We Want In on the Action!

The Danish toons were published months ago, but certain European newspapers republishing them has caused a world-wide spark of varying reactions. In the age of Internet, something this big, involving transnationally-shared values, cannot die down before it has made the tour of the globe.

Not to be outdone, Filipino-Muslims have joined the fray. The Inquirer writes:

MUSLIM outrage over controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad reached Makati City’s business district yesterday morning.

Some 600 men, women and teenagers from various Islamic communities in Metro Manila demonstrated in front of the PBCom Tower on Ayala Avenue, which houses the Royal Danish consulate.

The hour-long protest action included the burning of a Danish flag. But like two earlier protest actions elsewhere in the metropolis, the Makati rally ended peacefully.

Pinay Named UN Global Security and Disarmament Adviser

Congratulations are in order for my former prof, Carol Hernandez. Azteeeeegers :)

Breaking news from the Inquirer:

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines professor Carolina Hernandez has been invited to sit in the body advising the United Nations secretary general on global security and disarmament.

Hernandez, the political science professor who helped investigate the December 1989 coup and the July 2003 Oakwood mutiny, was appointed for a renewable two-year term, according to a letter sent Jan. 20 by UN Secretary General Kofi Anan.

The 64-year-old Hernandez said she has accepted the appointment.

"I am both flattered and intimidated by the appointment," she said.

Hernandez will fly to New York to formally accept the appointment and be introduced at the opening of a three-day session of the Advisory Board for Disarmament Matters this month.

As a member of the 22-person advisory board, Hernandez will advise Anan on arms limitation and disarmament and serve the board of trustees of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research.

The board meets twice a year for a three-day session each in New York and Geneva.

Hernandez is joining the UN body in a private capacity, not as a government representative. It is a non-paying job, but the UN takes care of transport and hotel expenses.

Anan's letter did not say how Hernandez came to be chosen. It said the advisory board was composed of "high-level personalities with knowledge and expertise in the field of disarmament and international security, drawn from governmental and non-governmental circles around the world."

Hernandez graduated cum laude with a degree in foreign relations from the UP.

She studied political philosophy at the Duke University in North Carolina and also pursued advanced studies at the State University of New York in Buffalo.

There, she wrote a paper on civil-military relations in the Philippines and its implications for the country's political development, which found its way into the hands of martyred opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. who was then living in exile in Boston. Aquino flew to San Francisco, California, in April 1983 to meet Hernandez.

Aquino cited Hernandez's paper when he reported on the atrocities of the Marcos regime before the US congressional committee headed by Democratic Representative Stephen Solarz.

Dying To Play

I googled "dead game show stampede" and got 3 full pages of news items from around the world. The tragic story this morning was newsworthy enough for CBS, CNN and Reuters. Where in the world do people die to play a fucking game show? In the Philippines.

Because poverty is so ingrained and inescapable, people think a TV game show will rescue them from their misery. And what irks me the most is, the Lopezes are making money out of this desperation. And they're raising water costs for worsening service. I know because I'm unfortunate enough to live on the Maynilad zone instead of Manila Water and we've had pieces of shit literally flowing from our faucets for the last year and a half. And they have the gall to raise power rates to pass onto consumers the costs of their inept management. I often wonder if this family has had a lot of death threats lately. It certainly isn't difficult to imagine.

Dialektik

Tesis

Isinilang na kamalayan sa kanduangan ng pamantasan
Blangkong papel na nagtaglay ng sari-saring tala
Mayroong dagliang nalimot at agad na inayunan
Mayroong naglaon, lumawig, nawala.

Murang kamalayang umusbong at lumago
Sa pagitan ng mga guro't kamag-aral
Sa kalagitnaan ng katotohanang lumulukob
Lumuluob at nananatili sa apat na sulok

Ang kamalaya'y nasagi ng mga katanungan
Pilit nag-usisa ukol sa mundong umiinog
Ano'ng aking pagkatao? Bakit ako'y ako
Sa daigdig na naghihintay na ako'y lamunin?

Antitesis

Mula sa mga katanunga'y naglaro ang agam-agam
Lito, ako'y ako ngunit hindi.
And diwa'y isang buhay na bagay,
Hiwalay sa magulang, sa kamag-anakan,
Sa mga kalaro't kaibigan.
Hiwalay sa akin, sa aking kapaligiran.

At dahil ako'y hati sa dalawa, ninais ng aking malay
Na sa mundo'y pumalibot, maglakbay.
Nagmasid at nalunod sa lawak ng daigdig.
Anong saya at ligalig ang dinulot ng kalayaan.
Itinangi ng aking kabataan ang ganitong paglalayag.
Lahat ay maaari pagkat gising ang malay.

Sintesis

Ngunit ang diwa'y muling magbabalik
Sa kanlungan ng katawan
Pagkat kailangan nitong mamalagi sa ugat
Upang mabuhay.
Anong sakit at pait ang pilitang panunumbalik
Ang malay ay tumatangis na muling sasanib sa katawan
At doo'y magmumuni-muni, maninibago
Sa bigat.

Susubukin ang layong kaya nitong buhatin ang pasanin
Na s'ya namang manlalaban.
Ang tunggaliang ito'y mapait ngunit kailangan.
At sa kalaunan, sa katagalan ang dalawa'y magpapang-abot rin.
At mag-iisa. At magniniig.
Isang gising na malay sa natutulog na daigdig.
Sana.

Pinoy Wins Digital Canvas Awards

My friend muffin won the Digital Canvas Awards, the wordlwide adobe photoshop competition. It is the first competition of its kind, pitting all users of photoshop, at any level, around the world. He must've bested tens of thousands of entries.

Aside from $2,500 worth of prizes, Muff muff will be sent by Photoshop User magazine on a dream assignment to Paris, France. The magazine is providing roundtrip airfare, hotel accommodations, hotel transfers, and daily expenses for the winner, and an assistant of their choice, for this world-class assignment.

They’ll be on assignment for five days as they design the artwork for a cover of Photoshop User magazine.

Talented mofo. And he can't spell worth shit :)

Podcast 4: Manila Driving

Follies of driving in Manila. Click here!

An "Ugly American" Tries Jollibee

An interesting link I found through KapeniLatteX. Pamie writes:

We came up with a plan. Each of us would order something adventurous (but not as adventurous as the Burger Steak) and if everything we ordered was terrible we'd come back and order the one-dollar Yumburger. Couldn't go wrong.

We were wrong.

I ordered the spaghetti and fried chicken meal with a banana langka pie and headed back to a table. Stee followed.

"Holy cow, that stuff smells funny," he said. "Can I look at it?"

I got all superior here and scolded, "You are going to have to be a little cooler, okay? Everybody else here is eating the food and enjoying themselves. We can't be complete assholes. How are we ever going to be able to travel?"

stee didn't seem to hear me, because he was staring at the spaghetti. "Don't eat that. Oh, look at that! Dude. There's hot dogs in your spaghetti. And cheddar cheese. And chunks of... what is that?"

I felt my stomach wiggle, just a little. "Ham."

"Ham!"

And even more interesting are the comments her readers post here.

Some scathing reactions:

bluepaolo:

I love Jollibee for what it represents. It’s not for you. It’s for Filipinos. You have to understand that Filipinos generally love everything culturally American. The long lines at McDonald’s in the Philippines where a poor family will spend a week’s wages as a special treat for their kids is simultaneously both amazingly great and sad to me. Other Asians and Asian Americans routinely slam and denigrate Filipinos as being sort of like ‘uncle tom’ Asians. Their problem, not ours. I love the fact that we take both eastern and western cultures and make it our own.

Jollibee, to me, is a step forward. It’s Filipinos saying, “hey, we love the whole idea of American fast food, but we don’t really like the taste - let’s reinvent it for ourselves” It’s not for you.

krasnaya:

Jollibee is VERY POPULAR among Filipinos. It is SO POPULAR in the Philippines that McDonalds had to revise it's menu to compete with Jollibee. Do you know that in the Philippines you can order spaghetti (not much different from Jollibee's product), fried chicken and some rice meals from McDo? Yup, even the highest in the international totem pole of fast foods know that it cannot argue with nationalistic taste buds.

sweet_angel:

I am a Filipino based in the UK. How I came across your website, I have no idea! Reading your 'adventure' in Filipinoland was a bit to read. And you're true in saying that you've been utterly rude. But then again, whatever you say about Jollibee, it will always be a popular and well-loved food chain for us, the Filipinos. I miss it so much, however yucky you think their food is :)). And definitely will visit it on my next trip to the Philippines, with my British husband, of course (he loves Jollibee's 'Champ' and 'peach-mango pie'!).

sydney:

I think that everything you and your friends did was offensive, horribly provincial, and in excruciatingly poor taste. It does not speak well of your proudly (I presume) Texas education—or any level of education at all for that matter, to make fun of food. At least not when world hunger persists!!

sambri:

I think that some of the anger on this forum is misdirected. This isn't a case of American Imperialism, nor is it a case of intentional disrespect for a cuture. Pamie and her friends were simply surprised by their dislike for this version of Filipino food. As she had mentioned before, she had Filipino food before and she liked it, so who knew?

banana_republic:

pamie, just to let you know that not all Filipinos are troglodytes whose world is centered on Jollibee and would like to create an international incident over crappy fast food. Apparently a lot of them were able to escape the guys in white and got access to a computer; we will try not to let that happen again.

Please forgive them, it's either their mothers dropped them on their head in infancy or maybe their parents were first cousins.

XxX:

to the filipinos,
kayo naman o, alam niyo na nga na tanga, pinatulan niyo pa. tama na. wag na tayong bumaba sa level nila. alam naman natin kung sinong nasa tama. wag na kayong pumalag. sila ang may atraso, may araw din na may manglalait sa mga mabababang uri na katulad nila. ty mga pre.

Lesson learned? It would serve any foreigner well to do a bit of research before they write about anything Filipino because:

1. Most of us speak and write English (at least) passably well. We will read and understand what you write and will be more than willing to retaliate.

2. Even if auto-lambasting is our national sport, we take exception to other people telling us what we already know ourselves.

3. Filipinos will kill for Jollibee.

Oh, and keep reading the posts on the forum. Its fucking hilarious :)

"Big Time" Reviewed

I'm sure I would've plenty liked this movie if I didn't have Maxi to compare it to (geddemit, am I doing my English prepositions right?). It was funny enough, entertaining for an hour and half. You won't walk out of the cineplex feeling robbed exactly, but you won't come out feeling like you've seen something that means anything either.

Inspired by funny crime capers à la Tarantino or Ritchie, Big Time follows the machinations of small-time and big-time criminals in Manila. It is doesn't show anything particularly original but the dialogue is full of Pinoy pop culture in-jokes. It is technically well-made and creative and the actors' performances are also laudable.

My beef is, Big Time doesn't say anything about anything. The belated "meaningful insights" at the end felt suspiciously contrived as though an after-thought. This kind of story seems watchable and "apt" in a differet social context (London in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Las Vegas in Ocean's 11, or wherever Reservoir Dogs was set). In the well-ordered universe of first world capitals, criminal activities made funny are so novel and improbable they are rendered humorous. But in a third world setting where we all cope with the kinds of shit we see in this film, what is left to "shock" us into laughing?

I hope this trend of empty-yet-cool-flashy indiemovies doesn't continue. Or I'm getting pissed off big time.

I Want Me Some Decent Gay Sex

With a title like "Brokeback" Mountain I was expecting a healthy amount of rough, decent, homoerotic sex. I was sorely disappointed on the sex part, but extremely satisfied on all other aspects of the movie. I loved this film, and not just because I was gay in the past life. It's so good I saw it twice in a row. And I've never done that. Watch it.

I found a link to Annie Proulx's short story on the web. Click here.

Discomfort in their Strangeness

There are plenty of weirdos in the school where I teach. Every semester, I always have a handful. Yesterday, after speaking to one of them for about half an hour, I realized there was something weird about their weirdness. It wasn't "cool."

In the school where I come from, weirdness is normal. It's expected, it's even encouraged. If you're not a little bizaare, you're out of place. You're burgis, you're uptight, you're uncool.

I figure, the reason why weirdness is weird in this school is because its repressed and oppressed. Its frowned upon. Students and faculty are supposed to conduct themselves in a certain way. It's as if there were an invisible line one has to follow. Should one stray from such demarcation, one can expect to be whipped back in line. No wonder I feel as though I'm losing my energy, my chakra, my creative and intellectual juices. Maybe it's time for a change.

Podcasts 2 and 3

Please click on the link to {sparks_podcasting} for my latest podcasts. Enjoy :)

Feedburning Wha'???

Manuel has been kind enough to instruct me on the intricate details of feedburning. I still don't quite know how it works, but hey, check out my podcast blog. New podcasts coming soon :)

Five Weird Things About Me

Brad Spangler has tagged me to bare even more of myself to my adoring public. Yikes.

1. I wore teeth braces until I was 22. I used to brush at least 5 times a day at the time. Weird? No. Practical? Yes.

2. I firmly believe I was a homosexual African male minding my own business in my own little turf somewhere in Western Africa when a bunch of extremely pale marauders stole me and my young, able body to be sold in slavery. It is even weirder that a gay-looking African male is sitting right next to me in this internet cafe.

3. I fantasize about robbing bookstores and beauty stores on my spare time. I do this in great detail: what I'll be wearing, my get-away vehicle, scouting which items to go for before doing the deed and how best to cover my tracks.

4. I think I'm kinder and less mean than most people I meet, but I have absolutely no doubt that I am perfectly capable of committing murder, and relish it, when provoked.

5. I am able to bend my right hand's pinky finger at a 90 degree angle without my other fingers moving.

So there. Have you been sufficiently weirded out yet?

Podcasting!!!!!

I thought I'd give it a try. You will need a fast connection to download this file. Dial-up connections will take a looooong time.

It's biggish (7.8 MB), but its 8 minutes of pure bliss I promise you. Totally worth your time :)

Click here and be blown away.

Hopeful New Year

Three Christmases and New Years have passed, and still my Mom's sadness is palpable, an undertone of sorrow carefully disguised in the bustle of making merry. The ghost of my father still lingers, but each year it gets better. Tonight she didn't sleep away the sadness, the conspicuous absence. She got a haircut I noticed, and she wore red and we were all awake when the whole neighborhood exploded in sounds and lights. Holidays are still forced, but as the years go by, I pray his memory will no longer bring sadness and regret. When he fades away in her memory, I hope it leaves only thoughts of when it was good.

Happy New Year everyone.