SAGIP BANSA PRESENTS A TALE OF TWO MOUNTAINS

SAGIP BANSA PRESENTS A TALE OF TWO MOUNTAINS

By Wilhelmina S. Orozco

How do we love our country? Through speeches, writings, and standing up during the playing of the National Anthem? How about through dance and music?

Sagip Bansa, the cultural arm of the Democratic Party of the Philippines (DPP) presented recently “A Tale of Two Mountains,” a dance musical concert detailing the development of Philippine dances from the original Aeta culture through Spanish eras. Held at the AFP Theatre, the presentation was attended by supporters and officials of the Party who have been staunchly keeping together all of its member-non-government organizations intact through viable livelihood projects.

The program is titled after two mountains: first, the Pinatubo Mountain which erupted in 1991, and second, the mountain of garbage, euphemistically called Smokey Mountain. Actually the latter is the source of workforce of the Spartan Mining and Development Corporation now operating at the foot of Mount Pinatubo.

The concert was held to launch Sagip Bansa led by Baldomero Falcone. It featured the dancing Tondo youths from Smokey Mountain and other scavenging areas,  brought there by a Catholic religious organization. Smoothly the presentation went as the dances showed our ethnic roots and and Spanish influences through dances, complete with appropriate costumes and props.

Actually the presentation – music and dances – reminded me of those that were researched by National Artists for Music Lucrecia Kasilag and for Dance, Lucrecia Urtula for the repertoire of Bayanihan Dance Troupe in the hinterlands of our tribal groups up north and down south. They were also joined by Isabella Santos, the costume designer. As the two were academically-based in the 50’s and therefore immersed in what are scholarly researches, they embarked on the research, the products from which revealed excellence in methods and authenticity in terms of recreating on stage our tribal groups’ dances.

However, instead of a chronological presentation of the dances the SM group inserted ethnic dances in between Spanish jota dances which became jarring at times. However, on the whole the presentation heightened nationalistic feelings among the audience who gave rousing applause as the dances were truly Filipino – especially those depicting collective celebrations in the barrios.

One pop song, different from the rest and with a modern beat stood out as the story of the urban poor. It told of how the Pasig River used to be very clean for use by the people but later on due to neglect and disrespect (people throwing garbage into it) became very dirty and unusable for transport and even fishing. At the end, even a child died from drowning in it. The use of long pieces of cloth swished by actors from both ends produced the illusion of the Pasig waters waving.

Actually I have seen this theatrical technique first at a dance choreography by Agnes Locsin at the CCP way back in the 90’s. Its recreation on stage is laudable as it had brought home the idea of the beauty of the river flowing on stage. In the beginning the cloths were white and blue but they turned black symbolically showing the negative turnout of the river as it had been disrespected by the people.

The Spartan Mining and Development Corporation chaired by Louis Ramos,  sponsored the event. A very new company with a strong commitment to corporate responsibility, the SMDC is now giving jobs to the people from Smokey Mountain at its mining claim located at San Marcelino, Zambales. In the video presentations, the SMDC describes how the lahar town is now reaping benefits instead of problems from the operations of the company. The people are given jobs to extract iron (magnetites) from the lahar grounds which later on are sold to the company at P300 pesos per kilo.

“No one believed us,” Mr. Ramos revealed. “ They thought we would be making money out of the miseries of the people (in Zambales.) But in Sagip Bansa, the DPP – we really mean to serve the poorest of the poor.”

He mentioned how the Payatas and Smokey Mountain people had a pathetic existence due to the neglect of the government. But now, the future is growing brighter for the people as they would be provided jobs plus dwellings. A thousand homes will be built as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Housing and Urban Development Corporation, and the Bureau of Land had convinced the local government officials to participate in the project by donating the land for housing, to be located at the foot of the Mount Pinatubo for the housing.

“The houses will not be a dole-out. The people will pay for them. Kaya nilang bayaran kasi may trabaho na naghihintay sa kanila. (They can afford to pay for the house because there is a job waiting for them)

We can create jobs up to 50,000 jobs. Tamad na ang kikita ng P300 per day. We purchase (magnetites) per kilo from them. We reprocess them in our factory. Here is an opportunity (for the people) to live decently and with dignity. In our lifetime, we could do something for our people,” he further said.

Mr. Ramos did not envision this mining project at all. In fact he was about to retire before he started the company. But all the things happening today is borne of faith, he emphasized. “Our mining operation is the only one endorsed by environmental groups. We can move mountains. Please continue praying for us. Because we need prayers.”

Mr. Falcone also said, “It’s about time we show what we truly mean.”

MESSAGE FOR WOMEN ENTERING COLLEGE

To Andrea and all other women high school graduates entering college:

First of all you must ask yourself, “Am I comfortable being a woman?” Yes, Andrea, you must admit that you are a woman, that you are proud to be one and that you know your rights as a woman. Why do I say that? So many college students enter college and yet are not sure if they are a woman or some other gender. So they hang out with those people who would not validate their existence but use them for their own ends. They want to validate their own selves through you. But it comes doubly difficult for you because you are made to be a crutch for another without your consent. And should you consent, you have done so without full knowledge of what you are going through with them. I will expound on this later.

Secondly, college work is highly different from high school. You may not have the same classmates at all of your subjects. Much of the time, you will be on your own studying. So cultivate the best habits of studying. Go to the library and find out how to search for books that will help you in your studies and assignments.

Learn how to read books, not just textbooks. Textbooks are easy to read because they are really meant to be learned by students. But other books could be supplementary to the textbooks. So familiarize yourself with how a book is written – from cover to cover. First of all, it has a title page. a table of contents and chapters. The first would give you the author and at the back of that page, will tell you if the book is worthwhile reading or is passé already, i.e. its contents having been surpassed by current books. Always check the year it was published.

Books do not have to be read from page one to the end. You may jump from page one to page 50 or some other number. If it is fiction, you may want to delay the knowledge of how the story ends. But if it is essay, you are free to roam around the various chapters of the book.  Now, its table of contents will tell you the broad coverage of the subject matter that the author has undertaken. So from there, you will also read those topics that you like best to read first.

Know how to look at the theme of each chapter in a book. At first glance, you might think that the chapter is just a bunch of words and sentences. But once you really read through it a few times, you will be able to see how the author thinks. First of all the author could be writing deductively – starting from a general premise or general idea, then proceeed to smaller ideas that beef up or bolster the general idea. On the other hand, the author could be writing inductively – starting from smaller ideas and then ending on a general idea.

Learn to take notes, writing them on your notebook as you read along so that you will see how the author progresses in convincing you about his or her ideas.

Thirdly, learn to chat with your teachers and classmates about the subject.. See among your teachers who are available for discussions or a session of clarification of the subject afterwards. In this manner, what bothers you about what has been learned during the class you could clarify later on with them.

Some teachers are not that sociable. Don’t mind it if they do not want to discuss with you. If you are still in the first month of the semester or trimester, you might be able to transfer to another teacher. Check with the registrar or your adviser what is best. (Usually a froshie, i.e., first year student has an adviser, someone you can lean on during difficult times in college.) If you are not able to transfer, then try engaging your classmates to help you, or if there is a student council in the university, ask them to put up a counseling kiosk where you can refer our problems on your subject. Usually there are senior students who like to volunteer their services in those kiosks.

College life is replete also with extra curricular activities. Get into those that will hone your talents and skills. Some people will tell you that by joining, you will meet your future husband. That is the worst reason for joining one. At this time, meeting a future husband is not a priority for you. You still have three or four more years to finish you degree. So getting involved emotionally could drain you and make you feel weak to face your studies.

So choose carefully the group that you want to join after your regular classes. This should not be one that will suck you dry of your time and effort. Some students join a group because they are bored with their studies; sometime later, they are more involved in these extra curricular activities than with their studies. Insist to your friends that your priority is your course, not the extra curricular activities.

Also, ask your self, do you really like the course that you have chosen? Who chose it for you, your parents, your friend, or some other person? It is important to choose what you really like, because if you like your course, you will be encouraged and always will feel excited doing your assignments.

How do you know if you like your course? Find out what jobs would be available for you once you graduate from it. Pick the one that will give you the job that you will enjoy doing for the rest of your life, if possible. Remember to engage in music as it will make any effort you do easier, your tasks lighter. And of course, don’t forget to laugh heartily. A good sense of humor, especially with friends who have the same,  will always tide you over the bumps of life.

Knowing you are a woman means that your body is different from that of a man, that you have your ups and downs every month – i.e., menstruation that certain traditional notions of being a woman could pull you down.

1. Your body is different from that of a man,. This spells a great deal when dealing with a man. A man could feel the urge to make love with you but you don’t want to. But because you were brought up to think that men should be followed then you go through the motions of being “acceptable” to him. 

SAGIP BANSA PRESENTS A TALE OF TWO MOUNTAINS

By Wilhelmina S. Orozco

How do we love our country? Through speeches, writings, and standing up during the playing of the National Anthem? How about through dance and music?

Sagip Bansa, the cultural arm of the Democratic Party of the Philippines (DPP) presented recently “A Tale of Two Mountains,” a dance musical concert detailing the development of Philippine dances from the original Aeta culture through Spanish eras. Held at the AFP Theatre, the presentation was attended by supporters and officials of the Party who have been staunchly keeping together all of its member-non-government organizations intact through viable livelihood projects.

The program is titled after two mountains: first, the Pinatubo Mountain which erupted in 1991, and second, the mountain of garbage, euphemistically called Smokey Mountain. Actually the latter is the source of workforce of the Spartan Mining and Development Corporation now operating at the foot of Mount Pinatubo.

The concert was held to launch Sagip Bansa led by Baldomero Falcone. It featured the dancing Tondo youths from Smokey Mountain and other scavenging areas,  brought there by a Catholic religious organization. Smoothly the presentation went as the dances showed our ethnic roots and and Spanish influences through dances, complete with appropriate costumes and props.

Actually the presentation – music and dances – reminded me of those that were researched by National Artists for Music Lucrecia Kasilag and for Dance, Lucrecia Urtula for the repertoire of Bayanihan Dance Troupe in the hinterlands of our tribal groups up north and down south. They were also joined by Isabella Santos, the costume designer. As the two were academically-based in the 50’s and therefore immersed in what are scholarly researches, they embarked on the research, the products from which revealed excellence in methods and authenticity in terms of recreating on stage our tribal groups’ dances.

However, instead of a chronological presentation of the dances the SM group inserted ethnic dances in between Spanish jota dances which became jarring at times. However, on the whole the presentation heightened nationalistic feelings among the audience who gave rousing applause as the dances were truly Filipino – especially those depicting collective celebrations in the barrios.

One pop song, different from the rest and with a modern beat stood out as the story of the urban poor. It told of how the Pasig River used to be very clean for use by the people but later on due to neglect and disrespect (people throwing garbage into it) became very dirty and unusable for transport and even fishing. At the end, even a child died from drowning in it. The use of long pieces of cloth swished by actors from both ends produced the illusion of the Pasig waters waving.

Actually I have seen this theatrical technique first at a dance choreography by Agnes Locsin at the CCP way back in the 90’s. Its recreation on stage is laudable as it had brought home the idea of the beauty of the river flowing on stage. In the beginning the cloths were white and blue but they turned black symbolically showing the negative turnout of the river as it had been disrespected by the people.

The Spartan Mining and Development Corporation chaired by Louis Ramos,  sponsored the event. A very new company with a strong commitment to corporate responsibility, the SMDC is now giving jobs to the people from Smokey Mountain at its mining claim located at San Marcelino, Zambales. In the video presentations, the SMDC describes how the lahar town is now reaping benefits instead of problems from the operations of the company. The people are given jobs to extract iron (magnetites) from the lahar grounds which later on are sold to the company at P300 pesos per kilo.

“No one believed us,” Mr. Ramos revealed. “ They thought we would be making money out of the miseries of the people (in Zambales.) But in Sagip Bansa, the DPP – we really mean to serve the poorest of the poor.”

He mentioned how the Payatas and Smokey Mountain people had a pathetic existence due to the neglect of the government. But now, the future is growing brighter for the people as they would be provided jobs plus dwellings. A thousand homes will be built as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the Housing and Urban Development Corporation, and the Bureau of Land had convinced the local government officials to participate in the project by donating the land for housing, to be located at the foot of the Mount Pinatubo for the housing.

“The houses will not be a dole-out. The people will pay for them. Kaya nilang bayaran kasi may trabaho na naghihintay sa kanila. (They can afford to pay for the house because there is a job waiting for them)

We can create jobs up to 50,000 jobs. Tamad na ang kikita ng P300 per day. We purchase (magnetites) per kilo from them. We reprocess them in our factory. Here is an opportunity (for the people) to live decently and with dignity. In our lifetime, we could do something for our people,” he further said.

Mr. Ramos did not envision this mining project at all. In fact he was about to retire before he started the company. But all the things happening today is borne of faith, he emphasized. “Our mining operation is the only one endorsed by environmental groups. We can move mountains. Please continue praying for us. Because we need prayers.”

Mr. Falcone also said, “It’s about time we show what we truly mean.”

What is respect in Chinese? I have been studying Mandarin and guys it's really difficult. It is so different from Pilipino, from the Malaysian language. I am more attutned to learning Spanish, French and German than the Chinese language spoken by our neighbors who are just a few countries away. This just goes to show how we have been too detached from our neighbors. We are very Westernized in our outlook and have almost discarded our Asian roots. I think this is also why our response to Aung Suu Kyi's incarceration before was almost nil. Burma seemed too strange culturally for use. Hence, we could not feel then the immediate response to her and her people's plight, which was under military rule, as contrary to democratic principles as we had experienced under Marcos.

How should we face the standoff at the Scarborough Shoal, or Panatag Isle? It is very easy to drop the usual premise: "Hey that is within the 200 nautical miles that the UN has decreed as territorial rights of the people in the country nearest it."

I think that is a good base for us to work on, except that the Chinese in PRC do not buy that reason, and therefore insist that Scarborough is theirs.

My dear Neighbors, you have oil; your products are sold everywhere; some of our inventions have been copied by your manufacturers without giving credit nor payment to inventors; you are the third or second largest economic power; many of your compatriots lord it over in the economic sectors of our country; now what more do you want?

Can't we talk it over? Folks, do you think that is passable as an opening to getting our neighbors to sit down and talk over the stand-off. Goodness. they are giving me the jitters.

Let's start off, what is  "Respect" in Chinese Pin yin please. I forgot to ask Grace and Shi Fu Jian Yin, yesterday.
MORE TO COME TOMORROW. REGARDS

THREE LITTLE GIRLS

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

I am writing here in this internet kiosk and a little before 11:37, this time, three little girls were in front of the computer. The eldest (tallest) was using the computer, looking at pictures in the facebook page. But the smallest was already crying and wanted to go home, probably feeling drowsy already. An hour was still to pass, said G___, the counter chief. Someone offered to pay off the girl the remaining hour so that they could go home. The eldest stood up grudgingly, and then with the two girls in tow, left the kiosk banging the door behind her. G___ ran after her and scolded her for doing so.

This is what I am saying about this laissez-faire policy in the business set-up. The government through the DSWD does not police the children who go to the internet shops. They should have representatives who will be roaming the cities checking up on whether there are children who should observe curfew hours. These girls are learning the wrong things about using the internet and nobody is guiding them. Their mother is working; their father is out of the house. Who will teach them the need to sleep early so that they would grow up healthy? Who will teach them that only some pages are reserved for them?

It's time to have another assembly of NGOs to tackle the pernicious ways by which children misuse the internet.

TITANNIC IN 3D

Titannic
by Wilhelmina S. Orozco


Folks, I have just watched the Titannic in 3D. Not really very impressive for me. But I still love the story and the character of Leo, or is it Leo Di Caprio himself? He sounded so true as a scoundrel winning poker after betting his friend's last money just to be able to win the Titannic ship ticket and as a lover to Rose, Kate Winslet's character.

I saw the film way back in the 90's and as I watched it again tonight, I noticed that what set in my memory was the start of the story in 1912, and not the elderly Rose's recollection of the voyage. I became more interested also to know the background of the ship, as our country, I wish being archipelagic should would really be in to serious shipbuilding. (By the way, so many of our folks are seamates as if they take to the waters like fish. And this diaspora is so natural for many of our people simply because hopping from one island to the next seems so natural to us because we come from 7100 islands.


Then as I truly watched the film unfold, I thought to myself, Cameron, the director, must have had a battery of researchers so that he could present a truthful and realistic picture -- not only of the ship as it sank, but including the belly where the workers were putting coal to make it run. That scene where the coal room looked steaming hot showed us how technology before was very pollutant. And I pitied the workers so much.


That nude scene of Rose Dawson did not move me so much as Leo D's not acting too attracted while drawing her figure. He really looked very natural there and should have been as his role as an artist truly required him not to be drawn to his models. Or so I think.


Titannic raises many issues which could still be present or  prominent now like the division of society into classes -- third and first classes. Another issue is that should the artistic eye  be possessed by everyone?  But in our country it is not. Art is too expensive -- or not many can earn from being an artist. Still another issue is that should one follow one's heart when getting married or should love contain opportunistic aims? In this day and age of rising prices of electric and water bills, it looks too big a task to maintain one's being true to oneself.  However, I propose that policy of celibacy for those who have such misgivings about having a true love now.


The ending of the Titannic shows Rose reaching the land of milk and honey, with the statue of Liberty behind her, enticing her and the thousands who had joined that trip. But is the US still a beckoning torch now that it is suffering from a jittery economy? Well, Hollywood can always be a nice excuse for being there, if only to see your idols in person, for some, I guess.


Finally, I am mulling over the idea of our movie producers being able to make one "Titannic" film using our own experiences, like the "Pedring" but then our story shall have a truly political angle this time -- how Pedring was carried out to cover up a political issue  -- when the son of the notorious official was in the hot seat, was being bombarded with questions as to how he had acquired  so much wealth in the US. Who would dare do that film, eh?

EXISTENCE AND LEADERSHIP

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

Some people view existence as the good life -- having a fast car, a mansion perhaps or just plain big house, lots of money for spending all day, even fame -- i.e., people knowing them once they pass by or they are read in the papers all the time.

Other people view life as transient and so do not care what ever materials things they own. They may prepare for the afterlife by constantly seeking a spiritual meaning in their present lives. (But wait, there are some people who attempt to look spiritual but in their daily lives, more so in their business, they are quite shrewd and would not budge an inch for a reduction of their profit.)

Still others think that life must be lived well -- meaningfully. Every act they do must stem from their inner guts, what they think they really like to do. This last group is worth emulating because they know their directions in life -- they know what would make them happy.

The first thinks happiness could be bought or, with the presence of the material things, they would be happy.

The second leads a segmented life -- one part is spiritual, the other is material. There is no continuity thread between the two. And so, sometimes they come up neurotically driven to do things -- one that would fulfill them in both, which of course will never happen.

What is difficult about existing is when people become leaders of a group of people. The leaders cannot come from the first two groups, I think. The first would think that the people may need only a minimum of material wealth, and reserve the most for those who they think deserve it -- those who have lots of money to spare for surplus. Isn't having a lot of material wealth a case of having surplus?

And so as a leader, the first would have a very narrow view of what leadership means, what making the people happy means. If they see that there is no war in their midst, then that's good enough. It means that people can coexist with each other, no matter how deprived some groups of the majority of the people are. The 'peaceful' atmosphere is actually a mirage because inside, the stomachs of the groups of people they lead are rumbling.

The second who leads must probably be earning a lot from showing to the people that they are spiritual, and so they preach in huge quadrangles, telling the people how to grow rich, ;but actually they grow richer than the people. They even go  on radio and TV, telling the people how they can attain what they are aiming at. But do their predictions or advice bear fruit? Not all the time but the people blame themselves if they do not get what they want. And so under the rule of this person are people who could turn pragmatic. 'I must listen to the preachings because who knows, tomorrow I may die; but at least I have prayed well.' Outside of their prayerful meetings, they become shrewd business people so that they can live affluently.

The third is an idealist. They could turn leaders but they could be bad leaders as well -- because if they are rigid in their values, they would not know how to deal with different kinds of people. People are not idealistic like them and may offer solutions to problems but are actually camouflaged profit-taking endeavors. But if the idealists temper their idealism with a bit of pragmatism, they could turn out to be good leaders. To do this, they must put out their third eye -- be sensitive as to who is approaching them sincerely and  not. They must be able to distinguish who are truly their friends, and who truly are loving of the people so that their solutions redound to the welfare of the people.

Folks, let us examine our leaders if they fall under any of these categories. And should you have other categories or comments about this, kindly share them with me. Elections are coming and we must be more discerning of those aspiring to become new leaders or those who wish to continue leading us.

BROTHERS' VOW TO ALLEVIATE POVERTY

BROTHERS'  VOW TO ALLEVIATE POVERTY

Spartan Village 

By Wilhelmina S Orozco

What is brotherhood? It is friendship between and among men. It is helping each and everyone attain that equal stature so that they may live and co-exist in a peaceful, prosperous and happy state.

This was the kind of brotherhood that existed between Manong Ernie and his younger brother Louie Ramos. Manong Ernie was an internationally-known political figure  among the Pangasinenses  and the Filipino-Americans in the United States by now most known as the Democratic Party of the Philippines' candidate during the last presidential elections in 2010. Louie who steered the DPP in Manong Ernie’s absence, is his brother who dutifully looked after his personal campaign.

Their brotherhood however was not only political but economic as well. Manong Ernie was able to inspire Louie to constantly think of politics only as a tool to improve the economic well-being of the Filipino people. So today, even in the absence of Manong Ernie who has gone ahead of all of us to heaven, Louie is involved in a great economic undertaking that is benefitting and will benefit thousands more of the “poorest of the poor” through  the Spartan Mining and Development Company. The company is executing Project Magneto that gives the poor a livelihood which is the “best of the best,” plus free housing now being constructed in Zambales.

What is the Spartan Mining and Development Company?  We all have our negative notions of any mining company  because we view it as a destroyer of the environment.

I myself had seen how the mountains up north, in the Cordilleras were ravaged by gold mining companies making a fast buck from the gold and other mineral resources; yet our peoples continue to suffer until today from the lack of the very basic necessities for existence. Flying in to Baguio City way back in the 70's, the plane that I took passed by the excavation made by the gold mining company. I saw vast tracts of brown land without any greenery. What was left after the extraction of gold was nothing more but brown soil, the companies not even having that compunction to plant trees over it, at least to make it habitable again.

Times have changed however, as now the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has among its goals and objectives the following statement: “to foster a sustainable and responsible minerals industry guided by (the) best and state of the art safety, health, environmental and social management practices.” How much of that is imbibed and implemented by mining corporations, however, should be left to our imagination and the dutiful research endeavors of non-government environmentalists, individual and organizational.

Established in 2011, the Spartan Mining Company, headed by Louie, and with its operations concentrated in San Marcelino, Zambales Province, west of the Luzon Island, takes this statement seriously. Louie says that the economic well-being of its workers and most of all of the Aeta people, is at the heart of its operations. 

What exactly do the workers do to earn? They carry a piece of magnet then just scoop up the magnetites and place them in a bag. Even in half a day, the workers could already earn so much just by doing that and selling them by the kilo to the Spartan company.

Actually, it was Manong Ernie who inspired Louie to undertake this commercial venture. Unfortunately he died of lung cancer in 2010, three months after the end of the Philippine elections, yet still possessing that dream of changing the directions of the lives of the Filipino people till the end. His memory lingered in the mind of his brother so strongly that Louie has dedicated the company’s success to him.

Where is San Marcelino, Zambales?  It lies at the foot of Mount Pinatubo which as we all know, more than 20 years ago, in 1991 to be exact,  exploded billions of lahar containing various minerals in Zambales, Pampanga and Tarlac, three provinces in Luzon. The lahar covered thousands of homes and lands, rendering the latter infertile, truly unfit for vegetation. Churches got submerged and vast hectares of ricelands were destroyed disemploying a lot of farm workers and impoverishing many farmer-owners.

Why did Mt. Pinatubo explode despite the fact that it was almost considered extinct as its last activity was more than 600 years ago during the Spanish era? An Aeta tribal chieftain, who possessed intuitive knowledge and natural sensitivity to the rumblings of nature, had warned the people already before it exploded. He had known that there were a group of mining developers who wanted to explore the areas around Mt. Pinatubo for its mineral contents. He had seen them drilling into the very depths of the mountain in 1991. Hence he said to his people then:

“They should not do that. Those large iron rods would wake up the mountain from its sleep. They are like thieves, stealing the wealth of someone in the middle of the night. One day, the mountain will wake up and it will wake up angry.”

True enough, Mt. Pinatubo spewed lahar affecting not only the Philippines but also the whole world continuously for days. Its mouth exploded lahar not only on land but also on air as high up as 10,000 feet above. MetroManila suffered from white smoke that covered garden lots and entered homes. My own place had its share of gray lahar covering the streets of the subdivision right here in Quezon City. Then we read about international airplanes having had to be diverted from their regular paths due to the smokey atmosphere.  As far as Latin America, the fumes traveled, making even the roosters crow as they must have thought that the covered skies meant that it was dawn again.

The Aeta people were the most bitter victims because they and their ancestors had lived up there in Mt. Pinatubo for centuries. They felt it unjust that they should be made to suffer for the misdeeds of other people.

Though that happened more than 20 years ago,  the people are still traumatized and cannot find peace in the environment. The scenes of lahar wreaking havoc on lands and making them desert-like because of  the angry volcano continue to haunt them. Mental and emotional traumas are indeed very hard to overcome especially when they occur with physical displacement.

But with more socially-conscious companies like the Spartan Mining lauded by even environmentalists for their plans that take into consideration the welfare of the people and of the land, the people have a lot to look forward to.

Those who have lived around Mt. Pinatubo like the Aetas, and those coming mostly from Smokey Mountain wanting to better their lives are assured of a future that will benefit them on a daily basis and insure the future of their children as well. Smokey Mountain scavengers  have come to the place to work,  their take home pay at present reaching a minimum of P300 and a maximum of  P1,000 per day depending on the number of kilos of magnetites that they could sell to the company. Payment is immediately given them. 

This is so unlike in the scavenging areas in Tondo, where they had had to work from early mornings up to evenings just to be able to catch the trucks that would unload the wastes from the different parts of metroManila and for which their daily intake from these materials  sometimes would reach only a hundred pesos. Not only that, their health continually suffered due to the unhygienic situation they were in. 

In Zambales, their lives are turning for the best. The Spartan village, a resettlement area,  designed as green by an international builder and architect is now rising, a model in urban development to be located at Barangay Ravanes in San Marcelino just at the foot of Mount Pinatubo. The area covered is 110 hectares, with 3000 houses to be built for free. The houses will stand each on a lot of  200 square meters and then will be distributed per family. The village people will have many facilities complete with a chapel, the San Raphael Chapel now existing, and a commercial building for their marketing needs. they will also enjoy promenading at the park, going to a country club with a swimming pool and a market.  Their children will not have to go far to get education as  schools shall also be built in the area.  

  

Project Magneto has a permit to mine 12 billions of cubic inches of magma containing iron for 25 years, and renewable; thus the people are assured of the best life ever. The natural resource can last not just for one but for several lifetimes.

Louie many years back had wanted to do something with lahar, so that it would flow to the seas instead of on land. Unfortunately, the officials in charge of Mt Pinatubo environmental rehabilitation then were not receptive to his ideas. Fast forward to the new millennium: what was a misfortune then, is now like manna from heaven, not only to his company but also to the thousands of workers who are and would be benefiting from the natural resources, according to him. 

The memory of Manong Ernie as  the idealist-pragmatic brother, ex-priest and political activist is indeed highly inspiring for Louie to prod the people to be forward-looking like him. He has realized his and Manong Ernie's vow to alleviate poverty with Project Magneto. Beyond that,  Louie carries on the political torch of Manong Ernie as the moving and leading force behind the DPP, also recognized as the Democratic Party of and for the Poor so that it can create a dent in the national consciousness and be a force to reckon with come election time.  

 (Pictures are plans of housing for the Spartan Village supplied by Louie Ramos)

WHY IS THE OIL ON VAT SO IRRATIONAL?

I was talking to a driver the other day how much he was earning. He told me: P1,200 for diesel, 500 for boundary and the rest for him and his family.

Since the VAT is 10%, so the 200 that he pays for diesel is the VAT. Now why should the driver pay taxes for something that he will use yet?

Aren't taxes supposed to be for finished products?+

Diesel, gasoline and all other oil products are base ingredients for things, work, services to be done. Why should we pay ahead of time?

Aren't the oil companies already paying taxes?

So why should this driver and the rest of the working people pay the VAT?

I really cannot understand why it is so difficult for people to lift that VAT on oil when doing so could erase a lot of the misgivings of the people for the shortcomings of this administration.

Should we start going back to the Beatles' songs like "Help" and other songs depicting their angst against this world? There is so much money for wars and for outerspace programs, and so little to feed the hungry stomachs. Who was it who said, we need to make the world stand on its feet?

when social networking sites become catty

A famous high profile couple in the media complained about the way the social networking chatters  put down their new child physically. I admit that the chatters were rather catty as they should not have descended to that level at all. 

Looking back to the history of the couple however, who paraded their "unusual love affair" on TV, showing how they love each other, reporting their wedding from start to finish, showed their own insensitivity to the children of the man by his first wife. The broadcast seemed to rub too much salt on the feelings of the first wife, as if it was telling her, "you see it's me that he loves." The children too could have felt aggrieved over the insensitive portrayal of their father, now being "lovey-dovey" with a woman, not her mother. Folks, do you think that just because those children were in a foreign land that then they would not know what is going on with their father and that they would not feel anything at all in his taking up a new relationship?

But to my mind, the catty social networkers could have been overextending their application of their traditional notions of what a "valid" marriage should be-- one that is monogamous till death do the couple apart. They should join the movement for divorce; also while there is no divorce law yet, the couple must understand that their relationship is up for questioning in a highly, (perhaps hypocritical) society. 
 

POST NO BILL

POST NO BILL

By Wilhelmina S. Orozco

It is very rare to see an assembly of artworks with one theme, seeing art in everyday experiences and objects in our lives. Yet we have it and marvel at how the many artists have shaped, reshaped and transformed ordinary-looking objects into works of art.

You see, everyday, when we go out of our homes, we are deluged with posters and billboards enticing us to consume this and that. We are in effect a bill-fed people as can be gleamed from the broad avenues of Makati to the simple narrow streets of Sampaloc. Not even the spaces between streets are spared – so many streamers greeting graduates, wishing the people happiness in this and that occasion can be found. Billboards advertising this and that object or that service proliferate and multiply in great abandon, the local governments neatly and strangely quiet about this advertising invasion of their territories.

In this exhibit, what we would normally consider as litter meant for the bins are given a make-over. For example, a billboard picked up in L.A. has been transformed into an artwork with a new, relevant and contemporary meaning in it- hands in different poses.  Looking more closely, we will find they depict the sign language of “peace.” Now what is the purpose in this muted expression of “peace?” Instead of a mouth screming and shouting “PEACE!”, the hands speak the mantra “speech is silver and silence is gold.”

Other objects that have been transformed include bottles of different sizes and shapes, vehicle tires beyond repair, newspaper pages, toilet bowls, signages, talon calendars with holy figures, as well as shredded Philippine bills. For another example, tires are laid out in a circle like a wheel of fortune. Why tires, we ask. That is because tires should be moving us from one destination to another.

Then newspapers once we have read, we throw away or sell to the “Diyaryo-bote” scavenger. However a front page banner headline is cut up, magnified and placed under a lens serving in effect a new purpose. It has become the  most significant issue of the day, this headline:”Nawalan ng delicadeza.” The artist has put forward his own view of politics.

Now the TV advertisintg world is wrapped up in so many ads enticing us to drink this and that label. But an art installation shows us another view – drinking is not limited to liquor but to harder stuff like shabu – most of the time to forget. Thus, a small corner contains a TV set and in front of it several bottles wrapped in paper.

In another piece, chairs wrapped in paper are actually toilet bowls serving as seats for the audience viewing a mélange of dire images dished out by commercial film companies. One could feel like eliminating in the face of “s---” being dished out by the screen.

A “Welcome” sign not only urges the people to come, but also sees to remind us comically about what could be found in Baguio City: blind curves, narrow roads, a hundred traffic policemen who could jail you due to even the minutest infraction in the coldest jail in Luzon.”

Bottles have their labels removed and then various cut-outs of a face, the head of an animal with horns, a woman’s behind as well as land formations become the new contents. Why bottles? We bottle up our memories of people and places we encounter in life.

A calendar4 of holy figures has been cut up and then woven with the artist’s own painting and now includes graphics of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck as well as farmers’ scenes, hence telling us that our life as a people is a mishmash of cultural icons that seem to be clashing yet which we tolerate side by side with or even on top of each other.

S piece with the shape of four crosses or what could be pieces in a puzzle seems too ordinary to be attended to. Actually when magnified the crosses are actually made up of shredded bank notes. And when you see through the lens then the questions arise” “whom” and “what do you worship?”

Vivarium, a puzzle at first glance is just a plain salvaged welcome signboard to a subdivision. Sawdusts have been shaped into roads and landmap of a subdivision. In the center is a peephole – voila!—you see the original, idyllic setting of the place full of greenry. Where is it now

The works of Santiago Bose, Mark Justiniani, Joy Mallari, Alfredo Esquillo, Ling Quisumbing Ramillo Alwin Reamillo, Leo Abaya, Francis Commeyne, and Ioannis Sicuya, are featured.

“Post No Bill” Exhibit was put up by Tin-Aw Art Gallery in partnership with Manila Contemporary located at the Whitespace 2314 Pasong Tamo Extension, Makati City. Runs from March 17 to April 25, 2012.

VACATIONING MINDS

by Wilhelmina S. Orozco

It's vacation time. What will schooling children do now that they have nothing to look forward to everyday? I pity the parents who cannot afford to send them to workshops or even to tour them locally or internationally. The children are idle mentally and physically. Emotionally they could even get stunted.

I think that all school libraries should be open all year round, including Sundays and holidays. We should also make the barangay require all children to read one book a month in order to make them attuned to seeing letters. Literacy, meaning being able to read and write is still the best way to educate and raise the IQ of children. 

I was at a kiosk and heard the conversations between internet game players: "Patayin mo na. O palitan mo yung armas. Oops. " And all the while their eyes are focused on guys in military uniforms, with long arms shooting at targets -- human enemies of course. 

No, there should be a better way of raising kids. All kids below 20 years old must have a must reading list of books before they enter the next school year. The schools should require them to submit a summary, and undergo interviews if they have really read the books. One book a month during vacation, or even two should be a requirement. 

I really miss my high school days when we were required to go to the library almost everyday just to research on this and that author. Actually, I came to love the library more when I was in college. There the books were categorized in a very logical way. Social science books on the right side of the building, upon entrance, that is, and arts and humanities on the left, at UP. But now, the library for the latter have been transferred near the faculty center, away from the main library. So if students were researching on humanities and suddenly decided to seek a philosopher's book they would have to negotiate that long walk. 

I really cannot fathom how that thing of segregating books in this manner has come about. Building by building? Wow. And if it is raining, you have to withstand the eeky side of getting your feet wet, apart from your things. Schooling should not be this way at all. 

By the UP, the bureaucratic thinking in UP is becoming or has become a disease really. Instead of being a school advanced in education, and handling of educational materials, it is just merely following a formulaic method: for the arts, one building. for social sciences, another. etcetera, etcetera. 

Then at the college of music, it used to have a great expert who knew where each opera disc was, or a compilation of this and that composer. The last time I went there last year, it took sometime for a book that I requested to be retrieved. Moreover, when I would request for a duplication of my CD, Himig Bata, he could readily do it. But now, no one can do it anymore. I really do not know why UP does not insure that there would be second liners who could take over the jobs of those leaving their posts. 

When the mentors of the educational foundations in the college of education were retired, someone was asked to apply for one of the posts. But instead of filling up the vacant positions, they put in someone from guidance and counselling. How in heaven's name could the latter take over the functions of educating the students, not only undergrads but also master's and doctoral students on educational theories, philosophies, on methods of writing highly theoretical dissertations on education, etcetera? 

Do you know where the music expert had gone? To Canada, to join his wife and to bring his family. Our loss, Canada's gain.

How funny. I went to meet a friend in one of the colleges. Now I am very popular or unpopular, whichever as a critical writer. Did you know that after my talk with her, I was "greeted" by a janitor with a sweeper and a dustpan, doing his thing at the very hall where I was going to pass by. A month ago, I also visited that friend. Did you know also that two janitors were there by the entrance of the college sweeping and sweeping even when there were no scattered dirt around. Then when I went to the comfort room, a janitress followed me?

That is how "praning" UP is in terms of critics, instead of confronting the issues that we or I raise all the time -- the petrified bureaucracy of UP. 

Hay naku. Look, the UP College of Law failed to make any student land in the top ten. And what is now the ranking of UP in the whole world? Way, way below. It's not even in the top 100. 

Philippines' Number 1 is the University of the Philippines, which ranked 62nd in Asia, according to a newspaper report. It was followed by the Ateneo de Manila University (No. 68 in Asia), University of Santo Tomas (No. 104 in Asia), and De La Salle University (No. 107 in Asia). It's 332nd worldwide according to topuniversities ranking; a bit higher  than Ewha Woman's University in Korea (ranking 344). lower than Beijing Normal University (rank 300). De la Salle University ranked 551-600.

Why so? Aren't students studying or excelling anymore? What environment creates geniuses? At the rate computer shops proliferate with the youth focused on violent games and not those that challenge their creativity of intellect, it would not be long when this country will be run under questionable standards.

I was riding an "ikot" jeep in UP and watched the eyes of the male students inside. They were looking outside, most of them trying to avoid the sight of female students in very short shorts. But then outside, also the same sights greeted them. And I could see their eyes turned "malamlam." What is that in English, I can't translate anymore. It is a kind of look that has seen something that titillates their insides. 

How could students study in that kind of atmosphere? I appreciate the nuns of a Catholic school who prevented their students to march with the others for having posted their bikini shots and alcoholic ways in facebook. If I were the administrator I would have done the same, no matter if I was just handed over the material by someone else. 

You see Folks, there is a displaced aggression among the young. The women are rebelling against the image of St. Mary and are aping Madonna instead who had appeared in her concerts in her very barest -- costumes that are meant for the bedroom where sado-masochistic sex is conducted. 

No, A liberated Christian woman should exhibit her learnings of Christian tenets whether in or out of the school. Knowing the Bible and Christ's teachings should not end inside the classroom, but should reach as far as one's public exposures. Unfortunately, right now, there is a misguided sense of academic freedom -- freedom to do what? Not just to think but to bare as much flesh as possible. Is that the right academic standard for encouraging creative and critical thinking?

I really maintain that those women who blindly follow fashion are bringing down the image of other women. Check now: even grandmothers and young girls  below ten are being raped and murdered. There is something very, very wrong culturally in our country. 

Universities are not helping at all by encouraging the current style of fashion that drives away the attention from books. 

What do the League of Filipino Students and women's groups say about these? Where are their posters, streamers condemning the sliding down of educational achievements in the country? It's time that these organizations raise their voices and tell us: are you for or against these issues?