The Saipan Blog

Two Worlds

2009-11-28T19:24:00.006+10:00

Around the time I was in high school my mother kept a newspaper clipping from the New York Times in the glove compartment of her Subaru station wagon.

“I saved this for you. It was in the paper while you were in Saipan,” she told me.

“Tell your mother that there are no slaves on Saipan,” my father on Saipan would write. “Slaves don’t get salaries.”

“Your father has a very short memory,” Mom would respond. “It wasn’t too long ago that he was a poor man in a foreign land trying to make a better life. He’s forgotten what it feels like to be at the bottom of the totem pole.”

Depending on who you ask, today marked the end of a failed system rife with human rights abuses or the beginning of a new chapter in American imperialism.

******
A quick reminder why this happened: Governor Fitial chose federalization over sovereignty.

2009 Rotary Club of Saipan Manamko' Luncheon

2009-11-28T14:39:00.008+10:00

The Rotary Club of Saipan has hosted a Manamko' Luncheon every holiday season for over 20 consecutive years. As the Director of Community Service, this year was my turn to organize the event.

Rotarians were asked to donate something to eat and something to raffle. All told me brought three turkeys, three hams, mashed potatoes, rice, taro, stuffing, cranberry sauce, a huge cake, a dozen pies, pumpkin bread, bean salad, bottled water, sodas, and of course, lots of helping hand to help dish out the food.

After we served the Manamko' we had the chance to eat. I honestly don't think I've had turkey since last Thanksgiving (not a lot of turkey served at Asian restaurants). Man, it was good.

After everyone ate we had our door prize raffle. Rotarian Perry donated the best prize: cold, hard cash. We also had gift certificates for buffets, lunches, breakfasts, several umbrellas, and even a Magic Sing.

Operation CNMI Homefront Support Packing Day

2009-11-28T12:23:00.010+10:00

We are not here to curse the darkness; we are here to light a candle.

-John F. Kennedy, 1960

Today was the day the organizers of Operation Homefront Support gathered all the donations we received and packed them into boxes to send to our active duty hometown heroes who are off-island this holiday season.

This is the second year Homefront Support has put together and mailed out care packages to troops. This year it was organized by Rotary Club of Saipan, American Red Cross, and Marianas Cable Vision.

The packages included things like SPAM, canned tuna, rice crackers, coconut chips, monument t-shirts, copies of the Saipan Tribune, Beach Road magazine, Hafadai magazine, letters from school kids, a little satchel (Indiana Jones had one) from the Red Cross, and other local foods and novelties.

I don't have a list of everyone who donated, but the list is long. Rotary Club donated $500+ for shipping and a few members helped out with the organizing and packaging. I donated the last of the Indigenous t-shirts from last year's campaign and a few booklets on the monument.

Thanks to everyone who donated and to everyone who helped us package up the boxes.

180 of the Commonwealth's finest will get a taste of home thanks to your generosity.

Mafia Wars: Thanksgiving Food Fight Loot

2009-11-27T09:13:00.009+10:00

When I ran for mayor of Saipan I stopped uploading Mafia Wars posts to this blog. Well, I lost by 780 votes and Mafia Wars is back.

This weekend Mafia Wars is offering up Thanksgiving Food Fight Loot. The complete list:

Stuffed Turkey
19 Attack
25 Defense

Pea Shooter
26 Attack
12 Defense

Cooked Goose
15 Attack
27 Defense

Electric Carving Knife
34 Attack
18 Defense

Lucky Wishbone
16 Attack
36 Defense

Food Coma
20 Attack
42 Defense

Mashed Potatoes
24 Attack
21 Defense

Gravy Boat
40 Attack
24 Defense

There is no special reward for collecting all 8.

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T11:42:00.004+10:00

In 2006 I wrote to the Beautify CNMI E-mail list:

“As for me, I'm thankful for all of you. Without you, Beautify CNMI would never have made it out of the starting gates. Look at what we've accomplish in 6 short months: We planted over 1700 trees; we recycled over 260,000 lbs of recylable material; we've had almost weekly cleanups of beaches and roads, our biggest cleanup on 10/20 attracting over 3,380 volunteers; we've signed an MOA with Bali Steel to remove junk cars and goods at no cost to the government; we've cleaned up and restored tourist areas, both historical and natural; on top of that, we've done this by including segments of our community that don't always get to "hang out" together. I'm hopeful that we can continue to draw in more partners and as Cinta says, "continue to infect people with the Beauty Virus." Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!”

While I’m not ebullient as I was when I was 28, I have plenty to be thankful for this year.

I’ve got a great girl in my life. We don’t have kids, but we have two goofy looking dogs. Oreo and Snow White are kind of like kids though; they cost a lot of money, eat, poop, wake us up at night, and we occasionally have to take them to see Lola Emie (Eden’s Mom).

For most of my life the only relatives within 1500 miles of my front door were Alex and Mom. Thelma, Anna, Liz, and Ike, getting to know you and your families has been the best part of returning to Saipan.

I attained what might be the accomplishment of my lifetime when the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument was created earlier this year. The monument is far from perfect, but like everything, is a work in progress. I like to think that my great grandkids will point to me as the environmentalist that led to its creation, and if you are reading this, yours probably will do the same for you.

I was also able to visit all the northern islands of the Marianas this year, fulfilling a lifelong dream to not only visit Pagan, but also sail around Uracas and dive the Maug lagoon.

And right before I went on that trip I made the decision, at the tender age of 30, to run for Mayor of Saipan. I did not win, but garnered the support of 1612 voters and came in a respectable third out of nine. I am thankful for all those who voted for me, all those who volunteered for me, and to all those who helped me raise nearly $20,000 for my campaign.

And to get back to the topic of family, how lucky am I to have a Mom who would travel 6000 miles to help me in my bid to become the first Irish mayor in Micronesia?

And after four years, Beautify CNMI continues to chug along. We organized another island wide cleanup this year. With over 4000 volunteers, it was by far the biggest, most successful event we ever held. We also put on a Boonie Dog show for the third year in a row, planted more trees in our villages, reactivated the anti-graffiti brigade, planted more trees at Laulau, marched in the 4th of July parade, participated in International Coastal Cleanup Day for the first time, and next week we’ll announce a new slogan: 15 minutes can Beautify CNMI! And we did all this while maintaining nearly weekly cleanups of our streets and beaches.

And after four years back on Saipan, after winning national and regional awards for the work we’ve done together, after joint resolutions from the Legislature telling us to go to hell, after internal and external squabbles, after building coalitions for and against, after the re-election of the worst governor in Commonwealth history, after a shooting that has shattered the lives of many and that is sure to ruin any remnants of the tourism economy we once had, after countless beers, countless barbeques, and not nearly enough exercise, not much has changed. The thing I am most thankful for is you.

May the Force be with you and your family and may the distance to the light at the tunnel be counted in months rather than years.

Happy Thanksgiving.

15 minutes can Beautify CNMI!

2009-11-24T16:37:00.002+10:00

Here's a sneak peek at the winning bumper sticker and slogan from the recent Beautify CNMI contest. I will announce the name of the winning student artist as soon as the stickers are printed. The winner gets $150 and 50 stickers.

Fitial Leads Heinz

2009-11-24T08:54:00.003+10:00

I fell asleep last night before all the precinct votes were counted. Fitial currently leads Heinz 6313 to 5812, which is a 4.2% difference. In order to win, Heinz would have to win the remaining absentee ballots by more than 501 votes. So let's say Fitial gets 200 absentee votes, Heinz would have to get 701 just to tie. In other words, we're going to be subjected to five more years of Fitial.

This election reminded me in so many ways of the Presidential Election in 2004. We're going to invade Fallujah any day now; and our leaders were kind enough not to let the issue "bother" us before we headed to the polls.

However, whereas Bush only had four years to wreck havoc on our economy, environment, and security, Fitial now has five.

Fitial's off to a good start. His million dollar plus lawsuit against the federal government was tossed out last night. I'm sure the next step will be not renewing the contracts of all the people he hired right before the election.

Heinz leads Fitial

2009-11-23T21:48:00.002+10:00

With 3049 votes counted from on-island absentee ballots and precincts 1A, 2 and 6, Heinz Hofschneider leads Benigno Fitial 1534 - 1515, a 0.6% lead. There are still several thousand votes to count and we should know the winner in the next few hours.

Heinz Takes Tinian!

2009-11-23T21:15:00.003+10:00

The results are in for the island of Tinian and Heinz Hofschneider won the island 453-373 (54.8% to 45.2%). That is a 9.6% win.

Go Tinian!

Photos of the Vigil

2009-11-23T17:59:00.006+10:00

I didn't take any photos of the vigil, but was able to find these on Facebook. Thanks to everyone who came out last night and thanks to everyone who helped organize the event.

A big thanks to American Memorial Park who let us use their facilities at no cost. It is the best venue for this type of event.

Our speakers were very gracious to volunteer to speak. Thanks goes out to our singers and musicians, too.

There are more photos on Ed Propst's Facebook profile.

Where's that map?

2009-11-23T14:03:00.002+10:00

The Wall Street Journal reports that there has been a "Gun Rampage on Korean Island." So when do we get our Korean passports? And does this mean I have to join the military?

Bring a Flashlight

2009-11-22T12:01:00.001+10:00

Thank you again for the outpouring of support. Just a reminder to wear white. Also, our permit for American Memorial Park does not allow us to use candles. Please bring a small flashlight.

We've asked a few different groups to sing and spiritual leaders of different faiths to speak.

If you would like to help in setting up or donate for this cause, please call Angelo Villagomez at 285-6462 or Jay Solly at 789-0029 or Ed Propst at 483-7361.

Thanks again.

Here is a message from Ed Propst:

Dear Friends,

Please join us tonight (Sunday, November 22) at 6PM at the American Memorial Park for a peace vigil. The shootings are a great tragedy and we need to come together as a community to promote peace and prayer. I hope you will join us. If you can, please wear white and bring candles and flashlights and umbrellas in case it rains. Your presence is needed.

There will be short inspirational speeches by our spiritual leaders of different faiths. There will be no political speeches, but we encourage all of our leaders to join us in denouncing violence and increasing peace in our small community and to to work together so that this may never happen again in our beloved islands.

If you would like to help in setting up or donate for this cause, please respond to this e-mail or call Angelo Villagomez at 285-6462 or Jay Solly at 789-0029 or Ed Propst at 483-7361.

We hope to see you tonight at 6PM. One hour of your time is all we are asking. Please bring your entire family. Please forward this to people on your e-mail list.

Best regards,
Ed

And a message from the organizers:

Saipan— A coalition of faith-based and community groups has organized an event to promote peace, in response to the violence from yesterday’s senseless tragedy affecting all peoples in the Marianas.

Members of the community are invited and urged to attend the “Saipan For Peace Candlelight Vigil” for the victims of the horrific shootings.

This event will be held this Sunday at 6PM at American Memorial Park. It is an ecumenical and multi-cultural event and all are welcomed and invited. This needed event is non-political and spiritual leaders of all religions have been invited to speak.

The healing begins as soon as possible for as many as possible. Join us to denounce this violence coming to our paradise. Evil has no border, but together, as a movement of “one voice, one people,” we can affirm that it is not welcome here.

Please join all of Saipan as we hold the victims, their families, and our community in thoughts and prayers.

Please Wear WHITE

2009-11-21T12:58:00.003+10:00

We are asking everyone to wear WHITE for the candlelight vigil tomorrow night.

We have also confirmed American Memorial Park as the location. Now we are inviting the community and looking to our spiritual and religious leaders to lead us in prayer and reflection tomorrow night. We are inviting all religions, all faiths and creeds to join us.

We could use some help contacting the leaders of the many churches on Saipan. I think we've got the Catholic church covered, but could use some help contacting some of the Korean churches and other denominations.

This is the invitation letter:

Dear Friend,

You are invited and urged to attend the "Saipan For Peace Candlelight Vigil" for the victims of yesterday's horrific shootings.

This event is to be held this Sunday (tomorrow) at 6PM, at American Memorial Park.

It is an ecumenical and multi-cultural event of various faith-based and community coalitions and all are invited. This needed event is non-political and spiritual leaders of all religions have been invited to speak.

The healing begins as soon as possible for as many as possible. Join us to denounce this violence coming to our paradise. Evil has no border, but together, as a movement of "one voice, one people," we can affirm that it is not welcome here.

Please join all of Saipan as we hold the victims, their families, and our community in thoughts and prayers.

Si yu'us ma'ase,

Angelo O'Connor Villagomez

We are looking for a sound system and we are in need of candle donations. I am about to head out to see if any of the local shops even have 1000+ candles for sale at a reasonable price.

You can help us by spreading the word about tomorrow's vigil by talking to your family and friends, by reposting the event on Facebook, or by sending texts asking people to come.

Saipan for Peace Candlelight Vigil

2009-11-20T22:38:00.004+10:00

After talking to a good friend tonight I decided to help organize a Saipan for Peace Candlelight Vigil this weekend.

I am not an expert at putting on big events on short notice and I need help. Please call me at 285 6462 if you can donate a sound system, candles, water, or anything else that might prove helpful.

I've already created a Facebook Event. Here is the language I put out:

The people of Saipan and the Northern Mariana Islands are a peace loving people and condemn violence in our community. The violence of the recent shootings in our island is something that was previously unknown to our people, and we vow to never let it never happen again.

Please join us for a candle light vigil this Sunday at 6 PM.

The healing of our community must begin as soon as possible for as many as possible. Our goal is to have the Saipan for Peace Candlelight Vigil at American Memorial Park Ampihtheater, but we need to gain permission first. Our backup location will be Garapan fishing base.

We will not have the benefit of any TV or newspaper advertising to tell the community about this event, so please help me spread the word. Please tell everyone you know to come down to American Memorial Park (pending approval from the rangers) on Sunday night. Please bring your own candles and in the next 48 hours I hope to put together a program.

This candlelight vigil is meant to heal my heart as much as everyone else in this community. This tragedy is devastating. This should never have happened.

Saipan Shooting

2009-11-20T18:58:00.005+10:00

Our small community was rocked today when a yet-to-be-named gunman went on a shooting spree, wounding eight and killing four, including a 4-year-old boy and a 2-year-old girl.

From the BBC:

At least five people have died in a shooting incident in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific.

The gunman killed four local people in the main island of Saipan, reports say.

He also reportedly went to a tourist area and shot at a group of foreigners - mostly Koreans - wounding eight before killing himself.

From the Saipan Tribune:

A man shot and killed four individuals before turning the gun on himself in two separate shootings in Marpi and Kannat Tabla.

Details of the shootings are still sketchy.

In the Kannat Tabla shooting, the fatalities were two men in their late 20s and early 30s, both local residents, and two children under 10 years old. The two adult victims sustained gunshot wounds in the head, and police are saying they were shot at close range.

The shooter then proceeded to Last Command Post and shot a group of mostly Korean tourists, wounding eight. The victims included two Korean children.

He then went to Banzai Cliff where he shot himself.

I could hear sirens from my apartment, but mainly watched the whole thing unfold from Facebook. As I refreshed the page every few minutes, I watched as schools, businesses, and people's private homes went into lockdown out of fear.

We won't know the full story for a few days, if ever. In the meantime, please pray for the people here. Pray for the victims. And pray that this never happens again.

Under the Pala Pala I

2009-11-20T11:23:00.000+10:00

It has been nearly two weeks since I lost my bid to become the next mayor of Saipan. I came in ahead of 6 respected, well-known candidates, but unfortunately in order to win I needed to come in ahead of 8.

My congratulations go out to our next mayor, Donald Pangelinan Flores, and I hope you’ll join me in helping him to make Saipan a better place to live and visit.

I am forever grateful to the 1612 voters who entrusted me with their vote. We may not have won this round, but our team is now more experienced, better organized and larger than ever before.

I am going to continue that momentum with my work in the community. I still lead Beautify CNMI, I am still a board member of the Friends of the Marianas Trench Monument, and I am still a director of the Rotary Club. I am also still kind of chubby, which tells me I should probably renew my involvement with Soccer! To carry on with that momentum I am going to continue on with this email list, too. However, instead of Angelo for Mayor, I am going to call it “Under the Pala Pala.”

I will post “Under the Pala Pala” to the Saipan Blog and will email it out to the subscribers of my email list every Friday. Visit www.AngeloVillagomez.com to subscribe.

Back to the Polls

The people of the Commonwealth head back to the polls on Monday. We will decide whether we want Benigno R. Fitial or Heinz S. Hofschneider to serve as our governor for the next five years.

On Wednesday, after much consideration and contemplation, I endorsed Heinz Hofschneider for Governor.

Living in a small community like ours and getting involved in politics is a lot like being a soccer referee. Half the people think you’re call was brilliant; the other half want you dead.

I did not take this endorsement lightly. Should Heinz win, some of my very good friends and family will lose their jobs. Should Ben Fitial win, I will be unemployable by the CNMI government for the next five years. I have friends and family on both sides of this election, and much like refereeing a close game in the men’s soccer league on Sundays, half the crowd is pleased with my decision, while the other side is helping me research flights back to Florida.

In the end it was my personal experiences with both men over the last four years that influenced my decision. Fitial smiles when he sees me and says, “How are you, my nephew?” Heinz generally just nods and says, “Hi, Angelo.”

If I could sum up Fitial’s philosophy of governing, it’s that he’s in charge, he knows what’s best, and he’s going to do what he thinks needs to be done, no matter what it is. And since he’s in charge, he doesn’t need to explain anything to you or ask your opinion on anything.

Fitial’s worldview comes from a conservative, traditional frame of thinking. George Lakoff explains in “Don’t Think of an Elephant,” how and why many conservative (mainland) Republicans think this way. If you haven’t read it, I recommend it. It is available on Amazon.

To put it bluntly, Fitial thinks like George W. Bush. That’s how we ended up with a taxpayer-funded lawsuit against the federal government, a bulldozed Marpi without public hearings or environmental permits, no net improvement at CUC, and a health care system on the verge of collapse.

In my experience Heinz is open to a more participatory form of government. The two times I asked to meet with him, he did. Like most men his age, he had a lot to say, but at least he met with me. And more importantly, he listened. And Heinz is an environmentalist. He created our local marine protected areas and supported the version of the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument that would have brought international acclaim and a visitors center to our shores.

I encourage you to go out and vote for Heinz. For those of you not planning on voting, please reconsider. A missed vote is a vote for Fitial. There are many highly paid Covenant supporters desperate to keep their jobs. I guarantee you they will be voting.

Clarification

2009-11-19T13:39:00.000+10:00

Dear Editor,

Recent advertisements in your newspaper declare that some Democrats have endorsed Benigno Fitial for Governor. This is not the case.

The Executive Committee of the NMI Democrats met after the regular election to discuss endorsing a candidate for the runoff election. During our meeting there was no discussion as to whether the party would endorse Fitial or Heinz Hofschneider, we were in unanimous agreement that we would either endorse Hofschneider or nobody at all. In the end we decided it was in the best interests of the party not to endorse a candidate, however individuals were free to endorse any candidate of their choosing.

The defining characteristics of Fitial's first four years in office, fear, hatred, bigotry, oppression and deceit, do not mesh with the values and principles espoused by the Democratic Party. As President Obama so famously stated, "We are choosing hope over fear."

Please discontinue printing advertisements about the NMI Democratic Party that have not been endorsed or paid for by the NMI Democratic Party.

Angelo Villagomez
NMI Democratic Party

Endorsement

2009-11-18T11:25:00.001+10:00

Out of respect for my supporters that may have supported other candidates I was going to remain neutral in the gubernatorial election, but too much is at stake during this juncture in our history and now is not the time to remain silent.

The two candidates left standing from the general election, Ben Fitial and Heinz Hofschneider, are both good men. They have collectively served this community for nearly half a century and I believe it is the intention of both men to do what is right for our people.

However, an election, as I recently learned first hand, can only have one winner. The voters of the Commonwealth must choose between these two long time public servants and decide who will be our head of state for the next five years.

I am voting for Heinz Hofschneider in the gubernatorial runoff election. I fully endorse his candidacy and ask that you vote for him on November 23.

While Ben Fitial has been a supporter of Beautify CNMI, a campaign I hold very close to my heart, I cannot in good conscience vote for the man that refused to meet with concerned citizens for nearly two years concerning another very important issue, ocean conservation.

Instead of meeting with us to hear what we had to say, instead of engaging us to understand our intentions, instead of hearing our pleas to just listen, he ordered his administration to carry out a campaign appealing to the worst side of our local people. And this was not the only island issue in which he did this. And we were not the only targets of his vindictiveness.

My experience with Heinz Hofschneider was the reverse. He took the time to listen to us. He made a point to educate himself on the subject. He sought out experts that knew more about the subject than himself. And after careful consideration he made his decision.

Heinz is the type of man I want leading our people. I humbly ask you to support his bid as our next governor.

Hibernation

2009-11-12T12:53:00.001+10:00

This blog is going to take a long nap.

Official Results

2009-11-11T10:17:00.005+10:00

I put Mom on an airplane back to Florida a few hours ago. It was an intense two weeks and she's going home with stories that will make her the life of any dinner party for the next 10 years. I imagine the stories will start with something like, "A few years back when my son was running for mayor of an island in Micronesia..."

I am so glad she came for the last 10 days of the campaign. She re-energized the campaign and was instrumental in my coming in just 8 votes short of second place. Speaking of those 8 votes, when the Commonwealth Election Commission certified the final results, my number of votes increased to 1,612 votes.

Not bad for an unmarried 31 year old half-caste who has only lived here four years.

Until Next Time BBQ Tonight

2009-11-10T09:24:00.002+10:00

I am having an Until Next Time BBQ for my Mom tonight at my house in Gualo Rai. We'll get the fire going at about 4 PM. Please bring something to share.

Proud

2009-11-08T07:36:00.006+10:00

On Election Day 1612 wonderful people cast their vote for me. I came in ahead of 6 other well-respected, popular candidates. Unfortunately, I needed to come in ahead of 8.

Thank you to everyone who helped me during the campaign and congratulations to all the candidates.

The Polls Are Closed

2009-11-07T19:03:00.004+10:00

The last few months have been quite a ride and I was lucky to have been chosen by the Democratic Part to represent them as their nominee for Mayor. I have been blessed with a wonderful family and great friends who have helped me during this process.

Whatever the outcome, I am proud of the campaign my team ran. We focused on issues and experience and the campaign for mayor never devolved into a mud slinging contest.

We'll know the results of our efforts in a few hours.

From Saipan Writer

2009-11-07T18:44:00.003+10:00

I've hardly surfed the net this week because I've been going door to door and meeting with people. The Saipan Writer wrote this about me on Monday:

VILLAGOMEZ, Angelo O’Connor (Democrat). Intelligent, educated, and dedicated to environmental concerns. He's got loads of energy and vision. He's done a lot to organize people and protect our environment. This would be a big YES in my book.

Thank you, Saipan Writer!

Almost Over

2009-11-07T18:16:00.004+10:00

The polls are open for another 40 minutes and the news reports about the results are starting to roll out. The Saipan Tribune has a story up about the early morning voters.

Polling places open; 3 of 4 governors lead voting in Garapan
By Haidee V. Eugenio

Hundreds were already in line as polling places opened at 7am in today's historic CNMI elections, with three of the four gubernatorial candidates casting their votes at Precinct 3's Garapan Elementary School between 7:10am and 9:10am and the fourth one expected to vote shortly before the close of polls at 7pm.

[snip]

Also early in line was Angelo Villagomez, who is running for Saipan's mayoral post.

Villagomez said the first time (sic) he will do if he wins is to hug his mother, who was with him at the voting place even before the polls opened at 7am.