Overkill Unlimited

Second class language?

2007-07-31T23:56:00.000+08:00

I was reading a friend’s blog last week where she made quite an interesting point about the Visayan language: It is a language spoken by a great majority in the country, yet it has become relegated to a sort of second-class tongue.

I’ve stressed in previous columns that the Visayan language or Binisaya is, as languages go, more evolved than most major languages in existence, according to language scholars. The fact that Binisaya is a couple of hundred words larger than, say, Tagalog or English is proof enough of its age and flexibility (just the other day, my barkada was wracking our brains trying to translate the Visayan word “hata” to English. Finding no direct translation, the closest we got was “feint,” though we had to note that to feint is more of a movement meant to mislead or to deceive, while hata is a movement more related to indecisiveness rather than deception).

Some would argue that there is no such thing as a “superior” language. I’d actually tend to agree, since the idea of a language is to communicate ideas. Though one has to admit that certain languages make the transfer of ideas easier and faster than other languages. However, for the transfer of ideas to work, one particular language has to be common between two or more people. So, logically, if a language is spoken by more people, then more people can share ideas, and an idea can spread faster. Right?

Well then, here’s the premise in the Philippines: Tagalog is taught in school. English is taught in school. But when it comes to sheer population, there are more natural Visayan speakers in the country than there are natural Tagalog speakers or English speakers.

So then why, oh why, isn’t Visayan – one of the most beautiful, most evolved, most ancient, and most widely spoken languages in the Philippines – NOT taught in school?

In fact, over the past few decades, Visayan has, unfortunately, been given a stigma or sorts as something inferior. Even some of us Visayan natives refer to something as “Bisaya kaayo” to derogate something. In fact, in many schools, speaking Visayan is practically banned, sometimes with a fine imposed on every instance a student speaks Binisaya.

Can someone please tell me when Binisaya or being Bisaya became something so “wrong” that we have to be fined for it?

It would be easy to blame “imperialist Manila” for the state of Visayan today. Tagalog is spoken in the capital city of Manila, hence, the capital city’s language should be the language of the entire country. I could also easily blame the influences of those who sought to colonize us: The Spanish and the Americans. In attempting to establish a colony here, they had to impose their own culture and language on the natives. No doubt, these things are partly to blame.

But I also blame the Visayans themselves, among whose number I am included, for slipping over the past few decades. I would hardly say that we Visayans were quick to abandon our own in lieu of something new and foreign. If that were so, Binisaya would have been lost to history generations ago. But neither have I seen any major effort for us to retain and educate ourselves of our own native culture. Not Asian culture, not Filipino culture, but Visayan culture.

Now I’m not saying we all start tattooing ourselves and make like our Pintados ancestors; for a culture to survive, it must also evolve. But at the very least, we should teach ourselves our own history, and we should especially teach ourselves our own language. But in this aspect, we are slipping. We’re slipping so much, in fact, that Cebuano, a dialect of the Visayan language, is already so full of words from other languages that while native Cebuano speakers can still understand pure Binisaya, most Cebuanos can’t speak Binisaya fluently.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that we should stop teaching English in school. English is already the widely accepted “global” language and without it, we miss out on the world. I’m not even saying we stop teaching Tagalog (or what some would like to call “Filipino,” though any Filipino worth his tongue knows that the Filipino language is just what they call Tagalog in an attempt to make it more nationally appealing… emphasis on “attempt”).

What I’m saying is that we Bisayas should not leave out our own native tongue when it comes to the languages we teach our children in school. I’m not merely proposing to allow, or even standardize the use of Bisaya as a language of instruction wherever Bisaya is natively spoken. I say we should have Bisaya classes, where students are TAUGHT proper Binisaya in all its native glory. It’s the most widely used language in the country. WHY NOT?!

And by extension, along with teaching ourselves the proper way to SPEAK Binisaya, perhaps we should even teach ourselves the proper way to WRITE Binisaya. That’s right: Alibata classes, which is applicable to both Binisaya and Tagalog. From my meager experience with Alibata (or Baybayin as it was called in olden times), I’ve discovered that one is actually able to preserve intonations and stress points in the written words through visual representations where it would otherwise be lost if Bisaya words were written in the Roman alphabet (compensated only by a reader’s actual knowledge in Binisaya).

But as it is, no schools I know of teach Binisaya. And I suspect only the most specialized of libraries have literature that teaches a person Alibata.

Well, here’s a factoid for you all: UNESCO estimates that half of the world’s languages are endangered because they are no longer taught or spoken.

When was the last time anyone remembers having Bisaya classes?

Anyone?

More than meets the eye (Part 2)

2007-07-31T23:51:00.000+08:00

The big screen was where it would all be decided. After two years of waiting, researching, ogling the Cybertronians’ new designs and resisting the urge to read spoilers, Transformers finally hit the big screen. But because of all this anticipation and knowledge I had already accumulated about the movie, I was afraid I might have set my standards too high. I could have set myself up for a disappointment, even if the movie did turn out to be good. So now, there was only one thing to do: Watch the dang movie.

I’m glad to say, I was not disappointed.

And based on the reactions of almost everyone I’ve talked, to, I wasn’t the only one who gave three thumbs up for the movie. So, since everyone seems to be in agreement that the movie rocked, I shall then skip my two cents on that and instead concentrate on the little details that just made the movie so amusing for me.

For one, I didn’t expect it to be so funny! But nothing cracked me up more than the scene where the Autobots tried several ways to hide from Spike’s parents at their house. No words can justify just how much of a crack-up that scene was! You have to see it to appreciate it.

Another was the character Frenzy. While the character was important plot-wise, Frenzy also provided much of the comic relief for the movie. I particularly loved that scene when he disembarked from Air Force One, hiding his face from the police using nothing more than his hands, as if it would help. It bears noting that this character was originally to be called Soundwave, after the character in the series that transformed into a stereo. It’s a good thing producers changed the name, considering that this character was just so much of a contrast from the serious “Megatron’s right hand man”/intelligence/logistics officer in the original TV series.

Another thing that greatly amused me (not in a “Haha!” way, probably more in a “Ngeee” way) was the product placements. First and foremost, the whole movie was a big, expensive advertisement for General Motors Corp. The Cybertronians who transform into non-military vehicles all take their forms from car brands owned by GMC, like Chevrolet, Ford, and Pontiac.

But apart from that, I just couldn’t help but notice the focus on so many brands within the movie, that they might as well have just mentioned them in dialog! For example:

Girl communications expert: “There’s only one man on the planet who can crack a code like this… so I’m going to save the data into my 2-gigabyte Panasonic SD card and bring it over to his house!”

Secretary of Defense: “What’s wrong? What’s interfering with all our Hewlett Packard LCD Monitors?”

Panicking civilian in the fight scene: “Oh, my gawd, the Mountain Dew dispenser is alive!”

In fact, they did just that for Nokia, with a whole dialog exchange dedicated to the Finish (not Japanese!) cellular phone manufacturer. While the N93i is my current dream phone, after watching that this movie, I swear I’ll never look at those phones in the same way again.

Story-wise, I had expected it to be more Cybertronian-driven than human-driven, as with the TV series. While this was not so, I wasn’t disappointed, since a movie that takes place on Earth will definitely have to concentrate on the humans’ importance, especially since it’s just a two-hour movie, not a TV series spanning three years. I admit disappointment, however, with the fact that most of the Decepticons were practically cannon fodder and only appeared in fight scenes. Of the seven Decepticons, only Megatron, Barricade, Frenzy, and Starscream had any sort of significant screen time, and even then, I felt Starscream could have been given a bit more exposure to really convey his “I’m better than any of you” attitude.

The same goes with the Autobots, with only Optimus Prime and Bumblebee getting most of the screen time. All in all, however, the other Autobots – Ironhide, Jazz and Ratchet – still had more screen time than the Decepticons. Sure, the Autobots may be the good guys, but I still would have loved to see more of Decepticons Bonecrusher, Devastator, and Blackout.

Also, I opposed the use of the name Devastator for the tank. Originally referred to as “Brawl” during production, producers said they renamed the character to give a better impression of the character’s fighting prowess. Die-hard Transformers TV series fans, however, know the character Devastator as one of the largest, meanest Decepticons, formed when five normal-sized Decepticons (collectively called the Constructicons) combine to form one giant robot. The use of the Devastator name for a single Decepticon in this movie basically prevents the Constructicons from making appearances in future movies, something a lot of fans hoped to see.

Plot-wise, I’d say the movie was a bit predictable. When Optimus Prime said that as a last ditch-effort, he was willing to destroy the Allspark by shoving it into the power source in his chest, I knew that was the way Megatron was going to die, either by Optimus’ or Spike’s hand. Not too many surprising twists and turns. Still, how the story was presented made all the difference, not just in terms of special effects, but in dramatic timing and force.

After a three-year wait, I was certainly not disappointed with Michael Bay/Steven Spielberg production. I only watched it once, but boy would I like to see it again before it closes in the theaters.

More than meets the eye (Part 1).

2007-07-31T23:47:00.001+08:00

Warning: Some plot spoilers. For those who haven't seen the Transformers movie: Read at your own risk.

Ever since I first saw the Transformers TV series, I always wondered how it would be like if someone actually made a live action movie out of it. Lo and behold, two decades after the cartoon, Steven Spielberg announces he was going to do just that. And ever since he made that announcement in 2005, I’ve been anticipating this movie – bookmarked the movie website, Googled up some inside info, even read up on the history of the franchise just to give myself a refresher. The only thing I actually resisted researching was the plot. No spoilers; that would be for when I watched the movie itself.

Over the next two years, I’d be amazed, sometimes disappointed, then be re-amazed at the things that disappointed me. One thing in particular that I and numerous other Transformers fans thought would make or break the movie would be their portrayal of the Cybertronians in how they transformed, and especially in what they transformed into.

Producers announced early on that they would NOT duplicate the transformation sequences of the cartoons. They said they experimented with making the transformations faithful to how they were portrayed in the cartoon, but the Cybertronians turned out too clunky and kinesthetically difficult to render. For example: In the cartoons, when Bumblebee transforms from Volkswagen Beetle to robot, his hood and most front areas extend forward and split to become his feet, his head pops out from his trunk, and his arms fold out from the sides of the car. Conceptually, this was quite simple, and in 2-D cartoons, the flexibility of merely drawing the robot characters allowed for many body movements that need not be explained mechanically. But portraying that in a realistic 3-D manner would be asking for so much trouble, producers said. So, producers instead opted to render the Cybertronians’ transformation in a more complex manner, wherein the Cybertronians practically disassemble into a hundred moving parts. While rendering something like this is difficult from the point of view of computer-generated graphics, it would allow for more realistic kinesthetics for the mechanical beings. The consequence, however, is a drastic change in appearance for the Transformers, which die-hard fans might not appreciate.

The second, and perhaps more significant change that die-hard fans frowned upon was the “Earth modes” of the Cybertronians. They were not going to be the vehicles/objects that were portrayed in the series. Prime would be a long-nosed truck and not a flat-nosed one, Ironhide would be a pickup and not a van, Megatron would be a Cybertronian jet and not a gun, and, perhaps the most debated of all, Bumblebee would not be a Volkswagen Beetle, but a Chevrolet Camero. It would be this aspect of the movie that would gain much criticism, and the very aspect that could make or break the movie once it hit the theaters.

I tried to keep an open mind, however. And as the months passed, I was both shocked and amazed at the designs with which they had come up for the Cybertronians. While the complexity of the designs did indeed change the way the characters looked, producers were still able to capture the essence of the original cartoon characters, save a few. Either way, they all looked “logically realistic” as I would like to call it: the “new” Optimus Prime is easily associated with his cartoon equivalent, so is Bumblebee, despite not being a Beetle. While Starscream looks radically different from his cartoon equivalent, his robot mode still does seem appropriate for his F-22 Raptor alternate mode. And while Megatron was not going to be a Welther P38 pistol, his new look for the movie was menacing enough to deserve the character’s name, yet there were still subtle design elements that associated the movie design with the cartoon design.

All in all, from a pre-production point of view, I had little to complain about, and I couldn't wait to see the movie.

Keeping it professional

2007-07-31T23:37:00.000+08:00

As much as I am annoyed with the squabble between Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña and Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, I think some good may actually come out of all of it.

For all this fighting over land, the city government and the provincial government are finally getting to be familiar with which properties belong exactly to which government, in some cases ending possession conflicts that may be decades or even centuries old. And in case of confusion or dispute in cases where ownership or rights over a property is doubted, the courts may always be invoked. But nonetheless, it will all end up in one thing: resolution.

Both Osmeña and Garcia said they are doing what they are doing not for themselves, but for the good of their constituents. All right, I’d believe that. But then, why all the name-calling? As a resident of Cebu City and a proud Cebuano, there's nothing more I deplore more than finding two of my island’s leaders making a personal fight over something that’s not even theirs to begin with. While I’d say both parties would be guilty of treating the people’s property like it was their own, I have to admit that one party acts this way a lot more than the other. This has been pointed out countless times, but it still needs pointing out again and again until both chief executives get the point.

To Mayor Osmeña and Governor Garcia: Fight over land all you want. That’s part of your job. But please, don’t make it personal. You’re supposed to be statesmen. Act like it. Deal, buy, sell, trade, swap, go to court, do whatever you have to do resolve these land issues. But trade jabs, and you’re already out of line. All these problems can be resolved by keeping it professional. Things may even be resolved quicker that way. Once all ownership/lease/donation issues are threshed out and settled, then the two governments may be able to pursue more permanent solutions, such as permanent transfer of ownership of certain lots. And when that’s all done, you two can go back to more important things, like running your respective governments.

* * *

Cebu City is the capital of Cebu Province. The seat of provincial government, the Capitol, is located in Cebu City. The city and the province even share the same name.

I find it quite ironic then that Cebu City residents have absolutely no say in choosing provincial leaders, even though almost every move of the province affects the city. I understand why Cebu City was made independent of the province – because dictator Ferdinand Marcos knew he couldn't control Cebu City, so he chopped it off from the rest of the province, which could be more easily manipulated at the time of his rule.

But that was then. This is now. And the “now” is making it really obvious that Cebu City will always be affected by the provincial government's actions. So shouldn’t it only be fair that Cebu City residents also have a say in the choice of provincial leadership?

By law, not by numbers

2007-07-31T23:33:00.001+08:00

I like this idea of a Special Independent Prosecutor floated by senator-elect Kiko Pangilinan. The idea of a specialized group of lawmen tasked to look into offenses by high-ranking public servants sounds so much better than the whole of Congress screeching to a halt, with each member delivering one long-winded speech after another in an attempt to stress the merits of a case, even when these members’ lack of a law background renders their speeches totally inane and nonsensical.

Already, we have a good example in Antonio Trillanes IV, a person who would fashion himself President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s overthrower. Even when his seat in the Senate was still unsure, he said one of his first tasks would be to commence impeachment proceedings against the President. Apparently, the senator-elect isn’t aware that the House of Representatives starts impeachment proceedings, not the Senate. The guy fails in a coup attempt, so he runs for the Senate thinking he’ll do a better task at toppling the President.

With a Special Independent Prosecutor, that office can do the job of looking into cases such as a possible impeachment case against the President while Congress, both the House and the Senate, can do the jobs they were tasked to do: Create laws to make the lives of the Filipinos better, not bicker about issues best decided by a branch of government neither of them belong to: The judiciary.

The office of a Special Independent Prosecutor, of course, sounds good in principle. But it’ll all be useless if its chief is partisan. The person in charge has to be a lawful, but neutral. My vote goes to former chief Hilario Davide Jr., but the guy seems content with his retirement. Chief Justice Reynato Puno? He’s a fine chap, but making him the Special Independent Prosecutor would be an added burden on him, the position of Chief Justice being complicated enough.

This raises another question: Who should choose the Special Independent Prosecutor? The House? That place isn’t run by principle, but by numbers and party loyalty. The Senate? Same thing. The President? We ARE talking about making the office non-partisan, aren’t we?

The only way I can see how a just and reliable person could be placed into the position would be to hold a special election for it. Costly and hell to organize, but it’s the only way a person the people trust can be put there. Perhaps during the barangay elections in October, the electorate could also choose a Special Independent Prosecutor. While this necessitates another canvassing at the national level, at least, logistically, it won’t be as complicated as organizing a separate election just to fill one position.

Besides, as I always like to say, nothing worth doing is ever easy.

I hope our lawmakers take the proposal to create the office of the Special Independent Prosecutor into consideration. An office like this would expedite the resolution of cases filed against high-ranking government officials and prevent our lawmakers from droning on and on or engaging in mindless bickering over issues that should be resolved by its merits, not by how many allies the accused has.

* * *

Who exactly do our congressmen serve?

Ask the congressmen themselves and they claim it’s the people that they serve. However, when it’s time to come to a decision, most congressmen reveal their true loyalties – their political party.

Take for example the issue regarding the Speakership. When media asks congressmen who they intend to support, they have a common answer. It’s nothing to the effect of “who my constituents support,” or “who has done/can do the most good.” The most common answer I hear is: “I’ll support whoever my party supports.”

Spineless. Thank God not all congressmen think this way.

This just goes to show what really goes on in most lawmakers’ minds.

* * *

To call Antonio Trillanes IV “honorable” is hard. It’s almost an oxymoron. Sure, I’ll call him Senator. He won fair and square (as far as I know) in an election after all. But honor is something you earn. Honor is something you gain from your actions. Nothing I have seen Trillanes do of late has been honorable. From betraying his commander in chief in an attempt to cease power through illegal means, to his attempt to continue his personal goals through the Senate. There’s nothing wrong with wanting change in government, to rid ourselves of the corruption that has plagued this country for so long. But to do it in a manner befitting a rebel?

He’s not the kind of man I want sitting in my Senate. Many people think otherwise, however. I just hope he doesn’t make a fool of himself in the Senate as he did in Oakwood.

Iba na ang mga bata ngayon

2007-06-19T14:56:00.000+08:00

This article was written by my friend Mia Borja, a linguistics instructor at an Iligan-based state university. It was first published on June 8 on her blog site at barrioheiress.multiply.com.

I found this piece very touching, and I would like to share it with you all. It should encourage all of us to rethink our priorities, and be thankful for our blessings.

This piece and her other written works can be found on her site.

This article is reprinted with permission.

* * *

I remember saying this the first time I taught in a classroom: “Iba na ang mga bata ngayon.” I said it when I was barely 22. Now, four years later, I still find myself saying the same thing, but meaning it differently. So much differently.

One can easily blame the Internet, free porn, text messaging, Kris Aquino, or those questionable “stars” on Pinoy Big Brother. My classes this semester easily look like a reflection of that thought: 320 wide-eyed, horribly impressionable, amazingly troubled teens divided into six classes, all held in the most dilapidated and hottest buildings of the campus.

Yesterday was my university’s first day of school. I surveyed my classroom and I must say, it is always an interesting sight. I teach no less than 40 students per room, and I usually expect the usual combination of Muslims, pretty private school girls, astig public school kids, punks, hip-hop boys, and some international/half-something kids.

But yesterday was different than the other first days of school.

I took a look at the sea of faces frantically fanning themselves in the lunchtime heat, and thought that I would once again embark on an uphill climb – teaching these kids English they may never use, correcting pronunciation of words that they barely need, or conversation skills they will hastily put away at the end of the semester. So, resigned to that fact, I checked attendance and asked where these kids were from.

I was shocked to hear many of their stories. Only when I called attendance did I realize the harsh truth about what many of my kids really go through just to get an education. The usual introduction went like this:

“Hi, my name is Gail. I’m a graduate from a public high school in Zamboanga del Norte. It takes me 24 hours to go there from here. I have to ride five buses to get to my home town.”

“Hello, my name is Steven. I’m a scholar. My father was a policeman who got shot. My mother, I don’t know where she is. I am here with my two younger brothers, and I want to be an engineer someday.”

“Hi, my name is Mary. I am a scholar in this university. My father sent me here because he said it was like Ateneo.”

“My name is Jun. I live an hour from here but I have to live with my aunt. I hope that you will not assign many xerox expenses ma’am because I do not have enough money for the jeep sometimes.”

“Hi, I am Josef, and I am a scholar. I walk here everyday. My mother, she is in Hong Kong but I have to be a scholar because she cannot give enough money for me and my three sisters.”

I knew from the beginning that my students, being in a public school, would usually come from the lower ends of the social spectrum. But as to how low, I would still be amazed. A 23-unit semester costs only P2,000 at most, and yet many of them still have to be scholars because P2,000 is a figure that is still far too much for their families. There were almost a hundred students of mine who were from mountain villages that barely have electricity, from where they had to carry baon to school in banana leaves. Some were from lumad tribes who were forced to come down to the city by their elders because their lands had been taken from them. Some of them had seen armed conflict and had their barangays burned down. Some easily admitted to having friends in rogue extremist groups. Their parents sold calamansi and salt in the market. All of them had a story to tell.

These kids were the stuff I would only see in documentaries and ethnic spectacles.

Someone once told me that the Philippines was a rich country pretending to be poor. I could’ve slapped reality in that person’s face today. The Philippines is not pretending to be anything. We are poor. We are very poor. If that person could have the balls to trade one day of his air-conditioned life for an hour in suffocating heat with my kids, maybe then he would never again gripe at the pseudo-mess his life was in. There are bigger decisions in life, much bigger than deciding on whether to have a café latte or mochaccino. Much bigger than which Havaianas to wear tomorrow. Much bigger than my broken heart.

One cannot look at these kids’ trusting eyes and say they were not shaken.

These kids make me ashamed of complaining about why I can’t go to Boracay next month, or why I can’t find my way back to the private corporate ladder. These kids show me the face of poverty everyday at 7:30 a.m., lest I forget that the latest eyeshadow palette can easily pay for their entire semester’s tuition. Every time I come across colleagues who have made a better life for themselves in big cities and drinking martinis, I stop wishing to have their “fabulous, glamorous” existence.

These kids make me feel small, shallow, and hollow. How I wished I never had them in my class so I never would have to face the truth about poverty. How I wish I could ignore the brittle hair, the tattered shoes, the faded and oversized T-shirts. Their struggles make my neurosis superficial; they make my quarter-life crisis seem luxurious.

Now I am branded with an inconvenient conscience, and I am afraid.

As a public school teacher, I am afraid I cannot deliver. I am afraid that by September, that by next year, that in four years, their lives will still not be any different than today’s; that they will not be able to make ends meet. After all, poverty typically breeds poverty.

There is so much to fear, but fear is a luxury no one in my classroom can afford. If they can carry a bayong-full of clothes and ride on the topload of a jeep down to this university, then I could very well probably step up and teach them a thing or two about job interviews and how to carry a decent conversation.

Iba na ang mga bata ngayon. They are poorer, hungrier, and much more disillusioned than before. But they are also tougher, more determined, and more eager to better their lives because they know the cold truth: No one will help them do so. Not the government, not the fancy charity events, not non-government organizations who brag of “youth empowerment” and do not deliver, not peace relief organizations that have yet to have something to show.

So they take it upon themselves to ride five buses and three habal-habals for 24 hours just to sit in infuriatingly hot classrooms where they might at least see a faint glimmer of hope. They are different.

Iba na talaga ang mga bata ngayon. They are amazing.

The power of symbols

2007-06-19T14:50:00.000+08:00

I drive a particularly large, black, environmentally unfriendly sedan. Because of it’s styling, my friends describe it to be “executive-looking” or “limousine-ish.” One even described it as a “mafia car.” But in a city like Cebu, cars like mine don’t stand out. At least, not by much. Definitely, it is not the kind that would turn heads everywhere it passes, contrary to, say, a Porsche or a Lamborghini.

That changed a few days ago.

I bought two Philippine flaglets from a street vendor to commemorate Independence Day. The flaglets were nothing particularly special – just the usual colored cloth sewn together and mounted on a bamboo stick. Playing on the inherent “VIP” styling of my car, I mounted one flag on each front corner of the vehicle. The result was a sort of personal joke I’ve always wanted to play since I got that car: With its size, color and styling, and now with two flags mounted in front, it looked somewhat like the kind of vehicle that would typically carry a visiting dignitary.

I was amused with the result. What I didn’t expect was the kind of reaction I’d get from the public once I started driving around with the flaglets.

The reactions were immediate. Right after I turned the corner that brought me out of my village, people who were walking along the sidewalk stopped and shuffled themselves farther from the road, staring at my car before I could even complete the turn. As I continued driving, pedestrians, jeepney passengers and other motorists would turn their heads as I drive along. I even noticed that some motorcycle drivers, after seeing my car on their side view mirror, would pull over to the side to let me pass. Some, of course, get the joke and smile as I drive along. Others really stare, sometimes even attempting to take a peak at the back seat in an attempt to see who the VIP was. Nobody was in the back, of course.

Sometimes, my little “in-joke” gets the best of me and I just drive around with a large, goofy grin on my face after seeing people’s reactions, proud of the effect the flags did to my car.

All these, just because I put teeny, tiny Philippine flags on the hood.

It’s amazing what a flag, even a small one, can do to give an object a certain distinction. And I’m not just talking about cars, but everything that could or should bear a flag, such as government buildings, aircraft, even private buildings, whether it’s just a company banner or the nation’s flag.

It’s no surprise then that if there’s anything all the countries in the world have in common, it’s a flag. Once any people in any particular territory declare themselves independent or free, one of the very first things they do is raise a flag into the sky for all to see. The feelings that a flag evokes is unmistakable. It’s a symbol of authority. A symbol of unity. A symbol of power.

But most of all, it is a symbol of independence.

To borrow a line from a popular sci-fi movie, “Today, we celebrate our independence Day.” And while I still debate on whether or not we truly did gain our independence on June 12, 1898 (I still think it’s July 4, 1945, when the Americans left the country and allowed the Filipinos their own sovereign authority after World War II), the fact remains that we Filipinos did earn our independence at some point in time. Whether or not we’ve been responsible with our independence is another story. Regardless, we are, more or less, a free country and a people who have our destiny in our own hands.

Today, let us then show our pride in our hard-fought freedom, whether from the Spanish in 1898 or the Japanese and Americans in 1945. Let us fly our country’s colors on our cars, our homes, and our businesses, even just for a few days. It’s a symbol our ancestors made. It’s a symbol our forebears marched into war in a bid for our independence. It is what our heroes died for.

It is because of that flag that we now enjoy a democratic, independent republic. It is because of that flag that we are free.

You don’t appreciate it until you lose it

2007-06-06T17:16:00.000+08:00

During the campaign period, Lahug barangay captain Mary Ann delos Santos told media and residents of Lahug that she wanted to become mayor because Tomas Osmeña was neglecting certain areas of the city, including her barangay.

I may not be a resident of Lahug, but I do pass by the place with some frequency. And from what I can see, Delos Santos’ statements aren’t entirely accurate. The roads in the area have greatly improved, the long-awaited traffic lights at the intersection of Gorordo Avenue and Salinas Drive have finally been installed, and who knows what other improvements City Hall has done in other nooks of the barangay that I’ve never been to.

Captain Delos Santos apparently didn’t see what I and many others saw. For her, City Hall has done nothing for the barangay. And all the improvements were, what, miracles?

Now, fiction has turned into fact. Osmeña, in his classic vindictiveness, twisted Delos Santos’ election propaganda against her: She said City Hall has done nothing for Lahug, then City Hall will do nothing for Lahug.

And now, Lahug residents are paying the price for Mary Ann’s brand of electioneering.

It’s true that you don’t appreciate it until you lose it. Lahug lost an elementary school and allowances for its workers, both City Hall-funded. And now Mary Ann is realizing City Hall has indeed been doing something for the barangay.

Her justification? She did not know about the projects because they were not coursed through her. But there’s a whole world’s difference between “no projects” and “I don’t know because no projects were coursed through me.” Besides, how can a barangay captain not know of City Hall projects in his or her own barangay? Is this the method of a person who thought herself mayor material? To make conclusions without getting the facts straight?

And now, here she is, setting up fund-raising drives for the construction of a school her own words caused to grind to a halt. Why? Is it so hard for a person who already essentially admitted she was wrong to just apologize for her actions? Why try to raise P15 million for a school when it’s already there ready for the taking? All she needs to do is take the logical step up from her “I didn’t know” statement and just plainly apologize for her less than accurate election propaganda.

For all Mayor Osmeña’s vindictiveness, he’s also quite reasonable. While I dislike the mayor’s actions just as much as the next person, I do understand his point. He’s not looking for gratitude for the school or the allowances or whatever else City Hall has done for barangay. He’s not out for vengeance on barangay Lahug for not supporting him in his elections (if he did, I’d imagine he’d have stopped any projects in the barangay long ago). He just wants Delos Santos to admit her mistake and fess up that what she’s told people about City Hall was not exactly the truth, whether or not those statements were based on lack of information on her part.

Osmeña has already opened his door enough for Delos Santos: If she wants anything for the barangay, such as money for the school, request for it in writing. That way, she’ll stay informed of what City Hall is doing for the barangay and perhaps avoid making inaccurate statements in the future. Now the ball is in Delos Santos’ court. Will she continue to let pride get the best of her, or will she swallow it and just simply admit her mistake?

You reap what you sow. What goes around, comes around. Delos Santos wanted people to believe that the mayor won’t do anything for the barangay, and now she has it. The only person who can fix this is Delos Santos herself. She can continue badmouthing the mayor, and the mayor can keep on retaliating. We already know that retaliation is one of the things the mayor does best. Or Delos Santos can show statesmanship worthy of a potential mayor and simply right a wrong she made herself. And let’s hope she does it soon before the mayor decides to do something else, like rip out the new asphalt on Gorordo Avenue.

Delos Santos said the mayor’s actions were childish and unreasonable. I agree completely. However, I’d also say that publishing propaganda based on ignorance and inaccurate information is childish and unreasonable. So now, we have two childish and unreasonable people at each other’s throats. I can’t wait for these people to grow up.

As for the mayor, I do not wish to justify his actions. To involve schoolchildren in political squabbling like this is just uncalled for. But one has to admit, however, that halting the construction of the school, at least for a few days, won’t matter in the long run. School already started yesterday and the building has yet to take shape. If construction had continued, I doubt the building would be usable within the school year unless it was made completely out of wood (in which case, I doubt it would cost P15 million unless it was super-huge). Still, I hope the mayor isn’t relying on the fact that July marks the start of his last consecutive term as mayor and, as such, feels he might not have anything to lose by acting in a manner not befitting a chief executive.

Most of all, however, I hope these two politicians will be reminded that the school or the money allocated to build it is not theirs to mess around with. It belongs to the residents of Cebu City, including – and especially – the residents of barangay Lahug, who probably need it more than anyone else in the city.

Haste makes waste

2007-05-23T01:24:00.000+08:00

Boy, is there now a lot of waste lining the streets of Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, and Cebu cities.

And no, I'm not talking about leftover campaign posters from the elections. I'm talking about those decorative lampposts bought and installed for the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit.

Taxpayers' money, just sitting along the sidewalk, doing nothing. For weeks now, I drive to and from work, and I see those lampposts, designed to make certain streets in the metropolis look nice, doing nothing. As if the purchase of these items wasn't controversial enough, now I just find it obscene that these things – millions of pesos in taxpayers' money – are serving no purpose whatsoever. Dark as the night they were meant to light up.

What's worse, with no electricity flowing through these lampposts, vandals are no longer afraid to reach into these things and grab anything salvageable, from the electric wires to light bulbs.

And why are these lampposts now so dark? Simply because nobody's paying the electric bill for them. Why? Because nobody wants to take responsibility for them. Why? Nobody knows who to pin the responsibility on. Why? Because there's now the question of whether these lampposts are worth the P300,000+ that was spent to buy each of them. Why? Because those who wanted to put these lampposts up bought them by skipping all the checks and balances that's supposedly designed to avoid this kind of trouble in the first place!

Procurement laws, bidding processes, everything that should have made sure that taxpayers got every bang for their buck was set aside to buy these lampposts. Emergency clauses were cited, stating a need for haste due to lack of time to go through all the niceties of proper procurement. And because our leaders were all so excited about the ASEAN Summit, almost all of them gave their thumbs up to the idea.

And now that the summit is over, look what all these lampposts are doing: Absolutely nothing. And not just that, now we have an electric bill worth millions because of these lampposts. It's a bill nobody wants to pay for, mainly because electricity distributors are also confused on who to give the bill!

Over P300 million worth of decorative lampposts not decorating anything. And to think that whole bunch may not actually cost P300 million. The “extra” money could have been spent on other, more useful things, like livelihoods for those who don't have any. Heck, the entire amount spend on the lampposts could have served a better, long-term purpose.

Haste makes waste, they say. And boy, did the government's haste produce big, stinking piles of waste along our sidewalks. It would have been good at least if all the resources lost in the haste still ended up with something tangible. As it is, all those lampposts are doing is taking up space.

With the elections over, I hope our leaders, new and reelected, learn something from this. Heck, I hope they'll DO something about this, starting with the continued investigation of alleged overpricing. In the long run, I hope our leaders also learn the value of starting things early, and not rushing to complete a project by skipping established rules. Because whenever that happens, you'll just get another “lamppost controversy.”

One counts

2007-05-15T22:56:00.001+08:00

In every election period, there are many unavoidable, annoying truths: campaign jingles, posters where they shouldn’t be, votes bought for P50, dead people voting, the living unable to vote because their names have disappeared.

There are may reasons to be annoyed with the elections. But one thing that annoys me the most is how some people talk about how voting is useless and that they won’t bother because it won’t make a difference.

They claim disillusionment. These kinds of people usually say there’s nobody worth voting for. Some say there needs to be radical change in society before voting can really matter. Some talk about how they’ll vote only if “the system” – both the government and election procedures – are more reliable and only then will their votes really count. Others complain about how practicing their right of suffrage is useless because corrupted officials in power will find ways to rig the numbers in their favor. Most go into long eulogies about how their one vote won’t count in the sea of millions of other people’s votes.

After so many elections and hearing so many excuses, I think I’ve finally figured out why people who chose not to vote really don’t vote.

They’re not disillusioned. They’re just lazy.

The highfalutin excuses are just that – excuses. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that there does exist people worth voting for. And unless someone wants to stage an armed revolt to take over the government, then talks about immediate, radical change is just hot air. “The system” and corrupted officials? They’ll always be there unless people vote them out of there. The people were the ones who placed them there in the first place.

And one vote not counting among millions? How do they think votes go into the millions in the first place unless one vote is added with another?

While I pity those who really can’t vote because of circumstances beyond their control, I can’t help but think irresponsible those who have all the ability and capacity to vote, but chose not to. And you know what? They seem to know it themselves, as well.

Those people who talk about not voting because it won’t make a difference sometimes attempt ridicule at the “idealism” of those who do vote. Anything from slight teasing to engaging the voter to a full blown debate. But no matter what they say, just take a look at them and you’ll see that deep down, they’re only envious that the voter did something they knew they should have as well. It’s in their faces. It’s in their eyes. It’s in their body language. They’ll hide their envy and the guilt of their own irresponsibility by exaggerating their own actions. I’ve seen enough of them to be certain. Deep down, they know their one vote could have made a difference. They know they failed not so much their country, but themselves.

So let them make fun of how you practiced your right – your civic duty – to suffrage. In the end, everyone, even those who talk about how useless voting is, knows you did good.

Ever since I was old enough to vote, I did. And I say that not to brag, but because I’m darned proud of showing off that little dark purple splotch on my index finger every three years that says to the world, “I voted.” “I counted.” “I made a difference.”

Yesterday, it was encouraging to see the precincts in the school where I voted. As I entered the school, I was among many trying to enter the gates, clashing head on with the just as many coming out with dark marks already on their index fingers. It was refreshing to see that many people still believe that their one voice, small as it may be, still matters in the bigger picture.

In the end, 100 is only 99 if you take out 1. 1,000 is only 999 if you take out 1. If you have P1 million pesos, you’re a millionaire, but take out just P1 and you’re not a millionaire.

In the end, one of anything counts. One vote for a just candidate is one vote against a lousy politico. One clean vote is one vote a cheating candidate is going to have to fight for. One vote for the right person is one vote in the direction of a better nation.

One vote does count. Sometimes, one vote is all that matters.

The devil in the (lack of) details

2007-05-07T22:54:00.001+08:00

The comparative presentation of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia among the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC), other similar buildings in nearby provinces and industry standards for such structures seemed to satisfy many people who have been wanting to know about the Cebu provincial government’s expenditures on the controversial building.

I, however, can’t help but feel a little shortchanged. Sure, the governor’s presentation answered many questions. And the fact that the CICC came out so cheap (regardless of criticisms on its design) should be applauded.

However, Garcia’s presentation didn’t seem to answer the questions that really needed answering, and that is: How exactly was each taxpayer centavo spent on the CICC?

The governor said she purposely didn’t want to go into the nitty-gritty details so as not to confuse the public. While her consideration is much appreciated, I do have to point out that there are some of us Cebuanos who don’t get confused with such details, particularly, architects and engineers who will know exactly how to interpret a highly detailed accounting of the money spent on the CICC – down to the cost of each nail. And before anyone in the Capitol says it’s impossible to make that detailed an accounting, let me point out that if ancient Chinese architects were able to predict the exact number of bricks they’d use for a temple before they even built it, then any modern Filipino architect worth his or her T-square should be able to do the same for any modern building. As a matter of fact, the whole job of an architect revolves around that, and before a building is even made (considering some adjustments along the way while the building is being built, of course).

Sure, it may be true that the CICC was a good deal compared to other buildings, but what about compared to itself? Sure, P581 million for a building of that size ain’t bad at all. But without a detailed accounting, how are we to know that each material, each component of the building was worth each peso? Let me emphasize that I am not accusing anyone of cheating or being untruthful. But theoretically speaking, without a detailed accounting, how are we to know that a lightbulb in that building may actually be worth just P30, but P40 was actually spent on it? Multiply that with the exact number of lightbulbs in the CICC, and the difference between a P30 and P40 quickly becomes significant. The same for any iron bar, every length of wire, every concrete slab that was placed in that building. A detailed accounting would put all of that to rest. And “detailed” shouldn’t just go “Lightbulb: P40,” but instead look like “General Electric 10-watt incandescent lightbulb: P40.” That way, us nitty-gritty nitpickers know exactly what item the Capitol spent on, how good that item is (whether or not it was up to specifications), and allow us to compare it with prices at our local hardware store. We’ll know if a General Electric 10-watt incandescent lightbulb is really worth P40.

But even now, over a year after the plans for the CICC were drawn up, an accounting of the building still isn’t available. And contrary to what some people involved in the CICC’s construction would say, CICC documents are supposed to public property and, as such, should be available for public scrutiny.

For all we know, with all this talk that the CICC is already cheap at P581 million, the building may actually cost even less. Unless a detailed accounting is presented, we’ll never know, and the questions will just keep on coming. The Capitol can just keep on dodging the issue, or they can simply just show an accounting – a document that should have already existed a whole year ago. If the provincial government can’t present the public a document that should already have existed before the CICC was ever built, then someone in the Capitol has a lot of explaining to do.

They say the devil is in the details. In this case, the devil might just be in the lack of it. And unless the Capitol coughs up an accounting of how much each nail, each kilogram of cement, each pane of glass, and each brick cost the Cebuano people, the issues hounding the CICC will never be over.

* * *

Allow me to send a shoutout to my brother, Gerard, who is celebrating his birthday today. Happy birthday, ‘Doy!

And to all you Mandauehanons out there (where the CICC stands), a happy fiesta!

Hard choices

2007-05-03T17:00:00.000+08:00

It's only two weeks until the May 14 midterm elections. Yet even now, I'm still not certain of which candidates I should deem worthy of my vote for the Senate.

The local candidates are easy enough pickings. As a resident of Cebu City, my choice for mayor and city councilors go to those who are not beholden to has-been politicians and/or political neophytes trying to get as much media mileage as possible by making mountains out of molehills.

The senate, on the other hand, is a different story. At least, for once, there are actually two distinct forerunner parties to choose from – the administration's Team Unity (TU) and the Genuine Opposition (GO). While these two are technically coalitions since members of each side also have their own parties, taking either group's slate as a whole does help simplify things. At least there's no more need to try to figure out which candidate belongs to which side anymore.

Or is there? While the whole Team Unity vs Genuine Opposition fight makes things simpler, I feel there is a need to look at each individual candidate from each side closely. Unfortunately, when I do, I get confused again.

Team Unity is pro-administration. Yet looking closely, one can see members of that slate who once members of the opposition, critics of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and even staunch supporters of deposed president Joseph Estrada. Have we conveniently forgotten how one Team Unity member danced with glee at how she and her cohorts roadblocked impeachment efforts against Estrada in 2001? Heck, I credit that dance as the trigger for People Power II. Another Team Unity candidate has his name stained by controversies over illegal gambling that supposedly proliferated in his home province during the time, and allegedly with the blessing, of ex-president Estrada. Other Team Unity members have their own skeletons in their own closets as well. But that's not to say there aren't any good people in Team Unity. As a matter of fact, I'd say a lot of Team Unity's slate are good fruits. I'm just wondering how so many bad fruits ended up in the same tree.

On the other hand, we have candidates in the Genuine Opposition. When I look at this bunch, I see has-beens trying desperately to come back to power, rebels and iron-fisted authoritarians trying legal where their old illegal means failed them, and politicians whose only distinction so far was talking and criticizing others while they themselves sat in their comfy offices doing practically nothing. Yet among the Genuine Opposition are also people of integrity and credibility, such as one ex-senator who served the country with distinction but ended up insulting the whole of Cebu when she demanded a recount of our votes in the 2004 elections (essentially telling us we were idiots in the way we voted). Another Genuine Opposition candidate also served the country well while holding one of the highest positions in the land. Again, good eggs and bad eggs in one basket.

Then, of course, there are the independents. They have their own merits and flaws as well. One in particular is experienced and has an all-around good standing and chose to avoid partisan politics and declined invitations from both Team Unity and the Genuine Opposition, preferring to go at it on his own. This lack of a clear stand on recent government issues, however, could work against him. Other independents have their popularity going for them, but they are untested as leaders and may not deserve our votes for a senate position just yet.

Even official surveys seem confusing. Since January, senate standings change almost weekly, with people at the top of one survey dropping out of the “Magic 12” in the next survey. Seems I'm not the only one confused on who to vote for.

I suppose this is an indication that among our candidates, especially for the Senate, much is still left to be desired. Let's just hope that in the next two weeks, we'll get a clearer view of whom to vote for. Maybe the candidates themselves could help by advertising what they've done for the country or what they plan to do, instead of trying to push how popular they are or how “cool” they claim to be.

Internet interaction

2007-04-17T20:24:00.000+08:00

I’m an Internet geek. You can cut off my cable TV connection, my phone line, my water service, but touch my DSL and I’ll go postal on your behind and the behinds of your relations up to the 4th degree of consanguinity.

You can do almost anything with the Internet nowadays. Aside from the usual web browsing, e-mail, chatting and online gaming, there are also other services most casual Internet users don’t know about or hardly utilize, such as voice over Internet protocol or VOIP, peer-to-peer file sharing, Internet radio, heck, there’s even Internet TV. The mere access to the World Wide Web through the Internet is already quite valuable in itself. You can find almost anything on anyone with the Net, if you just know where to look. Doing a background check on someone over the Internet – “Googlestalking,” as some like to call it – is even becoming part of the normal getting-to-know-you process, whether it’s for the purpose of dating someone or just getting to know them a little bit better. Last year, I even found a long lost friend I lost touch with for over seven years by Googlestalking her. She’s become one of my best buds since.

While there are many ways to Googlestalk someone, the quickest and most convenient way to do this is to simply take a look at their profiles on Internet social networking sites such as Friendster of MySpace. While the profile owner has complete control over the information that his or her profile contains (hence, the person might not place things he doesn’t want people to know, like a criminal record), it is otherwise a good place to start for certain kinds of basic information. While credit goes to Friendster.com for successfully pioneering Internet social networking, nowadays, it is MySpace.com that has taken over as the world’s premiere social networking website. MySpace has all the things Friendster has, and also gives the user a greater deal of flexibility over one’s profile, such as adding a few multimedia elements. Among Filipinos, however, Friendster still reigns supreme – so much so that statistics indicate that Filipinos make up the largest single ethnic chunk among Friendster’s 30 million registered users (MySpace has almost 170 million users).

The emergence of such networking sites has fast made the Internet an essential tool in real life interactions. “Post it on your Friendster” or “Let me take a look at your Friendster” are phrases getting heard more often, especially among late teens and 20-somethings. Even election candidates make as much use of these kinds of sites as possible, creating profiles geared to promote themselves in hopes of earning votes.

Taking the concept of online social networking even further than Friendster, MySpace and all other similar sites, is Multiply.com. Here, personal profiles take a back seat to multimedia. Instead of having a user’s personal profile information as the primary content, one is instead met by different forms of multimedia on a user’s home page, such a pictures, videos, blog posts, music/audio files and others, all on a single site (before Multiply, certain sites concentrated on only one form of media, such as the pictures-only Flickr.com, video-only YouTube.com, or blogs-only Blogger.com). Interaction on Multiply is even taken a step further compared to other social networking sites as entire threads of comments/discussions can be had for each and every item of content posted on Multiply. Admittedly, since discovering Multiply, Friendster has become somewhat boring for me. With so much stuff one can post on Multiply, thankfully, a user also has a great degree of control over who can view what content on his or her page. Permission to view content can be limited to only one or a few people on the user’s contact list, the entire contact list, the contacts of contacts, contacts of contacts of contacts, or just anybody. Good for stuff you want to share with your friends, but not to strangers. This allows people to share their lives – entire picture albums, vacation videos, personal thoughts – with friends and family no matter where they are, even in other countries, to a degree unheard of during pre-Internet days.

While I don’t believe there ever will be a substitute for coffee with friends or “morning the night” with your barkada over a favorite tabletop or console game, the Internet has undoubtedly changed the way society interacts, from serving as a source or information to actually being the medium of interaction. And for a homebody like me, I am definitely thankful for it.

Remembering Easter

2007-04-10T23:51:00.001+08:00

First of all, Happy Easter everyone! It’s a time of rebirth, rejuvenation, and celebration, as we mark the time our Lord and Savior saved us all from certain damnation.

It’s a pity, though, that the true meaning of Holy Week seems to be slipping out of the Filipinos’ fingers. Year after year, I think I’m seeing less and less people going to churches and more and more going to beaches. I can’t blame people for taking advantage of the long holidays to get together with friends and family, but what of the real reason for these holidays in the first place?

Even the media and commercial establishments, in general, also seem to be getting more and more reluctant to put any religious attachment to Easter, concentrating instead on Easter eggs, the Easter Bunny and things that are more related to the pagan observation of Easter. There’s certainly nothing wrong with a little Easter egg hunt or egg decorating contests, but these should only be secondary to the contemplation of the Passion and death of Jesus, and what it means for us all.

It’s a shame. The most important event in Christendom – if not all humanity – relegated to nothing more than just another “holiday.” As a country that is supposed to be proud to be the only predominantly Christian country in Asia, we certainly have a lot to relearn about being Christian.

* * *

It’s been a month since the March 7 fire that burned down hundreds of homes in Mandaue City, essentially clearing a swath in barangays Mantuyong and Guizo, rendering thousands homeless.

Some have started to rebuild. Most, however, are still in shelters or tents, awaiting assistance in one form or another.

In the meantime, the Mandaue City government is hounded with issues over loans in the hundreds of millions and controversies of overpricing, whether it be tiny lampposts each the price of a midsize sedan or the mere foundations of an unfinished public market already worth 10 fully-furnished mansions.

While government agencies try to figure out where the heck all those millions went, here are Mandaue City folk who lost their homes, shivering in the cold, trying to figure out where they’ll find their next meal.

Am I the only one who thinks someone somewhere owes these people something?

I’m not praying that the persons benefiting from all this overpricing gets a conscience and gives up the moolah to help the fire victims. I’m praying, in all Easterly goodness, that these people are found and convicted, their ill-gotten wealth torn harshly away from them and used to help the fire victims.

Here’s the money of Mandaue taxpayers making the rich richer while the poor struggle with their survival. Justice has to be found somewhere in Mandaue.

* * *

While the acting mayor of Mandaue has already promised to speed up help for the victims of last month’s “worst fire in the city’s history,” I believe help should be in the form of something more organized and long-term.

The fire had essentially cleared thousands of square meters in barangays Mantuyong and Guizo. So instead of just giving the victims land and basic construction materials, how about if the city government make the best out of a bad situation and use the opportunity to plan a new community there for the displaced residents?

Instead of just letting the residents rebuild their rag-tag homes, the government might want to construct decent-looking, multi-storey, apartment-style residential buildings that will compliment the boom expected in Mandaue City’s reclamation area, especially since the area is very close to the Cebu International Convention Center, which, if the provincial government is to be believed, is set to host many events in the upcoming months.

Come on, if the city can spend millions on the substructure of a public market that’s suspected to be hugely overpriced, how about if the acting mayor realign a few millions from whatever overpriced projects there are in Mandaue City and put some funds into making the lives of these fire victims a little easier?

Sure, there’s always the fear that the beneficiaries of such a project would just rent out the unit given to them, but a little enforcement and occasional checking by the city government should solve that problem. And should a beneficiary family insist on living somewhere other than the unit given to them, at least that’s already their choice. Another poor family can get the unit.

Make the best out of a bad circumstance. The March fire in Mandaue was definitely bad, but it also gives the city and the residents a chance to start anew – a start that’s more in-line with the future of the Mandaue City reclamation area.

How many days?

2007-04-02T23:55:00.001+08:00

How many days has it been since almost 2,000 decorative lampposts were purchased, installed and operated? More than 120.

How many days did it take after the installation did reports of overpricing come to the attention of the public? 60.

How many days does it take to deliver an order to suspend officials for anomalies on the purchase of these lampposts? Three.

How many days does it take to burn a whole stack of documents on a lamppost purchase that's questionable to high heavens? One.

Justice delayed is justice denied, they say. A lot of time has passed since these lamppposts were bought, installed and operated. That's a lot of opportunity to do whatever hanky panky one would like to make sure he or she can't be implicated in an illegal act. Do graft investigators really believe they can still find dirt on those responsible for the anomalous lamppost purchase almost half a year since these were bought?

Well, for the sake of justice, let's hope so. Before the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit was held in Cebu in January, I had mentioned that there should be transparency in the case of hurried summit-related projects, in particular, the Cebu International Convention Center. That building was the subject of many questions regarding its expenditure (not to mention its design). For a time, the CICC was the exemplification of rushed spending, hasty construction, and questionable procedures. Now that the fires of that controversy have died down, looks like other ASEAN-related anomalies have cropped up.

Unfortunately, unlike the CICC that was being questioned from the start of its construction, the current controversy on the decorative lampposts along the ASEAN Summit's ceremonial route came up months after these were already put in place and put to use. I'm sure the Ombudsman can still send to jail a lot of those involved in this overpricing scam. I doubt, however, if those who were involved in this controversy at the highest levels of government could still be implicated. They've probably burned any and all paper trails that could link them to the purchase.

Well, some people may get away with this scot-free. Let's just hope that those who are found responsible and punished appropriately for it could serve as an example to others about what happens when one uses taxpayers' money to line one's own pockets.

* * *

When word was out that they would be served preventive suspensions in relation to the lamppost scam, Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano and Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Arturo Radaza not only displayed behaviors opposite to each other, they displayed behavior opposite their normal selves.

Radaza got up, bid goodbye to Lapu-Lapu City Hall officials and employees, made sure things still ran well while he was away, and waited for officials to serve him his suspension. He even issued a brief statement to the media. This is opposite to what is mostly said about Radaza, who normally does not speak directly to the media and interacts rarely with City Hall employees.

Ouano, on the other hand, clammed up, became hard to catch, and made a fortress out of Mandaue City Hall, essentially making sure nothing ran well until government officials could serve him his suspension. Ouano may not have had a direct hand in barricading the otherwise public building, but it sure didn't look like he made any good attempt to stop his supporters from going ahead with the barricades either. This is opposite to the Ouano most people know; the Ouano who had always been outspoken of his critics, always speaking to the media and challenging his opponents to meet him face to face (one even threatening to pull out a lamppost and personally hit the mayor of a neighboring city with it).

So which of these is the real Radaza and Ouano? It is said that difficult times bring out the real person in any of us. Those who put up a brave face and scream out challenges in normal situations are not necessarily so when bravery counts the most. Those who may be silent and apathetic in normal times may also be seen at the front lines stoically facing an incoming threat when everybody else starts running.

The threat of an early political end coming from being implicated in a highly questionable government purchase would certainly be something I would call a “difficult time” for any politician.

Are we now seeing the true colors of those whose names were implicated in the lamppost scam?

The typical senator

2007-03-26T22:50:00.001+08:00

What makes a senator?

Apparently, achievement or ability has nothing to do with it, if TV ads are to be our basis. Local television is bombarded with ads of people who wish to become senator or people who want to continue to be senators. Except for a handful, these ads never depict what these senatoriables, most of whom are reelectionists, have done for the good of the country (maybe because they haven't done anything for the good of the country?).

But these ads do have something else in common. Several, as a matter of fact. And because almost all ads of these senatorial hopefuls depict these things in one form or another, I sarcastically surmise that these are perhaps the basis for what a senator in the Philippines really is:

A typical senator wears a bright, mono-color golf shirt, tucked into a pair of jeans or slacks (never mind the bulging bellies) when out in public. Probably a required attire for all public servants.

A typical senator walks around with a posse of men and women wearing different professional attires, from nurse uniforms, medical scrubs, laboratory coats, farmers' clothes, etc. The members of this posse may or may not be bringing placards bearing the name and/or face of the leader of their posse. The members of the posse also often have a “faraway look” on their faces as if looking at a bright future (or Superman passing by).

A typical senator spends his day smiling and shaking hands with the everyday people on the street, which apparently doesn't happen unless a camera, video or still, is present, or unless elections come close. Preferably a combination of both, complete with director and supporting cast.

A typical senator is popular with all manner of humanity. “Idol ng X” is a commonly used phrase, where X can be anything from the youth, the disabled, the elderly, the poor, the marginalized, or even the country as a whole. I doubt, however, if these candidates actually have any bases for these claims.

A typical senator knows how to farm! Would you believe that? Apparently, some of them actually join your typical, everyday farmer in bending over a rice field under a hot sun and sticking rice plants into wet mud all day. I haven't seen this myself, of course. And I doubt anybody else has. In fact, I suspect the only people who have actually seen this in person are TV production crews. But hey, if these senatorial hopefuls are really honest, then I suspect these people really do plant rice with their bare hands! (Riiight) This also applies to other kinds of manual labor, such as construction work. Some senators even sell fish at the nearby palenke!

Based on these ads, there is also at least one thing we can surmise that a typical senator is not: A typical senator is not a champion of any particular cause in the form of a platform or long-term plan. Perhaps they do on paper, but I doubt this is anything sincere. If these platforms were serious, then this should be the first thing their ads depict. Instead, we remember senatorial ads for their silly jingles or the starlet or sports star the ad features. The closest I've seen to a plan is one candidate saying it is his dream to fulfill the people's dreams. I guess that's a plan, vague as it is. Unless of course “Boom, boom, boom” is some sort promise of economic prosperity.

Based on these ads, then, we can surmise that the typical senatorial candidate running for the May 14 polls is definitely not the kind of senator this country needs.

So, as a citizen and a registered voter of this country, I then urge you, fellow voters, not to choose your senators based on those expensive, multi-million peso ads that amount to practically nothing. They may be full of flair and pizzaz, but these ads tell us nothing. Research on the candidates. Choose the best among them for their merits, and reject those who have done no good for this nation.

Don't let an ad make that decision for you.

How to destroy the Earth, part II

2007-03-12T22:50:00.001+08:00

Scientist have recently discovered a giant hole in the Earth's crust somewhere in the Atlantic. This hole goes straight down into the planet's mantle. In another part of the planet, a large part of the Earth's crust has been discovered to be falling straight into the planet's core.

Some laymen think this is a sign of the end, that the Earth is going to tear itself apart soon. Hardly, scientists say. It'll take more than that to destroy a planet.

In my last column, the last five of the top 10 methods to destroy the planet were outlined. Here are the top five, just to give you wannabe planet-destroyers an idea on how hard it is to actually pull it off.

All in good scientific fun, of course.

5) Sucked into a giant black hole – Tools: A black hole and extremely powerful rocket engines. Method: After locating your black hole, you need to get it and the Earth together. This is likely to be the most time-consuming part of this plan. There are two methods, moving the Earth or moving the black hole, though for best results you'd most likely move both at once.

Very difficult, but definitely possible.

End result: Earth as part of the mass of the black hole.

This one's inspired by the book “The Hitch Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy,” by Douglas Adams.

4) Meticulously and systematically deconstructed – Tools: A powerful mass driver, or, ideally, lots of them. Method: Dig up the Earth, a big chunk at a time, and boost into orbit the whole lot of it – all six sextillion tons of it. The mass driver – essentially an oversized electromagnetic gun – takes care of launching each chunk of Earth into space, assuming you can construct a mass driver powerful enough to fire projectiles at enough speed to hit gravitational escape velocity of 11 km per second.

Alternate methods include loading chunks of Earth into shuttles and rocketing them out into space, or loading these chunks into space elevators. All these are conceptually possible, though all methods require a titanic amount of energy to carry out.

If humanity were willing, we could start this process right now. With all the gunk our space projects have already left in space, technically, we have already started this process.
End result: Earth in tiny pieces scattered across the Solar system. Estimated time to complete: 189,000,000 years.

3) Pulverized by impact with blunt instrument – Tools: A big, heavy rock... perhaps Mars. Method: Anything can be destroyed if you hit it hard enough. ANYTHING. The concept is simple: find a really, really big asteroid or planet, accelerate it up to some dazzling speed, and smash it into Earth, preferably head-on, much like a cue ball on a billiard table. After a spectacular collision, Earth and our “cue ball” should be pulverized out of existence.

The exact size of the “cue ball” will have to depend on how fast you can accelerate it. Hurling an asteroid-sized object at the Earth at near the speed of light should disintegrate the planet. The slower your cue ball's speed, the bigger it needs to be. If you're only going to rely on the Earth's gravity for acceleration, then your cue ball will need to be around the size of Venus. You'll just need to find a way to knock Venus into the Earth's path first.

End result: Earth as a variety of roughly moon-sized chunks of rock.

2) Eaten by Von Neumann machines – Tools: One Von Neumann machine. Method: A Von Neumann machine is any device that is capable of harvesting raw materials on its own to produce an exact copy of itself. This may be difficult because of the “photocopier principle”: that a copy is never as good as the original. So eventually, a certain generation of Von Neumann machines after the original machine would no longer be functional. But if you CAN create one that can make a perfect copy of itself and have it subsist almost entirely on iron, magnesium, aluminum and silicon – the major elements found in Earth's mantle and core – then you're on the right track. It doesn't matter how big it is as long as it can reproduce itself exactly in any period of time. Release it into the ground and allow it to fend for itself. Watch and wait as it creates a second Von Neumann machine, then they create two more, then they create four more. As the population of machines doubles repeatedly, the planet Earth will, terrifyingly soon, be entirely eaten up and turned into a swarm of potentially sextillions of machines. Six sextillion if each of your machines is the size and weight of a typical large sedan. Technically, your objective would now be complete – no more Earth. Now you just have to figure out what to do with several sextillion Von Neumann machines.

End result: Earth as the bodies of an unimaginable number of free-floating, planet-eating devices that could very well eat up other rocky planets in the universe.

1) And finally, the most feasible way to destroy the Earth: Hurled into the sun – Tools: planetmoving equipment. Method: Strap your planetmoving equipment, like giant rockets, to the Earth and send the planet towards the sun. You don't actually have to literally hit the sun, just send the Earth near enough to the sun and a combination of gravitational forces and solar energy will disintegrate the planet.

Moving the Earth directly may not yet be possible, but human beings already have the capacity to move smaller but still fairly large space bodies, like using nuclear weapons to divert the course of an asteroid. These asteroids, if large enough and coursed right, can then knock the Earth out of its orbit and into the sun. You'll just need to be lucky enough to find an asteroid large enough and near enough first.

End result: Earth as a globule of vaporized iron sinking slowly into the heart of the Sun.
So there you have it, would-be destroyers of the Earth. Think you have the capacity to do any of these things? Not very easy, is it?

But unfortunately, rendering the Earth unlivable is much easier than actually destroying it. But that's for another discussion.

How to destroy the earth

2007-03-06T00:00:00.000+08:00

Nope, no play with words here, folks. The title is as it sounds. What with politicians all over TV, Kris Aquino and James Yap's marital problems, land swap deals gone wrong, and elections, elections, elections.

And that's just on the local scene. In a global scale, there's war, famine, all sorts of disease and natural disasters like the increasing global warming. Add to that Jessica Zafra's desire to rule the world. Wouldn't you want to destroy the world before she can take over? (Though I suppose Zafra as supreme ruler wouldn't be half bad.)

But seriously, this is all in good scientific fun. In TV, movies and other fiction, destroying the Earth or any planet is usually shown as a fairly easy task given the excuse of “advanced technology.” (Remember the Galactic Empire's Death Star in Star Wars?) However, from a realistic point of view, exactly what kind of effort does it take to actually do such a monumental task?

Well, a bunch of eggheads came together recently and thought up various possibilities on how to destroy a planet, specifically, Earth. While some possibilities were inspired by works of fiction or working theories, under the right conditions, they may still happen. And no, it's not as easy as pointing the Death Star at a target and pressing the fire button.

For the sake of our greater knowledge and maybe an outrageous open debate over a weekend cup of latte, here are the top 10 most likely ways the Earth can actually be destroyed, 10 being the least likely, and 1 as the most likely way.

10) Total existence failure – Tools: Nothing. Method: None. Simply sit back and twiddle your thumbs as, completely by chance, all 20x10^49 atoms making up the Earth suddenly, simultaneously and spontaneously cease to exist. The odds against this actually ever occurring are considerably greater than a googolplex to one. Failing this, some kind of arcane (read: scientifically laughable) probability-manipulation device may be employed.

End result: Earth inexplicably disappears. Could happen.

9) Gobbled up by strangelets – Tools: A stable strangelet, particles of theoretical strange matter, which, in layman's terms, is a kind of subatomic particle that has an ability to convert normal matter into becoming strange matter by infecting a normal atom's nucleus. This “infection” creates a release of energy as one atom of matter turns into strange matter and infects other matter into doing the same. Method: Hijack control of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) in Brookhaven National Laboratory, Long Island, New York. Use the RHIC to create and maintain a stable strangelet. Keep it stable for as long as it takes to absorb the entire Earth into a mass of strange matter. Keeping the strangelet stable is incredibly difficult once it has absorbed the stabilizing machinery, but creative solutions may be possible.

A while back, there was some media talk about the possibility of this actually happening at the RHIC, but in actuality the chances of a stable strangelet forming are pretty much zero, especially after the strangelet would destroy the machine.

End result: Earth as a huge glob of strange matter.

8) Sucked into a microscopic black hole – Tools: A microscopic black hole. Note that black holes are not eternal; they evaporate eventually, depending on size. For your average black hole, this takes an unimaginable amount of time, but for really small ones it could happen almost instantaneously. Therefore your microscopic black hole must have greater than a certain threshold mass, roughly equal to the mass of Mount Everest. Creating a microscopic black hole is tricky, since one needs a reasonable amount of neutronium, but may possibly be achievable by jamming large numbers of atomic nuclei together until they stick. This is left as an exercise to the reader. Method: Simply place your black hole on the surface of the Earth and wait. The black hole will eat through the ground towards the gravitational center of the Earth. Then you just need to wait while it sits and consumes matter until the whole Earth is gone.
Highly, unlikely. But not impossible.

End result: The matter composing the planet will become part of the black hole of almost zero size.

7) Blown up by matter/antimatter reaction – Tools: 2.5 trillion tons of antimatter, the opposite of matter and the most explosive substance in the universe. It can be manufactured in small quantities using any large particle accelerator, but it will take a considerable amount of time to produce the required amounts. If you can create the appropriate machinery, it may be possible. Method: Release the antimatter towards the Earth. Just a single atom of antimatter coming into contact with its matter equivalent will annihilate both particles, resulting in a release of energy the equivalent of mini-Big Bangs. You don't have to annihilate the Earth atom by atom; just enough to create as many mini-Big Bangs to destroy the planet. Around 2.5 trillion tones of antimatter should give enough bang to destroy all 5.9742×10^24 tones of matter that is the Earth.

How hard is that?

End result: A second asteroid belt around the Sun.

6) Destroyed by vacuum energy detonation – Tools: A lightbulb. Method: This is a fun one, though theoretical. Contemporary scientific theories tell us that what we may see as vacuum is only “empty space” on average, but it is actually thriving with vast amounts of particles and antiparticles (note: NOT matter and antimatter) constantly appearing and then instantly annihilating each other. It also suggests that the volume of space enclosed by a light bulb contains enough vacuum energy to boil every ocean in the world. Therefore, vacuum energy could prove to be the most abundant energy source of any kind. Theoretically. This is where you come in. All you need to do is figure out how to harness this energy in some kind of power plant, then surreptitiously allow the reaction to run out of control. The resulting release of energy would easily be enough to annihilate all of planet Earth and probably the Sun too.

Slightly possible.

End result: Earth as a rapidly expanding cloud of particles of varying size. May eventually destroy the galaxy.

More ways to destroy the Earth next week. In the mean time, see if you can figure out how YOU can destroy the Earth on your own.

Developing a Ciudad

2007-02-19T23:36:00.000+08:00

Personally, I like the idea of having an “old Cebu”-style commercial area in barangay Banilad, Cebu City. Not only will something like that spur economic growth in the already booming Banilad-Talamban area, but the idea behind the proposed development, called “Ciudad,” does have a unique twist that definitely sets it apart from the usual commercial complexes in Cebu.

(For a preview, check out the sample building the developers constructed in front of the Aboitiz complex in Banilad.)

There are, however, two things that concern me about having such a development in the area.

First and foremost is the concern over the area's accessibility, and on this point, I have to agree with Mayor Tomas Osmeña. The one and only main road passing through barangay Banilad – Gov. M. Cuenco Ave. – is small. Very small in fact, considering it’s the only thoroughfare connecting the central area of the city to Talamban. With central Cebu City already more or less saturated, commercial and residential areas of all kinds are heading towards Banilad and Talamban. But this progress, I think, is being stunted because of the size of Gov. M. Cuenco Ave, commonly known as the Banilad road.

As it is, traffic along the Banilad road is legendary. You can barely pick a time of day wherein you can drive down that road without joining stop-go, bumper-to-bumper traffic. You can then imagine what happens during rush hour.

Key choke points along that road include the northern foot of the flyover at the intersection of Salinas Drive. Congestion there is at its heaviest at night due to the unchecked entry and exit of vehicles near the Crossroads commercial complex. On nights where traffic enforcers are present there, the flow of traffic is still heavy, but at least regulated. Without enforcers, so many vehicles try to make illegal left turns from Crossroads that gridlocks often occur.

Another choke point is the area in front of Gaisano Country Mall, especially the northbound direction heading towards Talamban. That direction only has two lanes, but the left lane is often blocked by vehicles trying to make a left into the mall, while the right lane is blocked by jeepneys waiting to pick up passengers.

A third choke point would be the road near the Banilad Town Center. The situation here mimics Crossroads, but at least here, traffic enforcement seems stricter and the mall developed its entry/exit points well enough to minimize traffic jams caused by vehicles going in and out of the mall.

Still, as the only road headed towards fast-booming Talamban, Gov. M. Cuenco Ave. is not enough. Traffic there is so bad, even 30 years ago, in fact, that when Pope John Paul II visited Cebu in the 1980s and his convoy had to wait for the flow of traffic resume, it is said that he spotted a little chapel near Gov. M. Cuenco Ave.’s intersection with Salinas drive, got down, and prayed there for quite a while.

That brings me to my second concern. This little chapel, dedicated to the Child Jesus, still stands. Small and unassuming, it is one of the structures set to be demolished along with so many homes of informal settlers to make way for Ciudad.

If that story about the late Pope is true, then I’d think this little chapel has some historic value. Heck, if Pope John Paul II becomes a saint, that place may qualify as a shrine.

If Ciudad is to be created, I hope that chapel will be allowed to stay up, maybe even make it a part of the development. After all, since Ciudad seems to be designed to invoke a Spanish-era atmosphere, what’s the Spanish era without their most significant contribution – Christianity – to the Filipino people?

And let’s not forget the residents who live in the area. Informal or not, they will need a place to stay once they’re relocated.

If Ciudad is to be created, a lot of things do need to be addressed first. It would be counterproductive for a development to actually cause more problems for the area it was created in rather to make things better.

Cebu Province, which owns the land on which Ciudad is to be built, would do well to first ensure the consequences of such a development. Working with the Cebu City government to find ways to increase accessibility through Banilad and towards Talamban would be a good start. If widening Gov. M. Cuenco Ave. is no longer an option, then consider developing other routes, such as the smaller, lesser-used roads towards Talamban from the Asiatown IT Park or barangay Lahug at the base of Nivel Hills.

I certainly look forward to the development of Ciudad and all it has to offer. I just hope the rush to complete it won’t cause more problems for the denizens of Cebu instead of making things better.

Press inquisition

2007-02-13T00:00:00.000+08:00

Does earning a space in a newspaper's opinion pages give a person the right to make conclusions based on nothing more than current events?

This seems to be the case with many columnists nowadays, especially when it comes to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her administration. Ever since the Hello Garci issue came up, it seems every anti-Arroyo critic out there who also holds a regular space in local and national dailies seem to write on the assumption that Arroyo is a “fake President.” No evidence presented, no charges filed. For them, it seems to be just a plain fact that the President cheated in the 2004 elections.

Exactly what gives them the right to make such claims?

They say things like “President who is not a president at all” so matter of factly. Exactly how does one back up such claims? Do these columnists have solid proof of these allegations? If so, why not present them and let the courts make the conclusion? If not, why do the papers that carry these columns allow such allegations to be printed? Sounds more like an attempt at trial-by-media rathat than any sort of media responsibility.

If it's not resolved in a court of law, calling Arroyo a fake president, controversy or no controversy, is just like me calling my next-door neighbor a murderer. Of course, I don't know if my neighbor really killed anyone; I have no evidence pointing to that. But if I were to follow the logic of these Arroyo-critic columnists, then I seem to be well within my rights to scream bloody murder to the entire world.

I remember a time when this system was in effect in Europe. It was called the Inquisition. Ah, those were good times. Point to someone and scream “witch” and you have an instant human bonfire. Or a fairly large hanging décor in the town square. Thank God we're civilized enough not to point fingers without evidence anymore.

Right.

I hope my colleagues in the media who are quite prone to finger pointing would at least put a sliver of open-mindedness in their columns. Not only is it not nice to accuse someone of something without any evidence to back it up, but it also puts some doubt on whether or not the press nowadays is still a neutral entity. Accusing anyone, especially the President, of being guilty of anything outside a court setting is just asking for counter-accusations of being biased. And those would be well-deserved counter-accusations indeed.
I'm not defending the administration of any possible wrong it may have done. Hey, if they did something wrong, may those responsible burn in hell. But despite any corruption or underhandedness this country's government may have, we are still a society of law. When we stray from that law just to find justice, then we're no better than the evil people we seek to overthrow.

* * *

Sugbuak is dead. Well, in a coma, at the most. The 13th Congress has shelved that issue, and thank God for that. Those proposals to break up Cebu Province just stank of politics. I can't see why congressmen would even consider those bills when most Cebuanos I've talked to are completely opposed to it. While I'm sure there are those apart from the Sugbuak congressmen who are in favor of the concept, I still have to meet at least one Cebuano who could tell me they like the idea.

And I thought congressmen were supposed to be representatives of the people.

From a layman's point of view, making provinces out of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th districts would spell suicide for the towns in those areas. On paper, the intentions of the congressmen were to help those towns develop since the new provinces would have their own share of the Internal Revenue Allotment. But that's about all they could depend on. Their economies are hardly self-sufficient. While I certainly look forward to times when towns could actually spur development on their own, now just doesn't seem like the right time yet.

And when that time comes, I personally think Cebu Island would benefit from that sort of development as a whole, not as four provinces.

* * *

A very Happy Valentines to all you love birds out there! And for us singles: Patience, patience. Put down that gun and keep your head away from that noose. The right person for you is out there waiting for you. Don't disappoint them by not showing up when the time is right.

* * *

Starting today, this column will appear every Tuesday.

Landmark no more

2007-01-29T00:00:00.000+08:00

For anyone who passes through S. Osmeña Ave. near Pier 4 in Cebu City’s North Reclamation Area, it was hard not to notice the five strange, massive, gray structures being built at one of the port’s open spaces. Most described them as imbudos or funnels. Some thought they were oil silos. Some called them rain catchers. Some teased that they were coffee mugs of giants, while some even called them UFOs. Whatever the public called them, fact is, almost everybody had no idea what those structures were as they were being built in 2006.

As the structures rose from the ground, they quickly became a prominent feature of the pier’s landscape. Like SM City Cebu, the unoccupied Sheraton Hotel and the Cebu Daily News building, those five gray funnel-shaped things became a landmark all their own at the Reclamation Area. In times my car would break down and I had to take a jeepney to work, I could hear people say, “Lugar lang sa may imbudo,” and everybody knew exactly what that meant.

While those structures were definitely no secret, it was only recently that their true nature was revealed: They were thickeners, devices used in the mining industry to separate ore into its components – rock material and whatever valuable substance the mining company wants from that ore, like metals or precious stones. This was done through various processes using mechanisms inside the structures. These were no funnels; these were mining machines. In the case of these five thickeners at the pier, these were to be used for mining nickel.

Built by Metaphil, a construction company owned by the Aboitiz Group of Companies, each of these thickeners weighed 243.4 tons, were 23.2 meters high, and 20 meters in diameter, according to handouts released during the loading ceremony for these machines. These thickeners, which Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña called “giant muffins,” were meant for export to a nickel mine in New Caledonia, a territory of France that supplies a great part of the world’s nickel.

Even as I write this column, I can see three of the five thickeners being loaded into a massive vessel called the MV Happy Buccaneer, owned by a company called BigLift. And the name is appropriate. The ship featured two large cranes just as big (or maybe even bigger) than the land-based cranes we have at the Cebu International Port. By the time this column is published, the Happy Buccaneer would be on its way to New Caledonia, bringing with it five large machines made right here in Cebu.

If I haven’t stressed it enough, these thickeners were large. The logistics in transporting them were larger. But what’s probably grander than all these is the fact that five machines that were fabricated and assembled right here in Cebu by Cebuano hands will soon contribute to producing the world’s supply of nickel, a metal essential in many consumer products, not the least of which is the stainless steel used in your kitchen cutlery, and many alloys used in different industries around the world.

As of last Friday, the North Reclamation Area looked very different than it did the past year. The imbudos were no longer in their usual place, but were on the far side of the port being loaded onto a ship. The giants have drank their coffee. The UFOs have launched. From where they once cast a long shadow for several months is now a patch of open sky once more.

I’m sure Cebuanos, especially those who frequently passed by the Cebu International Port, will miss those short-term landmarks. (Especially the shade they produced from the early morning sun). That goes double for the 100 or so men and women whose hands built those thickeners. But Cebu’s loss is also its gain, and that of the world. Not only will Cebuano workmanship now contribute to the world’s nickel industry, but we have shown that Cebu is ready and capable of doing such monumental, world-contributing tasks.

My congratulations to the men and women of Metaphil for making us Cebuanos proud.

Boring beauty

2007-01-22T00:00:00.000+08:00

I came down with a fever on the first week of January, starting right smack on Jan. 1. While it was a heck of a way to start the New Year, it did give me the opportunity to take a break and catch up on some TV, something I realized I haven’t done in months.

While I channel surfed like crazy for several days, I couldn’t help but notice the numerous local ads for beauty products. While I normally don’t mind these ads, I started to take notice when, after seeing several ads repeatedly, almost all of them gave this common, single stereotype of what was beautiful – white skin and long, super-straight hair. Something most Filipinos are not born with.

Ads for commercials, shampoos, leave-ons, soaps, scrubs, you name it, featured a long, straight-haired girl with white skin. This goes for print ads as well.

I have to ask: Why?

If this is the modern concept of the Filipina beauty, I have to say it’s pretty boring. Admittedly, some women do look great with long straight hair and white skin, but I also have to say that a good lot don’t. Yet this is all we see in commercials, with cosmetic companies pushing for everyone to have this look, even to the point that some ads make it sound like having curly hair is a sin or being morena is a product of divine intervention or something that should be cured shortly after one is born.

I’m sure these cosmetics companies have a lot to earn from trying to push this version of “beauty.” What’s sad is that a lot of women buy it, figuratively and literally.

While cosmetic changes are just that – cosmetic – and that true beauty lies within, I have to wonder what kind of character a person has on the inside when that person can’t even appreciate what God gave him or her on the outside. I can understand cosmetic changes to remove something that may actually be practically or socially debilitating, such a large scar from a horrible accident or an inborn deformity that makes it difficult to speak. But skin tone and hair type? And everybody having the same long, straight hair and white skin? What’s so attractive about a “beautiful” woman when she looks just like the next “beautiful” woman?

I point you to the cover of the December issue of Preview magazine, for example. It featured Gretchen Barretto, Dawn Zulueta, Angel Aquino and Ruffa Gutierrez. They’re all known for their individual beauty. Then they’re featured together in a shampoo commercial and on the magazine, all sporting the same generic “beautiful” look. What happens? Give the magazine cover or the commercial a quick glance and you can’t distinguish any of them from each other. You have to take a real close look behind the long straight hair of each woman before you can tell who is who. Individually beautiful women subjected to genericized beauty to the max. Pity.

In contrast and still to the point, I refer to that TV commercial of a whitening product that, at least for me, missed its mark completely. This ad had a photographer taking a picture of two women, apparently sisters, of different skin tones, wherein the photographer comments “Okay, beautiful... Talaga’ng magkapatid ba kayo?” obviously in reference to one sister being significantly whiter than the other. I’m sorry to say, but even though I’ve seen that ad multiple times over the past few months, I still can’t recall what the whiter sister looks like. It’s the face of the darker-skinned sister that struck me as being more beautiful. A lot of my friends, both guys and girls, apparently had the same opinion as well, which proves that being whiter doesn’t necessarily mean more beautiful.

So when exactly did we Filipinos start thinking of our natural dark skin shade or hair curl as a bad thing? We could easily blame that on western influences, but I think that’s far too convenient an excuse. The fact that some of us are too easily influenced by what others think should be beautiful underlies a deeper problem of a people who aren’t comfortable with their self-image; who have not taken time to think about how beautiful they already are, and thus have to adopt other people’s definition of beauty.

And honestly, these cosmetics ads aren’t helping.

So what’s a people to do? Well, for starters, look in the mirror and see before you the beautiful thing God created. Then decide: What’s better, what God created beautiful, or what mere humans think should be beautiful? Everything else should go from there.

ASEAN Union

2007-01-15T00:00:00.001+08:00

Today is the last day of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. Over the past two days, much has transpired, from agreements on terrorism to efforts to make it easier for workers from ASEAN member-countries to cross borders.

Some pacts are legally binding, some are merely well-meaning agreements that cannot be enforced in any way. All, however, are steps in the right direction – to unite the region through shared goals and to cooperate for the common good.

World leaders should meet like this more often.

While the long-term good of this 12th ASEAN Summit won’t be felt for quite some time, the fact that quite a number of agreements were signed here in Cebu, not the least of which is the ASEAN Charter, should make this latest meeting among ASEAN leaders one of the most significant in the group’s history. The ASEAN is now on its way to becoming a single driving force on this side of the Pacific, if not on the entire planet.

Does this mean we will soon be seeing European Union-like changes anytime soon? I could only wish, but that’s not likely to happen. At least not yet. From what I can see, ASEAN countries, for all their similarities, are also still very divided politically, ideologically, and especially geographically. And while technology, such as the Internet and faster commercial travel, is making it easier and easier to overcome geographical boundaries, some countries (or at least part of some countries) in Southeast Asia don’t seem like they’re quite ready yet to accept that humanity is a single species and should have shared goals. Many in certain countries still squirm and cry out against ideas of opening up to the world. While their fears of losing their cultural identity or being overpowered by influences of other nations may have basis, it also bears noting that a people need not lose its identity by merely being exposed to other cultures.

How about a Euro-like common currency then? That may start the ball of unity rolling, but that may be hard considering Southeast Asian countries have vastly different economies. Malaysia’s, for example, is already quite developed. Myanmar’s, on the other hand, still has a lot of catching up to do. Vietnam’s economy is currently climbing like crazy, while ours in the Philippines is... well, let’s just say it’s in a state of flux, but at least it’s been getting some stability lately. The exact value of a common currency would be hard to pin down considering the current economic state of Southeast Asia. But it’s not impossible, given time and the right cooperation.

An EU-like unity for Southeast Asia may not be quite here yet, but it may be just over the horizon. Who knows? Developments during this 12th ASEAN Summit already look promising, so 13 may be a lucky number for the ASEAN when its leaders meet again in at least a year. This “One Caring and Sharing Community” may eventually do more than just care and share, and actually unite for an even more powerful Southeast Asia. An ASEAN Union? Only time (and a little effort from our leaders) will tell.

To the leaders of the nations that compose the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and their dialog partners, thank you for coming to Cebu. Your presence here may have been short, but it was undoubtedly historic. May this and future summits lead to a greater future for Southeast Asia and the world.

Looking back, looking forward

2007-01-01T00:00:00.000+08:00

Happy New Year!

It’s the first day of 2007. Another year of possibilities, another year of hope. The proverbial reset button is pressed and everybody gets a second chance.

So what’s to look forward to this year? First off, in just two weeks, we get to live out the horror that was supposed to come by last December in the form of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. The summit itself won’t be a horror (hopefully). As a matter of fact, it’s expected to do a lot of good for Southeast Asia in general, the country in particular, and Cebu to be even more specific. The horror will be for us Cebuanos who live or work in Cebu City, Mandaue City, or Lapu-Lapu City, when we will have to contend with rerouted traffic, paranoid-level security (which would be a good thing), and totally messed up itineraries for the most of a whole week. Well, as mentioned in my last column, it’s a bit of a sacrifice that will hopefully lead to a better future for all of us.

Then, of course, it’s Sinulog on the 21st of this month. That’s a yearly event, so nothing unexpected there, but definitely something that us Cebuanos look forward to. Enjoy the revelry, folks! But watch your wallets when in crowds.

And come May, we have the mid-term elections. Or at least, we hope there will be elections. All this talk about Charter change, switching styles of government and how the May elections will be affected by all of this is really getting tedious. While I’m definitely open to changing our Charter from our current virtual-photocopy of the American Constitution to something purely our own, somehow, by looking at some of our lawmakers and how they acted lately, I’m not entirely convinced that they intend to change the Charter purely for the good of the people. Granted, some have this genuine intention, but others definitely have their own personal motives in mind.

On a personal level, I also have much to look forward to in 2007. In a few months, God willing, I’ll be an uncle! Sabine Lucila Pilar Java Cuizon, still nestled in her mother Maria’s womb, is expected to come into the world in March. Already, she’s as sipat as her mother. Nothing short of an act of God is going to stop me from flying to Manila for the kid’s birth. Or at least the baptism, since births do tend to be unexpected sometimes. Personally, I’m hoping both would happen here in Cebu, but since pregnant women and flying are said to be a bad combination, I’ll take whatever I can.

Then there’s my own baby. No, not the crying, drooling kind. This “baby” is metal and 39 years old – a 1968 Ford Thunderbird. I bought this not-so-little, beat-up cruiser last August to finally satiate my desire to own an American classic. That, and to show this “newer is better” world that things that aren’t so new can still be just as beautiful, perhaps even more so, than the new. Though I would have preferred a convertible, this car does have its own wicked charm. It’s not running (considering its engine is currently in three different places in my house), but I hope to change that this year. Except for a very few rust spots, a broken driver’s side window, and some missing trimmings, this car’s body is in exceptional condition. Even the seats are its original leathers, and still in an almost-immaculate state. The engine, on the other hand, needs to be assessed on whether it’s still useable. I intend to finally put this baby into a shop by this or next week to start its long-awaited restoration. It’s going to be slow, considering my resources are quite limited, but I hope to bring this baby back to life as soon as possible. Wish me luck! Oh, and if any of you readers have any tips on classic car restoration, like where or how to get good-but-cheap parts, do e-mail me. I’ll need all the help I can get. (Anybody know where to get an engine decent enough to pull a two-ton car?) If all goes well, I’ll be posting updates on the restoration on this column every now and then.

Then there’s my social life (or lack thereof). As a member of the media, it’s ironic that I don’t go out much. It’s an irony that my friends point out at every opportunity. Well, I’ve never been big on socialization, preferring instead to spend time with people I already know well. But I guess it wouldn’t hurt to get to know some new people, too. This year, I’ll try to be more sociable. Schedule permitting.

Now for the requisite look at the past year.

The year 2006 wasn’t bad. In fact, apart from the usual plots by destabilizers to grab power or disrupt the normal flow of government, the country fared pretty well. At the start of 2006, the US dollar was worth P53, stronger than the P56 back in 2005. Now, the exchange rate is P49 and still getting stronger. Investors are coming in, terrorism is going out. And Cebu, courtesy of the ASEAN Summit, got quite the makeover with paved roads and streetlighting galore.

Many significant events also happened in the international scene, but perhaps none more shocking and sudden than the execution of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein last Saturday. What a way to end the year.

And on a personal level, the thing I’m probably most thankful for in 2006 was being able to get in touch again with an old friend whom I “met” when I was still two or three years old. I don’t remember that, of course, but old, discolored pictures sure point that out. We’ve only interacted marginally over the past years, but last March, we crossed paths again and she has definitely become one of my most trusted friends. Joan, thanks for being you.

Well, 2006 has come and gone, and 2007 is here for the next 365 days. Have a blessed year, everyone! And God be with us all.

Enduring Christmas

2006-12-18T00:00:00.000+08:00

Christmas is exactly one week from today. But with everything going on in the country right now, it’s hard to feel the Christmas Spirit. Odd, especially when us Filipinos tend to feel Christmas as early as September. But even now, Christmas seems to be one of the last things on people’s minds, all because so many things have agitated us Filipinos lately.

First reason: The 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. On the weeks approaching the original schedule for the event, the first thing on everyone’s mind was just how to survive the inconveniences the summit would cause: Traffic, getting to and from work, whether there would be work in the first place, loss of business, rescheduled or totally trashed trips, lack of accommodation for visiting loved ones, and all regular day-to-day things that the summit would ultimately affect. Everyone had their thoughts on how to compensate for all these. Who has time for Christmas when you can’t even figure out how to get to where you need to go and where to stay?

Second reason: The postponement of the 12th ASEAN Summit. If there was any major downer for the government – especially the local governments – in this season of joy, it was the last-minute decision to move the summit to January. The official reason for this was typhoon Seniang. But many sectors are raising just as many “real” reasons why the summit was postponed: The political turmoil caused by the proposed Charter Change, the “alternative summits” organized by activists and militants, the Lady of Guadalupe not wanting to be upstaged, terrorist threats, controversies over the Cebu International Convention Center, etc., etc., etc. But whatever the reason was, it’s clear that the postponement caused enough of a stir to put even more of a damper on the spirit of the season.

Third reason: The agitation of having to go through reason number one all over again. While people breathed a collective sigh of relief with the summit’s postponement, everybody knew the postponement would just delay the inevitable. The traffic, the screwed-up plans and schedules, everything expected during the original summit dates would come back to haunt us next month. And this time, it may even do more damage. Many sectors, especially the business sector, had to move their December plans to January due to the ASEAN Summit’s original schedule. This added to their original start-of-the-year plans. But now that the ASEAN is also to be held in January, the start of the year is going to be thrice as hectic for many, many people. Plans, counter-plans, and counter-counter plans now have to be made. This has relegated Christmas to the back of most people’s minds.

Another reason: Charter Change. Ironic for a body that’s mandated to make laws, Congress spontaneously seemed to think they could make up their own rules and decided to make a push to change the Constitution in what was, even for supporters of the administration, a totally laughable process. The ensuing public outcries and rallies not only inconvenienced the everyday man, but it also didn’t do any good for the already-divided nation.

Then there’s my pet peeve: Atheists. Their cries are not as loud as those of other causes, especially in this predominantly Catholic (at least on paper) nation. But elsewhere in the world, their cries are getting louder. Their demand: Kill Christmas. This is their basic plea when they try to tell shopping malls and other businesses not to put up religious images or even the word “Christmas” anywhere in their establishments. They say doing so would be forcing one’s beliefs on them. Am I the only person who sees the irony in that? People who believe there is no God telling others not to express religious beliefs because it infringes on their beliefs. But isn’t that a case of forcing one’s beliefs on another as well? In any case, I’m sure God loves atheists too, whether or not they believe in Him. But sometimes, atheists just get my goat, especially when they start picking on Christmas.

But despite all these, especially with Christmas just a week away, let us at least try to remember the real meaning of Christmas. Caring, sharing, love, and goodwill to all mankind. Yeah, those too. But at the core of all these – beyond the gifts, the overdecorated fake pine tree, the family reunions and noche buenas, and especially beyond the things, events, and people that keep on frustrating our plans – is one thing and one thing alone: That cute little Baby Boy born in a manger around 2,000 years ago, whose parents also had to endure similar things that many of us expect to endure or are now enduring – the census by the Roman Empire that required everyone to register in their hometowns, the traffic of people and other inconveniences caused by that census, the many riots and cries against it and the Roman Empire, the lack of accommodations, and one king who not only refused to believe in the Boy, but tried to kill Him as well.

Times are hard. But when our Savior was born, times were harder. It even became a lot harder for Him 33 years later when He died for us all. The sacrifices we have to endure for ourselves this season is nothing to what He had to endure for us all so many years ago.

Merry Christmas everyone! This year, don’t endure Christmas, but make Christmas endure. Show those you love that you care, and be kind and patient to those who would distress you.

That time of the year

2006-12-11T00:00:00.000+08:00

It’s the time of the year that the country has long been waiting for. The streets have been cleaned, the sidewalks brightened and decorated, fireworks are starting to light the air, and Cebuanos are congregating at brightly-lit venues to talk about the coming days and the years ahead.

Ah, yes. We’ve been waiting a whole year for this to come. And it’s finally here.
Christmas? Heck, no. It’s the ASEAN Summit! Or at least it would have been, were it not for its postponement.

Today would have been the first day of four wherein Southeast Asia’s leaders come together to discuss the future of the region. Due to circumstances beyond human control, however, the event in which Cebu had been preparing over the past year (more than it did for Christmas) will now be held in January.

Summit organizers were disappointed, of course. After preparing for so long, the event didn’t push through as scheduled. But at least there will be a new schedule, and Cebu’s preparations will not have been for naught. We just need to keep our preparations spic and span a month longer. That shouldn’t be too hard.

It’s just unfortunate for some companies, however, who had already made contingency plans to counter the side-effects of the ASEAN Summit. Not to mention individuals whose plans for December totally changed because of the international event, only to have it moved to a later date. A friend of mine, for example, had to cancel a trip out of the country that she had seriously been looking forward to, just because she had to help her company prepare for the summit. I can imagine her frustration now that the summit will not be pushing through.

While I share a police official’s view in saying that I would have preferred the summit to continue so that it’ll be over and done with, I’m also glad it was postponed so that the country could prepare for the effects of the very thing that postponed the summit – typhoon Seniang. We’ve had three typhoons hit the country in just two months. Many have died. It would have been remiss of the government not to brace for this latest one. And besides, summit leaders were supposed to fly in over the weekend. What, we should risk their lives by letting them fly in the middle of a typhoon?

What’s seriously getting my goat with this whole postponement, however, is the reactions of certain sectors, claiming it was their moves that scared the government into pushing the summit back a little later.

Just goes to show how self-centered some people are. Hey, I’m not a big fan of the government either, but when they say the summit was postponed because of the coming typhoon, I believe them. Why? Hello? We’re the Philippines! We get an average of 19 typhoons in a year. We, of all nations, should know how to prepare for a storm, and especially what to expect after one. And when a typhoon comes along packing winds of up to 120 kilometers per hour, we best postpone international events, batten down the hatches and pray nobody gets killed. And then we concentrate on cleaning up the typhoon’s mess and help out our neighbors who lost their homes or maybe even their kin.

But no. Instead, some people who can think of nothing beyond their own concerns say that the ASEAN Summit was postponed because of their “storm of protests” or their “parallel summits” or because the country chickened out due to terrorist threats.

Sheer arrogance. Their causes might be just, but their methods are nothing more than deluded blasts of hot air. Spin doctoring events or the postponement thereof to suit their own delusions certainly isn’t the hallmark of people who really believe in the causes they claim to support. People lose their lives wherever typhoons hit. That is why the summit was postponed!

Instead of these activists spending their energies to swim in their delusions, they’ll do a lot better to go help out those poor families who no longer have homes, farmers who no longer have crops, and children who no longer have parents. Because that, at least, is why the government postponed the summit – to concentrate all efforts on those whose lives were ravaged by nature.

But I guess that’s too much to expect out of people who make up their own stories to make their causes look good.

At least the government, silly as it is a lot of times, still knows its priorities.

Let’s just hope the spirit of caring and sharing gets into the heads and hearts of these activists this Christmas. Maybe then they’ll start doing things that are more productive, rather than making it look as if something that was caused by an act of nature was their doing. Tell that to those who were killed in the typhoon.

Kiddie Christmas

2006-12-04T00:00:00.000+08:00

If anyone knows how to throw a party, it’s the Aboitizes.

I’ve never been a “party” person. If invited, I go, but I usually just stay at the sidelines. There was one, however, that I really looked forward to since last month, and that’s the Aboitiz-sponsored Christmas party for the media, which was held last Friday.

This, I have to say, was the most unique corporate-sponsored Christmas I’ve ever been to.

As far as I can remember, Aboitiz parties have always been unique, with organizers coming up with a new theme every year.

Three years ago, the party was held in two locations. It started at the Supercat terminal at pier 4, then it moved to one of their fast craft for a short cruise along the Mactan Channel, then back to the terminal.

Two years ago, it was a Spanish/gypsy-themed event complete with flamenco dancers and palm readers at the Casino Español.

Last year, it was a “harvest”-themed party that also featured Aboitiz’s corporate repackaging. Participants had the opportunity to pick their selection of fruits and bring them home in a basket.

This year, however, toped it all.

“Celebrating our Childhood Christmas.” This was their theme. And their gimmick: Childhood games galore.

I swear, if there was anything more fun than joining the games, it was seeing fully-grown men and women play around in the sand, skipping rope, kicking takyans, hoola-hooping or trying to pass human blockades in a game of tubig-tubig.

What was surprising was that our more mature colleagues in the media even came out the champions in the games they participated in. Then again, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, since “childhood games” for the younger members of the media nowadays actually translate to Warcraft and Counterstrike rather than sunka and buwan-buwan.

I’m so glad I took the day off from work last Friday, otherwise my schedule would have caused me to miss the whole shebang.

I have to admit that the rules on some of the games were a bit unclear. But if I were to have any complaints about the event, it was that it was over too soon. I haven’t had that much childish fun in ages! It was serious, sweaty, physically-tiring fun, and it didn’t even involve anything from the Kama Sutra. Even as I write this, my legs still ache from all the activity. I seriously need to get back to the gym.

Oh, and let’s not forget the extra-heavy loot bags that everyone went away with. In going home, I admit I was not very careful with the thing, so imagine my shock when I got home and opened it to discover not just a hoard of delicacies, but also this cute little clay jar or batirol – the kind used to make sikwate from tableya. Thankfully, it was intact despite my prior ignorance of its existence before opening the bag. It came complete with a stir stick or bolineo and a pack of tableya, too!

My thanks to Aboitiz and Co’s corporate communications team, who organized the event. Special thanks go to the executives of Aboitiz and Co. for being very “game” in more ways than one – not only did they come up with a great event, but some even joined in the games.

This was one party I did not regret attending. Can’t wait to see what you Aboitiz guys come up with next year!

Show us the money

2006-11-20T00:00:00.000+08:00

I’m not a boxing fan. I’ve always thought it to be a useless, almost-barbaric sport. So all I really cared about the match between the Philippines’ Manny Pacquiao and Mexico’s Erik Morales was who would win (for news story purposes). But when I arrived at the CDN newsroom yesterday and asked about the result, I was shocked with what I was told. Pacquiao won. Well, no shock there. The shocker was that he finished the match in just three rounds out of a planned 12. The fight ended in less than 10 minutes.

I admit, I got really curious as to what happened. Thankfully, the TV was there to oblige me. Over and over again, I might add.

Now, I wouldn’t be able to differentiate between an uppercut and a haymaker even if my life depended on it. However, I could really see that in this match, Morales was taking most of the beating since early into the fight. And whatever punches Morales landed on Pacquiao didn’t even seem to faze the Filipino.

In the third round, Morales “kissed the canvas” as they say in boxing jargon. A side-to-side movement of his head as he sat against the ropes signaled that he had enough.

Pacquiao won. And as I write this, I’m still hearing that “Laban natin ’to” song being played over and over. Off tangent, I think it’s getting annoying especially since the singer, Pacquiao himself, had obviously, well, poured all his talent into boxing in the first place.

I don’t really know if the P100 to P500 people paid for a live viewing of a fight that didn’t even last half the duration of an early morning Saturday cartoon was worth the money. It is nice to know, however, that while some people like me don’t really give a hoot about boxing, most of the country, at least for a short time, forgot all about the politics, the corruption, and the bickering, and celebrated as one for one countryman’s victory.

I guess boxing has its uses after all.

Congratulations, Manny Pacquiao. Again. You do all Filipinos proud.

* * *

The Nov. 15 deadline for the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) has come and gone, and even now, the building is still getting “finishing touches,” according to the Capitol. It’s now a matter of debate between provincial officials and seemingly everyone else on whether or not the CICC is actually 100 percent complete.

But that issue now seems to be moot. Deadline or not, the National Organizing Committee of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit has decided to use the CICC for the international event anyway. Just as long as it’s finished before the summit starts, that is.

That’s all well and good. With the question of whether or not the building can be used for the summit now answered, people are now asking a new question: What happens AFTER the summit?

“White elephant” seems to be a favorite term among critics. Many believe that once the summit is over, the CICC will just be another useless, multi-million peso building that will just sit there, wasted.

I beg to differ. While I don’t think the place will be booked 24/7, there are just so many events here in Cebu that have been waiting for a place like the CICC. For one, major car shows have been gaining momentum here in Cebu. But for the past two years, venues for such events have been limited to the activity centers or corridors of malls. With a place like the CICC, future car shows in Cebu can finally be held on an international scale. So to with fashion shows that boasts local designers’ world-class talent, expositions that showcase Cebu furniture that are already world-renowned, concerts of both local and international artists, and all other things that need large, indoor environments. Just as long as the facility is properly managed, it should be quite the useful piece of edifice.

What I believe will be the CICC’s main problem after the summit would not be related to its use as a building, but how the building came to be in the first place. At best, the Capitol’s use of “alternative methods of procurement” seemed vague. Which parts were bidded out normally? Which parts were acquired through these alternate methods? Perhaps the question that consolidates all these funding-related questions should be: Why is it that the CICC’s price tag kept on rising as the building was constructed?

Someone’s going to have to answer these questions, and a lot more. Perhaps these may be left unanswered for now for the sake of expediency in preparing for the ASEAN Summit. But when the delegates leave, someone around here is going to have to give the taxpayers an explanation on how their hard-earned money was spent on the CICC.

And the explanation better be good.

Use it or lose it

2006-11-13T00:00:00.000+08:00

This week, all eyes will be on the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC). The P800-million question is: Will it be finished by Wednesday, Nov. 15?

That deadline, just two days from now, was set by the National Organizing Committee (NOC) of the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. If the building were not finished by Nov. 15, summit organizers would switch to “Plan B” – summit events that were to be held at the CICC would instead be held in the Cebu City Waterfront Hotel and the Marco Polo Plaza Cebu.

CICC designer Manuel Guanzon seemed convinced that the structure would be done by this Wednesday, despite his seemingly retroactive claims of the building’s completion (on Nov. 4, he said the building was 100 percent complete, causing mixed reactions – none good – from the public. Then he declared on Nov. 5 that it was 99 percent complete, then the next day, he said on national television that it was 98 percent complete).

Vice Gov. Gregorio Sanchez Jr., a civil engineer by profession, is clearly optimistic about how the building was going. As of yesterday, Sanchez said the building was 99 percent complete. He, however, shared an opinion the same as the rest of the public based on an interview last month – the CICC will not be done by Wednesday. “Useable, but not 100 percent.”

In my humble opinion, I’d tend to agree with Sanchez and the rest of the public.

While I’m no architect or engineer, I’ve seen my share of buildings rise in Cebu. Some were made at a snail’s pace (like that hotel along Osmeña Blvd. that seems to have been under construction for YEARS, and it’s still not done), some seemed to pop out of nowhere (like the Parklane Hotel at the corner of Escario St. and Archbishop Reyes Ave). But in all cases, there was always a point in a building’s construction wherein the ordinary man on the street could say, “That one’s done,” or at least, “That’s almost done.”

Nobody, including myself, has that opinion about the CICC today, just two days from its target deadline. The Cebu Daily News building is practically a neighbor to the CICC. So, at times, I drive by the convention center to take a brief look. Despite the galvanized iron sheets blocking the CICC from view, the building is still visible through the front gates. I also have the benefit of “peeking” into the inside of the building courtesy of this paper’s photographers who are able to join tours of the building every now and then. The last tour was held last Wednesday. And by the looks of things, the CICC doesn’t even merit an “almost done” from this or any other layman. Not even close.

I seriously doubt the last light bulb for the CICC will have been placed in its socket by Wednesday.

That said, however, I do believe the CICC can be finished way before the ASEAN Summit starts on Dec. 10. The paint will be dry with all the bells and whistles in place, and then some. Before the end of the month, I’m sure it will be one of the most arse-kicking convention centers this side of the planet.

So this I urge of the summit organizers: If the CICC can’t be finished by Wednesday but would be complete before the start of 12th ASEAN Summit (or at least by the end of November), then please, just use the facility. Not only did the province go to great lengths (not to mention great costs) to make the building in time for the summit, but Cebu put its reputation on the line for this building. For it to be completed but unused for its maiden purpose would not only be a great irony and a lost opportunity to show what Cebuanos can do in such a short span of time (deadline or no deadline, the CICC still did get up pretty quick), but it would also be a severe blow to Cebu’s image to the international community if we have an “ASEAN building” not used for any ASEAN event.

Use it. Or lose the opportunity to show what Cebu and Cebuanos can do.

Beauty in age

2006-11-06T18:25:00.000+08:00

It’s funny how people put less value on things as they age, yet the most amazing things on earth are those that aren’t new.

Take for example cars. Look out into the streets and in all likelihood, most of the cars you see running around are younger than five years old. It’s already rare to see cars ten years or older. Yet these new cars are easily overlooked when, say, a well-maintained Chevrolet Impala or Ford Mustang from the 1960s is parked beside their younger counterparts.

Another example would be buildings. Modern engineers and architects strive to make buildings taller, bigger and more advanced. Yet the most awe-inspiring structures in existence are still those that have stood for hundreds, if not thousands of years – the Roman Coliseum, the Great Pyramids of Giza. the Eiffel Tower of Paris. All old, none criticized for shoddy construction work.

And let’s not forget the thing that is most notable (or notorious?) for requiring updates – electronics. Everybody wants the newest iPod or mp3 player or the latest stereo component. But these modern devices that produce the clearest, sharpest pitches just can’t quite compare to the unique sound produced by a phonograph.

Even values are getting a “new” makeover. Men no longer rush to open doors for women, since women are already seen as very capable people, while couples who “live in” are now a common sight when once it was a frowned-upon practice just some decades ago. Yet whenever we do see a man holding open a door for anyone, or a couple going through long-lost courtship rituals, we still can’t help but get a feeling that old-fashioned decency is still something people should strive for.

And don’t even get me started on “wine and age” analogies.

Admittedly, there are obvious advantages to getting the newest and the latest. For cars, the newest models are also the most efficient. For buildings, new construction techniques and materials allow structures to be bigger and taller than ever before. The newest gadgets make life easier and faster, while some “modern” lifestyles make life more convenient (so to speak).

Yet there’s a reason some of us pause to stop and admire a classic car, or pose for a photo in front of an ancient facade. There’s a reason why sound systems give you the option to simulate a “large concert hall” effect or induce an artificial background crackle similar to phonographs. And there is a reason why old-fashioned values, while practiced less nowadays, is admired even more.

It’s because in us all is the intrinsic quality to recognize the beauty in things as they age. With cars, perhaps it’s the fact that the curves of a vehicle built in the 1960s just isn’t present in the modern, streamlined designs of today. Or perhaps it may be the fact that if a 1968 Ford Lincoln Continental were to collide with a Honda Civic, the Civic would be crushed like a tin can with barely a scratch on the Continental. For buildings, it might be that the metal-and-glass construction of a modern skyscraper, no matter how tall, just isn’t as grand as the spires and arcs of a gothic cathedral. Surround sound components? Not as romantic as the “dulled”, crackling sound of a phonograph. And for all its “outdatedness,” there is still nothing like good old-fashioned chivalry.

At times, we may not know how to quantify it, but the ability to recognize beauty in age is in us all. It may be linked to our own linear existence – that we, as humans, go forward in time, not back – that it is instinct for us to appreciate things of the past. Nowadays, however, commercialism and competition continually strive to convince us that newer is always better, sometimes making us deaf to that little voice in our heads that allow us to appreciate what’s already proven and tested, regardless of its age.

But we don’t have to be zombies to the calls of the modern. We can hear it, that’s for sure. We can even listen to it if it suits us. But we don’t have to be slaves to the definitions of the new, because some of the greatest things in life only get better with time.

There IS beauty in age. We just have to learn to appreciate it again. Be it in a car, a building, a gadget, a value... and most importantly, in ourselves.

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Speaking of beauty and age, I would like to post a shoutout to CDN fashion columnist Mia B. Zamora, who celebrates her birthday today. Girl, you only get prettier every year. Can’t wait to see how you look 10 years from now. Wishing you many more blessings from above, and many more birthdays to come!

Everything in its own time

2006-10-30T00:00:00.000+08:00

It’s funny how friends from different circles show their concern for you in different ways, especially on your birthday.

Take for example what I had to go through for the past few weeks. I turned 28 last week (But I swear I don’t feel a day over 12!). But weeks before that, friends at the office started this running joke they called “DVD,” which stood for “De-Virginization Day.” Obviously poking fun at the “chaste-until-married” rule I have for myself, some officemates jokingly swore they’d organize something for my birthday that would “solve that problem.” They argued that at my age, it wasn’t appropriate for a guy to remain chaste. As if. Sorry guys, but I’m still old-fashioned that way. It’s not the time for that yet.

Then another group of friends whom I could best describe as a little “typical” in their nightly entertainment tried to convince me to go drinking to celebrate, knowing all too well that I don’t drink. They reasoned that as I grow older, I should try getting drunk at least once just to experience how it feels. Well, call me boring, but that’s one experience I think I can live without. Besides, introverted as I am, who knows what I’d blurt out while under the influence of alcohol?
Then there’s my barkada. As with last year, they again posed the undying questions: “So, are you seeing anyone yet?” “Do you have a girlfriend now?” “Please tell me you’re at least looking around.” Is it me, or are they sounding more desperate every year? Weird thing is that there are one or two of them who are on the same boat as I am, yet the group, as a whole, is more concerned about me. What’s up with that guys?

Now, one might think that some of these ideas could be taken as “bad influences.” But the thing is, my friends know me all too well. They know I don’t buckle to pressure, so they feel free to prod and poke me to do things I have no plans of trying since they know I never will.

I take their “ideas,” however, as a show of concern; that engaging in some earthly experiences would probably make one a better person (or in my case, probably a less uptight person). I’m sure they’d be correct in some ways. I beg to argue, however, that while having many earthly experiences does tend to build character, I do believe that choosing not to engage in certain experiences does enrich one as well, perhaps even more so.

Besides, there is such a thing as learning from the example of others. And when it comes to drinking at least, I think it’s more interesting to be the sober one when your friends start to get tipsy in a party. You get to see (and remember) all the fun stuff they do. And you get to drive them all home, knowing you won’t kill them in the process.

As for the matter of relationships, well, that’s another story. I’ve always believed God gave each and every human being free will and the ability to better himself or herself so that he or she can write his or her own destiny, as opposed to the notion that things are pre-written and all we do is play out the script. I do, however, keep this semi-fatalistic belief that somewhere, somehow, everyone has someone they are meant to be with, that every person (or at least most people) is only half of a unique soul, and that things will conspire for both halves of that soul to eventually meet. Some are drawn to each other during childhood, others later in life. Some may even meet early on but aren’t drawn to each other until years later.

I’ve seen this aspect of life come through in others. Sometimes, it’s all so natural. Sometimes, it needs work. Sometimes, it requires making mistakes involving other half-souls whom one isn’t meant to be with. For a select few, perhaps they were meant to fulfill other things in life not involving a close relationship with another person.

As one friend put it some time ago: “I am sure I am exactly where I am meant to be right now and that things will fall into place in its own due time.” Well, despite my “grab fate by the balls” attitude in life, that’s one aspect of fate I do believe in – everything in its own time. It won’t hurt to work on it a bit though, but everything will fall into place eventually. There’s really nothing to worry about.

Internet media

2006-10-23T00:00:00.000+08:00

First, there were newspapers. Then there was radio. Then came television.

And now, the Internet is fast emerging as the next big medium in news delivery.

Invented in the US out of Cold War paranoia to decentralize the US information network in case of nuclear attack, the Internet is now the definitive icon of this day and age. Anything and everything can be found on the Internet, from recipes of your favorite meals, to instructions on how to create your own thermonuclear device (ironic, considering the Internet’s beginnings). And considering its on-demand accessibility, the Internet is now also the most effective means of delivering the news.

With television, you had to wait for a favorite news program or for the kind of news you wanted. Same thing with radio. Once on air, there’s the advantage of getting audio and/or video elements in your news. But once the news program was over, you could no longer review what you had just seen or heard, unless there was a rerun of the same program later that day (or you recorded it on tape). Most often, your only option for a review of the news was in the form of an update on the next airing of the program. Or at the very least, if a news update was significant enough, it is aired immediately, but you still had to catch it yourself. The news on TV and radio doesn’t conform to your schedule, you had to conform to its schedule.

With newspapers, it’s different. You could skip whatever news you didn’t like and go directly to what you want to read, and you could read it over and over again considering the material nature of print media. Print news is essentially immortal. The downside with newspapers, however, is on the updates. Most often, newspapers don’t come out more than once a day. So for an update on whatever news you’re following, you had to wait for it the next day. In addition, unless you had a subscription to a newspaper, you often had to go out and buy one yourself.

But the Internet allows the best of all worlds without their downsides. Go to your favorite news site like www.cnn.com, www.bbc.co.uk, or www.inq7.net, and just like newspapers, you can skip to your favorite section and read the news you want, as well as save it onto your own computer for future reading. Like TV and radio, you can also get multimedia elements like video and audio. In addition, Internet news can update significantly quicker than TV or radio, and definitely faster than newspapers, and there’s never a risk of missing an update, because once it’s on a news site, it’s there until the site decides to take it down. And even then, most sites archive their news, so it’s online forever. Plus, you can typically save the news item on your own computer, and even print it out, so you can read it over and over at your leisure. With the Internet, there’s little wait for an update, and information is accessible on demand.

So does this mean the days of TV, radio, and newspapers as mediums for information are over?

Not at all. Or at least, not anytime soon.

Fact is, the upside of Internet news is also its downside. With the sheer accessibility of the Internet, anyone – not just the news publishers, but the Internet-accessing public in general – can post “news” or any sort of content online. Granted, content on sites like cnn.com and inq7.net can be trusted, since these are run by credible and trusted organizations. But how about online encyclopedias like www.wikipedia.com? Popular as it is, the site CAN be modified by just anyone. Relying on anything posted on wikipedia.com is all a matter of trust. Thankfully, experts of different fields are also the quickest to modify/correct content on wikipedia, giving the site a good degree of reliability.

But now, we also have weblogs or “blogs.” Opinion-making and feature writing – once the domain of a select few who are fortunate enough to be granted a spot on a newspaper’s pages – can now be done by anyone with a blog. While most people blog mostly about their daily lives, many in the Internet community are also gaining notice for reliable news delivery and hard-hitting opinions. But again, the question is raised: Just how reliable are news or feature blogs as sources of information, especially ones that are made by “just anyone”?

It is for this reason why TV, radio, and newspapers will still be here for a long time. For all their downsides, these forms of media still come out as the most reliable sources of news and information because their content is handled by professionals. For now the Internet’s reliability as a news source, as a whole, is still highly debatable.

The Internet, however, can serve as an excellent complement to TV, radio, and newspapers. And considering its widespread accessibility, news organizations would certainly do well to expand operations into the Internet, as many already have. Indeed, with Internet TV, Internet radio, and news websites popping up all over, many expect all media to one day be integrated into the Internet.

That’s still a long ways off, however. For now, the Internet – the fourth form of media – will have to share presence with the first three, complementing each other as radio did for newspapers, and as TV did for both newspapers and radio.

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On a related note, this column now appears online. With the blessings of the publisher/editor in chief of Cebu Daily News (actually, it was her suggestion in the first place), Overkill can now also be read over the Internet at overkillunlimited.blogspot.com, (aside from its usual place at inq7.net). The site is still under construction and sticks to a basic template for now. There will, however, be changes in its design and layout over the next few weeks. Previous Overkill articles will eventually be archived on the site as well. Also, readers may leave comments online if they wish to say anything about the column (just keep it constructive).

Watch out for further developments.