caption this

you are not the only ones hurt

yesterday

i have posted a semi-angry sentiment

of a foreigner about the recent you-know-what...

i tried drafting a response or even just something that would air what i feel right now, but i failed.

not that i feel that it matters to you, but it matters to me...

here's someone who have managed to...

http://smoke.ph/blog/?p=149 

here's why his comments made me shiver - (doh) (tears)

friend lainie (working in singapore) sent me this message few minutes ago with an intro: I had 2nd thoughts forwarding this, but i guess we could still learn something from this. oh well, i must give the same intro to you too. but as i read on, i can feel myself nodding to some of his sentiments (crossed sentences are mine, those are lines which i think are somewhat foul, at least for now)...here:

kir106 on August 25, 2010 at 1:47 pm As a white person married to a filipina and father to two half dutch / filipino children, I feel for Philippines. I have sadness but I also have frustration and anger towards filipino culture (in some cases, filipino behaviour is idiotic)...because I see it in my wife, in my in-laws and her relations.

To most foreigners, we see and understand the bad things in filipino culture (and yet filipinos do not understand nor see the bad in themselves, why because you filipinos think that you are good people because you are catholics or born-agains....let me tell you, there are bad catholics and there are bad born-agains).

This sad story just highlights the idiotic nature of filipino culture and how it impacts on the filipino society. This bad side of the filipino culture was displayed over the world (via cable tv and internet, however we have ABS-CBN so we watched it live). I will try and explain in english and broken tagalog:

Idiot 1: Stupid Filipino Negotiator The filipino negotiator only talked for about 30 minutes then gave up. That is not how you do or practice negotiation skills in hostage situations. In other parts of the world, most negotiators do it for 48 hours. They give the hostagetaker lots of food and water to drink and talk to him all the time. The logic behind this is after 12 hours (of eating and drinking), they need to pee or poo (kailangan wee-wee at tae), so he have to get out of the bus, that's when you need to attack him. Have you tried to talk on the phone when ebs is starting to come out? Its very hard. This is a technique filipino negotiators need to learn. Yes, the hostagetaker was given food...but it should have been more over a 48 hour period. After 48 hours, susuko din ito.

Idiot 2: Stupid Swat Team with a Hammer He was a stupid swat team who was hammering the window with a long and heavy pile driver hammer. After 3 attempts he got tired, he needed to let go of the hammer and give his gun to his partner so he can rest. Well, next time try to work out in the gym, do some weights and jog to get fit. Sobra taba pagod agad.

Idiot 3: Emergency lock out on Hydraulic Doors All tour buses have an emergency lock out for the hydraulic doors. It's located under the bus near the underside of the door. I saw on TV that they were trying to find out where the lock out is...instead the tababoy swat hammered the door, what did it do...nothing, it's still remained close and he got tired some more. In other parts of the world, the tactical response group practice everyday on how to attack or seige a hostage situation, they study all type of vehicles (airplanes, buses, trains, boats etc) and practice how to attack these positions. They study were the entry and exit are, where emergency doors are and how to stop these vehicles (just ask the Israel Tactical response group, they do this every day). Next time, study the layout of the bus first. Filipinos tend not to worry about what may happen, they only act when it is happening.

Idiot 4: Roping the Door Another swat team [member] (the tababoy swat team have to be substituted he got tired) tried to rope the door and pull it using the Isuzu police truck...what happened? The rope ... hellllloooo .....hydraulic doors are designed to stand against a lot of force and pressure. A rope made of abaca won't open it.

Idiot 5: The bystander boy who got shot in the leg A bystander got shot in the leg. Well, what do you expect? The swat team should have quarantined and sanctioned the area. Example: put a ribbon or barracade saying "Crime Scene" just like you see in the movies....or is the PNP too poor to buy one of those. Al bystanders should realise that they are not part of the event and if something happens to them it is their own fault. Buti nga sayo, buhay ka pa !!

Idiot 6: Throwing tear gas into the bus It is idiotic to throw tear gas into a bus when nobody knew how many people were still alive. Of those dead people, I wonder how many died of tear gas suffocation. Of course, PNP will not admit it, they will say that the hostagetaker killed them. I do not trust filipino autopsy. Filipinos tend to fake documents or stories to make them look good (it's called 'saving face'). As far as the PNP is concerned, the hostagetaker killed them and no other investigation is required.

Idiot 7:Firing into the bus This is one of the most serious idiotic actions they did. Firing into the bus also creates ricochet (banda-banda). I wonder how many got killed because of this? Like number 6, PNP will not admit it.

Idiot 8: Swat team entering after the tear gas This idiotic act is the one that made me laugh (and I am sure all tactical response group in the world will be using this as a "don't do" training video because of its 'kenkoy' effect). Two swat teams enter the bus after they put the tear gas...what happened...they have to asked for help from the people outide to get them out because they cant breath...why...because they forgot the gas mask. Next time do an inventory of equipment you need in case of emergency.

Idiot 9: The treatment of the brother and family of the hostagetaker It was seen on TV that the wife, daughter and brother of the hostagetaker were treated poorly. Nobody helped them, not even the media. No person tried to help the family. In most society, a group of people will form a circle around the family to help them...nobody did that for them. Where is the people power...Philippines have done it before, why didn't they do it then? No one offered help to the wife and the pregnant daughter, they saw their father killed in front of them. That is no way to treat people....for a country who claims to be 'mapagmahal', catholic and christian that was an utter embarrassment.

Idiot 10: Corrupt police The hostagetaker wanted to clear his name because he was charged with corruption. Corruption...in the Phillippines....that's news to me (sarcastic)!!! One policeman charged with corruption is not going to make a difference. Catching small corruption is not going to make a difference....the real corruption happens at the top of filipino government (ie Marcos, Erap, Arroyo).Us foreigners laugh at filipino stupidity because you do not learn, you get rid of Marcos because he was bad and corrupt, but still vote for Imelda and her children to become congressman and governor, give them a second chance to be corrupt again......so, nothing changed. That's Corruption....and 'katangahan ng pilipino'. In other countries, police treat one another like brothers and help them when they need it. It did not happen here.

Idiot 11: Media and dead people This is the most idiotic and unacceptable behaviour that was displayed to the world. Filipino media is to be blamed for this. Respect and sensitivity should have been excersised by the media. They showed (in close up), the dead body of the hostagetaker hanging from the door with blood and brains dripping from the head, the dead body of a child and other dead bodies with blood being taken out of the bus. This should not have been televised. The relatives of the dead will not want it televised but the filipino media did. This is not good. Respect for the dead should have been observed.

Idiot 12: Laughing Sniper The sniper was interviewed by the media and he seemed to be happy and laughing when he told the reporter how he shot the hostagetaker in the head and that he was proud he killed him. The wife, daughter and father of the hostagetaker (watching from their province) will obviously will not want another person to hear how proud they were when he shot their husband / father. I hope that the sniper have a son, father, brother and I hope one day someone will shoot them infront of him and I want to know how he feels then.

CONCLUSION: This will only give filipinos a bad name overseas. It will also affect filipinos who are born overseas, eventhough they have nothing to do with this, they will be judged of what filipinos in Philippines did. For filipinos trying to get a visa to Canada, USA, UK, Europe etc...forget it...you will be judged by their immigration office for this kind of event. They already know that most filipinos are likely to be TNT and this backlash will make it even harder for filipinos to get visa.

Ganti [revenge] on DH - I am sure, that Hong Kong / China will go on a massive revenge on filipina DH in hong kong. I am sure of it. HK and Chinese only see filipinas as lowly people who's only role is to clean houses. PS: chinese people don't know that Europeans look at them as lowly immigrants who clean toilets in europe....ganti din.

Ganti on japayuki -Also, Japanese people will take revenge on japayukis in Japan. Japanese people already treat filipinas like dirt and they will even treat them even worse because of this. Japanese people to not take filipinos in high regard...japanese only see filipinos as dirt people who will do anything just to get money (ie be japayuki in japan).

Ganti on OFW in Saudi -I'm sure too, that OFW in Saudi will also feel the revenge of people there because of this. I am sure that my children will be teased and bullied at school because of this. My children, regardless of being half-white are still brown in colour, with black hair (but with blue eyes) and people know they are half-filipinos. So filipinos in Philippines, your stupidity in your country is also 'hawa-hawa' to other filipinos overseas...they get judged by what you filipinos in Philippines do to yourselves or to others. Internet order filipina brides will always get foreign husbands, unfortunately for filipino lalaki, there is no such thing as internet order filipino husbands (I never seen white woman with filipino husband), as more filipina marry foreigner more filipino lalaki are left behind in philippines (my wife said she does not like filipino lalaki because they are 'tanga'.....I know she married me for money and greencard so she can send dollars to her batugan parents and batugan brothers, batugan cousins and batugan kapitbahay)....so, the only hope for Philippines is for half-foreigner and half-filipino children, half is better than stupid full-blood filipino.

-end of email (enough said muna)-

in no specific order

here are my favorite blog pages lately.
some may call this a list of top 10 emerging influential blogs.
i call them my prio-read, among many others. 

http://imomonline.net/
i smile when i read entries from this page. and what more,
i like her. a true-blue momma.

http://fengguillermobrum.com/
i just have gotten to know this page from reading imom-
worth knowing, worth noting.

http://sugarsmile.blogspot.com/
this page reminds me of the young in me.
may it be there forever.

http://hoysakura.blogspot.com/
will you allow me to include this? hala!
'question answers' to questions needing answers.

http://kikaymuch.me/
i'm not a fashionista, but ugh
i'm a closet fan of kikaymuch

http://meowbykate.blogspot.com
coz i'm afraid of kitties and almost anything that moves
(that's not human)- here i get my share
of loving them without having to touch or be near them

http://burymeinthisdress.com/blog/
just open this page and you'd know why.

http://smoke.ph/blog/
'coz most of the time (not all of the time) what's in my draft
is in her page already. she writes my thoughts better, never afraid.
so i don't write them anymore, i share hers.

http://gandaeversomuch.com/
the closest i can have to having updates about my adopted city...and
understanding others (just others, not the 'not like ours'-thing). fascinating.

http://clarencebatan.com/
i learn much when we talk... and when we can't (talk),
i learn from his website. (no ads! lavet!)

truth is, after geocities and friendster, i have semi-retired
from the online world and just had myself reinstated lately.
hence, i don't know much about most of these pages, as to
when did it start making noise (if it ever did) or if they ever
have been on any top10 list on the blogosphere. they're just
on my list 'coz they are my favorites lately. one or two of
them may become your favorites too.

POST SCRIPT.
i'm sending this to ms. toral's page
http://www.influentialblogger.net/2010/05/join-top-10-emerging-influential-blogs.html
now na! send yours too!

another day without you

missing the toxic sked

0530: wake up to a smell of morning coffee with lotsa milk
0630: bathed and ready for work while helping the boys get ready
0700: off to school- teach, read, research, chat, learn et.cet.
1200: lunchtime with the boys
1330: back to school - consult, teach, sort/pay bills and/or do other errands
1730: early dinner with the boys
1830: TV time, chat-time with hubby, assist wowa in his 'homework'
2100: sleep time (of the boys), house clean-up time
2200: prepare for tomorrow- clothes, shoes, food et.cet.
2230: check papers, prepare lessons while watching(listening to) movies
0200: sleeptime et.cet. :))

breaking the fast

breakfast is called breakfast because it's a meal that breaks our night fast. hence, saying that it's the most important meal of the day is so correct. mine today is breakfast A: okra, egg and rice. okra, aside from being low in calories, has plenty of vitamin A, Thiamin, B6, C, folic acid, riboflavin, calcium, zinc and dietary fiber. eggs are a good source of low-cost high-quality protein. rice (which is staple here) provides fast and instant energy and pretty good bowel movement, stabilizes blood sugar levels and provides essential source of vitamin B1. rice (eaten in moderation, say half a cup?) is good for the skin too and helps build resistance to high blood pressure, dysentery and heart diseases. most of all, i cooked all of it in one sitting - fast, cheap, healthy! breakfast anyone?

loss for words, as usual

whenever i decide to blog about you, i am always at a loss for words.
why is that?
just several days ago, you celebrated your birth anniversary.
a year older, a year wiser, a year stronger.
i wish i was near you then to show you how much i love you...
but that day, i can only thank god he gave me the chance to meet you...
he created a beautiful wonderful forgiving human being that is you.
our life together was not perfect, but it is so much better than the rest.
thank you for keeping us (our family) together.
thank you for trying your best- in not just being the best husband
but the best father as well.
thank you for understanding my sometimes scary playfulness.
thank you for being 'you'.
whenever i decide to blog about you,
i am always at a loss for words.
why is that? maybe, just maybe,  words aren't enough...

i just didn't do it

it's the title of a japanese film i saw.
the movie is about a young man
falsely accused of molesting a high-school girl
on a train. he was arrested and charged,
and goes through almost-endless court sessions,
all the while insisting that he is innocent.

i don't want to do the same.
i was accused. i was judged.
what more can i do? appeal?
but you stated that an appeal does not guarantee anything.
so why would i?
should i just thank you for not killing me?
okay, thank you.

but you should know, i - just - didn't - do - it!