MMDA Should Fix Their Footbridges

One morning, as I rush to work, I noticed a bunch of bystanders near the MMDA footbridge located in Litex Area, along Commonwealth Avenue. The bystanders are looking intently on something and this got me puzzled. So I stopped walking and looked at what they are looking. I am surprised to know that they are looking at this:
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MMDA Footbridge, Litex, Quezon City

The bystanders are looking through the gaps of the stairs of the footbridge. They are looking through the gaps because they are trying too peek at the ladies who are wearing skirt and are climbing the footbridge to cross the Commonwealth Avenue.
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Stairs with gaps.
I sent a message to the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) through e-mail telling them of the problem that skirt-wearing ladies must endure whenever they use the Litex footbridge. However, it is more than a month now and the the MMDA has no response. Nothing was changed on the Litex footbridge and the gaps were not covered.

The next day, I noticed that the pervert bystanders are nowhere to be seen near the footbridge. I don't know the reason why they're gone. I hope that they don't return. I also hope that the MMDA construct better footbridges for the sake of Filipinas using their footbridge.

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Being a Weasel Pays


Being a weasel is advantageous in the office where I work. If you are weasel then you will expect less work for the same salary as your hardworking office mates. The bosses will even avoid you because of you being a weasel.

But what is a weasel? No, it is not a slender and short-legged animal belonging to genus Mustela. An office weasel is a person who perfected the art of not doing any work yet avoid getting fired. The best example of a weasel is Wally in the Dilbert comics.
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Dilbert comic strip - Wally is weasel

Unfortunately, the place where I work is full of weasels and the taxpayers are wasting their money paying them.
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Dilbert and Wally - The Weasel Dance

An incident last week accidentally pressed my "anger button." Our office is having an "activity" that is hated by most of the people in our office. Because no one is volunteering, a boss started drafting people who will do the "activity." I am one of the employees drafted and I am concerned by the fact that I, together with some of my office mates, are always picked to do the "activity." We raised the issue to the boss and asked him why don't he get some people from a certain department in our office who are not yet picked to do the "activity." His only reply was that the people may say that it is "unfair."

Unfair? How can it be unfair for them? They are not yet picked up to do the "activity" and they have the balls to say "foul?" Currently, those people in that certain department are doing nothing  because their projects are on hold because their equipments are not working.

What came to my mind is that the people in that department are hostile to the bosses. It seems like the bosses prefer avoiding them instead of dealing with them.

Seems like that the boss is teaching us to be weasels too so that we can avoid any unwanted work.

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State of the Noynoy Address (SONA)

Yey! It is just three days before the much awaited event of the year. On Monday, we will see this country's president do what he does best in front of national TV. Benigno S. Aquino (a.k.a. Noynoy) will be giving his second State of the Nation Address (a.k.a. SONA).
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President BS Aquino

Many people in the media are making their guess on what will Noynoy say in the SONA. Well, I have my guess too and if I am Noynoy this is what I will “say” this coming Monday:

My fellow Filipinos, I am here to highlight the state of our Nation. In just one year, my administration achieved great things for our country. Here are some of those achievements:

1. I successfully received a Porsche from a "friend." The Porsche is a boost to our economy because the Porsche allowed me to cruise around the city without the need for the government to buy a new car. Rest assured that my Porsche has no wang-wang.

2. In the first year of my presidency, I successfully dated at least three girls. They did not become my girlfriends, however, and I blame the media for always checking on my love-life. I promise that I will date more than ten girls in the next year of my presidency. With the help of my Porsche, I believe that we can achieve this objective.

3. Many people say that I stay awake until wee hours of the morning because of playing computer games. That is true and I say that is necessary for the honor of our Nation. I proudly announce to you now that I am the new champion in DoTA and I successfully defeated gamers from other country. Sacrificing the hours of sleep of me and MalacaƱang staff is not in vain.

4. I am glad to announce that my sister Kris is not interfering with my Administration. She is now interfering with the affairs of Senator Chiz after she failed to interfere with Jojo Binay's life.

5. My administration believes in the saying that "two heads are better than one." That's why I applied it on various agencies of the government to improve the flow of work in my Administration. I am glad to announce that the DILG has two heads while the Communication Group is headed by three competent chiefs. I promise to double the number of Department secretaries to sow more confusion in the future.

6. I am also pleased to announce that my Administration successfully replaced the cronies of the old administration. My Administration has new cronies and the people affectionately call them as KKK. The name KKK sounds like the name of the revolutionary movement of Andres Bonifacio.  Naming my cronies to Bonifacio's group shows how much the people love my KKK.

7. I am pleased to announce that I am the most hardworking president that the Nation ever has. I already attended to 1,000 speaking engagements, I wrote 500 speeches and I cut 99 ribbons. I promise to top all of that in the next year of my presidency.

8. I am pleased to announce that under my Administration, many famous people visited our country. Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus are few of those famous people. This goes to show that my administration curbed insurgency and terrorism because they are not afraid to visit our country.

9. There are many problems and challenges that we faced in the first year of my Administration. The main problem that we encountered is the decrease of my approval ratings. We had discovered the source of that problem and all the problems of our Nation and that is the Arroyo Administration.

My first year in office is just a preview of many good things to come for the Filipino people, who are my “boss.”. I promise that I will continue to work through the "matuwid na daan" without using any wang-wang. I promise that my Administration will top all the acheivements of the Arroyo Administration.

Oh, I almost forgot. My Administration is also busy in excavating the corrupt practices of the previous administration. Just watch those exposes in TV. And please ignore my incompetence and my love-life. Thank you and good night. Babalik pa ako sa paglalaro ng Grand Theft Auto.

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Reading Lewis' Book through the Christian Lens

I already watched the movie adaptation of C.S. Lewis fantasy series about Narnia. I liked how the movie “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” because of the fight scenes. I can still imagine myself ordering a battalion of centaurs to unleash deadly arrows to the hordes of the White Witch. However, I have some thoughts after watching the movie adaptation of C.S. Lewis' book. Purists said that the movie adaptation diverged from the book and focused more on the action. Others said that the book is quite simple and many things were added.

What attracted me to read the book are the Christian elements injected by C.S. Lewis to the Chronicles of Narnia, which includes “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”
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The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
(Source: Wikipedia)

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the second book to the fantasy series written by C.S. Lewis. The first book of the series is “The Magician's Nephew.” However, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” was published first before the “The Magician's Nephew.”

The book is about the four Pevensies (Lucy, Susan, Peter and Edmund), who discovered the magical world of Narnia after entering a wardrobe inside the mansion of an old professor, who kept them during the duration of the World War.

In the story, it is Lucy who first discovered Narnia. She met the Tumnus, a satyr, in her first visit to Narnia.
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Lucy and Tumnus
Lucy and Tumnus having tea.

The next visitor to Narnia is Edmund who coincidentally met the White Witch. The White Witch ruled the whole Narnia, which she placed under the curse of winter and prevent Christmas from occurring. The witch fears the coming of the “Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve” to Narnia because it spells the end of her rule. The witch placed Edmund under her curse by feeding him Turkish Delight, which makes anyone who partakes of it to eat more and more even if it cause his/her death.

Edmund returned to the real world but denied the existence of Narnia to Peter and Susan and made Lucy look like a liar to the older siblings. Eventually, the four Pevensies reached Narnia where they met the Beavers. Edmund betrayed them to the White Witch by giving them information that all four of them are already in Narnia. Peter, Susan and Lucy met Aslan, the Lion and the true ruler of Narnia. Aslan sacrificed himself to redeem and Edmund by letting himself be executed by the White Witch. A great war ensued between the White Witch and her troops with those who are loyal to Aslan. In the end, Aslan returned and finally defeated the White Witch. The Pevensies were installed as Kings and Queens of Narnia and they ruled wisely and made the Narnians happy.

That is a brief summary of the book. The book is quite simple to read and it really fits the mental capacity of young children. There is little detail in the way the story was written and some people commented that this is good because it let the imaginations of the children roam while reading the book.

What gave a strong impact to me is this book's obvious Christian elements. People who understands the teachings of Christianity understands that “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” is full of Christian imagery and themes. The obvious Christian theme is the war between good and evil, wherein in the good triumphed in the end through the deliverance of Aslan, who is used to symbolized Jesus Christ.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe can be read as the summary of the “Salvation History” of Christianity. The entrance of “sons of Adam and daughters of Eve” to Narnia signifies the creation of man and the their entry the world. The Devil hates human beings because he hates the fact that God created them in His image, while was not given that privilege.

The Turkish Delights resembled the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Anyone who tasted the Turkish Delight will want more and more and more. Turkish Delight in the story symbolizes sin and many people keep on doing sin even if they know that it is wrong to do so.
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Aslan and the broken table
The resurrected Aslan and the broken table.
(Screenshot from the movie)

Aslan, sacrificing himself for the sake of the traitor Edmund is similar to Jesus Christ's sacrifice for the sake of all human beings who sinned. When Aslan submitted himself to the White Witch, he was maligned, insulted, and abused and in the end executed. In the end, however, Aslan was resurrected and the stone table (where he was executed and the representation of Death) broke in half. In Christianity, Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself for our sake and through His death and resurrection, Death lose its grip on us all.

The Pevensies fought a bitter war against the forces of the White Witch. Many of them had fallen but the people who are loyal to God never surrendered. This war is similar to the war that we are waging today against the forces of evil. Many of our brothers and sisters had fallen but we still continue this fight because we expect our God to return and finally end the war decisively, like the way Aslan defeated the White Witch in the story.

Reading the Chronicles of Narnia and ignoring the obvious elements is like reading the book with your eyes blindfolded. I like the way C.S. Lewis written the book because he was not afraid to show the beauty of Christianity.

I recommend that you read “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” because aside from being a literary masterpiece, the book is a great Christian book.

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Ignore the SONA, Join the SSONA

It is just few days before the lackluster Philippine president Noynoy Aquino will deliver his second State of the Nation Address (SONA). After a year in office, I can't see that Noynoy made any improvement in the Philippine government. Noynoy Aquino promised that his administration will pass the "Matuwid na Daan" (Straight Road) and will not copy the rampant corruption of the Arroyo Administration. Well, that promise was broken and the corruption in the Philippine government continue unabated. Corrupt politicians can't even "moderate their greed." Well, this is not surprising because the allies of Noynoy Aquino in the Philippine congress are the former allies of PGMA and are a bunch of political hooligans.

What's worse is that the current president created division in the nation, instead of promoting unity. Noynoy Aquino foolishly supported the Reproductive Health Bill and played in the hands of the makers of condoms and the health-hazardous contraceptive pills.He also opened the gates for irrational people who have nothing but hatred against God and against the Church.

This is why there is nothing to be expected in Noynoy Aquino's SONA this year.He will just bash the former president so as to hide the failings of his administration. He may even gloss over the "benefits" of the RH Bill and will promise the its quick passage in the future.

So, I say let us ignore the SONA.Instead of listening to lies, let us listen to the true state of the nation. Everyone is invited to this event:
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The State of the Soul of the Nation Address or the SSONA is set to commemorated the 43rd Anniversary of the Humanae Vitae, which re-affirms the traditional teaching of the Catholic Church regarding marriage, responsible parenthood, and lawful and unlawful ways of regulating birth.

The event will be held on July 25, 2011 (Monday) at Greenhills, San Juan City.

This event is not a Catholic gathering. Various leaders from various religious groups will attend the SSONA.  Ashort program will be held at the Corazon Aquino Kalayaan Hall at the Club Filipino in Greenhills, San Juan City to be led by various heads of the inter-faith alliance.

Everyone in invited to join the SSONA. Let us show Noynoy Aquino that we do not approve of the RH Bill and his policies that disrespects the sanctity of life and divides the nation.

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Read more about the SSONA at Filipinos for Life.

One Hour Photo

(Source: New Video)
How does an old man - with  no family, no relatives or even friends - feels as he age? An answer to that question was given in the movie, One Hour Photo, which stars the award-winning actor Robin Williams.

One Hour Photo is about the obsession of an employee of the one-hour photo lab at SavMart. Sy Parrish (Robin Williams) got obsessed with the Yorkins, who are the regular client of the photo lab. Sy Williams fantasized to be the Yorkins' favorite "Uncle Sy." Sy Parrish got to know more about the Yorkin family by looking at their photos, which he posted on the wall of his house.

In the course of the movie, Sy discovered the infidelity of the husband and he decided to inflict justice to his "beloved" niece Nina Yorkin.
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Sy Parrish and Nina Yorkin
"Uncle Sy" and Nina Yorkin
(source: Unreality Mag)
One Hour Photo is one of my most liked movie that stars Robin Williams. Another Robin Williams movie that I liked is the "Dead Poet's Society" that I watched when I was a freshman in the University. Another movie that I watched, starring Robin Williams, is Hook where he acted as the old Peter Pan.

What I liked about the movie is Robin William's portrayal of Sy Parrish. I felt his obsession with the Yorkins. I felt his desire to belong to a happy family, which he truly lacks. The fact that Sy Parrish knows everything about the Yorkin family added to the terror. It made me think of a situation where I am haunted by a person that is so obsessed to me. Stalkers of actresses in the Philippines pale in comparison with "Uncle Sy."

The director's attention to detail in the movie also helped creating the idea of Sy's character. The style seems to say that "Uncle Sy" knows all the details of your life. It is true in the movie because he knows  many things about the photo lab's patrons from the woman who only take photos of her cats to the amateur porn director.

I also like the twist in the story when "Uncle Sy" discovered the infidelity of of the husband. Sy Parrish made intricate plans to teach the husband a lesson for destroying "his" happy family. If you will watch the movie, you will in the end that Uncle Sy just taught the husband a lesson, nothing more and nothing less.

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Margie Juico Lied - Demolition Job Backfired

The Senate hearing this day just revealed the truth about the accusations against some Catholic bishops regarding the donations given to them by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO). The Senate hearing revealed that Margarita Juico of the PCSO lied about the "Pajero scandal" because no Pajero was given to the bishops. What was given instead are vehicles that are suitable for the rough terrain where the dioceses are located.

In the Senate hearing, Juico stated that she never said that Pajero was given to the bishops. What a lie. A video, which was grabbed from the news show 24 Oras, showed that Juico did mention Pajero.

Aside from the "Pajero" accusation, the Church-haters also claimed that the donated-vehicles were used by bishops for their "luxury." This is another lie. The vehicles were used for the charity efforts of the dioceses that received the said vehicles. The vehicles were used to help the Filipino people, especially in those places that are ignored by the national government.
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This is not a pajero

The photo above shows an instance when the donated vehicles was used. The vehicle is obviously not a Pajero and was donated to the diocese of Archbishop Quevedo. The vehicle was used to help the families affected by the flooding of a river in Cotabato. Drinking water and other goods were delivered to affected families regardless of their religious affiliation.

It is sad that Bishops were attacked by smear campaign because of their desire to help the people in their diocese. Charity is one of the important teachings of the Church and many of these bishops can't help but to seek help for the sake of the needy within the jurisdiction of their diocese. Is it wrong to ask for help from the PCSO? If the government just did its job then there is no need for the bishops to ask the help of PCSO. Yet the government is inefficient and the bishops can't bear to see people suffering.

What is the motive behind the demolition jobs against the Church? Is it because the Church stands in the way of the RH Bill? It is not farfetched to think that this is part of the RH Bill agenda because the people who are at the fore maligning the bishops in the mainstream media and in the Internet are same people who are pushing for the RH Bill. It is not farfetched to think that these people will do another smear campaign against the bishops because they attempt to neutralize the Church in the fight against the RH Bill.

The bishops returned the donated vehicles back to the PCSO. Now that the PCSO have the vehicles back, let Margie Juico and her ilk do the charitable activities that being done by the bishops for the sake of the poor. Let them do those things alone because they don't want the help of the Church.

Mayor Bistek is Scarier than the MMDA Sign

If you are living in Metro Manila or if you have visited Metro Manila, then it is possible that you have seen this sign:
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MMDA Sign Bawal Tumawid May Namatay na Dito


The sign reads: "BAWAL TUMAWID MAY NAMATAY NA DITO"

Translated in English it reads: "Crossing is prohibited. Somebody already died here."

The above photo was taken last May along Commonwealth Avenue. The said signage is just the second version of the anti-jaywalking signs posted during the time of MMDA Admin Bayani Fernando. The original signage read: "Walang tawiran. Nakamamatay" ("No crossing. Deadly).

Last month I was surprised that the MMDA anti-jaywalking sign was replaced with this:
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Bistek Bawal tumawid


The signage reads, "Bawal Tumawid" (Crossing is prohibited) with the smiling photo of Quezon City Mayor Bistek. For those who are not familiar with the Philippine showbiz, "Bistek" is the nickname given to the former actor Herbert Bautista.

Why was the MMDA signage replaced by this signage of the smiling Mayor Bistek? The possible reason why the MMDA was replaced because it is not that scary to jaywalkers anymore. Quezon City officials thought that they could scare jaywalkers from crossing Commonwealth Avenue by showing a "killer" smile of Mayor Bistek.

Well, the second photo shows that their thinking was wrong. The jaywalker in the photo was not "persuaded" by the smiling Bistek not to jaywalk.

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Week of Unfortunate Events

Today is Friday and I should have been "celebrating" because today is the last of this work week. But why do I feel so low and exhausted?

There are times when we feel that heavens are conspiring against us and throwing a barrage of misfortunes in our way. Well, I had experienced such feeling this work week and this made me feel so exhausted.

I have neglected this blog for about two weeks partly because of hectic schedule at work and I lost my sense of direction in the days that passed. I know that I had to post something on my blogs but I failed to do it. It seems that my blogs are the first victims whenever misfortunes rain upon me.

What are those misfortunes? Here are some of them:

Misfortune #1: Diggings Along Quezon Avenue

There is always heavy traffic on my way to work or home as I passed along the Espanya Boulevard and Quezon Avenue. Heavy traffic is normal on both of these streets but the traffic being experienced on those areas is especially heavy because the government started its project of building an underpass along Quezon Avenue that crosses the Araneta Avenue.

Because of the excavation being done along Quezon Avenue, I had to look for alternative way to reach my office. The alternative ways that are available are longer and requires plenty of transfers between public transports. The result of this is additional stress to me.

Misfortune #2: Powerless

I came back to the office after a week-long travel and what welcomed me is darkness. There is no electricity in the whole building because of faulty wiring. Now, I move from place to place to find a wall outlet where I can plug my computer. This is another source of stress for me this week.

Misfortune #3: Hectic Hectic Hectic

And because I am gone from the office for a week, my work load got accumulated and this also welcomed me. I had to do those work even if there is no electricity.

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Those are just three of the misfortunes that came my way this week. There are more but I will not bore you with those things.

I just hope that everything will be back to normal next week.

Dear God, help me.

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Ang Tunay na Iskolar ng Bayan

UP Oblation

Ang tunay na iskolar ng bayan
Na may pakialam sa kapwa nating mamamayan
Alam na hindi RH Bill ang tunay na kasagutan
Sa problemang hinaharap ng ating lipunan

Napakaraming problema ang dapat nating tugunan
Pagpapatatag ng edukasyon ang ating pondohan
Kung kulang pa tayo ng guro, libro at paaralan
Paano natin sila bibigyan ng wastong karunungan?

Pill at condom lang ba ang halaga ng ating katawan?
Kung hindi kaya mahalin, edi huwag na pakasalan
Tayo rin ang todong maaapektuhan, tayong mga kabataan
Kaya naman natin magtimpi, disiplina lang ang kailangan

Bakit ba ang pagbubuntis ay pilit iniiwasan?
Isa ba itong sakit na nararapat mabilisang gamutan?
Ang totoo, isa itong napakalaking karangalan
Na ang babae’y makapagdalang tao sa kanyang sinapupunan

Mga taga-UP, gamitin natin ang ating taglay na katalinuhan
Huwag tayo maging parang asong sunod sunuran
Hindi purkit uso at sinabing maganda ng mga taga-kanluran
Ay totoong makabubuti sa ating minamahal na bayan

Iskolar ng bayan, buksan natin ang ating isipan
Tingnan natin mabuti ang isyu sa kabuuan
Ibasura na natin ang RH Bill bago tayo magsisi ng tuluyan
At tinataguyod ng panukalang ito ay kultura ng kamatayan

Ang tunay na iskolar ng bayan
Na may pakialam sa kapwa nating mamamayan
Alam na hindi RH Bill ang tunay na kasagutan
Sa problemang hinaharap ng ating lipunan

-o-o-o-

This poem is penned by John Juat in relation to the Pro-Life Rally mounted by Pro-life UP Students last July 1.

Image otained from WikiCommons.