February 9th, 2008
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02.09.08Gambling and Prostitution in the Boondocks
Once upon a time, people in Bontoc do not gamble. This is according to Albert Ernest Jenks in his book, The Bontoc Igorot:
No man or set of men habitually spoils another’s accumulations by exacting from him a tax or “rake off.” There is no form of gambling or winning another’s earnings.
We, of course, shouldn’t take a statement made by an outside observer as 100% accurate but Jenks, who visited Bontoc in 1903, gets more specific here:
Cockfighting is the Philippine sport. Almost everywhere the natives of the Archipelago have cockfights and horse races on holidays and Sundays. They are also greatly addicted to the sport of gambling. The Bontoc Igorot has none of the common pastimes or games of chance. This fact is remarkable, because the modern Malayan is such a gamester.
Well, I’m not sure if “modern Malayans” back then were such gamblers as Jenks portrays them but if the writer visits Bontoc now he will see that its residents have caught up with their lowland siblings in the gambling front. He will, no doubt, notice the center of Bontoc’s gambling universe, the Acofo Building which is located right smack in the middle of town.
He will also likely hear the story of a frustrated husband who reportedly axed the door of the gambling den because his wife was spending her time gambling her (their?) money away. Finally, Jenks might wonder about the inability of the Bontoc and Mt. Province police and the local government units to implement the law on illegal gambling.
Bakit nga kaya? Why is the police not doing anything about this? We’re sure it’s not for lack of information. They’re certainly not blind or deaf. Maybe they don’t have balls? Shall we call them Mt. Province Police “No Balls” Division?
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02.09.08How Wet Are You?
If you were in Sagada during the months of November 2007 and January 2008, you would be wetter than if you were in Baguio. You need proof? Aba, meron tayong graphs to prove our point. Here’s the one for Sagada:
And here’s the one for Baguio:
The graphs are from Project Rain Gauge, a joint project of Smart Communications, the Manila Observatory, and some participating schools.Because the project is only on its fifth month, we still don’t know who is wetter during an entire year — would it be Padma in Baguio or Pagano in Sagada.
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