The RH bill, 12/12/12, the Rocket, and the Askals

RH Bill finally passes 2nd Voting! 

Wow!

Just when you think it will never come…

So many delays and suddenly just before Christmas... It’s finally here!

I got home and (strangely) felt so sleepy that I passed out while downloading apps for my new android phone with the Congress “debates” in the background (if you can call it that). I woke up a couple of times in a daze and heard random religious babbling and other twisted family stories on why so and so congress person wanted to vote against the RH bill, most of their reasons though can categorically be described as ridiculous, silly, and utterly hilarious.

I mean, it is unbelievable that we’ve voted in such clowns in congress. Or, actually, it’s very believable but it’s quite sad nonetheless.  These oddball statements and arguments that come out of their mouths, come on!?! Case in point: Manny Paquiao even using his knockout loss as a reason to value life more and therefore be more against the RH bill - Did you connect that?!

I woke up at around 2am and to my surprise the congress session still wasn’t over. Suddenly it was time to tally the votes and for a while there I heard so many no votes (in between my dreams) that I actually thought that the RH bill wouldn't pass. Well, I wouldn’t be that surprised as the bill has been deliberately delayed and have been rejected before.

But, alas… it was the "yes" side that won! Historic.

I am a Catholic and I believe in my faith but I definitely do not like the Church’s incessant grappling for power and control these days (or since time and memorial, actually). We are no longer in the dark ages or the Spanish colonial times. Let’s please move with the times and actually pretend to care about the people, women’s rights, women’s health, the sad plight of teenage mothers, Filipino's quality of family life, the growing rate STD statistics, growing rate of abortion stats, etc.

Twitter is abuzz about defeating the prayles and about how Rizal and his gang are probably dancing on their graves right now. I was quite good with Noli and Fili when I was in high school. So, yes, in the spirit of Rizal, I want to say: Take that, you prayles!

12-12-12

What is up with people buzzing about this date and the so called end of the world or time.
The Mayans said Dec. 21, 2012.

And, as expected, I saw some people over facebook who got married on this fated day. What is up with this? There’s no more 13/13/13 to look forward to though. Wonder what the next brilliant number dates scheme people can think of next for their wedding dates.

Oh, hey, I actually have a wedding to go to this 1/13/13. Hmm, close enough.

North Korean Rocket Launch

WTF?! A rocket lands near us?!

I opened the news on TV and saw a press briefing on Pablo survivors where they were talking about looking for fishermen who were lost at sea. Then I saw a lead in about this rocket that landed in the Pacific ocean that landed near us.

For a while there, I got confused and thought that the rocket landed somewhere near the lost fishermen.

North Koreans, I don't care if you want to isolate yourselves, starve your people, play weird things on your state TV, do in sync dancing steps during your government celebrations... But please, launch your rockets towards some other projectile direction. Why aim at us? What did we ever do to you?!

The Askals

To be honest, I find soccer a slow game. I mean, I know they run around fast and energetically but kicking the ball towards the goal multiply times only to have the ball blocked most of the time just frustrates me.

With basketball or tennis or the other usual sports, most of your moves are scored. Your efforts are counted with points and you accumulate them.This makes the game more competitive and more dynamic, at least for me, that is.

This being said, I do have some country spirit in me. I will definitely root for our soccer team in any game. Just as I will root for Manny Pacquiao in his matches even if I am skeptical about his new found religious Bible touting ways, his politics or the friends he keeps (Chavit, et al). The way I see it, I can respect his sports ability as an athlete. I just block out the other aspects of him from the equation from I root for him in his matches.

And so, Philippine soccer has definitely made the leap. Wasn't it just a few years ago that nobody here really cared about the sport? Our team never won anything. (Or did we?! Did we have a team then?!)

And, look at us now...

The Askals as semi-finalist in this Suzuki cup, well, why not?!

We’ll take it. And, we will be quite happy about it.

The RUNDOWN or Not + the Holidays

I still do have some more things to say about the recent happens of life, only I have been off for like so long, so many things have happened and I don’t think I even have the energy to be angst, analytic and rational about all of it.

But in the spirit of catching up, I will lamely do this:

The whole Sotto – Kennedy debacle: Oh please Sotto, if you followed my first advice and just shut up, now where would you be? Forgotten, which is like so much better than being you right now.

Quite impressed by Michael Syjuco being able to urge Kennedy’s daughter to write about Sotto and still unbelievably shocked that Sotto had the audacity to blotch his apology / non-apology to Kennedy’s daughter.

AND as for Enrile: Mocking plagiarism, siding with Sotto (come on!?!) and then turning his statement around. Writing an autobiography with some creative embellishments - senile, crafty, or just unbelievably thick skinned? Stating that he is against the RH bill because the OFWs are our biggest export like the country should just be a manufacturing mill for humans, come on?!? Shame!

Then again, it’s as if any of them are actually capable of an ounce of shame.

To Sotto and Enrile, I say to you guys: A Big Fat WHATEVER!

On early campaign ads: Roll My Eyes. But hey, I'm sure there will be people who will be convinced by these ads. The are not called the masses for nothing. They matter in campaign times and pander them every politician will.

AND, oh please... on the lame endorsements of lame unknown brands just so these policians can put their faces on billboards and the back of taxis. I should maybe tap a politician or two for some products I sell, maybe I'll hit it big via their willing endorsements. Maybe, I can get some of them for free. Hmm?

Party Lists: It's just a given, the system has been abused. Willie Revillame attempts to headline for a partylist, enough said.

Get a catchy acronym y'all, that's all it takes to get voted in, unfortunately.

Israel and Palestine – at war again, and then they were not, and then Palestine gets UN statehood. AND, the Philippines voted for this decision. Interesting.

Egypt – I truly pity the revolutionary people of Egypt. It’s been a year. I distinctly remember that day when they thought they've won and have truly overthrown Mubarak from power. Mubarak might not be the president of Egypt right now but the country’s current state is far from the idealistic democracy they people had aimed to achieve. The country under Morsi right now is shady at best and all this maneuvering for more control, smells and feels as shady as our very own cybercrime bill. Poor people of Egypt, its either Morsi’s people or the old regime’s loyalists, and it seems neither option is actually an acceptable one.

The other day the Supreme Court judges put their judgment on the whole constitution issue on hold. Now Morsi’s advisers have just resigned (just saw this on tv).

So let’s see: The Arab Spring experiment in theory is a victory for idealistic freedom. In actuality, it has left the people in tatters and in chaos as various factions with competing interests dive in to struggle for control in the midst of the power vacuum.  The US is once again in this “fiscal cliff”. The EU is still in financial chaos as more and more countries struggle, as people rally against austerity measures, as Germany hangs on, and the Greeks demand for debt write offs. The Euro is declared a failed experiment. The USD exchange rate against the Peso plunges further.

Wonder what’s going to happen next?

Meanwhile: The PH’s GDP goes up higher than predicted (7.1%) and the stock market is still predicted to trend upwards (6000s by end of the year). Hmm?

The Maguindanao massacre victims are still not given due justice. The FOI bill and the RH bill still haven’t been passed. The cybercrime bill is currently under TRO.

And, another end of the year massive typhoon hits Mindanao killing hundreds. So, the world’s climate is indeed going further into chaos as well.

So Christmas: Am I feeling it? I must admit, I am not.

This being said, I am basking in the inevitable lack of productiveness of the season and the inevitable overload of social gatherings. And, hey, I will roll with it.

So, 2012: I've read a couple of books on it. I am hoping that all the cleansing happens already and we start 2013 all on our way up, please!

Damn the Man or the Old Man?!

Well, actually, damn them both!

The Old Man

When you think about it these law makers are literally OLD and with the passing of the cybercrime law, it seems to me that they don’t have a decent grasp of the internet, technology and the changing modern world.
As we now know, 4 senators filed an almost identical cybercrime bill: Enrile, Angara, Revilla, and Marcos.
Angara says that they “are just importing the law of libel for print and broadcast into the Internet. Otherwise there would be a zone of impunity. I can begin attacking maliciously the people I hate.”

Enrile previously claimed to not know what a powerpoint is. Marcos says that he has been a netizen since the 90s. Revilla is a negligible variable. But whatever, the law has been passed.

Collage Photos from the net

Lawmakers and supporters of the cybercrime law keep mumbling arguments that they merely extending the already existing revised penal code to include a platform which is has previously not covered, the internet or “a computer system or any other similar means which may be devised in the future”.

They argue that if a regular journalist can be sued for libel, why can’t a blogger? Or a person who tweets?
If any of these people actually understood the internet, they would know that all this is not a case of simply just applying the law into another medium.

The internet is a totally different animal all together. It is not TV, radio or print media. It is not composed of just media stations and publishers.

Among the many other things that live in cyberspace, the internet is also composed of individual citizens who also have the right to freedom of speech and privacy along with a host of other rights that the cyber crime law seeks to violate.

The internet is composed differently and runs differently and it takes a coherent understanding of the medium before any regulation can be crafted fairly.

Old men, if you do not understand the internet, then you are not qualified to craft such laws and insert such clauses as the cyber crime bill and the cyber libel clause.

Then again, are you really just oldies who don’t get it? Did you really miss the point?

Or was regulation and freedom oppression really the point?

So, Damn the Man

In the end, it is still THE MAN who is just looking to extend his powers over a new medium that it currently does not have control over. They obviously seek to regulate and control the internet now.

Old lawmakers might be alarmed by what has happened all over the world as they looked to the recent Arab Spring. Decades of strong men and dictators have been brought down by social media. To an old guy who doesn’t fully get it the internet and social media now becomes this big threat to his position, his political tricks, his power, and his other tyrannical ways.

Again, we look to Sotto. With the internet, his plagiarism did not go unpunished. Netizens caught up with his tricks over and over again, and they protested. This placed a major dent on his camp’s plans and a gigantic dent on his public image.

Clearly, the internet with all its so called advantages is seen as a wild card by people in power because it can topple them just like that. This probably scares them to death, doesn’t it?

I see why the internet will logically freak them out. Gone are the days when being a trapo was so much easier. Control PR over tri media, pander to your constituents, look for allies and cohorts, buy votes, rig elections, bribe some people, etc.

But now they have to police the internet and social media too? Because you’ll never know when some random citizen who will post pictures of your epal campaign online or google translate your speech to figure out that you’ve actually copied it off US Senator Kennedy’s speech.

Oh, but wait… Old Man, you can’t even police the internet because in addition to your shady grasp of how it all works, there are also no laws in place to do this.

So, what’s a Trapo to do?!

Well, why not make a law to regulate the internet, then? 

Brilliant! So, let’s go do that. 

While we’re at it, let’s make it sort of vague (provision for future situations) and let’s also put a higher sanction on it. Then let's also regulate sites, shut them down if we don’t like what they’re saying, and while we’re at it lets also collect user data.

Pretty clever isn't it? 

The next thing you know, our government suddenly has the power to regulate cyberspace as if we are all in China.

Is it not that there is a worldwide criticism on why China is inhibiting its citizen’s rights to free expression? Why does are our lawmakers find it necessary to suddenly implement the same type of censorship on us?
According to Slate Editor William Dobson modern strong men have evolved and are now fluent in democracy and human rights. He says these days “laws are written in vague terms and then applied capriciously against those who question the regime's ways”

Countries like Russia are said to have all sorts of laws to squash all sort of activists and anarchy at its root. Just recently, the punk rock band Pussy Riot’s members were charged with “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred”. What does that even mean?

Could it be that our own lawmakers created the cyber crime bill with the very same purpose?

Having said this, why don’t we ask them the same thing that they kept on asking us, the people who are enraged by the cyber crime law?

So, politicians and law makers, if you don’t plan on doing anything wrong, why are you so afraid of the internet?

The difference between these law makers and the people who are against the cyber crime law is that we are fighting for our freedom to speak and our right to have decent and competent politicians serve us. These pro cyber crime law figures however are simply looking for a way to control the internet and though this keep their own skeletons securely locked up in their own closets.

There is nothing wrong with creating a law to apprehend those who engage in child pornography,  sexual harassment, financial scams, illegal gambling and other similar crimes committed online. This was supposed to be the main purpose of the cyber crime law.

BUT it is every bit WRONG to use this purpose as a front to pass regulations that’s meant to seriously control the internet and crack down on the citizen’s right to freedom of speech and privacy.

From the movie Empire Records

So, the anarchistic spirit in me would like to say DAMN THE MAN, let's please save our country from this censorship.  

Yes to the TRO on the cyber crime law. May it truly lead to something fruitful and let it not be some lame pacifying move to simply keep the citizen protest at bay.

No to Online Libel! No to the Cybercrime law!

This might be a tad late but I would just like to join the online bandwagon of protest against the cyber libel clause in the recently passed cyber crime law (RA 10175).

V picture lifted from the V for Vendetta movie poster

Anonymous Attacks 

I used to be mildly annoyed when those worldwide “anonymous” attacks happened some time ago (the apathetic in me was all - why disrupt the "peace"?) and to be honest, I really don’t have a conclusive opinion on Julian Assange. That is, I’m all for transparency and I want to trust the world with a free fall of information but I really don't think it should be done because I really don't think we could trust the world with a free fall of information.

That being said, I still want to give these hackers my salute. Even if sensibility and morality would still tell us that we shouldn’t agree with illegal acts of protest. 

Hacking all these sites just to make a point might border on illegality, but when people feel screwed and they are left feeling hopeless, I suppose, one cannot really be shocked if they resort to a bit of anarchy.

The government representatives have said on air that the hackers should come out and air their protests in the proper format. Yes, they probably should as, technically, this is the right thing to do. That is, IF this is possible and IF this will actually yield some real action.

As it is, a senator of the country blatantly plagiarized a whole lot of US bloggers and a US senator’s speech. People have protested in various platforms and nothing really happened. Said Senator never apologized, denied everything, and kept threatening everyone. Now said senator has (as reported by multiple media outlets) apparently inserted this online libel clause in this now controversial cyber crime bill. Where is the sense, the logic and the justice here?

Again, it is not surprising if the people have resorted to a bit of anarchy.

How can a bill meant primarily to bring justice to victims of more heinous online crimes, like child pornography, identity theft and other online scams, be deceitfully used as a vehicle to curb the people’s freedom of speech?!

I would say "SHAME!" but somehow this word feels so blunt. 

It seems Tito Sotto keeps getting it wrong, doesn’t he? Unfortunately, everyone else who went with this cyber crime online libel inclusion also got it all wrong.

On this note, I am quite proud and delighted  that pirate bay is commiserating with our cause.

Screen grab from pirate bay's site

I am hoping something comes out of the people's clamor. Whether it be through a government official who truly believes in the cause or through someone who just wants to use the issue for a 2013 political bid, I will still take it.

I just think that this cyber libel clause came out of no where to punch us all in the face. It's not right. It's not fair.

Other components such as the government's increased power to regulate the internet, gather data on user activities, track social media accounts and block certain sites (similar to China) truly drags us back to the dark ages (or the martial law era). These are definite assaults on our right to the freedom of speech.

The bill has been passed. The error has been done, but the government now owes it to the people to ratify this wrong and make it right.

Please amend it.

Midweek Snippets

That Anti Islam Movie

I haven’t seen the controversial movie, even via youtube, but I’ve read that it was a low budget film, poorly produced and accomplished by duping the most of the film's participants. Actors and the movie staff people were told that it was some Arabic desert action film by this film maker who used a fake name. If that is not dubious, I don't know what is? 

Obviously, it's not going to be an award winning film or one that would be raved about as having some level of quality. 

But is the movie offensive to the Muslim faith? Yes. But should the work of one lunatic represent the entire country of America? No. 

Somehow this reminds me of the Filipinos' insecure behavior of just reacting to everything everyone else says about the Philippines. The show Desperate Housewives says something negative about Filipino doctors, Filipinos got mad. Claire Danes once said something about the Philippines and cockroaches, Filipinos got mad.  And it goes on and on. We get mad about everything negative that's said about the Philippines, whether the statement is true or not, petty or truly offensive. 

It is only the person who reacts to things that should be beneath them that is really dragged down further. Is revolting against this small film actually helping the Muslim world?! Not particularly. 

Does rallying outside US embassies and burning Obama effigies actually accomplish anything? Does being rowdy and does continuously freaking out all over the world actually help the Muslim religion’s image? Not really. 

They should just ignore this minuscule film because that’s all it’s really worth. 

I’m sure the objective of that filmmaker was just to incite chaos and the more the Muslims react, the more his objective is being met. 

Enrile vs. Trillanes / Miriam vs. Puno vs. Roxas

What is this? Just when you think that political reality TV is dwindling post-impeachment and post-Sotto's plagiarism, we get a revival in the Enrile vs. Trillanes row. What’s this, Camsur is splitting up? GMA pushed Enrille to support the split? Trillanes is quitting the majority? Trillanes is talking with China behind our backs? Behind the DFA’s back? But the palace knows about it? And Enrile is calling Trillanes a fraud? Trillanes then walked out? And Roxas is now going to China too? What again has happened?! 

disclaimer: photos in collage not taken by me

That’s a lot of plotlines to have happened in a day. (And, mind you, I was out so I only followed all this through Twitter, which just confused me even more.)

I almost didn’t even have time to consider that this Villafuerte guy (the uncle of Roberdo, the guy who didn’t want to confirm him as DILG secretary) is mixed up right in the middle of the Camsur issue as well. This reminds me of his son, you know the one that bitterly tweeted about what the fuss was about Jesse Roberdo, the one who later apologized and claimed that he was just wondering what Robredo has done, innocently wondering, or so he says. Just saying, this family is iffy. 

And here I thought it would have been Santiago’s snub of Roxas’ appointment that would have made the day’s news. But apparently it was not, as apparently, she went along with the confirmation citing that since Roxas came from the Visayas region, she’s now ok with it. Well, ok…?

Miriam, the older you get the more I believe that the system has truly eaten you up whole. At this point your presence in the Senate, at least for me, is more about entertainment value. 

And, what has happened to that Puno guy? Have we forgotten about him already? Are we now moving on? I suppose we are… 

Post Reaction: Sotto and the Cybercrime Law

On Tito Sotto

I was actually quite flabbergasted and dumbfounded when Sotto once again plagiarized and Google-translated Kennedy’s speech. I mean, seriously?! In what world could this even be possible, in what universe could a speech writer even conjure up such an idiotic idea?! 

It is one thing this if Sotto’s (and his staff’s) plagiarizing ways have never been revealed to the public and another thing that it had exploded all over the news and the internet, it's reach extending to the New York Times no less. 

Seriously, what lazy, senseless, and arrogant idiot would cognitively do it again?! And, what idiot would actually believe that translating it into Tagalog would let them get away with it?! 

Well, apparently Sotto and his people thought so. Nako, nako, joke time na lang ba ito?!

I wonder if he fired them all by now or if he really thought that what they did was truly immaterial, as can be deduced from his twisted media statements (saying that if it was in Tagalog that it doesn’t constitute as plagiarism) and he still kept them on. 

It annoys the hell out of me that Sotto is still going about his so called Majority floor leader role, narrating proceedings, featuring himself in pictures as Mar Roxas and Jun Abaya were confirmed to their positions yesterday.

disclaimer: photo not taken by me

This man and his thick skin, he behaved like the past few weeks never happened. Such is the behavior of a typical trapo, isn’t it not?

Cybercrime law:

I cannot believe that suddenly this cybercrime law is in place. WTF really happened?! Our country that has been so lenient with piracy and other copyright things suddenly comes up with a cybercrime law?!

Such a speedy approval... (compared to say, the FOI bill or the RH bill)

Are we suddenly on our way to becoming China with its internet censorship and whatnot?!

Libel via the internet?! Seriously!?! 

Suddenly, politicians are just so afraid of the internet and social media? Shame!

Bet you, Sotto feels a whole lot of smug right now.

It has been said that Sotto added the libel clause last minute to the cybercrime bill (this libel clause version was never made public and wasn't in the initial House / Senate versions).

Somehow I feel that something should be done about this unreasonable clause. Again, I ask, are we China now? Should we police every Facebook and Twitter account now? Or just the ones who criticize those who are pikon and in power? Slipping this libel clause behind the public's back is simply an injustice in itself.

It truly is unbelievable that this has been made into law. Especially just a few weeks after Sotto, the laughable plagiarist,  threatened to do so.

Apparently, a clown like him can make this happen. How unfortunate for us Filipinos.

More Evidence of Sotto Trolls

While reading random articles and blog posts about the plagiarism issues, everyone has probably noticed that there was a lot of weird vaguely fluent type of comments defending Sotto, the Church/CBCP/God, or the anti-RH bill camp. 

Most of the comments aren’t really particularly intelligent; most were just attacking comments and most with a theme that borders on mindless fanaticism to Sotto (if such a thing is possible to exist). Personally, I cannot imagine a few people going this genuinely passionate about Sotto, what more this many online personas. It’s just unrealistic and unbelievable. 

As I read the comments of possible astroturfers and read the succeeding replies of others who mock them, calling them trolls and paid commenters, and ask them to explain their stance (wherein they couldn’t give decent and logical non-fanatic answers), I don’t know if I should laugh because the exchanges are funny or be bothered that so many of these nonsense online comments just muddle the intelligent debate that people should be having.  

Screen grabs of comments from the Professional Heckler Blog and Raissarobles.com

Still, I’m glad that the real people who are outraged by Sotto’s behavior clearly outnumber these possibly paid trolls. At least the real pulses of the people are reflected. 

Hilariously, my blog was visited by a suspected troll, see here:  

Spotted: Heart Mercado in this blog!

Incidentally, I just clicked on Heart Mercado's profile and her first publicly visible post started only on Aug 17, 2012. There's barely anything on her page. And, this Maria Tiu, there's absolutely nothing on her page as well.

Well, well… Wouldn’t it then be ironic (and truly vile) for Sotto to keeping on accusing the pro-RH camp of paying off bloggers and social media netizens to do a “hatchet job” on him?

He objects to being called a clown but how can we not, when he keeps on acting like one?!