Monthly Archives: February 2008

5
Feb

Technical problems

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I am aware that this site has been out of the radar from time-to-time since Saturday. Actually, there were intermittent outages last week, lasting from 30 minutes to an hour. But what had happened last weekend and yesterday was troublesome.

At home, I use Smart 3G as my Internet connection. This past weekend, I wasn’t able to access this site at all. As in, all I got from Firefox was “page reset” yada yada. I had confirmed with a friend that the site was inaccessible, but another friend had no problems viewing the site. Weird.

Then, yesterday. I was maintaining a deathwatch for Jose de Venecia’s speakership when I couldn’t access this site at 3PM (I was not using Smart 3G). Another friend sent me text message telling me that my site was goners. I went out of the office at quarter to six in the evening, and I still couldn’t access it. At the bus, via YM on mobile, I asked another friend to check it out. It was around 6:30 PM, and the site was still inaccessible.

At 8PM, at home, I couldn’t access the site using Smart 3G, but two of my friends using PLDT myDSL reported that they could access it.

Now, I can access it here at work. But we’ll see at around 3PM.

Now, may I ask for your help? When you attempt to access this site and seen nothing, please send an email to awb[at]awbholdings.com, detailing the time and day when you attempted to access this site. Please send an email for every failed attempt. I will document this situation and hopefully forward them to my Web host. I will appreciate it very much.

Yes, I had opened a support ticket last Sunday; as of this moment (9:24 AM, 2/5/2008), the ticket is unacted upon.

PS: Please visit my LiveJournal in case this site is goners.

4
Feb

Goodbye, Speaker de Venecia (Updated)

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Should we maintain a death watch?

2/3/2008 10:11 PM ABS-CBN News – Amado Bagatsing of Manila says at least 143 congressmen have committed to sign a manifesto declaring loss of confidence to Speaker Jose de Venecia.

2/4/2008 8:54 AM GMA News – A defiant de Venecia nixes graceful exit, vows to fight on the floor. We are statesmen, not gangsters – heh. Nice shot, JDV.

2/4/2008 9:48 AM ABS-CBN News – JDV is still defiant, claims that congressmen were offered at most Php 1 million each to support his ouster. Yay, congressmen for sale. Lobbyist should stop lobbying and instead start buying congressmen, no?

2/4/2008 10:21 AM GMA News – Administration congressmen start arriving at the Fortress for the caucus to decide on what to do with de Venecia. The Mafia doesn’t engage in talks. If they want to kill, they contract someone to do it.

2/4/2008 1:07 PM GMA News – Another lease of life for de Venecia? Caucus fails to unseat JDV, mini-caucuses to be held tomorrow. Here’s an advice to congressmen: PUT UP OR SHUT UP.

UPDATE:

Starting 3PM yesterday, I couldn’t access this site, hence the last update was about the removal apparently wouldn’t materialize yesterday, which it did. Well, you know the rest of the story, so it is indeed goodbye, de Venecia as speaker.

1
Feb

Eleksyon sa 2010: Mga mahalagang isyu, 3

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May panawagan si Janette Toral para sa isang pagtalakay sa mga paksa na nauugnay sa halalang pambansa sa taong 2010, kasama na rito ang pag-anyaya sa iba pang mga blogger.

Magkakaroon ako ng serye ng mga pagtalakay tungkol sa mga isyu na dapat talakayin. Sa bawat pagtalakay, magsasaad ako ng isang isyu, magpapaliwanag kung bakit ito dapat maging isang isyu, at ang aking saloobin tungkol sa nasabing isyu.

Hindi natin maitatanggi na malaki ang nagagawa ng ating mga OFW sa ekonomiya ng ating bansa. Noong nakaraang taon, umabot sa US$13.1 bilyon ang ipinadala ng mg OFW – iyan ay mula Enero hanggang Nobyembre, at ipinadala sa pamamagitan ng mga bangko. Hindi pa kasama yung mga ipinadala noong Disyembre at yung mga hindi dumaan sa bangko. Kaya nga ang iba sa atin, tinatawag silang mga bagong bayani.

Pero bakit parang hindi bayani ang turing sa kanila ng ating pamahalaan? Bakit parang gatasan ang pagtingin ng rehimeng Arroyo sa mga OFW?

Tingnan ninyo itong ginawa ng Philippine Overseas Employment Administration. May mga ilang kasing mga OFW na direktang inempleyo – hindi sila dumaan sa recruiter, at hindi sila dumaan sa red tape ng POEA. Mukhang medyo naging wa-is yata ang mga employer, kaya medyo naguluhimanan ang POEA. Naglabas ito ng isang kautusan para makontrol ang tinatawag na direct employment. Mabuti kung inyong i-download ang nasabing panuntunan at maunawaan kung bakit kailangan nilang gawin ito.

Hindi ko tatalakayin ang nasabing panuntunan. Pakibasa ang ginawang pagtuligsa ng Lukayong Layas sa nasabing panuntunan. Ang masasabi ko lang: isa itong legal na pagnanakaw.

Bakit ito dapat maging isang isyu? Maraming hindi magandang naidudulot ang pag-alis ng mga Pilipino upang magtrabaho sa isang pamilya. Pero alam natin na mahirap maghanap ng magandang trabaho rito sa Pilipinas, lalo na para sa mga hindi nakapagtapos. Ok lang sana kung kaya ng minimum na pasahod ang cost of living, pero marami sa inyo ang nakakaalam na mahirap ang buhay, lalo ngayon na hindi naman bumababa ang presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin. Iyon namang iba, bagamat nakatapos ng pag-aaral, hindi makahanap ng trabaho na hindi sila masasadlak sa isang mesa at headset. Kaya napipilitan ang karamihan na makipagsapalaran at maghanap ng trabaho sa ibang bansa.

Pero ang mas mabigat na suliranin – ang tinatawag nating brain drain – ang pag-alis ng mga doktor, nars, guro, siyentipiko at inhinyero. Malaki ang epekto nito sa ating bansa.

Ano ba ang polisiya ng ating pamahalaan ukol rito? Ano ba ang gusto natin mangyari – ipagpatuloy na gawing pang-export ang ating mga manggagawa? Kaya siguro naisip ng POEA ang nasabing panuntunan – malaking pera rin yun. Pera nga, iyon eh kung may mga employer pa na mangahas na direktang kumuha ng tao. Halatang hindi na naman pinag-isipan ang desisyong ito.

Ano dapat ang maging polisiya natin para maiwasan ang brain drain?

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Huwag kalimutang bumoto sa aking sarbey, kung hindi ka pa nakakaboto.