The President and media

As usual President Bush angry at the media. NYTimes in particular for publishing secret tracking of terror funds. Link via Romenesko

I think most most Presidents have love- hate affair with media whether they're journalist, broadcasters or talk radio host, bloggers for that matter. If it's favoring the Commander-in-chief, media gets pat on the back but once the attacks about domestic policies or international issues gets negative reaction by the press, President get's mad. Even here in the Philippines it's thesame thing.

Grrrr! Don't you know blogging etiquette?!

Copy Cat! blogger lazy squash ztidytrish: http://bludrush207.blogspot.com/ whoever the shmuck you are...
Host Name: 210.213.147.52.pldt.net(Mydsl_professional)
IP Address: 210.213.147.52

If you're going to copy word for word one of my blogs at least give a link or acknowledge where you got it from. Doofus! I mean shit, even the typos were copied. That plagiarist blogger made it seemed like s/he made it Freaks me out!

Damnit. Plagiarism could land you in jail you know. Grrrrr!!!!

Holy Kettle Corn

My sister gave me a whole bag of popcorn. I ate it all. My tummy's gonna pop pretty soon. Ugh. I wish I had a slice of German cake Karl said he was eating yesterday. Yummmy.

I wonder why it's called Holy. Hehee.

The saga of that heartbroken MySpace romance

And so the story goes for a young Palestinian man meeting a western girl through MySpace.com (social networking craze of fad right now) and thepromise of love and romance cut short and left pain and anguish and heartbroken feelings.

Abdullah Jimzawi, a 20-year-old high school dropout who lives with his parents in Jericho and Katherine Lester, 16 years old were supposed to meet and have fun, get to know each and marry in the future but sadly....

Lester was en route to Tel Aviv airport when she was intercepted in Amman, Jordan, by U.S. authorities who seized her passport and put her on a flight back to the United States.

Jimzawi, a shy soft-spoken young man with close-cropped hair and a two-day beard lives in Jericho, a town of 17,000 that is largely immune from the violence plaguing the rest of the West bank.

Katherine Lester is now in seclusion with her father after returning from Israel and hasn't spoke to reporterss yet.

Jimzawi was initially reluctant to talk to the media because of what he said was unfair treatment following Lester's ill-fated trip. However, he eventually agreed to be photographed in shorts and sandals, showing AP reporters the computer on which he said he met Lester eight months ago.

Read the whole article and be fascinated by their love story. I feel somewhat sorry for the young man. But I thnk he really should've been the one to go there in Michigan instead of the girl. But anyway he said his next step was to apply for visa so he could travel to the U.S. They should give him one.

About a mall and I'm not even mallrat

Blahg.

I haven't been to SM Mall of Asia. Too far from where I am right now (Quezon City) but hopefully my friends and I can go there next week(yeah if they're not tired of treating me.. yet again. Hehee. Such good friends they are). I wonder what's new with that mall. They do have the IMAX theater but I've been to one already in Darlinghurst. They say the Mall is really huge and four times the size of Megamall. Hmm. I'm not the type who enjoys long walks inside the mall.... unless of course I have money to shop. Hehe. But it's SM so maybe it'll look like thesame as all the other SM malls. My sister said it's really different from the others and she said design was good and it's beautiful. Well see then.

I'm done with my download.

Subic rape case hearing

According to US NCIS report- it was "consensual sex"

Naval Criminal Investigation Service agent Guy Papageorge, quoting from his investigation report dated Nov. 9, 2005, said Lance Corporal Daniel Smith "admitted he had sexual intercourse with the Filipino woman inside the van and that the other Marines cheered him on."

Actually the US embassy at first would not allow the other NCIS agents to testify citing something about diplomatic immunity thing.

"Consistent with our commitment to seeing that justice is served in a fair and impartial trial, the government of the United States has agreed to allow several US Government employees to testify at the trial of four US Marines accused of rape…. The US government has waived [the immunity] for the limited purpose of testifying at this trial," the US Embassy said.

Expect three more to testify for the prosecution.

And but so there you go. Daniel Smith had admitted to having had consensual sex with the victim..

But....I'll say it again and again. Going to a bar frequented by US servicemen, it's given thing already that one should expect that there would probably be some kind of sexual thing that would likely happen. She Should have avoided bars like that in the first place. I'm not chastizing the victim nor am I defending the servicemen.

Rape is something else and it's very grave and violates our worth as a human. One shouldn't get away with it..if found guilty.

By the way .... Carpentier, Smith, Silkwood, and Duplantis are members of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Force stationed on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa. They had finished counterterrorism maneuvers with Filipino troops when the alleged rape occurred in a van.

** Related blog topics
Subic rape case: four u.s marines charged with rape
Subic rape case may not be a case after all
Military tales, Military woes

Worm hits Yahoo e-mail

The most popular email service hit by virus.

The e-mail virus, or worm, has been dubbed Yamanner and landed in Yahoo mailboxes bearing the headline "New Graphic Site." Once opened, the message infects the computer and spreads to other users listed in Yahoo users' e-mail address books, security experts said. To protect your computer from the virus update firewall and virus protection and block any e-mail sent from the address "av3@yahoo.com." Good news though.. "The worm cannot run on the newest version of Yahoo Mail Beta," Symantec's site said. [Yahoo/Reuters]

And I don't know what to say, it's fine...

All is well it seems. I'm alright now.

Windows Vista anyone?

You can now download the public beta version of Microsoft's new OS. Be aware though it is just that! a beta version intended mostly for developers. At the risk of having your pc malfunction, hardrive and files gone because of incompatibility with systems, just wait for the Final release January of 2007 . Oh but heck you wanna try downloading it the beta version.. they're out of bandwidth!

Cellphone breakdown

I threw my cheap ass obselete cellphone against the wall just because I'm pissed! It keeps saying sim rejected or the numbers disappear or it would turn off on it's own and then I always have to keep holding it tight whenever I use it! End result....the battery came off but I was able to fix it.

Dangers of being a Journalist

It's tough being out there and covering the news especially in dangerous place like Iraq.

Correspondent Kimberly Dozier, cameraman Paul Douglas and soundman James Brolan - were reporting from outside their humvee and are believed to have been wearing their protective gear. Douglas and Brolan, both London-based, were killed. Dozier sustained serious injuries in the attack and underwent surgery at a U.S. military hospital in Baghdad. She is in critical condition, but doctors are cautiously optimistic about her prognosis. [CBS News]

Here in the Philippines, Journalist are getting killed one after the other and they didn't even have to cover any war.

The nanny PUK my cell

It's only small incident but I'm Pissed!

The nanny here (that looks after my niece) borrowed my cellphone last night. I didn't want to but I'm such a good one I said okay. But guess what? My phone got PUK! Shit! then she asked are you mad? Damn right I am! I was cursing. I didn't know what she did to my cellphone! obviously PUK it! Never gonna let that nanny use it again. It's a cheap ass cellphone but still it's mine and when somebody borrows something they better take care of it. I didn't wanna fix the cell so she couldnt use it but again out of the goodness of my heart I did. If I was in a good mood, I might've let it pass but was in a foul irritating mood!

Nutso hi tech products

According to PCWorld (via yahoo news] these are the 25 worst worst tech products you wish you never had!

1. AOL( how do we loathe AOL? let us count the ways)
2. Real Player (Real annoying) soooooooo true!
3. Windows ME (aka Mistake edition)
4. Internet Explorer 6 (Hoping IE7 springs fewer leaks)
5. Comet Cursor (curse you comet cursor!) gives my pc a headache! comet crap!
   
6. WEB. TV (excruciating)
7. ROKR ( not rockin)
8. IOMEGA Zip Drive (the sound of data dying)

No complete and they're not in order. I just put the ones that I'm familiar with it.

Heres the complete lists of losers

Having these products just makes you go bonkers and make you so fckingcrazynuts.

Six degrees of separation and nothingness

It's halfway through another weekend and I just finished a long journal entry. I had a lot to babble. Rant actually. I'mjust pissed it's making me sad. I know I don't have the right to but I couldn't help it. I know I should be happy and excited but...my phone's not ringing. I haven't heard anything at all. It sucks!

I don't care about about Da Vinci Code

There's still a question mark whether the movie will be shown here or not.

Censor here has yet to grant it a release permit despite a slated opening date of May 18. "We will decide on the permit based on whether the film attacks a religion, creed or doctrine, and if it defames a person living or dead," the censor, Consoliza Laguardia, told local radio on Monday.

Personally I could care less. I haven't read the book.

I know it's a best seller. Millions of people read it (hence the excitement over the movie, I guess). My sister has the book here. Karl even bought one as well. Even my friends (few that I have) who've read it says it's exciting and controversial. Still it doesn't interest me. Jesus having an affair with Mary Magdalene and siring a child and all that. Heh. Riiiight! it's a work of fiction you know.

Lets and wait and see if the movie will be shown here. I think SM cinemas will not show if it's 18 and above. SM has the most number of cinemas here. But their patrons are mostly C and D crowd.

You know what, I thinkI'm more interested about A Scanner Darkly. One of the most anticipated summer movies.

*Edit.. Censors here gave Da Vinci Code R-18 classification. SM cinemas not showing it.

Movie was shown to the press at Cannes Festival. Veridct:
Critics hate it. Majority of them!

Reactions ranged from halfhearted admiration to boredom to derision among journalists.

Ouch!

Wishing on another lucky star

The song really is poignant. JD Souther wrote it.

I like the movie Permanent Record (one of the earlier films of Keanu Reeves along with Rivers Edge..and who says he can't act?!?!.. a lot! haha) it's one of those obscure sleeper movies that hardly anybody paid attention back then. It deals with teen life and how one deals with suicide. I've seen it a number times already. I wanna have the dvd of the movie and also Rivers Edge.

I'm done. I'll just blog when I have something to blog.

I remember, I remember and I saw it

There's something I wanna blog so I'm back from not really wanting to blog cos I have nothing to blog really..but I have one now...

If I heard it correctly, SM (mall of Asia...Pasay which will open sometime this month) will have an IMAX theater(?) and the first movie they're going to show there is Everest. First of all if there's gonna be IMAX here it will be the first one for the country. Second....I've seen Everest(the movie) already back in Sydney summer of 98 inside IMAX theater as well. Just brings back memories.

The interest about Mt. Everest is getting more and more exciting There's this Filipino guy, Romy Garduce attempting to be the first Filipino to climb the summit of Mt. Everest. The very top. Oh yeah hail the pinoy!

Subic case: four US Marines charged with rape

Four U.S. Marines refused to answer rape charges against them Friday in the Philippines, prompting the judge to enter a not guilty plea for them

It seems the Judge for the case threw out the motion of the DOJ for the 3 (Silkwood, Carpentier and Duplantis) to be just an accessory to the crime and (Smith) be the only one charged.

Pozon said he could not allow a downgrade of charges against the three "on the basis of the evidence not yet presented."

Lance Cpl Daniel Smith was actually the supposed date of the rape victim then others joined the two of them in the disco then subsequently inside the van were the alleged rape took place.

The defendants belong to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Force stationed on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa. They had finished counterterrorism maneuvers with Filipino troops when the alleged rape occurred in a van at the former U.S. Subic Bay naval base near Olongapo city, west of Manila. U.S. officials have refused to disclose their hometowns.

Well, under the Visiting Forces Agreement, US authorities don't have to turn over the American servicemen facing criminal charges. And that's why there's been lots of protest here for the scraping of the VFA.

The court hearing was the first public appearance by Lance Cpl. Daniel Smith, Lance Cpl. Keith Silkwood, Lance Cpl. Dominic Duplantis and Staff Sgt. Chad Carpentier since the alleged Nov. 1 rape of a 22-year-old Philippine woman.

(By the way, the second and the third one looks cute.. hehehe. Yay).

Anyhow, there were actually six that was initially charged (Albert Lara and another one which I forgot the name). But due to lack of evidence, the prosecution dropped the charges against the two servicemen. I think they went back to Okinawa.

Rape is serious and if these men were guilty, they should be meted proper punishement but if they're not...let them go. They were here for some military exercise and then had some relaxation I guess. They probably shouldn't have gone out of the USS(whatever cos I dunno the name) or their quarters.

Many servicemen go to [war]torn places and they've had enough to deal with as it is. Not that I'm defending them over my own race but like I said if they're guilty punish them if not.. set them free (hehe, it's not like they're inside a jail though, but they've been inside the Embassy for the several months now I think).

The thing I don't get it is that, if you're a girl and then knowing that a lot of servicemen go to that bar you're going to wouldn't it be obvious that there's gonna be bad connotation about you(ie: bar girl), then you'd have avoided it. Not that I'm saying the girl is such..but of course even if..it's still not an excuse to commit rape.

Punish the guilty. If not..set free.

Okay enough, I know nobody reads my blogs thats why I bravely share my thoughts and opinions and I keep blabbing. Hehe.

How blogging is perceive in the Philippines

Blogging in RP still seen as an 'elitist' activity--blogger

BLOGGING is currently perceived as an “elitist” activity limited to people who are educated, have access to technology, and earn higher incomes, said Dr. Ronald Meinardus, blogger and resident representative of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation.

“In most countries, blogging is an activity done by higher-income and educated people,”

“In the Philippines, most political bloggers are from the opposition and are critical of the current administration. In short, political blogs in this country are mostly anti-Arroyo,” he added.

I do agree with that. Mostly the blogs (this one included) I read are the ones that has a lot to say about the Arroyo administration. But as far as blogging being an "elitist" activity..maybe somewhat it is. I mean to be able to blog you need a computer and majority of Filipinos doesn't have one and those who has access to a computer and do blog doesn't really blog about political scene or current events. They would rather spend their time playing pc games or going to sites like My Space or Friendster or surf porn. Yay. Things I don't really do online.

So am I an elitist? Hardly!

Happy Easter

Rejoice for Christ has risen.

Whats with eggs and bunnies during easter? I don't like bunnies. We had one several years ago but after a few days, he died. The poor thing was left inside a cage in the garden in a pouring rain. Somebody forgot to bring it inside the house. Aww.