asian journal december 30, 2011 - january 5, 2012 edition

Elvis’ Gift of Giving .. p. 8

Lovely Lady Dressed in Blue, you know.. p. 11

‘Very good’ end to 2011 for President Noy Aquino

Dr. Jose Rizal

Triumph of Justice

The New Year I See

Do you still think P-Noy is a wimp or indecisive?

HIS REPORTED RE-SPONSE to last Saturday’s fl ash fl oods in Mindanao may have tarnished President Benigno S. C. Aquino III’s image but earlier in the month Filipinos saw it fi t to give him marginally higher approval ratings, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) said in a new report.

A Dec. 3-7 survey, the results of which were made exclusive to BusinessWorld, saw Mr. Aquino gain two points for a continued “very good” net satisfaction score of +58 (71% satisfi ed minus 13% dissatisfi ed).

It means the president will end 2011 on a high, follow-ing June’s trough of +46 (“good”). His latest rating, however, is still under the record +64 (“very good”) notched in November 2010, some fi ve months into Mr. Aquino’s six-year term.

Malacañang welcomed the result, calling it the con-sequence of anti-poverty and anti-corruption efforts, while a political analyst said Mr. Aquino continued to enjoy strong support despite controversy over Palace-orchestrated moves to jail his predecessor, former president and now Pampanga Rep. Glo-ria Macapagal-Arroyo, and impeach Chief Justice Renato C. Corona, an alleged Arroyo pawn.

Representatives of Mrs. Arroyo and Mr. Corona were not immediately available for comment.

Public satisfaction with the president improved most markedly in Metro Manila, where his ratings rose by 13 points to a “very good” +54 (70% satisfi ed, 16% dissatis-fi ed) from the “good” +41 (61% satisfi ed, 20% dissatis-fi ed) three months earlier.

It was highest in Balance Luzon, at a “very good” +60 (72% satisfi ed, 14% dissatis-fi ed), but the score was three points lower from the previ-ous quarter.

It stayed “very good” at +59 (71% satisfi ed, 13% dissatisfi ed, cor-rectly rounded) in the Visayas, seven points higher, and at +56 (71% satis-

Hon. Leila M. de Lima, Secretary of Justice

Glimpses by Jose Ma. Montelibano, Inquirer | MA-NILA, 12/30/2011 --

I am no prophet, no psychic either. I have looked at situations, often inter-preted them intelligently, and antici-pated what would hap-pen next ac-curately enough.

I have sometimes been wrong, too, but less about “what” and more about “when.” I notice

that when I like what I antici-pate would hap-pen,

I tend to want them to

happen soon-er.

In several yearend articles these last ten years of writing this column, I have often laid down my perspective that a new year begins much like the old year ends. What often contrasts is the attitude that a new year triggers, an attitude that is mostly colored by a wish for change. The phrase “New Year’s resolution” must have come from this attitude of wishing for change.

Prophets or psychics are gifted with visions or images.

Zena Sultana BabaoMsgr. Gutierrez Ben Maynigo2011: Lettered Words of Wisdom, Numbers Tell

The Stories .. p. 4December 30, 2011 - January 5, 2012

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December 30, 2011 - January 5, 2012

(Continued on page 21)




Dr. Jose Rizal Day


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Conjugal Abuse of Public Funds

By Cesar D. Candari, Md., Fcap Emeritus | Hen-derson, Nevada

June 19, 2011 is the sesquicentennial (150th) birth anniversary of Dr. Jose Rizal. He gave his life for our beloved country, the Philippines on Decem-ber 30, 1896 - a century and fi fteen years ago. He was born in Calamba, Laguna and was ex-ecuted at the age of 35 years old. In com-memoration of Dr. Jose Rizal our na-tional hero, I could expound on many interesting subjects about him as a patriot and a martyr, a poet, a linguist (22 languages), and philosopher, a physician and an oph-thalmologist, an artist and a sculptor,

an agriculturist and a surveyor, and a teacher, a novelist, a world traveler

and an international fi gure. Today, a short liter-

ary composition on a general analytic dissertation is chosen as a pedagogical tool to reminisce Dr. Jose Rizal as our cham-

pion of PATRIOTISM, FREEDOM and UNITY.

To begin, allow me to share with you an event in our history of how we, Filipinos, came about to know de-mocracy and free-dom through our

forefathers and through Dr. Rizal. As a descendant of a noble Malayan

AS I WRECK THIS CHAIR By William M. EsposoThe Philippine StarDuring a presidential campaign, it’s usual for the black propaganda team of a

rival candidate to twist popular perceptions of the leading candidate and project a fi ctitious but severely damaging story around these. Thus was borne the projection of Presi-dent Noynoy Aquino (P-Noy), which his bashers have been ped-dling incessantly — that the only son of Ninoy and Cory is a wimp and indecisive.

They found his unassuming and self-effacing manner a convenient handle for projecting weakness. In more perceptive societ-ies, P-Noy would be considered the strong, silent type, which is positive. In a country where many are over-entertained and under informed the big lie some times resonates. Fortunately for P-Noy, the big lie about his being a wimp did not affect the over 15 million who voted for him in 2010.

Lacking really big issues to hit P-Noy with, the big lie continued to be peddled, indirectly validating the high trust ratings that P-Noy has been enjoying in the Pulse Asia and SWS surveys. After being in offi ce for 18 months now, there isn’t a fi nan-cial scandal hounding P-Noy and his cabinet. Remember how barely 3 months into the terms of former presidents Joseph “Erap” Estrada and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (GMA) and fi nancial scandals were already reverberating all over the country.


By: Conrado de Quiros, Philippine Daily Inquirer | 12/26/2011 --

First off, some appreciation ought to go Leila de Lima’s way.

It’s no surprise that Jo-vito Palparan, before he dis-appeared for parts unknown (what’s this, he means to do a Ping Lacson?), sent some very choice words De Lima’s way. Maybe Judge Teodora Gonzales, who issued the arrest warrant after fi nding merit in the case against him, is cou-

rageous in her own right. But it helps greatly to know you have a wall of support behind

you. It helps greatly to know you have a bastion of fortitude behind you. It helps greatly to know you have a secretary of justice you can expect to enforce justice and not subvert it behind your back.

Over the past several months, De Lima has been quietly but

forcefully reshaping the moral landscape of this country. A thing she capped by standing her ground, like a sheriff coming out with a

By Amado P. Macasaet, Malaya -- ‘The series of abuses may simply strengthen the hand of the Senate in coming to a prob-able verdict of guilty.’

BASED on existing records, it appears that Chief Justice Renato Corona and his wife, Cristina

Roco, plus son Francis, may have blatantly improperly taken advantage of their posi-

tions, power and infl u-ence in what a complain-ant said was the conjugal abuse of public funds.

Rafael L. Daytec Jr., opera-tions group

Justice Renato Corona and wife Cristina (right)

December 30, 2011 - January 5, 2012Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.com

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Dr. Jose Rizal Day(Continued from page 1)

race, we must be proud of being able to savor Democracy as established in the legends- ‘Code of Kalantiaw’ and the ‘Code of Sumakwel’ many centuries after Democracy was born in 510 B.C. in ancient Greece. We must be proud of the legacy left behind by our national heroes, particularly the bravery and national sentiment of Dr. Rizal. We must be proud of our heritage. We must adapt to the various cultural climates that we have been exposed to and have culled the best from each of these di-vergent cultures; the combined cour-age and aggressiveness of Marikudo; the wisdom, integrity and gentleness of Sumakwel; the religious fervor of the Spaniards; and the sense of fair play and self-sufficiency of the Americans. We commemorate this event every December not only to showcase the bravery and wisdom of Rizal who died for our country but also to reaffirm our love for freedom and democracy. I mention these historical legacies because I believe that awareness of our common ancestry and culture could lead us easily to develop values that could integrate into a community. These values will bind us together as Fili-pinos where the words “Bayanihan”

and “Katipunan” (togetherness) have inspired and spirited our people in forging the Philippines into a great nation. It was Jose Rizal, as a politi-cal figure, initiated a civic organiza-tion - La Liga Filipina, to promote UNITY among Filipino students and those interested in Filipino culture which subsequently gave birth to the KATIPUNAN led by Bonifacio and Aguinaldo. He was a proponent of institutional reforms by peaceful means rather than by violent revolu-tion. The general consensus among Rizal scholars, however, attributed his martyred death as the catalyst that precipitated the Revolution in the Philippines. Among men of wisdom and legendary heroes, Jose Rizal stood tall with Demosthenes of Greece who shouted against the Macedonian conquest, with Victor Hugo of France who defended the Magna Carta, with Abraham Lincoln of the United States of America who abolished slavery. Jose Rizal bravely exposed and fought the repressive Spanish rule and paid with his life that very day on December 30,1896, three hundred years after the Span-ish domination of our country. The fight for freedom, human rights and UNITY in this world is never end-ing. All these speak of the inherent desire of men, of peoples of the world, be it in the prehistoric days or in the atomic/nuclear and cyber age, their desire to be free. Our forefa-thers down to Dr. Rizal wielded their

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by Atty. Andrew Agtagma, Esq.Legal Buzz

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In my previous two articles, I identified pitfalls to be wary of for injured persons who want to represent themselves. In this part, I discuss factors to consider in hiring an attorney, for those who prefer the peace of mind of having professional help.

In the personal injury area, many clients seem to be referred by word of mouth. Perhaps from the injured party’s insurance agent, a medical provider, or maybe someone from the auto body repair shop. Others might know a “friend of a friend” who seems to have experience in personal injury matters.

While relying on such people is a helpful starting point, injured parties can sometimes be led astray if they stop their search there. It is impor-tant—especially when it comes to the “friend-of-a-friend” scenario—to ask why the person is recommending a particular attorney. Was the person a former client? Does the person know someone who was a former client? Or, as is sometimes the case, does the person have a monetary interest in referring the case?

Every so often, I will get a phone call from someone offering to refer cases to my office in exchange for money, or asking if I give out refer-ral fees. This might be “business as usual” in other industries, but it is unethical for lawyers to promise to give referral fees to non-lawyers.

This rule exists to protect consum-ers. In the past, it was practically impossible for consumers to learn about attorneys and distinguish advertising “fluff” from substan-tive information. Because people

usually had little more than word-of-mouth to rely upon, it was important to ensure that referrals were being made to an attorney because he did good work, rather than because he was willing to pay the highest refer-ral fees.

With the advent of the internet, however, learning more about an attorney can be accomplished with the click of a button. Ironically, while it is easier to research an at-torney because of the internet, the sheer volume of information can make it even more difficult to know what information to believe. Two of the most important sources of information—even more so than the attorney’s website—are the State Bar and trade association websites.

If you know an attorney’s name, you can look him up on the State Bar’s website. (In California, licensed attorneys can be found at the following link: http://members.calbar.ca.gov/fal/MemberSearch/QuickSearch.)

In addition to confirm that the per-son is a licensed attorney, you can find out where he graduated from law school, how many years he has been practicing law, and what areas, if any, he specializes in. Most im-portantly, you can also find out if the attorney has ever been disciplined by the State Bar.

Trade association websites are also useful, because membership in these organizations can give you some insight into the attorney’s level of commitment and expertise in that area of the law.

In the personal injury area, the American Association for Justice

(AAJ) is the preeminent national trade association. In California, the statewide organization is known as the Consumer Attorneys of Califor-nia (CAOC). While membership in these organizations does not ensure the quality of the lawyer you are hir-ing, it at least demonstrates an effort to keep abreast of new developments in the field.

Narrowing down the attorney by doing some basic background research is just the first step in decid-ing to hire. In the next part of this article, we will discuss additional factors to consider after making ini-tial contact with the person’s office.

Atty. Andrew Agtagma is a gradu-ate of U.C. Berkeley (Boalt Hall) School of Law. He works closely with the Law Firm of Chua Tinsay and Vega (CTV) and its clients to provide counsel in his areas of expertise, which include employment law, personal injury, and general civil litigation. He can be reached by phone at: (650) 589-5700, or e-mail at: [email protected]. CTV is a full service law firm with offices in San Francisco, San Diego and Manila. The informa-tion presented in this article is for general information only and is not intended as formal legal advice, or to serve as the basis for an attorney-client relationship. CTV can be reached at: (415) 495-8088; (619) 955-6277.

Factors to Consider in Hiring a Personal Injury Attorney (Part 1)

pens and swords in their quest for freedom from the Spanish conquer-ors. The hero-contemporaries of our past, with Rizal as the towering figure, exemplified the essence of Democracy divinely gifted with the boon of UNITY, which solidifies its whole fabric. At age eighteen, Jose Rizal in a prize-winning nationalistic poem addressed to the Filipino youth entitled, A la Juventud Filipina, he called upon them as the fair hope of the Fatherland, challenging them to higher aspirations, and to un-shackle their chains in order to build nationhood. We must never forget of the two novels he wrote, that 170 passages in the Noli Me Tangere ( Touch Me Not) and 50 passages in the El Filibusterismo (the Subver-sive) to fight for our rights and the political resolution of the prob-lems that the Spaniards abused the Filipinos. These are social commen-taries on our country, the Philip-pines, which formed the nucleus of literature that inspired dissent among peaceful reformists and spurred the militancy of armed revolutionar-ies against the Spanish colonial authorities. These writings gave him “immortality in the eyes of his people and compatriots, but made him a target of ecclesiastical ven-geance.” The desire for FREEDOM and Liberty was Dr. Rizal’s zeal and clarion call to inspire his kababayans

Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.comDecember 30, 2011 - January 5, 2012

Using Lines of Credit in your BusinessBy Paul Johnson, Union Bank, N.A.

As an entrepreneur running asmall business, there may betimes when you need to accessshort-term working capital tohelp address immediate businessexpenses. A business line of creditmay offer the convenience ofaccessing cash without having toapply for a loan each time youneed it.

A business line of credit can help addressimmediate business needs such asincreased cash flow, working capital,seasonal purchases, new inventory, tradediscounts or carrying accounts receivable.This method allows a business owner toborrow money against a line of credit asneeded using a checkbook or credit card.It differs from a standard loan in that theborrowing may be done over a period oftime, and interest is paid only on theamount of money that is withdrawn. Asthe money is repaid, it becomes availablefor you to use again.

Interest rates are typically variable ratestied to a specific index. If the index goesup, interest rates will raise with it, whichcan make budgeting monthly payments

difficult. Payment schedules require aminimum payment that can vary monthly,based on the amount that has been drawnin the previous 30 days. Depending on theloan agreement, interest only may be dueor the bank may require interest plus aportion of the principal every month. Theamount repaid may be made available forother cash needs without requiringadditional credit approval. Fees, such as aninitial processing fee, are typically chargedand the bank may charge a fee for eachdraw that the business makes on the lineof credit.

The line of credit can either be secured(the loan is backed by collateral which thelender can claim if you default on yourcredit line), or unsecured (does notrequire collateral). Because an unsecuredline of credit poses a greater risk to thelender, the credit limit offered is typicallyless than that of a secured line of credit.

It may be wise to use a business credit linesparingly, as defaulting can result in theloss of your business or bankruptcy. Itshould be used strictly for businesspurposes, and should not be tapped intofor personal expenses.

Before seeking a business credit line,establish a solid credit and paymenthistory, as one factor lenders look for isbusinesses with a steady financial recordfor at least 24 months.

The foregoing article is intended to provide general information abouthow to using business lines of credit and is not considered financial ortax advice from Union Bank. Please consult your financial or tax advisor.

Paul Johnson is a Business Development Officer for the San DiegoBusiness Banking division of Union Bank. Headquartered in SanFrancisco, UnionBanCal Corporation is a financial holding companywith assets of $84 billion at September 30, 2011. Its primary subsidiary,Union Bank, N.A., is a full-service commercial bank providing an arrayof financial services to individuals, small businesses, middle-marketcompanies, and major corporations. The bank operated 404 full-service branches in California, Washington, Oregon and Texas, as wellas two international offices, on September 30, 2011. UnionBanCalCorporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd., which is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ FinancialGroup, Inc. Union Bank is a proud member of the Mitsubishi UFJFinancial Group (MUFG, NYSE:MTU), one of the world’s largestfinancial organizations.

Visit www.unionbank.com for more information.

Paul Johnson Business Development Officer

San Diego Business Banking

6010 El Cajon Boulevard

San Diego, CA 92115

(619) 229-6467

©2011 Union Bank, N.A.

A business line of

credit may offer

the convenience

of accessing cash

without having

to apply for a

loan each time

you need it.

California Communities

Sacramento, CA – It’s New Year’s Resolution time again! Every year around now people look at what they have done wrong in the past year and resolve to do it right, or perhaps start up a new habit or activity that will make their life (or somebody else’s life) better. For the second year, the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) has a list of resolutions we can all adopt, making 2012 a safer year for everyone on our roads.

“This is both a fun and seri-ous way to take personal responsibility for safe driv-ing,” said OTS Assistant Director Chris Cochran. “Making resolu-tions can be both enjoyable and thought provoking as we reflect on those things we would like to change in our behaviors. At the same time, these resolutions can actually save lives and prevent tragedies.”

The Office of Traffic Safety has come up with a list that anyone can choose from, plus invite each person to think of their own. Sharing is encouraged!

DUI Prevention• I resolve not to ask anyone

who has been drinking, “Are you okay to drive?”, because I know that they really aren’t

• I resolve not to drive when I’ve been drinking

• I resolve to call 911 if I see someone I think is driving drunk

• I resolve to be the desig-nated sober driver for my friends or family whenever they ask

• I resolve to stay sober if I am the designated driver

• I resolve to support the sober driver in my group

• I resolve not to drive

buzzed• I resolve to give my kids a

safe ride home – no questions asked.• I resolve never to give

alcohol to minors• I resolve to not let friends

or family drive buzzed or drunk

Cell Phone/Mobile Devices: • I resolve to not text or talk

on my cell phone while driving

• I resolve to not call or text any-one when I think they may be driving

• I resolve to

turn off my phone when I’m driving so I don’t get distracted

• I resolve to be a good ex-ample for my kids and not text and talk while driving

• I resolve to remember, whenever I’m tempted to use a cell phone while driving –

“It’s Not Worth It!”Buckle Up• I resolve to make sure

everyone in the car is buckled up on every ride, day or night

• I resolve to have my child safety seats inspected by a certified professional

Safe Driving:• I resolve to follow speed,

red light, safe turns and all other traffic laws.

• I resolve to be a courteous commuter

• I resolve to share the road with motorists, motorcyclists, bicy-clists and pedestrians alike

Join us on Twitter at http://twit-ter.com/#!/OTS_CA or “like” us at www.facebook.com/CaliforniaOTS to add your resolutions.

Make Your 2012 Traffic Safety Resolutions

Cell phone use while driving has become the No. 1 safety problem on California roads and highways, a new survey of state motorists says.

Close behind came texting while driving. Combined, cell phoning and text messaging drew almost 40 percent of the responses.

Both problems individually out-weighed last year’s main concern, “speeding and aggressive driving,” ac-cording to the second-annual survey by the California Of-fice of Traffic Safety.

Texting soared in men-tions as the biggest danger, going from last year’s 2 percent to 18 percent.

When asked to name the most serious distraction for drivers, respondents said cell phone use (56 percent) and texting while driving (27 percent). No other distracted activity (eating, grooming, etc.) was cited in more than 2 percent of the responses. Texting again increased as a concern, going from about 13 percent (2010) to 27 percent. Cell phone use (handheld or hands-free) fell by 6 percent, with most of those mentions presumably rerouted to texting.

The 2011 survey included 1,801 drivers over age 18. They were questioned at gas stations throughout California. (Read the 2011 Cali-fornia traffic safety report at http://www.ots.ca.gov/Media_and_Re-search/Press_Room/2011/doc/Traf-fic_Safety_Survey_Data.pdf).

“This information provides us with unique insight into the concerns of Californians,” OTS Director Christopher Murphy said. “It is very telling that we’ve seen such a shift in opinions on cell phone use in just one year.”

The drivers indicated they’re get-

Calif. safety enemy No. 1: cell phones

ting the message about distracted driving: When asked how often they talked on a handheld cell phone in the past month, 10.5 percent said “regularly” — down from 14 percent in 2010. The majority indicated “never.”

When asked the same question about text messaging while driving, 6 percent indicated they did it regu-

larly, down from 9 percent in 2010. 72 percent said never. More drivers 18-24 cited texting as the top danger, yet they were more likely to text message while behind the wheel.

A third of Southern Cali-

fornia drivers cited texting as the biggest problem while only a quarter agreed in Northern California.

More responses from the traffic safety survey:

Four in 10 of the drivers said they used their cell phone less because of California’s handheld law.

Seven in 10 said hands-free cell phone use was safer than handheld use.

Six in 10 said they’ve been hit or almost hit by a driver yakking on a cell phone, up slightly from 2010.

The California Office of Traffic Safety survey also asked the motor-ists about drunken driving, sobriety checkpoints and seat belt use. The director said the survey was begin-ning to show trends in its second year and would provide “valuable data for our planning, particularly in distracted driving programs and the emerging drugged driving problem.”

Cell phone use by drivers ranked No. 2 in the 2010 survey about the biggest safety problems on Califor-nia’s highways. -- http://handsfree-info.com/california-traffic-safety

Age that children must remain in a booster seat has increased

to age 8.The California Office of Traffic Safe-

ty is reminding parents, caregivers, and drivers to take note of a new law aimed at saving more lives and preventing more injuries of children across the state. Beginning Janu-ary 1, children under age eight must be properly buckled into a car seat or booster seat, and in the back seat. Previ-ously, the law required that children remain in a booster seat until the age of six or they weighed sixty pounds.

“This is an important new law that will impact more than 1.1 million children in California,” said Christopher J. Murphy, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety. “Keeping them in booster seats increas-es their chance of surviving a crash by 45 percent.”

A coalition of child traffic safety organizations, including the Office of Traffic Safety, California Department of Public Health, California Highway Patrol, Safe Kids California, local law enforcement, public health agencies and fire departments are working to-gether to make sure all those who need this updated information will receive it. Hospitals, day care centers, pediatri-cians, and local community service organizations are just a few that will be targeted.

“Although we know that placing children in age- and size-appropriate seats is the best way to reduce serious and fatal injuries, progressing children from rear-facing and forward-facing car seats to booster seats can be confus-ing,” added Dr. Ron Chapman, Direc-tor and State Health Officer, California Department of Public Health. “There is a Child Passenger Safety Coordinator available at your local public health department who can refer you to a fit-

Important Changes to CHILD Safe-ty Seat Law Effective January 1

ting station where you can learn how to properly install child safety seats in the family car.”

The ticket price for violating this law is significant. For each child under 16 who is not properly secured, parents (if in the car) or the driver, can be ticketed for more than $475 and receive a viola-tion point on their driving record.

To save emptying your pocketbook or, more importantly, your child’s life, complying with the law should be inexpensive. Most children impacted by the new law can remain in the booster seat they already have. If it is necessary to buy a new one, low back boosters can be purchased at major retailers for $15 to $20 each.

A booster simply “boosts” the child up in order to make the adult-sized belt safely fit a child-sized body. If the belt crosses the child’s stomach instead of the hip bones, the child can be severely injured by the belt itself if involved in a colli-sion.

A child fits an adult seat belt when:• They can sit against the

vehicle seat back with their knees bent without slouching and can comfortably stay in this position throughout the trip

• The lap belt is low on the hips touching the upper thighs and

• The shoulder belt crosses the chest, but is not on the face or neck

• Never let your child put the shoulder belt behind their arm or back. In a crash, the child could sustain ma-jor injuries including head and spinal cord injuries. If the child is putting the shoulder belt behind them, this is a sign that they still need a booster

For more information about car seats, the new law or help in determining if your child still needs a booster seat, call your local health department or visit www.cdph.ca.gov/vosp or http://www.ots.ca.gov/Child_Passenger_Safety.asp


As the Bamboos Sway

Read Rudy Liporada’s previous articles by visiting our web-site at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Rudy D. Liporada

As the Bamboos SwayBy Rudy D. Liporada

It is said that Thomas Edison ex-perimented on at least 10,000 elements before he discovered the filament that withstood the heat so we could have the incandescent bulb. Asked by a reporter if he ever felt like a failure that he should have stopped anytime because of failing so many times, it is said that he retorted: “Young man, why would I feel like a failure? And why would I ever give up? I now know definitively OVER 9,000 ways that an electric light bulb will not work. Success is almost in my grasp.”

As history unfolded, after ‘discover-ing’ 10,000 attempts that will not work, Edison invented the light bulb.

Could you imagine if he stopped ex-perimenting on the 9,999th try? We could still be in the candle and torch ages; and candelabra sales should still be a brisk business. There would be no need for electric grids to power up cities, no need for dams; there would have been no evo-lution to whatever technologies we have today…IPods, IPhones, computers, TVs, and whatever future high tech gadgets that should be forthcoming.

Basically, we would still be in the dark ages.

Nonetheless, it is also told that Edison’s brother almost carted him into an asylum thinking that his brother was crazy for persisting on a venture that the brother thought was going nowhere. We, of course, do not know the brother’s name. He did not matter in the world. Thomas Edison did.

Of course, Edison’s bulb would have not also have worked if not for the dis-covery of electricity by Benjamin Frank-lin. Those close to Franklin rendered his attaching a key to a kite during a lightning storm crazy. But that’s what did it and Franklin’s is actually another story.

John F. Kennedy and the Wright

Brothers In May 25, 1961, John F. Kennedy

announced that the US would be the first nation to land a man on the moon within “the decade.” Not a few thought he was lunatic in this regard. Although Kennedy was assassinated on Nov. 22, 1963 and did not see his dream, on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong imprinted his historic feet on the surface of the moon – less than a decade after Kennedy made his lunar (or should we say lunatic) goal.

Of course, man reached the moon not only because Kennedy had the goal. The process of flying to the moon actually started with another two crazy brothers, who, in the early 1900s firmly believed that man could fly. Not being engineers but mere bicycle makers, the Wright brothers were considered crazy because they crashed many times before they were able to soar the skies – from flying only several feet above the ground and so many yards afar. Their crazy idea of flying evolved into the rockets that even-tually reached the moon and beyond.

Copernicus and GalileoNicolas Copernicus and Galileo Galilei

were also considered crazy during their time. Based on limited senses, at that time, men believed that the earth was the center of the universe and thought that the sun, moon, and the stars revolved around the earth. No less than the Catholic Pope Urban declared Copernicus and Galileo crazy and heretic when they had the audacity to declare that it is actually the earth and the other heavenly bodies that revolve around the sun. The Pope who is supposedly infallible (one who could not make mistakes) based his heretic judg-ment on Ecclesiastes 1:5 which says (per King James Bible – Cambridge Edition) “The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.”

Of course, we now know who is crazy at that time and who did not make a mistake.

Moreover, during those times, people believed that the world was flat. Many concepts abounded along that plane…the world floated on water…if you sail at the edge and fall at the deep precipice, you will be devoured by monsters…hell is at the underside of the flat earth…etc.

Then came those who said that the world is actually spherical; in short, round. They were considered crazy.

Columbus and Magellan then dared the seas. Magellan sailed West from Spain; got killed by Lapu-lapu in the Philip-pines; his second mate, Vasco de Gama, continued his journey and his remaining ships reappeared in Spain from the East.

Dang! The world was and is round. Even those who believed that the world was flat, eventually, had to join the cra-zies who firmly postulated that the world is round.

Steve JobsThe latest dubbed crazy or dreamer, at

the least, is Steve Jobs. Long before the IPods, IPhones, Kindle and all were but in his mind, not a few considered Jobs crazy. Even his staff said that those stuff in his mind where you touch buttons and slide for programs to appear and help you out with a million things could not happen. He persisted in his dreams (craziness if you will) and, now, even my one year old granddaughter could dabble with the IPhone and Tango.

Nobody else judged him crazy after his inventions and was revered when he died.

There are more of them, craziesThose I mentioned above are just a

few of them. There are more of them who have been deemed crazy in the past because of their ideas, inventions, social bearings, and the like because their ‘thing’ were not attuned to the standard, norms, or belief of the times. They are architects, revolutionaries, chemists, educators, etc. What separates them from most of us is that they became great because they had ideas, dreams, and they stood by their ideas and dreams no matter what – no matter how crazy, delusional, stupid, or out of sync they had been branded.

Do we want to be like them? We could if we want to. After all, our brains should be of the same size as theirs. What we need is the next idea, the next dream, and most importantly, the determination to make that idea, that dream, a reality. As they say, success is when the opportunity and the determination meet.

You may not become as great as the all time greats but do you have anything that you could be crazy about enough, no matter how small, to contribute to the saneness of this world?

2012 could be your year. Happy New Year!

‘Crazy’ People make this World sane

2011: Lettered Words of Wisdom, Numbers Tell The Stories

MaliGALLANG Pasko at MAyNIGOng Bagong Taon!

(Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year!)

GALLANG is my mother’s last name. My barber says that according to a customer of his, in some Spanish-speaking countries “LL” is pronounced as “Y”, hence Gal Lang is GaYang. MaliGAYANG Pasko means Merry or Joyful Christmas.

MAyNIGOng Bagong Taon means Prosperous New Year. My middle and last names therefore mean a combination of Joy and Prosperity. My baptismal certificate indicates Benjamin Jesus having been born almost on Christmas day. Devout Catholic and followers of the Divine Word, there is no surprise to naming me after a couple of biblical characters.

2011 started (“Consumer Electron-ics 2011”, January 5, 2011) and ended (“‘Miracles’ In The Sin City”, December 21, 2011) in Las Vegas for my barber, Asian Journal USA, our readers, and me. The Sin City is the yearly site of the In-ternational Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Despite being dubbed as the city for “sinners”, CES has neutralized it because of the little “miracles” that are revealed during the show.

These miracles come in the form of virtually unbelievable and seemingly impossible technologies and gadgets that could have been created with the support of the “holy spirit” who possesses infi-nite wisdom. The consumers, with faith and love, receive these amazing products of innovation fully aware that they are tools that affect their daily lives – be they profession, occupation, education, vocation, business or lifestyle.

Publishing is about imparting and reporting facts, data, information, and knowledge. It is also about analysis, personal and public opinions. Depending on how the readers receive, perceive and conceive them, they could be viewed

as “words of wisdom” or cries from a biased ignoramus.

For better appreciation of our column, we always try to present the 5 Ws and 1 H – Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. And to get the readers’ at-tention and easier retention of the info, knowledge or “wisdom” being imparted, we introduced the “lettered words of wisdom.”

As Filipino Americans we showed interest on anything significant involving the Philippines and the United States.

We came up with, “D.C. of D.C. in D.C. on D.C. is D.C.” Debate and Con-frontation of Dysfunctional Congress in District of Columbia on Debt Ceiling is Disturbingly Critical.

Then, “Debt Deal Done Despite Dif-ferences and Difficult Decision.” It was followed immediately thereafter with, “Balancing the Budget, Balancing the Books, Balance Sheet.” Earlier, our involvement was in “Tackling the Deficit and Joining the Tax Debate.”

We had to opine on “Walker vs. Workers in Wisconsin”, and showed our concern by “Watching Wronged Women Win Worldwide.”

On the Philippine situation we discussed the “Old 4Gs to New 4Gs Gaining Ground”. Old Gs refer to Guns, Gold, Goons and Girls while the new Gs refer to God’s Gift of Good Government.

“PNoy: 4H and the E-Gen” was writ-ten to establish the foundation for our support of President Noynoy Aquino. 4H refers to Hope, Honesty, Humility and Honor. The E-Gen refers to Educa-tion, Economic growth (employment, entrepreneurship, equity expansion), Electronic media or communications, Environment, Empowerment, Enlighten-ment, Energy Independence, Excellent Health Care, Electoral Reforms and Effective Security Force.

“PNoy, POGI, Pinoys” was written to discuss the President’s participation in Open Government Partnership promot-ing transparency and accountability.

POGI is People’s Open Government Initiative).

The people’s participation in indus-trialization, investments, infrastructure development and innovation as well as encouraging the increase in tourism, trade, technology transfer and targeted training was the focus in “Ps, Is, Ts”.

“Sana, SONA, South China, Saan Na” and “B (Bully, Bribery, Bilateral Pacts, Bodyguard) S (Spratlys, Sino Saber-rattling, Sling Shot, Sea Law)” were our ways of getting engaged in other Philip-pine issues.

The “Planet of the Apps”; “Pacquiao Fights 2 Battles - Wins Both By Major-ity Decision”; “Lucky 9, Cloud 9, Love Potion Number 9”; “Miracles in the Sin City”; and “SPORTS: Seeking a Solo-monic Solution; Shaping and Sharing Social Responsibility” dealt with figures, and the numbers told the stories.

2011 did not stop us from getting involved in controversial issues of historical importance. We wrote a series on “Marcos: To Be or Not To Be At LMNB”; and “Marcos: Fake Medals Redux” Parts I – IV. “Is Marcos a Hero” quoted the reactions and comments of readers on the said series.

We published our Letters to both Vice President Binay and President Aquino expressing and justifying our objections to the burial of Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.

There were sad and joyful moments as well as challenging and enlightening ones. My barber, Asian Journal USA, and I made sure that our readers did not miss them and our feelings were expressed accordingly.

We paid tribute to the late “Conrado F. Estrella: A Hero and Pride of Rosales, Pangasinan” and “Maria Mabilangan Haley: Model In The Strictest Sense.”

The article on our family reunion, “Gift of Time, Gift of Family” was joyful while “Life as a “Journey: Joy, Justice, Job, Jefferson, Jesus, and other Js” as well as “Easter: Reconciliation, Resurrection, Rebirth, Renewal” were efforts to enlighten.

The value of new technologies and gadgets were described as we faced cer-tain fortuitous events in “Acts of God vs. Government, Governed, Geeks, Gadgets, Google, GoodReader.”

Writing a column indeed, is not just reporting about and enjoying the present, reflecting and learning from the past, but it is also about facing the challenges of and “Winning the Future”.

2011 was the year that was!


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Holiday Guide

The Mc Buddies celebrated an early Christmas party last Sat-urday, December 10, 2011 at St. Charles Parish Hall from 4:00-10:00 pm with lots of foods and drinks, gifts, dances, Christmas songs and raffl es. The affair was one of the

Christmas with McBuddies

A McBuddies Christmas Carol at St. Charles Parish Hall, Imperial Beach, Dec. 10th, 2011

best annual celebration attended by Mc Buddies members, relatives and friends.

Jing Yuson, chaired this momen-tous affair, who hired special caterer to provide good healthy food and music with a paid DJ for a complete

enjoyment and satisfaction with all the attendees. The Christmas celebration started with an introduc-tion by Jing Yuson to Tom Malunes, one of McBuddies founders, for the welcome address, followed by invo-cation of Nimfa de Guzman, singing of Christmas songs led by Linda Aquino, highlighted by a fashion show of the Mc Buddies wives and all kinds of dances.

During the affair Jing Yuson made three raffl es draws every thirty minutes with gifts donated by some members, then three draws were also made for gift certifi cates donated by Auring Chua and Efren Tulao, and fi nally the cash prizes. Bel Alde provided all Christmas lightings and decors, while Auring Palaci made the beautiful and colorfull Christmas banner. Thanks to McBuddies Nick and Nimfa de Guzman, Val Palaci, Titong Vinluan, Jing Yuson, Ric and Susan Liwanag, Fermin Caparas,

Cris Mangaliag, Bel Alde, Tonton Son and Joe Son to prepare deco-

rations and the hall for the affair. Merry Christmas and A Happy New

Year!. -- Joe C.Son, [email protected] ,San Diego, CA

Bagong Taon

Tuwing unang araw ng Enero ipinagdiriwang ang Bagong Taon. Masayang sinasalubong ito bago maghating-gabi ng Disyembre 31. Masayang sama-samang kumakain at nagkukuwentuhan pa ang mga kasapi ng mag-anak. Nag-sisimba, nagbabatian, at nag-iingay pa sila nang buong sigla sa pagsalubong nito. Ginagawa pa nila itong fam-ily reunion. Dito ipinapakita ang pagbubuklud-buklod ng pamilya. -- http://www.seasite.niu.edu/Tagalog/modules_in_Tagalog/mga_pagdiri-wang_sa_pilipinas.htm

Isinisindihan ang kanyon na may kalburo sa pagdiwang ng Bagong Taon


Is Your Life In Balance For The New Year?

By Dr. Ofelia Dirige

plenty of food, friends, entertainment and good times.

According to Carolyn Gerard, a marriage therapist, “The greatest gift you can give your loved ones this holiday season is one-on-one time together. Gifts are tokens of our love and rarely have the lasting effect that time together sears within one’s emotional memory. Spending time with each parent, spouse, child, friend gives the message that they are uniquely valued, tremendously loved and that they hold a very special place in your heart.”

Last Christmas I watched two mov-ies, “Christmas Town” and “Christ-mas Clause.” These two movies had the same message: balance your work with fun and celebration especially during the holidays. The two ac-tresses were so busy with work that they have no time to enjoy Christmas with their families. The heroine in Christmas Town was so busy being a realtor that she was not able to enjoy Christmas with her dad and only son. The actress in Christmas Clause was also so busy with her work and family and wished that she had the life of a single career woman. In the end, after almost losing her family, she appreci-ated having them back and enjoying her family life.

I am like the two women in the above Christmas stories in that I tend to overwork and forget to have time for fun, friends and family. This coming year, I again resolve to have a balanced life of work and fun. How I am going to do it is something I need to work on.

HEALTHA. Reduce stress. Carolyn Gerard

recommended, “Take your much needed breaks even if they are in 15 minute increments. You will be able to give more lovingly of yourself as you take care of your own needs. The most fulfi lling relationships are those where individuals feel valued and accountable to others in creating the relationships they so desire. May the New Year be fi lled with harmony that comes from building Relationships for Life!”

Here is some other stress reduc-ing tips to create a healthy work-life balance:

� Make time to relax—for at

least 30 minutes each day—by listen-ing to music and reading a book.

� Limit screen or television time to no more than 2 hours per day.

B. Eat a healthy diet. To lose weight, it is important to make life-style changes with a focus on reduc-ing calories from food and beverages, a healthy eating plan, and portion control. Snacking between meals can help you make healthier choices and avoid overeating at mealtimes—as long as snacks are lower in fat and sugar. Always try to consume at least 5-7 fruits and vegetables daily. They are usually very low in calories and full of vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and fi ber. If you are eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, you may be less likely to make unhealthy selections such as chips and sweets.

C.Get regular physical activity for at least 2 ½ hours per week. Physical activity is proven to improve both mental and physical health. It re-duces anxiety, depression and anger, enhances the immune system, and decreases risk of diseases such as cancer and heart disease, as well as helps maintain a healthy weight. Be-ing physically active and eating fewer calories will also help one lose weight and keep the weight off over time.

While people vary quite a bit in the amount of physical activity they need for weight control, many can maintain their weight by doing 2 ½- 5 hours per week of moderate intensity activ-ity such as brisk walking. People who want to lose a large amount of weight (more than 5% of their body weight) and people who want to keep off the weight that they have lost, may need to be physically active for more than 300 minutes (5 hours) of moderate intensity per week.

Here are some strategies for fi t-ness success:

� Select activities you enjoy.� Find a friend or partner to

exercise with.� Try to exercise the same

time each day to develop a habit.� Find enjoyable and different

surroundings or location to exercise.� Vary your mode and inten-

sity of exercise to keep it interesting and fun.

� Set realistic goals. Start slow and simple; then you can increase your efforts as time

and ability permits.� Set obvious reminders such

as putting reminders on refrigerator; keeping exercise

clothes visible; and marking time or schedule on your calendar.

D.Reach or maintain a healthy weight. A healthy weight can help lower your risk for developing chronic diseases and conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and certain cancers. It can also help you feel good about yourself and give you more energy to enjoy life. Most people who try to lose weight focus on one thing: weight loss. However, if you set goals, eat healthy foods, are physi-cally active, and get plenty of sleep, then you may be more successful in losing weight.

E.Healthy Sleep- Sleep is important for good health. A number of tasks carried out during sleep help maintain good health and enable people to function at their best. During sleep, the body produces valuable hor-mones that help children grow and help adults and children build muscle mass, fi ght infections, and repair cells. Sleep makes us think clearly, react quickly and create memories. Pathways in the brain that help us learn and remember are very active when we sleep.

Not getting enough sleep or getting poor quality sleep on a regular basis increases the risk of high blood pres-sure, heart disease and other medical conditions. Cutting back by even 1 hour of sleep can make it tough to focus the next day and slow one’s response time. Lack of sleep can make one be more likely to make bad decisions that result in poor perfor-mance. Insuffi cient sleep can make one irritable and is linked to poor behavior and trouble in relationships. Most adults need 7-8 hours of sleep each night.

Here are some tips to get a good night’s sleep:

� Stick to a sleep schedule -- go to bed and wake up at the same time each day.

� Avoid caffeine and nicotine.� Don’t exercise too late in the

day.� Avoid alcoholic drinks

before bed.� Avoid large meals and bev-

erages late at night.� Don’t take a nap after 3 PM.� Relax before bed—take a

hot bath.� Create a good sleeping

environment. Get rid of noises, bright lights, uncomfortable

bed, or a TV or computer in the bedroom.

� See a doctor if you have continued trouble in sleeping.

CONCLUSION:

I hope that these suggestions will help you live a balanced life of spiri-tuality, satisfying family relationships, balanced work and life, and healthy physique that will lead to less stress and more productive life. HAPPY NEW YEAR. FROM: KALUSUGAN COMM SERV!!!

***References: National Heart, Lung

and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Informa-tion Center, 2010.

Best of Health, Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center Newsletter, Winter 2011, Vol 8,

# 4, www.sharp.com/chulavista.***

FROM: EVELYN DIRIGE RE-SELLA

Wednesday, December 29, 2011NEW YEAR’S EVE PAINTING “Forgetting what is behind..... I

press on toward the goal to....which God has called me.”- ( Phil. 3:13) TI-TLE: “NEW YEAR’S EVE AND NEW BEGINNING” MEDIUM: OIL ON CANVAS SIZE: $8” X 30” DESCRIPTION: (PAINTED IN 2008) Another oil painting from my solo art show last year. Here’s a short story behind the scene. New Year’s Eve in the Philippines is celebrated with lots of noise and fi re crackers like America’s Fourth of July. We also have what we called “Media Noche” (midnight dinner). Here in United States, it’s celebrated with lots of spir-its (wine, beer and champagne) and fi nger foods. We like to add Filipino fl avors like lumpia Shianghai (small meat rolls), chicharon (pork crack-ling) and fried squid. I painted my “ideal” New Year’s Eve celebration at home. It’s a beautiful “Seafood Feast” with lots of fresh oysters, jumbo shrimps cocktails, crab legs, clams, mussels, etc. This is a healthy and el-egant New Year’s Eve feast with lots of veggies, fruits and salad too.

NEW YEAR 2011. With the holidays nearly behind us, many are looking ahead into 2012. It’s hard not to be a little afraid. Things still look a little gloomy with our bad economy. But somehow, we should be optimis-tic and hope that a good change is about to come. We must be innova-tive, creative and willing to take risks this New Year. We must have lots of faith. It is faith in God that helped me achieved my art goals last 2008. This New Year I will continue to trust God for my future. If you believe, like I do, that the turning of the new begin-ning is a cause for celebration and welcoming change. “HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL! MAY IT BRING YOU GOOD HEALTH AND MORE WEALTH.”

ASIAN JOURNALThe fi rst Asian-Filipino weekly in Southern California

An award-winning newspaper, it is San Diego’s most widely circulated Asian-Filipino newspaper!

Ashley SilverioAssistant Editor

In Pursuit of ExcellenceEugenio “Ego” Osin, (1946 - 1994)

Joe Cabrera, (1924 - 1996)Soledad Bautista, (1917-2009)

Dr. Rizalino “Riz” Oades, (1935-2009)

The Asian Journal is published weekly and distrib-uted in all Asian communties in San Diego County. Publication date is every Friday of the month. Adver-tising deadline is Thursday prior to publication date at 5 p.m. For advertising rates, rate cards, or information, call (619) 474-0588. Subscription by mail is available for $50 per year (56 issues). The Asian Journal is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts and photo-graphs but welcomes submissions. Entire content is © 2011 copyrighted material by Asian Journal. Materi-als in this publication may not be reproduced without specifi c permission from the publisher.

Genevieve SilverioManaging Editor

Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.Publisher & Editor

Miles BeauchampAssociate Editor

Santi SilverioAssociate Publisher

At Large...

Miles is Assistant to the Dean and Assistant Professor in the Shirley Hufstedler School of Education at Alliant International University where he teaches new media and diverse writing courses. He has been with the Asian Journal since the 1990’s.

by Miles Beauchamp

by Dr. Ofelia Dirige Founder, President & CEO Kalusugan

Community Services. www.fi lamwellness.org

Contemporary Asian American Issues

plenty of food, friends, entertainment and good times.

According to Carolyn Gerard, a

least 30 minutes each day—by listen-ing to music and reading a book.

and ability permits.� Set obvious reminders such

as putting reminders on refrigerator;

erages late at night.� Don’t take a nap after 3 PM.� Relax before bed—take a

Perspectives

Digital Edition882,666 reads

on scribd.com/asianjournal

Asian Journal San Diego

New Year’s Resolutions

“Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead. I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Je-

sus”…. Apostle PaulA New Year is upon us again and

with this are recollections of happy or sad times of activities gone by and hopes for a brighter future. We also make new years’ resolutions or again make promises that are often made to be broken. Some of us are workahol-ics and need to spend more time with our families or have fun. On the other hand some are always having fun and pleasure and have no interest or time in doing something meaningful to help others.

Let us start the New Year by focus-ing on a balanced living starting with a spiritual foundation of a new or renewed relationship with God. Let us set goals and make spiritual, emotion-al, heart healthy, intellectual, fi nan-cial, and social changes. We should practice healthy living in all aspects of our physical life --- reducing stress, eating healthy, being physically ac-tive, aiming for a healthy weight, and having enough sleep. Is your life in balance? Jobs, family errands, and other daily demands can be hard on your physical and mental health. To be successful, choose goals that are realistic and specifi c.

I have a tradition that I started 20 years ago. Every time New Year comes along, I look at the goals I

have set for the past year and see whether I have accomplished them. Based on my assessment I retain some of them or formulate new goals for the coming year. My goals are usually comprehensive. It includes fi rst of all, my relationship with God (spiritual), emotional (relationships with family, female and male friends, neighbors and acquaintances), physical (diet, exercise, sleep), intellectual (career/work), fi nancial, and social/fun times. I will focus on three aspects of my life or goals such as God, Family and Friends, and Health.

GOD FIRST: I put God fi rst of all in my life since this is the foundation of all other relationships. If I have a right relationship with God, all the other things will come into place. But if I don’t acknowledge God in my life, then I don’t have His presence and guidance and my life will be in chaos. So I put Him fi rst of all in everything I do. As the Bible says, “Seek ye fi rst and kingdom of God and all of these things will be added unto you.”

FAMILY AND FRIENDS: Family is important to me. I usually spend holidays like Christmas with them—sisters, brother, nephews, nieces, close friends, co-workers and other relatives. We have a usual party of too much food, giving of presents, playing games, and catching up with each others’ lives. This year, I spent it again with them although sometimes we are not all together as one of my sisters live in Seattle and the other in Simi Valley. I received cards and gifts this year although they are not as numerous as in days past. I have

Happy New Year – now behave yourself (or at least

pretend) 2012. Can you believe that

it’s been 12 years since the big furor over 2000? Yep, we’re now 12 years past the start of the new millennium and the world is still here. I know many people who like to run around talking about Armageddon and were probably disappointed a little bit, but too bad. That’s what they get for forecasting doom instead of going to

the movies.That was then, this is nowPeople are creatures of habit and

so, just like so many years past, many of us will make New Year’s resolutions. We’ll make those reso-lutions for many reasons, some for no other reason than to at least feel good until we break them. We may as well feel good about something at the start of another election year.In keeping with my need to be ever-helpful, I offer a list of resolutions that are amazingly easy to keep.

Feel free to use as many of them as you like when the big day hits.

Easy New Year’s resolutions (mostly) worth keeping

1. Remember to turn off the lights (okay, this is a personal issue

coming from a parent of kids who haven’t yet realized that a light switch works both ways)

2. Eat slightly healthy food (why get carried away, right?)

3. Drink plenty of fl uids – of one sort or another.

4. Get better at your job – what-ever that job happens to be

5. Be cool (yes, you can be cool past 19. It’s not easy, but it’s pos-sible)

6. Yes, it is7. Go somewhere8. Do something (yes, I know this

is vague so it ought to be easy)9. Watch TV10. Don’t watch more TV11. Read the newspaper12. Read this newspaper13. Be grouchy14. Be grouchy some more15. Eat breakfast16. Eat lunch17. Eat dinner18. Do not confuse any of the

meals above with eating nachos in movie theatres. That just doesn’t count. Ever.

19. Kiss someone20. Kiss someone again21. Kiss someone you know this

time22. Be nice before noon (it

shouldn’t be that diffi cult if you try hard enough)

23. Take a vacation24. Pay for the vacation (yes, this

is harder)25. Let someone else pay for the

vacation (see time-share promotions)26. Take another breath27. Smile at someone who doesn’t

expect it (oh, go ahead, just mess

with them)28. Frown at someone who doesn’t

expect it (unless they’re big, have lots of tattoos, wear chains around the neck and drive a Harley)

29. Make sure your health insur-ance is paid up (see number 28 above)

30. Pay the electric bill early (Got-cha! Just seeing if you were still awake. Ignore this one)

31. Go somewhere that’s not in a travel brochure

32. Help someone fi nd something33. Stay in bed longer 34. Ignore the laundry35. Ignore the kids36. Ignore your husband or wife,

signifi cant other, boyfriend, girl-friend or me. Heck, just ignore someone – you’ll feel better and af-ter all, isn’t that what it’s all about?

37. Ignore number 36 above38. Demand peace worldwide39. Work for peace worldwide40. Strive for peace worldwide41. Decide to do something you’ve

never done before42. Decide to actually have fun

while doing number 41 above43. Be nice to your boss44. Be nice to your employees45. Be nice to yourself46. Just...be nice47. Decide to vote in the next

election

48. Be glad you’re alive 49. Be glad someone else is alive 50. Go back to school. There’s

probably no better time than during a recession to get more education, get a new education, or get retrained. Strive to keep yourself up to date and relevant for jobs and the job market

51. Create an electronic social identity and use it - make sure you know how to use all the important social media sites to your advantage (employers want employees to be up to date)

52. See what’s out there in this great big world - and enjoy it

Okay, there you have 52 New Year’s resolutions that might stand a chance of seeing more than a day or two of use. And please don’t thank me – my New Year’s resolution for 2012 has now been completed.

Happy 2012! I hope that the com-ing year is great beyond measure and your dreams come true.


by Atty. Susan V. Perez

Immigration 911

Read Atty. Susan Perez’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

Work Visas/Green Cards thru Employment• Family Visas• Student, Trainee, Tourist, Investors, Visas • Reinstatement of Petition • Deportation Defense• International Adoption• Appeals, Motions to Reopen/Reconsider• Battered/Abused Spouse• I-601 Waivers (Hardship)• Consular Support in Manila•

IMMIGRATION (619) 819-8648Speak directly with an Attorney

The Law Offi ces of SUSAN V. PEREZ offer the following services:

We also handle ALL PHILIPPINE cases and have an offi ce in Manila to service your needs there.

*Susan Perez is a licensed attorney both in the State of California and the Philippines. She has eighteen (18) years of combined experience in both jurisdictions in the areas of Immigration, Family, Appellate, Juvenile Dependency, Civil, Criminal, Labor, Contracts, Tax, and Business Law. She is also admitted to practice before the Ninth Circuit of the Court of Appeals, and the District Courts of Southern California and Central District of California.

Nagsasalita ng Tagalog asin Bicol.

By Appointment only from 9:00 to 5:30, Monday thru Friday.

San Diego Offi ce: Manila Offi ce:625 Broadway, Suite 1015 Suite 2502-A East TowerSan Diego CA 92101 Philippine Stock Exchange CentreTel. No. (619) 819-8648 Exchange Road, Ortigas Center, Pasig CityFax No. (619) 923-9555 Tel. Nos.: (632) 687-2565 / 687-9851 Email: [email protected] Fax No.: (632) 687-2565

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Dr. Jose Rizal Day

(Continued from page 2)

Updates On Filing Of Form I-130, Petition For Alien Relative

By Atty. Susan Perez

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigra-tion Services (USCIS) has an-nounced that it will change the filing locations for Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative. Effective Jan. 1, 2012, domestic petitioners will mail their stand-alone I-130 applications to either the Chicago Lockbox or the Phoenix Lockbox, depending on where they reside in the United States. Domestic petitioners mean petitioners residing in the United States. This effort will balance workloads between the two loca-tions and provide more efficient and effective processing of Form I-130. There will be no change in filing lo-cations when submitting Form I-130 along with Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status. Individuals filing these forms together will continue to mail them to the Chicago Lock-box facility. Petitioners residing in a country with a USCIS office may send their I-130 forms to the Chi-cago Lockbox, or they may file their Forms I-130 at the international US-CIS office having jurisdiction over the area where they live. Filing at the proper location is very important because I-130 packages submitted to the incorrect filing location may experience a delay in processing.

Petitioners filing from overseas ad-dresses in countries without USCIS offices will also continue to file at the Chicago Lockbox facility. How-ever, if a consular officer in an em-bassy or consulate where USCIS is not present encounters an individual case that the officer believes requires immediate processing due to excep-tional circumstances, the consular officer should contact the USCIS Field Office Director (FOD) with jurisdiction over that location to de-

termine whether Department of State (DOS) may accept and adjudicate the case. It should be noted that the embassy or consulate is under DOS. If the USCIS FOD authorizes DOS to adjudicate a case, the consular of-ficer may only adjudicate a case that is clearly approvable. If the case is not clearly approvable, DOS must forward the case to USCIS. The fol-lowing are examples of exceptional circumstances when USCIS will likely authorize DOS to accept and process an I-130 petition: military emergencies, medical emergencies, threats to personal safety, cases close to aging out, cases where the petitioner has recently naturalized, and cases involving the adoption of a child. In the last example, this exception should only be considered if the child has been in the petition-er’s legal and physical custody for at least two years and the petitioner has a full and final adoption decree on behalf of the child. This is not an exhaustive list of examples. FODs have discretion to authorize a DOS adjudication of an I-130 when there are compelling humanitarian reasons to do so. The petitioner does not have the right to appeal or request consideration of a USCIS decision to deny a DOS request to process Form I-130 on an exceptional basis.

We welcome your feedback. If you have any immigration questions, please feel welcome to email me at [email protected] or call 619 819 -8648 to arrange for a telephone consultation.

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while he was away from his coun-try, to be aware, to be engaged, and to be involved in the events hap-pening in the Fatherland. This was what Dr. Jose Rizal stood for. At age nineteen as a third-year medical student in Manila, the young Jose formed a university fraternity called El Compañerismo to promote civic and patriotic education, mutual aid, and cooperation. While in Madrid, Spain, he again did this time, put fuel on the spirit of PATRIOTISM and sense of pride and purpose in his Filipino co-students. He dreamt the dreams of FREEDOM in the Philippines as enunciated by the tenets of the French Revolution, that of Liberté, Égalité, Frater-nité; (“Liberty, equality, fraternity (brotherhood)”, - the national motto of France. We must learn from Dr. Rizal who championed the tenets of UNITY. In fact when Rizal was

elected responsible (chief) of the association of Filipinos in Madrid during his college days over his colleague, Marcelo H. del Pilar, who wanted the position very much, he abdicated the position in favor of del Pilar and stated, “I do wish you to give your full support and cooperation to my dear colleague Marcelo. Let us be united in our efforts to liberate our country”. We are now living in America but why is it important that we talk about the Philippines this day in memorial of the death of Dr. Rizal? It is because what is good for the Philippines is good for every Filipino wherever he/she is. While we concern ourselves with helping our countrymen and their ills, we must also develop our Filipino American community here in its economic, political, and social aspirations in this country. There is much to be done if we are to forge our Filipino American Community into a strong, cohesive force that can speak with one voice on matters that concern us all. But first, we must rise above the divisive elements of our Filipino heritage. If Dr. Jose Rizal is reincarnated, this is what he is going

to say: the Filipinos in America must also be prepared to fully support and assume leadership roles in achiev-ing the inevitable destiny of the Philippines. This is a responsibility that every Filipino must take. Rizal wrote article El Amor Patrio (Love of Country), sent to the Philippines from Spain, that enunciated again his PATRIOTISM. Now as our countrymen is facing the enormity of problems, our executive branch government raises anew the hope that this marks the beginning of a serious attempt at reforming our er-ratic and ineffective justice system. Whenever this is not achieved, I hope and pray it will not be “ adios ” for Filipinos. No pun intended, I would like to think that the legacy of Rizal has influenced the Filipinos to an appointment with destiny. On the eve of his execution, while confined in Fort Santiago, Rizal wrote “ Último adiós” (“Last Farewell”), a masterpiece of 19th-century Spanish verse. His last word- “to die is to rest”-mamatay ay ganap na katahi-mikan.




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by Romy Protacio, PhD

After a successful SRO “Thank You” solo concert last Oct. 8, 2011 at the Lifestream Worship Center in Renton, Washington, Timmy Pavino took a giant step to move to the Philippines to pursue his long-time dream for his music career.

It all started a few months back when Timmy’s male version cover of Angeline Quinto’s “Patuloy Ang Pangarap” created waves in YouTube. Almost 4,000 fans registered after the fi rst weeks of release and now the video has 75,000 views and continues to draw viewers everyday. TIMMY has been credited as one of the 100 most subscribed artists/musicians of all time in the Philippines on YouTube. It was then that Jonathan Manalo, the composer of Patuloy Ang Pangarap, and songwriter Soc Villanueva contacted Timmy to commend him on his YouTube mu-sic videos and to encourage him to try it in Manila. With the positive infl uence of his mother & manager, Vallie Pavino (producer/real estate broker), and the confi dent advice of

Timmy Pavino: “Patuloy Ang Pangarap”

Villanueva, Timmy embarked on his new journey...

Immediately upon his arrival in Manila, Timmy recorded his fi rst OPM single, “Nothing Without You”, music & lyrics written by Soc Villanueva & Arnel de Pano and musically arranged by Marvin Querido. A week later, through the avid recommendation of Suzette Ranillo (actress and fi lm director), Timmy was given fi rst priority to perform his new single at the much viewed GMA 7 TV show, WALANG TULUGAN. This created Timmy’s entrance into the entertainment world.

Invited as a special guest artist at the grand birthday celebration of Dr. Romy Protacio (writer & newspaper columnist from Seattle) in mid-November 2011, Timmy had the opportunity to show off his diverse genre by singing “Out There” & a Tagalog OPM Medley. This inter-ested a veteran actor, Ernie Garcia, who brought him to the management of Artists’ Center of GMA 7. At the same time, a schedule was being set by Villanueva to meet the head offi cer of ABS-CBN Star Record-ing, Inc. It was from this meeting that Timmy got his big break to appear on the stage of ABS-CBN

ASAP ROCKS to duet with An-geline Quinto last Dec. 11 which delivered non-stop overwhelm-ing responses from all over the Philippines and the United States. Timmy Pavino surely rocked Ma-nila and gained more fans!

Timmy Pavino is defi nitely on his way to fulfi ll his dream. His mom-manager related that at age 14, Timmy was being offered to do his fi rst recording album and to be managed by a well-known music producer but her advice was to wait until he is completely ready vo-cally, physically, emotionally and most of all, spiritually. She further stated, “He is not going to go out there until he knows within him the true Giver and purpose of this precious gift. We will know then if he is ready when the right time comes. ”

Now at 21, Timmy Pavino is a full-grown solo performing artist, a master of his craft, a seasoned pop balladeer. As Seattle’s Asian-American Premier Pop Balladeer and a lifetime thespian, Timmy has already experienced perform-ing with big artists on stage and on television. He started singing at age 2 ½ and had attended several

Light &Shadows

Read Zena Babao’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Zena Sultana Babao

By Zena Sultana

Elvis had a gift for giving. His generos-ity was legendary. For those who grew up in Memphis when Elvis was alive, Elvis is remembered not only for his incomparable music but for the many stories about how kind and giving he was.

To him, every day was Christmas!A reporter in Memphis, Mitch McCracken

of the Elvis Presley Examiner, wrote a story about Elvis’ legendary generosity that his mother told him when she was still working as a registered nurse at the Baptist Memo-

rial Hospital. This hospital is where Elvis had gone on many occasions, the last one in August 17, 1977.

Here’s that story: An elderly woman worked in the housekeeping department at the hospital. She rode the bus back and forth to work. One day as she was walking past a car dealership down Union Ave from the hospital she saw a stretch limousine parked almost right on the sidewalk. All eight doors were opened and she stuck her head in to see what the inside of a limo looked like. She saw the bar and the interior of the limo and was duly impressed. She exclaimed, “Oh my God,

what a beautiful car!”The dark-haired man

in the driver seat turned around and said, “Oh you think so?” It was Elvis. He then looked at the man in the front passenger seat and said, “Order her one just like this.”

There were also other stories about Elvis giving generously to all kinds of people, like personally delivering a brand-new wheelchair to a crippled lady. Stories like these were typically Elvis!

Lamar Fike, one of Elvis’ friends and member of the famed Elvis Mafi a, said: “Elvis never forgot where he came from and what it was like to be poor. He was always looking in the newspapers, wherever he was, and when he would see there was someone in trouble with no way out he would send them something to help out. He was just like that. It was his upbringing.”

While growing up Elvis had fi rst-hand

experience of what it was like being poor. He did not have enough money to make ends meet, and Christmases when he was a young boy was not what most of us had in our lives. But early on, his Mom Gladys had instilled in him the gift of giving. Blessed with a lot of talent, his talent brought him success!

Once Elvis had become a big draw, he played a number of charity concerts for free. He was getting well-recognized by 1956 and

he gave to a huge number of charities. On Christmas of 1956, Elvis made a donation of toys to underprivileged children in a charity drive organized by the U.S. Marines.

Elvis provided the initial funding for a Youth Center in his hometown of Tupelo, Mississippi, by performing free at the Fair-grounds in 1957. According to newspaper reports, Elvis turned down his $10,000 fee. When it came to children, Elvis wanted every day to be Christmas for them! Elvis continued to donate money and his time. Even when he was in the military service he donated blood to the German Red Cross.

In 1964, Elvis donated a yacht worth $55,000, the “Potomac” which had formerly

belonged to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, to St. Jude’s Hospital, a children’s research clinic in Memphis. In 1965, he donated $50,000 to the Motion Picture Relief Fund, and in 1966 he donated his Dodge motor home to TEACH, a children’s charity. That Christmas, he also wrote checks for over a million dollars to local Memphis charities.

In 1967, Christmas came early for the Memphis Jewish Community Center Building Fund when Elvis pledged $10,500. This con-tinued year after year, making Christmas so very special for so many people. In the early 1970’s, Elvis sent Buford Pusser, a crime-Elvis’ Gift for Giving:

To Elvis, Every Day was Christmas


Global Filipino

Philippines-Japan NGO Partnership (PJP)

By Carmelita G. Nuqui and

Jeremaiah M. Opiniano

JAPAN offers lots of memories —good and bad— to Filipinos, not just its rising sun that is an economic magnet for Filipinos to go there.

There’s former overseas perform-ing artist Maricris Sioson who, ex-actly 20 years ago, was mysteriously killed by alleged Yakuza elements fi ve months after arriving in Tokyo.

Sioson’s mysterious death never stopped a wave of migration by Fil-ipinas doing the same kind of work which, to advocates for migrant workers, is tantamount to traffi ck-ing and to putting these women’s homeland into shame.

That kind of migrant worker deployment even had processes and documents to be acquired, as well as a large-scale recruitment business which the Philippine government regulated. The tide changed in 2005, when Japanese immigration law changed and tightened the entry re-quirements of those wanting to work as OPAs. The amendment included provisions that anyone seeking such a visa must prove that he or she has education or experience as an en-tertainer. Certifi cation from another government is no longer enough.

This resulted in a steep drop in the number of entertainers being sent by the Philippines from about 80,000 in 2004 to about 38,000 in 2005. In 2010, the number of Filipino women deployed to Japan as entertainers was only about a thousand.

There is now an increase in the number Filipinas marrying Japanese, that being a means to escape poverty (as some departing young Filipina spouses married to elderly Japanese admitted).

Japan-Philippine relations sur-rounding overseas migration also evolved.

The bilateral relationship became economic, resulting in an economic partnership agreement that has, among its terms, deploying Fili-pino nurses to Japan. Only two of over-200 deployed nurses passed the Nihongo-laced nurses licensure examination in Japan, and currently the nurses deployment provision of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement is being evaluated.

While distant from a matter that concerns Filipinos’ migration to Japan, the relationship between the two countries is beyond overseas migration.

Japan is among the Philippines’ major source countries of offi cial development assistance, in which civil society groups hope that such development aid undergo transparent and accountable processes. Nev-ertheless, the aid from Japan led to bridges, light railway transit systems, and even emergency relief for people in Mindanao.

Japan-Philippine economic rela-tions will not be complete without the Japanese companies heading to the country —from vehicles to electronic equipment, some of which became household names among Filipinos (e.g. Toyota, Sony, among others).

The relationship between the two nations even led to the reverse, i.e. of developing country Philippines helping Japan.

Images of the waves that splashed eastern Japan given an 8.9-magni-tude earthquake and tsunami last March simply touched Filipinos’ hearts to help (for example, the Philippines-Japan NGO Partnership, a group of non-government groups here that has a partner NGO network in Japan, donated some money to Japanese NGOs providing disaster relief in tsunami-struck areas in Japan).

Even Filipinos affected by the quake and tsunami had to be helped. There are stories of cause-oriented groups coursing their donations to the Philippine embassy in Tokyo and to some Japanese NGOs directed at the Filipino families victimized by the quake and tsunami.

Still, Japanese maintained their resolve even in the midst of tragedy, and Filipinos learned from it. Says a Japanese taxi driver to a Filipino broadcast journalist who wondered why Japanese are patiently wait-ing a long line in Sendai to siphon fuel from vehicles wrecked by the tsunami: “If we do that, I wanted no part of it since he did not want to join us in hell.”

But Filipinos, thanks to the op-portunity of being in Japan for work, study and permanent residency, extend themselves to help the Philip-pines through philanthropy. Filipino groups of all sorts in Japan—schol-ars in Japan, Filipinos based in Japa-nese communities, migrants’ rights associations, and many more— have

been noted to be helping social de-velopment causes in the homeland.

Of some P2.5 billion of donations coursed through the Lingkod sa Kapwa Pilipino (LinKaPil) program of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), some P33.65 million came from Filipino and non-Filipino donors based in Japan.

These are on top of the remit-tances that Filipinos in Japan send back home: From 2001 to 2010, the US$5.349 billion is way, way ahead of Japanese development aid and foreign direct investment coming from Japan. Even in the last three years when the world faced a global economic crisis, Filipinos in Japan sent record-high amounts.

With these episodes surrounding Philippines-Japan relations and the Filipino migration to Japan that went with it, what future is in store?

Japan might need to continually depend on foreign labor given their declining birth rates. It might also compel Japanese authorities to be more open to the contributions of foreigners and, if possible, respect foreigners’ (and Filipinos’) rights.

For the Philippines, under a new chapter of citizens emigrating to Ja-pan, it might mean that the episodes of forced migration to Japan —a la Sioson— should be over. Probably, helping more Filipinos in Japan and decrepit compatriots in the Philip-pines, as well as fostering better mutual relations between Japanese and Filipinos, may be the next steps.

But for both countries, Japanese and Filipino vigilance to collaborate and help address the welfare of Fili-pinos in Japan and in the Philippines

is a logical next step. This is where, for example, the Philippines-Japan NGO Partnership (PJP) is working with the Japan-Philippines NGO Network (JPN, a network of Japa-nese NGOs with projects in the Phil-ippines) is doing something about it. Or Philippine rural communities welcoming Japanese citizens and en-joying their company and friendship in areas with visible concentrations of Japanese.

The migration story concerning Filipinos heading to Japan is evolv-ing, with development outcomes affecting both countries and their citizens. Opportunities abound from this evolution, and these can excite the Filipinos in Japan and the com-patriots at home who are concerned about their welfare and of a home-land’s hopes for a better future.

Carmelita G. Nuqui and Jerema-iah M. Opiniano are executive direc-tors of the Development Action for Women Network (DAWN) and the Institute for Migration and Develop-ment Issues (IMDI), respectively. Both migrant-oriented nonprofi ts are members of the Philippines-Japan NGO Partnership.

Comments are welcome at: [email protected] and [email protected]

New plot to the Philippines-Japan migration story

Visiting Filipino Artist Alfredo D. Esquillo Jr. works on a piece for the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum in Japan. Alfredo made a stereoscopic artwork, “Trip to Heaven”, modeled after a jeepney, a carryall bus in the Philippines. He used a bicycle and a cart to build the frame and decorated its sides and roof with a “banig painting” (woven paintings), in which he used Christian illustrations and photos of Filipinos living in Fukuoka City. Since this work required more labor than he originally expected; many volunteers helped him.


The New Year I See

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They hardly make an effort but receive these visions or images of what will oc-cur at a future time. Yet, many without that gift want to claim they know what the future holds for a variety of reasons. Opinion writers are my favorite set of individuals who often cross the line of objectivity, writing what they want to happen but passing on their predictions as highly probable forecasts. Unfortu-

nately for the intellectually dishonest, more so the paid hacks or the profes-sional “jukeboxes”, their opinions are recorded and a decent effort to trace their work easily reveals their biases or attempts to mislead.

I am an opinion writer. At the same time, I have strong advocacies that I promote with the conviction that these are for the common good of Filipinos and necessary for the strong and proud nation we want to be. Ten years of writing my column have been marked by a consistency of direction and favorite causes. While I have touched on current issues and personalities, they serve more as entry points to what I believe are the more permanent directions and priorities our society should take.

Now, as one year transitions to the next,

my yearned message will have a familiar ring. 2012 begins as 2011 ends. Physi-cally, the weather will not abruptly change, the temperature will continue to become cooler, the rains will still visit us in Janu-ary pretty much as they have done this December. The “new normal” that climate experts and environmentalists will continue its emerging formation of longer and wetter seasons – or longer and hotter periods.

But just as important, or even more so, is the emerging “new normal” of our political and social environment. The presidency of Noynoy Aquino is a game changer – or one representing a moment when enough Filipinos are demanding that the game be changed. By insisting on confronting corruption as his administration’s crusade, and the grave injustice that corruption infl icts on the weak, the poor and the mor-

als and ethics of a people, P-Noy is doing something NEVER done before. It is not that no administration ever tried to address corruption before, but it never addressed the top priority, and it was never a crusade. Only the son of heroes so keenly aware of a legacy is seeing, or sensing, the mother of all battles should be fought early or cannot be fought anymore.

The impeachment of Chief Justice Renewed Corona is a signal of the extent P-Noy is willing to go. His conclusion is that Corona was put in place to protect the interests of Gloria Arroyo. That may include not just keeping her out of prison but to ensure that her other interests, her cronies and business fronts, will escape prosecution and conviction. It may seem vindictive to a small minority, but they should understand that plunder without recovery is better left untouched rather than unsuccessfully prosecuted.

In my mind, what P-Noy is doing is risk-ing all to establish, not just a message, but a precedent and pathway for future adminis-trations. If Filipinos approve of what P-Noy does, and most do today, plunderers will soon have no place in Philippine gover-nance. Only a politician who has not stolen, upon becoming president, can run after thieves with a passion. It seems to me that P-Noy is seizing the moment, embracing his destiny, will use the powers of his offi ce and the approval of the Filipino people to open Pandora’s box – whatever serpents come out of it. And I anticipate that Philip-pine society will experience the catharsis it needs to break a Gordian knot called cor-ruption and its ugly fruit – poverty.

While the fi rst attack may seem to be Co-rona, we must remember that the Chief Jus-tice is also a symbol. The Filipino people do not yet know enough of Corona to judge him adversely in this confrontation with P-Noy, but the people have long judged the justice system and the judiciary that is so much a part of it. Sadly, the reputation of lawyers and judges has long been stained. It is standard chismis how many of the men and women of the law give and take bribes. Those who are forced by circumstance to sued or be sued make it as part of their due diligence to look for law fi rms with the right connection to dirty judges who hear their cases. It is this conclusion of many Filipinos that the Judiciary is infested with corruption as much as the Legislative and the Executive. This is to a large extent why the credibility of Corona is low, the percep-tion that he, as many lawyers and judges, has sold out to Gloria Arroyo.

The most courageous part of P-Noy’s crusade against corruption is that he is laying the same ground for his people’s judgment of him, for the people’s judgment of his appointees and political allies, of the whole Executive and Legislative branches of government as well. I think many of his allies do not yet realize that they, too, should they turn dirty and corrupt, risk quick removal by impeachment or prosecu-tion. This is what makes 2012 exciting for me, that change has found a New Year so ready for change.



(Continued from page 8)Read previous articles by visiting our website at www.asian-journalusa.com

by Atty. Rogelio Karagdag, Jr.Member, State Bar of California & Integrated Bar of the Philippines

Phil - Am Law 101

Do you know that our national hero Dr. Jose Rizal was a visitor to the United States? He was here from April 28, 1888 to May 16, 1888. In less than a month, he was able to travel coast-to-coast, from San Francisco, through Reno, Ogden, Denver, Farmington, Salt Lake City, Provo, Colorado, Nebraska, Illinois, and New York. That was quite a feat, considering the transport system during those days. It would be interesting to know what documents and other requirements Rizal had to present for his admission to the United States. Were U.S. immigra-tion officers more lenient during his time? In one of the articles we read, Rizal had to spend 6 days under quarantine inside his ship anchored off San Francisco Bay before he was allowed to disembark.

RIZAL WAS ABROAD FOR MOST OF HIS ADULT LIFE

While we know that Rizal fre-quently travelled, not many of us realize that he spent quite a long time abroad to learn the languages and cultures of different nations. In fact, he was outside the Philippines for most of his adult life.

Rizal began his foreign trips on May 3, 1882, when he was just 21 years old. He left the Philippines to study medicine in Spain. Along the way, he passed through Singapore, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Egypt, Italy, France, until he reached Barcelona, Spain on June 16, 1882. He then moved to Madrid to enroll at the Universidad Central de Madrid.

The following year, in June 1883, Rizal went to Paris, France for two months to spend his summer vaca-tion there. After that, he resumed his medical studies in Madrid, where he stayed for two more years, or until October 1885. In the three years that

he studied in Madrid, he not only obtained his medical degree but also got his diplomas in Greek and Hebrew languages.

For more than a year, from Febru-ary 1886 until May 1887, Rizal stayed in various cities in Germany to study its language and culture. While in Germany, Rizal made a short side trip to Vienna, Austria. This probably led to the myth that he fathered Adolf Hitler. But of course, that is very far from the truth. Hitler was conceived long after Rizal had left Germany. In fact, Hitler was born on April 20, 1889 in Austria-Hungary. Doing our math, we can deduce that Hitler was conceived in July 1888. At that time, Rizal was somewhere in Paris or London, so it was physically impossible for him to be Hitler’s father.

Rizal spent the next two months (June and July 1887) visiting Swit-zerland, Italy and France. On August 5, 1887, after five and a half years abroad, Rizal returned to the Philip-pines.

But Rizal was a balikbayan for

only 6 months. In February 1888, he resumed his foreign travels, bringing with him five thousand pesos which he earned from his medical practice in the Philippines. His first stop was Hong Kong and then Japan en route to the United States. From the U.S., Rizal proceeded to Europe where, for the next three years, he shuttled between England, France, Spain and Belgium. In October 1891, Rizal was back in Hong Kong, but spent several months there before he finally returned to the Philippines in June 1892.

Less than a month after his return, Rizal was arrested and deported to Dapitan in Mindanao. He was detained in Dapitan for the next four years. He spent his time helping the local population. He opened an eye clinic and a school, organized the farmers, cultivated lands, and built waterworks, dams and fountains. For sure, he learned these skills during his numerous trips abroad.

Rizal returned to Manila in 1896, only to be detained again in Fort Santiago and eventually, martyred at the Luneta on December 30, 1896.

As we honor Dr. Jose Rizal for his martyrdom, we also remember him as an overseas Filipino who sought to improve himself for the benefit of his country. Upon his return, he brought with him neither dollars, pounds nor balikbayan boxes, but his very own life to offer for his Motherland.

Atty. Rogelio Karagdag , Jr. is licensed to practice law in both Cal-ifornia and the Philippines. He prac-tices immigration law in San Diego and has continuously been a trial and appellate attorney in the Philip-pines since 1989. He travels between San Diego and Manila. His office address is located at 10717 Camino Ruiz, Suite 131, San Diego, CA 92126. He also has an office in the Philippines at 1240 Apacible Street, Paco, Manila, Philippines 1007, with telephone numbers (632)522-1199 and (632)526-0326. Please call (858)348-7475/(858)536-4292 or email him at [email protected]. He speaks Tagalog fluently. Articles written in this column are not legal advice but are hypotheticals intended as general, non-specific legal information. Readers must seek legal consultation before taking any legal steps.

Rizal Was A U.S. Visitorfighting police officer, a large anonymous donation after the cop’s house burned down mysteriously. Elvis attended Buford’s funeral when the cop died in 1974. Elvis helped many people with medical needs. He helped producer Felton Jarvis pay for a kidney transplant.

Adam Victor, who published a book called Elvis Encyclopedia, wrote: “If you were Elvis’ friend, it went without question he would help medically. Many car dealers would tell you that Elvis would walk in and say, ‘It’s Christmas” and buy cars for his friends and family, and even strangers. I feel that since Elvis did not have the Christmases growing up as a lot of us had, he made sure that Christmas was every day.”

The majority of the donations Elvis made were strictly on the condition of NO publicity, so not a lot of people were aware of his generosity. Some of Elvis gifts to chari-ties would become public knowledge, but the rest of his donations were only known to a handful of people who were directly involved in his life.

Among his well-known charitable contributions were the following: $65,000 towards the building of the USS Arizona Me-morial at Pearl Harbor from a benefit concert Elvis performed in Hawaii; $75,000 for the Kui Lee Cancer Fund in Hawaii from sales of audience tickets for rehearsals for the “Aloha from Hawaii” TV special; and the $2-million donated every year to organized charities, both local and national.

Elvis’ legacy of giving was continued after his death by the Elvis Presley Estate, and later on, by the Elvis Presley Enterprises. EPE had set up foundations to carry on Elvis’ tradition of giving. And after Elvis death, Elvis Fan Clubs around the world followed their hero’s lead and raised large sums of money – all in Elvis’ name. Two of these fan clubs are the “All Shook Up Elvis Fan club” in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the “Jailhouse Rockers of California.”

Elvis’ love for Christmas prompted him to release Christmas albums through the years. I don’t know exactly how many, but I was able to find at least the 17 or so Elvis’ Christmas album covers that you see here with this article. In his very first Christmas album, Elvis had recorded 20 Christmas songs and 4 Gospel songs. My favorite is his bluesy rendition of “Blue Christmas” – a classic that would always be associated with “the King.”

To Elvis’ fans, nobody can bring the spirit of Christmas to life like Elvis! And nothing says “Christmas” like the Christmas songs of Elvis! Just browsing through the list of fa-mous this incredible artist’s Christmas songs puts everyone in a festive mood. Here’s the list of Elvis’ songs in his first Christmas album:

“Blue Christmas” “Here Comes Santa Claus” “Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees” “If Every Day Was Like Christmas” “If I Get Home on Christmas Day” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” “It Won’t Seem Like Christmas Without You” “I’ll Be Home on Christmas Day” “Merry Christmas, Baby” “O Come All Ye Faithful” “O Little Town of Bethlehem” “On a Snowy Christmas Night” “Santa Bring My Baby Back to Me” “Santa Claus is Back in Town” “Silent Night” “Silver Bells” “The First Noel”

Elvis’ Gift for Giving: To Elvis, Every Day was

Christmas

“White Christmas” “Winter Wonderland” “The Wonderful World of Christmas” “Peace in the Valley” “I Believe” “Take My Hand Precious Lord” “It’s No Secret What God Can Do” According to David Stanley, one of Elvis’ step-brothers and author of another “Elvis Encyclopedia” book, “When Elvis released his first Christmas album in 1957, some crit-ics called it crass commercialization. They couldn’t have been more wrong. When it came to Christmas, Elvis never grew up. The holiday season made him unabashedly senti-mental and no eight-year-old looked forward to December 25 with more excitement and anticipation than the King of Rock and Roll.”

Elvis manager, Col. Tom Parker, equal-ly loves Christmas. But Parker had a knack for turning any occasion into a publicity stunt, even Christmas. The traditional Presley/Parker Christmas card was Col. Parker in a Santa suit posing with an elfish Elvis.

Purchasing Graceland gave Elvis the opportunity to celebrate the holiday in style. The driveways and the main house were lined with blue lights, and in front were six 8-feet-tall Christmas trees decorated in multi-colored lights. Inside, the mansion was completely decked out for the season, with the focus on a huge Christmas tree in the dining room. After dinner, everyone would gather around the piano to sing Christmas carols.

Elvis loved to receive gifts, and who doesn’t, but his favorite Christmas activity was giving. His friends normally got cash bonuses. The presents for family members and the Elvis Mafia ranged from jewelry to new cars. Elvis loved their reactions to his extravagances. After most of the guests went to bed or went home, Elvis and a few of the guys would bring out Lisa Marie’s presents and put them under the tree.

The early morning hours of Christ-mas Day were very often the best times at Graceland. Elvis would talk about his mother and about the Christmases of his boyhood. He would often say something like, “I wonder what all the poor folks are doing tonight. I wish I could feed all the poor kids and give them presents.” He would reflect on how grateful he was for his success. Then he would wait with the eagerness of a child for Lisa Marie to awaken and find her presents under the tree.

Elvis loved Christmas so much that it was his favorite holiday of the year. In 1966, he shared what he feels about Christmas with the Memphis Press-Scimitar, his hometown newspaper. He said, “It really is the best sea-son of the year. The Christmas carols, trees and lights just grab you. There is something about Christmas and being home that I just can’t explain. Maybe it’s being with the family and friends, time to read and to study. And, of course, there are snowball fights and sleigh rides, and yes, - just home.” XXX

vocal performance workshops and formal voice lessons from known mentors who have groomed him for almost all types of music genres from contemporary music to classi-cal and pop. He is a product of Cor-nish College of the Arts in Seattle.

Through his gift of music, Timmy sets an example to young Filipino talents and encourages them to reach out to the multi-cultural commu-nity. He released his debut single “Second Chances” in 2009 and his debut album “Complete” in 2010 and is currently doing his 1st OPM CD album to be released soon in the Philippines and in the United States. With his extraordinary voice, charismatic personality and versatile musicality, it will not be a surprise if Timmy becomes another world-class Filipino talent!

For more information about Tim-my Pavino and his music, you may visit his website at www.timmy-pavino.com or PAVISON Worldwide Enterprises at www.pavison.com or call (206) 498-0572.

Timmy Pavino: “Patuloy Ang

Pangarap”(Continued from page 8)

by Michael Brown, Spirit Daily

A verbal curse can be reversed by a blessing. So can a generational one. Also, one caused by sin.

Did you ever realize how many people knowingly or unknowingly may have sent burdens and blockages upon you and your family?

You also curse yourself -- when you think negatively about yourself. (I can’t do that. I’ll never make it. I’ll never amount to anything.)

Bless those who have criticized you. Bless those who send you hate. Bless those who “compete” with you. Don’t come under the power of a curse.

Also, bless yourself:

If We Wait For God, Bless Those Who Curse Us, And Never Resent,

The Lord Will Come In His Time And Turn That ‘Curse’ Into A Blessing



Spiritual Life

Read Monsignor’s previous articles by visit-ing our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Msgr. Fernando G. Gutierrez

Lower Your Nets Balintataw

Read Virginia Ferrer’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Virginia H. Ferrer

©2011 Virginia H. Ferrer. All rights reserved.

About the Author: Virginia H. Ferrer is a Filipino Language Teacher at Otay Ranch High School in Chula Vista.

Usapang Paru-Paro (2)

Pakpak ako’y wala subalit mayroong mga brasona sa akin ay kaloob upang makapagtrabahomga biyaya sa paligid dapat bubungkalin komagandang kinabukasan ang iaalay sa mundo.

Wika ni paruparo sana siya’y nakakalakaddito sa lupang mayaman na sadyang napakalapadsa malawak na putikan mga paa ay ibabadmagtampisaw sa tubig kapag umulan ng malakas.

Sana ay tulad mo maabot ko din ang aking ilongmahaplus ng mga kamay mga halamang mayabongmakayuko ako sa lupa at magpagulong-gulong hindi kakayanin nitong mga pakpak na malutong.

Ano nga kaya’t ako’y magkaroon ng mga paaat ng marating ko’t malangoy ang malawak na sapakaya lang baka naman ‘di maging masaya si Alahkaya kuntento na ako sa mga pakpak kong dala.

Masaya na kaming nagkanya-kanya ng aming landasmagkahiwalay na daan masigla naming tinahakpareho kaming sa ginawa ng Diyos ay naganyaksa magkaibang paraan kami ay nagpasalamat.

(Reprinted from the September 16, 2011 issue)

FAMILY DENTISTRYWe treat you like family at

1127 Highland Ave., National City, CA 91950

Dr. Eleanor Madrid Lumahan & Family

Call 619.336.6063Located in the same building as Chuckee Cheese and Hometown Buffet behind Price Breaker

Joke of the Week: Paw was getting a little boisterous at the New Year’s Eve party. Ma: “Remind me to put some steak on your black eye when we get home.” Paw: “But I haven’t got a black eye.” Ma: “You’re not home yet.”

Scriptures: First Reading: Numbers 6: 22-27. This benediction formulary is one of the oldest and beautiful po-etic pieces in the Scrip-tures. To put Yahweh’s name or invoking his name upon the people is similar to bestowing them his blessing. God’s blessing is an assurance of life characterized by growth and success. It also means that Yahweh will always protect his people from childlessness, crop failure and en-emies threat. Second Reading: Gala-tians 4: 4-7. According to Palestinian custom, a father is required to appoint a guardian for his son. In the event of the father’s death, the guardian would administer the inheritance until the son comes of age. In the meantime, even though he is the heir to a large inheritance, he is no better than a slave. Christ, born under the law, offers us the opportunity to become divine sons and daughters, not slaves. Through the Spirit the believer can call God “Abba.”

Gospel: Luke 2: 16-21. The elite of Jewish society considered the shepherds as lawless, dirty, and ignorant. Because these humble peasants believed what they had seen

and heard, they became witnesses to the miraculous events that the proud and the haughty overlooked. Thomas Merton in his book, The Seven Storey Mountain, wrote, “There were only a few shepherds at the fi rst Bethlehem. The ox and the ass understood more

of the fi rst Christmas than the high priests in Jerusalem. And it is the same today.”

Refl ections: Henri Nouwen argued against the modern man’s too much anxieties and worries, “Many of us have become so serious and intense, so fi lled with preoccupations about the future of the world and the Church, so burdened by our

own loneliness and isolation, that our hearts are veiled by a dark sadness, preventing us from exuding the peace and joy of God’s children.” When a person is so overwhelmed with fears, worries and unfulfi lled needs, it is hard to laugh and enjoy life.

Harvey Cox believes that man is both a “homo festivus” (fes-tive human) and a “homo fantasia” (visionary/dreamer). Man is the only creature on earth that can festively celebrate the traditions of his ances-tors, light and blow birthday candles, and act out his fantasy. However, Cox contends, “We have pressed him so hard toward useful work and rational calculation he has all but forgotten the joy of ecstatic celebration, antic play, and free imagination.” When a young person is so much infl uenced by a dull

adult, he loses his ability to dream the impossible dreams and reach the unreachable stars.

There is a need for all of us to return to the playfulness of our child-hood so that worries, fears, hard work and rational calculation would not take over our entire life. This is not of course an injunction to be child-ish at play. Developmental therapists believe that play therapy allows the child to work off his frustrations and problems. At the same time, a child feels less threatened and expresses true feelings in the context of play.

January 1 is the Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of Jesus, True God and True Man. We should allow Mary to lead us toward a new childhood. She who bore a Child who was fragile and weak also ac-cepted him as the Divine Person who did the Father’s will through suffer-ing. If we let Mary to be our mother also she can lead us into a world of new childhood where we can be play-ful, festive and laughing amidst life’s fears and worries. In his homily on Christmas day, St. Anthony of Padua said “Today God made the glorious Virgin laugh, because from her is born our laughter … Christ is born! Therefore, let us laugh and rejoice with the Blessed Virgin.” Mary can make us joyfully face life’s challeng-es, at the same time she can lead us to her Son, Jesus, the Prince of Peace in a world that is torn apart by anguish and hatred. St. Francis of Assisi instructed his fellow friars to imitate the motherhood of Mary: by letting Christ be born in our lives and bear-ing Christ to others. We should pray with Mary Dixon Thayer who wrote the poem, “Lovely Lady Dressed in Blue,” especially this Sunday when we celebrate the Divine Motherhood of Mary. “Lovely Lady dressed in blue, teach me how to pray! God was just your little boy, tell me what to say! … Do you really think he cares if I tell him things, little things that hap-pen? … And can he hear me if I speak low? Does he understand me now? Tell me – for you know.”

Quotation of the Week: “May all your troubles in the coming year be as short as your New Year’s resolutions.” Irish Toast.

Jan. 1: Mary, Mother of God

Lovely Lady dressed in blue, you know!

Tuesday December 20, 2011 The experience of the fullness of

time, during which God is so pres-ent, so real, so tangibly near that we can hardly believe that everyone does not see God as we do, is given to us to deepen our lives of prayer and strengthen our lives of ministry. Having experienced God in the full-ness of time, we have a lifelong de-sire to be with God and to proclaim to others the God we experienced.

Peter, years after the death of Jesus, claims his Mount Tabor experience as the source for his wit-ness. He says: “When we told you about the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not slavishly repeating cleverly invented myths; no, we had seen his majesty with our own eyes ... when we were with him on the holy mountain” (2 Peter 1:16-18). Seeing God in the most intimate moments of our lives is seeing God for others.

Text excerpts taken from Bread for

the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc.

Seeing God for Others

On the fi rst of every month, our Lord gives Anne a new message about His call to service.

December 1, 2011

Jesus

Dear apostles, it is with hope that I come to you today, speaking these words to your heart. I am hoping that the plans I have for your life will come to fruition. Do I require that you be powerful? Impor-tant? Do I need you to be people of great wealth or great infl uence in the eyes of the world? Will My plan be threatened by

your imperfection or your diffi culty main-taining holiness in every moment? Do I need only angels? Or do I need apostles of good will serving exactly where I have placed them? You were created to perse-vere and even fl ourish with limited under-standing of all that is happening around you and through you. Yes, dear apostles, I am fi lled with hope. I am hoping that you accept My love. I am hoping that

you allow Me to bring you healing, daily. I am hoping that through you I can love and heal others whom you will encounter in your daily experience. I bring you so many gifts of knowing Me, both directly and indirectly. Sometimes, I bring these gifts directly into your soul. Sometimes I send these gifts to you through the soul

Direction for Our Times


EntertainmentShowbiz Watcher

Read Ogie Cruz’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Ogie Cruz

IW Group80433

80433_L3012.2.11

Newsprint85

ed

SHOWBIZ WATCHER by Ogie Cruz

Tuluyang inisnab ni Maricel Soriano ang 37th Metro Manila Film

Festival Awards Night last Dec.28, na ginanap sa Resorts World Manila Performing Arts Theater sa Pasay City.

Hindi talaga dumalo ang Diamond Star , pero alam nyo bang siya ang tinanghal na Best Actress ng gabing ‘yun?

Yes, nanalo siya dahil sa pagganap niya sa movie entry ng Regal Films na “Yesterday, Today……” dahil sa simpatiya sa kanyang producer na si Mother Lily na sumama ang loob sa mga MMFF Committee.

Na-disqualify kasi ang movie nila

na nabanggit, dahil binago raw ito ang aprobado na script, kaya sa rule ng Festival hindi raw puede yun kaya ang nangyari disqualify sila para sa Best Picture,Best Director,

Best Screenplay at Gatpuno Villegas Cultural Award.

Sa Best Acress Derby puede si Maricel ma-nominated, na siya namang itinanghal ng gabing ‘yun.Hudyat na kaya ito para magnining na muli ang Diamond Star sa 2012. Im sure maraming fans dito si Ms. Soriano na tiyak masasayahan sa balitang ito.

Nanalong Best Actor naman si Dingdong Dantes dahil sa pagganap sa “Segunda Mano”,Best Supporting Actress naman si Eugene Domingo sa movie na “My Househusband” at si John Regala naman sa movie ng

“Asiong Salonga”.11 tropeo naman ang napanalu-

nan ng movie ni Laguna Governor Jeorge “ER” Estrada na “Manila Kingpin: The Asiong Salonga Story including the Best Picture.

Hindi na namin babanggitin ang mga iba pang award winners, im sure hindi naman kayo interesado dahil gusto nyo lang malaman ang mga nanalo sa major awards.Hmp! sayang lang espasyo natin.

Sa lakas naman ng takilya na movies na kalahok, nangunguna pa rin ang movie nina Vic Sotto at Ai-Ai delas Alas “Enteng ng Ina mo” na parang namumura ang title, nangangalawa “Panday 2 “ ni Sen. Bong Revilla at Marian Rivera at pangatlo raw sa lakas ang movie ni Kris Aquino na “Segunda Mano”.Sa pagkapanalo ng Asiong Salonga, tiyak hahabol ito sa lakas takilya puwes abangan na lang natin.

KRIS AQUINO NAKAKATAWA RAW ANG AKTING SA ‘SEGUN-DA MANO’!!!Maraming tumitira sa ipinakitang acting ng kapatid ng Pres. Noynoy Aquino na si Kris Aquino, kesyo para raw itong tatawa kahit sabihin pa na nakakatakot na ang eksena.Ang mga mata raw ni Kris, taliwas ang ipinakikita kaya tuloy raw nadamay na rin si Ding-dong Dantes sa acting na ipinakita ng dalawa.

Pero tama ang naging kahilingan ni Kris na sana si Dingdong ang

manalo sa Best Actor at nangyari nga ‘yun.Ang tanong nga ng marami paano nanalo si Dingdong , kesyo nilakad daw ito ni kris para manalo bago tumulak ito ng Amerika ? How

True?

Isa pang puna ng marami, bakit nagsalita na naman ang Kris ng ganito bago ang awarding sa Metro Manila Film Festival na pinauubaya na raw ni Kris kina Maricel Soriano at Judy Ann Santos ang Best Actress Trophy.Tumaas tuloy ang kilay ng isang movie reporter na si Jun Cortez, iba raw ang dating sa tinuran ng kapatid ng Presidente habang na-interview ito ni Boy Abunda sa “Bandila”.Kung baga mayabang ang dating at nagmimithi pa na manalo

Maricel Soriano, Inisnab 37th MMFF Awards Night !!!

siya bilang Best Actress, kung baga pinagbigyan lang daw niya sina Maricel at Juday.

Pero in fairness, malakas ang movie ni Ms. Aquino, dahil nakakat-akot daw talaga compare sa “shake Rattle & Roll” na hindi naman daw nakakatakot.

Basta ang natatandaan naming sinabi ni Kris noon, na kapag ang kapatid niya ay naging president, iiwan niya ang showbiz at sa ibang bansa na siya magtratrabaho sa TFC nga sa Amerika pero nakakada-lawang taon na si Pres. Noynoy nandyan pa rin si Kris sa showbiz.Bahala na kayo kung anu ang tawag nyo sa kanya,ilakas nyo para ma-dinig hanggang Pilipinas.

4 TOP HAIR STYLIST NG NATIONAL CITY !!! Alam nyo ba na apat ang hairstylists naming na walang tulak kabigin pagdat-ing sa Barber’s Cut namin? Una si Ms. Nora na nasa Fredie’s Salon na ngayon , ikalawa si Ms. Vangie ng “Vangie’s Hairstyles”, pangatlo

KC CONCEPCION CHOOSES TO REMAIN A KAPAMILYA. KC Concepcion signed an exclusive contract with ABS-CBN. KC was joined (from left) her manager Vic del Rosario, ABS-CBN president and COO Charo Santos-Concio, Channel 2 head Cory Vidanes, and TV production head Linggit Tan. “ABS-CBN is where I grew up and I’m happy to remain a Kapamilya,” KC said. “I have exciting projects lined up, including the series Alta, ASAP every Sunday, and I’ll be hosting a new show too.” - Kane Errol Choa, ABS-CBN Corporate Affairs & PR Director

KC Concepcion chooses to remain a Kapamilya

si Ms. Ning ng” Ida’s Hair & Nails “at huli namin na pinaggupitan ay si Ms. Pamela ng “Amy & Riza’s Salon Spa”.

Natutuwa kami sa apat na ito, pareprehong magagaling kapag gupit sa lalaki ang kailangan mo.Rekomendado namin ang apat na ito, sina Pamela, Ning, Vangie at Nora mamili na lang kayo?Kung sino ang pinakamagaling sa kanila,ibubulong ko na lang sa inyo.

HAPPY NEW YEAR PO SA LAHAT !!! Salamat sa lahat ng tagasubaybay namin dito sa am-ing column sa Asian Journal via Showbiz watcher, kung may tanong po kayo o di kaya aanyahan nyo kami sa inyong Filipino Event,puede po ang inyong lingkod para ibalita ang nangyayari sa inyong lugar lalo na kung maraming Filipino dyan, ibabalita mo namin dito sa aming column.Tawag lang kayo sa 619-474-0588 o di kaya email nyo ako sa Ogie [email protected]


Promised L

andSim

eon G. Silverio Jr.

SIMEON G. SILVERIO, JR.

PROMISED

LAND

“Promised Land” by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.PROMISED LAND, the inspirational and difficult journey of two Filipino cousins marrying U.S. Navy personnel for migration and financial purposes. As a piece of the Filipino-American

experience, this story also applies to the lives of all people.

Excerpts from the book“You must join the U.S. Navy so we can live abroad,” Isabel of-

ten told her boyfriend Lando as they walked in the park, weav-ing dreams for their future together. He would just shrug his shoul-ders in response. – from Chapter 1 – Her U.S. Navy Dreamboat

The clash of two cultures, Filipino and Mexican, had taken its toll. He grew weary of the enchiladas, tacos, burritos and other Mexican dishes she prepared repeatedly. He longed for the Filipino dishes from his na-tive land that he would always eat as a child. Teresa would not let him cook his favorite adobo and tuyo (dried fish) due to their stinking up the house. When he brought her to the Philippines, Teresa refused to stay and sleep in their house in the barrio. “It is hot and there are liz-ards on the ceiling,” she complained. – from Chapter 3 - Trophy Wife

“Let me make this clear with you again,” Ditas once told Romy when he accosted her while tipsy from drinking with friends nearby. “I will never marry you even if you are the last man on earth.” The friends laughed hard and Romy retreated in shame. The next day he left town and she didn’t hear from him until she received a letter from the United States Naval Base in San Diego from her jilted suitor, now a mem-ber of the U.S. Navy. – from Chapter 5 - The Last Man On Earth

One evening, when Romy and his friends were drinking in the house, Ditas showed Andy the photo of Isabel. “Check her out, Andy,” she told him. “She’s looking for a boyfriend here in America.” “No way,” Andy replied. “I know what she’s up to. She will just marry and leave me once she gets her green card.” “But she’s very pretty,” Romy told his friend. “With your looks, you can never have a wife as beautiful as her.” – from Chapter 8 – Pretty Girl’s Photo

“Is this your first time riding an airplane?” her seatmate, a wom-an in her fifties, asked Isabel. “How did you know?” “Because you’re holding your bag tightly and you look scared. And also, that huge envelope in plastic bag contains the x-ray film carried by first time immigrants.” Isabel sheepishly smiled. – from Chap-ter 12 – Land of Milk and Honey

Now AvailableBooks by Asian Journal San Diego

The Original and First Asian Journal in America

Betel N

uts & O

ther StoriesSim

eon G. Silverio Jr.


BETEL NUTS &

OTHER STORIES

“Betel Nuts & Other Stories” by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.Entertaining and easy-to-read short stories inspired by a

Filipino’s experience in growing up in the Philippines.

Excerpts from the bookOne day, however, the duckling went inside an opening under the house.

Borobot waited for it to come out but it did not. He kept waiting even when it got dark, but there was no sign of the duckling. When his father came home that evening, he told him about his missing duckling. His dad took a flashlight and pointed it toward the opening. He inserted a long stick inside and tried to stir it. They could hear some squealing but no quacking. Finally, his dad told him the bad news: “The rats have eaten your duckling.” Borobot cried and cried for a very long time. – from Chapter 2 – Childhood Tales

If there is a person that can aptly be called “the son of a bitch”, which in Pilipino, is synonymous to the phrase, “the son of a whore” (“anak ng puta”), it would be Tikboy. Tikboy was one of Eric’s playmates on Platerias Street where Eric lived with his family on the second floor of his father’s printing business in Manila in 1957. Tikboy’s mother, Purita, worked as a prostitute in a brothel across the street from Eric’s house. – from Chapter 6 - Just Like Any Mother

From where he sat, he could tell Juanita had just bathed. Her hair was still damp and the fragrant scent of her cheap bath soap wafted through the air. She hardly no-ticed him as she was minding her own business. While he pretended to be concen-trating on his reading, he would occasionally take a sneak peak at her, feasting his eyes on all of her seductive beauty. For a hot-blooded fourteen-year-old, she was not just an object of curiosity. – from Chapter 9 – Fragrant Scent of Bath Soap And All

By the time they reached Platerias Street, everything was quiet. There was hardly a soul in sight; it was ten minutes past midnight. Narding frantically ran inside the brothel in search of Clarita, but he was told the Chinese took her just ten minutes before. He ran outside towards P. Paterno Street. Finding no speed-ing taxi, he ran back towards Carriedo Street, turned right towards Rizal Avenue, hoping the taxi holding Clarita had broken down. Finally, a loud, agonizing cry was heard all over in that quiet neighborhood of Quiapo. – from Chapter 11 – True Love

Everyone was looking up at the top of an electric post, where sparks of light shone bright against the dark of the night. When the firemen trained the spotlight to the top of the post, they saw a body of a man lying on a wood across the post. It was Fred, the drunkard pimp. Without anybody noticing, he woke from deep slumber and this time, success-fully climbed the top of the post. He was electrocuted while celebrating his feat. – from Chapter 15 – A Day In The Life Of The People Of Platerias Street

Promised Land

by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

The inspirational and difficult journey of two Filipino cousins

marrying U.S. Navy personnel for migration and financial purposes.

As a piece of the Filipino-American experience, this story also applies to

the lives of all people.


Philippine Hom

ecoming

Simeon G

. Silverio Jr.

“Philippine Homecoming & Other Memories”An entertaining and easy-to-read account of a Filipino American’s homecoming to the Philippines and the

interesting memories it triggered.

Excerpts from the bookSeeing the Philippines for the first time after many years would give any former

resident a “culture shock.” The roads, which looked to be wider before, appeared narrow. The buildings and the streets, which were dilapidated and dirty before, looked more dilapidated and dirty now. – Chapter 2 – Balikbayan Culture Shock

All of a sudden, the small kids from before were now grown up. Their faces had changed, yet somehow looked familiar. Some of his relatives who lived in a compound beside them had already died. Gone forever dur-ing a span of just ten years were his maternal grandmother, three uncles, two aunties and two cousins. – Chapter 3 – Like A Video Tape Experience

Their vehicle moved towards the man and again they asked: “Boss, alam mo ba ang bahay ni Maning Bakla (Boss, do you know the resi-dence of Maning, the homosexual?)?” The man looked serious and glumly said: “Yes, I am Maning, what do you want?” They were embarrassed as they were sure that Maning did not appreciate the unsavory nick-name. – Chapter 6 – Maning Bakla And the Duty Free Shops In Manila

There was a full moon above, and they could see its reflections on the water as the waves slapped on the sand. They could feel the cool breeze kiss their face, the warm water wet their feet. On that cold December evening in Maryland Beach Re-sort in Nasugbu, Batangas, Philippines, they wanted to freeze time and enjoy every moment of their stay – Chapter 10 – Nasugbu Market Place And The IUD BBQ

Manila Mayor Antonio Villegas proved to be an innovative mayor; for example, he introduced the free elementary and high school education in the city, the first of its kind in the country. He was also a poet in the ver-nacular; at every opportunity, he would recite or talk in the form of a poem he himself composed. In answer to his critics, he once said: “Marami ang nagtatanong kung bakit ako tumutula, bakit, ang tula ba ay masama (Many are asking why I am reciting a poem, why, is a poem bad)?” Chapter 17 – When “Gatpuno” Villegas warmed his “Salumpuwit” at Maharnilad

Their playmates from the barrio were cautious and made a sign of the cross when passing ant hills, which they would call “nuno sa punso”. They would reverently say, “Makikiraan, po (Please allow us to pass!)!” Chapter 31 - Nuno Sa Punso And Other Weird Provincial Experiences

The boys, usually five at a time, would line up and march without their pants towards the rice fields at the back of the house. They would pass by a guava tree, pull out several leaves and wash them in the artesian well. Once in the field, the quack doctor would hammer a stake into the ground made of a branch of a guava tree with the other end bent towards the boy. – Chapter 34 - Circumcision: Why Do Some Boys Walk Bow-Legged During Summertime In The Province?


PHILIPPINE HOMECOMING’S

CHERISHED MEMORIES

Balik Tanaw:

The Filipino Movie Stars of Yesteryears

Volume I

By Dr. Romy Protacio

Excerpts from the book

If there is a person that can aptly be called “the son of a bitch”, which in Pilipino, is synonymous to the phrase, “the son of a whore” (“anak ng puta”), it would be Tikboy. Tikboy was one of Eric’s playmates on Platerias Street where Eric lived with his family on the second floor of his father’s printing business in Manila in 1957. Tikboy’s mother, Purita, worked as a prostitute in a brothel across the street from Eric’s house. – from Chapter 6 - Just Like Any Mother

From where he sat, he could tell Juanita had just bathed. Her hair was still damp and the fragrant scent of her cheap bath soap wafted through the air. She hardly noticed him as she was minding her own business. While he pretended to be concentrating on his reading, he would occasionally take a sneak peak at her, feasting his eyes on all of her seductive beauty. For a hot-

blooded fourteen-year-old, she was not just an object of curios-ity. – from Chapter 9 – Fragrant Scent of Bath Soap And All

Philippine Homecoming’s

Cherished Memoriesby Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

An entertaining and easy-to-read account of a Filipino American’s

homecoming to the Philippines and the interesting memories it trig-

gered.


Seeing the Philippines for the first time after many years would

knew the ice was broken. – Chap-ter 2 : Movie Star

“So how are you doing?” Danny was pleased to hear from Juanita. “I am okay, how about you?” “So-so,” he replied. “I’ve missed you,” his playboy persona took over again. “Really?” she asked. “I have something to tell you.” “What? “ Danny was rejuvenated. He had not dated for a while and was eager to do so. He saw an opportunity with Juanita. “I just gave birth to a baby girl.” “Congratulations,” Danny said. “Are you sexy again?” He was hoping to renew their relationship but was unsure about

Balik Tanaw:The Filipino Movie Stars

of Yesteryearsby Dr. Romy Protacio

Lives and Loves of the Filipino Movie Stars of Yesteryears

Tidbits from this book your inquiring mind wants to know:

How many children does Tessie Agana have?

Who are the two movie star cous-ins of Robert Arevalo?

Whose autograph of a famous co-median Perla Bautista sought that led her to become a movie star?

What physical attributes did Ber-nard Bonnie have that made him a

ered as her “little sister” in high school?

What was Susan Roces’ first lead role in the movies?

What kind of business Pepito Rodriguez is involved with these days?

How was Ramil Rodriguez dis-covered?

Who was the movie star brother of Gloria Romero?

What prestigious award Rosa Rosal got for her public service endeavors?

Why was Caridad Sanchez con-sidered not a typical movie star?

Who was the ambassador hus-band of Gloria Sevilla?

In what Manila public market did Luz Valdez sold wares before she was discovered?

What was the connection of Norma Vales with top Hollywood entertainer Mitzi Gaynor?

Who was the famous comedienne and next-door neighbor of Nova Villa who introduced her to the movies?

Who was the top Sampaguita Pic-tures actor and the drinking buddy of Zeny Zabala’s father who was instrumental to her movie career?

What title did Marita Zobel win that earned her the lead role oppo-site Lou Salvador, Jr. in the movie “Bad Boy”?

Get all the answers in this book, “Balik Tanaw: The Filipino Movie Stars of Yesteryears”!

Isang Laksang Tula ng mga Piling Katatawanan

By Joe Cabrera


Mga Kabulastugan

Nung nagdaang buwan, ako’y may nasabat

Na isa pong tao, na lakad ng lakadAng sarili niya, ay kinakausapAt di man magsawa, maghapon,

magdamag

Di ako nagulat, dito sa nakitaAng hinangaan ko, iyong pan-

kuwentoNang siya ay kumanta, sa isang

konsiertoSa “ending” ay “fine, fine”, sigawan

ng taoLapit ang manager, pinag-multa ito***Mayrong isang tao, may “Mer-

cedes” bagaNguit ‘sang umaga, ito’s nawala naPalit sa saxophone, nang kapit

bahay niyaMatahimik na lang, masayang sabi

paMayrong isang mama, punta sa

agenciaItong saxophone niya, kanyang

binebentaBakit sobrang mura, ang tanong sa

kanya“Yung kapit-bahay ko, baril bumili

na***

Pare ko, pare ko, sabi ni AmbrosioKita ko kagabi, itong asawa moPinipilit hagkan, nitong si ArnaldoDuon sa tindahan, nitong ating

barrio

H indi man nagulat, itong si AntonioEh nagpahalik ba, biglang tanong

nitoAba hindi pare, sagot ni ArnaldoKung ‘di nagpahalik, ‘di ‘yon asawa

ko!***

Mayrong isang tao, ito’y “impresa-rio”

Na ang hanap buhay, maglabas ng floor show

Minsa’y nag-advertise, ng bihirang akto

Na naiba naman, diyan sa ordi-nario

May isang dumating, nag-prisinta baga

Ang mga ibon daw, kanyang na-gagaya

Kay daling gawin niya, ang sabi sa kanya

Marami na ko nyan, alis ka na muna

Magre-reklamo pa, itong tao sana

To order a copy, send $13.95 (mailing cost included) to Asian Journal San Diego. 550 East 8th Street, Suite 6, National City, CA 91950 Tel. (619) 474-0588

In the Philippines, order the book at MEG Silverio Press, 432 Platerias, Quiapo, Manila, Tel. No. 733-5455

For more information, e-mail [email protected] To order copies through the Internet, go to amazon.com, go to

“books”, go to “advance search” and type name of author, SIMEON SILVERIO, and follow instructions.

To order by mail, fill outMail Order Form

(Check quantities in space before book title)

____ Promised Land by Simeon G. Silverio Jr.

____ Betel Nuts and Other Stories by Simeon G. Sil-verio, Jr.

____ Philippine Homecoming’s Cherished Memories – by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ Complicated Affairs by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ Philippine Travels’ Treasured Memories – by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ The Boys of Summer and Other Stories by Sim-eon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ Balik Tanaw : The Lives and Loves of Filipino Movie Stars of Yesteryears by Dr. Romy Protacio

____Isang Laksang Tula ng mga Piling Katatawanan ni Joe Cabrera

____The Rain In Spain and Other Travel Stories by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ Philippine Visit’s Precious Memories – by Sim-eon G. Silverio, Jr.

____ Rice Cooker: Writings on Filipino Americal Life, Issues and People by Simeon G. Silverio Jr.

____The Life and Times of a Filipino-American In San Diego, California by Simeon G. Silverio Jr

_______ Total number of booksTimes $13.95 each (mailing cost included)

______________ Total Cost

Fill out form below and send it together with check pay-ment payable to: Asian Journal San Diego, 550 East 8th Street, # 6, National City, CA 91950

Full Name: ______________________________

Address: _______________________________

City: ___________________________________

State: ____________ Zip: __________________

give any former resident a “culture shock.” The roads, which looked to be wider before, appeared nar-row. The buildings and the streets, which were dilapidated and dirty before, looked more dilapidated and dirty now. – Chapter 2 – Ba-likbayan Culture Shock

Their vehicle moved towards the man and again they asked: “Boss, alam mo ba ang bahay ni Maning Bakla (Boss, do you know the residence of Maning, the homosexual?)?” The man looked serious and glumly said: “Yes, I am Maning, what do you want?” They were embarrassed as they were sure that Maning did not ap-preciate the unsavory nickname. – Chapter 6 – Maning Bakla And the Duty Free Shops In Manila

Complicated Affairs


The colorful and incredible story of a Filipino American’s compli-

cated affairs.

Excerpts from the book:

How did you know Richard?” she asked. Danny was fast to the draw. “I produced his shows there,” he lied. He could see Menchie, the movie star, was impressed. “And I can also produce your show,” he continued the charade. She was pleased. “Do you think people will pay just to watch me? “Why, are we going to charge them?” he asked instead. Menchie was aghast, but realized he was joking. She hit him on the shoulder. He

top sprinter in college?Who is the other movie star

brother of Robert Campos?Who was the Manila couturier

that was instrumental in making Charlie Davao a movie star?

Who was the top actor Myrna Delgado had an affair with that produced a love child?

Who was the legendary actor who gave Dolphy his first break in the movies?

What is the relationship of Linda Estella to Judge Jose Vera, the fa-mous founder of the Sampaguita Pictures?

Who was the famous Sampaguita Pictures movie star Bella Flores had a rift that led to a hair-pulling incident?

How did Amalia Fuentes get her last name?

What military outfit Eddie Garcia used to belong with?

What prize did Shirley Gorospe win as “Miss Philippines USA”?

What other talent does Liberty Ilagan have?

Who is the legendary movie di-rector who gave Anita Linda her screen name?

What was the first screen name of Mona Lisa?

What was the profession of Liza Lorena before she became a movie star?

What was the first job of German Moreno at the once famous Clover Theater?

What comic strip characters did Oscar Obligacion portray in the movies?

Who was the famous Hollywood movie star Paraluman was always compared with?

Why was Barbara Perez asked by a famous couturier to tone down her attire?

How much was Delia Razon paid for her first dance number in a movie?

Who was the top government official Boots Anson Roa consid-

Nguni’t itong boss, medyo napika pa

Kaya’t itong tao, kagyat umalis naSa bintana’ng daan, lumipad pag-

daka***

Itong si Mang Pedro, hanap ay trabaho

May “offer” sa kanya, Presidente kamo

Hindi niya tinanggap, katwiran ay eto

Pag Presidente na, wala nang asenso

***Mayrong politico, palagi nang taloSa tuwi-tuwi nang, sya’y kandidatoNakagawian nang, palaging

reklamoNaging biro na sya, nitong buong

barrioIsang araw kamo, ang asawa nitoNagsilang ng sanggol, na “quintu-

plet” kamoNang lumabas ang nurse, at

sabihin ditoHumingi ng “recount”, ng maka-

siguro***

Mayrong isang tao, wari’y nagyaya-bang

Sa dalas magbihis, nitong kasuotanFive times a day ako, pagyayabang ni

JuanMagpalit maghapon, kung syang

kailanganWalang kuenta iyan, ang sagot nung

isaYung kapatid ko nga, hindi lamang

limaSa kadalasan nga, pito o walo paSobra ngang magastos, nakakabuisit

naManiwala ako, sabad nitong si JuanEight times kung magpalit, sobra’ng

kayabanganIlang taon na ba, ang kapatid mong

‘yanDalawang buan pa lang, ang sagot ni

Julian

HEEEEHAAWWWW!!!

galawaKina-kausap din, itong sarili niya“But” bawa’t sabihin, ay sinasagot

pa!***

May isang realto, sobrang “suc-cess” nito

Daming bahay na nga, ang nabili kamo

Daming nagtatanong, kung ano’ng sekreto

Nung ibunyag niya, ‘yon pala’y ganito

Ang suwerte ko aniya, anak kong dalaga

Na sa gabi’t araw, hilig ay kumantaItong kapitbahay, pag narinig na

siyaSa presyong kay mura, baha’y

binebenta***

Isang piano player, itong nagku-kuwento

‘Yung kumpare raw niya, sobrang religioso

Pag nadinig daw siyang, tumugtog ng piano

“Oh my God,” patawad, sinasambit nito

***Isang tenor naman, ngayo’y nagku-

Com

plicated Affairs

Simeon G

. Silverio Jr.

SIMEON G. SILVERIO, JR.“Complicated Affairs” By Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.

The colorful and incredible story of a Filipino American’s complicated affairs.

Excerpts from the book:How did you know Richard?” she asked. Danny was fast to the draw. “I

produced his shows there,” he lied. He could see Menchie, the movie star, was impressed. “And I can also produce your show,” he continued the charade. She was pleased. “Do you think people will pay just to watch me? “Why, are we going to charge them?” he asked instead. Menchie was aghast, but realized he was joking. She hit him on the shoulder. He knew the ice was broken. – Chapter 2 : Movie Star

“So how are you doing?” Danny was pleased to hear from Juanita. “I am okay, how about you?” “So-so,” he replied. “I’ve missed you,” his playboy persona took over again. “Really?” she asked. “I have something to tell you.” “What? “ Danny was rejuvenated. He had not dated for a while and was eager to do so. He saw an opportunity with Juanita. “I just gave birth to a baby girl.” “Congratulations,” Danny said. “Are you sexy again?” He was hoping to renew their relationship but was unsure about it since she was with her husband. Juanita did not answer his question; instead, she said, “And it’s yours.” – Chapter 3 :Another Child

“This is Mindy,” Diaz introduced a pretty twenty-five year old girl to him when he arrived at the dock. “She’s Digna’s sister.” Mindy shyly extended her right hand which Danny shook. He noticed that Digna was teasing her sister, as though there was a pre-arranged plan between Diaz and the two girls unbeknownst to him. Later on, during the course of the fishing trip, he discovered the plan: Digna wanted Danny to hook up with her sister. “Marry my sister,” Digna told him as they ate lunch aboard the boat in the middle of the bay. “So she can migrate to America.” She knew Danny was a divorced American citizen. – Chapter 5: Gone Fishin’

Danny called up his friend Pepito and asked for ideas on how to best help Kate. Pepito was the brother of his comedian friend, Elvis, one of the top enter-tainers in the Philippines at that time. “Jackpot ka, pare (You’ve got a jackpot, friend),” Pepito told Danny. “She is a gold mine.” “What do you mean?” “We can set her up with rich Chinese men playing at the casinos and charge them at least 50,000 pesos to spend the night with her. I am sure many of them would be willing to spend that much just to be with a beautiful white girl like Kate. We will get our commission afterwards.” – Chapter 8 : Leading Lady

After Danny gave him her name, the clerk spent a few minutes in the com-puter. “That’s it,” the clerk said afterwards. “She has pension due her, and you are entitled to it!” Danny was surprised. He didn’t expect this bounty. “How much do you think you will get?” the clerk asked him. Danny was hesitant to give him an amount. He was happy to get $100 a month. That would go a long way espe-cially if one was living in the Philippines. “One hundred dollars,” he answered. “That’s way too low, make it higher.” “Three hundred?” “Way too low.” “Five hundred?” “Still very low.” “How much?” he finally asked. “Try fourteen hundred dollars.” He could not believe what he heard. – Chapter 9 : Windfall

COMPLICATED AFFAIRS


“You must join the U.S. Navy so we can live abroad,” Isabel often told her boyfriend Lando as they walked in the park, weaving dreams for their future together. He would just shrug his shoulders in response. – from Chapter 1 – Her U.S. Navy Dreamboat

The clash of two cultures, Filipino and Mexican, had taken its toll. He grew weary of the enchiladas, tacos, burritos and other Mexican dishes she prepared repeatedly. He longed for the Filipino dishes from his native land that he would always eat as a child. Teresa would not let him cook his favorite adobo and tuyo (dried fish) due to their stinking up the house. When he brought her to the Philip-pines, Teresa refused to stay and sleep in their house in the barrio. “It is hot and there are lizards on the ceiling,” she complained. – from Chapter 3 - Trophy Wife

“Betel Nuts & Other Stories”


Entertaining and easy-to-read short stories inspired by a Filipino’s

experience in growing up in the Philippines.


Health and Wellness

Joyce Benavides Medina, O.D.Doctor of Optometry

Clinic located inside Walmart1200 Highland AvenueNational City, CA 91950

Open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday 9:30 A.M. to 6:30 P.M.Saturday 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.

Most insurances accepted.

Call for an appointment: (619) 477-9621

Complete Eye Exams $58* additional charge for contact lens �tting

Walk-Ins Are Welcome

LOOKING at all the empty glass bottles lined up for recycling, you might be feeling a little guilty.

As you notice your belly poke over your jeans, you curse those frivo-lous summer holiday excesses. Why didn’t you have more willpower? But you are not alone.

There are times when most of us allow ourselves to go a little mad on fatty and sugary foods. And why not? We feel we deserve time to kickback and enjoy ourselves.

But the overload of toxins can be too much for our digestive system to handle and this can have a negative effect on our body. Here’s a look at the detox foods that can help.

(1) FRUITSFruit is high in antioxidants,

nutrients, fi bre and many important vitamins like Vitamin C. We need

the antioxidants in fruit to help get rid of any excess waste from over-indulgence (think of antioxidants as being like the bin men coming around once a week). They help to neutralise the pollutants and free radicals we have been taking in. They are also extremely high in liquid content, which helps the body to wash out toxins.

(2) GREEN FOODSDark green is the colour of vita-

min-rich, leafy vegetables, includ-ing spinach. When you are ready to detox, fi ll your refrigerator with these foods: kale, spinach, spirulina, alfalfa, chard, arugula or other or-ganic leafy greens that you’ve never heard of before.

(3) LEMONS, ORANGES AND LIMES

Vitamin C is one of the best detox

vitamins around, as it turns toxins into digestible material. These citrus wonders fl ush out toxins and start the digestive tract. To boost detox, have a warm glass of lemon water every morning.

(4) GREEN TEAHerbal teas are great for the diges-

tive system, so why not swap your daily ordinary tea for a green or herbal tea? Packed full of anti-oxidants, green tea not only washes toxins out of the system through its liquid content, but also contains a special type of antioxidant called catechins known to increase liver function. Herbal teas such as pep-permint are good for settling the stomach.

(5) PROBIOTICSProbiotics are essential for re-

building the good bacteria in your digestive tract. If you can’t stand the thought of eating probiotic yogurts every day, go for probiotics tablets, which are available in most good health stores or supermarkets. Take one twice a day for a month and watch as you start to lose that bloated feeling.

(6) GARLICGarlic is a great detoxifying agent.

Not only does it taste good in food, but it also stimulates the liver in producing enzymes that help fi lter out toxic residues in the digestive system. Adding sliced or cooked garlic to any dish will aid your detox diet.

(7) FIBRE“Death begins in the colon” is an

old saying that holds a lot of truth. The best way to clear out your system of all those sluggish toxins is

10 ways to reboot your body with healthy foods and exerciseto eat plenty of fi bre. Fibre such as that in bran, cereals and foods such as Ryvita can help to clear out your digestive tract. Substitute stodgy, white bread sandwiches at lunch for four or fi ve Ryvita with vegetable soup or baked beans poured over wholemeal bread.

(8) RAW VEGETABLESYou can either juice raw veg-

etables or eat them whole. Instead of snacking on chocolate and biscuits, why not try raw carrots and hummus as a midday snack? Raw vegetables are high in naturally occurring sulphur and glutathione. Sulphur helps the liver to detoxify harmful chemicals.

(9) OMEGA-3 OILSIdeally, swap your daily sandwich

for sushi if you want to get in shape. Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential fatty acids and they reside in fi sh. They are essential to human health but cannot be manufactured by the body. They can be found in salmon, tuna, and halibut, other marine life and nut oils. You should eat fi sh at least twice a week or take omega-3 capsules.

(10) EXERCISEIf the thought of running nowhere

in a room full of men staring at themselves in a mirror fi lls you with dread, why not try and incorporate exercise into your every day routine? Take the stairs instead of the lift, go for a walk on your lunch break and join a class such as yoga or aerobics. You might even make some new friends in the process.

pooja at 12:19 AM

San Diegans must step for-ward to prepare and prevent

major ‘tsunami’by Paul Downey, President/

CEO, Senior Community Centers

Last month, the U.S. Census Bu-

reau released their statistics that give us a snapshot of what America’s senior population looks like. And it’s a warning for all of us. The graying of America is like a tsunami. Think of the Census Report as the water receding, warning us that something big is coming our way. The wave of baby boomers crashing onto our shores over the next 20 years will challenge us in ways not seen in our history. Couple this with the ongo-ing state and federal cuts to senior services and the fact that seniors are struggling to make ends meet, and we have one heck of a storm and subsequent messy aftermath to clean up.

By 2035, one in four Americans will be age 65 or older. But the rapid growth has already begun to occur. According the U.S. Census numbers, the U.S. senior population increased by 15.1 percent, while the popula-tion in general only increased by 9.7 percent. This means there has been exponential growth among seniors across the nation between 2000 and 2010.

San Diego County also saw a 15 percent increase in the senior popu-lation in the last decade. Our region is home to 351,425 residents age 65 and older in 2010, which represents 11.4 percent of the county’s total population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Today, one in ten residents is age 65 or older.

The news doesn’t stop there. The U.S. Census report also showed a 48 percent increase in people age 85 and older. This particular segment of the senior population has doubled or tripled in some cities in the last decade. And the rapid growth will continue, as the nation’s Baby Boomers turn age 65 and begin to live longer lives.

Currently, in San Diego two out of fi ve seniors lack adequate resources to meet their basic needs, and struggle to live day by day. This storm could have damaging effects on everything from our infrastruc-ture, housing, health care, employ-ment; our whole economy could be devastated. It’s time for state and federal governments to wake up and prepare for this storm with proper aging policy and infrastructure. If they had doubts about the surge of

seniors before, these new census numbers tell us what is going to hap-pen. The numbers are real.

U.S. Census Numbers Reveal Rapid Growth in Senior Population


Based on just two questions from a newly released guide, health care professionals could spot children and teenagers at risk for alcohol-related problems. Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention for Youth: A Practitioner’s Guide, is now available from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Insti-tutes of Health.

Developed in collaboration with the American Academy of Pediatrics, clinical researchers, and health practitioners, the guide introduces a two-question screening tool and an innovative youth alcohol risk estimator to help clinicians overcome time constraints and other common barriers to youth alcohol screening.

“We know that alcohol is by far the drug of choice among youth,” says NIAAA acting director Kenneth R. Warren, Ph.D. “Underage drinking is also a marker for other unhealthy behaviors and it often goes undetected. This new tool was designed to allow busy practitioners who manage the health and well-being of children and adolescents to conduct fast, effective alcohol screens and brief interventions.”

Research has shown that over the course of adolescence, the proportion of youth who have had more than just a few sips of alcohol increases dramatically, from 7 percent of 12-year-olds to

nearly 70 percent of 18-year-olds. Binge drinking is dangerous and common, and increases with age. Underage drinking is associated with many adverse outcomes, ranging from immediate consequences such as academic and social problems, injuries, and death, to longer-term consequences including increased risk for alcohol dependence as well as potentially enduring functional and structural changes in the brain.

“Clinicians who care for young people are well aware of the many harms caused by underage drinking,” notes Sharon Levy, M.D., M.P.H., chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Substance Abuse, and assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School in Boston. “The guide takes much of the mystery out of intervening with young patients who are drinking, allowing clinicians to proceed within a clinical framework of low, moderate, or high risk. It will enable pediatricians and other clinicians who care for young people to easily incorporate alcohol screening across the care spectrum, from annual visits to urgent care.”

To develop the shortest possible screening tool with the strongest evidence for predicting current and future alcohol problems in youth, NIAAA con-

NIH releases clinician’s guide for screening underage drinkers



Bill’s Corner

Read Bill Labestre’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Bill Labestre, MBA

When it comes to vacation time, you and your spouse

or partner should visit a place where you could have fun together. It’s time for you to rejuvenate the relationship. It could be a new place or the usual destination but, always remember that you are on vacation and not on a Mercy mission. You earned this time off so, try to relax.

If possible, leave the smart phones,

the tablets or the laptops at home. You can still survive without them and the world will still be intact when you get home. Just grab your pocket still and video cameras with chargers, adaptors and few memory cards. It’s time for the new adven-tures and you may have to get out of your comfort zone. It may not be perfect as you planned but, you can make the necessary adjust-ments along the way.

My wife and I have enjoyed visiting Asian countries. Even the Philippines have so much to offer for less money. Accept the fact that you are not Santa Claus but a regular working person trying to relax even for a short time. If you enjoyed hanging out with your needy fami-lies and listen to their sad stories and their never ending requests, so be it. It’s your life and it’s your money.

Thailand was our usual destina-tion since we always cherish our time in that country. They have so many good things to offer that they became the favorite tourist destina-tion in Asia. Whatever is your cup of tea, they most likely can serve it. They have well-developed infra-structures to support a booming tour-

ism industry. Before you decide to travel to

Thailand, surf the Net and gather useful information. Once you set the travel dates, search for good airfare deals online. Depending on your budget, compare hotel rates. May to October is low season for tourists so prices are down.

Travel light with one hand car-ried and one checked in luggage. Bring lots of shorts, thin T-shirts, blouses and walking sandals. For the long flight, wear very comfortable attire and minimal metallic acces-sories. It is nice if your hand carried item have wheels for long walks at some of the airports. Make extra copies of passports, ID and credit cards. Check in very early to request for better seat locations.

In Bang-kok, we stayed at Asia Hotel. It’s inex-pensive and attached to train station and also very close to Siam Discovery, Siam Center and Siam Paragon Shop-

ping Malls. It is also close to the popular MBK Center with 8 floors and 2000 shops and 2 Food Courts. The BTS train will take you to the huge Chatuchak weekend flea market which covers 35 acres and sells everything.

In Phuket Island, Patong Beach is very popular and lively so the prices are a bit higher. In Krabi, re-sorts are cheaper and the beaches are nice. For the honeymooners, Samui Island is a good place to consider. Phi Phi island has the best snorkel-ing areas.

Chiang Mai in the north is a lot cheaper and cooler.

Various tours are offered at the hotel lobbies. City tour is a must for first timers. Thailand is exotic and yet very safe. It is still quite cheap but, equipped with modern ameni-ties.

EZ Travel Tips


Condo units in Tagaytay. While you are away, you can rent out your unit as a condotel and make money on your investment. Presentations available in August, 2010, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Asian Journal office at 550 East 8th Street Suite 6, National City, CA 91950 (in Old Schoolhouse Square). Call (619) 474-0588 or e-mail [email protected] for more information.

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NIH: Underage Drinking


Mga Tula ng BayanRead previous articles by visiting our website at www.asian-

journalusa.com

ni Audele

Ang Pasko sa Timog

$50

Rumagasa si Sendong sa katimuganInagnas yaong lupa sa kabundukanMga puno’y binunot sa kakahuyanWalang awang nilamon ang kabayanan. Bagyong tulad niya’y bihira sa timogNang sumpungi’y delubyong kalunus-lunosAri-ariang inadhika’y inanodMaraming mamamayan ang nangalunod. Isang buwang ula’y ‘binuhos nang minsanKaya ang lupa’y lumambot nang tuluyanAng datihang malusog na kagubatanNgayo’y walang lakas baha ay pigilan. Kung uulinigin yaong daing’t gibikPaos na matanda at tili ng paslitAma at ina na kapwa nananangisSa yumaong mahal, makadurog-dibdib. Sa dilim ng gabi at matinding lamigSa dating katiha’y dumaloy ang tubigGangga bukung-bukong, baywang hanggang leegSa ilang saglit nilukob pati atip.

Saklot ng pangamba na baka magapiTakasan ng ulirat at mawala sa sarili‘Di maisalba ang mga kinakasiAy walang hanggang lungkot at pagsisisi. Nagpalanguy-langoy, nagpakampay-kampayAngka’y ‘pinaanyo sa ligtas na lugalTiniis ang gutom ‘di ininda’ng uhawPalad na ring si kamataya’y nalinlang. Ang trahedyang naganap sa tatlong lungsodAno pa ang aasahan sa susunod?Kundi ang pagkalipol at pagkaubosBuhay na mahalagang kaloob ng Dios. Pa’no magdiriwang ng Pasko silang abaKalikasan ba’ang dapat bigyan ng salaO tao ring salapi ang dinambanaLikas na kayamana’y sinamantala? Naglaho ang tahanang pagsasabitanParol na marikit, iba’t ibang kulayPuno ng Paskong pinalalamutianMasarap na pagkaing pagsasaluhan. Ika-25 ng Disyembnre, 2011

vened a working group of researchers to conduct extensive analyses of underage drinking data. Their analyses indicated that just two questions, one that asks about friends’ drinking, and another that asks about personal drinking frequency, had the greatest predictive power. Examples of these questions, which vary slightly for elementary, middle, and high school ages, include:

Friends’ drinking: “Do you have any friends who drank beer, wine, or any drink containing alcohol in the past year?”

Personal drinking: “How about you--in the past year, on how many days have you had more than a few sips of beer, wine, or any drink containing alcohol?”

The friends’ drinking question is an early warn-ing signal that strongly predicts future drinking lev-els, while the personal drinking question is the best predictor of current risk for alcohol-related harm in adolescents who are already drinking. These ques-tions can be asked quickly, an extremely important factor for clinicians and their patients.

“Routine screening and intervention for alcohol use in young people is critical to preventing the constellation of problems associated with adoles-cent drinking,” says Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H., assistant secretary for health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “The new adoles-cent alcohol screening guide developed by NIAAA provides health care professionals an opportunity to engage young patients before it is too late.”

“People who start drinking before the age of 15 are much more likely to have alcohol problems later in life than those who begin drinking at age 21 or older,” adds Pamela S. Hyde, administra-tor of HHS’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. “By helping clinicians identify underage drinking early, this simple and straightforward tool will help young people avoid behaviors that prevent them from achieving their full potential.”

In addition to the new two-question screen, the guide presents the first youth alcohol risk estimator chart, which combines information about a patient’s age and drinking frequency to give a clinician a broad indication of the patient’s chances for having alcohol-related problems. Coupled with what a clinician already knows about a patient, the risk estimator can help determine the depth and content of the clinician’s response. The guide outlines different levels of intervention, with tips for topics to cover. It also presents an overview of brief moti-vational interviewing, an interactive, youth-friendly intervention that is considered to have the best po-tential effectiveness for the adolescent population.

Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention for Youth: A Practitioner’s Guide, and its accompany-ing pocket-sized version, can be downloaded or ordered from the NIAAA website at www.niaaa.nih.gov. It can also be ordered from NIAAA by calling 301-443-3860.

To interview Dr. Sharon Levy, contact Susan Ste-vens Martin, Director, Division of Media Relations, American Academy of Pediatrics, at 847-434-7131 or [email protected].

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, part of the National Institutes of Health, is the primary U.S. agency for conducting and supporting research on the causes, consequenc-es, prevention, and treatment of alcohol abuse, alcoholism, and alcohol problems. NIAAA also disseminates research findings to general, profes-sional, and academic audiences. Additional alcohol research information and publications are available at www.niaaa.nih.gov.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov. -- Link: http://www.nih.gov/news/health/oct2011/niaaa-13.htm

I can do that. I will make it. I will fulfill my destiny.

While only priests grant special blessings (for example, at the end of Mass, and when they bless sacra-mentals), everyone is allowed -- and called -- to bless each other on a regular basis.

We bless meals before we eat. We bless each other when we sneeze. We say “God bless you” as a matter of daily talk (or should). We ask for blessings in the confessional.

What about blessings of deliver-ance?

This time of year is a terrific time to bless our families. If we do this effectively, our dear ones then pass these blessings on to their children, and their children to their offspring, down the generations.

In Scripture, there was special power attached to a father’s bless-ing. Blessings were an integral part of God’s relationship with Abra-ham (Genesis 12:1, 2, 3). And look at his descendants, such as Isaac: When he blessed his son Jacob (Genesis 27:30) it was a blessing that caused livestock to thrive under his care and brought him success for many years in all aspects of life; it was a blessing that lasted. There is what they call the “Aaronic blessing.” This comes from Numbers 6:23-27 -- and it has special power. Listen closely. It came when the Lord spoke to Moses and said, “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, say-ing, ‘Thus you shall bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:

“‘The Lord bless you, and keep you; the Lord make His Face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance to you.’”

Added God: “So shall they invoke My Name on the sons of Israel, and I then will bless them.”

Print that. Write it down. Pass it on. Give the special Old Testament blessing to your spouse and children: “The Lord bless you, and keep you; the Lord make His Face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance to you.” Husbands, use it regularly on your wives; wives, use it on your hus-bands; parents, use it on your children (and children, on your parents!) It seals against evil. Release the bless-ing of God as did the anointed ones of Israel. We can add: say it in the Name of the Infant Jesus.

Use it also to bless those who “curse” you! Many report miracles with it. You heard that right: on your rivals and enemies. Through such prayer, a curse is turned into a bless-ing.

One preacher who uses it described a woman from India whose mother, who wanted a son, had cursed her during childhood and naturally, it brought a dark mood. The girl resent-ed her mom and as a result, developed a strange large, V-shaped “birthmark” on her forehead. She was told to send her mother her blessing -- instead of resenting her -- and when she did, the mark faded and even disappeared. (When the resentment returned, so did the birthmark -- until she forgave and blessed again!)

A boy in high school had trouble with his teachers. He was doing very poorly. They kept telling him

If We Wait for God, Bless Those Who ..



U.S. Census Num-bers Reveal Rapid Growth in Senior

Population


A Psalm for Thanksgiving (Psalm 100)

Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth.Serve the LORD with gladness;Come before Him with joyful singing.Know that the LORD Himself is God;It is He who has made us, and not we ourselvesWe are His people and the sheep of His pasture.Enter His gates with thanksgiving,And His courts with praise.Give thanks to Him; bless His name.For the LORD is good;His lovingkindness is everlasting,And His faithfulness to all generations.

Street Poetry

Read about Michael’s upcoming book of poems “Crushed Violets” by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Michael R. Tagudin

©2011 Michael R. Tagudin. All rights reserved. About the Author: Michael R. Tagudin Educated as an engineer in the Philippines, the City of Los Angeles employee hopes his legacy of poems will provoke a dialogue about the human condition. He is donating the proceeds from the book “Crushed Violets” to the “Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST)”, a non-profit that provides public awareness and advocacy efforts against human trafficking in the City of Angels. To learn more, visit www.castla.org. To help, call the CAST 24 hour hotline 888.KEY.2.FRE(EDOM) or 888.539.2373. Contact [email protected] for more information about ordering the book “Crushed Violets.”

LifestyleRead J’Son’s previous articles by visiting our website at

www.asianjournalusa.com

by Joe Son

Oscar Sa. Garcia Foundation sends help to Iligan City victims

A late-season tropical storm Sendong, dubbed as a super killer and the worst typhoon (Internation-ally known as Washi) that caused catastrophic devastation in the Phil-ippines especially in the northern Mindanao provinces on December 16, 2011. Sendong made landfall over Mindanao, a major island in the Philippines, and weakend slightly after passing Mindanao, but regained strenght in the Sulu Sea, and made landfall again over Palawan on the next day.

In the Cagayan de Oro and Ili-gan City areas which were badly devastated by massive flash-floods triggered by the wrath of typhoon Sendong and resulted in more than a thousand fatalities and also more than a thousand people reported missing, however, local officials is uncertain how many of the missing persons have been discovered but identified, residents still haunt the effect that made their lives miserable on Christmas season. Reports indi-cated that aside from the Philippines, Micronesia and Palau areas were also affected.

Sendong brought more than 10 hours of torrential rains that caused disastrous flash-flooding over Min-danao, an area that rarely experi-ences this magnitude of a tropical storm disaster. Tremendous amount of rains was reported in places where rivers were already swollen. During the overnight hours, thou-sand of people were killed as flood waters and landslides destroyed homes along mountain sides. In some locations, it was reported that flood waters rose by as over 10 feet causing residents to seek refuge on their roofs, while others who had the chance went to higher elevations braving a gusty wind factor of ap-proximately 55 mph.

Overseas humanitarian aid is pour-ing in for victims of tropical storm Sendong in the devastated areas of northern Mindanao, in the Philip-pines. Reportedly, International aid and assistance in forms of financial aid, search and rescue, and emer-gency funds for relief items such as food, water, medicines, sanita-tion materials, mattresses, clothing and blankets. Among these nations are Australia, Denmark, European Union, France, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Peoples's Republic of China, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United Nations and the United States

All Philippine government agen-cies are also simultaneously doing a massive relief operations involv-ing the evacuation of residents in affected areas to various evacua-tion centers mobilizing the armed forces soldiers and the all police forces. While the Coast Guard and the Navy personnel are doing the daring search and rescue mission for missing people after villages were swept out to sea. President Aquino III visited the devastated areas and declared a state of national calamity in all the affected provinces.

However, The Department of En-vironmental and Natural Resources (DENR) and the local government are pointing fingers whose at fault in the recent cause and effect on this calamity. The estimated damages to agriculture and infrastructure is Ph. 999.9 million according to Na-tional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. The President appealed to its citizens to help the victims of storm Sendong as their way of celebrating their Christmas spirit by helping the needy.

The family of community leader, Oscar Sa. Garcia and Veronica Gar-cia, who hails from Iligan City, with

some friends in San Diego through the Oscar Sa. Garcia Foundation, who maintained two library sites and sending poor but deserving intel-ligent students as sholars in Iligan City since 2009, are also appealing San Diegans to donate to Iligan City, cash or checks and relief items such as canned foods, shoes and sandals, clothing and blankets through his foundation complete with receipts for tax purposes. For more informa-tion, interested parties may contact Oscar Sa. Garcia with tel. nos. (619) 480-9680.

Joe [email protected] Diego, CA

Here’s what’s brewing:· Baby boomers on average

have had fewer children and have fewer resources and family members to support them. Thus, these seniors will rely on government support, such as housing and long-term care services. Medicare may be the biggest issue, as the current system won’t handle the influx of seniors who need support.

· With tens of thousands of boomers hitting the traditional retire-ment age of 65, we will begin losing vital members of our workforce. As a result, employers will be forced to offer incentives, such as job shar-ing, bonuses, working from home, etc., to seniors to continue working. If seniors do not continue to work, we will not have enough people to sustain our economy.

· Loss of workforce is a loss of Social Security taxes, resulting in a shrinking amount of money dedi-cated to seniors. This will continue until there are more people working than retired. It’s a simple arithmetic problem.

There are ways to ease the coming strain. Medicare will need to be remodeled to be more efficient and more HMO-like. The system will need to focus more on wellness and staying healthy before seniors be-

come sick. This is why non-profit or-ganizations like Senior Community Centers are crucial to communities as they provide nutrition and well-ness services for people to remain strong and independent. The public’s support is needed now more than ever to continue services today and prepare for seniors of the future. Ad-ditionally, continued employment allows seniors to be socially engaged and provide valuable insight and wisdom to our workforce. All these factors will help keep older adults stronger physically and financially – and less dependent on government and social service organizations.

As a community, let’s embrace positive aging and reshape the way we view seniors. Seniors are vibrant and active members of our society. Living a long, full life is a privilege, so it is important to create a com-munity that respects old age and considers people as unique individu-als at any age. The more our elected officials and community representa-tives hear this message, the quicker we can integrate solutions and protect ourselves from stormy condi-tions ahead.

he would never amount to anything. This operated as a curse. But one day he learned the Christian lesson about blessing those who curse you and went to see the teachers to tell each one he wished them the best and prayed that they rise above all teachers. He was soon a star student. Their negativity had been turned into blessings.

There are many ways of declaring a blessing.

In prayer -- out loud -- declare your home a zone of health.

Declare it a “cancer-free zone.”Declare it a zone of love.Sound the shofar.Bring forth the Light (and blessing)

of the Infant!“The Lord bless you, and keep you;

the Lord make His Face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance to you.”

This is healing. There are special blessings. Gather together those you love and light a holy candle (or use

If We Wait for God, Bless Those Who ..

Poem No. 12

Your heart is pure when there is no intentYou act for the sake of doing the actWithout purpose, without expectationJudge not the outcome of your actSo as that the outcome of your act may not judge you!

No Intent

Holy Water) and as we head into the uncertainties of a new year pray a blessing upon everyone (yes, even enemies).

We have a word of knowledge here from Christmas night:

“I bless those who bless others; I anoint those who use their anointing to help others. I send grace through those who let My Graces flow through them, as does the Blessed Mother, in health and Heaven.”

[Numbers 24:6: “Like valleys that stretch out, Like gardens beside the river, Like aloes planted by the LORD, Like cedars beside the waters. Water will flow from his buckets, And his seed will be by many waters”] -- http://www.spirit-daily.com/


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Fantasy Land, a novel

by Simeon G. Silverio Jr.Read the series by Sim Silverio on www.asianjournalusa.

com

Fantasy Land, Chapter 17


Direction for Our Times

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But seek fi rst his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things

will be given to you as well.

Matthew 6:33

EAD PEOPLE TO KNOW CHRIST AS LORD AND SAVIOUR

NCOURAGE THEM TO GROW IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

CKNOWLEDGE THEIR SPIRITUAL GIFTS AND TALENTS EVELOP THEM TO BECOME LEADERS AND WORKERS FOR GOD

L

E

A

D

OUR MISSION

of another. I am saying that sometimes you will be the recipient of My gifts and sometimes you will be the one deliver-ing My gifts. We are so united, you and I. We are together now and when you are fi nished on earth you will understand how closely I worked with you. You will be so happy when you understand the extent to which I blessed others through you. Dear friends, I come at Christmas as an infant in a manger and you rejoice. Truly, understand, that each time you cooperate with Me in your day, you are bringing Me into the world. When you see how others were blessed through your fi delity, you will understand the fullness of rejoicing. Yes, today, your Infant King comes to you with heavenly hope. Beloved apostles, I instruct you to bring this hope to others, regardless of the circumstances around you. -- http://www.directionforourtimes.org/languages/english/

Unknown to many, however, Pablo Nolasco was build-

ing up the cases against the government offi cials he was planning to prosecute.

People thought he was not living up the expectations of President Lino Majeras, that his appointment to the position of chief prosecutor was a disappointment. Since assum-ing offi ce, he was very quiet, not letting anyone know what he was doing. This led people to believe he was goofi ng off and not responsibly discharging the critical responsibili-ties of the job. In particular, many feared he would not spearhead Lino Majeras crusade against graft and corruption.

When the criticisms against Nolasco reached their peak, the president could not resist the clamor of many to question his appointee’s performance. Even his congressio-nal allies were asking for Nolasco’s head, claiming the chief prosecu-tor’s tenure in offi ce was a waste of time. But before Majeras could pick up the phone and summon Nolasco to his offi ce, the current issues of the daily newspapers were brought to his desk. All of them carried the same story of Nolasco’s announc-ing the prosecutions of several top offi cials in the government, includ-ing Majeras’ allies in Congress and the offi cials of his own adminis-tration, for committing graft and other crimes. Everyone was caught fl atfooted, including President Ma-jeras himself. This peeved the chief executive, who summoned Nolasco to explain his clandestine activity.

“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” he angrily barked at Nolasco upon arriving at the palace. His own allies were calling him, asking why they were being prosecuted. They demanded the withdrawal of the prosecution; otherwise, they would withdraw their support to the presi-dent and his projects.

Although Nolasco fully expected such an angry reaction from Presi-dent Majeras, he was nonetheless intimidated. He never saw the son of his good friend, the martyred sena-tor, so angry.

“I can explain,” was all Nolasco could say.

“You better; otherwise, you are fi red!” Majeras replied.

Nolasco explained to the president what he had been doing all along. He said it was clear to him the

Rebel Reformerpresident wanted him to clean the government of graft, even if he had to prosecute the president’s allies. If he reported to Majeras what he was doing step by step, he was afraid those around the president might alert the other offi cials, especially those being investigated. Nolasco just wasn’t one hundred percent sure the president’s people were as com-mitted as their boss against graft. Nolasco never had a chance to talk with the president and directly tell him what he was doing. Since he believed he and the president were on the same page regarding the cor-ruption campaign, he thought it wise to keep his cards close to his chest

and reveal the results of his investi-gations once completed.

“What is important is we launch an effective anti-corruption campaign, one that will result to the successful prosecution of the erring offi cials. This will deter others from follow-ing their examples and bring across a message: the culture of corruption prevalent for years is fi nally over.”

Despite the plausible explana-tion, President Majeras remained angry. He could not accept the fact a subordinate of his, the chief prosecutor, bypassed him and made critical decisions on his own. But he could not refute Nolasco’s reason-ing. Indeed, it was diffi cult, if not dangerous, to relay his confi dential messages through his cordon sani-taire. While he trusted that they were loyal to him, he could not guarantee they would not commit corruption on their own. And if a corruption campaign was in the offi ng, the cor-rupt people, the perceived targets of the campaign, might be alerted and jeopardize the investigations.

For sure, Majeras could not fi re Nolasco as his own allies demanded, especially those being prosecuted. Others were also against what Nolasco was doing, for they felt threatened. After all, everyone had skeletons in their closets. Nolasco rode the tiger and all Majeras could do was ride along. After all, it was he who had been bragging about his

anti-corruption movement. And now that one of his people had followed his heed to the letter, there was noth-ing he could do but support him.

Nolasco then laid out to the presi-dent all the charges heaped against the erring offi cials.

“It was only the tip of the iceberg,” he told the president. “We have lined up charges against other offi cials, which we will announce later.”

“How did you get all those infor-mation and evidence?” the president asked.

“It was easy to get them from people willing to help. Unknown to you, your constant harping of “daang matuwid (straight road)” has inspired many people. They believe that for once, there is a president who is really sincere in reforming the government. They believe your pronouncements of “pag walang kurap, walang mahirap (if there is no corrupt offi cial, there is no poor )” is not just a political gimmick but an honest-to-goodness desire to rid the

government of wrongdoers.”“With your limited resources?” “I had a lot of volunteers. Re-

member there are thousands of unemployed lawyers in this country. There are more who took the course but couldn’t pass the bar. Many are willing to help and practice what they had learned in college. Opening the can of worms in government of-fi ces was easy since so many people are tired of the corrupt practices that have permeated our society since our independence.”

“But are you sure the evidence you gathered will hold water in the court?”

“If our court system is fair and just, then yes. But with the current state of our judiciary, especially in the lower courts that are still infested by corrupt judges, I doubt it. However, I am still confi dent that with plenty of prayers and the help of God, the truth will prevail. And if not, well, I have a back-up plan.” – AJ

(To be continued)

(Editor’s Note: To read the previous and weekly installments of this series, visit www.asianjournalusa.com. Once there, click the “Editorials” heading, then click “Fantasy Land by Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.” title to see the list of all previous chapters of the series. Click the title of the chapter you want to read and the article will appear.)


Teddyboy Locsin has been an on and off P-Noy basher. Even Ted-dyboy conceded in his December 3 Free Fire column that P-Noy isn’t a wimp. He wrote: “The President has been acting strangely, not least in defying the Supreme Court, fl outing the separation of powers, challeng-ing judicial review, inviting a case for impeachment, even if not its likelihood, given the total submis-sion to the Congress – all proof that he is far from the wimp former US Ambassador to the Philippines, the beautiful Kristie Kenney, described him to be.”

Indeed, the fi rmness with which Justice Secretary Leila de Lima upheld the government’s right to prevent GMA’s travel despite a Su-preme Court (SC) TRO (Temporary Restraining Order) could only be a refl ection of the determination of P-Noy to pave DAANG MATUWID (Straight Path). Sec. de Lima would not have been that bold if she sensed that P-Noy was soft on the course of action the government has taken.

After P-Noy’s December 1 and December 5 broadsides against the SC, the latter in front of SC Chief Justice Rene Corona, it’s safe to say that P-Noy isn’t running away from this fi ght. My intuition tells me that P-Noy has elevated this to more than just a legal battle and is prepared for war. Expect impeachment to be taken as an option. Don’t be sur-prised if unsavory questionable deals some SC Justices may have in their closets suddenly surface.

In his December 5 Justice Sum-mit speech, P-Noy admitted that even if he’s not a lawyer, he knows

the difference between right and wrong. That’s a profession of moral ascendancy that leaders like to assert before waging war. Many are seeing this tussle between P-Noy and the 8 SC Justices who have been support-ing GMA as mere skirmishes over specifi c legal issues. All indications point to a Chief Executive who has crossed his Rubicon after realizing that the country needs to have a Supreme Court that’s above suspi-cion if DAANG MATUWID is to be paved.

He told the December 1 MBC (Makati Business Club) audience: “The issue of electoral fraud has been in the national consciousness since the Hello Garci controversy. We now have a singular opportunity to put closure to an issue, which the previous administration was unwill-ing to address. This is what brought us to this point in the fi rst place. This time, closure can be achieved by submitting Mrs. Arroyo to the process of investigation and a fair hearing.”

He added: “Just recently the President of South Korea paid a state visit to our country, and in my toast at our dinner, I said that the Repub-lic of Korea represents some of my most cherished hopes for our own country. The institutions and body politic of South Korea grew stronger from holding its leaders to account. Chun doo-hwan and Roh tae-woo were convicted of crimes only they, as former presidents, could have committed. It was not seen as a vendetta, but rather, as what it was: justice. The strengthening of a sys-tem of laws, and not men. Closure to a painful and harrowing past characterized by impunity in offi cial circles.”

Characteristically, P-Noy is a care-ful planner – something some people are spinning in media as indecisive. He detests going into a fi ght sans the proper preparation of mind and resources. If he should err, he would prefer to be late but sure rather than rash and sorry. The Duke of Welling-ton must have been one of P-Noy’s role models. Wellington defeated Napoleon not with bravado but with careful yet bold planning.

If you consider the diffi cult periods that P-Noy and his family underwent during the years of the Marcos dicta-torship, how he himself was almost killed during the 1987 coup attempt — you will better appreciate how all these have molded this president to be what he is today.

It is estimated that California is amongst the top 3 states in the nation for human traffi cking. By its very nature, human traffi cking, in all of its forms, is largely hidden from view. This is due in part to the large im-migrant communities, within California, which provide for good conceal-ment of a traffi cking operation - in many cases, these persons can be hidden in plain sight. Many of these communities are not trusting of law enforcement and tend to maintain cultural norms – some which dictate maintaining silence in the face of illegal enterprise.

The state’s extensive international border, its major harbors and air-ports, its powerful economy and accelerating population, its large immi-grant population and its industries make it a prime target for traffi ckers. Apart from the harm that this crime causes its victims, the infrastructure that is necessary to support this heinous crime can serve the needs of ter-rorist wishing to smuggle themselves and/or dangerous weapons into the country.

If you would like to help, please call:Traffi cking in Persons Information and Referral Hotline (US HHS) 1-888-373-7888Traffi cking in Persons and Worker Exploitation Task Force Hotline (US DOJ) 1-888-428-7581Source: California Offi ce of Emergency Services (OES)

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Do you still think P-Noy ..


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Mga Tulang Tagalog

by Romeo Nicolas

Featured Books of RD Liporada

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by Rudy D. Liporada

Pusoy, A Russian Poker -- Chapter 24

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Marcelo

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Sana naman magbago na ang buhay sa aming bansa,Sa kabila ng trahedya, kalamidad, mga baha.Ang krimen ay dumarami at sobra na sa paglala,Ang kurapsyon ay talamak, droga ay ‘di masawata. Sana’y ‘di na nagtatagal, proseso ng paglilitis,Lalo’t ang syang nasasangkot mga “big shot”, mga pulis.Mga sangkot na “foreinger” sa droga na umiipit,Sa maraming kababayang nag “drug mule” sa mga Intsik.

Sana nama’y bumilis din, pagunlad ng kabuhayan,At umunti ang pulubing nagpalaboy sa lansangan.Mga batang nagaaral, tulungan ring magtagumpay,Na makamit ang pangarap, maibsan ang kahirapan.

Sana’y kaunti na lang luha, aagos sa mga mata,Bilang tanda ng tagumpay, nakakamit na pagasa.Na ang dating paghihirap napapalitan ng ginhawa,Sa tulong ng Panginoon, mga dasal sa tuwina.

Sana’y ating madama na itong ‘laking pagbabago,Na ang ngiti, sobrang tuwa’y mapasa bawat Pilipino.Ang panahong pinaghintay, dumating din, naririto,Tapos na ang kahirapan para sakin, para sa ‘yo.

Sana ito’y katuparan nitong wikang TUWID NA DAAN,Na syang laging tinatahak, PANGULO ng ating bayan.At kung ito’y matutupad, saludo ko’y gayon na lang,Sa MANIGONG BAGONG TAON na sya nating hinihintay.

Katha ni: Romeo NicolasBocaue, Bulacan12/27/2011

Chapter 24Marcelo

We noticed that morning that vil-lage children came hiking back the trails from their school early.

“Are there no schools today?” we asked.

In his Igorot heavy accented tongue, a boy said “Gapo kano kin-ni Marcelo” - It has something do with Marcelo.

Marcelo? Who the hell is Marcelo?We had actually noticed two days

before that the transistor radio we had, our only ears from the out-side world within the mountains, produced only statics. We wondered because we knew that our batter-ies were new. We thought that the transistor no longer worked.

It did. After another day, the voice of

President Ferdinand Marcos through the transistor repeatedly said:

“WHEREAS, on the basis of care-fully evaluated and verifi ed informa-tion, it is defi nitely established that lawless elements who are moved by a common or similar ideologi-cal conviction, design, strategy and goal and enjoying the active moral and material support of a foreign power and being guided and directed by intensely devoted, well trained, determined and ruthless groups of men and seeking refuge under the protection of our constitutional liber-ties to promote and attain their ends,

have entered into a conspiracy and have in fact joined and banded their resources and forces together for the prime purpose of, and in fact they have been and are actually staging, undertaking and waging an armed insurrection and rebellion against the Government of the Republic of the Philippines in order to forcibly seize political and state power in this country, overthrow the duly consti-tuted government, and supplant our existing political, social, economic and legal order with an entirely new one whose form of government, whose system of , laws, whose conception of God and religion, whose notion of individual rights and family relations, and whose political, social, economic, legal and moral precepts are based on the Marxist-Leninist-Maoist teachings and beliefs ;

“WHEREAS, these lawless elements, acting in concert through seemingly innocent and harmless, although actually destructive, front organizations which have been infi ltrated or deliberately formed by them, have continuously and system-atically strengthened and broadened their memberships through sustained and careful recruiting and enlistment of new adherents from among our peasantry, laborers, professionals, intellectuals, students, and mass media personnel, and through such sustained are careful recruitment and enlistment have succeeded in spread-

ing and expanding, their control and infl uence over almost every segment and level of our society throughout the land in their ceaseless effort to erode and weaken the political, social, economic, legal and moral foundations of our existing govern-ment, and to infl uence, manipulate and move peasant, labor, student and terroristic organizations under their infl uence or control to commit, as in fact they have committed and still are committing, acts of violence, depredations, sabotage and injuries against our duly constituted authori-ties, against the members of our law enforcement agencies, and worst of all, against the peaceful members of our society;…”

Marcos had declared martial law, rounding up, torturing and detaining suspected subversives.

To be continued…

(Publisher’s Note: Pusoy is Rudy D. Liporada’s second novel and third book being serialized in Asian Journal. One can get a copy of the book through Amazon.com – A Russian Poker - or by calling the author at 858-722-1465.)

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Metamorphosis

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THE METAMORPHOSISBy Ernie Delfin

The year 2011 in a few days will be a part of history. Most likely it can be considered a year as “the worst and the best of times” as many historic world events occurred in highly unpredictable ways. The unusual civil upheavals, now known as Arab Spring, that happened and still happening in Egypt, Libya, Syria and the continuing peace turmoils in Iraq, Afghanistan and Nigeria continue to domi-nate world news through Christmas day. Although these political and civil unrests may be disturbing or tragic, they are also providing needed catalyst for a new and better socio political landscape giving more freedom hopefully for the citizens of these countries.

The world witnessed many unforeseen changes as if all the “fears and hopes of the world” just converged during this Christmas season. Even, the USA that used to be the model and magnet of many countries continues to suffer its worst eco-nomic recession since the depression of the 1930’s. Highlighted by the Occupy Move-ment (of the 99% vs. the 1%) and fanned by the record profits of Wall Street at a time of massive unemployment and economic inequality is now taking center stage in the 2012 presidential campaign. Reading all these man-made problems often makes me wonder how people, like me, still can man-age to be sane in our tupsy turvy world .

It’s good we have Christmas, when we Christians reflect on our own lives and still manage to see some silver linings in the horizon, sprinkling ounces of optimism for a better future amidst our own fears or insecurities. The life of Jesus, the Savior of those who believe in Him, and the teachings He left us still resonate to this day. His life and His pronounce-ments given to us Christians through his disciples force us to ponder on the mean-ing of our life here on earth. If you have crossed the midpoint of your life’s candle especially if you have become aware that

you may be in your “pre-departure” area, you cannot help but be grateful everyday that you can still open your eyes when you wake up, hear the chirping of the birds, witness the growth of the seeds in your garden, walk, and play with your children’s children. Every day becomes a bonus especially if you remember that you have relatives, friends, associates who have departed into the life beyond in the recent past.

It is a sobering thought to accept that all men no matter how powerful and wealthy they are now, will not last forever. We came from dust and unto dust we shall return. My favorite passages of Ecclesi-astes Chapter 3 succinctly describes “that there is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heav-ens, a time to be born and, a time to die. . . . a time to love, and a time to hate, a time of war, and a time peace.” Nothing in this world is permanent.

With that global and personal perspectives, please allow me to share some random thoughts, my own Christ-mas reflections and year-end review and soliloquy, centering on the purpose and meaning of my own life, with the hope that some readers can be motivated to ponder or write their own review, based on their own set of values and experiences:

* MANY THINGS IN LIFE ARE STILL FREE. Having lived for over six decades ----from the years of mate-rial deprivations when the words: luxury, leisure or disposable income, did not even exist in my dictionary while in the Philippines into a relatively comfortable life of material “excesses” in America now -----makes me grateful and lucky to have undergone such a wonderful life’s metamorphosis. At this stage of my life, it is humbling and wise to also real-ize that many things on earth can still contribute to one’s enjoyment and positive outlook in life are still free. After man’s basic needs are met, another house or another expensive car or designer clothes may not be necessary to be real happy and

fulfilled. Many simple things around us, all blessings from Above, can still make us happy, joyful or contented at no costs at all. For instance, a hundred times I have biked along the Santa Ana River bike trail to Newport Beach, walked leisurely with bare feet on the soft sand along the Pacific Ocean where nobody ever bothers you. The many visits I have made to the Wetland preservations, nature’s wilderness and the Big Bear Mountains and the grandi-ose Yosemite National Park and beautiful Lake Tahoe, where self-supporting birds and wild animals still live in peace, were rejuvenating to both body and spirit. Like sunshine, all of nature’s gifts are still there for everyone to enjoy.

* APOsTOLIC WORK. We also had our first “apo” (grandchild) named Olivia who gives us much happi-ness and make us do more physical activi-ties this year. We realize that once you become a grandparent, another phase of your life commences as you are naturally sucked into doing that inevitable “APOs-tolic” work of taking care and playing with your “apo” Indeed, you inevitably witness many things that you might not have observed with your own children simply because you have now more time to savor and the patience (and wisdom?) to observe many childish and childlike deportment of a growing toddler, enjoying each minute of her innocent years when inhibitions, prejudices, hatred and taboos are still non existent. What a mysterious and wonder-ful lessons, we as adults can learn from babies!

* HOME SWEET HOME. The year 2011, despite all the “bad” news we read, was also very good for us, as we made some tough choices that enriched my family’s life. While we are healthy to walk and see, despite the great expense, my wife and I decided to travel to four European countries and experienced first hand what we just read in books or saw in the movies. Meeting old and new friends who hosted us in Europe made us realize the priceless value of human relation-ships, that reaffirmed that indeed we homo sapiens have more common thread that bind us than things that divide us. Those miles of walking in Vienna, Rome, London and Paris were quite tiresome but our eyes feasted on many historic sites centuries old landmarks. The totality of our 3-week experiences in the Old World made us more appreciative and grateful for many things we often take for granted in the United States. My wife summed it this way: “I missed our home, especially my bed and everything that surrounds us in California! “

* THE VALUE OF FAMILY. When everything in your world seems

wrong, especially when you become sick and really need someone to keep you alive because you become incapacitated to do even the simple acts of daily living, then you realize the extreme value of your own family and real close relatives or friends. This year, I experienced a week of disabil-ity when I cannot even walk due to severe gout attack, unable to even cook or get my own food or water from the kitchen. Being sick is never fun but it is probably another life’s mystery that visits us to make us realize that you are not invincible after all. Indeed, you appreciate your family much more after nursing you back to your normal health, with their kindness and unconditional love.

* HUMANITARIAN WORK THROUGH NON-PROFIT ORGANIZA-TION AND CHURCH MINISTRIES. A line in the Jaycee Creeds says “Service to Humanity is the best work of life” and I find that very true. For many years now, I have been contributing some of my tal-ents, time and treasure to a non-profit orga-nizations, like the Rotary International, and volunteering in several ministries of my church, like the Pastoral Council, Social Justice Ministry and our Diocese Restor-ative Justice and Prison Ministry. Found-ing the Global Kalinga e-Rotary Club, a borderless Rotary Club, that is substantially internet based, has been lot of work with untold challenges. However, as its charter president, I find it quite fulfilling to see its gradual development into a viable NGO that can do some humanitarian works for the less fortunate in our society. Living out my faith through volunteerism com-pletes my week and makes my life worth living. Can you ever imagine what kind of world we have now or can you quantify the number of really needy people without all the churches and NGO’s with millions of their membership silently rendering true Service Above Self, without expecting any reward or compensation?

* HAVING “LESS” CAN ALSO BE A BLESSING-IN-DISGUISE. Amidst all the socio-economic turmoils that many families in America are still confronted with, we can still make pallets of many good choices for our lives. With less disposable income in many family’s budgets (for us who belong to the 99%) we become more discriminating in our lifestyles, including our spending habits. Many family members have opted to live together to save money, rather than paying an extra mortgage or rent, thereby making them closer as one family --- helping one another to weather this prolonged economic tsunami. People go to the doctors for increased anxiety and depression but it is also said that more people also are going to churches and pray. People during this economic and financial downturn have become more practical , discriminating and choosy what are the true essentials in their family life. In many instances, I believe that these critical conscious choices will not only good for our body’s health but also for our mind, soul and spirit. .

* BOOKS, LIBRARY, ARTS AND MOVIES. I have not been a sports fanatic which is very economical for me as the costs of watching any “live” NBA basket-ball, or Super Bowl, including the parking and unhealthy popcorns are really pro-hibitive for the average person. Much less expensive hobbies, however, are to go to the bookstores or library, arts museum and going to the movies. The latter activities are even more entertaining and definitely more educational than any Lakers or Clip-pers game in Staples Center in Downtown Los Angeles, or the Angels baseball game in their Angel’s Stadium, or a Hockey game in the Honda Center in Anaheim. Futhermore, driving to these sport centers may also give you headaches fighting the crazy traffic just going or leaving the area.

* PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH FRIENDS AND LOVERS. It is said that without healthy human interaction in our society, it will be extremely difficult for any person to reach his full potential. People need people to be happy. Even big businesses and the major banks now have created a job classification, called Relationship Marketing Officers, to help enhance their bottom line. The social media has grown exponentially due to this “cyberspace relationships” as evidenced by the popularity of FaceBook and Twitter. New words and phrases have been added to the 21st century dictionary to describe many of these “relationships” such as BFF for BestFriendForever and many more. The personal relationship or fellowship we develop and nurture with others has a direct correlation with our success and can add more meaning to our lives.

*LEAVING A LEGACY . Every human being craves to leave a legacy. Steven R. Covey, a best selling author describes Active Verbs in the 4TH Quadrants of live to have a fulfilling and balanced life: Live (Physical quadrant) Learn (Mental Quad-rantl) Love (Mental Quadrant) and Leave a Legacy (Spiritual Quadrant) . The many books/authors in the library speak volumes of the legacies people have left for the world to learn and enjoy. Thomas Alva Edison, Mother Teresa, George Washing-ton, Abraham Lincoln, Jose Rizal, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi are just a few names that have left priceless legacy for the betterment of our society. The kinds of legacy that these great people left

My Christmas Reflections & 2011 Year-End Soliloquy

The old man sat in his gas station on a cold Christmas Eve. He hadn't been anywhere in years since his wife had passed away. It was just another day to him. He didn't hate Christmas, just couldn't find a reason to celebrate. He was sitting there looking at the snow that had been falling for the last hour and wondering what it was all about when the door opened and a homeless man stepped through.

Instead of throwing the man out, Old George as he was known by his customers, told the man to come and sit by the heater and warm up. "Thank you, but I don't mean to intrude," said the stranger. "I see you're busy, I'll just go."

"Not without something hot in your belly." George said.

He turned and opened a wide mouth Thermos and handed it to the stranger. "It ain't much, but it's hot and tasty. Stew ... Made it myself. When you're done, there's coffee and it's fresh."

Just at that moment he heard the "ding" of the driveway bell. "Excuse me, be right back," George said. There in the driveway was an old '53 Chevy. Steam was rolling out of the front.. The driver was panicked. "Mister can you help me!" said the driver, with a deep Spanish accent. "My wife is with child and my car is broken." George opened the hood. It was bad. The block looked cracked from the cold, the car was dead.

"You ain't going in this thing," George said as he turned away.

"But Mister, please help ..." The door of the office closed behind George as he went inside. He went to the office wall and got the keys to his old truck, and went back outside. He walked around the building, opened the garage, started the truck and drove it around to where the couple was waiting. "Here, take my truck," he said. "She ain't the best thing you ever looked at, but she runs real good."

George helped put the woman in the truck and watched as it sped off into the night. He turned and walked back inside the office. "Glad I gave 'em the truck, their tires were shot too. That 'ol truck has brand new ." George thought he was talking to the stranger, but the man had gone. The Thermos was on the desk, empty, with a used coffee cup beside it. "Well, at least he got some-thing in his belly," George thought.

George went back outside to see if the old Chevy would start. It cranked slowly, but it started. He pulled it into the garage where the truck had been. He thought he would tinker with it for something to do. Christmas Eve meant no customers. He discovered the block hadn't cracked, it was just the bottom hose on the radiator. "Well, shoot, I can fix this," he said to himself. So he put a new one on.

"Those tires ain't gonna get 'em through the winter either." He took the snow treads off of his wife's old Lincoln. They were like new and he wasn't going to drive the car anyway.

As he was working, he heard shots being fired. He ran outside and beside a police car an officer lay on the cold ground. Bleeding from the left shoul-der, the officer moaned, "Please help me."

George helped the officer inside as he remembered the training he had received in the Army as a medic. He knew the wound needed attention. "Pressure to stop the bleeding," he thought. The uniform company had been there that morning and had left

clean shop towels. He used those and duct tape to bind the wound. "Hey, they say duct tape can fix anythin'," he said, trying to make the policeman feel at ease.

"Something for pain," George thought. All he had was the pills he used for his back. "These ought to work." He put some water in a cup and gave the policeman the pills. "You hang in there, I'm going to get you an ambulance."

The phone was dead. "Maybe I can get one of your buddies on that there talk box out in your car." He went out only to find that a bullet had gone into the dashboard destroying the two way radio.

He went back in to find the police-man sitting up. "Thanks," said the offi-cer. "You could have left me there. The guy that shot me is still in the area."

George sat down beside him, "I would never leave an injured man in the Army and I ain't gonna leave you." George pulled back the bandage to check for bleeding. "Looks worse than what it is. Bullet passed right through 'ya. Good thing it missed the important stuff though. I think with time your gonna be right as rain."

George got up and poured a cup of coffee. "How do you take it?" he asked.

"None for me," said the officer.."Oh, yer gonna drink this. Best in

the city. Too bad I ain't got no donuts." The officer laughed and winced at the same time.

The front door of the office flew open. In burst a young man with a gun. "Give me all your cash! Do it now!" the young man yelled. His hand was shaking and George could tell that he had never done anything like this before.

"That's the guy that shot me!" ex-claimed the officer.

"Son, why are you doing this?" asked George, "You need to put the cannon away. Somebody else might get hurt."

The young man was confused. "Shut up old man, or I'll shoot you, too. Now give me the cash!"

The cop was reaching for his gun. "Put that thing away," George said to the cop, "we got one too many in here now."

He turned his attention to the young man. "Son, it's Christmas Eve. If you need money, well then, here. It ain't much but it's all I got. Now put that pea shooter away."

George pulled $150 out of his pocket and handed it to the young man, reach-ing for the barrel of the gun at the same time. The young man released his grip on the gun, fell to his knees and began to cry. "I'm not very good at this am I? All I wanted was to buy something for my wife and son," he went on. "I've lost my job, my rent is due, my car got repossessed last week."

George handed the gun to the cop. "Son, we all get in a bit of squeeze now and then. The road gets hard sometimes, but we make it through the best we can."

He got the young man to his feet, and sat him down on a chair across from the cop. "Sometimes we do stu-pid things." George handed the young man a cup of coffee. "Bein' stupid is one of the things that makes us human. Comin' in here with a gun ain't the answer. Now sit there and get warm


Christmas at the Gas Station


Today’s Lifestyle



Conjugal Abuse of Pub-

lic Funds

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Posted by the Stop. Think. Connect. Campaign

6/16/2011 -- Smartphones and other mobile devices have transformed our use of the Internet, which now touches nearly every aspect of our lives. Nearly half of all Americans are expected to own a mobile device by the end of this year. While these tools provide users with convenient access to information and communications, they also carry risk.

Mobile users have recently captured the attention of cyber criminals who seek to take advantage of everyday citizens. In fact, experts predict that within three years, smartphones and mobile devices will surpass comput-ers as the primary target for cyber crime. If a hacker can gain access to a mobile device, they can easily fi nd e-mail addresses, stored passwords, banking information, social media ac-counts, and phone numbers – allowing them to steal your information, your money, and even your identity. That’s why practicing good cyber habits is so important.

You can protect yourself from cyber

criminals by following the same safety rules you follow on your computer when using your smartphone. These include:

Access the Internet over a secure network: Only browse the web through your service provider’s network (e.g., 3G) or a secure Wi-Fi network.

Be suspicious of unknown links or requests sent through email or text message: Do not click on unknown links or answer strange questions sent to your mobile device, regardless of who the sender appears to be.

Download only trusted applications: Download “apps” from trusted sources or marketplaces that have positive reviews and feedback.

Be vigilant about online security: Keep anti-virus and malware software up to date, use varying and strong pass-words, and never provide your personal or fi nancial information without know-ing who’s asking and why they need it.

STOP. THINK. CONNECT. Protect yourself and help keep the web a safer place for everyone. For more informa-tion on Stop.Think.Connect., please visit www.dhs.gov/stopthinkconnect. -- Posted by Homeland Security Blog Team at 11:25 AM

Be Smart with Your Smart-phone’s Security Are you prepared for an emergency?

Quiz yourself on the questions below to see just how prepared you are. If you don’t know the answer to some of the ques-tions, visit Ready.gov or your local Offi ce of Emergency Management for tips and resources that can help make sure you, your family, and your community are Ready.

• Does your local government have an emergency or disaster plan for your community? If so, do you know what it is?

• Do you know how to fi nd the emergency broadcasting channel on the radio?

• Does your city/county have an emergency alert system? Is so, are you signed up to get alerts?

• Do you know your local evacu-ation routes? How would you get out of town from work? How about from home?

• Does your city/county have a Citizen Corps Council? (If you don’t know, visit www.citizencorps.com)

• In the last year, have you pre-pared or updated your Emergency Supply Kit with emergency supplies like water, food and medicine that is kept in a desig-nated place in your home? Visit Ready.gov for an Emergency Supply Kit checklist.

What Are You Doing To Prepare?• In the last year, have you pre-

pared a small kit with emergency supplies that you keep at home, in your car or where you work to take with you if you had to leave quickly?

• In the last year, have you made a specifi c plan for how you and your family would communicate in an emergency situa-tion if you were separated?

• Are you prepared to help your neighbor? In most emergencies, the best way to get help quickly is by working with your neighbors. Do you know anyone in your neighborhood who might need a little extra help preparing for or responding to an emergency?

• Have you established a specifi c meeting place for your family to reunite in the event you and your family cannot return home or are evacuated?

• In the last year, have you practiced or drilled on what to do in an emergency at home?

• In the last year, have you volun-teered to help prepare for or respond to a major emergency?

• Have you taken fi rst aid training such as CPR in the past fi ve years?

manager of John Hay Man-agement Corp., stated in a sworn affi davit that the couple – and in one instance, the son – spent P117,388.99 in what appears to be unauthorized expenses incurred in their stay at the Baguio Country Club.

Worse, the couple stayed in the BCC when they could have avoided doing so for two reasons.

First, Justice Corona, as well as all members of the Supreme Court, have cottages in Baguio provided by the government.

Second, as chairperson of the JHMC, Mrs. Corona could have stayed in Manor Hotel, owned by the corporation she was running.

According to the affi davit of Daytec, the spouses Renato Corona and Cristina Roco availed of the “holiday package” offered by BCC. The cost of their stay was paid by JHMC.

The affi davit said the corporation did not adopt a resolution authoriz-ing the couple to stay in the most prestigious private membership club in the summer capital.

The affi davit, which Daytec said is based on existing records, states that in three months – February, March and April of 2010, Mrs. Corona stayed at the BCC for nine times, three times in April and twice in May.

The cost of her stay in a few in-stances with the husband, the Chief Justice, was paid by JHMC to the Baguio Country Club.

On March 23, 2010, Francis Corona, son of the spouses was accommodated or stayed at the Club. Daytec said in his affi davit the billing instruction, obviously issued by JHMC told BCC “charges to be forwarded to John Hay Management Corp.

Daytec said “these (including the parents of Francis) were personal accommodations which Francis Corona or Mrs. Corona should have paid from her own funds.

Daytec explained “other billings forwarded by the Baguio Country Club to JHMC refl ect expenses for messages, salon/parlor and spa services and diver’s accommodation and a whole lot of cafeteria conces-sions and still more driver’s quarters under the guest card name of the Chief Justice.”

According to the affi davit, “in the last few days of June, sensing the inevitable end of her stint at JHMC, the chairman (Mrs. Corona) sent to the fi nance department a set of re-ceipts amounting to P93,578.58 with a verbal instruction of expeditious processing of her reimbursables.”

Daytec found the value of the receipts incredibly high compared to the previous instances.

The payments made by JHMC

to the country club for the account of Justice Renato Corona and his wife as well as for son Francis are covered by debit vouchers now kept by Daytec.

It should have occurred to the Chief Justice that his job or that of his wife does not allow them to use public funds for private purposes. Nowhere in the affi davit of Daytec can be found even a word that says that the nine instances of accommo-dations at the Baguio Country Club were for offi cial and legal purposes.

This is a violation of the Judicial Code of Conduct on the part of the Chief Justice and direct abuse of authority and power on the part of Mrs. Corona.

The affi davit of Daytec states “The dates covering the hotel accommo-dation at the Baguio Country Club

Tai chi exercise may improve quality of life, mood, and exercise self-effi cacy (belief in one’s own abilities) in people with chronic heart failure, according to a 2011 study funded in part by NCCAM. Tai chi is a mind and body practice that originated in China as a martial art and is used by many people to improve health and well-being. There are many different styles of tai chi, but all involve slow, relaxed, gentle movements, each fl owing into the next. Tai chi is sometimes referred to as "moving meditation"—the body is in constant motion, and practitioners focus on posture and deep breath-ing. This study builds on previous research that has shown that tai chi may be benefi cial for people with cardiovascular disease and cardio-vascular risk factors.

Researchers at Beth Israel Deacon-ess Medical Center, Harvard Medi-cal School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Massachusetts General Hospital evaluated exercise capacity, quality of life, physical activity, and mood in 100 people with chronic heart failure. The participants were randomly assigned to either a tai chi group, in which members participated in 1-hour tai chi classes twice weekly for 12 weeks, or an education (control) group, in which members participated in classes about coping with heart failure for

the same duration and frequency as the tai chi classes.

The researchers found that the participants in the tai chi group had clinically signifi cant improvements in quality of life when compared with the education group. In addi-tion, improvements in mood and

an increase in daily activity were seen in the tai chi group participants. However, sig-nifi cant differ-ences were not seen between the tai chi and exercise groups for two exer-

cise capacity measurements—peak oxygen intake and performance on a walking test.

The researchers concluded that tai chi shows promise as a complement to standard medical care for people with chronic heart failure. Further research is needed to better under-stand how tai chi benefi ts people with cardiovascular disease, particu-larly looking at how certain elements of tai chi, including deep breathing and aerobic exercise, may contrib-ute to symptom relief or symptom management.

ReferenceYeh GY, McCarthy EP, Wayne

PM, et al. Tai chi exercise in patients with chronic heart failure: a random-ized controlled trial. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2011;171(8):750–757. -- http://nccam.nih.gov/re-search/results/spotlight/042511.htm

Tai Chi May Benefi t People With Heart Failure


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My Christmas Refl ections & 2011 Year-End Soliloquy

“The souls that say this chaplet will be embraced by My mercy during their lifetime and especially at the hour of their death (754).” -- Words of Jesus in the Diary of St. Faustinaespecially at the hour of their death (754).” -- Words of Jesus in the Diary of St. Faustina

CHAPLET OF THE DIVINE MERCYUsing the rosary beads, recite one Our Father, one Hail Mary, and one I Believe in God.

On the Our Father beads say this prayer, which was given by Our Lord to St. Faustina (1905-1938).

Eternal Father, I o�er You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world.

On the Hail Mary beads say:

For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

In conclusion say three times:

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

The Hour of Great Mercy

At three o’clock, implore My mercy, especially for sinners; and, if only for a brief moment, immerse yourself in My Passion,

particularly in My abandonment at the moment of agony. This is the hour of great

mercy. In this hour, I will refuse nothing to the soul that makes a request of Me in

virtue of My Passion (Diary, 1320). -- Divine Mercy in My Soul: Diary of Saint Faustina

Kowalska

You expired, O Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls and an ocean of mercy

opened up for the whole world. O Fount of Life, unfathomable

Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us. O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the

Heart of Jesus as a fount of mercy for us, I trust in You. Amen.

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Laughing MatterRead previous articles by visiting our website at www.asian-

journalusa.com

Mayaman Vs Mahirap

Christmas ...(Continued from page 20)

behind will last forever vs. the material things left by people who have no “spiri-tual quadrant” Even the mega-achievers and super wealthy people like Steve Jobs has a lasting legacy for what he has done and for what he wants to be remembered. Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, the Rockefellers the Fords, and many successful people in business and politics have their Founda-tions to pursue and perpetuate their good works even after their physical life, to leave their lasting legacy to the world.

To end this last column of 2011, let me share a Metamorphosis’ “Food for Thought” taken from a poster in my library:

“One hundred years from now,It won’t matter what car I drove,What kind of house I lived in,How much I had in my bank account,Nor what my clothes looked like,But, the world may be a little betterBecause I was important in the life of a child.”

* * * ** A GREAT, PROSPEROUS AND

MEANINGFULNEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU!--------------------------------------Email: ernie.delfi [email protected] or

[email protected]

and we'll sort this thing out." The young man had stopped crying.

He looked over to the cop. "Sorry I shot you. It just went off. I'm sorry offi cer."

"Shut up and drink your coffee " the cop said.

George could hear the sounds of sirens outside. A police car and an ambulance skidded to a halt. Two cops came through the door, guns drawn. "Chuck! You ok?" one of the cops asked the wounded offi cer.

"Not bad for a guy who took a bullet. How did you fi nd me?"

"GPS locator in the car. Best thing since sliced bread. Who did this?" the other cop asked as he approached the young man.

Chuck answered him, "I don't know. The guy ran off into the dark. Just dropped his gun and ran."

George and the young man both looked puzzled at each other.

"That guy work here?" the wounded cop continued.

"Yep," George said, "just hired him this morning. Boy lost his job."

The paramedics came in and loaded Chuck onto the stretcher. The young man leaned over the wounded cop and whispered, "Why?"

Chuck just said, "Merry Christmas boy ... and you too, George, and thanks for everything."

"Well, looks like you got one doozy of a break there. That ought to solve some of your problems."

George went into the back room and came out with a box. He pulled out a ring box. "Here you go, something for the little woman. I don't think Martha would mind. She said it would come in handy some day."

The young man looked inside to see the biggest diamond ring he ever saw. "I can't take this," said the young man. "It means something to you."

"And now it means something to you," replied George. "I got my memo-ries. That's all I need."

George reached into the box again. An airplane, a car and a truck appeared next. They were toys that the oil com-pany had left for him to sell. "Here's something for that little man of yours."

The young man began to cry again as he handed back the $150 that the old man had handed him earlier.

"And what are you supposed to buy Christmas dinner with? You keep that too," George said. "Now git home to your family."

The young man turned with tears streaming down his face. "I'll be here in the morning for work, if that job offer is still good."

"Nope. I'm closed Christmas day," George said. "See ya the day after."

George turned around to fi nd that the stranger had returned. "Where'd you come from? I thought you left?"

"I have been here. I have always

been here," said the stranger. "You say you don't celebrate Christmas. Why?"

"Well, after my wife passed away, I just couldn't see what all the bother was. Puttin' up a tree and all seemed a waste of a good pine tree. Bakin' cookies like I used to with Martha just wasn't the same by myself and besides I was gettin' a little chubby."

The stranger put his hand on George's shoulder. "But you do celebrate the holiday, George. You gave me food and drink and warmed me when I was cold and hungry. The woman with child will bear a son and he will become a great doctor.

The policeman you helped will go on to save 19 people from being killed by terrorists. The young man who tried to rob you will make you a rich man and not take any for himself. "That is the spirit of the season and you keep it as good as any man."

George was taken aback by all this stranger had said. "And how do you know all this?" asked the old man.

"Trust me, George. I have the inside track on this sort of thing. And when your days are done you will be with Martha again."

The stranger moved toward the door. "If you will excuse me, George, I have to go now. I have to go home where there is a big celebration planned."

George watched as the old leather jacket and the torn pants that the stranger was wearing turned into a white robe. A golden light began to fi ll the room.

"You see, George ... it's My birthday. Merry Christmas."

George fell to his knees and replied, "Happy Birthday, Lord Jesus"

This story is better than any greeting card.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND GOD BLESS!

Kung mayaman ka, meron kang “allergy”

Kung mahirap ka, ang tawag dyan ay “galis” o “bakokang”

Sa mayaman, “nervous break-down” dahil sa “tension and stress”

Sa mahirap, “sira ang ulo”

Kung mayaman ka, “pneumonia” daw ang sakit mo

Kung mahirap, “TB” yon

Sa mayaman, “hyperacidity”Kapag mahirap, “ulcer” dahil

walang laman ang tiyan

Sa mayamang “malikot ang ka-may”, ang tawag ay “kleptomaniac”

Sa mahirap, ang tawag ay “mag-nanakaw” o “kawatan”

Pag mayaman ka, you’re “eccen-tric”

Kung mahirap ka, “may toyo ka sa ulo” o “may topak” o “may sayad”

Kung mayaman ka at sumakit ang ulo mo, ikaw ay may “migraine”

Kung mahirap ka naman at su-makit ang ulo mo, ikaw ay “nali-pasan ng gutom”

Kung mayaman ka, you are re-ferred to as someone who is “scoli-otic”

Pero kung mahirap ka, ikaw ay “kuba”

Kung ang señorita mo ay mai-tim, ang tawag ay “morena” o “sun tanned”

Pero kung isa kang domestic na maitim, ikaw ay “ita” o “negrita” o “baluga”

Kung nasa high society ka at ikaw ay maliit, ang tawag sa iyo ay “petite”

Kung mahirap ka lang, ikaw ay “pandak” o “bansot”

Kung socialite ka, ikaw ay “pleas-ingly plump”

Kapag mahirap ka, ika’y “tabat-soy” o “lumba-lumba” ...pagmina-malas ka,

“baboy”

Kapag mayaman, “fasting” ang hindi kumain

Kung mahirap, “nagtitiis”

Kung well-off ka at date ka rito, date ka roon, ang tawag sa iyo ay

“socialite”Kung mahirap ka, ikaw ay “pak-

awala” o “pok-pok”

Kung mayamang alembong ka, ang tawag sa iyo ay “liberated”

Pero kung isa kang dukha, ang tawag sa iyo “malandi”

Kapag mayaman, “misguided” o “spoiled” ka

Kung mahirap ka, “addict” o “durugista”

Kung may pera ka, ang tawag sa iyo “single parent”

Pero kung wala kang trabaho, ang tawag sa iyo “disgrasyada”

Kapag mayaman at sexy, “fashion-able” daw

Kung mahirap, sigurado “GRO” o “japayuki” ka

Ang tawag sa mayayamang puro gulay ang kinakain, “vegetarian”

Habang kakaawa ang mahirap na “ kumakain ng damo.”

Sa exclusive school, “assertive” ang mga batang sumasagot sa mga guro

Pero pag ang mga mahihirap na bata ang sumasagot sa mga guro, ang tawag sa

kanila ay “bastos!”

Ang mayamang tumatanda, “are graduating gracefully into senior citizenhood”

Ang mga mahihirap ay “gumugu-rang”

Ang anak ng mayaman ay “slow learner”

Ang anak ng mahirap ay “bobo” o “gung-gong”

Kung mayaman ka at marami kang kumain, you fl atter your host who says, “masarap kang kumain and I like you, you do justice to my cooking”

Kung ghastly peasant ka eating the same amount in the same house, your host will say to himself na ikaw ay “patay-gutom”

Kung graduate ka ng exclusive school at sa ibang bansa ka nagtatra-baho, ang

tawag sa iyo “expat”Kung mahirap ka lang, ikaw ay

“contract worker”

Kung boss ka at binabasa mo ito sa offi ce mo, “okay lang” Pero kung ikaw ay hamak na empleyado lamang, ikaw ay “nagbubulakbol” ...kaya forward mo na agad ito dahil nasa likod mo ang boss mo


Conjugal Abuse of Public Funds

on April 26 and 27, 2010 coincided with the dates when then Justice Corona, among other nominees for the position of Chief Justice were scheduled for their interviews to complete the selection process being undertaken by the Judicial and Bar Council here in Baguio. It is well-known fact that the Supreme Court has its own cottages for the justices.”

These “crimes” may have been committed by lesser minions but they are not remotely expected from the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

These “crimes” will not promote the independence and integrity of the Supreme Court which Mr. Corona says President Aquino is trying to destroy.

The Integrated Bar of the Phil-ippines and the members of the Court of Appeals who are signing a manifesto that says the President is destroying the independence of the Supreme Court should have consid-ered how the Chief Justice and his wife abused public funds staying without offi cial authority in the Baguio Country Club/.

The series of incidents in Baguio will not justify, least of all cover what is claimed to be pressure ex-erted by the President in having the Chief Justice impeached in just one day.

On the contrary, the series of abuses may simply strengthen the hand of the Senate in coming to a probable verdict of guilty. But that is a wild guess essentially based on the performance record of Mr. Corona and his pronounced bias for former President Arroyo and of course, the sound minds of the Senators sitting

as judges in the impeachment court.That bias does not improve the

integrity and independence of the Supreme Court.

http://www.malaya.com.ph/dec22/edmacasaet.html


loaded shotgun to face the bunch threaten-ing to spring the outlaw from jail, against the efforts of Arroyo’s justices to spring her out of the country. And just as you thought that would be hard to top, out she comes now throwing the weight of the justice department behind the effort to bring the outlaw’s chief gunslinger, Palparan, to justice.

None of this she has done with much grandstand-ing, though her critics complain so. It’s not she who seeks out the media, it’s the media that seek her out. For good reason. Finally, merit is getting some at-tention. Finally, doing the right thing is getting some traction. Certainly, none of this she is doing with a lot of machismo, though she has more balls than all the tough-talking idiots who called for death and destruction to rain on Muslim Mindanao from their safe perches. Palparan can use all the curse words he likes, De Lima will continue to be civilized. That, after all, is the hallmark of justice. That, after all, is what it takes to get things done: Walk quietly and carry a big stick. Don’t swagger loudly and carry a small, well, you supply your rhyme.

It’s a sea change from the Orwellian world not so long ago when we had a justice department dedi-cated to fomenting injustice and a justice secretary dedicated to being ugly—in the moral sense of the word, though the physical isn’t so far behind. Then you knew that every perfi dy, every iniquity, every grotesquerie would fi nd not its scourge but its champion in that department. Its real name was the Department of Impunity. That was what it existed for.

Finally, that Newspeak version of the Department of Justice has been laid to rest. Finally the world is being turned back on its feet. Finally impunity is being sent running, justice hard on its heels.

We have De Lima in part to thank for that.We have P-Noy to thank for the rest.Just as we thought too that it would be hard to

top stopping Arroyo from leaving the country and

calling for the impeachment of Renato Corona, out he comes throwing the entire weight of govern-ment behind the prosecution of Palparan. Maybe the Armed Forces of the Philippines has discovered that conscience is the better part of valor, maybe it has learned virtue in its own right: It has taken the lead in hunting down the man who used to hunt down Arroyo’s enemies like dogs—and butcher them in the same wise. But it helps to know there’s a commander in chief in front of you who can inspire you to heroism. It helps greatly to know there’s a commander in chief in front of you who means to lead you in a righteous cause. It helps greatly to know there’s a commander in chief who means to see justice through to the end.

I’m glad the military is leading the charge in capturing one of their own. There’s a culture that’s just as baneful as impunity and that’s the one of false brotherhood, encapsulated in such things as the “mistah system.” That’s the one that says, “We don’t particularly care what he has done, he wears our uniform, he’s one of us, we won’t give him up.” False fraternity is kindred to true impunity. The one is to the other as fuel is to fi re. About time we pushed that back, too.

In the past, what happened to military thugs like Palparan was, they became the objects of “vigilante justice,” such as you could call the New People’s Army vigilantes and such as you could call what they did justice. That was what happened to Rolando Abadilla and Rodolfo Aguinaldo, two of Marcos’ most vicious henchmen in the military. Both were gunned down by NPA hit squads, or Sparrows, long after Marcos disappeared from view, the fi rst in 1996 and the second in 2001 to show that the NPA did not forget blood debts.

The problem, however, was that though few mourned the victims, and though many expressed satisfaction in private while issuing offi cial condem-nations in public, the assassinations brought more harm than good to the country. It deepened lawless-ness and impunity by demonstrating that while mayhem could be a public, indeed governmental, venture, retribution could only be a private, indeed underground, one. It did not hold government to account, it did not demand that government do its duty. On the contrary, it freed government from the responsibility to uphold the law, it freed government from the obligation to dispense justice.

By ordering Palparan arrested, by hunting him down after he went into hiding, by moving heaven and earth to bring him to justice, government has taken back that responsibility, P-Noy has reclaimed that obligation. Indeed, by doing the things he has done of late, from arresting Arroyo, to impeaching Corona, to hounding Palparan, P-Noy has given hope things might fi nally change for us. This is the fi rst time I’m seeing this—not even Cory went this far, going on to right wrongs, to undo the mistakes of the past, to pave the way for the future.

It is a triumph of vision. It is a triumph of will.It is a triumph of justice. Missing a print edition of the Asian

Journal? Read the digital edition at www.asianjournalusa.com/digital

“Very good end” to 2011 for P-Noy


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fi ed, 14% dissatisfi ed, also correctly rounded) in Mindanao, barely changed from +55 in September.

Mr. Aquino’s satisfaction score was also “very good” in both urban and rural areas, at +52 (68% satisfi ed, 16% dissatisfi ed) in the former, increasing by two points, and unchanged at +64 (75% satisfi ed, 10% dissatisfi ed, cor-rectly rounded) in the latter.

His ratings were also “very good” across all socioeconomic classes: +61 (72% satisfi ed, 11% dissatisfi ed), an eight-point increase, among the ABC; +56 (70% satisfi ed, 13% dissatisfi ed, correctly rounded), up four points, for the class E; and +58 (72% satisfi ed, 13% dissatisfi ed), unchanged, among the class D or masa.

The same classifi cation was recorded regardless of the respondent’s sex: among men, Mr. Aquino’s score gained fi ve points to +59 (72% satisfi ed, 13% dissatisfi ed) while it was a point down to +57 (70% satisfi ed, 13% dissatisfi ed) among women.

The SWS classifi es net satisfaction scores of +70 and above as “excellent”; +50 to +69, “very good”; +30 to +49, “good”; +10 to +29, “moderate”, +9 to -9, “neutral”; -10 to -29, “poor”; -30 to -49, “bad”; -50 to -69, “very bad”; -70 and below, “execrable.”

Asked to comment, Sec. Ramon A. Carandang of the Presidential Commu-nications Development and Strategic Planning Offi ce attributed the results to the administration’s delivery on prior-ity issues.

“He retains the trust and confi dence of the people because he is addressing the big things such as anti-poverty and anti-corruption. People can see that real efforts are being made … the public seems to believe we are delivering,” Mr. Carandang said in a telephone interview.

Ramon C. Casiple, analyst at the Institute for Political and Electoral Reforms, said Mr. Aquino was strongly supported in a way that cannot be eas-ily damaged, even amidst recent politi-cal turmoil following the arrest of Mrs. Arroyo and Mr. Corona’s impeachment by the House of Representatives.

“They (the opposition) are fi ghting a president who has a high level of sup-port; it is not simple popularity. They (the people) elected this president to do something about a certain problem: corruption. Mahirap buwagin ’yung [it is diffi cult to demolish the) support,” Mr. Casiple said in a separate phone interview.

Mr. Carandang said the numbers indicated that Mr. Aquino was being perceived as delivering on a campaign promise to weed out corruption.

“[T]he numbers show that there’s no debate — the public supports these ef-forts of the administration to give Mrs. Arroyo her day in court,” he said.

“Accountability, anti-corruption and good governance have a higher resonance in high income classes … to the extent in which this survey was taken during the period of the arrest of Mrs. Arroyo, possibly this is why the numbers are markedly up in [the] ABC [class],” Mr. Carandang ventured.

He also claimed that economic growth, while slower, was inclusive in that “employment has gone up and poverty numbers are leveling off.”

Mr. Casiple, meanwhile, said: “People have been waiting for some-thing to be done about corruption, this was the major reason he was voted into offi ce. These (Mrs. Arroyo’s arrest and Mr. Corona’s impeachment) are actions taken on that, and … his numbers increased.”

While the survey was taken prior to reports that the president had partied with his guards despite the devasta-tion caused by Sendong (international name: Washi) and its death toll of over 1,000, Mr. Casiple said it would likely not become “a national issue against Mr. Aquino”.

At worst, he said it would “affect Mindanao statistics” but that it will have a “neutral effect” nationwide.

“Sendong is more or less local to Mindanao … I don’t think it will have a national impact unless he commits a blunder in the handling — so far, ex-cept for that Palace party, most people will accept it, but he has to scramble,” he added.

Mr. Carandang begged off from “speculating” on the effects the Palace response — among them Mr. Aquino’s initial plan to delay visiting the disaster sites to after Christmas — on Mr. Aquino’s ratings.

“It’s not in the survey; it’s diffi cult to speculate … [but] I am not ready to concede that numbers have been overtaken by events.

“The President has visited the affect-ed areas; he gave directives, asked for information on the ground. The issues are being addressed … the president is calling for accountability that satisfi es the public,” Mr. Carandang claimed.

The latest SWS poll involved face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults nationwide. The error margins used were ±3% for national and ±6% for area percentages. — J. P. D. Poblete

Triumph of Justice(Continued from page 1)

asian journal december 30, 2011 - january 5, 2012 edition

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