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02.08.08Stat of the Day
130,200
A total of 130,200 fully grown marijuana plants worth P23,640,000 were reportedly uprooted in the town of Bakun by the Benguet police. Source here. It would be interesting to know how they came up with that figure. Can you imagine them counting “one thousand and one….. five thousand and four… one hundred thirty thousand two hundred”?
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02.08.08Quote of the Day
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If you compare the vegetables from China and the ones we produce in the Philippines, the ones from China are bigger, greener and packaged well. [Many] Chinese farmers do not use fertilizers but they produce so much and we want to find out how they do it without using fertilizers.
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– Dr. Charles Cheng, a chapter member of the Association for Philippine-China Understanding.
Cheng said his group had asked the [Benguet] provincial government to help it send at least 10 farmers to China to learn new vegetable farming technology. More at the Inquirer.
We agree. We can keep on ranting about the government’s failure to effectively control vegetable importation but farmers also need to improve their produce if they are to be competitive in the market.
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01.23.08Are You a Limahong Descendant? Part II
In Part 1 of this topic, we mentioned that the legend of Limahong hiding and begetting children in the Cordilleras is most likely just a legend. But how do we explain the “Chinese” features of some Igorots/iCordilleras? I think it’s because our ancestors really did come from mainland Asia as Arcibald wrote in our earlier post, .
According to the current prevailing theory, people from the Philippines came from the north and not from the south. So as Edwin writes in his post here, it would seem like the migration wave theory (i.e., the Philippines was populated by waves of Negritos, then Indonesians, then Malays) that we learned in school may not be true at all.
Anyways, going back to the “Chineseness” of some Igorot groups, did you know that Barangay Tabaao in Kapangan, Benguet has a pretty significant number of people of Chinese descent? How did this come about?
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01.21.08Governor Fongwan: We’ll Export Vegetables to Japan
Thanks to “Anonymous” who alerted us about this news. I’m not optimistic that it will happen (i.e., the Cordilleras exporting vegetables to Japan, etc.) but I’m ready to be pleasantly surprised. I’m sure you are too :-)
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Gov says Benguet ready to export vegetables
Desiree Caluza
Philippine Daily InquirerBAGUIO CITY—Benguet Gov. Nestor Fongwan said his province’s farmers are ready to export their vegetables to Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong this year.
Fongwan said President Macapagal-Arroyo wants to enhance the province’s vegetable production after allotting P10 million for the full operation of the cold chain to preserve and ensure the freshness and quality of the local produce.
He said buyers from Japan sought broccoli grown in Benguet after the vegetable passed Japanese quality standards. He said several companies in Japan wanted the initial shipments this month.
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01.20.08Dying Rivers
A study by the University of the Cordilleras reveals that at least seven rivers in Tublay, Benguet are contaminated with mercury and cyanide.
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From the Manila Times/Harley Palangchao: At least seven river tributaries in Barangay Ambassador, Tublay, Benguet, were initially discovered to be not safe for human consumption based on the scientific findings conducted by the University of the Cordilleras (UC).A statement from the university obtained by the media showed that findings on water safety in various areas subjected to tests indicated some traces of mercury and cyanide, which is not safe for human consumption.
The release further quoted Dr. Teresita Doctor of the UC College of Arts and Sciences Biology Department, who said that the contamination might have been caused by improper waste disposal, use of pesticides and commercial fertilizers, and wastes from the already closed Sto. Niño Mines. Read the full story here.
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So how do cyanide and mercury affect you if they get into your system? We’ll try to do some research on that. But some of you may know already and might want to share it in the comments section :-)UPDATE: Thanks to Karla for the tip on the potential health effects of cyanide and mercury when ingested by a person. According to the U.S. EPA, cyanide can cause nerve damage or thyroid problems while mercury can damage your kidney. Thanks again, Karla.
PHOTO CREDIT: Drinkwiththelivingdead
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12.30.07Happy New Year From Dangwa
Roses raised in Bahong, La-Trinidad, Benguet. Transported to Manila by Dangwa Tranco. Sold in Manila’s flower district which is now known as “Dangwa”.
More pictures from the Dangwa flower district after the jump.
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12.16.07Those Bigis Guys
The Bigis guys, who we earlier blogged about here, are doing a great job producing songs and videos which are quite enjoyable.
I’m sure you’ll agree that the video above, “Tayattat”, is well made and really entertaining. But it might anger the ladies a bit because it kind of reinforces the woman = yackity yack stereotype. Hopefully the Bigis guys will make a video making fun of men stereotypes to balance things out.
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