notion of being responsible. And a notion of having self-importance, which helps encourage individual contributions to the society…

    Ang problema kahit ung books ng Filipino students, from Primary to Tertiary level, flawed. And nobody gives a damn. Except for Mr. Antonio Calipjo Go, who eventually gave up his crusade against “sick books”. His story…

    :|

    [Reply]

    Hyden Toro Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 12:27 pm

    @ F
    I’m very glad to see this self-analysis developments in the new Filipino generation…the internet blog comments are now beginning to sink into their subconscious minds…

    [Reply]

  • Subliminal Messenger wrote on 26 December, 2010, 16:48

    I’ll be darned! Renato Pacifico was very correct after all even before the release of diplomatic cable in Wikileaks. Either Renato Pacifico is in the know, or, work for CIA or maybe he has naturally analytical mind or maybe he is the son of Nostradamus. Renato Pacifico has boringly argued that Pandak is like an impacted molar difficult to extricate. Pandak’s crime family may be involved in ZTE but never in the court of law because of lack of evidence.
    Tontong-Gago foreign-educated, ivy-school graduate Joey de Venenta should be hanged for pagarparings without evidence. So are the idiot peryodistas who publicationizing Venenta’s tsismis. It could not have been a tsismis if de Venenta gathered evidences before running to idiot peryodistas. NOW WHAT? We are going in circles going down to “he said / she said”!

    [Reply]

    Hyden Toro Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 12:33 pm

    Michael de Nostradamus wrote his Prophecies in Quatrain Poetry….Renato Pacifico looks like his writing were from the deciphered Crop Circle Messages, left off by UFO Extra Terrestrials…maybe he is a companion of the exiled Ulong Pare, from the Constellation “Sirius”…

    [Reply]

  • Subliminal Messenger wrote on 26 December, 2010, 16:54

    All of this fiasco on ZTE and Pandak’s inglurous basterds are beyond of the reach of the law because idiot peryodistas are too clueless and oblivious in due process of law. That is why Ampatuan should be released to unleash his fangs on idiot peryodistas. Lookit, let me bore you of Renato Pacifico’s pagarparings. ZTE is one of them. Nicole Kidman’s outing including publicazation of her photo and affidavit ( I do not need to elaborate about the outing because I assume everyone here knows that rape victim should not be ousted … errr … outed ). Another glaring idiocy of Philippine idiocy of peryodistas was Ces Drilon kidnapping news blackout afraiding that Abu Sayaf, who loves publicity even envite idiot peryodistas of his hand-crafted beheading masterpieces, might get angry over publicity. HA!HA!HA!HA! Look, our peryodistas are just dumbing Philiphifinos. They are sooo stupid that it has become Renato Pacifico’s entertainment and therapy. There are many more. I hope Renato Pacifico would surface so he’d give his pieces of his mind or what is left of his mind. HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!

    [Reply]

  • Subliminal Messenger wrote on 26 December, 2010, 16:58

    Ooops, another inglorious event was broadcaster Failon’s wife’s demise. Failon, with all his great political analysis, ordered his houseslaves to clean the bathroom … and listen to this … HA!HA!HA! … listen to this … HA!HA1HA! He ordered his houseslaves to put back the gun where it was found after the bathroom was wiped clean of crime. Who were these houseslaves is beyond understanding because when NBI, FBI, CIA, NSA came there were no traces of blood and brain cells! Either these houseslaves were CIA trained as biohazard specialists. In CIA parlance, they are technically called “CLEANERS”!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA! And Failon is scottfree never charged of obstruction of justice and idiot peryodistas are soooooo silent despite their high critical thinking and political analysis!!!! MABOBO ANG MGA PILIFINOS K!!!!! BINOBOBO SA MGA IDIOT PERYODISTAS!!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA!HA! GALING LANG SA ENGLISCHTZES!!!! They can now when the verb doesn’t agree with the subject and conjunctions not joining but simple factual analysis they fail and fail miserably.!!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA!HA!

    [Reply]

    Weizz Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 6:18 pm

    Since grammatical errors are much easier to correct than logical errors? haha

    [Reply]

    Renato Pacifico Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 8:54 pm

    Wright on! Idiot peryodistas are known to correct grammatical errors not correct factual and logical errors!!! Wright on !

    [Reply]

  • Subliminal Messenger wrote on 26 December, 2010, 17:00

    And on Ampatuan Massacre … IT WAS A TOTAL “F” ucked up reporting. I just cannot understand why idiot peryodistas who first reported and alleged that it was the Ampatuans even before investigation started were not called to the stand. HAAAAY NAKUUUU!!!!! FILIPINOS ARE DOOOMED!!!!! Filipinos need to outsource journalism to Vietnam or Timbuk2 so Filipinos can learn. Definitely not from idiot peryodistas.

    [Reply]

    Feckler Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

    Subliminal Messenger = Renato Pacifico

    SAME GRAVATAR!!!

    [Reply]

  • miriam quiamco
    miriam quiamco wrote on 26 December, 2010, 19:44

    I agree with this opinion Miss Pedrosa. We truly a hypocritical culture and media practitioners are not of any help to our ignorant populace. Development is a single-minded pursuit, you don’t let culture of corruption get in the way. Japan is corrupt but it was able to develop precisely because despite its pervasive political corruption, its parliamentary system of government implemented development projects unhindered by hysterical media.

    Its state-owned media promoted and explained to the people government policies and how they could benefit them in the long run even if in the short run, there was no visible improvement on people’s lives. It was enough that the economy was growing, and they wanted to keep the growth coming, just like under Arroyo, the economy was growing because of massive infrastructure projects, economic fundamentals were being put in place by her administration, but the moralizing among us, and especially those whose oligarchical interests that were threatened could not bear the single-mindedness with which Arroyo pursued economic growth for the country. Now we are doomed with a joker of a president, I cringe under my skin every time I think we elected an idiot to the presidency. At least Estrada has social skills to be able to appoint competent advisers, not like the current one who only appoints those in his barkada circle cause he is too socially awkward to deal with new people who may bring in truly competent leadership in government.

    [Reply]

    Renato Pacifico Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 9:00 pm

    HA!HA!HA!HA! Idiot peryodistas cater to degenerate, low-IQ 3rdworld Asian trash, THE FILIPINOS!!! HA!HA!HA! If only idiot peryodistas are outsourced to Burma or Cambodia that is the only time Filipinos will be educated thru the media. IF IT WERE NOT FOR INTERNET, I WOULD NOT HAVE ACCESS TO FOREIGN MEDIA OUTLETS. FOREIGN MEDIA OUTLETS EDUCATED ME. THEIR STREAMING TV SHOWS EDUCATED ME LIKE CSI:MIAMI, CSI:NYC !!!! Didn’t learn from Adarna or WoWoWieee or TFC or Idiot peryodistas!!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA! IDIOT PERYODISTAS PRACTICE SELF-CENSORSHIP!!!!! AND SELF-IDIOTING!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA! Problem with Idiot Peryodistas is they cannot dig what I am talking about NOT UNTIL THEY GO TO AMERICA!!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA! Of course, they’d get employed with NYTimes, Chicago Tribune and USA Today as janitors and newspaperboys!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA!

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 9:09 pm

    daaaaang! … santa doktora ate glo phd was/is god’d anointed… she doe not need anybody to tell her jacksheet!… all her children and relatives occupy gobmint posisyon… per guinness world’s record >>> da arroyos are/were the only familia in any govt who have the most magnanakaws serving the gobyerno ( in this case, da flip gung gongs)!… then, followed by a retarded down syndrome prez gung gong… hay, naku, flips, where is your HUTAK????

    [Reply]

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 11:17 pm

    But gloria did not appoint any family member in her cabinet or put them in key positions of power or did she, her sons were elected officials, right?

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 12:49 pm

    daaaang!… @ q: we’re talking flipland here… elected, appointed or anointed, there’s no difference… political familia/clans control and represent their own turf… from baranggay tanod, to mayors, to gobernadores, to representantes, to senatong… all the way to presidente de gung gong… (me, calling garci >>> hello, garci, i need ‘sang tambaks na milyong botos from bangsamorons (silent N)… if you do that, my secdef will send you the artillery, ammos, etc… i’ll include a backhoe)

  • MikeZ wrote on 26 December, 2010, 20:22

    Speaking of Erap here’s an interesting news that you may or may not heard

    DIVINE WRATH FOR LECHON CELEBRATION AT ABUBAKAR

    COTABATO CITY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2007 (STAR)

    ‘Divine wrath’ for lechon celebration at Abubakar – For eating pork on Muslim hallowed ground, ousted President Joseph Estrada got his just desserts, as Moro clerics believe.

    And that’s not the end of it.

    For most Moro preachers, Estrada’s conviction was just part of the murkah (divine wrath) he would suffer for feasting on roasted pork inside an Arabic school, or Madrasah, to celebrate the fall of a rebel bastion seven years ago.

    Then President Estrada and some members of his Cabinet also brought in three truckloads of beer to the supposedly sacred ground for Muslims. As beer was passed around to soldiers, some of them were inside a nearby mosque, gorging on lechon with their muddy combat boots on.

    Camp Abubakar, a stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), fell on July 10, 2000 during Estrada’s all-out war against the separatist rebels. It is located at the tri-boundaries of Shariff Kabunsuan’s neighboring Matanog, Buldon and Barira towns, and was established in the early 1980s by the MILF’s founder, the Egyptian-trained Ustadz Hashim Salamat.

    The camp was the front’s showcase for a puritan Islamic community.

    “It was a very serious offense and we’re happy with his conviction. He was booted out of power just months after the fall of Camp Abubakar,” said a Maguindanaon ustadz (preacher).

    The ustadz, who asked not to be identified, said the conviction of Estrada should serve as a warning to government officials not to vilify Islam and to respect worship sites, regardless of whether these are owned by Muslims or Christians.

    For Ustadz Abdullah Tandikan, a Maranaw, what was painful for Moro communities was that Estrada never bothered to apologize for bringing lechon inside a Madrasah, a day after soldiers hoisted nearby a Philippine flag following three weeks of air, artillery and ground offensives.

    A missionary trained in Peshawar, Pakistan agreed.

    “Allah is very merciful and kind to those who are repentant, but all these years, he (Estrada) did not bother to tell the country’s Muslim community he was sorry for having desecrated a religious site in Mindanao. His conviction for plunder by the Sandiganbayan was somehow a vindication for us,” said Alim Kaiser Sambutuan.

    In a random survey, eight out of ten Muslim preachers agreed that murkah indeed fell on Estrada and his conviction was just part of the continuing punishment for his military adventurism in the south in 2000 that resulted in the deaths of hundreds of soldiers and MILF rebels.

    MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu described as “fair” the conviction of Estrada.

    “He was given all the chance to put up a good defense during his prosecution,” Kabalu told reporters in Cotabato City via text message.

    Kabalu said the MILF is aware that during his presidency, Estrada channeled huge amounts of kickbacks from his illegal gambling rackets to the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation.

    Kabalu said only few Moro youths have benefited from the projects of this foundation.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 26th, 2010 at 9:16 pm

    daaaang!… if a devout katolickdics ate pork in bangsamorons (silent N) turf, it’s blasphemy… islamic gung gongs are up in arms… hoy mga islamic gung gong muklos, y’all doing all kinds of muklo crimes in quiapo… it’s black nazarene’s turf…. devout katolicks don’t waste a breath about it… hay naku, islamic gung gongs! go blow yourselves in malakanyang!!!!

    [Reply]

  • Renato Pacifico wrote on 26 December, 2010, 21:03

    HA!HA!HA! I’ve been hounding plenty of idiot peryodistas. I asked them, “IS IT POSSIBLE FOR ERAP, IN HIS 1.5 YEARS IN MALACANANG, to receive that much commission from Jueteng?” I gave them the calculations until now they are still scratching their head. SEE, CALCULATION IS MATH BASED. MATH IS BASED ON LOGIC. LOGIC ESCAPES IDIOT PERYODISTAS. Sure they do know when the verb doesn’t agree with the subject and the plural is not singular to a verb in parallellogram of right angle where conjoining twins are not joined after all. DO I MAKE SENSE ON MY LAST SENTENCE? It must make sense because Idiot peryodistas simply do not make sense BUT THEY DO WRITE GOOT ENGLSICHTZES!!!! HA!@!HA!HA!

    [Reply]

    Feckler Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

    Subliminal Messenger = Renato Pacifico
    SAME GRAVATAR!!!

    [Reply]

  • miriam quiamco
    Miriam Quiamco wrote on 27 December, 2010, 19:07

    I beg to disagree daang, members of the president’s cabinet are crucial for development, because they see the bigger picture and could steer the direction of the country with proper policies. Gloria, despite the hysterical criticisms leveled against her surrounded herself with like-minded brilliant advisers. The finance minister Teves for example even got an award for his financial acumen, when she left office, this biggest thief that the media have proclaimed her to be, left the country with incredible foreign reserves which make the country eligible for more foreign credit, unlike the historical blight of the country, the Marcoses.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 8:49 pm

    daaaaaang!… i’m with you on that >>> members of the prez cabinet are crucial for development… were/are santa doktora ate glo phd’s leeches considered as such? she turned flipland into an “enchanted kingdom”… her minions enriched themselves… her program >>> the “supermaid” prostituted flips around the globe… instead of inviting foreign direct investment (fdi) in the country, she globetrotted offering flips as modern day slaves in the guise of “jobs sa abroad”… flipland’s premier export: ofw/slaves… take a stroll in the mideast… visit flipland consulates and see for yourself… likewise, right in your backyard, japayukis abound… it’s not a job to be proud of… thousands of flip sexy gurlz “work” as “entertainers” in akasuka… tokyo… riponggi… yokohama prefecture… the foreign reserves aka remittances is not a good measure of fiscal responsibility…

    [Reply]

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 9:04 pm

    You disagree with her policies, but they worked given the limitations facing the country. The export of Filipino labor is a policy started by Marcos, but exploited to the hilt by Gloria to take advantage of globalization. Unfortunately, this is our biggest strength in terms of export, cruel as it may sound, exporting labor to everywhere in the globe made sense at a time when globalization got full swing. An industrial policy would have been welcomed, but with a bankrupt economy after Erap, Gloria rightly saw our strongest advantage in call center business opportunities and in the export of labor. This does not look good for Filipinos abroad, but it has helped the economy. Looking good is not what we want, we want to grow the economy and then build a stronger foundation for a more solid economic growth. Gloria was Machiavellian and she achieved a lot for the country, in comparison to her predecessors, you have to give her credit for that.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 10:45 pm

    daaang!… i don’t disagree with her policies or any admin policies… policies are “laws”… it’s all good if implemented…. i like when laws are enacted… i do not agree on how she or any traposakals implement the law… or did she/they implement/enforce a law? as far as i know, nobody went to jail for lawbreaking… i know that whistleblowers were killed…. and the govt coffer is empty… puro IOU/bond statements… probe this, probe that… hay naku, puro kayo probe na lintek…

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 9:10 pm

    And by the way Gloria ended the entertainment visa issuance for Japan numbering to the thousands during her term. Now the Japanese and Philippine governments have worked out an agreement to allow Filipinos to come as nurses, caregivers and other professionals as opposed to just welcoming entertainers. Now that is what I call guts, she saw how degrading the jobs of Filipina entertainers are in Japan firsthand, a friend had told me, that when she visited with her husband, she requested to be taken one bar in Gion where Filipina entertainers work. As a feminist, this must have had an imprint on her mind, and thus, her untiring efforts to end the entertainment visa system for Filipinos working in Japan. There was a lot of opposition to this policy, but she stuck to her guns, she is truly an admirable woman.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 10:36 pm

    daaaang!… don’t be fooled by semantics… traposakals change the new meaning of the word “entertainer visas” to caregivers, doctored nurses, nursed doctors… who are you trying to impress?… throngs of young girls leave flipland under caregiver’s visa to end up in tokyo’s red light district…

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 12:59 am

    daang, a caregiver’s visa is not allowed to work in the red light district in Japan, I know this for sure, we have worked with immigration here and by the way why would caregivers and nurses care to work in bars when they most certainly don’t have the charms needed for the “mizushobai” job, the image of Filipinas has actually improved in recent years because of this, not that I particularly care about image-making.

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 8:10 am

    daaaang!… @ mirriam q: the sexy gurlz who littered the whorehouses in japan/hong kong/taiwan/etchastera etc come from ___________ under __________ visa… i speak to sexy gurlz in tangalog (‘coz i’m handicapped in other dialects)… we had a good time… $30/bottle of cheap wine + tip… and it’s not in a hospice or in hospitals or in nursing homes… when will flips see reality???

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 9:16 pm

    Foreign reserves are a very good measure of fiscal responsibility because as a developing country, we need to import capital goods for development projects. Without good fiscal reserves, no financial institution abroad will ever trust us. I know you wish we were like China, a communist country that accumulated enough wealth, it does not have to borrow from financial institutions to finance its development agenda, but the fact is, we are not China and even Russia had had to borrow from international regional banks to prop up its once weakened economy. Now of course Russia is expanding its economy because of its natural resources. Each country has a story to tell, ours unfortunately is one that has promise but is always getting highjacked by a democratic system of government that has not served us well as a people. Gloria was not perfect, but in comparison to her predecessors, she was a leader who took advantage of opportunities for the country to get on the path of economic development. She achieved quite a lot for the country, but she also failed miserably on many counts of good governance, but with the current leadership, we are doomed.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 10:58 pm

    daaaang!… flipland coffer is empty… ‘sang tambaks na million ofw remittance in the billion $$$ mark every quarter poured in to make flipland eco afloat… what happened to it?… grants from international community flood flipland govt… where are they?… flipland float samurai bonds and debentures to accumulate capital for intrastructure development… where are they? … taxes are/were (supposed to be) levied to individuals/corporations? is it happening? i pay taxes… i got a receipt… but, who keeps the cash?… oh i see, gen garcia and famila pusakals need the million $$$ to support their habit in ‘merka… and how many gen garcia are there???… hay naku, time to plant kamote with my ‘sang tambak na fertilizer $$$ courtesy of ate glo…

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 27th, 2010 at 11:04 pm

    ooopsie… pahabol… an arroyo kid own real estate in ‘merka’s millionaire row… wow! i like his high paying govt job… magkano ba ang sweldo ng senador?… alam ko, flip prez salary is only my per diem on a biznez trip… (naks ha, yabang ooopsie yaman ano?)

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 12:55 am

    Why do you suppose that if an arroyo owns a million dollar home in America which is not that strange considering the economy of California that it is from stolen money. Friends of mine who were scholars in Japan were able to grow their money on investments on bonds, why shouldn’t the Arroyos do it? Come on daaaang, the media should focus on development goals and not thrive on chismis, an aging English teacher in Japan owns a million dollar home in Berkeley, and let me tell you he does not belong to the moneyed class. Why, our politicians do have the right to own million dollar homes abroad so, why not, so long as they are not stolen money and none of the allegations leveled against the Arroyos have been proven true.

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 7:59 am

    daaaang!… flipland is in the sump… barely making it…. flip traposakals continue to steal from the govt and “invest” in real estate in foreign lands… come on prof mirriam q, you should be alert on the doings of flip magnanakaws and not deal with it lightly… take a sampling of their “investments” and analyze how, where, and what investment portfolio they are carrying… “none of the allegations leveled against the arroyos have been proven true…” how many whistleblowers were/are gunned down?… 99% of supremo abugagos/abugago supremos owed allegiance to santa doctora ate glo…. ditto with the bottle hardened mistahs/pmaers… go figure…

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 8:25 am

    pahabol ulit… japan, russia, china, india, etc. are industrial, military and financial powerhouses…. they are civilized, wealthy, and industrialized economy… do not compare flipland to them… because, it’s embarrasing…. laughable at best…

  • ulong pare
    ulong pare wrote on 27 December, 2010, 22:29

    daaaaang! santa doktora ate glo phd is a product of nakaw, i.e. laki sa nakaw ooopsie layaw just like the rest of the traposakals… she’s born and molded into one…. les’t revisit flipland hist 101: the macapagal clan had the opportunity to lead the country… but rather took that opportunity to enrich themselves at flips’ expense… when unc sammy gave the rein to flips, the macapagals were ritght in the forefront… we all knew what happened… NOTHING!…flipland was suspended in kagung gungan plane… santa doktora ate glo’s been in politics for decades…there’s nothing worth mentioning about her accomplishment… in flipland, political clans strengthened their foothold via the despicable kumpadre/kumadre/kamag-anak connections under padre damaso’s spiritual guidance… all personal agenda… nothing about flipland’s welfare… ay sus ginoo… break muna… let’s head out for a breakrfast PREYer at shang-ri la makati…

    [Reply]

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 2:07 am

    I don’t know what you are talking about, it is an irrefutable fact that under Gloria, the Philippines experienced sustained economic growth for the first time ever in its history, she must have done something right which her predecessors did not do. Forget about breakfast in Makati, why, politicians in Japan do the same thing, a luxurious lifestyle comes with power, same with the Communists in China and everywhere. This hotdog for lunch posturing is not going to take us anywhere comfy in the 21st century. We want substance more than form. . .

    [Reply]

    The Lazzo Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 6:48 am

    I actually didn’t approve of her cha-cha-ing (long before I came to this site, mind) but I think I understood why she kept insisting on it. It’s that kind of move that not only provides a barometer of the opposition, but keeps them busy on it while she kept doing what she did.

    [Reply]

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 7:48 am

    daaaaang!… @ mirriam q: i don’t know what you’re talking about… while the rest of the asian countries showed imrovement in their eco posture gauge by international investment watchdogs and financial analysts, flipland remains at the bottom of the totem pole… flipland is on the top 5 list of most corrupt, inhospitable to biznez…. santa ate glo need to curtail her breakkfast preyers at shang-ri la/kodakan and focus on making the enchanted kingdom enchanting…

    [Reply]

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 8:37 am

    daang, Indonesia ranks more corrupt than the Philippines but it is registering high in the improvement list of East Asian economies. foreign investment firms have ranked the Philippines high as one of the promising economies in East Asia, google please. . . get over her breakfast at shangrila, she is the best president we have had so far in our history, read up on our economic history.

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 8:43 am

    daang, I guess you know something I don’t know, whistleblowers gunned down, as far as I know Devenicia is still alive . . .

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:31 am

    daaaang!… “promising” na naman…. i heard that “promise” since i was in diapers during the d. macapagal presidency… asian business week mags, financial times, and industry report paint a different shade of flipland… de venenta is a well connected in the santa doktora ate glo’s circle… if you haven’t heard about murders, you’re right… i knew something you don’t want to acknowledge…

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:43 am

    daaaang!… if you are talking about renaming roads, bridges, airports, etchastera, etc as the best evidence of eco history, then, you’re right… distributing packages (with her face splattered on it) during calamities was/is tacky… that’s ego gone wacko…

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:58 am

    daang, the jueteng whistleblowers were gunned down . . . and you reckon Gloria got them killed?

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 10:01 am

    In our barrio, not only Gloria’s face is splattered on concrete bridges and road constructions, but also those of the mayor, the congressman and what not. Isn’t this standard practice in the country? I will be surprised of Aquino will not practice the same. . .

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 10:49 am

    … daaaang!… we all know what’s wrong with flipland >>> the political clans/familias… flips need to wake up and reverse the trend… they have to step up to the plate, other wise, same-o same-o… prof mirriam q, ‘sang tambaks na whistleblowers were gunned down… exhibit 1: the ferti scam murders… they did not die of natural causes… a political cause killed them, a natural phenom in flipland… the aquinos are warlords/npa sympathizers in central luzon… it’s not a secret… but flips ignore the obvious… flips are gung gongs, it’s a fact….

    miriam quiamco

    Miriam Quiamco Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 6:47 pm

    I think the problem with these unsolved killings is that Gloria focused mostly on her economic agenda and neglected lawlessness in the country. She herself was hostage to a restive military and that was why she appointed ex-generals in her cabinet. We are a dysfunctional nation that is for sure, but Gloria did her best, worked hard to strengthen the economy, with more growth and enlightened policies like population control, we would have been able to stem some of the lawlessness. Jueteng should be legalized so that politicians and military, along with police would stop milking the jueteng lords and there would be no need to hire gunmen to silence whistle-blowers. Jueteng and uncontrolled population growth are two pets of the Catholic church’s hypocrisy. I think it is simply preposterous to suggest Gloria hired gunmen to silence those whistle-blowers.

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:20 pm

    daaaang!…. whoever is/was in power is ultimately responsible…NO IFs and/or BUTs… when an anomaly occurs in your watch, you’re IT!… a kotong of ferti/zte/mrt/etc of that magnitude had to be swept under the rug… who ever is/was in the way shall perish… the ampatuans. santa doktora ate glo phd’s people, committed atrocities… meron bang nangyari??? the problem with you all is that you have stupid excuses for every crime committed… hay naku… ‘sang tambaks ang high level crimes during her tenure, none was solved… what kind of admin is/was that… ditto with the current magnanakaws… ay sus ginoo, flips, puro kayo mga gung gongs! estupidos… don’t get me wrong… i like a flip way of thinking… sarap utuin…

    ulong pare

    ulong pare Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:28 pm

    oooopsie…. pahabol… then you all have the audacity to complain about the flipland’s present stuation and the type of magananakaws you all are trying to protect… tapos, reklamo pa kayong “justice delayed, justice tangengot”… buti nga sa inyo… go ahead and wallow in the cesspool… you’re kind of life… bwi hi hi hi hi hi…

    Feckler Reply:
    December 28th, 2010 at 9:55 pm

    Ulo ikaw tangengot

  • ulong pare
    ulong pare wrote on 27 December, 2010, 23:25

    daaang! the new year is fast approaching… under down syndrome gung gong prez, flipland will soar to great heights… i’m dizzy already just thinking about it…

    [Reply]

  • The Lazzo wrote on 28 December, 2010, 6:34

    Truth be told, I’m still not convinced that the Azkals’ supposed Cinderella Run last month was really anything more than just getting lucky.

    The other teams like Vietnam lost because they figured they could just put out their worst players against what they thought would be cut-and-shut victories. Note how the Azkals could only hold Myanmar to a draw when Myanmar lost 7-1 to Vietnam.

    In any event, this’ll all be forgotten come Pacquiao vs. Mosley and the new PBA or UAAP season. And it’ll really take an actual tournament victory (or qualification to something they’re not automatically entered into because they’re in that region) to convince me that the Azkals didn’t just get lucky.

    [Reply]

  • ulong pare
    ulong pare wrote on 28 December, 2010, 21:35

    daaaang!… in flipland, when you got caught red handed, all you have to say/declare is that “I’M NOT GUILTY, I SWEAR TO GOD”… flips would say, “allah eh, di abswelto… di naman pala guilty eh”… tapos ang kaso… allah eh, diretso ang nakaw, then bakasyones grande in las vegas…

    [Reply]