All Saints' Day (not halloween) in the Philippines

November 1 is a feast day. That's what we know. And that's how we celebrate the day. Contrary to popular celebration of the day, the Philippines celebrate the day with cultural and religious meaning. It is All Saints' Day, also known as todos los santos. Other ethno-linguistic groups call it differently. Tagalogs call it Undas and Bicolanos call it Fiestang kalag. However, there are common characteristics in the celebration, such as the day is an opportunity for family gatherings, class reunions, and of course, praying for, remembering and being with the loved ones who passed away (literally being with the dead family members). Yes, Filipinos spend the day in cemeteries. In Bicol, cemetery is called, kampo santo (camp of the saints).

So, how do we spend the day in a cemetery?

In a typical Filipino way of gathering people, food must be present. Yes, there is a variety of food being prepared, served and shared. Candles are lit and flowers are laid. All day, from dawn to dusk, from sunrise to sunset, family members, relatives and friends flock to and stay in the kampo santo. Stories and memories with the dead are reminisced over and over again.

I remember when I was young, I stayed in kampo santo in the afternoon until 7PM. As I grew older, I tended to stay late, until the wee hours. My elder brothers often stay until early morning the next day. In the Philippines, November 1 and 2 (two days) are public non-working days or holidays.

To know more how we spend the day, below is a video made by Kevin Richberg, a foreigner who experienced November 1 in the Philippines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWFGRdbIrhQ

The Philippines Opens Its Shores and Borders to 151 Nationalities

When many governments are restricting entry into their countries, the Philippines is collapsing its borders to allow more foreigners to enter the country.

Starting 1 August 2013, the Philippines will be visa-free for the nationals of 151 countries up to 30 days of stay on any of the 7,107 beautiful islands.

In coordination with concerned governmental agencies such as Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Tourism, Department of Justice, and Bureau of Immigration, the initiative is aimed to attract more tourists and potential investors in the country.

If your country is listed below and you have a valid passport for at least six months, book your round-trip ticket because it is more fun in the Philippines:
Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, 
Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Cyprus, Czech Republic,
Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador,
Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana,
Gibraltar, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary,
Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar
Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia,
Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand,
Nicaragua, Niger, Norway, Oman, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Poland
Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia,
Senegal, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain,
Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey,
Tuvalu, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland,
United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zambia,
and Zimbabwe.

Welcome and see you in the Philippines!

Jason Kidd and the Brooklyn Nets

Source: http://www.streetball.com

The Brooklyn Nets is making a lot of buzz these days. In preparation for the next season, the Nets hired a new coach and got involved in major trades which will definitely impact on the team's fate in the next two to three years and team owner's pocket.

After being surprised and eliminated in the first round by the Chicago Bulls, the Nets decided to overhaul its coaching staff and line-up. It hired Jason Kidd, arguably considered as the greatest franchise player who brought the Nets to its only back-to-back finals appearances in 2002 and 2003. The team hopes that by having Kidd who recently retired as a player, the Nets will soar to new heights.

As a player, there is no doubt in the leadership skills and tenacity of Kidd. Some analysts doubt whether Kidd can bring the same leadership as a coach. Many though believe that Kidd may be what the Nets needs to compete effectively in the Eastern conference where the back-to-back champion, Miami Heat, is a perennial threat.

After the hiring of Kidd, the Nets again hug the limelight by trading its notable players in exchange for the three veterans of the Boston Celtics, a rival in the Atlantic Division. All-Star players, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Jason Terry, will don the Nets uniform in the next season. The trade gathers an All-Star first five in the line-up and so as the sixth man in Jason Terry who won a championship ring with Kidd in Dallas - a very formidable team, to provide the Heat a dousing effect.

What we know and don't know about the Philippine 2013 election results

The May 2013 produced both winners and losers among the candidates and voters. Yes, we won, and lost as well.

What we know are that the 12 new senators, members of the House of Representatives and party-lists, and local government officials have been proclaimed. There are interesting results that we will discuss briefly here.




1) Profile of the winners: A neophyte and woman, Senator Grace Poe, surprisingly took the top spot in the magic 12. She was one of the "independent" candidates (Chiz Escudero was the other one) adopted by Team PNoy in the campaign. She is also one of the four women who won seats in the Senate. Half of the seats were regained by the reelectionists. Among the six neophytes who won, only one is a lawyer. Among the twelve new senators, only one hails from Mindanao. Out of the 24 seats, we will have Estrada-Ejercito and Cayetano siblings. We will not miss an Angara and Villar. Fortunately, we prevented a father and son tandem in the senate.

2) Vote of religious groups - real or myth?: There have been debates and analyses on this topic. Because of the existence of collective identity, shared values, and strong identification with certain religious groups, YES, there exists a religious vote, be it Catholic, Muslim, INC, JIL, El Shaddai, Queboloy's group, etcetera. ( I will write further on this topic in the next blog entry on Catholic Vote). I argue that it is not the belief that shapes the political decision or preference, rather it is the perception of "threat" to one's in-group. As shown in the election results, these religious votes were not a guarantee that chosen candidates would win, but they affected the ranking of winners. For example, Chiz Escudero and Koko Pimentel who won were not endorsed by the INC, but their ranking of #4 and #8 respectively would have been higher had INC included them in its preferred slate.

3) Bailiwicks are slowly thinning out. The power of media, particularly social media, is breaking the barriers and punching holes in the walls of strong ethno-linguistic identification of peoples. Senators Grace Poe demonstrated this in 11 out of 15 regions.

4) Independent candidates can win in a national election. I think, even without the inclusion in the Team PNoy, Senators Grace Poe and Chiz Escudero would still win senate seats. However, in most of their campaign sorties, they organized their own schedules and, from time to time, synchronized their schedules with Team PNoy's. Aside from the strong showing of the two "independents," Ed Hagedorn's 18th finish with over 8 million votes, ahead of traditional politicians with political parties, shows this big possibility in what appears to be an emerging Philippine political reality.

5) Youthfulness wins big. Agedness loses. Nine (9) out of the 12 winners in the senatorial election are in the 40s. Veteran politician (e.g. Maceda, 78) and former presidential candidates such as Gordon (67), Madrigal (55), and Villanueva (66), lost. This election also put to office the youngest governor in the Philippine history at 23 years old. (This will be a topic soon in my Bicolano blog.)

6) There is something with the Bicolanos and Cebuanos who voted 10-2 in favor of Team PNoy and put Hontiveros in the magic 12. Remember that these were the same groups of people who gave Cory-Doy ticket in the 1986 snap election its greatest lead in actual votes and percentage votes.

7) It's all in the family names. Seven winners carry these family names. Poe, Cayetano, Binay, Angara, Pimentel, Villar, and Ejercito, these are the names that sound familiar, but they are not the ones we generally know. The winners are the daughters, sons, and wife of popular personalities in the Philippines.

And there are many things we do not know yet about the highlights and impacts of the 2013 senatorial and local election.

NBA Finals 2013: Miami Heat versus San Antonio Spurs

Take your pick. You've got only two teams: the defending champion (Miami Heat) and the comebacking finalist (San Antonio Spurs).

Only two teams, after a grueling 82-game regular season and 3-round series culminating into the NBA Finals between the best in the East and the West battling it out to win the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy.

It all ends up in this final series. Two teams, two sides, will emerge to become the main story of NBA 2013.

In Game 1, the Spurs took the home advantage away from the defending champions by edging them, 92-88. It is expected that the Heat will come out in Game 2 roaring to even the series. How do they do that? Let's watch Game 2, and the series to know who will hoist the championship trophy in the end. Heat or Spurs? Take your pick!

2013 NBA Playoff MAtch-ups and Schedules: Now is the time

Source: http://www.nba.com

On April 20 (Saturday), the NBA playoff season starts. Sixteen top teams have advanced to this post-season after grueling 82 games in the regular season.

The defending champion, Miami Heat, has emerged as the top seed. It means that the Heat will hold the homecourt advantage in all of its series. The Los Angeles Lakers are in the playoff, as boldly predicted by Kobe Bryant who will miss the playoff because of injury. They beat the Houston Rockets in overtime to snatch the 7th seed in the Western Conference. Below is the match-ups and schedules of the 2013 first-round playoff games. (Source: http://www.nba.com/2013/news/04/18/playoffs-schedule-2013/index.html?ls=iref:nbahpt3a)

WESTERN CONFERENCE - FIRST ROUND

(1) Oklahoma City vs. (8) Houston

Game 1 - Sun April 21, Houston at Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT 
Game 2 - Wed April 24, Houston at Oklahoma City, 7 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Sat April 27, Oklahoma City at Houston, 9:30 p.m., ESPN/R 
Game 4 - Mon April 29, Oklahoma City at Houston, TBD, TBD 
Game 5 * Wed May 1, Houston at Oklahoma City, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Fri May 3, Oklahoma City at Houston, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sun May 5, Houston at Oklahoma City, TBD, TBD

(2) San Antonio vs. (7) L.A. Lakers

Game 1 - Sun April 21, L.A. Lakers at San Antonio, 3:30 p.m., ABC/R 
Game 2 - Wed April 24, L.A. Lakers at San Antonio, 9:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Fri April 26, San Antonio at L.A. Lakers, 10:30 p.m., ESPN 
Game 4 - Sun April 28, San Antonio at L.A. Lakers, 7 p.m., TNT 
Game 5 * Tue April 30, L.A. Lakers at San Antonio, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Thu May 2, San Antonio at L.A. Lakers, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sat May 4, L.A. Lakers at San Antonio, TBD, TNT

(3) Denver vs. (6) Golden State

Game 1 - Sat April 20, Golden State at Denver, 5:30 p.m., ESPN 
Game 2 - Tue April 23, Golden State at Denver, 10:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Fri April 26, Denver at Golden State, 10:30 p.m., ESPN2 
Game 4 - Sun April 28, Denver at Golden State, 9:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 5 * Tue April 30, Golden State at Denver, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Thu May 2, Denver at Golden State, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sat May 4, Golden State at Denver, TBD, TNT

(4) L.A. Clippers vs. (5) Memphis

Game 1 - Sat April 20, Memphis at L.A. Clippers, 10:30 p.m., ESPN 
Game 2 - Mon April 22, Memphis at L.A. Clippers, 10:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Thu April 25, L.A. Clippers at Memphis, 9:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 4 - Sat April 27, L.A. Clippers at Memphis, 4:30 p.m., TNT 
Game 5 * Tue April 30, Memphis at L.A. Clippers, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Fri May 3, L.A. Clippers at Memphis, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sun May 5, Memphis at L.A. Clippers, TBD, TBD

___________________________________________________

EASTERN CONFERENCE - FIRST ROUND

(1) Miami vs. (8) Milwaukee

Game 1 - Sun April 21, Milwaukee at Miami, 7 p.m., TNT 
Game 2 - Tue April 23, Milwaukee at Miami, 7:30 p.m., NBA TV 
Game 3 - Thu April 25, Miami at Milwaukee, 7 p.m., TNT 
Game 4 - Sun April 28, Miami at Milwaukee, 3:30 p.m., ABC 
Game 5 * Tue April 30, Milwaukee at Miami, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Thu May 2, Miami at Milwaukee, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sat May 4, Milwaukee at Miami, TBD, TNT

(2) New York vs. (7) Boston

Game 1 - Sat April 20, Boston at New York, 3 p.m., ABC/R 
Game 2 - Tue April 23, Boston at New York, 8 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Fri April 26, New York at Boston, 8 p.m., ESPN 
Game 4 - Sun April 28, New York at Boston, 1 p.m., ABC/R 
Game 5 * Wed May 1, Boston at New York, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Fri May 3, New York at Boston, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sun May 5, Boston at New York, TBD, TBD

(3) Indiana vs. (6) Atlanta

Game 1 - Sun April 21, Atlanta at Indiana, 1 p.m., TNT 
Game 2 - Wed April 24, Atlanta at Indiana, 7:30 p.m., NBA TV 
Game 3 - Sat April 27, Indiana at Atlanta, 7 p.m., ESPN 
Game 4 - Mon April 29, Indiana at Atlanta, TBD, TBD 
Game 5 * Wed May 1, Atlanta at Indiana, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Fri May 3, Indiana at Atlanta, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sun May 5, Atlanta at Indiana, TBD, TBD

(4) Brooklyn vs. (5) Chicago

Game 1 - Sat April 20, Chicago at Brooklyn, 8 p.m., ESPN 
Game 2 - Mon April 22, Chicago at Brooklyn, 8 p.m., TNT 
Game 3 - Thu April 25, Brooklyn at Chicago, 8:30 p.m., NBA TV 
Game 4 - Sat April 27, Brooklyn at Chicago, 2 p.m., TNT 
Game 5 * Mon April 29, Chicago at Brooklyn, TBD, TBD 
Game 6 * Thu May 2, Brooklyn at Chicago, TBD, TBD 
Game 7 * Sat May 4, Chicago at Brooklyn, TBD, TNT

* if necessary
All times are Eastern
TBD - To Be Determined
R - ESPN radio

Jason Kidd in his rookie years (fun to watch)

Today (March 23), an all-time point guard great turns 40. Jason Kidd entered the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1994-95 season and won Rookie of the Year award (together with Grant Hill). Below is a clip during his rookie year.

Jason Kidd continues to break some records. Here is a list of his all-time records. Last night, the win by the New York Knicks over the Toronto Raptors put the Knicks to the playoffs. It will be Kidd's 17th straight playoff appearance, the longest streak among active players and 3 short of the all-time record by Stockton.

Below is the peak of his career, bringing the New Jersey Nets to its only back-to-back finals appearances in 2002 and 2003 seasons.

Of National Importance When Bourgeoisie Complains

SSource: www.philippinestodayus.com

This week, the Philippine national media recently feasted on the news about Kris-James and Heart-Chiz love stories. The stories paralleled the news of Filipinos to be tried in Malaysia for "terror" acts and possibly mete out death sentences. The dominance of few families in the Philippine social, political, economic, and cultural spaces can never be doubted in the very moment when Kris Aquino sheds tears and Heart's parents pleads to a Senator, and not to their daughter, to end their May-October love affair (well, 16 years gap may not qualify for May-December affair, to my mind).

Kris is Kris. She is an Aquino. She is a Cojuangco. She is the daughter of  Ninoy and Cory Aquino. And she is the youngest sister of the current President of the Philippines. She is a showbiz star. And she is very wealthy. Now, she is complaining of harassment from her estranged husband and seeking a temporary protection order from a court to prevent her former husband access to their son.

Source: www.pep.ph

And then, the Ongpaucos who own a chain of popular restaurant held a press conference and declared that their daughter is being manipulated by her politician-boyfriend who is running for reelection. Their daughter, Heart, is 28 years old. In the heat of political campaigning, the wealthy couple threw accusations after accusations to the current Senator, Chiz Escudero, who is aiming for reelection in the senate. The couple denied that their actions are election-related, and they are only expressing their parental concern about their daughter's welfare. But they enumerated their complaints against Chiz and the reason why they wanted him to return their daughter to them.

The netizens and media persons caught the bourgeois fever. And so the whole country was abuzz. The plights and problems of Kris and the Ongpauco parents have grabbed the national limelight. Why?

The bourgeioisie has in possession of what society apparently values - wealth and prestige. People tend to identify with them because they too aspire to have those values. Often, in pursuit of these values, or in defense of the bourgeiois status, people use their ruling or "borrowed" mentality to keep "other" peoples from their spaces. Little do they know, their space is shrinking. The "others" will not be fooled again. Rise up, unite, and make own stories and history!