asian journal july 16-22, 2010

King James and King George: Being Royal,

Loyal, and Real p13

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.

Attend a free presentation for MONTELUCE -

the high point of Tagaytay

(Continued on page 8)

How big is your tent? .. p15

Ayon sa Greek mythology, si Pandora ang unang babaeng nilalang, na nilikha ni Zeus upang maging bukal ng lahat ng masa- ma at mabuti sa

mundo. Ginawa siyang tagapagtago ng isang kahon, na dapat ay di niya bubuksan; subali’t naging maging mausisa si Pandora, binuksan niya ang kahon, at agad-agad, ay kumalat ang sakit, inggit, pagdaraya, pagnanais, galit at lahat ng masa-ma. Isang bagay lamang ang naiwan sa loob ng kahon - ang pag-asa.

Tatlong taong nakip-agsapalaran sa Amerika si Doray. Nilisan niya ang Pilipinas at ang mi-namahal na pamilya sa pag-asang makahahanap

Ang Balikbayan Box ni DorayIsang maikling kuwento ni Percival Campoamor Cruz

PNoy backs Roxas suit PNS -- PRESIDENT Benigno

Aquino III supports the elec-toral protest filed by his running mate former senator Mar Roxas against Vice President Jejomar Binay.

Presidential spokesman Ed-win Lacierda said the President had encouraged Roxas to file the protest.

“Naalala ko yun dahil sinabi rin ni Pangulong Aquino, pati rin yata siya na-shave yung boto niya eh. So gusto rin niyang malaman anong nangyari sa mga boto rin niya,” Lacierda said.

He said the Palace also re-spects the right of Roxas to file an electoral protest.

Lacierda meanwhile said the election protest will have no bearing on the possible appoint-ment of Roxas to a Cabinet post. Roxas is likely to get a Cabinet post after the one-year ban on the appointment of losing candi-dates.


July 16 - 22, 2010

Ben MaynigoMsgr. Gutierrez Events


Megaworld Shines Spotlight on Land of

Possibilities p3

Signs in the Philippnes

“We laugh at other people for their bad English. Take a look at the signs in the Philippines. These are only a few ex-amples.”

PNS -- FUGITIVE Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson would yield himself soon.

Thus said newly appointed National Food Authority (NFA) administrator Lito Banayo.

Banayo, dubbed as a Lac-son man along with new Na-tional Bureau of Investigation Director Magtanggol Gatdula, said Lacson may return to the country and surrender within the next few weeks.

Quoting sources close to

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson to yield soon

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson

Lacson, Banayo said Lacson has not returned to the Philip-pines since he left in January fearing his arrest in connec-tion with the Dacer-Corbito murder case.

“It’s only a matter of time before he comes back to the country,” Banayo said, quot-ing his sources as he denied having made contact with the senator while he was in hid-ing.

Banayo was Lacson’s campaign manager when the senator ran for president in 2004.

Lacson was put on the Interpol’s red list after leav-ing the country last January, a month before a warrant for his arrest was issued by the court.

The senator is facing two counts of murder for the kill-ing and kidnapping of publi-cist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito in November 2000.

By Dr. Cesar D. Candari

13th in a series of articles

I went home to Pan-dan for the first time in eighteen years, in April 1978. I went home with my wife Cely and my father to have a short vacation and attended the municipal and religious ‘fiesta’ of Pandan. My aunt Tia Pasing and her husband Tio Dadong Sardina were both happy and thrilled to welcome us

From Antique to America:Memoirs of a Filipino American Doctor

Going home to Pandan, Antique

My uncles and Aunts in Pandan, (all deceased) 1984

“PUWEDE NA AKONG MAMATAY DITO (I can die

here),” exclaimed Isabel upon entering Disneyland.

The sign reading, “The Hap-piest Place On Earth” loomed

overhead. The place was filled with people, excited to give the different rides a try.

“Don’t die yet,” Albert joked. “You still have to see Las Ve-gas and the Grand Canyon.”

Isabel was very happy although she also felt sad.

She wished her father, who had sacrificed so much for

her, was with her. Again, she wished he would live longer to have the same opportunity

to visit the place.

Promised LandHappiest Place On Earth

By Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.Publisher & Editor

Asian Journal San DiegoThe Original and First Asian Journal in America

See page 10

Charoen Pok-phand Foods or CP Foods of Thailand’s largest agri-business group, Charoen Pok-phand Foods Public Company Limited (CPF) is investing more than 1 billion pesos in a hog pro-duction facility in Concepcion, Tarlac.

The investment would complement its P2.36-billion aqua feed mill plant in Ca-pas, Tarlac.

“CP Foods continues to raise the level of its invest-ment commitment by ex-panding their operations in the country. The project will contribute substantially to the SME sector since their main market will be hog raisers in the country,” said Trade and Industry Secretary Jesli A. Lapus.

The project will entail the construction of a great grand parent stocks (GGPs) farm,

Thai firm invests P1B in Tarlac hog production facility

a grand parent stocks (GP) farm and a farm for breeder finishing hogs.

The feed requirements of the three (3) farms will be culled by the company through feed mill tolling agreements with a chosen feed mill adjacent to the farm sites.

Lapus added that the project “shall boost the op-portunities in the food sector particularly in the hog rais-ing industry. A steady supply of hogs will ensure stable

July 16 - 22, 2010Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.com

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Law Offi ces of Chua Tinsay & Vegawww.ctvattys.com

by Atty. Dennis ChuaLegal Buzz

Read Atty. Dennis Chua’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

On March of 2008, the U.S. Immigration and Cus-toms Enforcement (ICE) introduced the Secure Com-munities program. The main feature of this program is that once a person is arrested and booked in jail, the arrestee’s fi ngerprints will be checked against the FBI criminal da-tabases and the U.S. Depart-ment of Homeland Security (USDHS) databases. This will allow the government to check not only the arrestee’s criminal background but also the immigration status of the arrestee.

Once it is ascertained that the arrestee is in unlawful im-migration status, the USDHS will issue a detainer and the arrestee will not be released by the local authorities even if he can post bond to secure his temporary release pending criminal proceedings. At the conclusion of the arrestee’s criminal proceedings, the ar-restee will be turned over to ICE custody. ICE will then determine if the arrestee can be temporarily released on bond. Once the arrestee has been turned over to ICE cus-tody, he will then be required to appear before an Immigra-tion Judge for removal pro-ceedings.

Secure communities: Coming to a police station near you.

ICE started implementing this program in October of 2008 in North Carolina and Texas. ICE expects to have this program fully implement-ed in all jails and prisons by 2012. In California, the pro-gram is already active in 17 counties including Alameda, San Mateo, Sonoma, Solano and Contra Costa counties. The San Francisco county’s request to opt out from this program was denied and its participation was to take ef-fect last June 8, 2010.

In implementing this program, ICE has adopted a “risk-based” approach by creating three types or levels to identify and determine the immigration status of non-US citizens arrested for crimes who pose the greatest risk to the public. These levels are as follows:

Level 1 – Individuals who have been convicted of major drug offenses and violent of-fenses, such as murder man-slaughter, rape, robbery and kidnapping;

Level 2 - Individuals who have been convicted of mi-nor drug offenses and mainly property offenses, such as burglary, larceny, fraud, and money laundering and

Level 3 – Individuals who

have been convicted of other offenses.

According to ICE, in order to maximize their limited resources, arrestees who fall under Level 1 would be given top priority. However, we have now encountered a num-ber of cases where the arrestee has been arrested and an immigration detainer issued for minor offenses such as in Driving Under the Infl uence (DUI) cases and jaywalking. These arrestees are now in removal/deportation proceed-ings as a result of their arrest. The Secure Communities program is one way of locat-ing individuals who are no longer in lawful immigration status. Individuals who com-mit minor crimes will not be spared by this program and will be treated similarly as those who have been arrested for much more serious crimes such as murder, rape and drug traffi cking.

About the AuthorAtty. Dennis E. Chua is a

partner in The Law Firm of Chua Tinsay and Vega (CTV) - a full service law fi rm with offi ces in San Francisco, San Diego and Manila. The infor-mation presented in this ar-ticle is for general information only and is not, nor intended to be, formal legal advice nor the formation of an attorney-client relationship. The CTV attorneys will be holding its regular free legal clinic at the Max’s Restaurant in Vallejo, California on August 30, 2010. Call or e-mail CTV for an in-person or phone consul-tation to discuss your particu-lar situation and/or how their services may be retained at (415) 495-8088; (619) 955-6277; [email protected]

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Today, a broad coalition of advocates redoubled efforts to educate Bay Area immigrant communities about a prob-lematic new federal immi-gration program, misnamed “Secure” Communities, or S-Comm. Latino, East Asian, South Asian, South-east Asian, and African leaders, activists, and at-torneys ad-dressed ethnic media repre-sentatives and spoke out against the dangers to which S-Comm exposes im-migrants and their families.

“This program is not fed-eral law and has not been ap-proved by Congress. ICE has forced this upon our sanctuary city under a shroud of secrecy and confusion,” stated Chris-topher Punongbayan, Deputy Director of the Asian Law Caucus.

Immigration attorney Fran-cisco Ugarte of the San Fran-cisco Legal and Education Network noted, “For twenty years, San Francisco’s Sanc-tuary Ordinance has helped undocumented immigrants contribute to and participate in our communities. Now that S-Comm is in place, I’ve been asked what that means for our local policies. On one hand, all immigrants should still be able to access ser-vices like libraries, enroll their children in school, and get treatment in hospitals without fear of deportation. However,

Opposition Growing Against Federal Immigration Enforcement Program

I am extremely concerned about S-Comm’s impact on police-community relations. S-Comm also opens the door to racial profi ling by local law enforcement who may be incentivized to overcharge or falsely arrest innocent immi-grant residents.”

How it works: S-Comm compels local enforcement to

auto-

matically and instantly share with the Depart-ment of Homeland Security the fi ngerprints of any immi-grant who is arrested, even if s/he is ultimately proven to be innocent of any wrongdoing or is guilty of an extremely minor offense, like not pay-ing a traffi c ticket. ICE holds are triggered at the point of fi ngerprinting and the jail is notifi ed in just 30-45 minutes - not enough time to prove one’s innocence.

Community reactions: “The Chinese community relies on the police to keep our neighborhoods safe,” states Un Un Che, through an interpreter. She continued, “S-Comm breaks down the public’s trust in law enforce-ment and threatens public safety for all.” Che is a rep-resentative of Chinese for

Affi rmative Action. “The effects of S-Comm

on immigrant communities is clear: separation of families and increased deportations,” remarked Veronica Nieto through an interpreter. “Do-mestic violence survivors will be discouraged from reporting abuse to the police if there is any possibil-ity that they may be deported

simply because they con-

tacted the authorities.” Nieto is a rep-resentative of the San

Francisco- and Oakland-

based group, Mujeres Unidas Y

Activas.Offi cial ICE

sta- tistics reveal that nearly 90% of individuals referred to ICE under the S-Comm pro-gram’s fi rst year were arrested for less serious crimes, such as traffi c offenses or misde-meanors. An alarming 5% of people identifi ed by ICE through the program were actually citizens of the United States.

S-Comm was introduced to California in April 2009 and became active in San Fran-cisco on June 8, 2010 de-spite serious objections from Sheriff Hennessey and 9 of 11 County Supervisors. As of July 7, 2010, S-Comm is present in 21 of 58 California jurisdictions, or about 36% of the state.

For additional information, visit the San Francisco Im-migrant Legal and Education Network (SFILEN)

Asian Journal - (619) 474-0588 Visit our website at http://www.asianjournalusa.comJuly 16 - 22, 2010

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I am going to fi ll this place with streets and fi ll the streets with people -- Andrew Tan about Eastwood City, circa 1980s

Megaword Managing Di-rector Marivic Acosta recalls the declaration clearly in her mind and her impression of what was not there. Her boss Andrew Tan was talking to his staff at Megaworld and giving them a tour of land overgrown with tropical vegetation.

They were standing in the middle of nowhere in a spot called Libis, the local word for a place that roughly means “on the edge of town”.

It was the 1980s, just when Eastwood was simply an idea in the mind of the man now known as the fi fth rich-est man in the Philippines. The area he was talking about building a dream community where one could live, work and play had a reputation that was as bad as his was good. It was an unusual choice for the beginnings of a posh ad-dress that would be a fl agship community. Libis then was notorious for crimes that the tall talahib grass hid from public view. But Andrew Tan understood the power of an idea and the possibilities that

Megaworld Shines Spotlight on Land

of Possibilities

once upon a time he could only imagine from his own humble beginnings. Defying the odds in a land where the winds of opportunity seem to often blow offshore, Tan is the exception. He migrated to the Philippines. Before he became a “taipan” he started out poor working as a street vendor at a young age when his family moved to the Philippines from Taiwan.

Today Andrew Tan has given the place the same luster as his name. Eastwood City has become a desirable site teem-ing with business processing outsourcing (BPO) enterprises for a roster of multinational clients with names such as Dell, HP, IBM, Canon, BPI, and Citibank. The streets are fi lled with about 20,000 locals employed in what is now known as the fi rst IT Park in the Philippines. Megaworld, under the leadership of An-drew Tan, has also become the country’s number one landlord for the BPO sector according to Acosta.

The builder is on an ambi-tious project of transforming the streets within a 20-km radius of the Makati central business district with in-fi ll projects such as Eastwood City in Libis, Forbes Town (Continued on page 4)

Center fronting Manila Golf & Country Club in Forbes, Makati, McKinley Hills in Global City Taguig, and New-port City in Pasay near the new NAIA airport.

“Megaworld has about 33

projects nationwide,” Acosta explained during the Mega-world International Launch in San Diego on Saturday after-noon, July 12th, “but it would take me probably two days to show you the slides for each

one.” Within the strategic 20-km

radius of Makati, Megaworld has several projects have that appreciated during the pre-construction phase based on the live, work and play com-munity concept.

“The BPO component con-tributed to property apprecia-tion,” the Megaworld execu-tive observed. Employment opportunities which draw in rental business for Eastwood City condo owners provide income on top of pride of ownership. She explained that in many cases, property own-ers who bought in Eastwood have seen their properties appreciate anywhere from 70 percent to a hundredfold.

Rentals are a haven for investors. Landlords in the Philippines enjoy an income stream that is delivered semi-annually collecting rent six months in advance. The

company that built the condo-miniums also provide profes-sional property management, resale and leasing services to unit owners.

The attraction for both residents and renters is con-venience. “Megaworld is a developer of live work and play communities -- if you are living overseas, traffi c is not a problem. You can enjoy all amenities within the development and enjoy the comfort and convenience of having everything within your reach,” Acosta explains as she dispels fears of entanglement in Metro Manila’s notorious traffi c snarls.

Acosta credits Andrew Tan’s ability to expand land hold-ings in urban areas by forging venture partnerships with land owners of idle land. One such partnership is with Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada who

Eastwood City, Libis is BPO Central

Megaworld Managing Director Marivic Acosta and Southern California Regional Manager Julius Obregon

San Diego North County Team led by Marketing Manager Ralph Lacerna

San Diego South County Megaworld International Team under Roz Fortin, Marketing Manager, with several agents

Eastwood City Mall at night is an entertainment hotspot

Guests view Megaworld presentation in National City


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Bill’s Corner

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

by Bill Labestre, MBA

Lately, we have earth-quakes more frequently and the center is getting closer to San Diego. Those of us who lived here for many years, we expected these and very much aware of the “Big One” that is supposed to happen in the next 30 years. The recent shakes and after shocks may have touched some nerves but, we love San Diego so much, we are here to stay.

In recent years, we have more serious wildfires than earthquakes here in San Diego. Like the majority, we think that bad things can only happen to other people and not us. What if the “Big One” happens tomorrow, are you ready? How many of us take the time to prepare for such a catastrophic event? How many families perform regular emer-gency drills or have emergen-cy kits stored nearby?

We surely love our weath-er in San Diego and even bragged about it sometimes. For most Filipinos, there’s no other place like it here in the USA. Normally, we have short winter seasons and it seldom get too cold. Even if you reside in the inland val-leys, summer is not that hot. If you live along the coast, then there’s nothing to complain about.

We spent quite a bit of our income to pay premiums on our car, health, life and home owners insurance. We don’t really care about the flood insurance since it seldom rain

Shake, Rock and Rollhard in San Diego. We should know that we are prone to major earthquakes but, not too many of us bought earthquake insurance for our homes or rental properties. If a serious one happens, how would you rebuild your properties?

During the 2007 wild-fires, I have experienced evacuation from my home to a safer area. Even though my son and I have plenty of time to gather and load important personal items to our vehicles, it was not an easy task. What happens if you only have seconds or minutes to decide? What would you take as you flee your house or office?

After that close encoun-ter, I promised myself to take digital photos of valuable items from the house and my office then store them safely for insurance purposes. I still need to scan photos from old family albums and store them online. At least I always review and update my hom-eowner’s insurance before renewal every year.

Many of us don’t know what to do if a serious ca-lamity happens to us or our precious assets. Saving lives would be our top priority but, what would you do after? What if your home is totally ruined and there’s no access to banks or grocery stores? You should have safely stored enough drinking water and food to last your family a few days or until help arrives. Every member of your family

should know of the meeting place during the evacuation time. Don’t forget that earth-quakes can happen at night too and the electrical power maybe out.

Take it from my 86 year old mother in law. She keeps a small overnight bag packed with her medications, a bottle of water, important papers, a sweater, pair of glasses and a flashlight by her bedroom door. So now, she is always ready to head for the near-est exit every time the earth started to shake, rock and roll.

Megaworld Shines...

(Continued from page 3)

owns the land underneath Greenhills Heights commu-nity on Pinaglabanan Road in San Juan, Manila. As a part-ner, the landowner collects on

the investment when the units are built and sold. The wait for the construction of units can be anywhere from four to five years.

The real estate boom in the Philippines has attracted foreign interest. Two towers in the McKinley Hills devel-opment in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig, which replicates the BPO concept of Eastwood

City, have been bought out by Korean investors. The high-rise towers sport Italian names such as Bellagio and Tuscany, outdoing the Las Vegas Vene-tian version by adding a knock off St. Markos (the evangelist not the president) tower and a Bridge of Sighs replica over a man-made canal that would be wide enough for gondolas.

The attraction has proven to be more than skin deep. The theme adds to property values if money is an indicator. A unit in Bellagio which sold for PHP 4,734,576 in July 23, 2004 sold in 2009 for PHP 6,167,100.

But one would have to take a Megaworld-run CityBus shut-tle to Newport City in Pasay City, another live, work and play Megaworld development to roll the dice at Resort World in Newport City. The bus links Newport City, Eastwood City and McKinley Hills. With des-tinations like Club Filipino and Resort World, the Pasay City area is slowly becoming the al-ternative to a long plane ride to Macao in China for gambling.

In addition to Resort World, the 25-hectare Newport City in Pasay features a Marriott Hotel and a new attraction, the uber exclusive Maxim, a six-star hotel, for Asia’s rising upper class.

The concept has thrown locals in a buying frenzy. According to Acosta, “Newport City con-do owners have seen a 76 per-

cent price appreciation. When we launched Newport City, locals snapped up the units on opening day for a record one billion pesos in sales.”

She assures investors that the development is not in the flight path even though it is conve-niently located near the new international airport.

“Rental income is estimated at PHP 25,000 per month for Newport City condo landlords. A 1BR units which sold for a prelaunch price in March 20, 2006 PHP1.856M has appre-ciated to PHP3.259 April 1, 2009,” reports Acosta. The builder’s reputation is but-tressed by an ISO2001 certifi-cation, an international distinc-tion of quality for a property developer granted in 1999.

The buzz all boils down to one simple fact: Megaworld is superbrand.

What was once the exclusive enclave of multinational firms from the West has found new company in the brands of the rising stars of the Asia.

The statement is almost as

surreal as the streets in Libis that Andrew Tan once imag-ined one hot afternoon two decades ago. But the changes that have transformed the sky-line of Metro Manila greet the balikbayans before the plane even lands.

Even in the air, one is left with a lasting impression that change has finally come judg-

McKinley Hills in Global City, a Megaworld community

ing from the new skyline. The airwaves also carry the sense of hope in a new government that vows to break away from the old ways.

But at the San Diego event the friendly marketing execu-tive is all about putting the needs of the customer first, some of whom have never seen the properties first-hand. “I want to give you information before you go to the Philip-pines. I would like the acquisi-tion of properties to be conve-nient and easy for you.“ She adds, “Megaworld is true to its commitment. It has completed over 200 buildings and deliv-ered 10,000 houses. Alliance Global, Megaworld’s mother company, is the recipient of the most admired enterprise award given by ASEAN for business and investments...”

Acosta enumerates a list of long achievements that make the overhead presentation im-possible to read.

However, no one is complain-ing. It is the good news every-one wants to hear about after working overseas for most of their life.

Home is beginning to look like the places they have seen on their journeys to emerg-ing economies abroad. And Andrew Tan is ready to greet them with the opportunity he once saw one hot afternoon in the middle of nowhere when everyone else was looking elsewhere for a fresh start. -- Asian Journal | Gen Silverio [email protected].

Andrew Tan


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by Dr. Ofelia Dirige Founder, President & CEO Kalusugan Community Services

Contemporary Asian American Issues

Read Dr. Dirige’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

Perspectives

ASIAN JOURNALThe first Asian-Filipino weekly in Southern CaliforniaAn 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 distributed in all Asian communties in San Diego County. Publication date is ev-ery Friday of the month. Advertising 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 photographs but welcomes sub-missions. Entire content is © 2009 copyrighted material by Asian Journal. Materials in this publication may not be reproduced without specific permission from the publisher.

Genevieve SilverioManaging Editor

Simeon G. Silverio, Jr.Publisher & Editor

Miles BeauchampAssociate Editor

Santi SilverioAssociate Publisher

At Large...

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

by Miles Beauchamp

We have many teachers throughout our lives. Parents, school instructors, college profes-sors, aunts and uncles, ministers and other religious leaders, and friends, are just a few of the indi-viduals we learn from during our time here. But of all the people from whom we learn, our parents probably teach us the most im-portant things. They teach us how to live.

There are some things,

Just some thoughtsKids, here a few things I think you should know

however, that our parents might fail to teach us - things that are exceptionally impor-tant. And that’s what this list is all about. I started think-ing the other day about all of the things it’s crucial for our parents to teach us. Let’s face it, our parents teach us from the moment we’re born to, well, they probably never quit teaching (or at least trying).

So listen up kids, this is the deal. I was sitting in

the backyard the other day, watching you two and the dog playing. As the three of you were going at each other with wild abandon I got to thinking about all the things you still have to learn. And I am not talking here about the knowl-edge you will get from school.

No, the knowledge I speak of now is the knowledge that only comes to a person from two ways. One is hearing it from someone else and the other is sim-ply experiencing it. Since I cannot give you most of what you will experience, my help here will then be from telling you the few simple things I have learned over the years. I hope it helps. If it doesn’t help, you’re still too young to read it – come back in a few years and then you’ll get it.

Important things to know

• Treat your friends with respect

• Treat you enemies with even more respect

• Never pass up a chance to go to the bathroom

• Differences are good – cele-brate them

• Bad actions do not make a bad person

• Bad actions do not make a good person bad

• Always check the oil in the car

• Just because someone in a posi-tion of authority says something does not mean it’s true

• Just because I wrote the above does not mean you should not listen to those in authority. It is your job to know when to listen and when

to act on what you hear• Yes, you probably can

make it, but stop for gas any-way

• Never stop for the night with an empty tank of gas.

You do not want to get an urgent phone call telling you that you need to be some-where immediately and then have to wait in a gas station or, worse yet, by the side of the road

• Read the owner’s manual• Asking for help does not

imply weakness or stupidity – it implies calmness, ratio-nality, and the brains to know that no one can do it all

• Be good to animals, but never be better to an animal than you are to people

• Find a hobby and pursue it

• Be good to your family – they will help you even when no one else will

• Never pass up a chance to travel because it may help save you from a narrow view of the planet

• You do not know it all and never will know it all

• The above is not an excuse for doing something irrational it is simply a fact

• Everything you do will have an effect on someone else

• If nothing else, at least

remem-ber this: Try to live your life so that when you fall asleep at night there is never something you are ashamed of

• The above said, no one gets through life without some

shame. And that is good because it can help you remember to treat peo-ple with dignity

• Always treat people with dig-nity

• No one can roll his or her eyes at you better than your child – or one of your child’s friends;

• No one rolls his or her eyes at you more often

than your child; • Love really is important

– find it where you can with whoever you want. It’s your life so live, love, and laugh with someone who gets you

Finally, at some point in your life you will be sit-ting at the foot of a bed that is cradling someone you love who is dying. You will struggle with emotions you never dreamed of; you will struggle to understand; you will struggle with pain, anger and unbounded love. You will strug-gle. Embrace that struggle and meet it head-on with love.

And now I am going to quit giving advice. Your life is your life – live it well.

I have a question for youAre you teaching these

things to your kids? If not, you might want to start. You need to prepare them for the rough, as well as the smooth, times ahead. Remember, at some point in the future, it will be they who are making all the decisions. Teach them well, respect them, and love them with joy.

Guest Writer : Vannessatee A. Malong

My parents are both Filipi-nos but I was born and raised in Yokosuka, Japan and lived there for 15 years. However, I am an American citizen and also a Navy brat. My dad is Jerry E. Malong who joined the navy on April 1980. It was his long time dream to join the Navy since he was still in high school because many of his family members have served in the military, he wanted to travel, and also see the world for free.

Relocation: Since my dad was in the Navy, it meant relo-cating to different places. Luck-ily, during my whole life as a

Growing up as a Fil-Am Navy brat

navy brat we were only stationed in Japan. During kindergarten I was in Iwakuni, first grade to the middle of fifth grade I was in Atsugi, and from the rest of fifth grade to freshman year in high school I was in Yokosuka. I know that especially for chil-dren, relocating was a difficult time but because I moved when I was young, it did not really have an effect on me – if anything, in fact, I was excited. The only time I felt really sad to leave was when I was in Yokosuka, prob-ably because this was during my teenage years, I have gotten older and closer to my friends and I knew what moving would mean. Moving meant having to leave everything behind and

starting all over again.June 15, 2002 was the first

day of summer vacation and the day we left Japan and I will nev-er forget it. I can still remember how I felt moving to San Diego – culture shocked. I was not used to all the different ethnicities, driving on the opposite side, all the different types of foods that were available, etc. I knew that I could complain all I wanted to but I was not going back to Japan, so I had to be optimis-tic about the situation. All my cousins were there, some of my old friends from back in Japan were there, and the weather was beautiful and after almost eight years of living here, San Diego is where I claim my second home.

But because we have re-located three times, a lot of friendships have been made, not only for me and my brother, but for my parents as well. With these friendships, it helped make things easier for the Navy wives/husbands and children. For ex-ample, since the husbands/wives were left behind, they would talk to each other, hang-out, and be there for each other; the same applies for the children. This helped keep us busy and kept our minds off on worrying about the safety of our significant other. Despite the relocations, these friendships remained and were carried on for a life time because of the chances of being relocated in the same place.

West Pac: Being in the Navy definitely has its advantages and disadvantages. A couple of things I have noticed growing up are that at times it felt like I was growing up without a dad. I was not hurt by this because I knew what my dad had to do as a Navy man and I knew that it would consist of him being away for months. When my dad had to go underway or especially on West Pac, I knew it was going to be hard on my mom. I still remember the first time my dad left for West Pac, my mom, my brother, and I all cried because we were going to miss my dad

too much.My dad was leaving which meant that my brother and I would have to give an extra helping hand around the house. This also meant birthdays, anni-versaries, award ceremonies, and after school activities would be missed; it was hard on my mom to try and attend both mine and my brother’s activities, especial-ly if it fell under the same day.

Though my dad would miss what was going on every day, he would make it up by email-ing, writing letters, calling every once in a while, or sending us birthday/anniversary cards. And although it was just the three of us left at home, the good thing about it was that it brought us closer to each other; it most especially helped me and my brother grow up a little faster, as far as being responsible. An-other advantage to my dad being on West Pac was that while he was “visiting” these foreign countries, he would bring back pasalubongs, or gifts. It was nice to know that my dad was think-ing of us while he was gone via any type of communication (and the gifts). Also, because my dad would keep in touch, it helped ease the pain of missing him too much.

Relationship with my dad: When my dad comes back from West Pac or even if he is just on shore duty, my relationship with my dad was a normal one – I was not too close or too distant

from him. He would be there to help me in anything, listen to me if I had anything to say, attend my basketball games/piano recit-als, we would have family days, be supportive, etc. Growing up, he would plan our family vaca-tions because we had traveling benefits and so we would go to the Philippines, Korea, and San Diego, just to name a few. As an adolescent it was much easier getting along with my dad but growing up it felt a little harder and I think it was because I was simply being a teenager – for whatever that means – and I was going through things he could not understand.

Though my dad would try and make an effort to talk to me, I could not open up because I felt uncomfortable telling him things, like talking to him about boys. What made this especially hard was the fact that he is a Navy man and with that, came some (strict) rules. However, what did make it easier for both of us was that he would remind me and my brother that it did not matter if we had a boyfriend/girlfriend just as long as we do not get too serious about it and he never forgets to remind us to finish school first because that should always be our top prior-ity. Today, my brother and I are open and comfortable about telling my dad (and mom) about having relationships and having friends come over to the house just to hang out or attend family functions. My dad has been and always will be the best dad in the world because I know he would do anything for his family.

Dad’s retirement: Sep-tember 2003, after 23 years of service in the Navy, my dad retires in San Diego, California. Rather than having a retire-ment ceremony, my dad has a simple, yet casual, family party at our house. Though it would have been nice to have a proper retirement ceremony for my dad, it was still nice to see close family and friends celebrate this special occasion. To make it even special, my mom and some

of my aunties planned the party by decorating the house with balloons and pictures, making all the food, and plenty of guests bringing presents for my dad. Though this chapter of my dad’s life was closing, a new one was about to begin and I knew my dad was going to enjoy that life just as much as he did when he was active duty.

It has been almost seven years since my dad retired. If you see him today he has grown out his hair to the point where it looks like a mullet. His reason-ing? He’ll say, “I’m retired, and I can do whatever I want.” Today, my dad works at 32nd Naval Base as a Supply Technician. His job consists of and is not limited to ordering parts, supplies for the region up to Ventura County, ordering parts for the security boats, repair parts for the tug boats, paying the rental for repairing, fixing the brow for the military personnel to go in and out of the ship, etc. Sometimes when I see the ships, I ask him if he misses being in the Navy and he’ll say, “no” because he remembers all the things he had to go through just to enlist, being away for so long from his family, and some of the places he had gone to were anything but great. My dad is content with where he is right now and that is all I ever want for him.

I appreciate everything my dad has done for our family and I will never forget it all. Because of him, we are able to live a good life and it helps that we have military benefits; growing up, wasn’t too shabby.

***

Vanessatee is a 5th year stu-dent at San Diego State Univer-sity majoring in Public Health. She is a student of Dr. Dirige in Asian Studies 460, “Contempo-rary Issues in Filipino American Communities”. She was also APSA’s Executive Vice-President from 2009-2010.

***

WORKSHOP AN-NOUNCEMENT

“ IMPLEMENTING WORK-SITE WELLNESS AND CO-LON CANCER EDUCATION IN THE WORKPLACE”.

WORKING TOGETHER TO CREATE HEALTHY WORK-PLACES

SATURDAY, July 17, 2010, 9:00 AM TO 12 NOON

KCS FILAM WELLESS CENTER

1419 East 8th Street, National City, CA 91950

FEATURING:Daisy Lozano, Network for a

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WORKManager of Business and

Community RelationsJorge Gutierrez, Imperial

Beach Health CenterLocal Company Wellness

Program and Best PracticesDemy Din, American Cancer

SocietyFree resources and Program

InformationDr. Irene Klein, MD for Take

Care Health SystemsColon Cancer SpeakerFlorfina Arce, Colon Cancer

SurvivorProgram starts with continen-

tal breakfast at 8:30 AM fol-lowed by Welcome and Intro-ductions by Dr. Ofelia Dirige, President and CEO of Kalusugan Community Services. Featured above are the different speakers. There will be physical activity break conducted by the Nutrition for a Healthy California, Cham-pions for Change; and current handouts on the newest updates on health and colon cancer pro-vided by the American Cancer Society and American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR).

Free healthy lunch will be provided. Besides the regular prizes that will be raffled, four cookbooks, “Global Fillipino Cuisine: Healthy Recipes” writ-ten by Dr. Dirige, Dr. Oades and Dr. Cudal will be given out as prizes. It will be a fun day for everyone! PLEASE




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Only a U.S. citizen who is 21 years of age or older may fi le a petition for a parent. In order for the benefi ciary to be considered the parent of the petitioner, the petitioner must have once qualifi ed as the child of the benefi ciary and the relationship must continue to exist, even though the petitioner is over 21 and, therefore, no longer a child. If the relationship has been terminated, the benefi ciary would no longer be eligible for classifi cation as a parent, even though the petitioner had once been considered to be the benefi ciary’s child. Termi-nation of relationship would happen in the case of a step-parent-stepchild relationship if marriage between the step-parent and natural parent were to be terminated by divorce or annulment, or would happen in the case of any parent-child relationship if the child were up for adoption. For example, Teresa entered the United States on an H-1b visa. At the time she was pregnant. Five months later, she gave birth to Carla. A few years later, Te-resa married Rey who is in the United States illegally. When Carla reaches the age of 21, she can petition for Teresa and Rey. However, if Rey had divorced Teresa, Carla can no longer petition for Rey be-cause the relationship between Carla and Rey was terminated by divorce.

There is no limitation on the number of parents for whom a single petitioner may

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An adopted child may not confer immigration benefi ts upon a natural parent without regard to whether the adopted child has been accorded or could be accorded immigra-tion benefi ts by virtue of his or her adopted status. An adopted child may not confer immigration benefi ts upon his or her natural sibling, because their common natural parent no longer has the status of parent of the adopted child for immigration purposes. For example, Milagros has two children, Tarra and Barra, who were born out of wed-lock. Milagros married a U.S. citizen and immigrated to the U.S. with Tarra. Barra was left with her father in the Philippines. Milagros USC husband adopted Tarra. Tarra could not petition for her sis-ter and natural father because Tarra has been adopted by


$50

ng higit na magandang kabu-hayan at kinabukasan sa “lupa ng gatas at pulot-pukyutan”. Isa siya sa maraming pinalad na pinagkalooban ng U.S. Embassy,sa Maynila, ng visa upang makapamasyal sa Amerika bilang turista. Ang pahintulot na ito ay may bisa lamang nang anim na buwan; samakatuwid, pagdating ng takdang panahon, ang turista na pinagkalooban ng visa ay inaasahang lilisanin ang Amerika at babalik sa Pilipi-nas o alin mang pinanggalin-gang bayan. Isa rin si Doray sa marami nating kababayan na, sa halip na bumalik sa Pilipinas, ay nagpasiyang “magtago” at makipagsa-palaran sa Amerika.

Nakataguriang “TNT” ang mga kababayan nat-ing katulad ni Doray, na ang ibig sabihin ay “tago nang tago”. Bagama’t hindi sila pinag-uukulan ng panahon at pinaghahanap na isa-isa ng mga kawani ng Immigra-tion, kaugnay sa paglabag sa pinag-aatas ng visa, hindi rin sila maaaring lumantad o maging pansinin, at baka ang makaaalam sa kanilang katayuan ay magsumbong sa Immigration at sila ay mad-akip.

Ang mamuhay nang nag-iisa at malayo sa mga mina-mahal sa buhay ay mabigat na pagsubok sa katatagan ng layunin at tibay ng loob ng isang nilalang. Lalo na kung ang kinaroroonan ay hindi inibig na puntahan, kundi ito ay atas lamang ng pangangai-langan.

Sa simula, ang buong panginorin ay kakaiba sa iyong kinagisnan at dati’y nakikita sa araw-araw. Iba ang hugis, kilos, tunog at amoy ng mundong ngayon ay bumaba-lot sa iyong katauhan. Kail-angang ikaw’y managumpay sa pagka-ilang, pagkatakot, at pangungulila. At bagama’t ang pagkakaunawa sa bagong mundo ay dumarating nang unti-unti, sa paglipas ng sapat na panahon, ang taong “na-kakulong” sa pook na hindi angkop sa kanya ay nagiging bihasa at handa sa pakikibaka.

Magiliw na tinanggap si Doray, bilang panauhin sa tahanan ng kanyang pinsan na si Rosemary, sa Los An-geles . May isang guest room si Rosemary na masayang ipinagamit sa kanya habang siya ay wala pang tiyak na matutuluyan. Ipinasyal siya ng pinsan sa Disneyland , at

Ang Balikbayan Box ni Doray

makailang ulit, sa baybay-da-gat ng Sta Monica. Ipinagamit sa kanya ang telepono, upang makausap ang asawa at mga anak, na naiwan sa Pilipinas. Ipinagmaneho siya sa ilang pi-nuntahang appointment kaug-nay sa paghahanp ng trabaho. Isinama siya sa mga dinners sa restaurants. At sa loob ng isang buwan ay nabuhay siya sa California , sa Amerika, sa pagtatangkilik ng mabait na pinsan. Sinuklian naman ni Doray ang kabaitan ng pinsan sa pamamagitan ng paglalaba at pag-paplantsa sa mga damit ng mag-asa-wa at sa pag-aayos sa mga gamit sa magulong garahe, bukod pa sa paglu-luto at paglilinis sa bahay.

Isang umaga, habang nag-aalmusal si Rosemary, kasabay ang asawang Amerikano, ay naulinigan ni Doray mula sa kanyang kuwarto na ang mag-asawa ay tila nagtatalo.

-- Please be more under-standing, -- mahinang sabi ni Rosemary sa asawa.

-- How much longer are we gonna pay for her food and electricity and gasoline? Why can’t she stay in the hotel, Im sure she can find a cheap one.

-- You don’t understand, -- pakiusap ni Rosemary sa

asawa.Nguni’t matigas ang

asawang Puti, -- What is the part of paying costlier bills that you don’t understand? --

Paglisan ng mag-asawa nang umagang iyon, patungo sa kanilang trabaho, ay gu-mayak na si Doray na lisanin ang lugar na kanyang naging pansamantalang tahanan sa humigit-kumulang ay isang buwan, batay sa narining na usapan ng mag-asawa. Kahi’t na hindi niya alam kung saan siya patutungo ay dahil sa narining ay nagpasiya na ip-agpatuloy ang kanyang pagla-lakbay.

Tinawagan ang pinsan sa telepono upang ipaalam na siya’y may nahanap nang lilipatan, kahi’t na wala pa, at nagpaalam dito at nag-pasalamt sa kanyang kagan-dahang- loob. Bago lisanin ni Doray ang tahanan ni Rose-mary ay nag-iwan siya ng isang liham na may kalakip na $100 na nagsasaad nang ganito: Hindi man sapat ang halagang ito upang maba-yaran ang lahat ng kabutihang

ibinigay mo sa akin, ay malu-wag sa loob ko na iwanan ang maliit na halaga na aking makakayanan; salamat sa iyo at kay John; tatawag ako sa iyo upang ipaalam ang aking katayuan.

Nagkapalad naman si Doray, na sa paglipas ng dadalawang araw pa lamang mula sa paglisan niya sa bahay ni Rosemary, ay nabigyan siya kaagad ng trabaho sa isang tahanan na may maliit na batang nangangailangan ng taga-alaga.

Malimit na pangtawid-gutom ni Doray ang isang supot ng

man-sanas na kanyang nilalasap-lasap sa kanyang maliit na silid kapag nag-iisa. At kahi’t na ang mga mansa-nas ay mapupulang-mapupula at busog na busog sa katas, mababango at kanais-nais ang amoy, ang lasa ng man-sanas sa panglasa ni Doray ay isang prutas na mapakla na ang dagta ay naiiwan sa bibig. Pumapatay sa kanyang gana sa pagkain at pumipigil sa kanya na magkaroon ng kasiyahan at sigla sa kanyang bago at kanis-nais naman na karanasan sa Amerika ay ang kanyang pangungulila sa mainit na yakap ng asawa at mga anak.

Sila’y naiwan sa Pilipinas. Si Mario, na dalawampung limang taon na niyang katu-wang sa buhay, ay namamasu-kan sa City Hall ng isang malaking lungsod bilang assis-tant. Ang panganay na anak na si Susan ay nasa kaligitnaan ng pag-aaral sa kolehiyo. At ang bunsong anak na si Wil-liam ay nagsisimula pa lamang sa kolehiyo. Kung aasa la-mang sa kinikita ni Mario ang pamilya ay hindi sapat iyon na magkaroon sila ng magin-hawang buhay at mapag-aral pa ang mga bata sa kolehiyo. Mapalad sila sapagka’t ang ina at ama ni Doray ay malalakas pa at may kaunting kinikita. Sinasagot nila ang ano mang kakulangan sa pangangail-angan, katulad ng pagkain sa mesa. Kinukupkop din nila

ang pamilya ni Doray sa ka-nilang tahanan. Kung kaya’t libre na ang upa sa bahay.

Nang bagong dating si Doray ay lungkot na lungkot siya. Malimit ay napapaiyak kung nag-iisa. Nawala sa kanyang piling ang asawang karamay sa araw-araw sa gawain at pagsubok sa buhay. Nawala ang bulungan nila ng matatamis na salita, ang haplos at yakap ng asawa pagsapit ng oras ng pagtu-log. Gawi niyang ipaghanda ng damit at baon ang dala-wang anak sa tuwing umaga na papasok sila sa eskwela. Pag-uwi nila sa hapon ay sabay-sabay silang nanonood ng tv, pagkatapos pagsaluhan

ang hapunan. Paminsan-minsan ay pinuputulan niya ng kuko ang anak na

lalaki o di

kaya ay si-

nusuklay ang buhok ng anak na babae habang sila’y nag-kukuwentuhan. Maliliit na bagay, nguni’t bahagi silang lahat ng kanyang alaala ng isang buo at masayang pami-lya.

Nagpapalungkot din sa kanya ang alaala ng mga bagay na likas sa iniwang pook, sa Baranggay Sta. Quit-eria, na malapit sa Tandang Sora. Pagbubukang- liway-way ay lumulutang sa himpa-pawid ang tilaok ng manok, na tila tahimik na musika na bahagya nang pumupukaw sa mga natutulog. Ang mga unang maririnig sa umaga bukod sa tilaok ng manok ay ang mga huni ng mga ibon, ang atungal ng aso, ang palayaw ng mga nagtitinda ng pang-almusal – Taho! Mais! Puto! Pandesal! At habang gumigising ang lungsod at gumagayak sa isa na namang bagong araw ay umiingay ang paligid sa sama-samang konsyerto ng mga hayop, ng

masasayang hiyawan ng mga batang naglalaro, ng kuwen-tuhan at halakhakan ng mga lalaki at babae, ng himig ng mga sasakyan sa highway at ugong ng tren sa di kalayuan. Nakalulungkot alalahanin ang magkahalong amoy ng simoy ng hanging galing sa dagat at ang sari-saring amoy ng lung-sod, kanais-nais man o hindi.

Nguni’t alang-alang sa mga minamahal sa buhay at sa kanilang ikabubuti ay pinili ni Doray ang hamon ng pag-iisa at kalungkutan. Pinatibay niya ang kanyang kalooban at pinatatag ang pagkatao upang siya’y magtagumpay sa mga pagsubok sa banyagang lupa na piniling maging pangsa-mantalang tahanan.

Ang akala ng mga tao sa Pilipinas ay pumupulot ng pera sa kalsada ang mga kababayang nasa Amerika. Malungkot at mahirap ang buhay sa Amerika. Kahi’t na masagana ang pagkain at madaling makabibili ng mga karangyaan sa buhay, gaya ng damit, awto o bahay man – wala namang panahon ang mga tao upang makapagpahin-ga, makapagbakasyon, maka-pag-aliw kasama ng pamilya, sapagka’t ang lahat ng oras ay oras para sa trabaho. Kayod nang kayod ang mga kaba-bayan nating nasa Amerika, sa kabila ng akala na sila ay laging nag-aaliw at nagpa-pasarap lamang at namumulot ng pera sa daan. Kayod nang kayod upang makabayad sa mga utang at makapagpadala ng pera at pasalubong sa mga kamag-anak na nasa Pilipinas. Kayod nang kayod upang maka-ipon at nang, pagkata-pos nang mahabang panahon, ay makapag-retiro at makaba-lik sa Pilipinas.

Sabihin nang napapaligiran ng karangyaan at masasarap na pagkain at magagandang tanawin ang ating mga ka-babayan sa Amerika, sila nama’y pagal sa trabaho at lipos ng kalungkutan dahil sa sa pag-iisa.

Nang si Doray ay nagsim-ula nang kumita bilang nanny, sapagka’t siya ay live-in nanny, libre ang kanyang pag-kain at board and lodging at

di niya kinailangan na gumas-tos sa transportasyon, siya’y nag-iiwan lamang ng maliit na bahagi ng kanyang kinikitang dollars para sa kanyang sarili; at halos lahat ng kinikitang dollars, ay ipinapadala sa asawa’t anak.

Naging ugali ni Doray, sa buwan-buwan, bukod sa salapi, ang magpadala ng balikbayan box sa kanyang pamilya sa Pilipinas. Ang ba-likbayan box ay isang kahong yari sa karton, na ang sukat ay 60 x 30 x 30 na pulgada. Pinu-puno ito ng sari-saring bagay - gamit sa bahay, canned goods, chocolates, damit, appliances, libro, at ano pa mang bagay na ibig ibahagi ng nagpapada-la sa kanyang mga minama-hal sa buhay sa Pilipinas. Ito ang pinakamatipid na paraan ng pagpapadala ng regalo sa Pilipinas. Limampung dolyar ang bayad sa bawa’t kahon at ang timbang ay hindi tinutuos ng cargo company. Kahi’t gaano kabigat ang kahon, at kahi’t na ano ang laman ng kahon (maliban sa kung ang laman ay labag sa batas) ito’y inihahatid ng cargo com-pany sa pintuan ng alin mang tahanan sa Pilipinas, at ang bayad sa serbisyo ay limam-pung dolyar lamang, walang labis, walang kulang.

Sa kanyang minamahal na asawa ay palaging may padala, sa pamamagitan ng balikbayan box, si Doray na magagarang polo shirts, mga pantalon, relo at pabango, na bawa’t isa ay may tanyag na tatak. Naging makisig si Mario sa paningin ng mga babaeng kasama sa trabaho, sanhi ng mga kasuotan at alahas na “Made in USA ”. At idagdag pa sa kisig ay ang bisa ng salaping galing kay Doray, nagiging kaakit-akit na chickboy si Mario. Halos gabi-gabi ay may isinasama siyang kaibigang babae na inaaliw sa disco at night club, at doon niya inuubos ang mahabang oras at salapi. Hu-mantong ang ganitong pamu-muhay sa dako na nahumaling si Mario sa isang ka-opisinang babae, at hinimok niya ito na makipag-live- in sa kanya,




Read previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjo-urnalusa.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 na-tional 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, Colo-rado, Nebraska, Illinois, and New York. That was quite a feat, consider-ing 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. immigration 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 frequently 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 Uni-versidad Central de Madrid.

The following year, in June 1883, Rizal went to Paris, France for two months to spend his summer vacation there. After that, he resumed

Rizal was a U.S. visitor

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 He-brew languages.

For more than a year, from February 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, Aus-tria. This probably led to the myth that he fathered Adolf Hitler. But of course, that is very far from the truth. Hit-ler 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 con-ceived 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 Switzerland, Italy and France. On August 5, 1887, after five and a half years abroad, Rizal returned to the Philippines.

But Rizal was a balik-bayan 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 Philip-pines. His first stop was Hong Kong and then Japan en route to the United States. From the U.S., Rizal proceeded to Eu-rope 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 Mind-anao. He was detained in Dap-itan 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 Fili-pino 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 California and the Philippines. He practices immigration law in San Diego and has continuously been a trial and appellate attorney in the Philippines 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 of-fice in the Philippines at 1240 Apacible Street, Paco, Ma-nila, Philippines 1007, with telephone numbers (632)522-1199 and (632)526-0326. Please call (858)348-7475 or email him at [email protected] for your free consultation. He speaks Tagalog fluently.

PNS -- UNAUTHOR-IZED use of sirens or blinkers -- Presidential Decree No. 96 (Declaring Unlawful the Use or Attachment of Sirens, Bells, Horns, Whistles or Similar Gadgets That Emit Exceptionally Loud or Star-tling sounds, Including Dome Lights and Other Signaling or Flashing Devices on Mo-tor Vehicles and Providing Certain Exceptions There-for) dated January 13, 1973 expressly declares that: “1. That it shall be unlawful for the owner or possessor of any motor vehicle to use or at-tach to his vehicle any siren, bell, horn, whistle, or other similar gadgets that produce exceptionally loud or startling sound, including domelights, blinkers and other similar sig-nalling or flashing devices.

“2. The gadgets or devices mentioned above may be at-tached to and use only on mo-tor vehicles designated for of-ficial use by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, National Bureau of Investigation, Land Transportation Office, police departments, fire departments, and hospital ambulances,” (emphasis supplied).

P.D. No. 96 directs that any devise or gadget violative of said law “shall be subject to immediate confiscation.” In case of a second or subse-quent offenses, the offender “shall be prosecuted for viola-tion of this decree” and “upon conviction x x x shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment for six months and/ or fine of 600 pesos” and in addition, the certificate of registra-tion of the motor vehicle on

Laws on use of sirenswhich the device or gadget is installed shall be cancelled or revoked.

Clearly, the unauthor-ized use of sirens or blinkers entail a criminal sanction. It follows therefore that any public officer who violates P.D. No. 96 may be held ac-countable for either grave or simple misconduct, depending on the circumstances. This administrative accountability is made more conspicuous by a presidential directive order-ing “all government offices and agencies to strictly adhere to the provi-sions of Presiden-tial Decree No. 96 dated January 13, 1973.” See Administra-tive Order No. 122 (Directing All Government Offices To Strictly Comply with Presidential Decree No. 96 Declar- ing Unlawful the Indiscriminate Use of Sirens, Blinkers or Similar Devices) dated June 30, 2005.

R.A. No. 4136, otherwise known as the Land Trans-portation and Traffic Code, also provides that “(n)o horn or signaling device emitting exceptionally loud startling or disagreeable sound shall be installed on any motor ve-hicle.”

Metro Manila Develop-ment Authority (MMDA) Regulation No. 03-005, dated May 22, 2003, entitled ‘Banning the Installation of Loud/ power Horns, Horns

of Varying Sounds, Sirens (Wangwang) and Other Similar Devices That Pro-duce Exceptionally Loud or Startling Sound on All Types of Vehicles Traversing Along the Thoroughfares of Metro Manila’, practically reiter-ates P.D. No. 96 except that instead of mere confiscation the MMDA imposes “outright destruction of the prohibited device at the place of appre-hension.” Inspite of the seem-ing vigorous words in our rules, the prohibition is hardly implemented. Like so many of

our regulatory issuances, our government officials

sometimes con-fuse words with accom-plishment.

It is clear therefore

that members of the Cabi-net, members of Congress,

councilors and city mayors, by themselves, are not authorized to use sirens no matter how late they may feel they are for their next meet-ing. The odd thing about this regulation is that while the use of sirens (and their variations) are repeatedly prohibited by various issuances, their sale and importation continues to be made openly and un-regulated as an add-on car accessory. Since it is obvious that this prohibition is not being enforced vigorously, or not being enforced at all, the government would do well to instead restrict and regulate the importation and sale of such sirens.

PNS -- FORMER Depart-ment of Agriculture (DA) Sec-retary Luis “Cito” Lorenzo is still considered as one of the principal respondents in the preliminary investigation on the controversial P728-million fertilizer fund scam which the Office of the Ombudsman will soon start.

This was disclosed yester-day in a press conference by Assistant Ombudsman and spokesperson Jose de Jesus as he revealed that the Ombuds-man is set to summon Loren-zo and other personalities allegedly involved in the scam so they could submit their re-spective counter-affidavits on the charges filed against them.

De Jesus said the Ombuds-man’s Field Investigation Office (FIO) has already ter-minated its fact-finding inves-tigation on the scam and has recommended filing criminal cases against Lorenzo and other personalities including former DA Undersecretary Jocelyn “Jocjoc” Bolante.

“Ang mga kaso ay para sa preliminary investigation

Lorenzo main fertilizer scam respondentpa lamang dito sa Ombuds-man. Ang natapos na proseso ay ’yung tinatawag na fact-finding investigation. Kaya nagkaroon sila ng supplemen-tal complaint para isama du’n sa earlier complaint na natigil dahil nga kailangan i-validate ’yung Gordon report (report of the Senate’s Blue Ribbon Committee on the fertilizer fund scam). At pagkatapos noon ay dadalhin du’n sa tinatawag naming Preliminary Investigation Administrative Adjudication and Monitoring Office (PAMO),” De Jesus explained.

The Ombudsman spokes-person disclosed that the FIO started its official fact-finding mission on the case in 2005 but clarified that there was no delay in filing the charges against those involved since the team has to consider the report of the Senate Blue Rib-bon Committee which was forwarded only to them in March 2009.

De Jesus also disclosed that the FIO report and the

Gordon report did not men-tion the possible link or involvement of former Presi-dent Gloria Macapagal-Ar-royo to the scam.

In the case of Lorenzo be-ing a possible state witness, De Jesus said the Ombuds-man would still evaluate his involvement in the case and review his answers on the al-legations hurled against him.

De Jesus added that Loren-zo was charged for allegedly giving Bolante a free hand in the disposition of the funds.

Bolante, on the other hand, was charged for having prepared a list of proponents. However, the farming zones where the funds should be al-located were not followed.

In its 45-page report, the FIO named Lorenzo and Bolante as respondents in the case of violation of Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code (Malversation of Pub-lic Funds or Property) and Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 (Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices).


Chapter 15

Ditas’ boss motioned for her to come and sit at a table in the McDonald’s where she worked. Ditas put aside the tray she was holding and meekly walked towards him. She was shaky.

“How are you doing?” the owner asked her as they sat across each other.

“I’m fine, sir,” she an-swered.

“You know why I called you up?”

“No, sir. Did I do anything wrong?”

“How long have you been working here?” he asked instead of answering her ques-tion.

“About a year now,” she replied.

“During that time, I’ve watched you work,” he said. “I’ve watched you deal with our customers, relate with your co-workers and do your job.”

He paused.Ditas waited for him to say

the word “but” and enumerate

Promised LandHappiest Place On Earth

Disney jungle cruise.

Jungle.

Disney jungle cruise boat.

Tiki Room

Tiki Room

the reasons why she would be fired.

“And I am impressed,” he said instead. “I have never met a better worker than you.”

He continued.“You were pleasant with

the customers, always served them with a smile. You worked hard. I have seen you do other duties not assigned to you, like cleaning up when-ever there were no customers. You hardly took a break and you inspired your co-workers to work harder because they would stand out if they took it easy. Yet, you were friends with them, and I was told you’ve given financial help to some of them. You are a won-derful human being, Ditas,” the owner told her.

Everything that the owner said did not sink into Ditas’ mind right away. She was still waiting for him to tell her the bad news, but he did not. Instead, he said: “This is why in appreciation for your good work, I am going to promote you to manager.”

Ditas could not speak for a moment. When she real-ized what the owner just said, doubts still clouded her mind.

“But sir,” she said. “I am just a high school graduate.”

“It does not matter, a col-lege degree is not a require-ment for the position. Besides, you are more than qualified because you’ve already been performing the job for the past months when the manager was on extended maternity leave.”

“How about Merle?” she was referring to the current manager of the store.

“She’ll keep her job. At

least she excelled in some-thing, and that is in hiring you. I will assign you to man-age our branch in Chula Vista. I fired its manager a month ago since that store was not performing according to its potential.”

When she realized what had just happened, Ditas broke into tears.

“Why are you crying?” the owner asked surprised.

“Nothing sir, I am just happy,” she replied.

At the back of her mind, Ditas remembered all the hard work and sacrifices she made to reach that point in her life: her efforts to help her family, her marriage to somebody she did not love, her sacrifices to be a good wife and daughter-in-law despite the maltreat-ment she received from her husband and his parents. What the owner did not know was that Ditas poured her frustra-tion into her job by doing more than what was expected of her and to temporarily forget her problems in life. She was also glad she was

assigned to the Chula Vista outlet, which was just walk-ing distance from their apart-ment. Now she would not have to take a one hour early morning bus ride just to reach her work.

The owner stood up and extended his hand.

“Congratulations,” he said. “You’ll start in your new job tomorrow.”

He turned around and walked away. And then, he turned back and said: “By the way, your pay will be doubled.”

Ditas could not control her happiness. She rushed towards him and hugged her while sobbing: “Thank you, thank you, sir.”

The owner smiled and pat-ted her back.

“Just keep up the good work, and don’t ever change,” he said.

Her co-workers sensed that something good had just hap-pened. They knew that Ditas was expecting the worst, and

by the look of things, they be-lieved that Ditas’ talk with the owner ended up much better than what she expected.

All Ditas was thinking at that moment was the pay raise she could now send to her ail-ing mother.

“MAMAYANG GABI, PA-HINGA KAYA MUNA TAYO (Let’s rest tonight),” Isabel told Albert when she woke up.

“Bakit, nagsasawa ka na ba (Why, are you getting tired of it)?”

“Hindi, kaya lang masakit na (No, but it already hurts),” she shyly answered.

“Masasanay din iyan, dahil bago pa (It will eventu-ally get used to it, since it is new),” her husband teased her. “Ang talagang pahinga niyan, pagdating ng regla mo (Its real rest would be when your period comes).

She hit Albert with a pil-low smiling.

“O mamayang gabi, game ka ba (Are you game to-night)?” he teased her again.

She got out of bed blush-ing.

“Ikaw ang bahala (It’s up to you),” softly answered.

She was embarrassed to admit it, but like her husband, she was looking forward to their amourous encounter that evening.

“LET’S TAKE OUT OUR LUGGAGE. We are checking out now,” Albert told Isabel.

They ate their breakfast downstairs, took their show-ers and were ready to go.

“Why,” Isabel asked.“We’re going to proceed

home to San Diego after we leave Disneyland tonight.”

“How long is the drive?”“Only two hours.”“Ang lapit lang pala

(That’s close).”“PUWEDE NA AKONG

MAMATAY DITO (I can die

here),” exclaimed Isabel upon entering Disneyland.

The sign reading, “The Happiest Place On Earth” loomed overhead. The place was filled with people, excited to give the different rides a try.

“Don’t die yet,” Albert

joked. “You still have to see Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon.”

Isabel was very happy although she also felt sad. She wished her father, who had sacrificed so much for her, was with her. Again, she wished he would live longer to have the same opportunity to visit the place.

“Let’s go here,” Albert said as he led her to the enclosed yard next to a hut.

“What’s this?” Isabel asked.

“It’s the Enchanted Tiki House. You’ll be surprised by what you’re going to see.”

As soon as they were seated inside the hut, the lights turned dark. Lightning flashed, thunder roared and rain poured from outside the closed windows when a

spotlight focused on a parrot perched on a stick hanging near the center of the room. To Isabel’s surprise, the bird moved and talked, -- in a Mexican accent at that!

Later other colorful birds all around the room came to light, talked and sang to the delight of the audience.

“How did they do that?” Ditas asked Albert when the performance ended. She was holding on to his forearm, oc-

cassionally kissing it. She was grateful to Albert for taking her to the park and enjoying a unique experience.

“Through robotics,” he answered. “They have mecha-nisms inside, just like those in robots. You’re see that tech-nology applied in many shows

here.”They then proceeded to

the Jungle Cruise, a boat ride along a jungle river bank. Tigers and lions growled at them, giraffes ate leaves off tall trees, a wild boar with long tusks chased a safari guide up a palm tree, and a menacing crocodile was shot by the tour guide. The boat even went behind a waterfall to the delight of the guests. Isabel could not believe what

she saw.“Have you seen the mov-

ies of ‘Indiana Jones’?” Albert later asked his wife.

“No,” she answered.“What movies have you

seen?” Albert asked. He re-membered her admitting not


Philippine Stories

Read Sim Silverio’s previous articles by visiting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

by Simeon G. Silverio Jr.


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Light &Shadows

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

by Zena Sultana Babao

Sometimes good things can come out of negative events, and often times, trouble can turn into a blessing. As Oscar Wilde said, “What seems to us as bitter trials are often bless-ings in disguise.”

A cartoon published by the Imperial Valley Press in El Centro, California, (Saturday, July 10, 2010 ) has sparked a firestorm of protests, caught the attention of national blog-gers, local media and radio talk show hosts – and gener-ated a deluge of publicity.

Shown below is the con-troversial cartoon. It depicts a poster of an unidentified Con-gressional candidate who has a patch over one eye. Two youths with skateboards seem perplexed by the poster.

“What does that remind you of?” one says. The other answers: “A James Bond super-villain? A bald pirate? Uncle Fester with an eye patch?”

The unidentified political candidate is, of course, Nick Popaditch, the Republican nominee for the 51st Congres-sional District. Nick is the only man with an eye patch who is running for Congress in California.

Is this controversial car-toon a blessing in disguise for Nick? Was Nick personally hurt, or his candidacy harmed, by the publication of this

Controversial Cartoon: A Blessing in Disguise?

The editorial cartoon by the Imperial Valley Press newspa-per in El Centro, California.

American war hero Nick Popaditch, candidate for Cali-fornia’s 51st Congressional District.

This cigar-smoking photo of USMC Staff Sergeant Nick Popaditch in downtown Bagh-dad, in front of a statue of Saddam Hussein, just before his unit helped tear it down, gained him worldwide atten-tion. (AP Photo/Laurent Re-bours, File)

controversial cartoon? The answer is yes and no, depend-ing on how you look at it. Nick himself said he was not bothered by the cartoon.

“I’ve got much thicker skin than that,” he said, “It’s not going to hurt me in any way.”

After the deluge of public-ity, the end result was this: Nick gained more praises and accolades, plus cash contribu-tions, and pledges for more. He has gained much more local and national attention, visibility, and outpouring of support.

Sometimes good things can come out of negative events, and often times, trou-

ble can turn into a blessing. As Oscar Wilde said, “What seems to us as bitter trials are often blessings in disguise!”

Nick is no stranger to bitter trials and blessings! A war hero, 15-year Marine, and Sil-ver Star/Purple Heart recipi-ent, he became famous around the world after an Associated Press (AP) photographer snapped a smiling photo of him, smoking a cigar, before his unit pulled down the statue of Saddam Hussein in Bagh-dad’s Firdos Square in 2003. He was critically wounded a year later in Fallujah after being hit on the head by frag-ments of a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG), causing him to lose one eye. Now medi-cally retired, he decided to serve his country again.

How and why did this car-toon controversy start? Nick Popaditch took part in two town hall meetings last Thurs-day, July 8, first in Brawley, and later in El Centro. Impe-rial Valley residents had re-quested the town hall debates between Nick and Democrat Bob Filner, the incumbent in the 51st District. Mr. Filner reportedly declined after his staff had initially agreed.

Two days later (Saturday) the Imperial Valley Press came out with the political editorial cartoon. Nick’s sup-porters and newspaper read-ers saw it as an upshot of the town hall meetings and aimed at criticizing Nick’s war injury. Protests in the form of letters, emails and phone calls poured in, not only to the IV Press but to other print media as well. The cartoon, the readers said, mocks the wounds that Nick suffered in his service to his country. They said that it is not just an insult to Nick, but an affront to every man and woman that has ever served.

One letter in particular, was by Cheryl Perez, Presi-

dent of San Diego’s Ladies Auxiliary, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Unit 49, and was published in an article by Tony Perry in the Los Angeles Times’ L.A.Now. “I realize Nick is running for a political office and political cartoons are the norm,” Cheryl Perez said in her letter. “Attack him on his political views, not on injuries sustained while fight-ing for other people’s freedom and liberties … This is not just an insult to Nick, but an

affront to every Purple Heart recipient.”

Nationally-known Filipino-American conservative blog-ger and columnist Michelle Malkin, in an article entitled “Mocking War Hero Nick Popaditch: A Teachable Mo-ment” wrote: “On Sunday night, several readers e-mailed me to let me know about a cartoon in the Imperial Valley (CA) Press that upset them immensely.”

“Everyone should know this man’s incredible story of courage and sacrifice, “Mal-kin wrote. “Forget Lindsay Lohan’s disgusting fingernails. Tell your kids about how Po-paditch lost his eye, survived, and returned to public service stronger than ever.”

Mike Huckabee, founder of Huck PAC (Huckabee’s politi-cal action committee) who en-dorses Nick Popaditch’ candi-dacy, wrote these comments in his blog entitled “This Crosses the Line“: For the Impe-rial Valley Press to publish a cartoon that makes light of the war injuries suffered by Nick is flat out offensive and wrong – not to mention what a disre-gard and disdain it displays for our veterans. Let me be clear, our veterans past and present

deserve our deepest gratitude. They do not deserve to be the subject of mocking, ridicule and disgusting attacks like this one.

Blackfive, the USMC (United States Marine Corps) blog, said: “When you jump into the political ring, you know that politics can get dirty. You expect attacks on your politics, your conduct of your life, etc. But you don’t expect the media to attack your war wounds with an editorial cartoon … you don’t really expect a blatant disrespect for your service … like this cartoon that appeared in the Imperial Valley Press.”

Diane Bell in her col-umn in the San Diego Union-Tribune (Tuesday, July 13, 2010 issue) said: “A political cartoon in the Imperial Valley Press has unleashed an angry tirade of calls and e-mails to Editor Brad Jennings. By midday yesterday, Jennings has estimated 40 calls and emails, many from out of the area – calls about the per-ceived attack on Popaditch …”

Former La Mesa Council-man Barry Jantz criticized the cartoon via the online politi-cal newsletter FlashReport. Jantz acknowledged that Popaditch, a GOP candidate battling incumbent Bob Filner in the heavily Democratic 51st District, which includes Imperial County and south San Diego County, has an up-hill battle in November. But Jantz questions the fairness of a newspaper in the district mocking the veteran’s war injuries.

To his credit, Cong. Filner added his criticism to the readers who feel that the newspaper cartoon was inap-propriate. In a follow-up ar-ticle that came out in the Los Angeles Times’ L.A. Now also



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As I began to write this article, I heard the news about the death of George Stein-brenner, owner of the New York Yankees. My sincer-est condolences go with my prayers to his family and the Yankee community.

Born and raised in Cleve-land, Ohio, King George is one native who grew up always trying to prove to his father that he could be as smart in things he did. This proof he earned when he or-ganized a team and negotiated the purchase of the New York Yankees for a price of US$10 million. Now valued at about US$3.4 billion, he trans-formed the team into becom-ing the most successful and most valued sports franchise in the North American conti-nent if not in the world. This was after his failure to buy the Cleveland Indians franchise losing out to the then owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Although he made most of his money in New York and outside of Cleveland, King George, as many called him, never forgot his roots—he credited Cleveland as the place that shaped who he is. He pursued his dreams, “hitched his wagon to the stars,” always trying to create the perfect winning American baseball team. While many

King James and King George: Being Royal,

Loyal, and Realhated the Yankees, Americans still desired watching them because of the star-studded and great-playing ballplay-ers that composed King George’s team. He demanded excellence and perfection. He always wanted to win and win big. His team attracted loyal and die-hard fans not only in New York but in many places including Cleveland. In baseball he was Royal; to the Yankee fans, he was loyal; his success was real.

No wonder then that LeBron, who was named and promoted as King James in Cleveland and beyond, was a Yankee fan. Like King George, he pursued perfec-tion, and excellence desiring to win all the time. Demon-strating extraordinary bas-ketball skills as a teenager, he was drafted directly from high school to face the chal-lenges of professional playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was very happy that the Cleveland Cavaliers took it upon them-selves to team up with him in preparing, pursuing, and eventually winning an NBA Championship not just once but several more.

King James stayed with the team for seven long years—enough to build a core of players who would sup-

port the King’s quest of his boyhood dream. Under his leadership, the Cavaliers won the most games among NBA teams in the entire league dur-ing the last two years. He was also voted the Most Valuable Player (MVP) during the past two years. He obviously did his best but was not enough to win his desired NBA Championship—not with the supporting cast that he had.

The entire NBA knew that LeBron, Wade, Bosh, Stoudamaire, and a few others were going to be unrestricted free agents this year. This means that while the team owners always had the right to buy, sell, or trade players, this time the free-agent players have the unrestricted right to choose which team to go to. It is a legal right that is en-forceable and which every owner must respect and obey without reservation.

In recognition of those rights, the players and own-ers set up a process through which presentation offers were made. The offers are then evaluated and the cor-responding free agent decides. The most sought after among the free agents was LeBron James. The same procedures were followed. Team owners and executives went through the process, recognized the jurisdiction of the decision-making player, and hoped for a favorable decision. The Los Angeles Clippers, the New York Knicks, the New Jersey Nets, the Chicago Bulls, the Miami Heat, and the Cleveland Cavaliers made offer presentations to LeBron James. They all knew when the decision was going to be made and how it was going to be announced.

LeBron decided to go to Miami, joining Wade and Bosh to form a Champion-ship caliber team under the tutelage of team president Pat

Riley and Filipino-American coach Erik Spoelstra. His decision was fully supported by his mother, his relatives, his friends, and his most loyal fans in Akron, Cleveland, and other places. Understandably, the non–Miami Heat own-ers and fans, especially those

who were pursuing him, were disappointed. In sports, there are always winners and los-ers. Momentarily, the Miami Heat and their fans are the big winners.

The reaction of Dan Gilbert, the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, was disappointingly immature, inappropriate, and unsports-manlike. As one columnist wrote, “Gilbert sounded like a scorned lover, a guy who gave his heart to a relationship and found out on national TV that the alleged love of his life didn’t care about him at all.”

As a lawyer, he knew that he could lose, given the pro-cess and the rules that every-body played by. He had all the advantages and the benefits of time, money, and access to show that the best place for LeBron was in Cleveland. As an owner/chief executive, he failed in planning, organizing, leading, and controlling effi-ciently and effectively all the factors that could have led to

LeBron deciding to stay. Pat Riley and the Miami organiza-tion were obviously better and more effective.

Gilbert described LeBron’s decision and action to pursue his dreams somewhere else as “cowardly betrayal, an act of disloyalty, heartless and

callous action.” I disagree, and NBA Commissioner Stern agreed with me. That’s why Gilbert was fined.

I used to hear people say, “Destiny is not a matter of chance but a matter of choice; it is not to be awaited, it is to be achieved.” As a young boy, LeBron was encouraged by elders to choose his destiny and strive to achieve it. At the age of 25, he has chosen his destiny and expects to achieve it within a shorter period of time in Miami. Like George Steinbrenner, he is seeking ex-cellence and perfection so that he could go back to his home-town of Akron with pride and honor.

Gilbert is from Michigan. He maintains his residence in Michigan. Yet he makes his money and roots for the Cava-liers in Cleveland, Ohio. Does that make him disloyal to the Detroit Pistons of Michigan?

George Steinbrenner pur-sued his dreams in New York despite his being a native of

Cleveland. I have friends, relatives, and townmates who left their hometowns to look for greener pastures. There are millions of Filipinos who sought employment in several countries for the betterment of themselves and their respec-tive families. Yet, they are

responsible for the remit-tance of billions of dollars contributing substantially to 7% growth of the Philippine economy.

It is not cowardly but gutsy to leave the comforts of your home and the secu-rity of your neighborhood to explore the world and face the challenges of your own future.

It is not betrayal and disloyalty to exercise your right of free agency in the pursuit of your own happi-ness.

LeBron helped Gilbert increase the value of his NBA franchise. The former helped build the Quicken

Arena owned by Gilbert using public funds. Gilbert’s real estate properties in Cleve-land were exempted from taxes that should have gone to school children.

Instead of casting a spell on LeBron, Gilbert should thank him instead. Or perhaps he should use the equivalent amount of exempted taxes to buy tickets for the school children or the unemployed in Cleveland.

George Steinbrenner remained loyal to his roots in Cleveland despite making it in New York and establish-ing residence in Florida. His being dubbed King George of Baseball is real.

LeBron James remains loyal to his roots in Akron, Ohio, despite his earnest pursuit for basketball perfec-tion in Miami. The title King James of Basketball could be as real sooner than we think.

The Royal, loyal, and real duo should make Ohio proud!


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and were extremely hospitable to take care of our presence. Norma Dioso, my first cousin, who was teaching at the Pandan Bay Institute was also excited to see us.

Tio Dadong, who was a member of the town council, and Mayor Plaridael Z. San-chez invited me to be a guest speaker in one of the town fiesta’s gathering at the Town Park Pavilion. I knew my fa-ther was very proud of me and he recorded my short remarks. I spoke about my beloved high school Alma Mater, Pandan Bay Institute (PBI) that was across the street from the Park Pavilion. I expressed my sin-cere gratification to the Mill Hill Mission under the Mill Hill fathers, and stated my ardent opinion that my Alma Mater can be compared to my dear parents who made me follow the guiding star to be what I am now. I conveyed my gratitude to Rev. Father Igna-cio Dionela, the parish priest who founded PBI in 1947, and to the President of the Board of Directors Lolo Mari-ano (Anoy) Dioso. Among the original teachers were Jose Rectra as assistant principal, my aunt Teodora D. Alojipan, my Godmother Maria Varon, and others that I that could not remember. It was nostalgic…about the time I spent in high school where I graduated with high honors. I called it one of the best days of my life. I continued to speak and stated the following:

“Speaking to you this afternoon gives me the oppor-tunity to represent the Pan-dananons abroad, to be able to articulate our jubilations

From Antique to America:Memoirs of a Filipino American Doctor

Going home to Pandan, Antique(Continued from page 1) and joy over the achievements

we have accomplished; to articulate our dreams and our shared values for the com-mon good of our hometown Pandan. It will also give me the opportunity to inspire our group to reaffirm our vision, loyalty and our sense of duty, our commitment and dedica-tion towards the improvement of the socioeconomic condi-tions of the people of our hometown Pandan. This joint celebration of our town fiesta and the religious fiesta, to me, is a reflection of your extraor-dinary and genuine harmony under the leadership of your present Mayor Plaridel Z. Sanchez.

“In terms of histori-cal perspective, I remember our ‘fiesta’ many years ago when I was growing in this town, “nagatuhay-tuhay ang fetcha,”(the dates were differ-ent). I considered Pandan in those times as a community of factions, both political and religious orientations. We were divided into enclaves of kins, the air of enmity be-tween the two religious groups were blatantly apparent. Do I see it now? The answer is no. Those devisive atmospheres are all gone. The people of Pandan have eventually come to the point of realization that in order to move forward there must be unity and understand-ing. I have been informed that the Urihing tubo (young generation) led by Bobby Alojipan has something to contribute to this air of unity. The unification of the town and religious fiesta in 1974 is a legacy of the late Mayor Plaridel Sanchez---a milestone to remember. Now, the cel-ebration of the town’s Saint…

San Vicente Ferrer…by both the Catholic and the Philip-pines Independent Church together with the celebration of the town fiesta signify our harmonious and unified town, celebrating in the spirit of what our elders termed the SANDUGO (traditional rites). It is significant in this celebra-tion that we Pandananons bring to life the cultural riches of our heritage at the heart of which is our tradition of hos-pitality and graciousness of our kasimanwa (town mates). But beyond that, the ‘fiesta’ is a showcase of the faithful demonstration of Philippine life, giving us a sense of liv-ing history---the people who love freedom and seek peace---a glorious history of the liv-ing past. I will state here that I am proud to be a Pandananun and an Antiqueno.”

After the town fiesta, Cely and I had to fly by Philippine Airlines from Iloilo City to Manila. Ike Zaldivar, who was in town at that time, provided us his jeep to take the road to San Jose. It was a joy ride in the unpaved road, still remi-niscent of what I had seen and experienced in my youth. In San Jose, we were invited to have lunch with the members of the Rotary Club of Antique through the courtesy of Atty. Esdras Tayco. He was a rela-tive and a prominent practic-ing lawyer in the province. I spoke to the Rotary Club members and after that we proceeded to Iloilo city in a car provided by my friend Evelio Javier, the governor of Antique.

My close friend, a “barka-da” (group of friends), the late Oscar Salazar who became the Mayor of San Jose, was a

soft-spoken gentleman whom I respectedand got together with when I was studying in San Agustin University in Iloilo City. The former gov-ernor Evelio Javier became a friend when he visited Los Angeles to meet his co-pro-vincianos (province mate). Jovito C. Plameras, Jr. the former governor, who was a co-contestant in an oratorical contest during my high school days. And of course not to for-get seeing the Zaldivar family, whom I have already men-tioned in the earlier chapter of this memoir, the political leaders of the province.

My cousins from the town of Culasi, Dr. Justito Candari and his two sisters Cynthia and Daisey, are all here in America. In Bugasong I have the Dioso family. In San Jose are Dr. Azurin Sr., the husband of our agnate grand-mother Lola Consuelo Gella Azurin, who was very close to my mother. Lola Consuelo is a first-degree cousin of my grandmother Lola Gaudencia Oirola Candari. Lolo Jacinto Reyes and Lola Elisa Gella Reyes also live in San Jose. It was during the Japanese war when we were together in an evacuation place in the barrio

of Guia, Pandan Antique. This was the place where I had a close friendship with my cousin Raymundo G. Azu-rin Jr., who is about my age and now a retired physician residing in Lake Las Vegas, Nevada. Vicente Magpusao, a resident of Guia, joined us with Raymundo (Monding) regularly in swimming at the Bugang River, now known as the cleanest river in the Philippines.

The dispersion of relatives residing in different towns of Antique reminds me of a song by Frank Sinatra- “My Kind of Town Chicago Is”. I have a better one. “My Kind of Town Antique is.”Song and musical utterance are naturalexpressions of every emotion. Happiness comes through emotions qualified by the heart. I am absolutely happy to be from Antique.

Speaking of evacua-tion to remote places during the Japanese occupation, from Guia we proceeded to Duyong mountain of Bato-bato where rocks and huge boulders larger than a two-story building beautifies the hills, and creeks with a rivulet of crystal clear water flows. My godmother and her family

with five girls (I refer to them as my sisters; one of them is Flourdeliz Tayco Mutuc now residing in Los Angeles) hid themselves in a tiny sitio (barrio) Lumangud, engulfed in large ancient large trees called ‘lunok’ believed to be where the encantos (fairies) dwelled.

Our evacuation houses were made of bamboos, nipa and coconut leaves, a meager nipa hut---our little ménage. It was in Batobato where my parents mastered the home-made soap for cleansing, bath bar from coconut dry leaves and coconut oil. Our water for drinking was taken from a small well dug beside the creek. Pray to God, we survived and did not get sick. The hills and mountains we had traveled from one remote place to another to escape the Japanese soldiers well-known for their savage atrocities, plundering of villages, the killings of civilians, bayoneted and beheaded were in my memoir I could not forget.

As I stated earlier, the menace of war, even as a little boy, most likely influenced my mettle.

The following paragraphs (Continued on page 19)


CUPERTINO, Calif., July 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Even though more workplaces are regulat-ing social networking sites, employees are finding ways around security roadblocks, making social networking a way of office-life around the world.Trend Micro’s 2010 corpo-rate end user survey, which included 1600 end users(1) in the U.S., U.K., Germany and Japan, found that glob-ally, social networking at the workplace steadily rose from 19 percent in 2008 to 24 per-cent in 2010(2). The highest surge of social networking on the corporate network during the last two years was found among end-users within the U.K., who tallied a 6 percent increase, and Germany, with a more than 10 percent leap.With the exception of Japan,

Trend Micro Reports Global Rise in Workplace Social NetworkingGlobal survey finds that nearly a quarter of employees surveyed now visit social networking sites while on the

corporate network.

there were no significant dif-ferences between end users from small businesses and those from large corporations, but the survey found that laptop users are much more likely than desktop users to visit social networking sites. Globally, social networking usage via laptops went up by 8 percent from 2008 to 2010. In the U.S., it increased by 10 percent and in Germany, up by 14 percent.In 2010, 29 percent of laptop users versus 18 percent of desktop users surveyed said they frequented these sites at work. In Japan for 2010, small-company employees were much more likely than those from large companies to visit social networking sites – 21 percent from small com-panies compared to 7 percent from large companies.

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act Offers Employers Powerful Weapon in Cases Involving Employee Theft of Trade SecretsWASHINGTON, July 13 /

PRNewswire/ -- In the wake of the Great Recession, busi-nesses face one of the most competitive environments in decades. The last thing they need is yet another challenge, but like it or not, that’s just what they’re getting – and it’s coming from inside their own companies in the form of em-ployee theft of files containing sensitive information. While such cases can be notori-ously difficult to prosecute, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) provides employ-ers with a powerful weapon they can use to protect their interests, attorney Leslie Paul Machado, a partner in Le-ClairRyan, based in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office, writes in an article entitled “Protect-ing Against Employee Theft,” posted this week on HREOn-line.com.

The number of trade secret cases being filed in U.S. courts has grown exponentially in recent years, and in more than 85% of cases, the alleged per-petrator is a company insider. Cases of employee data theft more than doubled between 2006 and 2008 alone, and the number of such incidents is al-most certain to increase further, Machado writes in the HRE-

Online.com article, citing recent research published in the Gon-zaga Law Review and a KPMG study. He points to Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.’s suit against Hilton Hotels Corp. and two former Starwood executives as a dramatic exam-ple of the trend and an illustra-tion of how high the stakes can run. The lawsuit charges that the departing executives took hundreds of thousands of files containing confidential and proprietary Starwood informa-tion and trade secrets, and that Hilton used the information to launch a new format to compete with Starwood’s W hotel brand.

Machado acknowledges in the article that the best way to neutralize potential dam-age from trade secret theft by employees is to prevent it in the first place. “However,” he notes, “given the interconnected nature of the modern business environment and the need for employees at all levels of an or-ganization to have timely access to data, an ironclad prevention policy is a virtual pipedream.” As such, employers should be aware of all means at their disposal to redress such trans-gressions when they occur and the former employee uses the information to start a competing business or help their new em-ployer compete against their old one. These may include claims for breach of an employment agreement, tortious interference with ongoing and/or prospec-tive opportunities, misappro-priation of trade secrets, civil conspiracy, conversion or, in some cases, breach of fiduciary duty.

The CFAA is an additional powerful weapon former em-ployers can use to bring suit against disloyal employees who access a computer “without authorization” and obtain some-thing of value, Machado writes. One aspect of the CFAA that contributes to its potency is the inclusion of criminal penalties. This “significantly increases a defendant’s exposure and thus may encourage an expeditious settlement on terms most favor-able to the former employer” in

cases where the employer has a viable claim, he suggests.

Employers should be aware that the CFAA is an area of law that is still evolving, he cau-tions. While a number of courts have endorsed employer claims under this law, other courts have rejected them in virtu-ally identical cases. Generally, it comes down to a matter of interpretation, and the discrep-ancy between those interpreta-tions ultimately will have to be resolved by the Supreme Court or Congress. In the meantime, there are several steps employ-ers can take to put themselves in a stronger position and help tilt the odds in their favor, Machado advises.

First, employers should amend their employment manuals to assert that any authorization granted to an employee to access the com-pany’s networks, files or data automatically ceases when the employee leaves the company, he writes. Second, they should make clear in their employ-ment handbooks, manuals and employment agreements that any authorization to access company data is granted only in furtherance of the employ-er’s business purposes. Third, employers must remain vigilant to retrieve laptop computers from employees immediately after an employee gives notice. They should also immediately change passwords and close remote access upon learning of an employee’s intention to leave the company.

About LeClairRyanFounded in 1988, LeClair-

Ryan provides business counsel and client representation in corporate law and high-stakes litigation. With offices in Cali-fornia, Connecticut, Massachu-setts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D.C., the firm has approximately 300 attorneys representing a wide variety of clients throughout the nation. For more informa-tion about LeClairRyan, visit www.leclairryan.com.

SOURCE LeClairRyan

For all countries surveyed in 2010, laptop users who can connect to the Internet outside of company network are more likely to share confidential information via instant mes-senger, Web mail and social media applications than those who are always connected to a company’s network. This is significantly so in Germany and Japan.As more and more people communicate through social networks, the more viable social networks become mal-ware distribution platforms. KOOBFACE alone, the “larg-est Web 2.0 botnet,” controls and commands around 51,000 compromised machines glob-ally. This demonstrates the scale of the threat, and em-phasizes the need to educate users and implement strong policies. Trying to just pre-

vent users accessing social networks from work could potentially increase the risk to an organization as users look for ways around computer se-curity possibly increasing the chance of exposure to security threats.“Social networking is an extremely important tool

both for personal and profes-sional-relationship building. And while most companies’ concerns around social net-working in the office center around the loss of employee productivity, what they may not realize is that many social networking sites are built on interactive technologies that give cybercriminals endless opportunities to exploit end users, steal personal identities or business data, and cor-rupt corporate networks with

malware,” said David Perry, global director of education, Trend Micro. “With the right security solutions and social networking guidelines imple-mented, there is no reason why companies who choose to allow their employees the option of visiting these sites should be overly exposed to these risks.”For more information regard-ing this survey, please visit: http://trendmicro.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=23

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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

Masdan mo ang ArawKapag ang bawat araw para sa iyo ay maliat ang bawat kabibe na mapulot mo ay bungiat pati ang bawat kuko mo’y laging nababalitingnan mo na lang ang araw, sa iyo’y nakangiti.

Kapag wala ni isa man sa iyo’y pumapansinat sabi nga ng iba ikaw daw ay naprapraningaba’y masdan mo ang araw hayun at nagniningning liwanag ang tugon, mabuti kaysa makulimlim.

Kapag nabibingi ka sa ingay ng ‘yong paligidsa rakrakan ng musika at wang-wang ng mga dyipkasuwerte mo’t maayos pa ang iyong pandinigsilipin mo na lang ang araw kahit na mainit.

Bakit ba naman natin pinahihirap ang buhaynamnamin na lang natin ang biyayang ibinigaypara sa lahat walang kapalit na hinihintay kundi ang mahalin, pagyamanin at alagaan.

©2010 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.

Joke of the week: An economical visitor to the city had over-stayed his welcome in the home of his relatives. Time dragged on but he showed no signs of leav-ing for either a hotel or his home. At length the head of the house tried to drop a hint, “You wife and the kids must miss you all these weeks,” he said. “Don’t you think they’d like to see you again?” “Thanks very much,” he said. “It’s real good of you to think of it. I’ll write tonight and tell them to come.”

Scripture: First Reading: Genesis 18: 1-10a. After the elderly Abraham and Sarah offered the hospitality of their tent to three strangers, God rewarded them with a son, Isaac. Sarah’s womb was blest, because their tent was big enough to accom-modate three strangers. It is revealed that Abraham’s hospitality in welcoming these travelers earned for him and his posterity a great nation and blessings for all nations through him. Second Reading: Colossians 1: 24-28. Radical exegetes consider this letter as deutero-Pauline. It means that the letter contains ideas and thoughts that Paul would have expressed. The author hopes that the Cross of Christ

How big is your tent?would remain manifested in the Apostle’s suffering and in the Church as it goes on her earthly journey. Gospel: Luke 10: 38-42. Luke cleverly con-nects this story of Mary and Martha with the Parable of the Good Samaritan. In a culture where hospitality is very im-portant, welcoming a family friend, Jesus, into their household becomes an occasion for the two sisters to be blest in encounter-ing the divine presence, just as Abraham and Sarah had received God’s blessing by welcoming three strangers into their tent.

Reflections: Israel’s slav-ery in Egypt forms the basis of its hospitality to strangers that is found in the Law and in the Hebrew Scriptures. “Have the same love for him as for yourself; for you too were once aliens in the land of Egypt” (Leviticus 19: 34). It is no wonder that the importance given both by Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to hos-pitality made that ministry to aliens and the marginalized in society, such as the orphans, widows, sick, and prisoners, to become an outstanding

characteristic form of service. During the Middle Ages, hospitality to strangers and pilgrims became a distinctive practice among monaster-ies. Among the Benedictine’s Rules there is an advice to the monks to offer unconditional hospitality to pilgrims and sick travelers to holy shrines. Out of this tradition came the establishment of religious hostels and hospitals, the fore-runners of modern health care facilities and hospice.

In an age where everyone is weary about homeland security and renewed threats from radical groups to harm and kill even innocent people, it is understandable that we are cautious whom we allow into our society, commu-

nity, group, country, and family. It is of paramount importance that the bor-ders between other coun-tries and the US are well

protected and secured to prevent slip cells coming into our neighborhood. According to a recent news report, some illegal aliens who are wanted for crimes from their own country found their way into the United States. Some have been apprehended and handed to law enforcements officials of their country of origin.

In dealing with issues on immigration, the Church is put in a bind. Is the Church’s tent big enough to accommo-date not only her legitimate members, but also the illegal aliens in the United States who are here to earn a living for themselves and for their family? Before administering

the sacraments, should the Church ask for legal papers from suspected illegal aliens who have no criminal records from their country of origin? The Church’s action does not condone loosening up our bor-der security. On the contrary, the Church, like any other institutions, wants all citizens to be safe from all harm and violence. But to deny hospi-tality to strangers and aliens in our midst is to go against an ethical imperative that is the essential hallmark of every Christian believer: those who are hospitable to the needy and the helpless welcome Christ himself (Matthew 10: 40-41); those who welcome the outcasts precisely be-cause of their inability to pay back this hospitality will be rewarded on judgment day (Luke 14: 14). Are our hearts and also our “tent” big enough to accommodate the unwanted people in our midst?

Quotation of the Week: “As his disciples, we are called to attend to the last, lit-tlest, lowest and least in soci-ety and in the Church … Make room for the stranger in our midst, praying for the cour-age and strength to offer our spiritual and pastoral ministry to all who come to us, offering our prayer and support for the ones in our midst who, like Je-sus, have no place to rest their heads on (Matthew 8: 20).” Roger Cardinal Mahoney.

Milagros’ USC husband. The primary evidence to

establish the claimed parent-child relationship would depend on whether the child is legitimate, legitimated, illegitimate, and adopted. In the case of a legitimate son or daughter, if a petition is submitted on behalf of the mother, the birth certificate of the petitioner showing the mother’s name must accom-pany the petition. If a petition is submitted on behalf of the father, the birth certificate of the petitioner, a marriage certificate of the parents, and proof of legal termination of the parents’ prior marriage, if any, issued by the civil authorities must accompany the petition. In the case of an illegitimate son or daughter, if a petition is submitted on behalf of the mother, the birth certificate of the petitioner showing the mother’s name should accompany the peti-tion. If the petition is submit-ted on behalf of the father of the petitioner, the petitioner must show that the beneficiary is his or her natural father and that a bona fide parent-child relationship was established when the petitioner was un-married and under twenty-one years of age. There should be evidence that the father and child actually lived together or that the father held the child out as being his own, that he provided for some or all of the child’s needs, or that in general the father’s behavior evidenced a genuine concern for the child. The evidence may include money order receipts or canceled checks showing the father’s financial support if the benefi-ciary, school records, corre-spondence between the parent and child, notarized affidavits of friends and neighbors, and pictures.

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

Petition for a parent


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Read Romeo Nicolas’s previous poems by vis-iting our website at www.asianjournalusa.com

Ni Romeo Nicolas

Mga Tulang Tagalog

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

journalusa.com

Street Poetry

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

by Michael R. Tagudin

©2010 Michael R. Tagudin. All rights reserved.

About the Author: Michael R. Tagudin Educated as an engineer in the Philippines, the City of Los Angeles em-ployee hopes his legacy of poems will provoke a dialogue about the human condition. He is donating the proceeds from the book “Crushed Violets” to anti-human trafficking efforts in the City of Angels. Contact [email protected] for more information.

Questions

conceal demonsbeneath our blanketsbetween you and me

we talkwe talk clear

clear like mudyou...

your stylealways symbolic

nothing directanswer are alwaysalways questions

questions in repetitionsbeing clear

clear as mudtill we explode

explode like hellto answers being questions

questions in repetitionsyou...

your style!every thing so clear...

clear as mud!

A woman was trying hard to get the catsup to come out of the bottle. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her four-year-old daughter to answer the phone. “It’s the minister, Mommy,” the child said to her mother. Then she added, “Mommy can’t come to the phone right now. She’s hitting the bottle.”

***

While proudly showing off his new apartment to friends, a college student led the way into the den. “What is the big brass gong and hammer for?” one of his friends asked. “That is the talking clock,” the man replied. “How’s it work?”

“Watch,” the man said and proceeded to give the gong an ear shattering pound with the hammer. Suddenly, someone screamed from the other side of the wall, “Knock it off, you idiot! It’s two o’clock in the morning!”

***

A man comes home from an exhausting day at work, plops down on the couch in front of the television, and tells his wife, “Get me a beer before it starts.” The wife sighs and gets him a beer. Fifteen minutes later, he says, “Get me another beer before it starts.” She looks cross, but fetches another beer and slams it down next to him. He finishes that beer and a few min-utes later says, “Quick, get me another beer, it’s going to start any minute.” The wife is furi-ous. She yells at him “Is that all you’re go-ing to do tonight?

Catsup bottleDrink beer and sit in front of that TV? You’re nothing but a lazy, drunken, fat slob, and furthermore ...” The man sighs and says, “It’s started ..

***How about the two old

men, one a retired professor of psychology and the other a retired professor of history. Their wives had talked them into a two week stay at a hotel in the Catskills. They were sitting around on the porch of the hotel watching the sun set. The history professor said to the psychology professor, “Have you read Marx?” To which the professor of psy-chology said, “Yes, I think it’s the wicker chairs.”

***An artist asked the gal-

lery owner if there had been any interest in his paintings currently on display. “I’ve got good news and bad news,” the owner replied. “The good news is that a gentleman inquired about your work and wondered if it would appreci-

ate in value after your death. When I told him it would, he bought all fifteen of your paint-ings.”

“That’s wonderful!” the artist exclaimed, “What’s the bad news?”. With concern, the gallery owner replied, “The guy was your doctor.”

***

A young bride and groom-to-be had just selected their wedding

rings. As the young lady admired the plain platinum and diamond band she had chosen for herself, she sud-denly looked concerned. “Tell me,” she asked the rather elderly salesman, “is there any-thing special I’ll have to do to take care of this ring?” With a fa-therly smile, the salesman said, “one of the best ways to protect a wedding ring is to soak it in dishwater.”

Dito Lang Sa PilipinasKung natatandaan ninyo, “massacre” sa Maguindanao,Na ang nasasangkot ay ang mga Ampatuan.Bukod sila ay VIP at manok ng MALAKANYANG,KUYOG silang ISANG DUGO, mahirap na MAIBUWAL.

May BASBAS din si Pangulo kaya SUNGAY AY HUMABA,Sinuwag ang KASAYSAYANG, unang-una sa ‘ting bansa.ccccccaAbogado na tataban, nagsiurong na SUMUBA,Laking takot na MASALANG ang pamilya’y MAPASAMA.

Ngunit mayrong lumilitaw, abogadong MATATAPANG,Sinisikap maabswelto itong LINTIK NA KRIMINAL.Ang KASO ay lumuluwag habang ito’y nagtatagal, Ganyan dito sa bayan ko, sa bayan mo, sa ‘ting bayan.

Masdan ninyo an larawan nitong mga Ampatuan,Masasaya, nakangiti na hindi maintindihan.‘Di ba sila natatakot sa ginawa na “HEINOUS CRIME”?O, sadya na walang puso, NASANAY LANG SA PAGPATAY.

Ito nga ang aking kutob sa simula nitong kaso,“Easy” ising paglilitis ng MAKUPAD NA HUSGADO.At ang laging hinahanap, PUWANG upang masiguro,LUTONG MACAO na husgahan, itong kaso, ipanalo.

Ang kaso ng mga BUWITRE sa sarili nating bansa,Ay batay sa HIGPIT KAPIT sa kapwa nya MASASAMA.Daig nila yaong LINTA, pag pinaso, nagwawala,TULOY KAPIT pa rin sila, pagkat KUWARTA ay SAGANA.

Masdan ninyo at tila ba, dalwang BUWITRE ang lalaya,Katulad ng nasabi ko, sa PINAS lang NAGAGAWA.Mga taglay nilang BASBAS ay totoo, ‘di HIMALA,Ang TANGENGOT na paghusga, kabayan ko, heto na nga.

Bago tuluyan kong iwan itong munting SIMPATIYA,Nais ko na idagdag rin, KAAWAY NG MAGSASAKA.Itong si JocJoc Bolante na ang kaso’y nabinbin pa,Tumatakbong Gobernador, do’n sa Capiz na bayan nya.

Hoy! COMELEC gumising ka, ano itong KABALBALAN?Ang may kaso, pwede pa lang kandidato sa halalan.Kung sabagay, may sundalong nag senador sa KULUNGAN,Bilib ako sa bayan ko, ang MABAHO, hinahalal.

Bilib ako, bilib ako, hindi kayang mapantayan,Nasa atin ng lahat, TALAMAK NA KAPINTASAN.HUGAS KAMAY naman minsan, kaunting linis sa ‘ting bayan,Baka itong ating BATIK, maging TATO sa isipan. Kapag ito’y naging TATO, magdasal ka aking bayan,Ang pag-asa’y MALABO NA, makaahon sa putikan.Lahat tayong “MADLANG PEOPLE’, LUBALOB sa kahirapan,Ang biyayang hihintayin, naroon sa MAYAYAMAN.

Batikos ni: Romeo S. Nicolas Bocaue Bulacan 4/19/2010


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Reprinted from TruthOut by Annie Shields 07/13/2010 -- The June labor market report announced that the unemploy-ment rate is down from 9.7 to 9.5 percent and 83,000 pri-vate-sector jobs were created in June. Unfortunately, the situation isn’t quite so rosy. As Annie Lowrey reports in The Washington Independent, the real cause of the drop in unemployment was not more jobs, but fewer workers. Hun-dreds of thousands of unem-ployed Americans have now been reclassified as “discour-aged” workers who have not actively searched for work for four weeks. As such, they are no longer part of the system.

Unemployed and Disen-franchised

What’s worse, the un-employment crisis is hurt-ing some more than others. Among the discouraged work-ers that have simply dropped out of the labor market, 65% are women. People of color have also been hit especially hard, as have young people that are just entering the labor market. As Katherine S. New-man and David Pedulla of The Nation write:

“The Great Recession is reminding us of how unequal the distribution of damage can be. While virtually everyone other than the top 1 percent is suffering in some fashion, the depth of the fallout varies a great deal by race, education and gender.”

The economic disparities are stark. The unemployment rate for African Americans is nearly twice the rate for whites, while the rate among people 16 to 24 years old is nearly double the rate for all workers. And the disad-vantages for these particular groups are expected to persist. According to The Nation:

“Young black men are the most disadvantaged of all in the job tournament, but young workers across the board are in terrible shape in this labor market. If previous recessions are an indication of what’s to come, we can expect these stumbling entries into the world of work to translate into long-term disadvantages, rela-tive to those who come of age in a climate of opportunity.”

The Hidden Casualties of the Great Recession

Foreclosed and Forgotten

The recession is also con-tinuing to devastate ho-meowners, as Seth Freed Wessler explains for Color-lines. Wessler documents “the country’s long failure to ad-dress systemic racial inequity through public policy eventu-ally threw the whole economy into free fall.”

According to a recent report from the Center for Respon-sible Lending, nearly 6 mil-lion homes are at imminent risk of foreclosure right now. It’s estimated that by 2014, 13 million homes will be gone. The report shows that Black, Latino, Asian, Native Ameri-can and Alaskan Native/Pa-cific Islander borrowers are all at greater risk for immediate foreclosure than White bor-rowers.

One of the most startling findings is that between 2009 and 2012, “Black and Latino communities will be drained of $194 and $177 billion, respectively, because of the plummeting home values in the high foreclosure neighbor-hoods,” Wessler writes.

Unfortunately, there’s little relief in sight for these com-munities. Wessler explains that the Obama administra-tion’s attempt to help pre-vent foreclosures, the Home Affordable Modification Program, or HAMP, has done more to help mortgage ser-vicers than struggling hom-eowners. The recent defeat of an unemployment benefits extension only makes matters worse. Some advocacy groups are calling for a moratorium on foreclosures as a tempo-rary remedy. Obama support-ed such a measure during his 2008 Presidential campaign.

Silver Lining, but no Sil-ver Bullet

If there is a silver lining to this ominous economic raincloud, it might be found in recent changes to to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), an anti-redlining measure from 1975. As Kat Aaron and Mary Kane report for The American Prospect, these changes are one result of a long fight against discrimi-natory lending practices, and

could prove to be invaluable for “consumer activists, regu-lators, and researchers trying to identify egregious lenders and their loans.” The Ameri-can Prospect has more about the revisions to HMDA and what they might mean for the ongoing fair-lending debate.

Many Americans are also turning to timebanks as an alternative to the down economy. Timebanks provide a cooperative, egalitarian system for sharing skills and trading services with others, free of charge. As Mira Luna reports for Yes! Magazine, the trend might be a result of tough times, but it has an upside.

“Instead of paying profes-sionals who we may never see again to provide services, we can use time exchanges to find neighbors who might provide service in exchange for hour credits, thereby sav-ing scarce U.S. dollars for things like rent and medicine.

In the process, people get to know and trust their neigh-bors, establishing caring relationships that can help reweave the fabric of our communities, and replace our culture’s over-reliance on individual financial security.”

All republished content that appears on Truthout has been obtained by permission or license.

Reprinted from FindLaw By Tanya Roth on July 13, 2010 -- Indicators of an economy still struggling: more of us in court, less of us with legal representation. Cases that logically seem linked to tough economic times, foreclosures, domestic relations issues, and debt actions have increased, but according to a new sur-vey, judges think the number of people coming before them with legal representation has decreased.

According to a survey of judges for the American Bar Association Coalition for Justice, the “View From The Bench” is not an encourag-ing one right now. Seventy-eight percent of the more than 1,000 state trial judges surveyed say that not only have their own case loads increased, but the lack of representation has a negative impact on the functioning

Judges Survey: Better to Have an Attorney Rep You

of the court. Ninety percent of judges stated that court procedures are slowed when parties are not represented by attorneys.

A lack of a lawyer doesn’t just have a negative effect on how the court system func-tions overall; it has a marked effect on the outcome of an individual’s case. The judges responding to the survey said the lack of an attorney had a negative impact not just where you might expect, such as in procedural errors (89 percent), failure to properly object to evidence (81 percent), inef-fective argument (77 percent) and ineffective witness ex-amination (85 percent), but in the basic necessity to get the information a judge needs in front of him or her. Ninety-four percent of judges said a failure to present necessary evidence was a negative im-pact of individuals not being represented in the courtroom.

As you might expect, the have and have-not representa-tion gap is growing wider as well. Nearly half of the judges responding believe that there is a middle-class gap with re-spect to access to justice, stat-ing that the number of people who are not represented but who do not qualify for aid has increased.

If you are bringing a court case or have had one filed against you, stop and do some research before going it alone. Websites like FindLaw can give you good starting information about some is-sues you might face in court or help you find a lawyer if you decide you do need one. The websites of your state bar association, for instance the State Bar of California, or legal aid organizations may be able to help you find low cost or pro bono legal help. Spend-ing a bit of extra time and even extra money may save you much, much more of both in the end.

There is never a fee to get as-sistance or information about Making Home Affordable from your lender or a HUD-approved housing counselor.

Beware of any person or • organization that asks you

Beware of Foreclosure Rescue Scams - Help Is Free!

to pay a fee in exchange for housing counseling services or modification of a delinquent loan. Do not pay - walk away!Beware of anyone who • says they can “save” your home if you sign or trans-fer over the deed to your house. Do not sign over the deed to your prop-erty to any organization or individual unless you are working directly with your mortgage company to forgive your debt.Never submit your mort-• gage payments to anyone other than your mortgage company without their approval.

The Obama Administration has launched a coordinated effort across federal and state government and the private sector to target mortgage loan modification fraud and foreclosure rescue scams that threaten to hurt American ho-meowners and prevent them from getting the help they need during these challenging times.

By August 1, all mortgage servicers participating in the Making Home Affordable Program will offer extra help for homeowners struggling to make their monthly mort-gage payments because of unemployment. The Unem-ployment Program will offer homeowners a forbearance period to temporarily reduce or suspend their monthly

mortgage payments while they seek re-employment.

The minimum forbearance period is three months, al-though a mortgage servicer may extend it depending on the investor and regulator guidelines. If a homeowner becomes re-employed in that time, the forbearance period will end and the homeowner will be evaluated for a mort-gage modification under the Making Home Affordable Program. Unemployment benefits will no longer qualify as income for the mortgage modification program.

During the forbearance pe-riod, a homeowner’s monthly mortgage payment must be reduced to no more than 31 percent (or less) of their gross monthly income. The servicer can decide to temporarily suspend payments in full.

Help for Unemployed Homeowners

The payment amount and due dates will be decided by the servicer depending on investor and regulator guidelines.

To qualify, a homeowner must meet the following eligi-bility criteria:

The mortgage must be a first lien mortgage, originated on or before January 1, 2009, and the unpaid principal balance must be equal to or less than

$729,750 for a one-unit property.

The property must be the hom-eowner’s principal residence.

The mortgage has not been pre-viously modified through a Home Affordable Modi-fication.

The homeowner was ineligible for a Home Afford-

able Modification.The homeowner is either be-

hind on payments (but not by more than three consecutive months) or it is reasonably forseeable that the homeowner will fall behind.

The total monthly mortgage payment is greater than 31 percent of the homeowner’s gross monthly income. If the payment is less, it is up to the servicer’s discretion if they will offer the program to the homeowner.

The homeowner will be unemployed at the start of the forbearance period, and is able to document this because they will be receiving unemploy-ment benefits in the month the forbearance period begins (even if the benefits expire before the forbearance period ends).

A mortgage servicer may require that, based on inves-tor and regulator guidelines, homeowners have received at least three months of unem-ployment benefits before they begin a forbearance period.

There is no cost to apply to the Unemployment Program, although late charges may accrue while the homeowner is being evaluated for the program or in the program. A mortgage servicer may not collect late charges from the homeowner while they are still in the forbearance period.

Servicers may not initiate foreclosure proceedings or conduct a foreclosure sale while a homeowner is being evaluated for the Unemploy-ment Program or in the for-bearance period.

To determine if you qualify for the Unemployment Pro-gram, contact your mortgage servicer. You should learn your eligibility within ten days of submitting complete docu-mentation to your servicer.

If you have any questions after speaking with your servicer, or need assistance applying to the program, call 1-888-995-HOPE (4673) to speak with a HUD-approved housing counselor for free.

SOURCE: http://making-homeaffordable.gov


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relate to the most recent vaca-tion to my hometown Pandan and the province of Antique in April 2004. I was a recipient of a certificate of recognition from Pandan Central School as an honoree product of the Pandan public school.

To the readers who are not from Panay Island, I beg your kind indulgence and excuse for the local dialect and mixed with English in this speech. As the saying goes, how sweet it is to hear someone speaking in your own dialect. The fol-lowing was my speech.

Love of Hometown: Ang pagbalik-balik cang

mga balibayans pareho ka-

From Antique to America:

Memoirs of a Filipino American DoctorGoing home to

Pandan, Antique(Continued from page 14)

nakun rogya sa atun banwa naga testigo cang amun ma-tood nga pagpalangga sa atun banwang kinatawhan. Aco nagapati sa hambalanum nga sa tinagalog nga naga co-on; “ang tao na hindi maronong lumingon sa kanyang pinang-galingan, hindi makarating sa knayang paroro-onan” .

Kita nga mga taga Pandan amo dia ang acun maham-bal. Kita nga mga ginamat ni Tumaca nga sa con diin naga istar sa mga iba ibang lugar, mga citizens of other coun-tries, ang atun mainit nga dugo nga naga circulo sa atun mga kaugat-ugatan bilang Pandananun --- bisan iwanun mo man, dugo pa gihapon it Pandannanon cag indi mais-lan.

Now having been away for so many years, there are indeed innumerable things and changes that has come to this town that I cannot sim-ply keep up with. Ang atun banwa nag iba gid cag maay-ad ayad ang hitsura. Bisan


PNS -- STRICTLY going by his inaugural statement against the use of sirens to get out of traffic, President Benigno Aquino was 30 minutes late for the change of command ceremony in Camp Aguinaldo yesterday.

The President apologized for being late but noted that it was the first time that he was late.

“Syempre nag-a-adjust rin kami dun sa lumaki ‘yung convoy namin at may traffic and I apologize for being late. We will perfect it,” he said in an ambush interview after the ceremony.

In his inaugural address, the President vowed not to use “wang-wang” or sirens, which some public officials have been using to escape the humongous traffic in Metro Manila.

Aquino also reminded all concerned that with the ex-

Noynoy late with no wangwang

ception of emergency vehicles only five officials are autho-rized to use sirens. Under Presidential Decree No. 96, only the President along with the Vice President, Senate president, House Speaker, and Chief Justice can use sirens.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the Presi-dent is determined to lead by example by observing traffic rules, despite the perceived risks like being stuck in traffic and being late for his appoint-ments.

Lacierda said Aquino has also decided to use his own car as the presidential ve-hicle to save on government expenses. The No. 1 plate number of the presidential limousine has been trans-ferred to the President’s white Toyota Land Cruiser.happen in the next six years of his administration.”

PNS -- THERE’S no stop-ping GM Wesley So.

So continued his mete-oric rise in the world chess hierarchy when he vaulted to 60th place overall in the list of the world’s top 100 players with an ELO of 2674 based on the newest ratings re-leased by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) for the month of July.

The 16-year-old pride of Bacoor, Cavite, who holds the distinction as the world’s sev-enth youngest player to earn the elusive GM title, gained nine points during the third Phoenix Petroleum- Battle of GMs national chess champi-onships held in Tagaytay City and the 9th Asian Continen-tal men’s individual champi-onships in Subic to improve his ELO rating points.

The Filipino champion was ranked 64th with an ELO of 2665 in the previous quarterly rating period.

So, who is scheduled to compete in another major chess tournament in Nether-lands later this month, is also ranked seventh in the world in the 20 years old and under category and No. 2 in Asia in the same category.

In the world juniors, So is behind only GM Mag-nus Carlsen (ELO 2826) of Norway, GM Sergey Kar-jakin (ELO 2747) of Rus-sia, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave (ELO 2723) of France, GM Ian Nepomni-atchi (ELO2706) of Russia, GM Fabaino Caruana (ELO 2697) of Italy and GM Le Quang Liem (ELO 2681) of Vietnam.

So is also only 11 points behind GM Alexander Mo-tylev of Russia (ELO 2685) for No. 50 in the world. He is one point behind GM Kiril Georgiev of Bulgaria for 59th

So climbs to No. 60 overall in FIDE world list

place.“This year, my immediate

goal is surpass the ELO 2700 barrier and possibly make it to the Top 50 of the world,” said So, who skipped col-lege this year to concentrate on his chess career.

National Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) president/chairman Prospero “Butch” Pichay expressed confidence that So will at-tain his goal this year.

“There’s no doubt that Wesley will attain his goal of breaking the ELO 2700 mark this year, especially dur-ing the coming World Chess Olympiad in Khanty-Mansi-ysk, Russia,” said Pichay.

Twelve-time National Open champion GM Rogelio Antonio Jr. keeps second place behind So in the lo-cal list with ELO of 2775, followed by GM John Paul Gomez with ELO of 2527.


to have seen classic movies like “The Ten Command-ments”, “King Kong”, and “Backdraft” while they were at the Universal Studios.

Isabel could not answer.Then Albert realized that

his wife grew up poor and watching a movie was a luxury for her. He took pity of her, hugged and kissed her on the forehead.

“Never mind,” he said. “You’re going to catch up. I am going to take you to a lot of movies from now on.”

The thought that she missed out on a lot of fun experiences as a child crossed Isabel’s mind.

“HOLD ON,” Albert told Isabel once they were seated in a roller coaster inside what looked like a mine shaft. It was dark.

“Don’t be afraid, you’re with me,” Albert said to his wife. Isabel sat closer to her husband, her new-found secu-rity blanket.

The roller coaster moved fast, turned sharply and shot up and down. Along the way scenes from the Indiana Jones movies fl ashed on the wall. After the ride, Isabel was very happy.

“I wish I saw that movie,” she said.

“Don’t worry, we’ll rent all the series and watch them together.”

At the Pirates of Carribean attraction, the line was long but it was worth the wait. Isa-bel enjoyed the short cruise in a tunnel aboard a small boat.

The sights of the pirates sing-ing, drinking, shooting guns at each other, and their women chasing after them, while animals like pigs and chicken moving like real creatures, amused her. She wondered how she could fully describe what she saw to her father so that he could have an idea of just half of what she had just experienced. She was right in aspiring to marry a U.S. Navy

personnel after all. In just a few days in America, she had so many fun experiences that she would never enjoy in a lifetime in the Philippines. - AJ

(To be continued)

To read the previous and weekly installments of this series, visit www.asianjour-nalusa.com

Promised Land

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Earth

All is Welcome to join, Current or Late on your payment!

Have you been denied by your Lender? Realtor & Lawyers can’t help you anymore?

(Continued from page 10)prices for the public as con-sumer confi dence continues its upswing recovery.

In addition, this project will benefi t local suppliers of feeds as the company will buy feeds from adjacent sites.

Its breeder hogs will have a capacity of up to 25,000 head for sows and 500 heads for boars which could pro-duce slaughter hogs of over 1,100 MT of GP fatteners and roughly 2,500 MT of Par-ent Stock (PS) fatteners. The breeder hogs will be sold on a per head basis regardless of weight while the slaughter of hogs will be sold live to viajeros with prices based on weight.

The market for the par-ent stock breeders will be the owners and operators of small, medium and large hog com-mercial raisers around Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Iden-tifi ed markets include Bula-can, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Zambales, Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, La Union, Nueva Ecija, Isabela, Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, Batangas, Quezon, Ca-marines Norte, Albay, Sorsog-on, Bohol, Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, Cebu, Aklan, Iloilo, Davao Oriental, Davao Occidental, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Bukidnon, Agusan del Norte, and Agusan del Sur.

The investment will em-ploy 80 personnel as commer-cial operation is scheduled to start on January 2011.

(Story courtesy of Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat of Manila Bulletin)

Thai fi rm invests P1B in

Tarlac hog production

facility(Continued from page 1)

written by Tony Perry, Filner said that the cartoon “was in poor taste and does not refl ect the Imperial Valley’s strong support for our troops and veterans.”

Aside from the print me-dia, Nick was interviewed (as of this writing), by the follow-ing radio personalities: Roger Hedgecock at KOGO 600 AM Radio, 5:30 p.m., Mon-day, July 12; Rick Amato at KCBQ 1170 AM Radio, 9:20 p.m., Monday, July 12; and Steve Yuhas, KOGO 600 AM Radio, 5:00 p.m., Sunday, July 11.

Whatever was the intention of the IV Press in putting out this cartoon does not really matter. What matters is that is that it may have benefi ted Nick Popaditch’ campaign!

As Malkin wrote in her blog, “Instead of calling on the cartoonist to be fi red, perhaps he deserves thanks - thanks for inadvertently creating an opportunity for the rest of us. It’s a moment not merely to complain about a bonehead media slap, but to spread the word about Nick Popaditch. He’s exactly the kind of fi ghter we need in Washington to take back the Hill.”

Controversial Cartoon: A Blessing in Disguise?

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journalusa.com

IT IS A VERY NICELY WRITTEN LETTER ...........

I wish all politicians and public servants could read this letter.

Subject: A Letter From A Brave Filipina

Very interesting letter.

Share this with your friends and associates who still hon-estly believe that our beloved Philippines is worth saving. I salute the person (Remedios C. Paningbatan) who wrote this letter.

To all Filipinos Every-

where: I used to think that cor-

ruption and criminality in the Philippines were caused by poverty. But recent events tell me this isn't true. It is one thing to see people turn into drug addicts, prostitutes, thieves and murderers because of hunger and poverty, but what excuse do these rich, educated people have that could possibly explain their bizarre behavior? And to think I was always so relieved when petty snatchers got caught and locked away in jail because I never fully realized that the big time thieves were out there, making the laws and running our country.

Every night, I come home & see these "honorable" crooks lambast each other on TV , call each one names, look each other in the eye and accuse the other of commit-ting the very same crimes that they themselves are guilty of, is so comical and apalling that I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

I have never seen so many criminals roaming around un-fettered and looking smug un-til now. These criminals wear suits and barongs, strut around with the confi dence of the rich and famous, inspire fear and

Speaker Boy “Top Notcher” Nograles and His Dramatic

Cohorts in Congress!awe from the very citizens who voted them to power, bear titles like "Honorable", "Senator", "Justice", "Gen-eral" and worse, "President". Ironically, these lawless individu-als practice law, make our laws, enforce the law. And we wonder why our police-men act the way they do! These are their leaders, and the leaders of this nation - Robin Hoodlum and his band of moneymen. Their motto? "Rob the poor, moderate the greed of the rich."

It makes me wonder what kind of schools they went to, what kind of teachers they had, what kind of envi-ronment would produce such creatures who can lie, cheat and steal from an already indebted country and from the impoverished people . It makes me wonder what their children and grand-children think of them, and if they are breeding a whole new generation of improved Filipino crooks and liars with equally negligible conscience. They all go to mass & receive communion! Heaven forbid!

I am an ordinary citizen and taxpayer. I am blessed to have a job that pays for my needs and those of my fam-ily's, even though 30% of my earnings go to the nation's coffers. I have complained time and again because our government could not provide enough of the basic services that I expect and deserve. Rutty roads, poor educational

system, poor social services, poor health services, poor everything. But I have al-ways thought that was what all third world countries were all about, and my complaints never amounted to anything more.

We see Scandalous gov-ernment deals. Plundering presidents pointing fi ngers. Senators associated with crooks. Congressmen who accept bribes. Big time law-yers on the side of injustice. De Venecia ratting on his boss only after his term has ended, Enrile inquiring about some-one's morality! The already

fi lthy rich Abalos and Arroyo wanting more money than they or their great grandchil-dren could ever spend in a lifetime. Joker making a joke of his own "pag bad ka, lagot ka!" slogan.. Defensor ren-dered defenseless. Gen. Razon involved in kidnapping. Security men providing any-thing but a sense of security. The average Juan de la Cruz could not even imagine in his dreams. Is it any wonder why our few remaining decent and hardworking citizens are leaving to go work in other countries?

They say the few stupid ones like me who remain in the Philippines are no longer capable of showing disgust. Many like me feel anger at

the brazenness of men we call our leaders, embarrassment to share the same national-ity with them, frustration for our nation and helplessness at my own ineffectuality. It is not that I won't make a stand. It is just that I am afraid my actions would only be futile. After all, these monsters are capable of anything. They can hurt me and my family. They already have, though I may not yet feel it..

I am writing this because I need to do something con-crete. I need to let others know that ordinary citizens like me do not remain lukewarm to

issues that would later affect me and my children. I want to make it known that there are also Filipinos who dream of something better for the Philip-pines. I want them to know that my country is not fi lled with scalawags and crooks in every corner, and that there are citizens left who believe in decency, fairness, a right to speak, a right to voice out ideas, a right to tell the people we have trusted to lead us that they have abused their power and that it is time for them to step down. I refuse to let this country go to hell because it is the only country I

call mine and it is my respon-sibility to make sure I have done what I could for it.

We can pray.. After all, they cannot be more powerful than God!

I implore mothers out there to raise your children the best way you can . I beg all fa-thers to spend time with their children, to teach them the virtues of hard work, honesty, fair play, sharing, dignity and compassion - right from the sandbox till they are old enough to go on their own. Not just in your homes, but at work, in school, everywhere you go. Be good role models.

I call on educators and teachers - . . Instill in them love of their country,, help

us mold our children into honorable men and women. Encourage our graduates, our best and brightest, to do what they can to lift this country from the mire our traditional politicians have sunk us into. The youth is our future - and it would be largely because of you, our educators, that we will be able to repopulate the seats of power with good leaders, presidents, senators, congressmen, justices, law-makers, law enforcers and lawful citizens.

I ask all students, young people and young profession-als everywhere to look around and get involved .. . YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU! Let your voices be heard. Text meaningful messages to awaken social conscience. Try your best to fi ght moral decay because I promise you will not regret it when you become parents yourselves. You will look back at your past misdeeds and pray that your children will do better

than you did. Remember that there are a

few handful who are capable of running this country.. You can join their ranks and make their numbers greater. We are tired of the old trapos. We need brave idealistic leaders who will think of the greater good before anything else. Be good lawyers, civil servants, accountants, computer techs, engineers, doctors, military men so that when you are called to serve in government, you will have credibility and a record that can speak for itself.

For love of this country, for the future of our children, , I urge you to do what you can. As ordinary citizens, we can do much more for the Philip-pines than sit around and let crooks lead us to perdition. We owe ourselves this. And we owe our country even more.

Remedios C. Paningbatan


lingid sa kaalaman ni Doray at ng mga anak nito. Naging palalo si Mario at hudas sa kanyang mapagtiis na asawa.

Sa anak na babae na si Susan, ang laging padala sa balikbayan box ni Doray, ay ang mga libro at magasin na makatutulong sa kanya sa kanyang pag-aaral ng nurs-ing sa kolehiyo. May kalakip din sa balibayan box na mga music cds at dvds ng mga pelikula na mapaglilibangan ng dalagita.

Sa dahilang wala ang ina sa kanyang paligid, at ang tatay ay wala sa bahay sa tuwina, naging mapagpabaya si Susan sa kanyang pag-aaral. May mga araw na, sa halip na pumasok sa eskwela, ay naglalagi siya sa mall, kasama ang mga kaeskwela, upang doon mag-aksaya ng oras. May panahon din na uubusin niya ang maghapon sa kanyang silid o sa bahay ng isang kaibigan at doon ay manonood ng pelikula sa tv o makikinig sa kanyang mga cds na walang pakundangan. Malimit na siya ay punahin ng lola at lolo at paalalahanan na dapat ay ituon ang pansin sa kanyang pag-aaral, nguni’t naging bingi sa pangaral at mapaghimagsik si Susan.

Sa anak na lalaki na si William, nag-ipon si Doray ng sari-saring bahagi ng isang motorsiklo, at ang mga ito’y isa-isang ipinadala sa pamamagitan ng balikbayan box. Sa tiyaga at haba ng panahon ay nakabuo ng isang motorsiklo si William. Naging pang-araw-araw na transportasyon niya ang maganda at matulin na mo-torsiklo. Gamit niya ito sa pagtungo niya sa eskwela at sa pag-uwi sa hapon. Maingat

Ang Balikbayan Box ni Doray

(Continued from page 8) magpa-andar ng motorsiklo si Wiliam. Nguni’t hindi sa-pat ang pag-iingat kung may nagbabadyang kapahamakan. Minsan ay may taxi na nakas-agi kay William. Napatilapon siya mula sa motorsiko at bumagsak sa kalye na una ang ulo. Nabagok ang kanyang ulo sa aspalto at nawalan ng malay. Salamat na lamang sa Diyos at hindi nasagasaan ng mga dumadaang sasakyan si William, habang ito ay naka-handusay sa kalye. Tumigil ang mga sasakyan at may mabubuting tao na tumulong sa kanya. Nadala siya sa os-pital, nalapatan ng emergency procedure at nakaligtas naman sa muntik na kamatayan.

Sa mga balikbayan box na ipinapadala ni Doray sa pami-lya, laging may nakasingit na chocolates, cookies, corned beef, junk food, at iba’t iba pang pagkaing-Amerikano, na nakasiksik sa sulok-sulok ng kahon. Ang kanyang ina naman na si Aling Tessie ang nagtatamasa sa mga padalang ito, sapagka’t mahilig siyang magkakain ng tsitsirya. Di malaon ay nagkaroon ng mga sintomas ng diabetes at blood pressure si Aling Tessie, at ito ay natiyak ng doctor na sumapit na nga kay Aling Tes-sie, nang siya’y kumunsulta sa klinika. Nagkasakit si Aling Tessie sanhi ng pagkain ng matatamis at maaalat na pag-kaing mula sa Amerika.

Naging larawan ng pag-unlad ang pamilya ni Doray. Batid ng mga kapitbahay ang biyayang dumarating mula sa Amerika na nakapagpaluwag sa kabuhayan ng mag-anak. Hindi maitatago ang sunud-sunod na dating ng mga balikbayan box sa tahanan ng pamilya ni Doray. Ang bulag lamang ang di makapapansin sa mga dumarating na mala-

laking kahon na matingkad na dilaw ang kulay at kinakail-angang dalawang lalaki ang bumubuhat dahil sa bigat ng mga ito. Ang mga kapitbahay, dahil sa matinding inggit, ay naging malamig ang pakiki-tungo sa mag-anak ni Doray.

Ang balikbayan box ni Doray ay naging bukal ng paglililo at pagdaraya ng asawa, ng paghihimagsik at kapabayaan ng anak na babae, ng kapahamakan ng anak na lalaki sa motorsiklo, ng sakit ng ina, at ng inggit ng mga kapitbahay. Ang pakay niya ay makapagdulot ng ligaya, kabutihan at ginhawa, ang maibahagi sa mga minamahal sa buhay ang maliliit na pilas ng America ; upang marana-san nila, nang bahagya man lamang, ang lasa ng “gatas at pulot-pukyutan”. Nguni’t ang naging bunga nito ay hilahil at kasamaan.

Natakot si Doray sa nang-yayari sa kanyang pamilya. Nabahala siya sa sunud-sunod na suliranin at kapahamakan na dumating sa kanyang mag-anak. Naramdaman niyang ibig na niyang bumalik sa Pilipinas, upang magampanan niya ang papel ng isang ina at makagawa siya ng mga hakbang upang mapigilan ang patuloy na paglubog ng kanyang pamilya sa malalim na balon ng kapahamakan.

Isang araw ay may dumat-ing na limang balikbayan box sa tahanan nina Doray sa

Sta. Quiteria. Tuwang-tuwa ang mag-anak ni Doray na mayroon na namang dumating na maraming magagandang padala ang nag-susumakit na ina sa Amerika. Hindi pa nakikita ang laman ng mga kahon ay napapang-arap na ni Mario ang mabibi-kas na damit at sapatos na maipagmamayabang sa mga kaibigan. Nananabik na-man ang anak sa mga dvd ng pelikula, at ang kanyang ina at ama, sa mga corned beef na pabortio nilang pang-almusal. Nang buksan ang mga kahon, ang nakita ng pamilya na nila-

laman ng mga kahon, ay mga lumang damit na pambabae, mga lumang sapatos at hand-bag, mga gamit sa kusina, mga retrato at sari-saring abubot na pambahay. Malak-ing sorpresa! Ano ang ibig sabihin nito, naisip ng bawa’t isa.

Kumililing ang telepono – may long distance call mula sa Los Angeles . Si Doray ay nasa linya.

-- Mario, -- sabi sa asawa, -- uuwi na ako; ang arrival ko ay sa Miyerkoles na darating. Sunduin ninyo ako sa airport. Ang dumating na mga balik-bayan box ay naglalaman ng mga kasuotan ko at sari-sar-ing gamit na personal. Ipaki-lagay na lamang sa kuwarto natin ang mga kahon at ako na ang maglalabas at mag-aayos sa mga nilalaman nila pagdating ko diyan. Kumusta si Susan? Si William? Ang tatay? Ang nanay?

Namutla at nagitla si Ma-rio sa naririnig at nakikitang pangyayari. Ang mga bata na-man ay nangingiti sapagka’t kahi’t hindi inaasahan ang mga pangyayari, maluwag sa loob nila na wala nang tatanggaping pasalubong sa pamamagitan ng balikbayan box mula noon, kung ang ina naman nila ay uuwi na. Wala nang pasalubong na hihigit pa sa pagbabalik ng isang na-pawalay na ina.

Sa huli ay napagtiyak ni Doray na ang mahalaga sa buhay ay ang pagkakaisa ng kanyang mag-anak. Mahalaga ang salapi at mahalaga rin ang karangyaan, nguni’t ang mga ito ay hindi maaaring maging kahalili ng pagsasama-sama ng pamilya, sa hirap man at sa ginhawa. Mahalaga ang pa-giging nandiyan ng isang ina sa tuwing siya ay kailangan ng asawa at anak. Mahalaga ang pagbabantay sa pamilya, bilang ina, at ang pagpapana-tili na nagliliyab ang ilaw ng tahanan na nagbibigay-gabay sa landas na tinatahak. pcc

(Wakas)

Tidbits from this book inquiring minds want to know:

How many children does Tessie Agana have?Who are the two movie star cousins of Robert Arevalo?Seeking an autograph from what famous comedian led Perla Bautista to

become a movie star?What physical attributes did Bernard Bonnin have that made him a top

sprinter in college?Who is the other movie star brother of Robert Campos?Who was the Manila couturier instrumental in making Charlie Davao a

movie star?Who was the top actor with whom Myrna Delgado had a love child?Who was the legendary actor who gave Dolphy his first break in the mov-

ies?What is the relationship of Linda Estrella to Judge Jose Vera, the famous

founder of the Sampaguita Pictures?With which famous Sampaguita Pictures movie star did Bella Flores have a

rift that led to a hair-pulling incident?How did Amalia Fuentes get her last name?To which military outfit did Eddie Garcia used to belong?What sports makes Shirley Gorospe stay in good shape these days?What other talent does Liberty Ilagan have?Who is the legendary movie director who gave Anita Linda her screen

name?What was the first screen name of Mona Lisa?What was Liza Lorena’s profession before she became a movie star?What was German Moreno’s first job at the once famous Clover Theater?What comic strip characters did Oscar Obligacion portray in the movies?Who was the famous Hollywood star Paraluman is always compared with?Why was Barbara Perez asked by a famous couturier to tone down her at-

tire?How much was Delia Razon paid for her first dance number in a movie?Who was the top government official Boots Anson Roa considered 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 in these days?How was Ramil Rodriguez discovered?Who was the movie star brother of Gloria Romero?What prestigious award did Rosa Rosal receive for her public service

deeds?Why was Caridad Sanchez considered not a typical movie star?Who was the ambassador husband 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 Nova to the movies?Which top Sampaguita Pictures actor and the drinking buddy of Zeny Za-

bala’s father was instrumental to Zeny’s movie career?What title did Marita Zobel win that earned her the lead role opposite Lou

Salvador, Jr. in the movie “Bad Boy”?

Get all the answers in this entertaining book, “Balik Tanaw: The Fili-pino Movie Stars of Yesteryears”!

1

B

alik Tanaw:

The Fi l ipino Movie

Stars of Yest eryears

By Dr. Romy Protacio

Order a copy of“Balik Tanaw”

book now! Only $12.95 a copy!

Call (619) 474-0588

Featuring the profiles and rarely seen photographs of your Filipino movie

stars of yesteryears including:

German Moreno Oscar Obligacion Paraluman Barbara Perez Delia Razon Boots Anson Roa Susan Roces Pepito Rodriguez Ramil Rodriguez Gloria Romero Rosa Rosal Caridad Sanchez Gloria Sevilla Luz Valdez Norma ValesNova Villa Zeny Zabala Marita Zobel

Tessie Agana Robert Arevalo Perla Bautista Bernard Bonnin Robert Campos Charlie Davao Myrna Delgado Lilia Dizon Dolphy Linda Estrella Bella Flores Amalia Fuentes Eddie Garcia Shirley Gorospe Liberty Ilagan Anita Linda Mona Lisa Lisa Lorena

You can order and pick up copies of the book, “Balik Tanaw: The Filipino Movie

Stars of Yesteryears” at $12.95 a copy at the office of Asian Journal San Diego, 550 East 8th Street, Suite 6, National City, CA 91950 (Inside Old School House Complex on the

corner of 8th and E Streets)

Published by Green Mango Books, a division of Asian Journal San Diego,

the original and first Asian Journal in America, E-mail: [email protected]

Balik Tanaw: The Filipino Movie Stars of Yesteryears

Keep Your Fingers Crossed: How Superstition

Improves PerformanceRepinted from ScienceDaily (July 13, 2010) — Don’t scoff at those lucky rabbit feet. New research shows that having some kind of lucky token can actually improve your performance -- by increasing your self-confidence.“I watch a lot of sports, and I read about sports, and I noticed that very often athletes -- also famous athletes -- hold superstitions,” says Lysann Damisch of the Uni-versity of Cologne. Michael Jor-dan wore his college team shorts underneath his NBA uniform for good luck; Tiger Woods wears a red shirt on tournament Sundays, usually the last and most impor-tant day of a tournament. “And I was wondering, why are they do-ing so?”Damisch thought that a belief in superstition might help people do better by improving their confidence. With her colleagues Barbara Stoberock and Thomas Mussweiler, also of the Universi-ty of Cologne, she designed a set of experiments to see if activat-ing people’s superstitious beliefs would improve their performance on a task.In one of the experiments, volun-teers were told to bring a lucky charm with them. Then the re-searchers took it away to take a picture. People brought in all kinds of items, from old stuffed animals to wedding rings to lucky stones. Half of the volunteers

were given their charm back before the test started; the other half were told there was a prob-lem with the camera equipment and they would get it back later. Volunteers who had their lucky charm did better at a memory game on the computer, and oth-er tests showed that this differ-ence was because they felt more confident. They also set higher goals for themselves. Just wish-ing someone good luck -- with “I press the thumbs for you,” the German version of crossing your fingers -- improved volunteers’ success at a task that required manual dexterity.The research is published in Psy-chological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychologi-cal ScienceOf course, even Michael Jordan lost basketball games sometimes. “It doesn’t mean you win, be-cause of course winning and los-ing is something else,” says Da-misch. “Maybe the other person is stronger.”

Reprinted from ScienceDaily (July 13, 2010) — Nicotine patches and gum are common -- and often ineffective -- ways of fighting cigarette cravings, as most smokers have discov-ered. Now a new study from Tel Aviv University shows why they’re ineffective, and may provide the basis for more suc-cessful psychologically-based smoking cessation programs.In the new study published in

the Journal of Abnormal Psy-chology, Dr. Reuven Dar of Tel Aviv University’s Depart-ment of Psychology found that the intensity of cravings for cigarettes had more to do with the psychosocial element of smoking than with the physi-ological effects of nicotine as an addictive chemical.“These findings might not

be popular with advocates of the nicotine addiction theory, because they undermine the physiological role of nicotine and emphasize mind over mat-ter when it comes to smoking,” Dr. Dar says. He hopes this research will help clinicians and health authorities develop more successful smoking ces-sation programs than those utilizing expensive nicotine patches or gum.Up in the airDr. Dar and his colleagues’

conclusions are based on two landmark studies. In the most recent study, he and his col-leagues monitored the smoking behavior and craving levels of in-flight attendants, both wom-en and men, who worked at the Israeli airline El Al. Each par-ticipant was monitored during two flights -- a long flight of 10 to 13 hours in duration, from Tel Aviv to New York, for ex-ample; and a two-hop shorter trip from Israel to Europe and back, each leg lasting three to five hours. Using a question-naire, he sampled craving lev-els of the attendants throughout the duration of their flights.Dr. Dar and his colleagues

found that the duration of the flight had no significant im-pact on craving levels, which were similar for short and long flights. Moreover, craving lev-els at the end of each short flight were much higher those at the end of the long flight, demonstrating that cravings

Smoking Mind Over Smoking Matter: Surprising New Study

Shows Cigarette Cravings Result from Habit, Not Addiction

increased in anticipation of the flight landing, whatever the flight’s total duration. He con-cluded that the craving effect is produced by psychological cues rather than by the physi-ological effects of nicotine de-privation.No smoking on the SabbathIn an earlier 2005 study, Dr.

Dar examined smokers who were religious Jews, forbid-den by their religion to smoke on the Sabbath. He asked them about their smoking cravings on three separate days: the Sab-bath, a regular weekday, and a weekday on which they’d been asked to abstain. Participants were interviewed at the end of each day about their craving levels during that day.What Dr. Dar found is that

cravings were very low on the morning of the Sabbath, when the smoker knew he would not be able to smoke for at least 10 hours. Craving levels gradu-ally increased at the end of the Sabbath, when participants an-ticipated the first post-Sabbath cigarette. Craving levels on the weekday on which these peo-ple smoked as much as they wanted were just as high as on the day they abstained, show-ing that craving has little to do with nicotine deprivation.Dr. Dar’s studies conclude

that nicotine is not addictive as physiological addictions are usually defined. While nicotine does have a physiological role in increasing cognitive abilities such as attention and memory, it’s not an addictive substance like heroin, which creates true systemic and biologically-based withdrawal symptoms in the body of the user, he says.Dr. Dar believes that people

who smoke do so for short-term benefits like oral gratifi-cation, sensory pleasure and social camaraderie. Once the habit is established, people continue to smoke in response to cues and in situations that become associated with smok-ing. Dr. Dar believes that un-derstanding smoking as a habit, not an addiction, will facilitate treatment. Smoking cessation techniques should emphasize the psychological and behav-ioral aspects of the habit and not the biological aspects, he suggests.


To:

From: Eugene De Leon

Herewith is proof of your classified ad for publication in the Asian Journal. Please proofread i t and fax back the correction if any or call us for your approval. The ad is tentatively scheduled to be published in the

issue of the Asian Journal if we receive your approval on time. At $4 per line

lines, it costs

$______.00 to be paid upon your receipt of the invoice and tear sheet. Thank you.

Fax #

If approved please sign and fax back to

(619) 474-0373

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Asian JournalFirst Asian Weekly Newspaper in Southern California & San Diego’s Most Widely Circulated Asian-Filipino Newspaper

550 East 8th Street, Suite 6, National City CA 91950 • Tel. (619) 474-0588 • Fax (619) 474-0373

07/16/10

L Escamilla

4x11x10440

CITY OF SAN DIEGOEngineering & Capital Projects Department

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALFOR

Coastal Rail Trail Project (H105180)

The City of San Diego (City) is requesting proposals from highly qualified civil engineering firms for consultant services for Coastal Rail Trail Project (H105180).

It is the policy of the City to provide equal opportunity in its civil engineering professional services contracts. Toward this end, proposals from small businesses, disabled owned businesses, women owned businesses, firms owned by African-Americans, American Indians, Asian-Americans, Filipinos, and Latinos, and local firms are strongly encouraged. Prime consultants are encouraged to subconsult or joint venture with these firms. The City endeavors to do business with firms sharing the City’s commitment to equal opportunity and will not do business with any firm that discriminates on the basis of race, religion, color, ancestry, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, medical condition or place of birth. This project has a voluntary Subcontracting Participation Level (SPL) goal of 20%. SPL goals are achieved by contracting with any combination of Minority Business En-terprises (MBE), Women Business Enterprises (WBE), Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE), Disabled Veteran Business Enterprises (DVBE) or Other Business Enterprises (OBE) at the prime or subcontractor level. Definitions of MBE, WBE, DBE, DVBE and OBE are contained in the Request for Proposals (RFP). Attainment of the SPL goal is strongly encouraged, but strictly voluntary.

UDBE/DBE REQUIREmENTSThroughout the duration of the contract, the City of San Diego and consultant shall comply with all the rules and regulations set forth by the State of California’s Local Assistance Program Guidelines. This project shall use federal grant funds and are subject to terms and conditions by state and federal guidelines. In addition the selected consultant shall adhere to state & federal DBE standards. The City of San Diego has determined that Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) can reasonably be expected to compete for the subcontract-ing opportunities in this project. The Contractor shall ensure that DBEs and other Small Businesses have the opportunity to participate in the performance of the work that is the subject of this solicitation. The total DBE Subcontractor Participation Level for this project is 4.0%. To work toward achieving this overall goal, the City has determined that the following goals shall apply to this project: 1.3% Underutilized DBE (UDBE) Race Conscious and 2.7% (DBE) Race Neutral.

The City of San Diego will ensure that full access to programs, services, meetings and activities comply with Section 504, Title V, of the Rehabilitation Act and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 1990, Public Law 101-336.

In-depth knowledge and a strong understanding of the local environment, and a local presence for interfacing with the City’s project management staff are essential to the successful completion of this project. The proposal must address the consultant’s knowledge and understanding of: the City and other local agencies regulations and policies; local environment; and local building codes and other design criteria. The proposal must also address how the consultant plans to interface with the City’s project management staff and the consultant’s workforce in San Diego County.

All proposals submitted must be in full accord with the Request for Proposal (RFP) which can be obtained by requesting it by email from John Mendivil, Consultant Services Coordinator, at [email protected] :

City of San Diego, Purchasing & Contracting DepartmentAttn: John Mendivil, Contracting Division1200 Third Avenue, Suite 200San Diego, CA 92101.

For questions about the RFP please call John Mendivil at (619) 235-5855. When requesting the RFP, please refer to the specific project title and contract number, Coastal Rail Trail Project (H105180).

A pre-proposal meeting will be held on Thursday, July 29, 2010, 10:00:00 AM, at Engineering & Capital Projects Department, Comerica Bank Building, 600 B Street, San Diego, CA 92101, Wada - Large Conference Room 8A. It is strongly recommended that all interested parties attend. For more information, assistance, to request an agenda in alternative format, or to request a sign language or oral interpreter for the meeting, please contact Nitsuh Aberra, at 619-533-4656 at least five working days prior to the meeting to ensure availability.

Proposals are due no later than 5:00 p.m. Friday, August 20, 2010, at the location stated in the RFP. This RFP does not commit the City to award a contract or to defray any costs incurred in the preparation of a proposal pursuant to this RFP. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals received as a result of this RFP. The City also reserves the right to revise this RFP, including but not limited to the preproposal con-ference date and the proposal due date. If the City revises the RFP, all RFP holders of record will be notified in writing by the City.

SUmmARY SCOPE OF SERvICESThe City of San Diego seeks a team of professional Consultants to complete the preliminary engineering and environmental documents (CEQA & NEPA), plans, specifications, estimates (PSE) and construction engineering (CE) support services for the Coastal Rail Trail (CRT) Project. The scope of services for this project will be completed in two phases. The first phase will consist of completing the preliminary engineering and environ-mental documents. The second phase will consist of plans,specifications and estimates (PS&E) and construc-tion engineering (CE) support services. The remainder of the Scope of Services is contained in the Request for Proposal for Coastal Rail Trail Project (H105180), as Exhibit A to the Draft Agreement.

To:




lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

__________________



07/16/10

D Snaith

Request for Proposals (RFP) 5001450 FInancIal advIsoRy seRvIces

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is soliciting Proposals from qualified firms to provide ongoing financial advisory services in relation to the expedited implementation of projects and programs funded through the TransNet ½ cent transportation sales tax program, as well as other projects and programs funded by local, state, and federal monies. Proposals are due by 12 noon on August 23, 2010.

A pre-proposal meeting will be held on July 22, 2010, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. in SANDAG’s Board Room.

A copy of the RFP can be accessed from the SANDAG Web site at www.sandag.org/contracts or by contacting Alexia Spivey at SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101, (619) 699-1984, or e-mail [email protected].

Request for Qualifications (RFQ) #5001453legal counsel

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is seeking Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) from qualified law firms to provide legal services for the financing and development of State Route 11 (SR 11) and the Otay Mesa East (OME) Port of Entry (POE), including any related facilities or roadways (“Project”), on an as-needed, case-by-case, or matter-by-matter basis on behalf of SANDAG.

A pre-SOQ meeting will be held on July 21, 2010, at 9 a.m. Attendance at the pre-proposal meeting is not man-datory.

A copy of the RFQ can be accessed from the SANDAG Web site at www.sandag.org/rfps or by contacting Alexia Spivey at SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101, (619) 699-1984, or e-mail at [email protected]. Statements of Qualifications are due by 12 p.m. on August 24, 2010.

2x4x10 = 80

2x4x10 = 80

2 ad total of 160

To:




lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

__________________



07/16/10

D Snaith

Request for Proposals (RFP) 5001450 FInancIal advIsoRy seRvIces

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is soliciting Proposals from qualified firms to provide ongoing financial advisory services in relation to the expedited implementation of projects and programs funded through the TransNet ½ cent transportation sales tax program, as well as other projects and programs funded by local, state, and federal monies. Proposals are due by 12 noon on August 23, 2010.

A pre-proposal meeting will be held on July 22, 2010, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. in SANDAG’s Board Room.

A copy of the RFP can be accessed from the SANDAG Web site at www.sandag.org/contracts or by contacting Alexia Spivey at SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101, (619) 699-1984, or e-mail [email protected].

Request for Qualifications (RFQ) #5001453legal counsel

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is seeking Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) from qualified law firms to provide legal services for the financing and development of State Route 11 (SR 11) and the Otay Mesa East (OME) Port of Entry (POE), including any related facilities or roadways (“Project”), on an as-needed, case-by-case, or matter-by-matter basis on behalf of SANDAG.

A pre-SOQ meeting will be held on July 21, 2010, at 9 a.m. Attendance at the pre-proposal meeting is not man-datory.

A copy of the RFQ can be accessed from the SANDAG Web site at www.sandag.org/rfps or by contacting Alexia Spivey at SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101, (619) 699-1984, or e-mail at [email protected]. Statements of Qualifications are due by 12 p.m. on August 24, 2010.

2x4x10 = 80

2x4x10 = 80

2 ad total of 160

To:




lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

__________________



07/16/10

P. Griffith.

3x4x10120

Notice of Intent to Adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) as Lead Agency pursuant to the California Environ-mental Quality Act intends to adopt a mitigated negative declaration (MND) for the San Ysidro Freight Rail Yard Improvement Project located along the SD&AE railroad line in the southeast portion of the City of San Diego community of San Ysidro. The 59-acre project site is located southeast of Interstate 805, north of the United States (U.S.)-Mexico border, and east of East Beyer Boulevard. The draft MND, Initial Study, and supporting documents may be reviewed or obtained at SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101. The documents can also be viewed on SANDAG’s Web site at www.sandag.org/notices. The public review period starts on July 13, 2010, and ends on August 11, 2010. Written comments on the ad-equacy of this MND must be received by SANDAG at the address below by August 11, 2010. Please send your comments to Rob Rundle, SANDAG, 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101 or via e-mail to [email protected]. Please include the name of a contact person. Date: July 8, 2010

Rooms for RentNo Smoking, No Drugs . In a quiet

residential neighborhood of National City. Call 619.656.0409

Classified AdsChief Cook

Functions include Recipe Development, Menu Planning, Kitchen Management,

Raw Material Purchasing, Quality Control, Experience in Commercial Kitchen and

knowledge in FilipinoCuisine; Locations in National City or

TemeculaFull-time position with benefits are

available. No weekends off.Please fax your resume to 888-841-1662 or

contact Nora at 619-477-7071

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lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

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07/02/10

B Jones

3x4x10120

City of San DiegoDraft San Diego Regional Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice

Under Title 1 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, The City of San Diego invites citizens to participate in the preparation of the San Diego Regional Analysis of Impediments to Fair Hous-ing Choice (AI). The AI is an analysis that represents conclusions about impediments to fair housing choice, as well as actions necessary to address any identified impediments.

Notice is hereby given that the AI is available for a 30-day public review from July 1, 2010 through July 30, 2010. The purpose of the review is to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on the analysis, conclusions on impediments to fair housing choice and solutions to mitigate or remove such impediments.

The draft document will be available in the reference section of all City of San Diego libraries and at the CDBG Program office located at 1200 Third Avenue, Suite 1400, San Diego, CA 92101. The plan will also be available for review on the City’s CDBG Program website (www.sandiego.gov/cdbg/general/) and the Housing Commis-sion’s website (www.sdhc.org.).

A schedule of community meetings in which the draft AI will be presented is listed in the City’s CDBG Program website. Public comments may be provided at these meetings or can be submitted in writing to the CDBG Pro-gram office in person, via mail, or via e-mail ([email protected]). All information and updates regarding this process will be posted on the City’s CDBG website.

Physics Program Director: Send resume to Magnolia Educational & Research

Foundation 555 W. Redondo Beach Blvd. Ste. 100, Gardena, CA 90248.

Job located in San Diego.

To:




lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

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07/16/10

440

T Pinones

11x4x10

Project Scheduler

The Project Scheduler will provide technical support for the development and maintenance of schedules for numerous capital transportation projects and will assist with maintaining various scheduling systems designed to ensure the successful and timely delivery of projects. Qualifications: High school diploma, or equivalent, two years of relevant college coursework and one year of experience supporting project scheduling functions. SANDAG offers competitive salaries and benefits. Visit www.sandag.org/jobs or call (619) 699-1900 for infor-mation. Open until filled. EOE.

Senior Project Scheduler

The Senior Project Scheduler will oversee the development of numerous project schedules and be responsible for maintaining various scheduling systems for timely delivery of capital transportation projects. Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree with major course work in civil, structural, or transportation engineering, or a related field and five years experience scheduling services for transportation infrastructure projects. SANDAG offers competitive salaries and benefits. Visit www.sandag.org/jobs or call (619) 699-1900 for information. Closes: July 30, 2010. EOE.

1x4x10 = 40

1x4x10 = 40

2 ads total = 80

To:




lines, it costs


Fax #


(619) 474-0373

__________________



07/16/10

440

T Pinones

11x4x10

Project Scheduler

The Project Scheduler will provide technical support for the development and maintenance of schedules for numerous capital transportation projects and will assist with maintaining various scheduling systems designed to ensure the successful and timely delivery of projects. Qualifications: High school diploma, or equivalent, two years of relevant college coursework and one year of experience supporting project scheduling functions. SANDAG offers competitive salaries and benefits. Visit www.sandag.org/jobs or call (619) 699-1900 for infor-mation. Open until filled. EOE.

Senior Project Scheduler

The Senior Project Scheduler will oversee the development of numerous project schedules and be responsible for maintaining various scheduling systems for timely delivery of capital transportation projects. Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree with major course work in civil, structural, or transportation engineering, or a related field and five years experience scheduling services for transportation infrastructure projects. SANDAG offers competitive salaries and benefits. Visit www.sandag.org/jobs or call (619) 699-1900 for information. Closes: July 30, 2010. EOE.

1x4x10 = 40

1x4x10 = 40

2 ads total = 80

man gani ang atun mga hit-sura nag iba man. Ang acun lamang na obserbar sa acun pagbalikbalik rogya, amo dia -- the exuberance of the spirit of the people that suggest a sense of well-being and good-will, an aura of open hearted-ness of people, the sense of boyloganay appears apparent. Now, speaking of boylo-ganay, this is a subject nga amun napagdiscussan sa mga exchanges of emails through

From Antique to America:

Memoirs of a Filipino American DoctorGoing home to

Pandan, Antique(Continued from page 19)

the internet cang mga Pan-dananuns here and abroad. Ang pagboyloganay isara ca importante nga butang cag ki-nahanglanun cang kada isara kanatun. Ang gusto co ham-balun nga and isa ca hiriko-ton, how simple it is, con owa it pagboyloganay, daw mal-isud nga pagahimo-on. Bilang mato-od nga Filipino, bilang mato-od nga Pandananon nga may pagka balaka sa kada isara, kita gid magbino-ligay sa tanan nga oras. Let me remind you that communi-ties, towns and nations are the result of combined efforts and skills of people with hope and visions. Dapat gid nga kita nga mga taga Pandan, indi magin hakug sa pagdarawat sang atun talento, pagkama-aram kag tinun-an. Kay and

ispirito tang pagbinoligay kag pag-orogyon, amo gid ang makata-0, makpabaskug, cag makapa-uswag cang atun banwa cag organisasyon. Kita mag-urogyon, kay sa pagurogyon, may kabas-cug cag makagiya kanatun para kita maka-abot sa atun pag-agtonan cag ang mga plano madali ma realizar. Ang kosog, ara sa pagbino-ligay . Mahimo lamang dia con ang atun panan-aw sa para-abotun, isara lamang -- owat iba condi ang kara-aydan cang tanan. Certainly, one of the ringing challenges that modern-day society faces is to foster harmony among its members for, without it, it would be impossible to achieve anything for the com-mon good.

(Continued next issue)

(About the author: Dr. Cesar D. Candari, a native of Pandan, Antique in the Philippines was a long time resident and medical prac-

titioner of San Diego County where he was an active com-munity leader, having been one of the three Filipino American doctors who found-ed Operation Samahan and its medical clinic. He had served in various capacities as officer of different professional, civic and community organizations. He is now retired and living in Henderson, Nevada..)

(Read previous installments of this memoir in www.asian-journalusa.com)

asian journal july 16-22, 2010

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