Pancit Canton: mamahal na ba? Posted at 01:48 PM Bayan Muna Rep. Joel G. Virador 27 January 2005 The terms “anti-people” and “anti-poor” policies refer to policies and actions that go against the interest of the poor majority. House Bill 3555 gives a distinct “face” to these terms in the harshest manner. The proposed 10% to 12% increase in Value-Added Tax stands to hit the poorest of the poor since basic commodities are covered by this bill. No amount of so-called exemption of sardines, noodles, and bread nor of ‘slight increases’ in prices will hide the fact that the consumers will inevitably bear the burden of yet another round of price increases. There is no need to increase the VAT rate because government’s poor VAT collections stem from its very failure to arrest VAT leakage. Based on figures from the National Tax Research Center, average leakage from VAT has been estimated at 29.8% annually from 1998 to 2002. This is equivalent to annual losses of about P41.6 B. Add to this the various exemptions granted to several businesses which in 2003 alone amounted to P 195.5 B. Total amount of tax and duty exemptions in the same year amounted to P299.2 B. As a representative of the poor and marginalized sectors and especially as a Mindanaoan, I am concerned that House Bill 3555 will further plunge Mindanao into the steepest levels of poverty. The so-called “land of promise” and “land of plenty” is not evident among the people as nearly half of the estimated 20 million population live at or below the poverty threshold. The Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao has the highest number of poor families at 68.8 percent, followed by Region XII (50.9 percent). In August 2004, a Social Weather Station (SWS) survey revealed that Mindanao has the highest incidence of hunger at 23 percent. Poverty in Mindanao comprised 32 percent of the Philippine’s total poor population in 2000. With unemployment in the island reaching an alarming double digit rate of 10.15% in 2003, the people need this bill like a nail in the head. Moreover, it is clear that this bill underscores government’s continued subservience to impositions of international finance institutions led by the International Monetary Fund. As early as 1999, the IMF has strongly pushed for a VAT increase as stated in its Memorandum on Economic and Financial Policies that same year. Finally, for a measure that stands to gravely impact on the people, none of these people were ever given the chance to air their side on this bill. Bayan Muna will not and will never be instrumental to the passage of any measure in Congress that will go against the interest and welfare of the people. READ THIS: in relation with the VAT increase... SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT… pieces of paper, ballpen, and coffee on my desk… its past 2 am, still studying for my moving exam in Anatomy tomorrow… err… I’m too tired of studying, but I’ve got no other choice, its already semi-final… ho-hum… I’m hungry, a cup of coffee wont satisfy my hunger… I need to buy a pancit canton… It was quite creepy at dawn along the streets. Got to go to a 24 hour store to buy some pancit canton… Reaching the pancit canton from the counter, I heard this very familiar voice… Oh its mike! My classmate in history… It’s maybe because of financial problems that He’s working in this store… I greet him… and he was surprised of seeing me at that wee hour of the day… I talked to him and asked him some questions… and because I want to unwind myself, I spare him some of my minutes chatting after paying the pancit canton. CLICK CLICK CLICK… on my hands on the mouse as I was enjoying my pancit canton… Surfing the net, checking my tabulas, and chat to my friends… brp… ahhm, the pancit canton really taste good… SPLAT SPLAT SPLAT!!! Back on my work… fells sleepy, it’s because I’m full. Precisely, the respiration rate decreases.. brp.. Excuse me… READING READING READING… goodness, the information won’t get inside my brain… Looking at the table, I found a news paper, It’s my father’s… I stand up and read the front page… WHHAATT??? …. The House Bill 3555 was already approved by the congress… only 11 congressmen disapproved out from 126 who approved the bill. There were more than 20 congressmen who walked out saying “Ang boses nang masa ay nawala na”… I know at first place, that the 2% increase of VAT will really affect the poorest sectors of the country. In a split of seconds, I remembered Mike… He was indeed a hard working student. He studies in the morning and works in the evening. I couldn’t imagine how he maintains good grades in school. As a working scholar in the school, he never bother to receive even to a very MINIMAL WAGE of 100 pesos a MONTH, that’s because he really needs the money. His father is a farmer and has worked very hard to support him. Sometimes, his allowance got delayed. I really wonder how he budgets his money from his dad, receiving only 1000 per month. How about his daily expenses? House rental? And house bills? Here comes the additional 2% VAT… another additional blah blah blah… If this HOUSE BILL will be approved, and be implemented as a law, there will be another thousands of MIKES who will double their effort, and another millions of MIKE that will suffer… Reading another passage…. “ECONOMY GROWS 6.1% on 2004... “ hindi ko man lang naramdaman…” I said to myself… I’m too sleepy, I have to go to bed... It’s almost 4 am… before I go to my room, I went to my 3 yr old brothers room and watched them closely… such innocence… what will be their future? Will he be another Mike?... sigh… The House Bill is now in the SENATE, and we can still do something about it…  I dont want to buy another pancit canton higher than its previous value ~bow~ How about you??? are you with the VAT increase or against with it??? da preman nyuws. elektrikpang gakarag. |
This is a stickied, favorite post.January 23, 2005
Tsunami Posted at 03:59 PM The Killer Wave: TSUNAMI By: SkiP (Cj Lee) i guess everyone knows about tsunami... well in case if u just wanna read this, it'll be additional information... but if you dont want just read the bottom... its a MUST"  TSUNAMI is from the Japanese words "tsu" (harbor) and "nami" (wave). A tsunami is caused by a shallow-seated earthquakes, landslides, or such any volcanic eruptions accompanied by a vertical displacement of seafloor thus producing an enormous pressure that could generate giant waves that increases height from 10 to 30 meters or even more as they reach the coastal area. Though the appearance of tsunamis and tidal waves from the shore can be similar to a rapidly rising or falling tide and a series of breaking waves, tsunamis differs from tidal waves hence tidal waves are caused by the gravitational effects of the moon. Furthermore, tsunamis are one of the less experienced recorded catastrophes. But on the 26th of December 2004, a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale was recorded in the northern part of Sumatra, Indonesia, which set off a tsunami and struck other 14 neighboring countries leaving more than 272,000 people dead. The disaster started when the Indian and Burma tectonic plate grinds against each other which displaced trillions of tons of water in the Indian Ocean causing the waves to spread in all directions from the epicenter of the earthquake that travels as fast as 800 km/hr. Indeed, the dislocation between the plates reached around 2000 km and set off 68 aftershocks in just three days. The largest city to receive the full impact of the tsunamis fury, Banda Aceh, is struggling to wake from the outlandish disaster. In 10 minutes, a 3 meter high wall of water, mud, and debris swept almost 10 km inland making the city a jumble of mud-blackened wreckage populated with corpses that scattered all over. The city alone lost more than 108,000 lives. “There was a roar, and before I could get up and run, a wall of water about 30 ft high devoured me. I held my breath to keep the salt water from entering my mouth. I knew I was dying. I started loking for my family but I could only see bodies mostly woman and children, lying all around, still, and contorted. I saw dazed man, shrieking wome trying to walk away from the sea. We all have seen the rough seas, cyclones and high tides. But nobody ever saw or heard such a thing coming from our sea” said by an Indian fisherman, K.P. Selvam, who saved his life but lost his family from the tragic event. “I heard this strange thunderous sound from somewhere, a sound where I’d never heard before. I thought it was the sound of the bombs. It felt like doomsday!” acclaimed by a tsunami survivor, Bustami, who lived in a small Sumatran fishing village. Minutes and hours after the earthquake, the waves have reached as far as Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, Maldives, Bangladesh, Burma, Sri Lanka, India, and even Africa. Fortunate for our country that was spared, this was because of the massive islands of Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia that blackened the area. With just a snap of the fingers, hundreds of thousands died. The event was a random phenomenon that left an after shock for those who survived. For the past forty years, it was the most powerful and the worst disaster in the century. Corpses buried in mud were scattered everywhere, shattered debris from houses, buildings, and cottages are all over the place. The waters washed over some of the developing countries, destroying primitive sewage system, contaminating rudimentary water supplies, readying countless infants for death by diarrhea and providing luscious breeding grounds for the insects that transmit malaria and dengue fever. The tsunamis aftermath brought medical experts worrying about the health of the tsunami victims, doctors warned that epidemics still to come, the possibilities of illnesses like the proliferation of cholera, malaria and some other “vector-borne” diseases, fever, dengue, pneumonia and other respiratory sickness. However, health representatives are doing its best to win the fight. The tsunami took 75 minutes to reach the coastal area of Thailand, approximately 380 km. away from the epicenter of the quake; it took 2 hours to reach India, about 3 hours to reach the island of Maldives and around 7 hours to reach Africa. But the problem is… where there any warning raised? If there was, was it relayed as it should be? One of the military bases occupied by the US forces were informed about the possible tsunamis, and because of the information received, they have moved to higher grounds and this spared their lives from the killer waves. The point is, they could have relayed the message to other countries but they failed such task. In Thailand; minutes of warning could have saved thousands of lives. "When a quake measured at 8.9-9.0 on the Richter scale struck in Sumatra, it was widely known tsunami could happen. But why weren't there any alerts? I really want to know the truth," Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to the reporters after firing its chief meteorologist, Suparerk Tansriratanawong who failed to raise an issue about the possible occurrence of tsunami. Stuart Weinstein, a geophysicist on duty at the Pacific Tsunami Warning System (PTWS) in Hawaii took fifteen minutes to transmit message after the earthquake to the countries around the Pacific Rim including Indonesia and Thailand where he wrote: “This earthquake is located outside the pacific. No tsunami threat exists based on historical earthquake and tsunami data.” Indeed there were never any tsunamis recorded in the area for the past 300 years. But this proves him wrong, after 30 minutes when the bulletin upgraded the board to 8.5 he added the sentence “there is a possibility of a tsunami near the epicenter” where in fact, the tsunami had already smashed the remote part of Sumatra Indonesia. The Thai meteorological director was sent an e-mail about the possibilities of a coming tsunami from PTWS, but there were no personnel on duty that day. The e-mail however was read the day after the tsunami struck the country. The warnings were never raised and were never relayed accurately in consequence killing hundreds of thousands of people. For this reason, 26 countries have banded together to establish a Tsunami Warning System, and link it worldwide. As presently configured, the tsunami detecting devises generates a rate of 75% false alarm thus plan to change with the deployment of a new-generation bouy-anchored detectors that can be positioned underwater. Nature’s destructive forces are beyond mans control. Technology can’t predict or prevent a tsunami; it can only help us outrun one. A minute of warning could have saved thousands of lives. Tsunamis takes time to travel that could give people time to flee from higher grounds. When an earthquake measured 9.0 it is possibly known that tsunamis would come. Though, there were no tsunami detecting devises that was placed in the Indian Ocean, the residents should have been warned the possibility of the tsunami by the quake alone. Though tsunamis are low probability high-consequence events, it is furthermore important to be always prepared. The tsunamis aftermath proves that there’s more important than vulnerability damage of material things, and that is the importance of people’s lives. When a landslide unleashed Mauna Loa, it triggers an ultra tsunami as high as 500 meters, higher than the World trade Center (Twin Towers), and a hundred times more powerful than the Dec. 26th tsunami. It happened 120,000 years ago. Come to think if it will happen again today…  ======================================= =======================================  this part is important: this is very important... WHAT CAN U SAY???...... America’s initial pledge for the tsunami victims is only worth $15 million which was later on upgraded to $35 million. Pres. Bush was criticized by the politics and other country leader. Come to think of it…The world’s most powerful country and the one of the world’s richest country could not even provide adequate money to sustain the aid for the tsunami victims… Being labeled “stingy”, the $35 million was folded ten times into $350 million… but still it was not enough, they could have given more. Japans donation reached as high as $500 million. If you’ll compare the cost of the war in Iraq, it’s far beyond your imagination. The US government war in Iraq cost a whopping $148 BILLION dollars. The United States final aid contribution could hardly sustain Iraq war for 1.5 days with the estimated $270 million/day spent. They’re just like giving one F-22 raptor jets for the aid since the jet alone cost $225 million. Statistics: Cost of one F-22 Raptor tactical fighter jet -- $225 million Cost of the ongoing U.S. war in Iraq--$228 million/day Amount spent by Kerry and Bush -- $400 million campaigns Estimated cost of Bush's Second -- $ 40+ billion Inauguration and Ball Amount of U.S. tax cuts under Bush -- $1 trillion Cost of the U.S. Iraq War in 2004 -- $148 billion U.S. reconstruction aid budgeted for -- $18 million Iraq (though never spent!) Amount the U.S. initially in aid -- $ 10 million to Indian Ocean tsunami victims Amount U.S. offered in tsunami aid -- $35 million after being chastised by UN official Final contribution for the tsunami aid- $350 million man made disaster are more crucial than any other disaster... such a threat... if they are up to condemn world terrorism and help humanity? why cant they help the needy in most proper way???... dili na angay kadudahan... Now after Iraq, Iran is there next target... and then again, another bulging billions of dollars will be spend for nothing... if they'll spend those freakin money for the benefit of the majority of the human race and not just for their own cause, its more than a help... Sometimes, the truth really hurts.... peace tau... bwahahhaa  |
This is a stickied, favorite post.December 15, 2004
All the nasty stuff 'bout me... Posted at 04:20 PM  All about Me Im single... ndi double 19, from USA.. philippines i mean im a buzy person... pag may ginawa pag celfone… silent mode pag walang mgawa... loud pag may inaasar... A member of many orgs... d vice president of Association of Health and Scince Education Association...na walang paki kung ano na ang nagyari.... d vice president of Association of Health and Science Education 2nd yr. over all... over all walang kaalam-alaman... d chairman of red cross youth (MVM)chairman of the chair na plagi nakaupo... a member of Andres Art Club-para sa mga taong may talent na ndi magamit... a staff writer of The Quill-SWU opisyal student Pubz...and a member of College Editors Guild of the Philippines…ooppsss... writer nga pero la ngang na write... Lyks… alam kong mag pinta, pero ndi ko alam mag paint... I know how to write, pero wala akng ma write... I’d love to play musical instruments… gaya ng piano, guitar, flute, pero pag linaruan ko cla, hahabulin ko pa... i'm a dancer... pero ayaw sa akin ang pagsasayaw... The best part…. I have traveled around the world…(joke) ..ibig kong sabihin, i have traveled around my room... … Pakulo lang I’m just an adventurous person… kaya nga lang magawa... Loves to go around our country… pag ikaw bayad ng fare ko... im happy anytime... maski dami problem and im friendly too... *sabi ko*  by the way, im no ~nasty boy~ if u have time add me ym and friendster: Christopherjames_lee@yahoo.com Share it with me: anong feeling pag grounded ka for 1 semester??? coz i am...  |
This is a stickied post.July 7, 2007
47 reasons that really hurt Posted at 04:09 AM 1. Letting go of a person you’ve learned and decided to love 2. Reminiscing the good and bad times you shared together 3. Shielding your heart to love somebody 4. Trying to hide what you really feel 5. Trying to hide the tears that involuntarily fall from your eyes 6. Loving a person too much 7. Giving up someone you never thought of giving up 8. Having the right love at the wrong time 9. Taking the risk to fall in love again 10. Hiding your relationship from someone else 11. Controlling your feelings to avoid hurting a friend 12. Thinking of him/her every waking and sleeping moment knowing all the while that he/she never even thinks a single thought of you 13.Letting go, because every time you see the person, you only fall deeper 14. Holding back only to find out when its too late, you both felt the same way, but were only scared to lose each other so much that you didn’t let the feelings out 15. Falling in love with someone you didn’t mean to fall in love with 16. Finding the perfect girl/man - with only one problem - he/she doesn’t love you 17. Helping the one you love to court your friend 18. Seeing the one you love crying for someone else 19. The waiting also hurts like h e l l 20. Having to hear … I’ve met someone 21. Agreeing to his/her wish to just be friends 22. Asking him/her freedom back so he/shed be happier with him/her 23. Asking you to forget that everything happened and be normal friends again 24. Hearing that you’re treated as a brother/sister (ouch!) 25. Sharing his/her future plans for the guy/gal with you 26. You stopped being friends cuz his/her bf/gf asked him/her to. 27. Being denied in front of people 28. Telling you lies where he/shed been when actually he/she was with a new friend or an old flame 29. He/she told you he/shed be leaving you to return to his/her ex 30. Breaking someone’s heart 31. Fighting for that one thing that would make you happy 32. That is, holding to a person who can not guarantee you his/her commitment unless he/she fix him/herself - then you are left hanging for the moment - then he/she says, time will tell.. ang labo niya….but you still decided to hope in him/her and trust him/her 33. Pretending you’re ok when inside you’re dying 34. Pretending to be strong and recognizing your weakness lying in bed each night, thinking of that special person you can never have 35. Being with someone you cant actually love 36. Pretending you don’t love a person whom you actually love 37. Being in love 39. Seeing the person you love hurt because of you and not being able to help that person 40. Having the courage to say I LOVE YOU to the person you love and finding out afterwards that things will never be same again when he doesn’t treat you with the same closeness as before 41. Having to face the fact that someone is capable of completely destroying the wall that you built for yourself, leaving you weak and vulnerable 42. Admitting that you love someone despite her imperfections 43. Finding out the more you try to hate him/her, the more you end up loving him/her, perhaps even more than before 44. Realizing how stupid your mistakes were that led to your break-up 45. The thought that this boy/girl used to really love you and you loved him/her as well but you didn’t give enough that she/he gave up on you 46. Sharing the one you love with somebody else 47. Realizing you were only a pill she took for her broken heart..not to satisfy a healthy heart longing for you…in other words being used… |
February 1, 2005
Hmmpp... Posted at 10:04 AM |
This is a favorite post.January 19, 2005
Walang masulat... Posted at 02:38 PM no time to update tabulas... sori po i still have lots of things to do... examination next week... dozens of books to read... lots of articles to write and to edit... by the way, the sinulog was great...       after the show, an hours of fireworks mesmerized the pipol... bwahahaha bye... paalam tabulas... c you next week!!! by the way, i love anime... Ang saya pala ng sinulg, daming artista... ang daming concerts Ang saya ng concert ng BAMBOO, RIVERMAYA, SOUTHBOARDER, MYMP, URBANDUP AT IBA PA..... ASTIG CLA LAHAT..... By the way, they announced during the sinulog program that Cebu city will host the Southeast Asian Games this year.... Wat can u say????... weird... |
January 12, 2005
Buhay-buhay Posted at 11:46 AM masakit ang aking ulo sa pagising... madaling araw na pala akong nakatulog... binilisan ko ang aking pagkilos, shit! ala siete na! late na ako sa aking unang klasi, baka pagsabihan na naman ako ng titser namin " cj! late kanaman!" (as always)ahm ano naman kaya ang palusot ko?...mmmhh "naubatan kc ng traffic sir..." hindi naman niya alam na ilang kilometro lang ang layo ng apartment na tinitirahan ko sa paaralan namin... bwahaha nakarating ang hari sa silid aralan banda 7:30... at saktong sakto nga ang hula ko! yong nga sinabi ng titser namin...bahala na pinasuk ko parin, magaling!!! at least nakaabut parin ako sa ikalawang bahagi ng pasulit namin!!!(buti naman pinapasuk) walang kwenta parin... napakasakit parin ng aking ulo... kailngan kong bumili ng gamot.... *sigh* paginom ko ng gamot bigla ko lang naalala... sa nabasa kong budget ng pinas sa health sektor 2002........ 14.5b.........49cents/filipino/day 2003........14b..............45cents/filipino/day 2004.........9.75b..........31 cents/filipino/day oo nga, astig talaga ang budget ng Pinas mayaman!!! sa paginom ko nang gamot, may isang batang babae ang lumapit sa akin at humingi ng pera. Sa kasulok-sulokan ng aking isip, napagisipan ko...oo nga, masuwerte ako... ...may mga tao pang nagmamahal sa akin ...hindi ako pinabayaan ng magulang ko mas suwerte nga ako na hindi ako naging isang taong grasa na palaboy-laboy nalang sa kalye... binilihan ko ng tinapay ang bata at patuloy sa paglalakad... ang daming bagay na tinanong ko sa aking sarili? ba't ganito ang buhay natin? minsay napakasaya at minsa'y napakahirap. bakit hindi pantay-pantay? may mga mayayaman at meron ding mahihirap. At sa karamihan, bakit ba sa ating lipunan palagi nalang inaapi ang mga mahihirap??? bakit mas binigyan ng mas magandang prebilihiyo ng pamahalaan ang mga taong mayayaman? bakit ba kung ang masa na ang may hinaing, parang napakahirap patnubayan ng gobyerno??? dahil ba sila ay walang pera??? may pera man o wala, tao parin sila na may karapatan dito sa ating bansa... umiral ang galit sa aking pagiisip... nagagalit ako sa pamamaraan ng gobyerno sa pagtakbo nila sa ating bansa... nagagalit ako sa mga corrupt na opisyal!!! nagagalit ako sa mga dayuhan na walang ibang ginawa kung hindi namumuhunan lang dito sa ating bansa... nagulat nalang ako sa biglang pagtawag ng attention ng guro namin at tinanong ako kung saang germ layer daw nagmula ang dermis at epidermis... bwahaha nasa klase na pala ako!!!*kainis...out of this world mode*... ewan ko nga lang at bakit nakaisip ako ng ganun... magulo lang siguro utak ko... dagdag problema lang yan... malapit nang mag 4, hindi pa ako nakapagtanghalian... nagugutom na ako, pero wala akong ganang kumain... mmmmhhh may kapi pala dito sa opis... makikapi na nga,...ahhhhh.... sa sakit ng ulo ko, kapi lang pala ang katapat... kung kau tanongin ko, kasalanan ba ng mga tao kung sila ay mahirap??? or kasalanan ng gobyerno... |
January 10, 2005
life Posted at 06:13 PM i could'nt find a single reason why i have to live my life longer in this chaotic world... i have enough... i can no longer live my life like this... life really is like hell... lots of problems, problems beyond my limitations that i could no longer handle... maybe a test from God, but when will this trial end?... if i could just bring back the time and correct all the faults i did... now i just realized,that with just a few steps, i have destroyed my life that i built for quiet a long time... if i have to repair it, im gonna start it all over again. this is what i called price... the price for living a stubborn life... i deserve all the punishment... i'd rather die now... |
This is a favorite post.
