Konyosis

Decorticate

2012-09-13T08:13:00.001+08:00

I work in an industry where good friends are hard to find. I'm not saying there aren't any, it's just most of them are "here for work and not to make friends". I recently received notice that I will be moving to a different schedule, apart from the news that there will be reshuffling of team members and unit managers. Separation has always been difficult for me. It's too lengthy for me to detail it on one post and I don't intend to anyway.

Just when you get to know your... colleagues better, you get separated. Just when you begin opening up, the circumstances shut it down. It's not like this is my first time to experience this. My first job was also in a contact center and I could say I made some good friends there. We still contact each other and try to see each other if their schedule permits. I couldn't believe that it's been a year since we knew each other. If only it was a normal working-hour job, I would have stayed longer, much longer.

A friend of mine said that in this industry, "the friends you make here are your friends here, nowhere else".

That saddened me a bit. I always thought of myself as someone who hates rejection. Someone who despises separation. But it's BAU (business as usual). Whatever is good for the business. In the process, you lose some, but hopefully gain a lot more. I know this is melodramatic. We will still see each other (casually) in the same building and same floor, but everything is different if you're in that situation. It's never the same. You never even get to make chit-chats while you're on break and they're on a call, obviously.

I'll surely miss the people I've been with for the past 3 months. I laughed and cried with them at the same time. But thinking about how good a company I'm working for encourages me to do better and just accept the changes, which are in this type of job, inevitable. Writing this post has definitely lighten me up a bit.

Now, what in Bellatrixlestrangescurlyhair is "Decorticate"? It's an abnormal posture in which a person is stiff with bent arms, clenched fists, and legs held out straight. The arms are bent in toward the body and the wrists and fingers are bent and held on the chest. It's is a sign of damage to the nerve pathway between the brain and spinal cord. Now why name this post decorticate... wala.. bet ko lang.. keri?

Decorticate Posture

Looking for: Male Shih Tzu (Stud Service)

2012-09-10T15:41:00.001+08:00

Looking for: Male shih tzu for a sexy time with my fertile baby Evee
Location: Vito Cruz, Manila
For interested parties, you may send me an email at: mackyronimd@gmail.com or reply to this post.

Thank You!

Constitutionalist Fr. Bernas and his Pro-RH Stand

2012-09-10T15:33:00.003+08:00

--- repost from Rappler's PATERNO ESMAQUEL II ---

MANILA, Philippines – He said tax money has no “religious face,” and the bishop who criticized his stance on the Reproductive Health (RH) bill espouses a “very narrow” understanding of pluralism.

Jesuit constitutionalist Fr Joaquin Bernas on Monday, September 10, refuted the arguments of Antipolo Bishop Gabriel Reyes, who published a newspaper advertisement to express disagreement with him on the controversial measure.

In his latest column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Bernas referred to his previous article that Reyes criticized on behalf of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

Bernas earlier wrote: “The state should not prevent people from practicing responsible parenthood according to their religious beliefs nor may churchmen compel President Aquino, by whatever means, to prevent people from acting according to their religious beliefs.”

Reyes, chair of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, said the CBCP doesn't want to ban contraceptives, which can easily be bought in drugstores. He claimed the CBCP only wants to stop the government from promoting artificial family planning methods, which do not merely defy Catholic teaching but also “natural law.”

No freedom to choose

In his column on Monday, Bernas noted a "clear implication" of Reyes' claim that people can easily buy contraceptives in drugstores: that "the world is free and anyone can buy these." He said: "This is simply not true. Only those who have the money can buy them."

Lack of money prevents the poor from fully exercising their freedom to choose, Bernas added. He echoed the views of RH bill advocates who claim that by not funding contraceptives, the government is effectively preventing the poor from accessing these. “The exercise of freedom is only possible if one has the capacity to choose,” said the priest, who is also dean emeritus of the Ateneo de Manila Law School.

“The government is thinking of the vast majority of poor and uninstructed people who do not know what the choices are or who cannot afford to make their free choice and are sometimes driven to abortion. What the government hopes to do is not to compel them to use contraceptives but to capacitate them to make their free choice and perhaps even save them from abortion,” he explained.

ALL-OUT WAR. CBCP president Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma (right) and Antipolo Bishop Gabriel Reyes (left) lead Catholic bishops' fight against the RH bill. Photo courtesy of CBCP

Bernas then noted Reyes' “implicit” desire for the government not to distribute contraceptives for free.

“One must distinguish between tax money and donated money. The use of donated money is limited by intentio dantis or the intention of the donor. Tax money, on the other hand, can be used for any legitimate public purpose authorized by Congress. Tax money has no religious face. Whether or not its use is licit can ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court,” Bernas said.

'Narrow view'

Bernas also criticized Reyes' view that “natural law prohibits contraception and natural law binds everyone because '(by) studying through correct reasoning the nature of the human person, we arrive at this teaching regarding contraception.'”

He was referring to Reyes' claim that the Catholic Church's opposition to the RH bill is based on “natural law.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines natural law as an expression of moral law that is “universal” and appeals to “common principles.”

“One might flippantly answer by asking whose correct reasoning are we talking about? Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Grisez, Chappell, Finnis, etc.? But the statement deserves more than just a flippant answer. And it is not flippant to say that many serious thinkers have also studied the human person and have not arrived at the conclusion that contraception is evil,” Bernas wrote.

Bernas, who earlier said he adheres to Catholic teaching on contraceptives, said he doesn't want to dispute natural law as the Catholic Church teaches it.

“But I believe that the bishop’s view is a very narrow understanding of the pluralism which is part of our constitutional system. Pluralism, which flows from freedom of religion, is not just about the plurality of theistic religions. Neither is it merely a matter of which God or god to worship,” he said.

“Constitutionally protected pluralism includes nontheistic religions such as Buddhism, ethical culture, secular humanism, and a variety of ethical philosophies. Of course, it also includes the bishop’s understanding of natural law. But his understanding is just one of the many, including those which do not arrive at the bishop’s conclusion,” Bernas added.

Like Bernas, other Filipinos have cited religious freedom in supporting the RH bill. In a recent piece for Rappler's Move.PH, contributor Joey Ramirez stressed that the Philippines is a secular democracy.

“Since our rights as citizens are not in any way hampered by our choice of religion (one in particular)... then the laws we have governing everyone should also be equally unhampered by any religion (one in particular), and should be applied equally regardless of religion,” Ramirez wrote.

In the present Congress, the RH bill has triggered the most contentious debates, and is said to need intervention from President Benigno Aquino III himself. For now, the bill is temporarily shelved to give way to the passage of the government's P2.006-T budget for 2013.

Recrudescence

2012-09-05T18:40:00.002+08:00

Whatindumbledore'sbeard have I been up to? It's been ages since my last entry. A lot of things happened in my life since my absence.

I will be posting about them soon..

8 Things I Hate About Being a Nurse

2011-08-20T09:48:00.001+08:00

Wondering why I chose eight? Each entry represents the standard eight hours nurses like me spend in one shift. Standard, eh? I frankly used the number because I need one; otherwise if I add up all the extended hours, this list could go on forever.

So I hate being a nurse because…

EIGHT - Nurses wear all white and we have to wear our hair up in a bun. You know how inconvenient plus hard to maintain that is? Okay, I came to duty on a heavy rain and mud starts making its way up my white uniform and there it is, a stain to last my entire shift. Also, putting my hair up prevents my it from being gorgeous! Really. That means no straightening, rebonding nor perming because I have to pull my hair back every single day. Oh God, I always envy those girls in high fashion corporate wears and all-set hairstyles. Maybe nurses should be allowed to look the same. Umm, just maybe.

SEVEN - We don’t get a professional fee (PF). We also have a license, and that makes us professionals too. But we don’t have a professional fee and we live on meager salary regardless of how many patients we’ve handled or cases we’ve assisted.

SIX - We do not have a holiday. Everyone in the industry can relate to this, I wouldn’t dare watch out for holidays because I just feel hopeless. The entire country rests lazily on their couches while I pin high my dear cap.

FIVE - We can’t leave unfinished work. I mean office girls do that, do they? They can leave unfinished works and get to it the next morning. But nurses have to stay for as long as needed because we just can’t leave things undone. Life is at stake and life can’t wait.

FOUR - We are the complaints center, if there is such a thing. When patients have a complaint on just about anything, they complain to the nurse. Not to the housekeeping staff, guard, doctor, or anyone else. Directly to the nurse; blame that for being too available.

THREE - Refer this and that. Even if I know what drug to give, and I have it right here in my very hands; I can’t give it, I always need to refer and ask for a prescription. I say nurses carry immense responsibility but very little authority, now how more frustrating can that get?

TWO – We are not treated as professionals. Leaking faucet? Faulty telly? We are always asked to do things we are not supposed to do. I mean, we’ve studied four dreaded years and earn ourselves a license for what? Fixing your telly signal? Hell no. Nurses are professionals like engineers, accountants, lawyers, and your beloved doctors whom you do not dare raise one eyebrow while you mindlessly shout at your nurse like your entire hospital bill goes straight to her salary.

ONE – Nursing is more than a sacrifice, it’s suicide. From nursing school to nurse’s station, enough sleep, enough food, nor enough rest is next to impossible. Here’s one idea that I’ve thought of just now: nurses religiously monitor patients’ urine output but at the end of the shift we realize we haven’t once gone to the bathroom: and that makes ours zero. So,if there’s one profession that wholly uses up one’s existence: be it mentally, physically, and emotionally, you got it: it’s Nursing.

Gosh, making a hate list is tiring; but then of course, I also have a list of the things I love in this field…

8. There are always doctors and nurses who look handsome in white and you get to trifle with them; and suddenly, the world is a better place J

7. I love it when I get in regular clothes and everyone stares in shock; as if I’ve got no right to wear nothing but white.

6. More seriously, as a nurse, I get to see life in all its forms: from womb to tomb.

5. I get to work with all the goodness of my heart, no PF needed. I’m quite about sure you wouldn’t find nurses in hell.

4. I love being able to discharge patients in their improved condition. Nothing beats seeing them go home thanking you for their recovery. I guess that just transpires the very essence of this job.

3. My heart leaps when patients and/or relatives appreciate the work I have done; when they actually call me by name and boast that I am their nurse.

2. No other profession is as heroic as ours: giving up our own lives in order to save others.

1. Last of all, nurses may not be angels, but we’re the next best thing.

Oh you get it, I’m proud of this job: I just never admit it because it’s just too much fun to complain. Kudos nurses!

------------------

Repost From: Airina April's Read My Lips

The Grand Dame of Philippine Pediatrics laid to rest

2011-08-12T13:13:00.001+08:00

Dra. Fe del Mundo

(November 27, 1911 - August 6, 2011)

The Grand Dame of Philippine Pediatrics

Necrological Services in Honor of the National Scientist

Speech of Pres. Noy Aquino

Rites and Awarding of the Golden Heart Award Rank of grand Collar (Maringal na Kwintas)

Thank You Very Much Dra. Fe del Mundo

"Mankind Owes to Children the Best it has to Give"

2011-08-07T10:35:00.003+08:00

Dra. Fe del Mundo

(November 27, 1911 - August 6, 2011)

"The Grand Dame of Philippine Pediatrics"

----

Beautiful Life as doctor to Generations of Kids; 99
By: Leila Salaverria
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Dr. Fe del Mundo, esteemed doctor and healer and nurturer of generations of children, died on Saturday, three months shy of her 100th birthday.

She passed quietly, succumbing to cardiac arrest, in the simple room at the Dr. Fe Del Mundo Medical Center in Quezon City where she has been living for years.

As she was a National Scientist, among other outstanding achievements, Del Mundo will be buried with honors at Libingan ng mga Bayani on Thursday, according to her niece Elisa Bengzon.

Her wake will be held at her Quezon City hospital. She will be brought to the Sto. Domingo church on Wednesday.

Bengzon found it fitting that her aunt, a devout Catholic who religiously went to Mass everyday up to her last years, died on the Feast of the Transfiguration of Christ.

“She is transfigured into the most beautiful Dr. Fe del Mundo,” she said.

Del Mundo’s family has found comfort in the outpouring of love from those whose lives she had touched.

And they are many, given her tireless devotion to children.

Del Mundo’s legacy and her teachings have been immortalized in a coffee table book published in time for her 99th birthday last year. It was called “Dr. Fe Del Mundo: A Beautiful Life,” and chronicled the accomplishments and teachings of the petite doctor who stood head and shoulders above many colleagues.

She never lacked for recognition, even in her twilight years.

Magsaysay Award

Last year, the then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo conferred the Lakandula Award with rank of Bayani on the noted pediatrician.

She was also conferred the Ramon Magsaysay Award, which is Asia’s version of the Nobel Prize.

She has also been honored with the Elizabeth Blackwell Award for Outstanding Service to Mankind and was the first lay recipient of the Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Award, which is awarded to those who have dedicated their lives to serving the poor and who serve as an inspiration to the world.

Various other institutions, including medical ones, have also bestowed honors on her. So numerous were her awards that listing them took up eight pages of the coffee table book on her.

According to Del Mundo’s family, they have been informed that President Aquino had been planning on bestowing on Del Mundo the Grand Collar of the Order of the Golden Heart.

The Order of the Golden Heart “gives official recognition to Filipino or foreign citizens who have rendered distinguished services or given noteworthy monetary of other material aid, encouragement to the campaign for the amelioration and improvement of the moral, social and economic conditions of the Filipino masses, and for volunteerism in the service of the Filipino masses.” The Grand Collar is the highest rank under the order.

The same award was first given in 1955 to Hellen Keller, who dedicated her life to helping deaf-blind people in several countries including the Philippines. It was conferred on comedian Dolphy, or Rodolfo Quizon, last year in recognition of his contributions to the entertainment industry.

Postgrad at Harvard

The acclaimed pediatrician lived in the Quezon City hospital named after her, which has been serving as a haven for ailing children since it opened in 1957.

Del Mundo’s life was a stellar example of one who has devoted her heart and soul to helping and comforting the afflicted.

She decided to turn to pediatrics upon seeing that more children than adults were dying, given the lack of doctors specializing in children’s health.

For her, medicine was more of charity work, not a means to material enrichment.

She put up a medical institution in the Philippines after choosing to return home from her studies in the United States, where she was the first Filipino woman accepted for postgraduate training at the Harvard Medical School in 1936.

She also trained at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Columbia University, Billings Hospital in Chicago, Boston Children’s Hospital and Boston University.

Valedictorian, UP

She earned an associate in arts degree from the University of the Philippines at the age of 17, and graduated valedictorian from the UP College of Medicine.

Her dream of putting up a hospital began with “The Little Clinic,” which she put up in Mendiola, Manila. Since it was always overcrowded, she decided to put up a bigger hospital, selling her home to realize her dream.

She also made sure to help the poor by training teams of medical workers and sending them to remote provinces to treat sick children and provide health care, resulting in fewer children’s deaths. She also invented an open native incubator to be used by rural communities for premature, low-weight or jaundice-stricken babies.

She remained humble despite her many achievements, once joking that since she was the oldest living pediatrician, she was being given an award as the organizers didn’t know who else to give it to.

With so many activities on her plate, Del Mundo never married. But she was like a mother, a nurturing force, for all those children whose lives she touched, and to whom she gave her all.

And she felt rewarded in turn.

In her own words immortalized in her book, Del Mundo shared what her passion meant to her: “I am glad I have been very much involved in the care of children. They are the most outstanding feature in my life.”

---------------------------------

" Almighty Father, eternal God, hear our prayers for Your daughter Fe del Mundo, whom You have called from this life to Yourself. Grant her light, happiness, and peace. Let her pass in safety through the gates of death, and live forever with all Your saints in the light You promised to Abraham and to all his descendants in faith. Guard her from all harm and on that great day of resurrection and reward raise her up with all Your saints. Pardon her sins and give her eternal life in Your kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Eternal rest grant unto the soul of Dra. Fe del Mundo oh Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon her. May her soul and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen "

The Good News of Our Starvation

2011-06-11T12:54:00.001+08:00

The highly-successful Max's Chicken-All-You-Can Promo is definitely back! Only Php 199 per person (includes a glass of Pepsi softdrink). Available daily from 6pm to 10pm starting June 10 until July 10, 2011. Available at all Max's Restaurant branches nationwide

For More Info: Max's Restaurant Website / Facebook - Max's

IMNMD 2B by Myrna L. Sajo

2011-06-08T15:34:00.002+08:00

Anatomy Group 3 with Dra. Luz Surio

I am an MD-to-be. I live an unhealthy and sedentary lifestyle composed merely of sleeping to four hours a night (that is if you get lucky), sitting for long hours in the library. My exercise regimen is changing classrooms, standing for an hour or two during bedside discussions, and carrying thick-paged and hard-bound medical books. I am on the verge of caffeine addiction. All my energy has been drained from me. And the worst part is, I'm not just physically drained, I'm mentally and emotionally drained and socially stunted.

Anatomy of the Dorsum (R) Hand

Is this the price I have to pay to be a doctor, to have that right to attach to my name those two most important letters in the alphabet, MD? Being a med student is like being handed a free roundtrip ticket to hell. For me, at least, it feels like it. I'm not delusional. I'm not discouraging anybody to be a doctor. But, one must know and understand the realities—the truth that lies behind the typical life of a medical student. Before I entered medical school, I already had this preconceived notion that it would be really difficult. That was an understatement. First year was devoted to studying the "normal". The greatest bulk of my time was spent smelling formalin in the Anatomy laboratory with the cadavers. Since my pre-med was not Physical Therapy, I really had a hard time memorizing the origin, insertion, and actions of muscles which the doctors lovingly tie during practical examinations. Hello! Of course I know the commencement, termination, and tributaries of pudendal vein, but where the heck is it? I could not find it. I bet, even if they give me the whole hour to look for that vein, I'll never find it. Biochemistry? You need a trillion neurons to accommodate the litany of information you have to store. You'll need more than 36 ATP from glycolysis and Kreb's cycle to pass that subject. And more importantly, gluconeogenesis should also take place in your brain, not limited in your liver, because you'll really need a large amount of glucose to feed your ischemic brain.

Biochemistryland Map (Clinical Biochemistry MRS)

If you can live in Neuroanatomy, Histology, Anatomy, and Biochemistry memorizing without understanding, Physiology is a different story. Physiology is understanding without the need of memorizing which unfortunately, was even harder for me. Moving on from first year to second year was like transferring from the Sahara Desert to Siberia . Everything we studied was abnormal. We spent hours in Pathology looking under the microscope, helplessly racking every corner of our brains for the diagnosis of a small scraped tissue. How could you tell that the patient is having a heart failure, that she has cancer and that she only has five years to live just by examining a teeny-weeny bit of stained tissue, resembling more an abstract-surrealist painting which I can never appreciate?

Coping for Exam by doccartoon

The essence of being a doctor nowadays is to be able to give the patient a prescription (Right or wrong, most of the time it does not matter anymore. Patients get instantly healed when they get their prescriptions). And in our Pharmacology examinations, I usually don't get the right drug for prescription writing. Well, except for Paracetamol, but what the heck, I always computed for the wrong dosage. Internal Medicine tackled history and physical diagnosis. Here, you'll get a first-hand experience of interviewing a real patient. It's one small step closer to being a doctor.

I remembered how nervous I was approaching my first patient. I didn't know what to ask. My line of inquiry lacked coherence. I fumbled with the physical examination, wondering why I could not hear any heart sounds nor breath sounds, only to find out I wore my stethoscope the wrong way. I've just finished third year and I'm barely alive.

Third year was a totally different story. I had completely lost the idealism I had when I entered med school. I am beginning to ask myself why I'm spending the prime years of my life almost a breath away from cadavers, half alive-half dead myself. At 23, I should be earning already, and not be an immense burden to my parents. I have a high-maintenance lifestyle. My parents would spend close to a P100,000 a year only for my tuition. I still had to ask my mom money for my books and daily allowance. And I know that this setup will continue another four years or so. As my highschool friends are starting to save their earnings and beginning to build families of their own, I'm hardly out of med school, probably still stuck reading Harrison's Internal Medicine, cramming for a case presentation and helplessly being grilled by a consultant during bedside discussions.

Being a med student is nothing but sacrifice. First and foremost, you have to give up sleep. Sleep is the most precious gift any med student could ever receive. It seems that sleep does not exist in the vocabulary of our teachers. Sleep is taboo to medicine except when doctors advise it to their patients. It's totally ironic. Doctors know that human beings (medical students included), in order to function maximally the following day should at least get eight hours of sleep. Then why do they expect us to read everything, to pass all their difficult exams,actively participate in case discussions and to answer all their questions when you only get an average of four hours or less sleep per day? We're not different from human beings who need to eat three times a day, who breathe the same air, and who need to rest. It's not as if God had given us an extraordinary pineal gland and reticular system so that we have an extraordinary circadian rhythm and a long, long s tate of arousal. I just hope our doctors would understand that if a med student failed to read something, it's not because he was lazy. He was probably tired and had gone to a dreamless slumber because he spent the previous night like a psycho studying for three exams.

I have sacrificed time for my family, for my friends, and for myself. My whole life right now is devoted to Harrison, to Schwartz, to Nelson, to Adams, to Smith, to Green, to Kaplan, all authors of my medical books. I mean if these are the surnames of all the guys I go out with, seven times a week, geez! I would die a happy and fulfilled woman! Instead of accompanying my mom to the supermarket, I have to stay home because I have to study. My dad had already complained to me that I do not have time for him. My friends had stopped calling me because whenever they talked to me I either spoke in monosyllabic words, or they could not understand me because I spoke as if I drank tons of tequila. I talked like a drunk. Well, in fact, I was just in the middle of a dreamless sleep.

See? How can you choose this kind of lifestyle?It's not even a lucrative job anymore. You have to get rid of all the more experienced and old doctors to get even a handful of patients. So, if you want to be a millionaire, don't slave in the hospital because even if God had made one day 72 hours, instead of 24,or gave us 14 days instead of 7 in one week, you're still way off your one million mark before the age of 30.

Of course, I have witnessed a lot of people giving up med school. But never have I heard, not even an anecdote, of a rich businessman giving up his entire career, just to study medicine. Being a doctor is not something you have to decide overnight. It's not a result of your whim or a fulfillment of your parents' dream. Because if these would be your reasons, you're entering the wrong profession. Choosing to be a doctor means being committed to a lifelong journey of endless sacrifice. You have to be sure that this is the life you want to live—that you love to live—not something you'd tire of halfway. The ironic thing is I never wanted to be a doctor in the first place. I wanted to be a writer, a novelist, or even a journalist. I was just dragged by my mother to take up medicine but fortunately after seven years of schooling, I learned to love it. Of course I still have doubts that maybe I'm really not cut out to be a doctor, leading me to think if it's really worth it.

At this point, I don't know anymore. What inspires me to continue is that in the future, I know I'm going to save a man's life. And through it, I can honestly say to myself that I have made a difference in someone else's life. And I reckon, maybe that's what being a doctor is all about. It's not working in some fancy hospital,earning big bucks from your patients, changing your cars quarterly from BMW to an Alfa Romeo to a Jaguar, nor travelling around the world magnanimously sponsored by some big drug companies.

Neither is it the various letters attached at the end of your name. Being a true doctor is not treating the patient as some hypothetical case from a medical textbook. It is treating the patient as a human being, who possesses a heart that does not only pump blood but a heart that could feel, who doesn't have a brain that is visualized only as black and white in an MRI or CT scan but has a mind that could reason, who is not merely composed of cells, of tissues, of organs, and of different systems but a human being who has a soul.

Being a doctor is being able to look at every patient's eyes and seeing in their depths the hope that somehow you can make one father go home and enjoy dinner with his family, or you can make a grandmother attend her only grandchild's piano recital, or you can send a mother to be with her daughter as she enters into the complicated life of adolescence or you can transform an infant's cry to a frolicking laughter. Being a doctor means being a part of an unimaginable greatness that you can only understand if you surrender yourself to years of rigorous training and incessant pursuit of medical knowledge.

During all my interviews in different med schools, they asked me why I wanted to be a doctor. I always answered that I wanted to help and save humanity. I'm sure all my interviewers have heard that same line from countless fellow applicants. But I don't care because it's the truth. I don't know how I can do it but I know eventually I will, in my own small way.

Medicine is neither for the weak-minded nor the weak-hearted. My endurance has been tested. My strength has been staunchly fortified. Medicine has changed me completely. I have sacrificed a great deal and most of the times, I may feel I'm not compensated. Most of the time, I would want to give up but I know deep in the core of my heart, I won't. For after careful reflection, I realized that being a doctor actually gives me a different kind of happiness, a different kind of self-fulfillment, which I can never find in any profession. Well, I just hope my fellow aspiring doctors are fortunate enough to share the same sentiments.

- Myrna L. Sajo

2nd Childhood

2011-06-04T10:39:00.002+08:00

Last May 30, me and my family went to Hong Kong Disneyland for an overdue vacation. It was an experience of a lifetime. I felt like I was a child again, and I can safely say that I wasn't the only one who did. My brother had a smile that I had never seen for the past God knows how long. My cousins are extremely happy and on top of that, my grandfather was with us and he really enjoyed the trip.

Ever since I was little, the mere thought of going to Disneyland excites me. A lot of my friends and classmates keep on sharing their stories about the park and how wonderful it is. And last Monday, "it was a dream come true".

Getting there was a breeze, considering that the place where we stayed, Harbour Plaza Metropolis, is right across the Hung Hom MTR station. The commute to DL is part of the experience. The Disney themed train is really cute, it had Mickey Mouse windows, replicas of Disney characters and Mickey Handrails.

HKDL resort was everything I imagined it to be. Magical. From the rides, to good food, from the Golden Mickeys show and The Festival of Lion King to the Philar Magic, it was spectacular. I won't be telling stuff bit-by-bit because it would probably take me 3 entries just to share how wonderful my DL experience was. The highlight for me however, was the "Flights of Fantasy" Parade. We were eating our late lunch (around 3:30) when it started and my cousin Jia hurriedly ran to the main street with me and Timmy. At first i thought only kids will enjoy the parade. But I have to admit I really had fun watching it. Every performer had a really good smile while dancing to a catchy parade song. Considering that majority of the performers were my kababayans, it made me feel proud how good of an entertainer Pinoys are.

Here is a video of the parade taken by my brother.

By 7:00, everyone gathered around the main street in anticipation of the fireworks display above Sleeping Beauty Castle currently themed with Tinkerbell and her fairy dust on their 5th anniversary.

A video of the fireworks display c/o mondaysMorning of YouTube

It felt wonderful to be a kid again. What's more awesome was that I was with the people I love the most. (next time Papa, let's go together ok? Labyu)

Fr. Joaquin G. Bernas S. J. on RH Bill

2011-05-23T08:14:00.000+08:00

Fr. Joaquin G. Bernas, S.J., J.S.D. is a Jesuit and is Dean Emeritus of Ateneo Law School in Makati City, Philippines. He was a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commission which drafted the present Philippine Constitution. Bernas is a renowned expert in the Philippine Constitution and a prolific author of law books and articles. (wikipedia)

Following article is taken from: Inquirer-Opinion: My stand on the RH Bill

I HAVE been following the debates on the RH Bill not just in the recent House sessions but practically since its start. In the process, because of what I have said and written (where I have not joined the attack dogs against the RH Bill), I have been called a Judas by a high-ranking cleric, I am considered a heretic in a wealthy barangay where some members have urged that I should leave the Church (which is insane), and one of those who regularly hears my Mass in the Ateneo Chapel in Rockwell came to me disturbed by my position. I feel therefore that I owe some explanation to those who listen to me or read my writings.

First, let me start by saying that I adhere to the teaching of the Church on artificial contraception even if I am aware that the teaching on the subject is not considered infallible doctrine by those who know more theology than I do. Moreover, I am still considered a Catholic and Jesuit in good standing by my superiors, critics notwithstanding!

Second (very important for me as a student of the Constitution and of church-state relations), I am very much aware of the fact that we live in a pluralist society where various religious groups have differing beliefs about the morality of artificial contraception. But freedom of religion means more than just the freedom to believe. It also means the freedom to act or not to act according to what one believes. Hence, the state should not prevent people from practicing responsible parenthood according to their religious belief nor may churchmen compel President Aquino, by whatever means, to prevent people from acting according to their religious belief. As the “Compendium on the Social Teaching of the Catholic Church” says, “Because of its historical and cultural ties to a nation, a religious community might be given special recognition on the part of the State. Such recognition must in no way create discrimination within the civil or social order for other religious groups” and “Those responsible for government are required to interpret the common good of their country not only according to the guidelines of the majority but also according to the effective good of all the members of the community, including the minority.”

Third, I am dismayed by preachers telling parishioners that support for the RH Bill ipso facto is a serious sin or merits excommunication! I find this to be irresponsible.

Fourth, I have never held that the RH Bill is perfect. But if we have to have an RH law, I intend to contribute to its improvement as much as I can. Because of this, I and a number of my colleagues have offered ways of improving it and specifying areas that can be the subject of intelligent discussion. (Yes, there are intelligent people in our country.) For that purpose we jointly prepared and I published in my column what we called “talking points” on the bill.

Fifth, specifically I advocate removal of the provision on mandatory sexual education in public schools without the consent of parents. (I assume that those who send their children to Catholic schools accept the program of Catholic schools on the subject.) My reason for requiring the consent of parents is, among others, the constitutional provision which recognizes the sanctity of the human family and “the natural and primary right of parents in the rearing of the youth for civic efficiency and the development of moral character.” (Article II, Section 12)

Sixth, I am pleased that the bill reiterates the prohibition of abortion as an assault against the right to life. Abortifacient pills and devices, if there are any in the market, should be banned by the Food and Drug Administration. But whether or not there are such is a question of scientific fact of which I am no judge.

Seventh, I hold that there already is abortion any time a fertilized ovum is expelled. The Constitution commands that the life of the unborn be protected “from conception.” For me this means that sacred life begins at fertilization and not at implantation.

Eighth, it has already been pointed out that the obligation of employers with regard to the sexual and reproductive health of employees is already dealt with in the Labor Code. If the provision needs improvement or nuancing, let it be done through an examination of the Labor Code provision.

Ninth, there are many valuable points in the bill’s Declaration of Policy and Guiding Principles which can serve the welfare of the nation and especially of poor women who cannot afford the cost of medical service. There are specific provisions which give substance to these good points. They should be saved.

Tenth, I hold that public money may be spent for the promotion of reproductive health in ways that do not violate the Constitution. Public money is neither Catholic, nor Protestant, nor Muslim or what have you and may be appropriated by Congress for the public good without violating the Constitution.

Eleventh, I leave the debate on population control to sociologists.

Finally, I am happy that the CBCP has disowned the self-destructive views of some clerics.

Life as a Medical Student

2011-05-11T15:05:00.004+08:00

Anatomy Group 3 with Dra. Surio

Biochemistry Section C with Faculty Members

I couldn't believe that it's been a year since I started studying medicine. I can still remember reviewing for NMAT and preparing a lot of documents needed to apply to different medical schools. Practicing for the oral interview and writing an admission essay that I hoped would stand out. Fitting in the new crowd and made new friends. Studying (cramming would be a more appropriate term) for shifting exams. Reading a lot of stuff from different books, websites and journals for a conference. Staying up as late as 3AM, trying my best to absorb everything for the prelims. The experience is just emotional, unbelievable and truly a different way of learning things.

Practice for Heme Synthesis Role Play

First year of medical school is over. Second year is right around the corner. I'm sitting comfortably during summer vacation, playing video games, meet with friends, watch stuff I wasn't able to during the entire year, without feeling a sense of guilt that I should be studying instead. It's also now that I am able to reflect on a lot of things. Do I really want this? Can I do this? Perhaps the biggest challenge for any medical student is to be able to know which stuff to prioritize. There are just too much that can happen in a year, aside from school, there are family gatherings, birthdays, some errands, and a lot of holidays. There are certainly a number of them that you need to sacrifice.

Section C - Christmas Party

Medicine isn't about being intelligent. It's about being able to adjust to the demands of the training and be able to focus on stuff that matters. Classes are from Monday to Saturday and usually run from 8-5. Aside from lectures, we attend a lot of conferences and laboratory works. And sometimes (a lot of times), we are required to report about the experiment the next day. What's infuriating is that we have a shifting exam in Biochemistry that day. What to do? It doesn't mean that just because you have a report to submit, you'll totally forget to read even part of the topics covered for the exam. And yes, you'll be needing a lot of time. I never really valued time before I entered med. During college, I consistently get 8-9 hours of sleep per night. Now, I consider it a blessing to be able to get 3-4 hours of rest. Truly, time is gold. And there isn't just enough of it. I never realized what I was capable of doing in a day until I was pushed to this challenge.

Med Night '11

I know that the ordeal me and a lot of other students are going through will not be in vain. Our sacrifices, along with our family's, will surely bear fruits in the future. This is how I put it. We are pressured to get high scores, if not perfect scores, in exams because we cannot afford to make mistakes in real life. We cannot just erase or have our errors countersigned all the time. We will be dealing with lives, with real people someday.

With the help of God, the greatest healer, we will endure.

Pro-Better Life!

2011-05-09T15:10:00.002+08:00

Show your support: Pro-RH Bill

Catholic, Pro-Life, Realist and Pro-RH!

2011-05-04T16:31:00.001+08:00

The Reproductive Health Bill, popularly known as the RH Bill, is a Philippine bill aiming to guarantee universal access to methods and information on birth control and maternal care. The bill has become the center of a contentious national debate. There are presently two bills with the same goals: House Bill No. 96 or the Reproductive Health Act and Population and Development Act of 2010 introduced by Albay 1st district representative Edcel Lagman, and Senate Bill No. 2378 or the Reproductive Health Act introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago.

The bill is highly controversial, with experts, academics, religious institutions, and major political figures both supporting and opposing it, often criticizing the government and each other in the process. The issue is so divisive that at one point, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines threatened to excommunicate the President, Benigno Aquino III if he supported the bill. (from: Wikipedia)

My title clearly sums up my stand on the issue. I was born and raised a catholic. I respect and value human life. But I've also seen a lot of people suffer and even die with causes that are preventable. I have friends who are scourged with infections acquired through sexual intercourse. I've encountered families with children ranging from 5-10 while their parents have no stable source of income, ergo, basic physiologic needs are unmet. I've handled female patients with pregnancy problems. I've delivered babies, some of whom, are born to sick mothers, some, died during (or a little after) delivery. On a larger scale, our country's population (an estimate) to date is 94 million and surely, not everyone has adequate living space, not everyone has sufficient food and water, not everyone has access to healthcare. I am Pro-RH Bill.

The following is taken from Jubert's Blog: Chillspot. It's his post regarding the issue entitled: Pro-RH bill is not anti-life! I decided to repost his entry since he mentioned a lot of things that I couldn't have said better myself.

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Much has been said and written about the RH bill that this entry of mine might just be one of the hundreds circulating the web today. Honestly, I would prefer to keep silent on critical matters like this one but it is inevitable especially when these are just catching so much attention from the mainstream media.

IT IS ANTI-RELIGIOUS TYRANNY.

I am pro-RH bill but I am not an anti-Church, that I can guarantee. This entry is written to present a set of arguments which I personally believe to be valid and logical to a considerable degree, pointing to reasons why I eagerly support the RH bill. Of course, you don't need to agree with me. I do not have any motive other than to share a piece of my mind and urge you to share yours as well. Some of my comments may raise some eyebrows and hurt other feelings but my apology in advance.

We had this seminar weeks ago and one of our speakers was a priest in the local church - sorry, I forget his name. He talked about the Church's stand on the RH bill and why it should be kill. With all due respect to him, he sounded pretty arrogant to me. I hate it every time he says, "O, di niyo alam yan!" as if he's talking to a bunch of illiterates. I disgust people who talks and acts like they know everything. I cannot even count on my fingers how many times he said that annoying phrase. Boooooo! Sige na po, ikaw na talaga!

IT IS ANTI-IGNORANCE.

The Church is screaming bloody murder, saying that the bill is a "pro-abortion bill". WHAAAT?! Now, I wonder if we have read the same bill because the bill I read stated no such thing. In fact, it actually does the complete opposite. The argument that the RH bill would legalize abortion is just a distraction. Forget that. Obviously, this is an invalid argument being spread by people who are against the bill. And what is alarming is that we are falling for it.

They also insist that we are not overpopulated. I get that. I do not claim otherwise. At 90 million, we are not overpopulated, nevermind if almost half are living below the poverty line. The Philippines is NOT and NEVER overpopulated. With 7,107 islands, we can even support billions of people - and I am not exaggerating. The thing is, we have a population more than we should have considering our finite resources and it is still growing at a pace that we cannot support anymore. It doesn't take a genius to know that the bigger the population, the bigger the food demand thus aggravating the price increase. It also means more energy will be required to sustain a reasonable standard of living which could make a toll in our nature. This is not pleasing to the ears but the Philippines cannot afford uncontrollable population growth. We need to curb our population a bit to allow resources to be more beneficial thus resulting to better quality of life.

And lemme clear this - the population control is not versus birthing per se. It is against irresponsible birthing.

IT IS ANTI-DAY DREAMING.

I also find it funny when the Church are scared off their wits just hearing the term *drum rolls* SEX EDUCATION. Anti-RH folks insist that the bill will spawn a generation of sex maniacs. (Refresher course: The bill states of the mandatory sexuality education from Grade 5 to 4th year high school) I don't know if they are drunk or they are just plain stupid that they failed to read the word "age-appropriate" written with it. And they keep on insisting that it degrades morality. How is it immoral, exactly, to teach students how to properly manage their sexual well-being? Tell me.

I understand the Church's concern that it is the responsibility of the parents to educate their children about sex. But this I tell you folks: there is a large number of Filipino parents who didn't had the opportunity to be informed, much less discuss, anything about sex education.

IT IS ANTI-HYPOCRISY.

Natural family planning as claimed by religious folks as the moral way of limiting the population has been practiced since, well, the time began but that method has failed over and over and over again. The RH bill is not just about contraceptions for Pete's sake. It is about the freedom to choose what's best for your family. It is called RESPONSIBLE PARENTHOOD. It prevents couples from having too many children, too soon, too fast.

Cong. Manny Pacquiao said that "Kung nag-condom po ang aking ama, si Mommy D, wala pong Manny Pacquiao." I bet he thought, oh I'm so witty! (Just a few weeks ago, he was caught saying: Magsumbong ka sa lolo mong panot - which, IMO, is the dumbest thing I heard from a politician) But had he ever thought that not all people are as lucky as him?

IT IS ANTI-IRRESPONSIBILITY!

Also, this good vs. evil thing that those religious folks is spewing is frustrating and getting on ym nerves. They are insisting something like this: anti-RH bill are good, pro-RH bill are bad and anti-life. Sorry CBCP, I cannot see myself as anti-life. I value life as much as you do. I cannot understand what is so un-Catholic in encouraging couples to refrain from having too many children that they can't afford to feed and nourished? I think there is none. Oh well, these priests won't understand a thing about family planning until each of them are raising children of their own.

"Humayo kayo at magpakarami" is their epic excuse for valid issues being thrown against their stand. God may told us to procreate but believe me, he didn't mean it this way. The Church just wanna play around using the Bible.

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How does being anti-RH make you Pro-Life? How does having 10 children without the means to provide even their basic needs make you Pro-Life?

3 Tarsiers, 1,776 Chocolate Hills and... a Pyramid?

2010-06-01T15:31:00.009+08:00

We've been hearing (and reading) about tarsiers, the Blood Compact Site or the "Sanduguan" and the chocolate hills but being able to see them is a different story. The experience is exhilarating! My family and I just got back from a 3D2N Bohol Adventure (May 29-31) and we definitely enjoyed our stay in one of the Philippines' 7107 islands.

We stayed in a place (beachfront resort) named "Pyramid" which is located at Alona Beach, Panglao. Getting there is a breeze. By air, it's a one hour direct flight from Manila to Tagbilaran (Capital City of Bohol) -- there are around 7 flights daily catered by Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Zest Air. From Tagbilaran airport, Pyramid's van was there, ready to pick us up. It is then a 30-45 minutes worth of land travel until you reach Alona beach in Panglao. The welcoming drink which was a tall glass of tropical fruit juice was refreshing, and as I was sipping, I kept looking around, from the resort cottages, to the pavillion, to the beach. "Am I in a different world?" All I could hear were faint voices from chatting guests and locals, the sound of the waves and a low volumed reggae music. Sigh, I wish city life was as tranquil as this. Moments later we were ushered to our 2 storey cottages, Ramesses 1 A and B (this is where I stayed). It was homey, and you could really feel country living, without sacrificing comfort and convenience. Although much of its furnishings are made from wood and bamboo, everything inside was modern. A panel air conditioner, a cable TV, a clean and spacious bathroom, comfortable sofas to sit on and 2 double sized beds. Not to mention a very fast wi-fi connection.

Anyway, my cousins and I went swimming, played poi, and the usual cam-whoring afterwards. At around 2PM we had lunch at the pavillion of Pyramid. We were flabbergasted when one of the wait staff told us that dishes such as sinigang amounting to 400+ was good for only 1 person (when what he really meant was that it's served on one bowl but good for probably 3-4 people). My auntie "aggressively negotiated" with the person in charge and we ended up having a good meal for the whole family, seems like it was all some communication mishap (the locals speak Bisaya and English.. little Tagalog). They serve pretty good tasting dishes actually, I liked their inihaw na baboy, broccoli in curry sauce and calamares. Their fruit shakes are also really good.

We woke up early the next day with much anticipation of the stuff we're going to do. We availed of the resort's Countryside Tour worth 3200 for all 8 of us. The itinerary are as follows: Chocolate Hills, Loboc River, Baclayon Church and Museum, Tarsier, Bilar Manmade Forest, Hanging Bridge, Python, Blood Compact Shrine.

The sceneries are breathtaking. Saying that the experience was awesome is an understatement. Really cute tarsiers, nature's marvels - Chocolate Hills, the historic "Sanduguan", a really sumptuous lunch on a floating restaurant, one of Asia's oldest churches. The tour ended at around 6:30-7:00 in the evening and we got home soon after. Had dinner by the beach on a candlelit table, slightly angled with the gradient of the beach. Sigh, this reminds me a lot of Boracay and Puerto, and yes, you could still see people outside even at 1AM, ah nightlife. Anyway our feast was an epic of gastronomic proportions. Grilled food (mostly seafood) at their very best! Fresh, tasty and cooked to perfection. Sugpo as big as my ulna, grilled squid with tomatoes and onions, beef-pork-vegetables kebab and a green colored "Parrot Fish". Yum.

Over-all me and my family enjoyed our escapade to Bohol. Nice place, even cooler people and an experience we will never forget.

My Rating for Pyramid Resort

Accomodation: 9/10

Food: 9/10

Staff: 7/10

Value: 8/10

Total: 8.25

More Pictures - Facebook:

Bohol 1 and Bohol 2

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To Learn More About Pyramid and their tour packages, please visit: Alona-Pyramid

Zip-ping with Poi-se

2010-05-24T14:07:00.004+08:00

Have you ever experienced relaxing by the beach or at the park when a stream of bright color catches your eye? It moves in a smooth wavelike motion against the clear sky, one after the other. These twirling ribbons in bright colors appear as if they're dancing in the air. They seem almost alive. Then you notice that these ribbons are being held by able hands. It is also likely that these people weaving these intricate sky serpents are hooked to their Ipods as they dance like they're on a trance.

Those cool looking thinggies are called Zips (named after Planet Zips - pioneer Poi company in the Philippines). Zips which are growing in popularity here in the country are inspired from Poi -- a traditional dance of the Maori natives of New Zealand. Poi literally means rock on a string. It was used by the Maori males for warfare and the females to attract a partner. The essential elements of poi are a weighted center and a piece of string. Sometimes they end with long flowing ribbons, other times with fuzzy balls or flashy LED lights. The more trained and courageous aficionados use flammable Kevlar at the end of their chains to spin fire.

What used to be a folk dance of sorts became a global fitness phenomenon. Today, poi/zips are being marketed as a cardiovascular-fitness craze, recreational toy, and an art form. These toys have emerged all over the world. Websites devoted to the art of poi have sprung up all over cyberspace. Communities of spinners trade techniques and videos.

In the modern world, the art of poi is practiced as an outlet for individual creativity. Moves are strung together to create seemingly complicated combinations. The more tricks a spinner can master, the wider and richer his routine becomes. To watch a skilled spinner at work is captivating. No “show” is ever the same and no two spinners are alike. Each individual imbues their personal stamp on their style. I have been zipping for about 4 months now and I have enjoyed every second of spinning my poi, whether I'm on the beach, the park, Bonifacio High Street or even in our own backyard.

But why would a bit of string, a weighted center and a flowing ribbon catch the attention of so many people? Well, first of all, it is fun. It truly is as simple as that. They sometimes have a calming effect on people. It's like doing cardio, yoga, tai chi and a performance art all at the same time.

And if you think ribbon poi are impressive, wait until you see fire poi in use! There is a whoosh of sound as fire poi begin to make circles in the air. To a poi fan, it is literally, the sound of energy. This harnessed power finds a conduit in the hands of the spinner as the energy flows from the spinner to his/her poi. The display, when done by someone with skill and finesse, is captivating. Coupled with the appropriate music, a fire dancing show can be mind-blowing.

Even if you don’t think spinning fire is quite up your alley, you can always pick up a pair of ribbon or LED poi and spin away. How quickly a newbie picks up the various moves depends largely on each individual. There are some who learn faster than others. Lessons help of course. You can find free tutorials on-line or buy instructional DVDs. Live classes are the most beneficial of course and there are a growing number of reputable teachers worldwide

But when it all comes down to it, the choice is all yours. It is your choice if you would like to have structured classes (Planet Zips hold regular classes in Alabang, Quezon City and Makati - where you follow modules from beginner moves to intermediate.. then advanced --with varying rates and packages) or be self-teaching (YouTube instructional videos). It is up to you to find out what your personal style is; if you like to spin fast to house music or lose yourself in tribal beats. There are no rules. All that is expected is that you enjoy yourself. As Planet Zips put it... Free, Flow, Go

Here is a video of Yuta - a famous fire poi spinner from Japan:

More About Poi/Zips:

Home of Poi

Planet Zips

Play Poi

Lawn of the Dead

2010-05-24T09:58:00.002+08:00

It's been ages since my last (real) entry.. and a lot of things have happened to me and my family. Here are a few:

~ got a medical school scholarship
~ dorm (Facebook - MediSin Album)
~ Lola Josie's reunion with my Mama Mappie and our other dearly departed
~ Poi / Zips (will post something about this later)

In this entry, I will be sharing my experience with another tower defence game - Plants vs. Zombies.

Plants vs. Zombies is a game developed by PopCap (Bejeweled, Peggle, Feeding Frenzy)

The object of Plants vs. Zombies is simple: There's a zombie on your lawn. We don't want zombies on the lawn. Not only because the neighbors might point and stare, but also because if they make it all the way to your house, the zombies are going to come inside and eat your brains. Plants vs. Zombies is your basic tower defense game, with a wide variety of plants acting as the line of defense between your noggin and the shambling undead. You begin each round with a sneak peek at the zombies that are standing in the street, patiently awaiting their chance to jump the curb and make a beeline for your back door. You can then choose the plants you want to take into battle; certain plants are useless against certain zombies, so plan carefully.

The most important resource in the game is sunshine. Each seed costs a certain amount of sun to plant; the more powerful the seed, the more sun it costs. Sunshine falls naturally from the sunny sky, but not in large enough quantities to do you much good - you'll have to plant Sunflowers to boost your sunlight-gathering abilities. Even if you've got plenty of sun, you need to be wise about how and when you plant. Seeds take a certain amount of time to recharge after planting, so relying too much on powerful seeds that take more time to recharge can leave you wide open and vulnerable.

At first, you'll only have a handful of seeds at your disposal, but you earn a new seed at the end of each cleared level. You'll more than likely settle on a favorite combination of plants pretty early on, but Plants vs. Zombies does a great job of forcing you to reconsider your strategies. Sun isn't as readily available at night, for example, while the slope of the roof renders straight-shooting peas virtually useless. Wall-nuts that kept weaker zombies at bay are no match for pole vaulting or ladder zombies, and you can't plant much of anything in the pool without laying down a lily pad first.

That said, Plants vs. Zombies certainly isn't the hardest tower defense game you'll ever play - seasoned players will probably beat Adventure Mode without ever once losing a round. There's still loads to do, even after you defeat the final boss, though. You can tend to the plants in your Zen Garden, which spit out money if you treat them well, or visit the Tree of Wisdom, which spits out advice if you treat it well. You can also test your skill at an assortment of mini-games, though some are definitely more fun than others. Invisighouls, which pits you against an army of invisible undead, is particularly challenging, as is Portal Kombat, but Slot Machine and Whack-a-Zombie are a bit weak. Oh, but you're not done yet. Once you've worked your way through all of those, there are still two puzzle modes to master: Vasebreaker, in which you have to protect your brains while smashing all the vases on the lawn and my personal favorite, I, Zombie, which lets you switch roles and play as the brain-munchers themselves. But wait, you're still not done! You still have two different survival modes to conquer for each of the game's five different environments and believe me, Hard is no picnic, even for experienced zombie slayers. Once you've done all that, you can play through the game for a second time, when your neighbor Crazy Dave chooses your first three seeds for you in each round.

Everything about Plants vs. Zombies is high-quality, start to finish; the music is excellent, the art is charming and adorable, and the game's sense of humor will really have you grinning. The notes the zombies leave are priceless, and even their descriptions in the Almanac are hilarious. Plants vs. Zombies is fun in concentrated form, an intense dose of giggle-inducing entertainment beamed directly to your brain.

Rating

Graphics: 7

Sound: 9 (Brainiac Maniac FTW!)

Gameplay: 8

Over-all: 8

A Libre Me This, Libre Me That Culture

2010-05-24T08:42:00.000+08:00

When I first heard that Binay was going to be the new Vice president, I wondered what aside from the behind-the-scenes machinations would make him popular. He was a surprise winner, after all. Then I heard from someone that in Makati, he gives a lot of freebies. For example, senior citizens could get free birthday cakes, or even money from government offices. It makes sense that a politician who will give dole outs often will be very popular.

But this reflects another bad side of our culture. It is a culture of dependence on or desire for dole-outs.

Ever heard the funny lyrics, “bili mo ko n’yon, bili mo ko n’yan, ha?” That typifies many Filipinos. There is still the cultural desire to have someone else give it to them.

For example, imagine yourself as a working class Filipino, eldest among the children, with a job and salary. You arrive home after work, and you hear the screams of “where are our French fries!” from your siblings. Your parents, who are already senior citizens, will demand, “when are you going to bring us to Boracay?” When you reply that your salary is too low for that, they’ll scream, “then go abroad!” You’ll go abroad, you earn enough to send them to Boracay, but your family goes there without you. Lugi ka. Add to that the hassle of going abroad, adjusting to another country and culture, separation from your own, etc.

In addition, Filipinos seem so afraid to work. Stories in Maalaala Mo Kaya to go like, “mula ng magkasakit si tatay, lahat kaming magkapatid kailangan magtrabaho.” It’s understandable if they have to stop schooling and go to work. But it gives the idea that it’s wrong if all siblings go to work. But there are stories where the children have graduated, but don’t go to work, and remain fed by the overworked parents. You should send your kids to school, but it’s a sin so send them to work? That’s one of the bad things our local media feeds our lazy people.

In addition, consumerism is tremendous in Filipino culture. Everyone desires to have the latest brand or be part of the latest fad. And to do this, they’ll ask for dole-outs from mama and papa, or from their working sibling.

And this affects the way our people vote. When candidates like Gordon come in offering the attraction of foreign investment to the country to generate jobs, they become less popular than candidates who offer freebies to people. “We will give you want you want, and you don’t need to lift a finger.” This is the most likely criteria that our people have for choosing their leaders. And this is what makes our country an idiocracy or kakistocracy.

Thus, I point you to Rafterman’s article that stated this undeniable truth: the reason for Filipino corruption and dysfunction is laziness. Filipinos, most of them for that matter, are lazy. And laziness can be found in all classes, from the richest to the poorest.

But I have to point this out: just look at most of the people who receive dole-outs from popular freebie givers. They’re still poor! Most of them are still poor because they wanted to receive fish. They refused to learn how to fish, all because of laziness. Then they’ll play the victim card again and say they’re poor. They’re not just poor, they’re pathetic.

I also have to mention this comment I saw from Ilda’s Offical Profile of Noynoy, which has the sense of a dole-out seeker:

CONGRATULATION !!! PRESIDENT BENIGNO NOYNOY C. AQUINO III. FOR BEING A PRESIDENT OF PHILIPPINES.I AM JUST A ORDINARY FILIPINO HOPING AND WISHING TO HELP OUR COUNTRY.BY YOUR HELP I WILL NOT HESITATE TO REQUEST ASSISTANCE PARTICULARLY AIR POLLUTION THAT CAUSE A BIG PROBLEM TO OUR ENVIRONMENT.I AM WISHING SO MUCH TO HAVE ASSISTANCE HELPING ME ON WHAT I HAVE.IT MAY COME CLOSER TO DEVELOP TOURISM ANDENVIRONMENT IF ASSISTANCE COME IN PLANTING IN ROAD ISLAND AND FRESH AIR THERAPY FROM GARDEN FLORAL FLOWER ANCIENT PLANT. FOR ME I JUST WANT TO DEVELOP THIS.I ASK A ASSISTANCE AND SUPPORT FROM YOU BECAUSE I AM COMFORTABLE IN YOU.I AM HOPING TO BE INTERVIEW REGARDING THIS AND SUPPORT BECAUSE I KNOW IT WILL HAVE A POTENTIALS IN THE ENVIRONMENT MOSTLY PREVENTING AIR POLLUTION AND OUR HEALTH. CP#(taken out for privacy). NOEL B. DALISAY.

Ayos. That keeled me over.

Though it’s for a business, Mr. Dalisay is still asking for a dole-out to help him start up. Darn, for support for his anti-pollution focus, why didn’t he think of Perlas? And if he wanted real support for his herbal business, why doesn’t he ask for funds from investors abroad? Problem is, our protectionist clauses are inhibiting investments from abroad, so people like Mr. Dalisay are kept poor by our pro-oligarch policies.

Hence, our culture today has become a “libre me this, libre me that” culture. It not only affects our lifestyles and family stability, but it also affects the way we vote. We have to break this culture of laziness and make it a value that everyone should work for their own keep.

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Anti-Pinoy: Culture of Libre (ChinoF)

Pilipinas - s/p Election 2010

2010-05-12T10:08:00.000+08:00

Top 10 Bizarre Medical Anomalies

2010-04-07T10:43:00.000+08:00

[WARNING: some images and content may disturb and are not work safe.] Gone are the days of sideshows displaying freaks of nature, but the diseases that caused these so-called “freaks” are still with us. Political correctness has made it impolite to display the sufferers of these illnesses, so we are left with the Internet – the last resort of those with a fascinating for the bizarre. This list looks at some of the most unusual (and sometimes horrifying) anomalies of medical science. Viewer Discretion is advised

Diprospus

(sometimes called Craniofacial duplication) is a rare disorder in which the face is duplicated on the head (as in the picture above). This is not to be confused with fetus in fetu (item 9) which is a joining of two separate fetuses; diprosopus is caused by a protein called (believe it or not) “sonic hedgehog homolog”. The odd name is due to a controversial tradition in molecular biology to use unusual names for genes. The protein determines the makeup of the face, and when there is too much of it, you get a second face in a mirror image. If you do not have enough of the protein, you can end up with underdeveloped facial features. Children with this defect are normally stillborn, but a young girl, Lali Singh, born in 2008 survived for 2 full months before dying of a heart attack.

Fetus in Fetu

The man pictured above is Sanju Bhagat aged 36 from India. He is fully pregnant with his own twin. Because Sanju lacked a placenta, the fetus inside him attached directly to his blood supply. Doctors delivered the twin which was severely malformed and did not survive. Fetus in fetu is an extremely rare disorder in which a twin somehow becomes connected (internally or partly externally) to its twin while still in the womb. In some cases the fetus in fetu will remain inside the host twin unknown until it begins to cause problems. In more common cases, the signs are visible from the outset and are often initially confused with cysts or cancers. In a recent case a 7 year old boy was discovered to be carrying his twin when his parents noticed that something was moving in his stomach

Proteus Syndrome

The Elephant Man (Joseph Merrick) is probably the most famous case of Proteus Syndrome. The disease causes excessive bone growth, excessive skin growth, and frequently comes with tumors. Only 200 cases have been confirmed worldwide since the disease was officially discovered in 1979. It is possible to have a minor form of this disease which can go undiagnosed. The case of the Elephant Man has been the sole reason that this disease is so widely known. Sufferers have normal brain function and intelligence.

Möbius Syndrome

A rare disorder in which the facial muscles are paralyzed. In most cases the eyes are also unable to move from side to side. The disease prevents a sufferer from having any facial expressions, which can make them appear to be uninterested or “dull” – sometimes leading to people thinking they are rude. Sufferers have completely normal mental development. The causes are not fully understood and there is no treatment aside from addressing the symptoms (such as an inability to feed as a baby).

Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria syndrome (progeria)

will be familiar to people old enough to remember the television program That’s Incredible from the ’80s in which a young sufferer of the disorder appeared. The disease causes premature aging – so rapidly that a young child can look like a very old man (or, if I may be so callous as to point out the obvious, an alien – as in the photograph above). The disease is especially interesting for scientists as it may lend clues to the natural aging process in man. The disease is caused by a genetic mutation, and does not pass from parent to child. There is no known cure, and most children with the disease do not live beyond the age of thirteen – usually dying of stroke or heart attack (diseases usually associated with old age).

Cutaneous porphyria

A disorder that causes blisters, excess hair, swelling, and necrosis of the skin. It can cause red colored teeth and fingernails, and after exposure to sun, urine can turn purple, pink, brown, or black. The disease is thought to be connected to the many werewolf and vampire legends of the past, where a sufferer (who would have lived apart from society) might have been confused for a monster. The disease is part of the more general group of disorders called porphyrias which cover a range of mental and physical disorders due to the overproduction of certain enzymes in the body. The disease gets its name from the Greek word “porphura” which means “purple pigment”.

Elephantiasis

First off, note the spelling – it is Elephant-iasis not Elephant-itis as many people wrongly think. Elephantiasis is a thickening of the skin (as opposed to proteus syndrome which is a thickening of the bones as well as the skin). Unfortunately, this is a disease that any one of us can get as it is caused by parasitic worms passed on through mosquito bites. It is, consequently, not uncommon in tropical regions and Africa. A slightly different form of the disease is caused through contact with certain types of soil. In some parts of Ethiopa, up to 6% of the population suffers from the disorder. It is one of the most common disabilities in the world. Efforts to eradicate the disease are well underway and it is hoped that it will be successfully relegated to the annals of history by 2020.

Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva

Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva (FOP for short) is a very rare disease that causes parts of the body (muscles, tendons, and ligaments) to turn to bone when they are damaged. This can often cause damaged joints to fuse together, preventing movement. Unfortunately surgical removal of the bone growths is ineffective as the body “heals” itself by recreating the removed bone. To make matters worse, the disease is so rare that it is often misdiagnosed as cancer, leading doctors to perform biopsies which can spark off worse growth of these bone-like lumps. The most famous case is Harry Eastlack whose body was so ossified by his death that he could only move his lips. His skeleton is now on display at the Mütter Museum. There is no cure.

Epidermodysplasia verruciformis

Lewandowsky-Lutz Dysplasia (also known as Epidermodysplasia verruciformis) is an extremely rare inheritable disorder in which warts form on the skin. It normally affects the hands and feet and while it can start in middle ages, it normally begins between the ages of one and twenty. There is no known effective treatment for the disease though surgery can be used to remove the warts. Unfortunately, after surgery the warts begin to return and it is estimated that a sufferer would need at least two surgeries per year to remove them each time they grow back. In 2007 a sufferer had surgery for the disease and thirteen pounds (5.8 kilos) of warts were removed. 95% of the warts were removed.

Diphallia

Diphallia (also known as Penile Duplication) is a condition in which a male is born with two penises. It is a rare disorder with only 1,000 cases recorded. Sufferers are also at a higher risk of spina bifida than men with one penis. A person with diphallia can urinate from one or both of his penises. In most cases, both penises are side by side and the same size, but occasionally one smaller penis will sit atop another larger one. One in 5.5 million men in the United States have two penises.

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From: Listverse: Ultimate Top 10 Lists

Top 10 Bizarre Medical Treatments

2010-04-07T10:31:00.000+08:00

Sweat Therapy

Sweat therapy is the combination of group counseling/psychotherapy with group sweating. Group sweating is social interaction while experiencing psychophysiological responses to heat exposure. Group sweating has strong cultural validity as it has existed throughout the world for thousands of years to promote well-being. Examples include the Finnish Sauna, the Russian Banya (sauna), the American Indian Sweat lodge Ceremony, the Islamic Hammam, the Japanese Mushi-Buro or Sentō, and the African Sifutu. Group sweating has been used for various physical and mental purposes for thousands of years. It has been asserted that the potential health benefits of regular participation in Native American sweat lodges are numerous, but that there is a scarcity of research about the practice.

Mud
We are all familiar with the use of clay in health resorts where people bathe in it to improve skin conditions, but what many people don’t know is that clay (or mud) is also used in internal medicines. It is sometimes used as a coating on pills but it is also consumed in larger doses for the treatment of bowel disorders. Even NASA uses clay treatments: “The effects of weightlessness on human body were studied by NASA back in the 1960s. Experiments demonstrated that weightlessness leads to a rapid bone depletion, so various remedies were sought to counter that. A number of pharmaceutical companies were asked to develop calcium supplements, but apparently none of them were as effective as clay. The special clay that was used in this case was Terramin, a reddish clay found in California. Dr. Benjamin Ershoff of the California Polytechnic Institute demonstrated that the consumption of clay counters the effects of weightlessness.”

Electrocution

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), also known as electroshock, is a well-established, albeit controversial, psychiatric treatment in which seizures are electrically induced in anesthetized patients for therapeutic effect. Today, ECT is most often used as a treatment for severe major depression which has not responded to other treatment, and is also used in the treatment of mania (often in bipolar disorder), catatonia and schizophrenia. It was first introduced in the 1930s and gained widespread use as a form of treatment in the 1940s and 1950s; today, an estimated 1 million people worldwide receive ECT every year, usually in a course of 6–12 treatments administered 2 or 3 times a week. Most, but not all, published reviews of the literature have concluded that ECT is effective in the treatment of depression.

Dousing
Dousing is the practice of making something or someone wet by throwing liquid over them, e.g., by pouring water, generally cold, over oneself. Cold water dousing is used to “shock” the body into a kind of fever. The body’s reaction is similar to the mammalian diving reflex or possibly temperature biofeedback. Several meditative and awareness techniques seem to share similar effects with elevated temperature, such as Tummo. Compare cold water dousing with ice swimming. The effects of dousing are usually more intense and longer lasting than just a cold shower. Ending a shower with cold water is an old naturopathic tradition. There are those who believe that this fever is helpful in killing harmful bacteria and leaving the hardier beneficial bacteria in the body.

Urine

The term urine therapy (also urotherapy, urinotherapy or uropathy) refers to various applications of human urine for medicinal or cosmetic purposes, including drinking of one’s own urine and massaging one’s skin with one’s own urine. A practitioner of urine therapy is sometimes called a psychopath. Just kidding, they are actually called uropaths. There is no scientific evidence of a therapeutic use for urine. Urinating on jellyfish stings is a common folk remedy, but has no beneficial effect and may be counterproductive, as it can activate nematocysts remaining at the site of the sting. Urine does contain substances that are beneficial, such as Vitamin C; however, these substances have been excreted because they could not be used or because they were present in excess, so re-taking them will just result in re-excretion. The most obvious physiological effect of drinking urine, at least when it is taken on an empty stomach, is bowel movement (sometimes in the form of diarrhea) due to the laxative action of hypertonic solution of urea.

Bloodletting
Bloodletting is the withdrawal of often considerable quantities of blood from a patient to cure or prevent illness and disease. It was the most common medical practice performed by doctors from antiquity up to the late 19th century, a time span of almost 2,000 years. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the historical use of bloodletting was harmful to patients. But, bloodletting has not died a death – it is still one of the most effective treatments of excess iron in the bloodstream and for treatment of excess red blood cells which can occur in diseases such as porphyria. In the old method, the patient was cut and a suction cup was placed over the wound to draw out blood. In modern times syringes are used.

Leech

Medicinal leeches are now making a comeback in microsurgery. They provide an effective means to reduce blood coagulation, relieve venous pressure from pooling blood, and in reconstructive surgery to stimulate circulation in reattachment operations for organs with critical blood flow, such as eye lids, fingers, and ears. The therapeutic effect is not from the blood taken in the meal, but from the continued and steady bleeding from the wound left after the leech has detached. The most common complication from leech treatment is prolonged bleeding, which can easily be treated, although allergic reactions and bacterial infections may also occur. Devices called “mechanical leeches” have been developed which dispense heparin and perform the same function as medicinal leeches, but they are not yet commercially available.

Helminths

Helminthic therapy, a type of Immunotherapy, is the treatment of autoimmune diseases and immune disorders by means of deliberate infestation with parasitic worms (helminths) or their eggs. This is such a cure-all that it is also occasionally used in the treatment of hay fever and asthma. Depending on the particular autoimmune disease in question, infection with helminths can result in remission of symptoms in as high as approximately 70% of patients. The worms are administered via oral doses which are taken repeatedly over a course of weeks and can result in some fairly severe side-effects. Some patients can receive up to eight doses of 2500 worm eggs over the course of their treatment.

Fecal bacteriotherapy

Used in the treatment of certain inflammatory bowel disorders such as ulcerative colitis. The treatment comes in form of a series of enemas given to the patient over a five day period. In order to create the liquid used in the enema, a “poop donor” is needed. In other words, a sample of poop is taken from a healthy person (usually a relative of the patient) and turned into a liquid for anal insertion. The idea is that the healthy bacteria from the poop provider will grow in the sick person and heal them. What is perhaps even more revolting than an enema of someone else’s poop, is the fact that the liquid can also be delivered via a tube in the nose.

Smoking?

For centuries doctors prescribed smoking for a variety of ills and while this does still happen (though the doctor’s generally don’t want it publicized) the numbers of doctors who do this has become extremely small. Research with regard to neurological diseases, evidence suggests that the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease might be 50% lower in smokers, compared to non-smokers. Nicotine has also been found to improve ADHD symptoms and appears to have effects in the brain that are similar to those of stimulants. Although such findings should certainly not encourage anyone to smoke, some studies are focusing on benefits of nicotine therapy in adults with ADHD. Recent studies suggest that smokers require less frequent repeated revascularization after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Risk of ulcerative colitis has been frequently shown to be reduced by smokers on a dose-dependent basis; the effect is eliminated if the individual stops smoking.

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From: Listverse: Ultimate Top 10 Lists

Top 10 Bizarre Surgical Procedures

2010-04-07T10:16:00.005+08:00

WARNING: This list contains images of surgery. This list does not include surgical procedures that are now obsolete or obsolescent. The list also excludes cosmetic surgical procedures. Viewer discretion is advised

1. Hemispherectomy

Believe it or not, this surgical procedure involves removing or disabling an entire half of the brain. This procedure is used to treat a variety of seizure disorders where the source of the epilepsy is localized to a broad area of a single hemisphere of the brain. It is reserved for cases which can’t be managed with medication alone. The first time this surgery was performed on a human was in 1923 by Walter Dandy. All of the patients who receive this treatment suffer from partial or full paralysis on the side of the body opposite to the side of the brain removed. Most patients who have undergone this procedure will have neurons from the remaining hemisphere take over the tasks from the lost hemisphere by making new neural connections.

2. Hemicorporectomy

Also known as translumbar amputation, this surgery removes the lower half of the body from above the pelvis. The result is that the sexual organs, anus, rectum, legs, pelvis bones, and urinary system are removed. It is a severely mutilating procedure recommended only as a last resort for patients with severe and potentially fatal illnesses such as osteomyelitis, tumors, severe traumas and intractable decubiti in, or around, the pelvis. This surgery has only been performed in a small number of cases. The surgical procedure is often done in two stages; however it is possible to conduct the surgery in one stage. The first stage is the discontinuation of the waste functions in colostomy (rectum) and ileal conduit (bladder). The second stage will be the actual amputation.

3. Bilateral Cingulotomy

This is a brain surgery used in pain treatment for severe cases of cancer. It involves disabling the cingulate gyrus, a small section of brain that connects the limbic region of the brain with the frontal lobes. It has also found use in psychosurgery (surgery for mental disorders) where it is very controversial. As a psychosurgical treatment it has almost totally replaced lobotomy as a procedure. Its use for alleviation of pain in cancer patients is reasonably well-documented and well-supported, but its use in treating people with depression is not.

4. Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy

ETS is a surgery in which oprtions of the sympathetic nerve trunk are dissected. By cutting these nerve sections, the surgeon is able to treat severe cases of hyperhydrosis (excess sweating). What makes this bizarre is that a side-effect of this treatment is that the person no longer blushes. For that reason it has also become a cosmetic procedure for people who blush excessively. If only one side of the body is treated, a person who has undergone this surgery will have half of their body blushing while the other half remains in its natural state. For this reason the treatment is always performed on both sides of the body.

5. Vaginectomy

In a Vaginectomy, part or all of the vagina is surgically removed. This is normally used as a treatment for various forms of cancer but it also occurs in some sexual reassignment surgeries. It is normal for a surgeon to reconstruct the vagina after this surgery by using other parts of the patient’s body.

6. Lobotomy

Lobotomy is a very controversial medical treatment in which the frontal lobes of the brain are destroyed. It consists of cutting the connections to and from, or simply destroying, the prefrontal cortex. While it is seldom performed nowadays, it does still occur. Lobotomies have been used in the past to treat a wide range of mental illnesses including schizophrenia. This procedure often results in major personality changes or even mental retardation.

7. Penectomy

A Penectomy is the total removal of all, or parts, of the penis. It is normally used as a treatment for cancer, but it has sometimes had to be performed after a botched circumcision. Some men have undergone penectomies as a voluntary body modification, but professional opinion is divided as to whether or not the desire for penile amputation is a pathology, thus including it as part of a body dysmorphic disorder.

8. Circumcision

Circumcision is a very common procedure performed for religious reasons (amongst Jews and Muslims) and by many doctors who claim health benefits. Much controversy surrounds this procedure (in which the foreskin of the penis is surgically removed) as it is a non-essential surgery normally performed on a child that has no say in whether it is performed or not. Some adult men develop psychological issues as a result of circumcision, which leads us to the next bizarre surgery: foreskin restoration.

9. Foreskin Restoration

Foreskin restoration is the process of expanding the residual skin on the penis, via surgical or non-surgical methods, to create the appearance of a natural foreskin (prepuce) covering the glans penis. Foreskin restoration techniques are most commonly undertaken by men who have been circumcised or who have sustained an injury, but are also used by uncircumcised men who desire a longer foreskin and by men who have phimosis. Some men cite a desire to regain a sense of control over their sexual organs and regaining lost self esteem. European Jews, along with men circumcised for medical reasons, sought out underground foreskin restoration operations during World War II as a method to escape Nazi persecution.

10. Lindbergh Operation

The Lindbergh Operation is included here as a special mention. It was the first surgery ever performed entirely with robots being guided by doctors through telecommunications. The surgery occurred in France and was controlled by French doctors in New York. The operation was performed successfully on September 7th, 2001 by Professor Jacques Marescaux and his team from the IRCAD (Institute for Research into Cancer of the Digestive System). This was the first time in medical history that a technical solution proved capable of reducing the time delay inherent to long distance transmissions sufficiently to make this type of procedure possible. The 45-minute procedure consisted in removing the gallbladder of a patient in surgical ward A in Strasbourg Civil Hospital, in Eastern France. From New York, the surgeon controlled the arms of the ZEUS™ Robotic Surgical System, designed by Computer Motion, to operate on the patient. The link between the robotic system and the surgeon was provided by a high-speed fiberoptic service deployed thanks to the combined efforts of several France Telecom group entities.

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From: Listverse: Ultimate Top 10 Lists

Catholic Arguments Against RH Bill are Spiritually Backward and Misinformed

2010-03-17T13:04:00.001+08:00

House Bill No. 5043, also called the RH or Reproductive Health Bill, is probably the first bill to address the overpopulation problem of the Philippines. It requires the provision of sex education as well as reproductive health services to the general populace. While this response may be a bit late, and the RH Bill is not prominent on the controversy radar, it is still relevant as the bill has not yet been passed and it continues to raise a storm of controversy, especially from the Catholic church.

I will focus on one prominent response from a Catholic entity because of how it alarmed me. Fr. Bing Arellano, spiritual director of the Alliance of the Holy Family International, posted a video response on Youtube stating why the RH Bill should be opposed

I believe each point he made deserved strong refutation, because those points are based on biased, poorly informed views and could do harm, despite the good intentions.

First, Fr. Arellano refutes the RH Bill’s two-child policy. He says the ideal family is from 5 to 7 children. Now this is only an opinion of a person, and for the church to dictate the ideal size of a family reflects an imperialistic attitude. Looking at it factually, 5 to 7 children is hardly ideal; it is more likely to put more children into poverty, given the economic condition of many families today. But the killer is this; nowhere does the RH Bill enforce a 2-child policy! It encourages two children, but “attaining the ideal family size is neither mandatory nor compulsory.” Fr. Arellano most likely depended on hearsay and did not read the bill. And hey, if parents today actually stick to two children maximum at this time, that would be better for the country.

Next, he slammed sex education at Grade 2. And again, there is more misinformation. The text of the bill indicates Grade 5 as the real target, not Grade 2.

Fr. Arellano’s condemnation of sex education as pornography deserves treatment here. This is the reaction of a medieval mind that rejects modern reason and logic. Teaching the children about sex at an early age will nourish them on facts and correct data. Pornography is meant to be anything but educational, and it can clearly be distinguished from sex education. Sex education does not ruin the conscience of the children. Delivered properly, it can prepare them and liberate them from myths for their adolescent life.

Ah yes, myths. I for one am tired of being told that thunder is St. Peter bowling in the clouds. I’m tired of parents telling their sons that if they kiss Nene, she will be pregnant. Such myths should be silenced once and for all. Facts should be taught squarely. This is what the RH Bill is trying to solve; leaving children in the dark about sex. This opinion of Fr. Arellano probably reflects an intention of keeping people dumb so that they can be easily manipulated, which the church in the Philippines has historically been accused of.

The urgency of proper sex education is reflected by high numbers of women who don’t know what their own body parts are! A recent survey showed that a significant number of Filipinas (23-30% if I’m not mistaken) believe that the hymen is a male organ, because it has “men” in the name! These Filipinas, ages 15-24, are the real target of the RH Bill’s sex education drive. And based on what has been shown above, this is sorely needed. It’s time to teach the kids right.

Now one of the most shocking things that I heard in Fr. Arellano’s response that many children means more labor going abroad… and he says that it is good! Filipinos leaving the country and becoming laborers abroad has long been recognized as a big problem. But Fr. Arellano says that it is not a problem!

Now this is a very cruel view. It says that many children should be born so they can be sent abroad as labor. It’s like slave manufacture. But the fact is that the overwhelming number of children contributes to poverty in the Philippines. It will strain the families who have more mouths to feed. The children may not even become successful laborers when they grow up because of their poverty. Fr. Arellano’s approach is to deny the problem, and to continue pushing out our people to other countries. This further demonstrates the local Catholic Church’s tendency to turn people into slaves, something that it has been doing since Spanish times.

And come to think of it, when laborers go abroad, they deprive the local economy of would-be human capital that could have helped develop local business. By pushing masses of people to go abroad, would not this sabotage the local economy? If so, the Catholic Church may be contributing to economic sabotage! A daring view, but when I connect the dots, I can’t help but reach this conclusion.

And if ever they do become laborers and get married, the laborers who go abroad tend to have extramarital affairs. Stories like these are too common for comfort. But Fr. Arellano still wants such people sent abroad, and thus the risk of extramarital affairs because of separation of spouses and family members exists. Oh wait… this… and the separation of family members! I thought the church and Fr. Arellano’s organization are family-oriented! But it encourages separating family members by sending people abroad, without considering the risk of exposing them to this risk of extramarital affairs! So the church is contradicting itself on family beliefs!

A very laughable notion is that the Philippines is the conscience of the region. Unfortunately, this is hard to prove, too easy to disprove. A country that has elected a known gambler, drunkard, womanizer and certified crime lord to the presidency could hardly be called the conscience of the region. Filipinos all over the world are notorious for shoplifting, scamming and fraud. There are stores that bar Filipinos for fear of shoplifting, and websites that do not accept credit card orders from the Philippines because of fraud. This is because Filipinos actually do these things! Moral conscience indeed!

Perhaps this is another way of saying that the Catholic Church wants to keep a strong presence in the region, because they’re trying to compete with the predominantly Muslim countries around us that are much more prosperous than we are. The church is probably scared of such countries, and like George Bush, considers all Muslims terrorists. But sorry, this is far from being a “conscience” in the region.

Fr. Arellano also believes that the RH Bill will lead to genocide. Again, this is an unthinking assertion, pure emo. Many countries have already legalized abortion, and it has not become a Holocaust like what the Nazis did in World War II. A holocaust is when so many people have been killed in one single time, like in thousands and millions. Now, would abortion in the Philippines reach that point? For me, it would be a greater holocaust to see so many children going hungry because their parents just wanted sex and didn’t care how many children they’d make from it.

There are valid arguments against the RH Bill, such as punishments when a company refuses to provide reproductive health services. This has been stated to be an attack on free enterprise, because it dictates how a company should conduct its business. I would agree that this is a part of the bill to work on. Yet I would rather let the bill pass, and the lawmakers can fix this clause later. But if you want to oppose the RH Bill, Fr. Arellano’s arguments are not the way to go.

Fr. Arellano says, “the real issue is about life.” I agree with that. But part of this real issue is to uplift the dignity of life. When children are born and left alive to be forced to suffer, their dignity is reduced. And this is equivalent to being dead. Children never asked to be born. While just not bearing children is the best choice for the couple, the problem is that Filipinos are hard-headed. They will engage in sex to enjoy themselves and forget problems even if it would lead to more problems later on because of the load of children. They even like sex with non-spouses! Thus, providing birth control measures is admittedly a stopgap solution, but it is a needed stopgap, and it will help avoid degradations of the dignity of life.

I don’t think people should worry about the RH Bill an as “abortion machine,” because it does not enforce nor require abortion. Rather, it just provides the environment for the service to be possible. In the end, the use of abortion is a personal choice that weighs on the personal conscience, not on the law.

Fr. Arellano’s response to the RH Bill is appalling. If it is the Catholic stance, it would do serious harm. It is possible that he made the response on impulse, and I do not know if he maintains the same stance today. But the impact of those ideas remains the same today; the idea that sending more people abroad is good (thus exposing the families further to separations of members) contradicts the Catholic Church’s claim to being a family-oriented church. These opinions also deny the population problem and other issues that are so clear for all to see, and will actually contribute to making people poorer.

Make no mistake, though. I am a Christian. But I doubt that Fr. Arellano’s opinions are Christ-inspired, because they only care about upholding certain “principles” at the cost of the people’s welfare. Opposing the RH Bill is not in itself wrong for me, but Fr. Arellano is certainly using the wrong reasons. If the Catholic Church supports these reasons, it is a significant contributor to the “damaged culture” of the Philippines and is one of the causes of why the country lags behind in comparison to the rest of the world. Clearly, the opinion of Fr. Arellano demonstrates how the people are kept in spiritual backwardness.

I think each one of us should make our own individual opinion and shake off the shackles of organized religion from our thinking in order to make a better decision and opinion. There are after all Catholics who support the RH Bill, and have no sear on their conscience because of it.

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Original Article by: ChinoF antipinoy.com

Informative Links: Complete Text of the RH Bill

Another Article Refuting Fr. Arellano's Statement

Noynoy Supporters are Proof that The Philippines is a Wowowee Idiocracy

2010-03-01T16:51:00.001+08:00

Everytime I read about Noynoy Aquino leading in the surveys, I am reminded of how stupid Filipinos are. What strengthens my belief in their collective stupidity is the vapidity of the reasons they give as to why they want to vote for him as the next president. The guy has absolutely no accomplishments, the paltry sum of nine bills he filed failed to become laws and there is a total absence of anything notable that he has done for the country, the organizations he joined and even himself! Even his claim to being a “fiscalizer” is dubious because there is no solid data to support such a claim.

The “reasons” people give are very shallow and mostly rooted in emotions. They mostly go along the lines of him being the son of Ninoy and Cory and that he will continue their legacies. Ask them what his accomplishments are, and they cannot give any results that Noynoy has delivered. He just filed those nine bills and held various positions where he was basically a lame duck.

I have always said that the reason Filipinos are drawn to Noynoy is because he is the candidate whose current situation fits perfectly as a protagonist in a cheesy telenovela. His father was killed in the past, his mom who continued the fight recently died and then he got “discernment” from “Bro” to become the savior. “Siya na nga” as the morons would say.

One of the shows that contributes to the moronization of The Filipinos is Wowowee. It is a game show wherein poor contestants play silly games or make themselves look ridiculous in order to win cash prizes. The more pathetic your situation is, the more money the host Willie Revillame will give you. For example, there was one contestant who was interviewed by Willie for a certain game and when asked what her job was she said she was a street sweeper. When asked what her husband was, she said he is unemployed. When asked how many children she had, she said she had 17. Then she started crying about how she cannot support her children, how she has to take on extra jobs, how her children could not eat full meals and then followed these through with a litany of other miseries that were a result of her stupidity and irresponsibility. After she announced to the public how pathetic her situation was, Willie Revillame gave her a big sum of money.

For an ordinary idiot, that was a good display of being “humane” but if you look at it objectively, that woman should not be rewarded for her stupidity and instead should be shamed. She should not be put on a pedestal to be applauded and given prize money. There are also parts where a contestant will talk to her mother/son or some relative in the crowd and they will exchange sad stories, cry and collect money directly proportionate to the volume of tears they shed or how pathetic their situations are. What it would do is establish in people’s minds that the more pathetic you are, the more rewards you should be given.

The show does not take half a brain to conceptualize and implement. No intellectual effort at all. All you have to do is gather sexy girls, ugly people to make fun of and dime-a-dozen comedians. Have them do those repetitive songs, cheesy sexy dance numbers, demeaning jokes and other sorts of trash. Mix it in with portions where you make fun of people in the audience and the more ridiculous they make themselves look like or sound, the more money they will get. Let me know if I am missing anything. The quality of entertainment (or lack of it thereof) is so appalling that you would wonder why such a show would survive and even thrive in a society of thinking human beings. Well, it thrives in The Philippines because most of the people there do not use their brains and are very unprincipled. The people in the show reflect the hordes of imbeciles voting for Noynoy. No matter what we do, the filipinos are not in any way capable of having a good leader neither do they deserve one because they allow themselves to be used by people like Willie Revillame.

The vicious cycle of Filipinos having little intellectual capacity and watching shows that further deteriorates their minds could only result in a populace that would fall for the cheap marketing gimmicks of Noynoy Aquino or even Manny Villar handlers. With these kinds of shows constantly inputting garbage into the minds of The Filipinos, they get easily sensationalized by semblances of melodrama like when Mar Roxas stepped down in favor of Noynoy who “lucked out” by having his mother die.

A good candidate like Richard Gordon who can really get the country out of the rut it is in right now has very little chance of winning because it takes a normal human brain and a strong set of principles to arrive at a rational decision that Gordon is the best man for the job. Sadly, the sentimentality of Cory Aquino’s death and Ninoy’s supposed heroism gets the moronic Filipino populace enthralled and high on it as if it were a dose of heroine that clouds the mind. Others who are supposedly “intelligent” want to vote for Noynoy because he is the “lesser evil” and that voting for others would just make Villar (someone perceived to be corrupt) win. For me that is unprincipled because a vote is for someone you deem to be the right one for the position and nothing else. If you vote based on surveys then you are nothing but part of a herd of sheep who goes wherever the rest go -- even to the slaughterhouse.

As The Filipino population hankers after furthering their destruction, I could not help but sigh and shake my head. There they are hypnotized by the tunes the pied pipers play as they plunge together into the water to die like the rats that they are.

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Reposted Entry From rafterman of:

Anti-Pinoy: Noynoy Supporters are Proof that The Philippines is a Wowowee Idiocracy

Serene Heart

2010-02-01T18:52:00.007+08:00

Every once in a while our spirits look for a place to run to for peace and relaxation from the concrete jungle we live in. A place we can escape to from the madding crowds and busting sounds of the metro. While most of us would agree that getting “there” would require us to travel (Boracay, Palawan, Phuket even) our family was lucky enough to find a haven in the embodiment of Laiya Coco Grove in San Juan, Batangas. Batangas is about 2 hours away from Manila, far enough from the noise, smoke and dust yet conveniently located to allow tranquil experience.

I was able to learn about this resort after googling beaches in the Batangas area and recalling a friend mention Laiya. And so I thought to myself: “Why travel (not to mention spend tons of money) to find a place to relax when we have Laiya.”

The resort had a homey feel. Very “Filipino” and had a lot of bamboo and hard wood in its furniture. As the name suggests the resort had a lot of coconut trees, which make sounds that blend with the chirping of birds and the waves of the sea. Our family stayed in 2 air conditioned poolside cottages, clean, spacious, and had decent lighting contrary to other resort accommodations that had little. The beds were also ok, pillows fluffy. The washroom however wasn’t really that convenient, I mean if you’re used to a bathroom with walls separating the water closet, lavatory and shower (just cold water), its ok for you. There were also tree houses which I really liked; had I known room transfers was possible, we would have stayed there, not that I didn’t like the poolside cottage, it’s just that I like the tree house concept. The resort also has a first aid / emergency nook which as a health care provider, was a plus point. A chapel near the entrance, a spacious parking area, a communal hall (dining area) and a pavilion.

The attendants are wonderful. Courteous, approachable, accommodating and I could not recall a moment when I didn’t see them smiling. I especially liked the people in the kitchen, speaking of the kitchen, our package included a 3D/2N stay in 2 cottages, inclusive of full buffet meals (lunch from arrival to lunch before departure), use of pool, trampoline and volleyball and basketball courts and the access to Laiya White Sands (which I’ll talk about later). But the meals aren’t really that impressive, they give you a choice of rice/fried rice/paella, a choice of viand - fish, beef, and chicken, and vegetables and a glass of iced tea (a cup of Barako coffee during breakfast). Although I must admit, I enjoyed the breakfast (tapa, fried rice, eggs, hotdogs) and dinner (paella, fried chicken, mixed vegetables) during our 2nd day.

The beach front from the main resort isn’t really exceptional which is why they take you (for free via the hotel’s transport) to the white sands beach, which is about a 5-minute drive from the main resort. The Laiya Coco Grove White Sands Beach is breathtaking. Clear waters, cool white sand, flying fox/zipline, amazing view of the mountains and a whole lot more. Our family also availed of the boating-snorkeling activity which I really enjoyed. They hand out floatation devices / life jackets and goggles which are in good condition unlike most that other resorts I’ve been to provide.

Overall, we had a wonderful Laiya experience through Coco Grove. My family and I are certainly satisfied and will definitely stay here when we visit Batangas again soon. I would definitely recommend Laiya Coco Grove to those who want a quiet place to relax, unwind and enjoy life’s pleasures without compromising satisfaction and value for money.

I give Laiya Coco Grove an 8/10

More Pictures in my Facebook Account: Laiya Coco Grove Album - Facebook

For Reservations: Laiya Coco Grove

Makati Office Tel. Nos. (63-2) 894-1057 ; 892-6009