For Car Buff

Here is something you car buffs probably didn't know.

The 3 Goldberg brothers, Norman, Hiram, and Maxwell invented and
developed the first automobile air-conditioner.
Didn't know that, did ya...

On July 17th, 1946 , the temperature in Detroit was 97.

The 3 brothers walked into old man Henry Ford's office and sweet-
talked his secretary into telling him that 3 gentlemen were there with
the most exciting innovation in the auto industry since the electric
starter.

Henry was curious and invited them into his office.

They refused and instead asked that he come out to the parking lot to
their car.

They persuaded him to get into the car which was about 130 - turned on
the air-conditioner and cooled the car off immediately.

The old man got very excited and invited them back to the office,
where he offered them 3 million dollars for the patent.

The brothers refused, saying they would settle for 2 million but they
wanted the recognition by having a label "The Goldberg Air-
Conditioner" on the dashboard of each car that it was installed in.

Now old man Ford was more than just a little bit Anti-Semitic, and
there was no way he was going to put the Goldbergs' name on 2 million
Ford cars.

They haggled back and forth for about 2 hours and finally agreed on 4
million dollars and that just their first names would be shown.

And so, even today, all Ford air-conditioners show on the controls the
names "Norm, Hi, & Max".

There, now ya know it....

International Video Project

I lost my digital copy of this video project. I searched the net, and hey, it's there! This was a project when I taught video editing way back 2001. I was invited by Philipp Ennemoser (the main coordinator) to join in this international project -- different cinematographers from different cities around the world. Here is the introduction:

In an ever faster moving world cities have become somehow fascinating for us. They do not only respresent mankind's belief in technology but do also provide us with an endless variety of images and sounds.

urbanDynamics is an international video project designed to cover global urban dynamics. Its aim is to make a collage of urban environments around the world by assembling video footage from citizens. It's an experiment that totally depends on the participants, who rediscover their cities with a simple miniDV camcorder.

Besides, the project can promote a more positive point of view towards globalisation by recognizing the possibility of making such a project with unknown people simply on the basis of confidence and the spirit of film making.

Over the period of a year 26 people from 17 different countries joined the project and contributed video footage or music to the project. It has shown me that our world has really developed to a global village. Regarding the fact that those 26 people have never met but produced a film together shows the new opportunities of a globalised world for the "normal" people.

The video can be downloaded from <a href="http://www.archive.org/details/urban_dynamics_video

>here.</a>

A Love Story

A LOVE STORY

May persona ingrata from my alma mother who asked for my number so we can

keep intact. Sabi ko connect me if I'm wrong, but are you asking me

ouch?

Sabi nya: the?!!

I mean, tell me to the marines ang kapal! The nerd! Naiyak ako sa galit,

I cried buckles of tears.

Tapos sabi nya: don't cry. Isipin mo na lang this is a blessing in the

sky. Irregardless of my feelings let's go out na rin.

Now we're in love. Mute in epidemic na yang past. Thanks god we

swallowed our fried. Kasi I'm 33 na and I'm running our time. After 2

weeks, he asked me will you marriage me? Hay, talagang when it rains

it's four. This is true good to be true! Love is a many splendor at

kahit di sya gaanong cute, beauty is in the eyes naman di ba? Sabi niya:

like twice.

Kaya advise ko sa inyo take the risk, just burn the bridge when you get

there. Life is shorts. If you make a mistake, we'll just pray for the

external repose of your soul! I second emotion.

International Video Project

I lost my digital copy of this video project. I searched the net, and hey, there it is! Ah, the advantage of internet in finding things that I lost. I am beginning to believe that the vritual reality becomes a repository of everything serious and banal.


This project was done when I taught nonlinear editing (final cut pro to be specific) way back 2001. I was invited by Philipp Ennemoser (the main coordinator) to join in this international project -- different cinematographers from different cities around the world contributing footage in the spirit of filmmaking.

Philipp was kind enough send me an original DVD copy of the final documentary. Somebody borrowed it, and it was never returned back to me. I did show this film in one of those Rough Cut Nights (the local version of Cannes Festival in Davao) at the Kanto Bar, Matina Town Square along with the projects of my nonlinear editing class.... I guess it's the class of Zsa Zsa Perasol, Gian Bonador, and Chiqui Arjona, and the Gigi Patiño semi-rated MTV. Hehe.

Anyway, I found a digital copy (downloadable!) of the project.

Here is the introduction:

In an ever faster moving world cities have become somehow fascinating for us. They do not only respresent mankind's belief in technology but do also provide us with an endless variety of images and sounds.

urbanDynamics is an international video project designed to cover global urban dynamics. Its aim is to make a collage of urban environments around the world by assembling video footage from citizens. It's an experiment that totally depends on the participants, who rediscover their cities with a simple miniDV camcorder.

Besides, the project can promote a more positive point of view towards globalisation by recognizing the possibility of making such a project with unknown people simply on the basis of confidence and the spirit of film making.

Over the period of a year 26 people from 17 different countries joined the project and contributed video footage or music to the project. It has shown me that our world has really developed to a global village. Regarding the fact that those 26 people have never met but produced a film together shows the new opportunities of a globalised world for the "normal" people.

Interested parties can download the documentary at:

http://www.archive.org/details/urban_dynamics_video

Beach Photoshoot at Babusanta

I went to this place in mid 1995. This was the place where I first encountered a seacow grazing near the Babusanta sea grass plantation. The place was serene, no tourists, no visitors, just us. It was a perfect place for private shoots.

Almost twelve years after, I went again to Babusanta to shoot, together with some friends from Ateneo de Davao. The place is still the same except the noise and the trash. Anyway, here are some of the photos (more at banyuhay.multiply.com):


Model: L.A. (BSN student, ADDU)



Model: Fran (BSBA student, ADDU)

Archives Visit

I visited Ateneo de Manila Univesity recently. I was in the campus for four days. I would like to share some photos during my brief visit at the Church of Gesu.


Church of Gesu


Sacred Heart of Jesus

More at banyuhay.multiply.com

Video Editing Sessions

The session on basic video editing (Final Cut Pro) went fine this morning. Many students and professionals were interested to join my future classes and workshops on video editing, both for basic and advance program.

I will give another two-hour basic introduction on 4 August 2007, Saturday at Kanto Bar, Matina Town Square, 8:00PM onwards. This will be offered (for free) for Davao Mac Users Group (DavMUG) and other friends and affiliates.

Advanced sessions with workshops will be scheduled September and October, for those who are serious to do editing using Final Cut Pro. Starting also September 2007, I am giving one-on-one tutorials for some people who want to learn the application.

For those who are interested to join, please send e-mail to jse@addu.edu.ph or to my mobile e-mail jseliab@gmail.com. My office number is (82) 221.2411 local 8302.

Profiles of Candidates

There is now much more information available on candidates than ever before.. The following sites contain profiles or other information pertinent to these elections. Take time out to study these candidates and prepare your own "codigo" for May 14. It is not illegal to bring your own codigo. The ballot may have as much as 35 slots to fill ranging from the 12 Senatorials seats to the Congressional Rep, Party-List, and all Local Government Officials. The codigo will help you remember whom you want to vote for.

Where to get profiles of candidates:

Web Address Direct link to profiles

www.iVote.ph http://ivote.ph/candidates-senate.php

www.youVote2007.com http://youvote2007.com/election/scorecard.php

www.pinoyvote.info http://www.pinoyvote.info/component/option,com_bookmarks/Itemid,47/mode,0/catid,9/navstart,0/search,*/ (CANDIDATE WEBSITES:

check out who's got the most number of hits)

www.inquirer.net http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/eleksyon2007/profiles.php

www.bagongbotante.com

www.mbc.com.ph http://www.mbc.com.ph/congresswatch

www.blacknwhite-movement.com

Find Your Precinct by Text

Elections are less than a week away. If you want to find out what
your precinct assisgnment is on Election Day (May 14), you can do
this by texting the following message to 2898 (regardless of phone
service). A fee of P2.50 per text will be charged.

COMELECTXT PRECINCT First name/Middle name/Last name/birthdate in mmddyy

for example - COMELECTXT PRECINCT Marvin/Santos/Alberto/081572

If you voted in 2004 or are a First Time Voter who registered on or
before December 31, 2006, your name should should be on the COMELEC's
Voters' List and you should receive a confirmatory text from 2898. If
your name is not contained in the COMELEC's database, you should
immediately contact the COMELEC Regional Director in your locality or
check the Voters' List in your baranggay hall or voting center where
they are already supposed to be posted up.

On Election Day, please carry two pieces of photo ID in case you are
asked for identification. These IDs may be a driver's license or work
ID or SSS card. It does not necessarily have to be the COMELEC's ID
since these have not been completely distributed yet.

Go out and vote wisely on 14 May 2007.

TextWatch for 2007 Elections

As the local election of 2007 comes, the Seminarians'
Network is once again challenged to participate in ensuring an
honest and peaceful electoral process. Since its beginnings in 1991,
SemNet has been actively participating in collaborating with other
groups involved in the proper monitoring of the electoral process.
In the elections of 2001, SemNet launched its Incident Reporting
project as a response to the signs of the times. This project used
the SMS and internet technology to monitor various elections related
incidents. The same project was used in the last 2004 elections.
This coming year, SemNet once again will adapt the same project as
the network's contribution in maintaining an honest and peaceful
electoral process, known as Election Txtwatch. The following
describe the mechanics of SemNet's Incident Reporting:

1. Gathering of willing non-partisan religious and lay
volunteers around the Philippines.
2. Registration of the volunteers via SMS text and internet
technology. Volunteers will receive a text message confirming their
registration and describing the process of reporting.
3. Registered volunteers can send elections related incidents
via SMS text anytime before, during and after the elections.
4. The SemNet nerve center receives and determines newsworthy
and relevant reports, edits them for posting in the designated
website (http://semnet.multiply.com) and relays them to the
respective media partners and other institutions for the necessary
actions.
5. The SemNet nerve center monitors the whole process of
registration and monitoring of text message reports before, during
and after the elections.

In our mission to foster brotherhood among seminarians through
service in the society and Church in the Philippines, the
Seminarians' Network is knocking on your generous hearts for any
assistance in making this project possible. In line with this, we
are in need of prepaid cell phone cards that the project will use in
the duration of the project. You may e-mail us the prepaid cards'
pin numbers to textwatch2007@yahoo.com. Autoload (0916 7050281) and
E-load (0928 6685292) credits are also welcome. Prepaid credits will
be used for communications and will be distributed among volunteers.
You may also volunteer by registering your mobile phone number, name
and location (during the elections) via e-mail or SMS (using the e-
mail address and/or the mobile numbers mentioned above).

We hope to receive a positive response from you. Thank you very much
for your continued support to the Seminarian's Network of the
Philippines.

In Opus Ministerii,

Rommel Felizardo
Incoming Coordinator,

Christian Emmanuel Gabinete
SemNet Election Txtwatch Project Head

SemNet Secretariat
San Jose Seminary
Ateneo de Manila University Campus
Katipunan Ave., Loyola Heights
Quezon City

Tel 4266091
Fax 4265936

Funny Instructions

Many of you have used Google Maps to help you
drive from one destination to another.

Well, here is one of their rarest/funniest
instructions :

Follow this step :

Take 60 seconds to do this, I guarantee you will
show someone else, it's too funny not to.
1. go to www.google.com
2. click on "maps"
3. Type in "New York to London" in the search
bar.
4. scroll down to Step #24

NO SPEAKAH DE ENGLISH

A bus stops and 2 men get on. They sit down and engage in an animated conversation.

The lady sitting next to them ignores them at first, but her attention

is galvanized when she hears one of them say the following:

"Emma come first. Den I come. Den two asses come together. I come

once-a-more! . Two asses, they come together again. I come again and pee twice. Then I come one lasta time."

The lady can't take this any more,

"You foul-mouthed sex obsessed pig," she retorted indignantly.

"In this country. we don't speak aloud in Public places about our sex

lives.

"Hey, coola down lady," said the man."Who talkin'abouta sex? I'm a justa tellin' my frienda how to spell 'Mississippi'."

2007 Elections

Speech of Christian S. Monsod, One Voice chairman, at the joint general membership meeting of the Makati Business Club, Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Management Association of the Philippines  on 8 March 2007, 12 noon, at the Dusit Nikko Hotel, Makati City)

You asked me to address four questions:
(1) What is the importance of the 2007 elections?
(2) Is there hope for the elections to be credible?
(3) What is the status of the citizen effort?
(4) How can each of us contribute to that effort?

The elections are important because for the first time since our democracy was restored in 1986, we are faced with the problem of damaged or weakened democratic institutions, of processes, i.e. electoral and justice system, or of offices or agencies such as the Senate and the House, the Office of the Ombudsman, the Commission on Elections, or even of the Constitution itself.

Most businessmen appear to be happy with the developments on the economy, but you are clearly concerned about the credibility of the 2007 elections. You are here because your concern goes beyond the successful delivery of credible elections. You care enough to know  that we must also address the broader crisis of the people?s trust in  the political system, and in democracy itself, as a means to a better  life. The repeated attempts to test the constitutional limits of executive powers, the attempt to change the Constitution for political gain, and the politics-as-usual environment of the election campaign, must concern you. All of us know the far-reaching consequences of a growing alienation and disengagement of people from democratic processes, especially the youth and the poor.

If democracy has not changed the social, economic, and political  landscape of the country, it should occur to us that maybe the problem  is not that democracy is not suitable for developing countries, but  that we have not nurtured it or are not practicing it, neither the  administration nor the opposition, but more importantly, not by civil  society itself.

It is the privilege of age to recall images that make sense of his  surroundings. Mine is the image of businessmen and the most ordinary citizens guarding ballot boxes together, with utter disregard for  their safety, with no thought of reward or benefit, protecting the ballot as if it was the most sacred blessing of their lives. Whether locking arms together or raising fists defiantly in the air, or singing the impassioned cry of the imprisoned, there was an army that was invincible for the whole world to see.

But the fact is that after we brought our nation to glory in EDSA and accomplished the first peaceful transfer of power in 27 years in 1992, we folded up our banners, we put away the t-shirts with the imaginative slogans that brought humor to the seriousness of the time, and we went back to wearing our business suits and to monitoring the stock prices of our companies or focusing on our narrow sectoral advocacies. And as we went our separate ways with our separate causes, we lost something of the dream of a nation and the significance of our interconnected lives.

Perhaps it is time to go back to our beginnings for the 2007 elections.

Every election is critical for its own reasons. If the 1986 elections, as once noted by a writer, were a test of our courage, and the 1992 and subsequent elections tests of our maturity, then the 2007 elections are surely a test of our vision for democracy.

That vision cannot include the weakening of democratic institutions that would justify what is sometimes euphemistically called a strong republic to fill the void, in which the ubiquitous presence and increasing power of the military and police in government affairs is a troubling trend. The military gambit is not new to our politics, but we thought we had addressed it permanently by the overwhelming aversion of our people to any kind of military dominance in our national life. Surely the business community remembers how the Marcos regime, propped up by the military, set back our economy by 10 years, a gap we still have not closed after 20 years.

If we are agreed that a functioning democracy is a part of our future and that credible election is its fundamental building block, the obvious question is?is there hope that the 2007 elections will be credible?

My answer is YES, if we all play our part in its making.

It seems simple enough, delivering free and fair elections. There are only three principles to observe:

(1) one-man, one-vote;
(2) allow people to freely exercise their right to vote; and
(3) count correctly what?s in the ballot.

We had thought that, by this time, we would be closer to the norm of democratic elections. But somewhere along the way, this was derailed. Automation is nine years behind the original schedule and full automation will not happen until 2013 at the earliest. The latest automation law is seriously flawed and was enacted too late to even enable pilot testing in 2007.

What of the Comelec? It is disappointing that the President has chosen not to fill the last vacancy. But we should at least be grateful that she did not fill it with somebody like Mr. Garcillano. And that the three latest appointees are persons of competence with a record of integrity who are well aware of the need to restore the credibility of the Commission and are unlikely to allow themselves to be part of any cheating. So far, the Comelec has generally been even-handed in the enforcement of the rules, but continued vigilance is obviously called for. Monitoring the resolutions and moves of the Commission is the specific mission of one of the NGOs, the Consortium for Electoral Reforms.

The pity of it is that, by and large, even when it is not in its best behavior, our democracy works, even in 2004, to the credit of the field officers of the COMELEC, if we judge the process and the results by the totality of some 17,000 positions at stake in the elections. Of course, the question of cheating in the presidential elections casts a long shadow on the entire elections. That the President really won, I believe, the elections, albeit by a much smaller margin, is not enough to mute the clamor and the campaign to finally settle the issue of legitimacy by treating the coming mid-term elections as an indirect referendum. There are those among you who would say we are past that and must move on. Maybe so, but the high distrust level of the government cannot be ignored with perceptions that, to stay in power, the government is disposed to misuse government resources (pork barrel allocations, the passing of campaign vouchers to government-owned and -controlled corporations, ?intelligence? funds), or commit wholesale fraud in canvassing , or use the military and police for partisan politics. Hence, the criticality of citizens' groups protecting the ballot and validating the process and the results of the elections.

There is one important assumption in mobilizing this effort, that the church-based groups will do within the church community what they ask of the nation?unite for a more lofty purpose. That NASSA of the CBCP, which comprise the core of volunteers especially in the provinces,  PPCRV, and Namfrel will adopt a unified approach with the least overlap and at the least cost to address the two biggest constraints to this kind of effort?(1) enough volunteers to do the job and (2) resource mobilization. The numbers are formidable. Forty-four million voters, over 250,000 precincts, and 1,600 canvassing points, which imply mobilizing over 500,000 volunteers, including some 3,500 lawyers to monitor the canvassing, and raising total resources of up to P50 
million in cash and in kind, partly by local chapters.

As of today, the only missing ingredient is the accreditation of the citizen arm for the unofficial count. Both NASSA, with an interfaith coalition, and Namfrel, which counts with over 150 multisectoral organizations, have applied for accreditation, with the final decision ironically being entrusted to the Comelec.

The good news is that, regardless of the competition for accreditation, all the groups have agreed to take substantive steps towards a unified effort by the following:

(1) NASSA and Namfrel have agreed to form a joint technical group to develop the systems that will be used by whoever gets the accreditation, which, incidentally, could be joint. This committee is already operational and has already agreed on the basic program. The objective is accuracy more than speed, where the quick count for the first two days covering some 10% of the votes will be done by the media groups and the citizen arm count will build up from the third 
day. While the target is 100% coverage, it should be noted that the highest coverage in the past in 2004 has been 83% based on precinct election returns and 97% in 1992 using certificates of canvass. Since wholesale fraud in canvassing is a serious problem now, the citizen arm count will be based solely on precinct election returns. And there will be no texting. It's the basic count from the precinct.

(2) There is already agreement on assignment of tasks, with PPCRV undertaking voter education and pollwatching. Although it is included in its manual, PPCRV has agreed not to do a count. The grassroots mobilization is to be done principally by the social action and basic ecclesial communities of NASSA. The NASSA national conference of social action directors has already taken place last weekend and the PPCRV national conference begins tomorrow. In short, mobilization has started. The focal point of organizing and counting centers will be the 85 dioceses all over the country, in coordination with other religious, evangelical, and Muslim groups in each area.

(3) A national coalition of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, law schools, NGO legal groups, association of law students, and so on has already been formed, with the Ateneo Human Rights Center as secretariat. The objective is to cover all 1,600 canvassing points, which neither government nor the opposition has been able to do all these years, with about 3,500 lawyers and paralegal volunteers. They will also provide legal services throughout the election period. This 
is a very difficult task because lawyers are in great demand during elections, probably the only time they are in demand, with huge fees. So we would appreciate if you can volunteer your legal departments to help out in this project.

(4) A master activity blueprint or menu of options for citizen involvement has been developed by the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and the Pugadlawin group of Ateneo de Manila University, which we will circulate shortly after my talk for you to see. And we are also circulating all the contact persons for each of these activities for your choice. I have asked Prof. Benjie Tolosa to join us this  afternoon to answer any questions;

(5) The church groups have agreed to undertake a mobilization campaign based on a generic communications program being developed by Campaigns and Grey, Yoly Ong and her group, pro bono, that will have a unifying theme for the various campaigns of the group. All of us will be meeting on Tuesday, March 13, to review the program.

(6) Special projects have been launched, among them a Comelec Watch, as I mentioned, by the Consortium on Electoral Reforms, the Pera?t Pulitika project of the Consortium, Libertas, Transparency and Accountability Network, and the Political Science Association to  pilot-test campaign finance monitoring. We also have a nationwide candidates' fora and local covenant signing by the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and PPCRV.

(7) Finally, as you already know, the Makati Business Club has agreed to help in raising contributions towards a democracy fund that will be available to all groups as soon as the unified effort is formalized.

(8) The initiative for many of these projects, I?d like to add, is being done by convenors of One Voice, Benjie Tolosa, Atty. Medina of Ateneo, Mon Casiple of CER, Atty. Guia of Libertas, Vince Lazatin of  Transparency and Accountability Network, and Bro. Javy S.J. of 
Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and others.

I mention these initiatives to assure you that cooperation is happening and that many people are already at work in this huge national effort. But they urgently need volunteers and funding for each of the activities, the most important of which are pollwatching, the parallel count, and the canvassing watch. Free and fair elections after all is the cumulative effect of many safeguards, and it is the  efficient and effective handling of the minutest details that can make  or unmake elections.

It is said that the mind is the athlete, the body is merely the means for us to jump higher, run faster, or lengthen our reach beyond our grasp. After each of us has thought deeply about the stake in this coming elections, after we have thought together on how to address them, let us, dare our courage to follow our thoughts. We don't have much time. The day of reckoning is barely two months away.

If democracy, according to Vaclav Havel, is the unfinished story of human aspirations, let us continue the journey in the coming elections by helping restore the trustworthiness of the election process, and on the strength of that foundation, move on to other institutions. Each of us must put down his piece in this giant jigsaw puzzle called nation-building, for only then can we say that we are truly deserving of this blessed nation.Speech of Christian S. Monsod, One Voice chairman, at the joint general membership meeting of the Makati Business Club, Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Management Association of the Philippines  on 8 March 2007, 12 noon, at the Dusit Nikko Hotel, Makati City)

You asked me to address four questions:
(1) What is the importance of the 2007 elections?
(2) Is there hope for the elections to be credible?
(3) What is the status of the citizen effort?
(4) How can each of us contribute to that effort?

The elections are important because for the first time since our democracy was restored in 1986, we are faced with the problem of damaged or weakened democratic institutions, of processes, i.e. electoral and justice system, or of offices or agencies such as the Senate and the House, the Office of the Ombudsman, the Commission on Elections, or even of the Constitution itself.

Most businessmen appear to be happy with the developments on the economy, but you are clearly concerned about the credibility of the 2007 elections. You are here because your concern goes beyond the successful delivery of credible elections. You care enough to know  that we must also address the broader crisis of the people?s trust in  the political system, and in democracy itself, as a means to a better  life. The repeated attempts to test the constitutional limits of executive powers, the attempt to change the Constitution for political gain, and the politics-as-usual environment of the election campaign, must concern you. All of us know the far-reaching consequences of a growing alienation and disengagement of people from democratic processes, especially the youth and the poor.

If democracy has not changed the social, economic, and political  landscape of the country, it should occur to us that maybe the problem  is not that democracy is not suitable for developing countries, but  that we have not nurtured it or are not practicing it, neither the  administration nor the opposition, but more importantly, not by civil  society itself.

It is the privilege of age to recall images that make sense of his  surroundings. Mine is the image of businessmen and the most ordinary citizens guarding ballot boxes together, with utter disregard for  their safety, with no thought of reward or benefit, protecting the ballot as if it was the most sacred blessing of their lives. Whether locking arms together or raising fists defiantly in the air, or singing the impassioned cry of the imprisoned, there was an army that was invincible for the whole world to see.

But the fact is that after we brought our nation to glory in EDSA and accomplished the first peaceful transfer of power in 27 years in 1992, we folded up our banners, we put away the t-shirts with the imaginative slogans that brought humor to the seriousness of the time, and we went back to wearing our business suits and to monitoring the stock prices of our companies or focusing on our narrow sectoral advocacies. And as we went our separate ways with our separate causes, we lost something of the dream of a nation and the significance of our interconnected lives.

Perhaps it is time to go back to our beginnings for the 2007 elections.

Every election is critical for its own reasons. If the 1986 elections, as once noted by a writer, were a test of our courage, and the 1992 and subsequent elections tests of our maturity, then the 2007 elections are surely a test of our vision for democracy.

That vision cannot include the weakening of democratic institutions that would justify what is sometimes euphemistically called a strong republic to fill the void, in which the ubiquitous presence and increasing power of the military and police in government affairs is a troubling trend. The military gambit is not new to our politics, but we thought we had addressed it permanently by the overwhelming aversion of our people to any kind of military dominance in our national life. Surely the business community remembers how the Marcos regime, propped up by the military, set back our economy by 10 years, a gap we still have not closed after 20 years.

If we are agreed that a functioning democracy is a part of our future and that credible election is its fundamental building block, the obvious question is?is there hope that the 2007 elections will be credible?

My answer is YES, if we all play our part in its making.

It seems simple enough, delivering free and fair elections. There are only three principles to observe:

(1) one-man, one-vote;
(2) allow people to freely exercise their right to vote; and
(3) count correctly what?s in the ballot.

We had thought that, by this time, we would be closer to the norm of democratic elections. But somewhere along the way, this was derailed. Automation is nine years behind the original schedule and full automation will not happen until 2013 at the earliest. The latest automation law is seriously flawed and was enacted too late to even enable pilot testing in 2007.

What of the Comelec? It is disappointing that the President has chosen not to fill the last vacancy. But we should at least be grateful that she did not fill it with somebody like Mr. Garcillano. And that the three latest appointees are persons of competence with a record of integrity who are well aware of the need to restore the credibility of the Commission and are unlikely to allow themselves to be part of any cheating. So far, the Comelec has generally been even-handed in the enforcement of the rules, but continued vigilance is obviously called for. Monitoring the resolutions and moves of the Commission is the specific mission of one of the NGOs, the Consortium for Electoral Reforms.

The pity of it is that, by and large, even when it is not in its best behavior, our democracy works, even in 2004, to the credit of the field officers of the COMELEC, if we judge the process and the results by the totality of some 17,000 positions at stake in the elections. Of course, the question of cheating in the presidential elections casts a long shadow on the entire elections. That the President really won, I believe, the elections, albeit by a much smaller margin, is not enough to mute the clamor and the campaign to finally settle the issue of legitimacy by treating the coming mid-term elections as an indirect referendum. There are those among you who would say we are past that and must move on. Maybe so, but the high distrust level of the government cannot be ignored with perceptions that, to stay in power, the government is disposed to misuse government resources (pork barrel allocations, the passing of campaign vouchers to government-owned and -controlled corporations, ?intelligence? funds), or commit wholesale fraud in canvassing , or use the military and police for partisan politics. Hence, the criticality of citizens' groups protecting the ballot and validating the process and the results of the elections.

There is one important assumption in mobilizing this effort, that the church-based groups will do within the church community what they ask of the nation?unite for a more lofty purpose. That NASSA of the CBCP, which comprise the core of volunteers especially in the provinces,  PPCRV, and Namfrel will adopt a unified approach with the least overlap and at the least cost to address the two biggest constraints to this kind of effort?(1) enough volunteers to do the job and (2) resource mobilization. The numbers are formidable. Forty-four million voters, over 250,000 precincts, and 1,600 canvassing points, which imply mobilizing over 500,000 volunteers, including some 3,500 lawyers to monitor the canvassing, and raising total resources of up to P50 
million in cash and in kind, partly by local chapters.

As of today, the only missing ingredient is the accreditation of the citizen arm for the unofficial count. Both NASSA, with an interfaith coalition, and Namfrel, which counts with over 150 multisectoral organizations, have applied for accreditation, with the final decision ironically being entrusted to the Comelec.

The good news is that, regardless of the competition for accreditation, all the groups have agreed to take substantive steps towards a unified effort by the following:

(1) NASSA and Namfrel have agreed to form a joint technical group to develop the systems that will be used by whoever gets the accreditation, which, incidentally, could be joint. This committee is already operational and has already agreed on the basic program. The objective is accuracy more than speed, where the quick count for the first two days covering some 10% of the votes will be done by the media groups and the citizen arm count will build up from the third 
day. While the target is 100% coverage, it should be noted that the highest coverage in the past in 2004 has been 83% based on precinct election returns and 97% in 1992 using certificates of canvass. Since wholesale fraud in canvassing is a serious problem now, the citizen arm count will be based solely on precinct election returns. And there will be no texting. It's the basic count from the precinct.

(2) There is already agreement on assignment of tasks, with PPCRV undertaking voter education and pollwatching. Although it is included in its manual, PPCRV has agreed not to do a count. The grassroots mobilization is to be done principally by the social action and basic ecclesial communities of NASSA. The NASSA national conference of social action directors has already taken place last weekend and the PPCRV national conference begins tomorrow. In short, mobilization has started. The focal point of organizing and counting centers will be the 85 dioceses all over the country, in coordination with other religious, evangelical, and Muslim groups in each area.

(3) A national coalition of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, law schools, NGO legal groups, association of law students, and so on has already been formed, with the Ateneo Human Rights Center as secretariat. The objective is to cover all 1,600 canvassing points, which neither government nor the opposition has been able to do all these years, with about 3,500 lawyers and paralegal volunteers. They will also provide legal services throughout the election period. This 
is a very difficult task because lawyers are in great demand during elections, probably the only time they are in demand, with huge fees. So we would appreciate if you can volunteer your legal departments to help out in this project.

(4) A master activity blueprint or menu of options for citizen involvement has been developed by the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and the Pugadlawin group of Ateneo de Manila University, which we will circulate shortly after my talk for you to see. And we are also circulating all the contact persons for each of these activities for your choice. I have asked Prof. Benjie Tolosa to join us this  afternoon to answer any questions;

(5) The church groups have agreed to undertake a mobilization campaign based on a generic communications program being developed by Campaigns and Grey, Yoly Ong and her group, pro bono, that will have a unifying theme for the various campaigns of the group. All of us will be meeting on Tuesday, March 13, to review the program.

(6) Special projects have been launched, among them a Comelec Watch, as I mentioned, by the Consortium on Electoral Reforms, the Pera?t Pulitika project of the Consortium, Libertas, Transparency and Accountability Network, and the Political Science Association to  pilot-test campaign finance monitoring. We also have a nationwide candidates' fora and local covenant signing by the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and PPCRV.

(7) Finally, as you already know, the Makati Business Club has agreed to help in raising contributions towards a democracy fund that will be available to all groups as soon as the unified effort is formalized.

(8) The initiative for many of these projects, I?d like to add, is being done by convenors of One Voice, Benjie Tolosa, Atty. Medina of Ateneo, Mon Casiple of CER, Atty. Guia of Libertas, Vince Lazatin of  Transparency and Accountability Network, and Bro. Javy S.J. of 
Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan and others.

I mention these initiatives to assure you that cooperation is happening and that many people are already at work in this huge national effort. But they urgently need volunteers and funding for each of the activities, the most important of which are pollwatching, the parallel count, and the canvassing watch. Free and fair elections after all is the cumulative effect of many safeguards, and it is the  efficient and effective handling of the minutest details that can make  or unmake elections.

It is said that the mind is the athlete, the body is merely the means for us to jump higher, run faster, or lengthen our reach beyond our grasp. After each of us has thought deeply about the stake in this coming elections, after we have thought together on how to address them, let us, dare our courage to follow our thoughts. We don't have much time. The day of reckoning is barely two months away.

If democracy, according to Vaclav Havel, is the unfinished story of human aspirations, let us continue the journey in the coming elections by helping restore the trustworthiness of the election process, and on the strength of that foundation, move on to other institutions. Each of us must put down his piece in this giant jigsaw puzzle called nation-building, for only then can we say that we are truly deserving of this blessed nation.

For your film viewing

For your film viewing consideration, below is a synopsis of a digital film directed by our alumnus, Benjamin "Benji" C. Garcia II (ADDU GS'71, ADDU HS'75, AdMU-AB ComArts'79). The film is "Batad: Sa Paang Palay" which will be shown at the SM Digital Theaters (including SM Davao) from March 14-20, 2007. In addition to winning the Best Screenplay and Best Actor awards, the film won Best Production Design and the Special Jury Prize in the Full Length Feature category in the 2006 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival and Competition.

In a filmaker profile at http://www.culturalcenter.gov.ph/cinemalaya/synopsis/Batad.pdf

BENJI GARCIA is a freelance producer of TV commercials. For the past 10 years, he has produced and directed numerous radio and TV commercials and many corporate films and documentaries. He has acted, written, produced and directed for theater and television. He has also done production design for films. He was art director for the TV historical drama Alab ng Lahi, the La Aunor TV series and for Ishmael Bernal's acclaimed film Himala. He was production designer for Mel Chionglo's Teenage Marriage, Edgardo Reyes' Bulaklak ng Apoy and J. Erastheo Navoa's Manoy, Di Ka Na Makaka-isa. He is a graduate of Ateneo de Manila University where he earned an AB Communication Arts Degree, with honorable mention. He took courses at the London International Film School.

I hope many of our alumni and friends will watch this film at the SM theaters during its theater run. Mr. Garcia believes the film has a lot to tell Ateneans, and Filipinos for that matter, about the struggle between tradition and Western modernization.

Antonella Barba

American Idon star, and new FB&C favorite Antonella Barba is back in the news about some raunchy awesome photos; only this time the story is that the photographs are fake. Well they’re not fake per se, it’s just that they may not be of Antonella Barba. See for yourself:

[Antonella’s] best friend, Amanda Coluccio, tells PEOPLE that the “pornographic” photos on the Internet “are not Antonella.” And Coluccio has looked. “It’s not the same nose, it’s not the same face,” she says of the girl in the pictures.

Chuang Tzu 72

Tinanong ni Maestro Tung-kuo si Chuang Tzu: Itong kuwan na Tao - saan ba nagmemeron?

Tugon ni Chuang Tzu: Walang lugar na hindi nagmemeron.

Maestro Tung-kuo: Ikaw naman, kailangan mong tukuyin

Nasa langgam.

Sa ganoong maliit na bagay?

Nasa damo.

Mas lalong di-mahalaga!

Nasa sahig at mga basag na bagay.

Paanong ganoon kababa at di-mahalaga ito?

Nasa ihi at iput.

On Art

The art of losing isn't hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

Lose something every day.  Accept the fluster
of lost door keys, the hour badly spent.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

Then practice losing farther, losing faster:
places, and names, and where it was you meant
to travel.  None of these will bring disaster.

I lost my mother's watch.  And look! my last, or
next-to-last, of three loved houses went.
The art of losing isn't hard to master.

I lost two cities, lovely ones.  And, vaster,
some realms I owned, two rivers, a continent.
I miss them, but it wasn't a disaster.

---Even losing you (the joking voice, a gesture
I love) I shan't have lied.  It's evident
the art of losing's not too hard to master
though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster.

 -- Elizabeth Bishop

Pinoy Truisms

Ang buhay ay parang bato, it's hard.

Better late than pregnant.

Behind the clouds are the other clouds.

It's better to cheat than to repeat!

Do unto others... then run!!!

Kapag puno na ang salop, kumuha na ng ibang salop.

Magbiro ka na sa lasing, magbiro ka na sa bagong
gising, 'wag lang sa lasing na bagong gising.

When all else fails, follow instructions.

Ang hindi marunong magmahal sa sariling wika, lumaki
sa ibang bansa.

To err is human, to errs is humans.

Ang taong nagigipit...sa bumbay kumakapit

Pag may usok...may nag-iihaw

Ang taong naglalakad nang matulin... may utang.

No guts, no glory... no ID, no entry.

Birds of the same feather that prays together... stays together.

Kapag may sinuksok at walang madukot, may nandukot.

Walang matigas na tinapay sa gutom na tao.

Ang taong di marunong lumingon sa kanyang
pinanggalingan ....ay may stiff neck.

Birds of the same feather make a good feather duster.

Kapag may tiyaga, may nilaga. Kapag may taga, may tahi.

Huli man daw at magaling, undertime pa rin.

Ang naglalakad ng matulin, late na sa appointment

Matalino man ang matsing, matsing pa rin.

Better late than later....

Aanhin ang palasyo kung ang nakatira ay kuwago, mabuti pa ang bahay kubo, sa paligid puno ng linga.

Kapag maikli ang kumot, tumangkad ka na!

No man is an island because time is gold.

Hindi lahat ng kumikinang ay ginto.. muta lang yan.

Kapag ang puno mabunga...mataba ang lupa!

When it rains...it floods.

Pagkahaba haba man ng prusisyon .. mauubusan din ng kandila.

Ang buhay ay parang gulong, minsan nasa ibabaw, minsan nasa vulcanizing shop.

Batu-bato sa langit, ang tamaan... sapul.

Try and try until you succeed... or else try another.

Ako ang nagsaing... iba ang kumain. Diet ako eh.

Huwag magbilang ng manok kung alaga mo ay itik.

Kapag maiksi na ang kumot, bumili ka na ng bago.

If you can't beat them, shoot them. (Nalundasan)

An apple a day is too expensive.

An apple a day makes seven apples a week. (really expensive)

Cha-Cha de Gloria

How exactly will Gloria employ this Cha-cha to perpetuate herself in power? I do not know because the facts and appearance of the charter changes are foggy and ambiguous to anyone. All I know is that Gloria is steering this train and I do not trust she will carry us anywhere I want to be given how she has acted while in power thus far. Let me summarize what is so frightening about Gloria's
charter change scheme.

1. First the method. It is still uncertain whether the charter changes will be made through supposed "people's initiative" or through a House-muscled constituent assembly without the Senate's agreement, specifically the three quarters vote of both chambers needed for charter change to consists almost only of Lower House votes. These two alternatives still seem to be thriving. Both these methods are contentious and not unquestionably well-known as legitimate means for making the kind of changes being recommended. Many even say that these two alternatives are unconstitutional. In any case, any of these two means will eventually be determined by the Supreme Court at some time. However it turns out, it will entail that Gloria is taking really dubious means to force through constitutional changes. One asks: why would we impose upon our people the possibility of deep-seated and long-running political tension about the manner of changing our constitution? Why would she twist the arms of our already weakened democratic institutions using doubtful legal devices to modify our nearly 20-year old constitution? However advantageous such changes might be, its benefit would certainly be diminished by the conflict and hostility that is created by changing it via forcing through legal mechanisms. Ironically, we opposed cha-cha under Ramos who had much better approval ratings than Gloria and we opposed cha-cha under Erap Estrada who certainly was legitimately elected president. And now we are going to have charter change, whether we like it or not under Gloria with the highest dissatisfaction ratings in all our post-EDSA presidents and a president who has not been clearly elected to her office.

2. Second the risky implications if any of these two charter change routes were to proceed (i.e., either people's initiative or House-engineered constituent assembly). If we do get to a period where our people will be thinking a particular changed constitution to ratify, it would have meant several things: (a) the Supreme Court decided that one of these two paths is legal and constitutional, which I would take to mean that the SC had legitimated Gloria's forcing through tactics. (b) the current House of Representatives, with exactly the same overwhelming majority that refused to impeach Gloria despite the facts and the same mostly easily bought members with a small heroic band of resisters, will dictate the re-writing of our constitution. This latter implication comes from the way either the PI or Con-Ass works: Congress becomes the forum for re-writing the Constitution, and it will not be Congress as it is now (with Senate and
House of equal power) but Congress dominated by the Kampi-Lakas congressmen.

3. Third, the even more dire consequences were we to ratify a constitution permitting the shift to some yet undefined form of parliamentary government with Gloria in power and the current Gloria-bought congressmen making the rules and executing them as any parliament would. We shall have given them a blank check to define our form of government, mark out whatever limits, checks and balances they feel like, and alter whatever else they feel like in our existing constitution. It is under this likely situation that a fear of perpetuating Gloria comes. This is really akin to the situation of our country in 1972 when Marcos declared martial law when we still did not have a new constitution (because the constitutional convention in existence then had not yet finished its work). Marcos' second and last 4-year term should have ended in 1973 because he was fraudulently elected in 1969. He engineered to have a new constitution that allowed him to continue by buying and intimidating the ongoing constitutional convention and then had that amended constitution ratified by barangay assemblies. This is the constitution that Marcos used to rule for the rest of his dictatorship. In my view, Gloria is manipulating events to get the same kind of constitution Marcos got in 1973 by changing the present constitution.

In my view, our only real reliable hope to protect our democracy from the evil designs of Gloria is the plebiscite to ratify whatever constitution is made which is an unavoidable requirement for any change in the constitution. Whatever might be the contents of the constitutional change that will be offered for ratification, we should really just have one question in mind: do I want to give Gloria even more power to rule this country longer? If you want to give her the license to exercise even more power which she never truly earned from an election then you ratify her constitutional change; if not then you reject it. I do not believe that the intrinsic merits of proposed constitutional change are even relevant to the consideration because no real debate, education or explanation had ever been offered to our people about the nature of the specific changes proposed and the implications to their concerns about Gloria's legitimacy to continue governing as president. And beside, I have never seen a constitution no matter how great execute itself without the right kind of leaders giving it life. If Gloria cannot live and act by the existing constitution, how can we expect her to be limited or constrained by the power to make her own constitution?

MT Pagbabago

SLB Newsbriefs

Since I had been getting two daily newsbriefs from the Simbahang Lingkod ng Bayan (SLB), I decided to share the same to bloggers who may want a concise national update of what's happening in the country. SLB is based in Ateneo de Manila University with a vast network of organizations scattered across the country.

Please access it at slb-newsbrief.blogspot.com.