March 2008
-
03.29.08War of the Day: Mandapat vs. Fongwan
Cartoon source: Hindu BusinessOnline
Word war. Word war. We love us some word war between top government officials in the region hehe. The issue appears to be whether public utility vans (FX?) should be banned in Kennon Road. Mandapat has banned them. Fongwan objected to the ban.
We honestly don’t know who is right here. But shouldn’t the ban be based on how heavy or how big/bulky a vehicle is? Not whether it is public or private?
If we remember correctly, and we may be wrong, trucks and public buses were first banned in Kennon mainly because they’re either too big or too heavy and their size/weight will affect the “safeness” of Kennon Road.
Now, if public utility vehicles are really just like private vans in terms of size and weight, then what’s the rationale for banning them that doesn’t apply to private vehicles? But as we said, we haven’t really delved into this issue to know who got it right in this debate. Maybe some of you can enlighten us.
Continue Reading… -
03.28.08Department of Shameless Self-Promotion
Crossposted at From the Boondocks:
Ay kakabsat ken kakailiyan, hehe, i-promote ko man daytoy barbaro nga blog ko. I felt guilty and silly writing sponsored posts in this blog and in our other blog so I decided to come up with a new blog where I can do sponsored posts shamelessly. Eh dahil malapit na din ang Olympics and one of my first ever writing assignment years ago is to do an Olympic story so I decided to come up with The Olympian Blog.
I need your feedback on how to improve it further. It is still a work in progress so all suggestions, criticisms, etc. are welcome. Can I also shamelessly beg for a love link from your blogs? I will link back of course hehe.
Visit our newest blog here and fire away. Thanks, friends.
-
03.26.08State of Affairs
Image credit: Imagezoo.comThe above cartoon illustrates the state of affairs in Mt. Province where political forces are fighting to determine who should temporarily fill up the congressional position of the departed Rep. Victor Dominguez.
We have already said the things we have to say on this matter here and here. But here’s the latest developments according to a report by Dexter See. Let’s take the claims of both sides with a grain of salt.
Continue Reading… -
03.26.08I’m Kinda Confused
Medyo hindi ko maintindihan kung ano ang relasyon ng noodle factory sa gulay. What ingredients do they exactly use to make noodles? Isn’t it mostly starchy products like cassava, rice, etc. Maybe they can use potatoes and carrots to make noodles? What about cabbages, green pepper, sayote, etc?
Anyways, just asking because I don’t really know. Maybe some of you know how noodles are manufactured from highland vegetables.
Noodle factory seen to further improve vegetable industry of Benguet
BAGUIO CITY, March 25 (PNA) — An official of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) on Monday said the proposed P10-million noodle factory to be built in Benguet Province will further boost the vegetable industry in the area which became a very viable export since five years ago.NEDA assistant regional director Leon Dacanay said the factory will help the industry in terms of more stabilized prices of vegetables, generation of local jobs and assurance of ready market for farmers’ bumper harvests.
Records show that it was Dacanay in 2005 which made the assessment that a factory which makes use of the great volume of vegetables grown yearly in Benguet will further fortify the excellent agriculture sector in the locality.
In that year, the NEDA official likened the establishment of a tomato paste factory in Ilocos Norte in the late 1970’s when farmers were able to sell their produce even during the peak vegetable season.
Records show that tomato is so adopted to the soil and climate of that province that during summer, tomato farmers sell their hundreds of tons of tomatoes at bargain prices because of the oversupply.
Dacanay said the factories which serve as processing plants for the bumper harvests of the farmers normally stabilize prizes throughout the year even the “off-season” of the products like some vegetables which would not be grown during rainy season except in greenhouses. (PNA)
UPDATE: Hehe. I’m no longer confused. Apparently, Benguet State University has come up with a method to produce “veggie noodles”. Read more about it here.
-
03.26.08He Could Have Danced All Night
Two years ago around this time of the year, Marky Cielo broke into the entertainment industry by winning GMA-7’s Starstruck contest. Here’s the video of his final performance which earned raves from the judges. Cool, ha? He went on dancing despite losing his shoe.
Anyways, those of you who watched this when it was aired may want to revisit the moment. If you didn’t watch it before, eh di suwerte ka at merong youtube. Hehe.
Related posts on Marky Cielo: There’s Something About Marky and Marky Cielo at From the Boondocks.
-
03.23.08The Bigis Guys Strike Again
Note: If Youtube tells you that the video is “no longer available”, you can actually play it by clicking at the title of the post and then playing the video. There must be a bug somewhere causing this problem.****
Wow. The Bigis guys keep on producing great songs and great videos. Our personal favorite would still be their Bigis song or “Ay Bigis Ka a.k.a. Are You a Worm?” but this one is really good too. For non-Kankanaey speakers, the song is mostly an advice to vegetable farmers to bring their products ASAP to the vegetable trading post so they can get a good price for their produce.This is what happens when we have a system where middlemen dictate the buying price of vegetables and where the President allows uncontrolled vegetable importation because it personally benefits her.
So a farmer’s income depends not on hard work but on whether or not he reaches the vegetable trading post at a favorable time. And we wonder why farmers tend to be fatalists?
-
03.23.08Gloria Kamaptengan?
Because I am a Gloria hater, oops maybe hate is not the right word, I just dislike her because she cheated her way to the Presidency. So let’s change the H word to something else; besides hating someone is not good for our mental health. Now, because I dislike Gloria, I’m irritated to read this news that a sweet potato variety is being named after her cheating ass.
From GMA News:
A new blight-resistant variety of potato has been named after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in Benguet University, Malacañang disclosed Saturday.The variety, sourced from the Centro Internalionale de la Papa (International Potato Center) in Lima, Peru, was named “Gloria Kamaptengan,” after “mapteng” meaning “good” in Ibaloi and Pangasinan dialects.
“‘Kamaptengan’ means ‘the best of all,’” Rogelio Colting, president of the Benguet State University (BSU) after more than two years of research from 2005-2007, told Mrs Arroyo during her visit to a vegetable trading post in Betag district.
Arroyo was in Betag to see off trucks laden with local vegetable produce bound for the metropolis.
Colting showed her the first-generation tubers of the potato variety, initially codenamed 13.1.1, and said the BSU “would like to name it in your honor.”
A Palace statement said the BSU chose the name “Gloria” because of “her commitment in the development of the agriculture industry in the country.”
The best of all? Huh, Rogelio. I guess the BSU President’s got to do what he’s got to do but I’m kinda hoping that members of the academic community don’t go about acting like politicians trying to please Gloria. You are intellectuals, for Christ’s sakes.
But then again, they are naming a camote variety after Gloria so maybe there’s an inside joke there somewhere. After all, we all know that the song most famously associated with camote goes something like:
“Eat camote, the musical fruit
The more you eat, the more you toot.”Come on, Rogelio, fess up! What’s the real deal in naming this camote after Gloria? To honor her? Or to remind us that Gloria smells like something?
We’re just asking,you know. No offense meant. No offense intended.
UPDATE: My bad, we didn’t read the news carefully or our dislike for Gloria has clouded our vision such that we misread the story. They’re actually naming a potato, not a sweet potato, after Gloria. So maybe there’s no inside joke as we hoped there was. My apologies, folks.
