Inquirer.net has just released two satellite photos of typhoon-ravaged Tacloban City, Leyte which they obtained from Astrium Services. One photo show a view of part of the city on 7 March 2013, or just a few weeks before this year’s summer, juxtaposed with a view of the same area taken on 13 November 13 2013, or five days after super typhoon Yolanda cut a damaging swath through Filipinas Central. Click here to view the images.
I live in the web. I feel compelled to write about this issue…
Several weeks ago, I got heroically delusional by attempting to battle local pornography access in the Philippines (yeah go ahead; call me St. Pepe, the patron saint of sinners). And I did just that by launching a blog which I pompously entitled as the Philippine Online Movement Against Pornography. Ironically, as a person who supports freedom of expression and of the press (i.e., “online press”), I was somehow inspired by certain countries’ lordship over the internet. In China, for instance, Facebook is inaccessible. North Korea practices the same kind of censorship towards particular websites that its government deems to be pro-South Korea.
And I remember a few years ago from my Dubai-based friend Weirdonextdoor that she could not access my Spanish blog from there! I wonder what legal or perhaps moral issues blogger.com (my Spanish website’s host) may have with the UAE’s top honchos. However, I’m not really sure now if blogger.com is still banned from that Middle Eastern country.
But my point back then is this: if governments can block websites from being visited by its citizens, then why couldn’t our own do the same with porn sites? I thought it was a splendid idea.
Now, I am not about to discuss my moral standpoint regarding pornography (that would be for another blogpost). The issue right now is internet censorship. During those days that I was toying around with this anti-porn blog inside my “saintly head”, I naively thought that I’d do my country (and my faith) a great service. Little did I know that I might conveniently harm this wonderful man-made universe called the internet. Let me expound.
When fellow Filipinistas Señor Guillermo Gómez and Arnaldo Arnáiz learned about my new blog, I was surprised that they didn’t support it. Worse, they were even vehemently against it. I was dazed and disappointed. I didn’t understand from the onset what they really meant. For Señor Gómez, it was a total waste of effort. He cautioned me that it will only take away what little time I already have for our online advocacy, which is to defend and ennoble the Filipino National Identity. Arnaldo shares the same view, but he added more syllogisms and deductions to Señor‘s preoccupations…
Internet censorship is something that simply shouldn’t be. Difficult to accept/understand, yet easy to be left behind. In the internet, one can do virtually anything his mind wishes. One can satiate the desires and pleasures of the mind by visiting a preferred website: a site about books, automobiles, social networking, blogs about local insects, heritage conservation websites, stuff about communism, money-making tips online, and yes, pornography. Truly, the internet has become a global vegetable bowl wherein everyone can participate in the feasting, and that no one is shunned from doing so. But if you do not want the ingredients, then you have the option not to partake of the feast. It is really all up to you.
And in the internet, one is able to showcase perhaps one of God’s most puzzling and oft misunderstood “gifts”: freewill. In real life, we always use it without realizing that we have already decided on something. But the internet actually makes you realize that you should decide, for many different reasons, whether or not you should visit a particular site. Pornography is the best example. One might laugh off those “before-entering-click-yes-if-you’re-over-18” disclaimer because virtually any pimply teenager straight out of puberty can visit the site. There’s no physical internet police to guard each and every netizen regarding what site should be visited in accordance to one’s moral laws and ethics. And so that’s where freewill comes in. And not only that but the intellect as well.
The intellect. It was the main reason why the late great Nick Joaquín, sitting as a member of the Board of Censors for Motion Pictures during the 1960s, refused to cut nor ban controversial films because he believed in the intelligence and good sense of moviegoers. That is why former Senator Tito Sotto received a lot of flak during the mid 90s when, using his senatorial powers, he tried to censor several local and foreign rock bands (Eraserheads, Yano, Slayer, etc.) due to what he described as disturbing lyrics. Remember the memorable Eraserheads song Alapaap? Sotto tried to read between the lines of the song’s lyrics and decided that it was about a cracked-up junkie with notions of flight due to a meth high. But whether or not Sotto’s poetic intrusions are true (only the E-heads know for sure), the youth back then were not convinced by the song’s popularity, nay, lyrics to visit the nearest underground pharmacy. Actually, no song from hell ever convinced anyone to steal his dad’s gun and fire at his physics teacher. I should know; I belong to that generation when the E-heads gave us Ligaya (happiness).
In view of the foregoing, the key here is trust. Censors should refrain from being cynical about the public’s intellect. They always put the blame on the performer, on the medium. They should realize that the audience, the receptors, are not always stupid, are no longer stupid, especially in today’s age when ignorance is fast becoming obsolete. And we have the internet to thank for.
But the problem that the internet community all over the world —and not just in the US— is facing right now is not about internet censorship due to morality issues. Reportedly, the main target of the internet censors in the US Congress and the Senate is the alleged mercantilist threat towards the music industry as well as property rights. I’m talking about…
SOPA and PIPA
Today (Manila time), several big-name websites are blacked out in protest of these two controversial US bills that are pending legislation; its legislation will have a profound effect on the future of cyberspace. FILIPINO eSCRIBBLES is no big-name website (I’m ready to moon at the first one who readily agrees), but I blacked it out nonetheless to join the protest. Because this is not just a problem among the netizens of the United States of America. It will soon be a global threat once the US House of Congress’ “Stop Online Piracy Act” (SOPA) and its US Senate companion bill, the Protect IP Act” (PIPA), are passed into law.
The purpose of these bills is to make it difficult, if not impossible, for websites —especially those located outside the USA— to sell or distribute pirated copyrighted material such as movies and music as well as physical goods like counterfeit purses, shirts, watches, etc. At first glance, you might think that the objectives of these bills are good. Perhaps they really are. The problem is they were not well thought of. And it should be noted that most of SOPA and PIPA’s strongest critics applaud the intentions of the legislation WHILE AT THE SAME TIME deploring what it might actually accomplish.
And what might that be?
Censorship, of course. It’s because the SOPA and the PIPA will definitely set a precedent in future internet censorship legislation. As wisely stated in Wikipedia (a vehement opponent of the said bills), the “SOPA and PIPA (will) build a framework for future restrictions and suppression”.
If SOPA and PIPA succeeds, there is a big chance that my blogs (and virtually anybody else’s blog) will be silenced in the near future on the grounds that, for instance, these websites are extremely anti-US and (‘gasp’) anti-“ABAKADA PINOY”, and that they might endanger the teaching of Philippine History, etc. Yes, it could get that worse (and I thought only Filipino legislators are stupid). And sooner or later, morality issues will come into play. And we’re not even talking about politics and religion yet.
Censorship is not always good. I’m wondering now if censorship could be another reason why Filipinos during the final years of Spanish rule were very rebellious. Think of Rizal and del Pilar and Jaena. All were good Catholics but they readily rebelled against the status quo. Is it a result of “centuries of living inside a convent”? The Catholic Church during those times was twice or thrice as strict as they are nowadays. One couldn’t simply read a book from another country for it might be listed under the Index of Forbidden books. Even the teaching of Spanish was stifled because the friars feared that when the natives learned the language, they will easily take hold of Masonic ideas that the Church abhorred for centuries. Spanish was fast becoming a vehicle of Freemasons in Europe, that is why the friars never preferred the natives to speak the language. Therefore, when the more liberal white guys from North America invaded us, our top leaders who were against Spain easily joined them. Could it be something psychological in our genes which we inherited from our ancestors during the turn of the last century that has made us allergic whenever we hear the word “censorship” nowadays?
Admittedly, the polemic discussion of censorship is still something that I do not fully understand. It has its good points as it has its bad ones because there are so many arguments to hear from both anti- and pro- groups, both of which can be passed as valid. And I still have my reservations for and against censorship. But what I know is this: if your right to be heard (and to be creative) has been stifled and jeopardized, then that is fundamentally wrong and unjust. Freewill is “divine”. Therefore, it should be accepted, if not respected. God will never stop you from liking my blogs’ Facebook fan pages. So why allow mere men to do so?
And what about the fate of the Philippine Online Movement Against Pornography? Forget it. If you suddenly feel like you want to see María Ozawa in action, then it’s all up to your intellect and sound judgment to decide whether or not it’s a good idea. Other than that, I already forgot my login credentials. So it’s no use even if I change my mind about what I think now of censorship. 😀
Because of several online accounts that I have (not to mention Facebook eating up most of my online time), I hardly check my emails nowadays. That is why when I opened them up yesterday morning, I was in for a big surprise:
I didn’t even know I was nominated, LOL! Yeah. LOL. But this time around I didn’t get to have the last laugh.
Another LOL to that.
This blog, FILIPINO eSCRIBBLES, was nominated for “Society, Politics, and History” category.
My other blog ALAS FILIPINAS, on the other hand, was nominated for two categories: “Filipiniana” and “Bloggers’ Choice”
I was elated and disappointed at the same time. My blogs made it to the finals, but lost. On a lighter note, being nominated in The Philippine Blog Awards is already a huge feat. What more if your blog is chosen as a Finalist? Truly, it’s a great honor. And I thank the organizers of this annual event for having given my blogs a chance to shine even for just a brief moment.
Too bad my wife and I weren’t able to attend the ceremonies. Lesson learned: always check your emails everyday because we’re now living on a fast-paced online world.
Congratulations to this year’s winners! More power to Filipino blogging, the new journalism!
It’s official: starting today, my age is no longer included in the calendar…
Boo!
Whatever.
Anyways, welcome to the new and improved FILIPINO eSCRIBBLES!
Yehey! (clap! clap! clap! clap!)
So, as a shameless birthday gift to my fabulous self, I have decided to change the theme of my blog. The WordPress theme/design that you now see is called Liquorice. True to the themes’ stated deliverables, Liquorice waxes a bit “poetical” with its nostalgic light “sand-brown” mood with a clean motiff, thus making the text easy to read. The pictures appear bigger and the captions are no longer stressed. Even quoted texts appear to have a life of their own.
But wait! There’s more!
Not only have I changed the design of this blog. I also had the header personalized!
The header is designed by blogger and fellow hispanista David Salcedo Sánchez of Ciudad de Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental.
Due to a sorry lack of technological know-how, I initially commissioned my best friend Arnaldo Arnáiz of WITH ONE’S PAST to make one for me. For those of you who may not know yet, Arnaldo was the one who designed the banner of my other blog, ALAS FILIPINAS, more than three years ago. He did make a header for FILIPINO eSCRIBBLES. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to finish it due to his busy schedule. And since I made today —my thirty-second birthday and this blog’s second anniversary— as my self-imposed schedule (told ya: I’m so finicky with special dates), I thought it best to seek David’s assistance whose header in his own blog FILIPINAS ¡QUÉ HERMOSA ERES! is as impressive and creative as it can be!
The images that David used for this blog’s header are a combination of Spanish and indigenous images. Truth be told, these icons are just perfect for my blog’s chosen theme: Philippine Identity and History (or —like what I always brag— true Philippine History). The mixture of Spanish and indigenous cultures is what makes up our identity as Filipinos.
David is but one of a handful of young Filipinos today who had take off the blindfold of ignorance. This is what he has to say regarding our national identity:
Indigenous Culture + Spanish Culture = Hispanic
In the case of our country:
Malay/Indigenous Culture + Spanish Culture = Hispanic Filipino/Filipino Culture
Sample:
La mano = The hand
PagLAMANOhay = to shake hands with
In Latin America:
Aztec, Mayan, Incan, Moche, Taino, Arawak etc. (Indigenous Culture) + Spanish Culture = Hispanic
Mexicans are as hispanic as Venezuelans, Argentines, Puerto Ricans, Ecuadorians, Peruvians, Guatemalans, Cubans etc. Hispanic as Filipinos? Yes! =p
Although Hispanicity was also derived from something Spanish, it’s a different identity.
So with whom you share culture & history with?
Being mestizo is not something bound with genes alone. Our country is mestizo. Our culture and history is mestizo. It’s not only in our languages but it’s almost everywhere! Why hate that part? It made it whole after all.
It’s really that simple. At di dapat icagalit ni icahiyâ ang parteng yaón ng ating nacaraán. 🙂
In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you (conti lang namán cayó, eh, ¡hehehe!) who regularly visit this humble site of mine. I want all of you to know that I do read all of your comments, and sorry if I’m unable to answer all of them; I’m a second-rate, trying-hard married historian with four kids to feed and raise, thus my day usually ends with drained and saturated energy. But I am hoping to one day buy my whole time from capitalist enslavement in order for me to write full-time.
My apologies, too, if sometimes I sound too cranky and proud on some of my replies. I’m trying my best to avoid it. It is unnecessary and unfriendly, I know.
Once more, thank you for the visits, the comments, and the criticisms. May God bless us all!
When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. —Paulo Coelho—
World Wrestling Entertainment Hall of Famer Bret “The Hitman” Hart‘s saga is truly an admirable case. Years after the Montreal Screwjob courtesy of WWE owner Vince McMahon, he’s now back in ring action much to the delight of pro-wrestling fans. And he has buried the hatchet, too, with his on-screen and real-life rival, “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels. Bret has learned to forgive and forget. And Vince, his ex-tormentor, has been so remorseful for the evil that he did to “The Excellence of Execution”; Mr. McMahon is now giving back to Bret all the honor and opportunities that “The Pink and Black Attack” rightfully deserve — a spot in the Hall of Fame (for both Bret and, quite recently, for his legendary dad, Stu Hart of The Dungeon fame), a fifth United States Championship, prime matches in pay-per-view and house events, etc.
All’s well that ends well for both wrestling icons.
I mention The Hitman here because like him, I was also screwed out of my job. Just last month. That incident I now call the Alabang Screwjob, LOL! Also, there is a striking similarity between these two screwjobs that had happened to both me and Bret: The Excellence of Execution was excellently screwed in a French-speaking city; me? I was screwed by the Frenchies themselves. Bret was able to forgive and forget. I can turn the other cheek, too. But I will never forget. Ever.
Now, looking back to the complete history of my being a wage slave is not something to be proud of. Whether or not I have made accomplishments in the various trades that I have worked for is not really the point. Besides, I have never made any major impact nor effort in building my “career” because my heart is reserved for another passion (followers of this blog and ALAS FILIPINAS know exactly what I’m talking about). But I did make a lot of friends, and I was able to support my family without bugging my folks. Those two reasons alone make just compensation for compelling myself to work for multinational whorehouses.
Several months ago, I wrote about my plans of escaping this sick, profit-driven society without jeopardizing my financial responsibilities to my wife and four kids. But I failed in that department. So now I’m back to square one. And if I fail again, I will not give up. Because I am really fed up of being a wage slave for the rest of my life. Other than that, I believe that I am not really cut for vocation. Just take a look at these instances:
1) In my very first job, I somehow learned how to dodge punches and coins. I learned a few Karate chops myself, kicking my way out from being beaten up by crazed motorists.
2) In my second job, I turned our company kitchen in Forbes Park into one whole swimming pool, much to the irritation of some of my colleagues (e, sa hindí acó marunong maghugas ng mga plato, eh).
3) Next, I came face to face with the devil himself.
4) In my fourth, I came to realize that a “teacher’s pet” exists not only in school but also in the workplace.
5) The fifth company I worked for was filled with so many cretins that it literally bloodied my lungs.
6) My sixth should have been paradise, until I saw that empire itself crumble just like ancient Rome. I thought it best to leave. But it turned out to be one of the worst decisions I have ever made because….
7) Finally, with my recent employer, I learned that the French pronunciation of the English word “justice” is actually “just us”.
By reminiscing on my hilarious work experiences, I have to reiterate that I am not cut for fuck!n’ vocation. And my recent bosses helped me realize that not-so-sad fact in a forceful and devious manner. If I cannot serve kingdoms, why not be the tyrant myself? LOL! But seriously, I am really done with modern slavery. I now refuse to make myself a firewood for corporate chimneys. Waking up to the sound of the alarm is perhaps the most cruel thing a sane person could to oneself. I do not want to grow old and then look back into my youth with disappointment and say “whatever happened to all those precious days? I have wasted all my Mondays-thru-Fridays on nothing!” Whatever talents that I have is rendered useless inside the unforgiving cubicle farms. I won’t have anything of it anymore.
To quote EDSA 86’s rallying cry: NEVER AGAIN!
I prayed to God fervently for help. Ironically, the good Lord provided the help that I needed in the person of the “god of Pinoy atheism” himself — JB Lazarte (indeed, God works in mysterious ways)! Shortly afterwards, The Magnus taught me the whole nine yards of how to comfortably and enjoyably burn my butt right inside my home forevermore.
Heck, I realized that it’s been right under my nose all these blogging years! And the key to this magic is SEO!
Then a few weeks later, adding up to my excitement and zeal, my ever-supportive wife bought me David “The SEO Expert” Viney’s tips on how to conquer Planet Google!
The startup will not be easy, however. It will take me a couple of months to realize my Bohemian aspirations. So in the meantime, I will need to take the blue pill first and walk amongst the apathetic wage slaves. Gotta “pretend” that everything’s normal. But again, it will only be for a few months. Afterwards, the red pill!
There is no more turning back.
In the meantime, back to regular programming. =)
My laptop is still down. Worse, all the photos that I recently took (New Year’s Eve, Feast of the Wise Men, the San Pedro stroll that I had with Krystal, the trip to Unisan with Arnaldo and Momay, etc) using my newly bought digital camera have all been uploaded there. Our IT guy is still fixing it, but he’s having a hard time.
He said that the last option is to reformat everything in order for my laptop to work again. But that would mean bye-bye to all those photos and videos.
So right now, I can’t blog (c’mon, I don’t want to stay in an internet shop for hours).
Another lesson learned: after a viaje or festivity, blog about it immediately.
My company laptop’s down since yesterday due to a strong virus and a couple of pesky trojans. Thus, I am not able to blog nicely. Nor will I be able to work. =(
My other laptop –the one that Arnaldo gave me more than a year ago– is also stacked with other viruses and is already too old and freaking slow for usage. Thus, I have no other option but to wait for our IT specialist (a new guy in the office) to have it fixed. =(
Sometimes, I’d like to think that some unseen evil force is out to stop the four of us. And those pesky individuals who comprise that evil force were able to make toasted bread out of my laptop. =(
Perhaps I’ve become hopelessly paranoid after all this nationalistic chatter has rubbed off on me? =(
Hmmm… there’s too much sad emoticons on this blogpost…
=(
I can’t believe it! The unthinkable just happened (for the likes of me, it is unthinkable, LOL!!!)…
I GOT MY FREAKIN’ PHOTOS BACK! YAY!
Two days ago, I wrote about the two mischances I experienced in Mt. Maquiling. One of them is accidentally deleting all the photos (including the video below) that I took using my newly bought Sony Cyber-Shot® Digital Camera W220. I thought I lost them all. But when two of my officemates —both computer geeks— heard of my ordeal, they thought that it was no problem at all.
They told me something that I’ve never heard of before: there are actually free softwares hanging around the netosphere which can retrieve deleted files from a computer or from digital cameras! They told me to google for it. And so I did. And voila! I found SnapFiles ®! The said software helps recover deleted files from one’s hard drive, from memory cards, and even from formatted or damaged drives!
SnapFiles is a godsend for the click-happy! And speaking of godsend, I’d like to thank my Hubwoo homies Eduardo “Dong” Gamallo and Marvin Duñgao for their assistance. =)
Meanwhile, before posting the photos, let me first show you this video (retrieved by SnapFiles ®!) which we took of ourselves (moi, Arnaldo, Louren, and Clinton of Hubwoo Manila) in the fabled boiling mudsprings of Mt. Maquiling (very near UP Los Baños)!
One problem down. One more to go…
…to finally conquer that mountain!
Yesterday, Arnaldo, I, and two of our officemates had a fun climb in Mt. Maquíling (using the famous and safer University of the Philippines Los Baños trail). It was my second try to scale its heights. My first one two years ago was a failure. And so was yesterday’s hike; we miscalculated the trip it would take us to Peak Two, the mountain’s highest point.
Adding insult to injury, all the photos I took of our climb were accidentally deleted! It still puzzles me up to now how it happened (I haven’t recovered yet from the shock). Fortunately, Arnaldo took his camera along. But those photos I took (including two short videos in the spectacular boiling Mud Springs) were numerous and more defined. I’m so frustrated I could’t even write further. =(
Photographs are memories, dammit…
An important lesson I’d like to share: NEVER DELETE UNWANTED PHOTOS FROM YOUR DIGITAL CAMERA. Start deleting only when they are all uploaded into your PCs.
Hit it baby, one more time: DAMMIT!
Photo taken last 2008 in Mt. Maquíling's Sto. Tomás trail (Batangas).
I’ll blog about this second Maquíling hike once I get the photos from Arnaldo. And once I have recovered from sheer disappointment. =(
At long last, I can now fulfill my travels and blogging with much photography ease… and splendor!
My wife recently purchased a digital camera –our first digital camera, wouldja believe that?!– as a Christmas gift for the whole family. It’s a silver-colored Sony Cyber-Shot® Digital Camera W220 with a 12.1 megapixel resolution coupled to a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar branded 4x optical zoom lens! At last, I won’t have to rely on my wife’s ageing Motorola RAZR V3i clamshell mobile camera phone which she bought more than three years ago. Since 2007, I’ve been using her Motorola cellphone in taking pictures and recording videos for ALAS FILIPINAS, SKIRMISHER, and for my social networking accounts: YouTube, Friendster, and more recently, the phenomenon known as Facebook. The quality of the photos aren’t that good. Understandable, since RAZR V3i is just a cellphone (with just 1.23 megapixels). Through the years, however, the quality deteriorated mainly because of overuse (and perhaps mishandling every now and then). Nowadays, the phone always has a motion blur (this can be observed in many of my photos in Facebook). And for a photographer, you really can’t rely on such a device.
We do have another camera, but it’s a classic one which requires film — definitely a no-no for a traveling blogger/historian. I can’t always have the films developed and the pictures scanned. That’s too cumbersome.
Our Sony Cyber-Shot® may not be as expensive nor as “techie” as what other people have. But it doesn’t really matter. As long as it has all the features that I need, then that is enough. Now, ALAS FILIPINAS and this website will have more focus, more vibrant colors, and more quality. And less of me, hehe!
Tomorrow, if conditions will permit me, I’ll resume my traveling to expose our true Filipino Identity which is extant in old Philippine towns. I’ll start where I currently live — San Pedro Tunasán, La Laguna.
FILIPINO eSCRIBBLES 