tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-193457192024-03-13T10:27:22.173-07:00No BordersCulture, books, contact sports and reflections about life - or lack of it - beyond work and the cubicle.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.comBlogger425125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-11891908149445057252013-06-05T18:31:00.003-07:002013-06-05T18:31:43.727-07:00Vanity Fair- what's the problem?I subscribed to Vanity Fair throught iTunes but still I couldn't sign in. For days, I've been trying to request for my subscription account number with which to access Vanity Fair online but to no avail. I wrote both Vanity Fair but I got no useful reply. Itunes has already acknowledged receipt of my payment and yet, I still couldn't access Vanity Fair. I'm giving them another week to act on my concern. If I couldn't yet access my subscription despite having paid, I will boycott Vanity Fair for the rest of my life. Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-44093650213037554662013-05-19T23:07:00.002-07:002013-05-19T23:19:14.716-07:00From globalization to something close to homeThis blog is evolving. When I started blogging in 2005, it
was to capture some of my thoughts regarding a journalism fellowship I was with. Was travelling with journalists from all over US and the Asia Pacific
region to different cities (Hawaii, Shanghai, Beijing, Silicon Valley, to Bangalore
and Chennai). Then the blog evolved into something that discussed globalization,
politics and culture. Serious, boring stuff. In 2009, a new career track forced me to take a hiatus
for four years.<br />
<br />
Now, I thought I need to revive the blog. Some kind of a mental shadow boxing. This time around,
it will a little bit more personal: reflections about life outside work, if there's any. Reading books, fiction and nonfiction, is a hobby so a friend suggested that
I should regularly write book reviews. Good idea. So maybe I should focus not
about the book itself, but about Filipino identity, or how we are portrayed in
literature. Somehow, Filipino characters portrayed in these fictional works
reveal just how other cultures perceive us, or even the way we perceive
ourselves. Would that be fine? Would that be interesting?<br />
<br />Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-73274863665585694542013-05-17T06:05:00.000-07:002013-05-17T17:09:29.483-07:00A night in Shanghai<em>One night in Shanghai, we (journalist friends from India, US, Taiwan and the Philippines) stumbled upon a place called Xintiandi. There was a bar called Luna, where a rock band from Manila was playing. I scribbled these lines after that visit. That was probably five years ago?</em><br />
<br />
In Shanghai’s nights<br />
They found <span class="il">Xintiandi</span><br />
Lurking in the shadows—<br />
A walker in a dark alley?<br />
Is she a Babylon<br />
In the belly of the dragon<br />
Or an oasis, in a desert<br />
Worshipping mammon?<br />
From the monsoon winds<br />
We came through Luna’s lair<br />
Where a priestess asserts her will<br />
Through melodies from hell.<br />
To the whining strings<br />
She writhes <span class="il">and</span> screams,<br />
While the drunken throng cries<br />
Like damned souls in flames.<br />
To the thunder of the drums<br />
They curse <span class="il">and</span> dance;<br />
Through the songs’ violence<br />
Their purge their shame.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-46313811620919342682013-05-16T18:12:00.002-07:002013-05-17T05:42:48.445-07:00Vince Flynn needs to do some basic research on the Philippines<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqpKc3sS1HmLrlSmXztmza92qSvL69qd7KeqkjW-A1M93r1zLvyAxlbClTs5cPGFsH2RnDTGSs3I3fPxa1CWStigErjXEpSOxsc9t22lTiUfZzIibVspZgWE5qb7vW3xVN_ZcD/s1600/Flynn_Executive+Power.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqpKc3sS1HmLrlSmXztmza92qSvL69qd7KeqkjW-A1M93r1zLvyAxlbClTs5cPGFsH2RnDTGSs3I3fPxa1CWStigErjXEpSOxsc9t22lTiUfZzIibVspZgWE5qb7vW3xVN_ZcD/s320/Flynn_Executive+Power.jpg" width="175" /></a></div>
After the failure of US Navy Seals to rescue American
hostages held by Abu Sayyaf, Mitch Rapp, CIA’s top counterterrorist agent-turned
bureaucrat, has to come to the Philippines to do the job himself. He rooted out
the traitors from within the US State Department and their accomplice in the
Philippines, wiped out the band of kidnappers or terrorists, and foiled a larger global menace whose tentacles traces back to the corridors
of money and power in the Middle East.<br />
<br />
Classic Vince Flynn!<br />
<br />
But my praises stop there. It’s obvious that Flynn has
zero knowledge of Philippine geography. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
Consider this: Abu Sayyaf snatched the hostages from Samar
and brought them to their supposed lair in Dinagat Island. Seriously? Could you
imagine the presence of Abu Sayyaf in Dinagat Island? Flyn’s Abu Sayyaf speaks “Filipino.”
If he did simple research, he will know without much effort that Abu Sayyaf operates largely in Basilan and Sulu areas. They speak their own dialects
(mostly Tausug or Yakan) and not Tagalog or Filipino. <br />
<br />
They could never thrive
in Dinagat due to ethnic, language or even religious differences, not to mention the constraints of physical terrain (unless you consider the island's natural bonsai forests as good shelter for guerillas). Dinagatnons
are mostly Visayans (Surigaonons).<o:p></o:p></div>
The supposed accomplice in the Philippines is named General “Moro.”
Another character is named General “Rizal.” Both surnames are not used in the
Philippines. Not anymore.<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
Of course, it's fiction. But fiction could use accurate
background information to be credible.<o:p></o:p></div>
Come on, Vince! You can do better than that. <o:p></o:p>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-31140594821361714412013-05-15T17:00:00.001-07:002013-05-15T17:31:53.390-07:00Are combat sports (boxing and MMA) barbaric?“Two people trying to beat the crap out of each other for a
prize – isn’t that barbaric?” <o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Friends always ask these questions every time they learned I
got a ticket for either a mixed martial arts (MMA) or boxing card.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
If it’s true that our forefathers clubbed each other for pieces
of meat or a handful of berries, prizefighting in today’s world may deserve
that label.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
In fairness to our cave-dwelling forefathers, they may have figured
out early on that they can also get what they wanted, or at least some of it,
by haggling and bargaining. Negotiations must have yielded results that were
mutually beneficial. Out of this process evolved complex relationships of
give-and-take that blossomed into what we now call “civilized behavior.” Nevertheless,
one cannot deny that prizefighting could trace back to that early, nasty episode
in human evolution.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Prizefighting actually thrives in advanced societies. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Greece had <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">pankration </i>(a
combination of boxing and wrestling with few rules) in their Olympics and while
Rome had gladiators. Where do we hold the biggest prizefights covered by media
and beamed to millions of homes worldwide in modern times? America. Europe. Japan.
These countries have advanced economies, produce cutting-edge technologies that
are changing the world, and churn out culture (songs, media, dances, fashion,
philosophy, etc.) that are constantly shaping the way we live. So it’s tempting
to say that the huge and glamorous prize-fighting events in these societies,
beamed to millions of homes worldwide through TV and the Internet, are probably socio-cultural
indicators of "greatness."<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
I heard another “theory.” Maybe human nature hasn’t really
changed since the days of the cave dwellers. We have all the accoutrements of
modernity now (smart phones, internet, jets, better plumbing, glamorous
clothes, table manners, air-conditioning, morning-after pill, etcetera) but we
probably haven’t gone far beyond who we really are since humans first
experienced the thrill of watching fights among fellow savages. (Watch those
crime reports, read the newspapers today and you will realize that lots of places
in the world remain in the Hobbesian state of nature “where life is nasty,
brutish and short.”)<o:p></o:p></div>
Over time, social expectations (mores, laws, regulations,
treaties, agreements, ethics, religion, etc.) have tempered human impulses. Obeying
these rules and expectations, usually buttressed by State violence (i.e. the
courts, cops and the army), is part of the “social contract” to prevent humans
from annihilating each other. This arrangement is getting more important by the
day as the the effectiveness of the tools for killing and maiming (automatic
rifles, machine guns, biological agents, nukes) is improving by the minute. But
it seems like there’s this subconscious and persistent – nay primal – urge for
either employing or watching violence. To use Sigmund Freud’s phraseology, is
this primarily to “to work off the intolerable burdens of civilization”?<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
Hence, we have sports competitions which are essentially simulations
of combat and from which audiences derive vicarious experience and pleasure. I
suppose we have ‘action’ films for the same reason. (We no longer have
gladiators around – passé – because we can now watch combat and bedlam either on
LED TV or the movie screen). <o:p></o:p></div>
And of course, there’s boxing and MMA.<br />
<br />
Barbaric? Nah, just enjoy the show. Or switch the TV off.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-85064473354158215022009-06-03T17:44:00.000-07:002009-06-03T17:46:14.449-07:00The Art and Science (or lack of it) of Parenting, haha!It was Children’s Day at the Bank about two weeks ago and we were supposed to bring our kids to work for them to see what we do at the office. I was surprised to realize I no longer have a “kid” to bring. “Kids” is up to 14 and Ovid is already 19, going 20 in September. Besides, he was not eager to see where I work. He is busy.<br /><br />Maybe it’s a typical attitude among parents to assume that kids stay as our “baby” forever. But each day we feel their efforts to assert themselves, to show us that they have started to live their own lives (except when they need money, haha!). I could sense Ovid doing that: he always has his own schedule, his own views about anything, his own perspective, his own preferences, his own things to do.We share the love for books and reading, for hanging out at bookstores, for discussions and debates, for chatting about everything.<br /><br />We share the passion for history, especially military history. We spend time. We bond regularly. But in all of these, I could always feel his ways and views about things in the universe are getting away from my orbit, especially on things political. He seems to stand on the Right in contrast to my essentially centrist views. But I couldn’t really complain because he always has something from the mists of history to back his own conclusions. I mean, he knows the Greek and Roman civilization more than I do!<br /><br />And boy does he hate boxing, mixed martial arts and contact sports—things that I really am crazy about!“But you always wanted me to be an independent person, to be my own man,” he stressed. “You always told me to think critically, to assess things and decide for myself. That’s what I’m doing and you should be happy about that.”<br /><br />That’s so true. It’s not because I’m a liberal who wish my child to create his own destiny, to reach his potentials in his own way. Well, that too. But the other reason is that I got married so young and clueless how it is to be a parent the “right way.” So I didn’t really know how to “guide” Ovid except to tell him to consult with us all the time so we could figure out together the answers to life’s day-to-day questions. And it seems like the arrangement is working just fine. So far.<br /><br />I mean, the boy is no rotten teenager. Like most teenagers, he is crazy about computer games, Japanese anime, and social networking. But overall, he is a nice fellow, sweet to his mom, unspoiled, sensitive, responsible, and sensible. No complaints really, except that he doesn’t have a girlfriend yet.“Well, if you have to wrestle with advanced calculus and physics, you may not want to complicate your life much further,” he said.<br /><br />The boy has a point there, I must concede.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-35011014982696279932009-04-19T00:18:00.000-07:002009-04-19T00:21:45.380-07:00Brian Viloria's killer right from Hell (We have a new world boxing champion)Brian Viloria has certainly found the fire back. He knocked Ulysses Solis in the 11th round. Those lunging overhand right after a stiff left jab was the killer. It was there all morning, complemented by a nice left uppercut.<br /><br />Solis came well prepared, wit his stiff jabs, and a right uppercut counters as Viloria came that found their mark, most often below that belt. Solis also tried to end the brawl with body shots, in an effort to weaken and finish off Viloria especially in the 7th round.<br /><br />But Brian’s right straight kept on landing on Solis chin, followed by an uppercut as Solis tries to clinch. Solis seems to have abandon defense, sensing he was the more powerful guy. It was only a matter of time before one of them falls.<br /><br />By the 8th round, Solis was trying to press the action with body shots and right straights, while Viloria simply trying to counter with left cross and right straights, his bread and butter punch. Before the round ended, however, two left jabs hit, Solis mid-section, momentarily stunning him. Solis is weak at the midsection? Still it was a Solis round when he almost decked Brian down with a right to the head as the round came to an end.<br /><br />By round nine, Brian’s straight right kept on connecting to Solis chin, followed by left cross to the head. Solis practically had no defense against it. One wonders why Solis was still standing. He tried to press the action but it was obvious he was on panic mode. He needed to score a KO before the other guy did. By round 10, Solis accelerated his aggression with most of his punches landing on the shoulders, sides, and gloves of Brian. He probably felt he needed a knock out to win.<br /><br />By 11th round, Brian kept on throwing his right straights off a left jab and Solis caught them all on his chin. But Solis was the champion, a proud one, and the only thing he knew about winning was by coming forward. He lunged off a feint by Brian hoping to land his Sunday best, only to run smack into a killer right straight from Hell. He slumped like a sack of potatoes, his head hitting the canvas, staying there way beyond the count.<br /><br />They don’t call Brian Villoria “Hawaiian Punch” for nothing.<br /><br />We have a new boxing champion.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-54864154102932764212009-04-14T05:02:00.000-07:002009-04-14T05:06:21.640-07:00The books we read (Or why men love bitches)A friend one time asked me for book titled “Why men love bitches.” I was shocked to learn the title was not available in all the bookstores I called.<br /><br />“It’s selling like hotcakes,” a Powerbooks staff told me.<br /><br />“You mean all the girls these days want to be bitches?”<br /><br />It’s probably a zeitgeist, the spirit of the age. About a decade or two ago, girls in my circles were crazy about the works of Antonio Gramsci, Franz Fanon, Karl Marx and other “socially relevant” writers. They wanted to reengineer society. Now, many simply want to be “bitches,” to be winners in life, be it in the realm of relationships, business, or career.<br /><br />Times have changed. Apparently, Francis Fukuyama didn’t call the collapse of Berlin Wall “the end of history” for nothing.<br /><br />But come to think of it, zeitgeist actually shapes our reading habits—or at least, my reading habits. Not the other way around.<br /><br />Recently, I found myself reading books about snipers (War of the Rats; One Shot, One Kill, Sniper One, Point of Impact). I seemed to have lost interest in political economy, international trade, or globalization. Maybe it’s because all these books are proving to be inadequate to explain the global financial and economic mess were are in. Remember Alan Greenspan’s “The Age of Turbulence”? Or Thomas Friedman’s “The World Is Flat?” I use to read these types of books. Since September 2008, however, they all started to look like the works of charlatans.<br /><br />Why books on snipers? It’s probably an escapist thing, a passing fancy.<br /><br />In these times of uncertainty, however, books on snipers are getting to be interesting. In the world of a sniper, a problem is analyzed through a 12-power scope and solved with a well-placed shot. The world is simple: you are either on the right side the barrel, or the wrong side.<br /><br />I still keep Plato’s the Republic at my bedside, though.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-22758992036071937562009-03-19T17:50:00.000-07:002009-03-19T18:17:43.653-07:00At the coffee shop<em>Just another crazy poem, hehe... Sometimes you can't help but see scenes like this.</em><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;">Her lush ebony strands of hair,<br />Stream down like lingering lust<br />Over a tight frame caressed by summer.<br />Her piercing eyes burn like ember,<br />Her rippling flesh struggles<br />Against tank tops and barbarians’ trousers—<br />White silken, flowing garments,<br />As thin as heathens' prayers.<br />She’s a bewitching happy face;<br />Like a mermaid’s midnight song.<br />An angel from the heavens,<br />In a sinner's thong.</span>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-52002074126467858552009-02-26T23:55:00.000-08:002013-05-16T23:38:23.464-07:00The Lilith<em>We all write crazy poems and I do wrote mine. In fact, I do it all the time just for the heck of it. Creative expression? Angst? Whatever. You may read it if you have time to waste. Ha ha!</em><br />
<br />
The lilith crept up my nightmares<br />
Through a narrow bridge unlit.<br />
She came in drifting<br />
Like a ghost from Innana's lair,<br />
A beguiling striptease in the wind<br />
Sweeping across the rugged hills,<br />
An earthly lover in ghostly realm.<br />
<br />
But like the morning mist,<br />
She slips through my claws<br />
As the roosters break the dawn.<br />
With a temptress' smile she fades away<br />
From the last strands of darkness<br />
To escape the warmth of day.<br />
<br />
Because she is a lilith<br />
From the twilight of history,<br />
A tormentor of ruthless hunters,<br />
Who comes dressed as Ishtar's daugther,<br />
She slips stealthily into the night<br />
To posses men's hopes and dreams,<br />
Across a heartless bridge unlit.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-32790608229900040672009-01-19T00:23:00.000-08:002009-01-19T00:25:44.614-08:00Penalosa versus Lopez, Margarito versus Mosley: new entries in my boxing blogCould <a href="http://davellorito.blogspot.com/2009/01/will-gerry-pealosa-beat-puerto-rican.html">Gerry Peñalosa beat Juan Manuel Lopez</a>? Will the Shane Mosley suffer the fate of Miguel Cotto in <a href="http://davellorito.blogspot.com/2009/01/will-margarito-mosley-be-like-margarito.html">Sunday’s boxing with Antonio Margarito</a>? You may read my thoughts on boxing in my new blog entitled <strong>“Sweet Science.”</strong>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-1825200697143751032009-01-13T18:50:00.000-08:002009-01-13T18:51:41.988-08:00The Next Manny Pacquiao<span style="font-family:georgia;">Is Bernabe Conception the next Pacquiao? You may read my take in my other blog called </span><a href="http://davellorito.blogspot.com/2009/01/bernabe-concepcion-next-manny-pacquiao.html"><span style="font-family:georgia;">Sweet Science</span></a><span style="font-family:georgia;">.</span>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-16399979436206635812009-01-08T02:33:00.000-08:002009-01-08T02:36:13.606-08:00The global financial crisis and its impact up close and personalI sure did expect that the global financial crisis would somehow touch people’s lives in very personal ways. But <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/12/30/america/30divorce.php">International Herald Tribune's story</a> (January 1, 2009) on how the crisis in the US is turning divorce on its head shocked me.<br /><br />In normal times, divorcing couples sell their house and divide what is left after paying the mortgage. Or a partner buys out the other to maintain possession of the house. Then each one moves on with his or her life. But with the collapse of the house prices, many couples find that the values of their homes are less than what they owe the banks. There is no money to divide if they have to sell the house. There is no money to start afresh.<br /><br />Result? Some estranged couples, many of them undergoing divorce proceedings, have to continue staying in the same roof. There are cases, the story says, where the husband has to occupy the first floor and the wife the second, with each of them bringing in a new lover, thus adding a new layer of complexity in their relationships.<br /><br />A tragic dimension to this global financial storm, shall I say.<br /><br />But let me digress. That story also reminds us what really drives social policy on marriage and divorce. Somehow, economics plays a great part in estranged couples’ decision whether or not to part ways. When a country has reach a point where its economy provides enough economic options for each, or specifically for the women, there would be greater clamor for divorce’s legalization.<br /><br />In the Philippines, women’s groups have been crying for the legalization of divorce but to no avail. There is simply no political market for such a policy—at least not yet. A suffering partner, most likely the woman, would simply grin and bear a lousy marriage knowing that her life would be economically worse if she leaves the conjugal house. But wait until the country’s per capita GDP has reached a certain level (and let me hazard a guess: 5000 US dollars), and there would be massive clamor for divorce. That seems to be a long way to go, however.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-75560225446932867382008-07-27T20:31:00.000-07:002008-07-27T20:32:45.268-07:00This blog is officially closed.Friends: This blog is officially closed.<br /><br />For now.<br /><br />I'm on vacation.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-31559691601927111342008-06-27T02:46:00.000-07:002008-06-27T02:55:55.786-07:00Pilipino versus English: A continuing debate<em>The debate on the use of English and Pilipino as medium of instruction is a hot topic among the middle class in the Philippines. Lately, I found myself engaging in a nice discussions with learned persons online. Excerpts (unedited):</em><br /><br /><strong>GERONIMO SY (Lawyer and columnist. Manila Times):</strong> It is equally true that speaking English cannot be the end all and be all of our education system, that not to churn out good English speakers condemns the entire learning apparatus to hell and hence the fate of our nation. If it were so, then how do we explain the ascendancy of Japan, the rise of China, the emergence of Korea and the fast coming Vietnam—all with kindergarten English?<br /><br />Studies now point to the use of the vernacular as a medium of instruction in the early years to facilitate teaching and learning. Media has long embraced Filipino as our lingua franca that sends the message home. It is acceptable and downright fashionable to speak deep and high Tagalog in political circles. It is time we take English what it is - a tool to communicate. Stop the circular arguments on which language comes first.<br /><br /><strong>TESSY ANG-SEE (famous civic leader):</strong> Master our own first languages first and we can master the second language better!! In our case, we mastered Tagalog first, then learned Hokkien (our local dialect, lingua franca of the Tsinoys here), then learned English and then learned Mandarin!! We are able to master the first three, mandarin is something else because there was no speech community to support it and it is more alien to us, being a language of the north while Hokkien and Tagalog belong to the austronesian linguistics group.... [i managed to pick up mandarin much later in life while doing research]<br /><br /><strong>DAVE LLORITO (journalist, researcher):</strong> Would anybody hire a graduate for her/his "mastery" of Tagalog? (I dont call it "Filipino" because its really is Tagalog.) as English-Tagalog translator maybe, or a Tabloid reporter, but not much else. Should we master Tagalog so that in the real world, in the world of jobs, entrepreneurship and business we are going to use English as the medium of communication? But that's my dilemma. But maybe there is no conflict here. but how do we translate that to policy? Maybe we should learn the basic dialects/language from the first and third grade then shift to English later until college. so we will have Visayans or Tagalogs, or Ilocanos using their languages first in early elementary before they eventually shift to English as medium of instruction. Sounds good to me. But Tagalog should never be imposed. But hey, isn’t English also part of our Filipino heritage as a nation? I'm just sharing my random thoughts here, actually.<br /><br /><strong>ADDIE SUZARA (Finance expert, technopreneur and computer geek):</strong> I was born in a large family where Tagalog, Bicolano, English and some Spanish were spoken. I then went to schools where English was the medium of instruction but where Pilipino was taught as a subject and I learned grammar and read literature. I also took up formal Spanish in college.<br />I can now speak and write English well, speak Tagalog well but write with a little difficulty only due to lack of practice, speak Bicolano with a little difficulty because of lack of practice, haven't tried writing in Bicolano, and can't do much oral and written Spanish. I think it worked out OK for me.<br /><br /><strong>DAVE:</strong> Addie, You are a very good case study. The fact is you enrolled in schools using English as medium of instruction and where Pilipino is taught as a subject and it worked well for you. Pilipino only as one of the subjects, and not as medium of instruction! I like that. And I guess no one could question Addie's nationalism, identity and patriotism.<br /><br /><strong>ADDIE:</strong> Thank you Dave but let me hasten to add that, until I went to Kindergarten at age 6, Tagalog with a Bicolano flavor was my primary spoken language.<br /><br /><strong>TESSIE:</strong> [We are] missing the point entirely when we insist that to find jobs we should know English. We miss to consider the fundamental role of language in establishing identity and ethnicity…<br /><br /><strong>DAVE:</strong> I was raising a practical, real world perspective. The job market, the world of entrepreneurship and business, are using English and in that world mastery of this language, plus skills in the math and science are what really matters. I know because I have lots of friends who are nationalistic but who actually enroll their kids in exclusive schools that are teaching purely English. Most of those who actually argue for Tagalog, ehe Filipino, are doing their finest points in English. And they use English extensively at home.<br /><br /><strong>TESSIE:</strong> For people from educated families, lower middle class and above, there's no problem using English as a medium of instruction. These are people who have access to other media, books, newspapers, adult conversation etc. Being a nationalist Filipino or not has nothing to do with it. No one becomes less Filipino just because he learns English or another dialect first and not Filipino as a first language.<br /><br />However we are speaking of 60 percent of our population who live below the poverty line who should have a good grasp of a national language before a second language is forced on them. If you go to Malaysia and Indonesia, what welcomes you at the airport are all Malay greetings and Malay music ..It is a language that binds the nation. Contrast that with what greets us and our kababayan at our airport!<br /><br /><strong>ADDIE:</strong> While I do come from the 40% of the population who live above the poverty line, I would not say that those from the 60% did not have all the opportunities available to me in terms of learning other languages.Let us not forget that most of us grew up in at least a two language environment - the local dialect and Tagalog. I spoke Tagalog and Bicolano because my mother was from Taagalog soeaking Labo while my father came from Bicolano speaking Daet. Both these towns are in Camarines Norte. I agree with Dave that the gut issue is when to use English as a medium of instruction. I say "a" instead of "the" because I think we can have more than one medium of instruction. I think our kids wherever they may be can easily absorb a third language. The areas of improvement are in the school system.<br /><br /><strong>DAVE:</strong> Again, the question here is translating this to policy. If you are in the Visayas, you certainly will feel that Tagalog or Pilipino is being "forced" on you. If "promotion" of the national language is the Tagalogization of the entire country, that will surely fail and it has failed since Marcos.<br /><br />The promotion of the local Bahasa language was done under authoritarian regime. It was imposed on them. Example: During the days of Suharto, the Chinese were barred from learning the Chinese language/dialects; they were not allowed to open up Chinese schools in the name of national unity. It's only after the fall of Suharto that the Chinese started putting up Chinese schools. This is what my Indonesian friend told me. Well, it seemed to have worked well for them, given their historical circumstances.<br /><br />Marcos actually tried the same approach through the imposition of Tagalog, and we called it Filipino, and that policy failed. Maybe Marcos was not ruthless enough? Not really. I think one reason is that English is also part of our national heritage. And it's no brainer why we cling to that language despite the Marcos policy: it has become a ticket out of poverty for many Filipinos. It has become a ticket for many to escape through the claws of the monopolists and the vampire elite of this country. That 15 billion dollars that buttress the economy, that prevents the economy from total disintegration, that has become a safety valve against a Marxist socialist revolution, is the offshoot of our capability to speak and use the English language.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-76813436693718333562008-06-17T21:34:00.000-07:002008-06-17T21:58:29.499-07:00A case for political fact checking in the PhilippinesI was wondering how <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media">social media</a> or the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_media">new media</a> could help improve the debates in the 2010 Philippine presidential elections until I came across <a href="http://www.factcheck.org/"><strong>Factcheck.org</strong></a>. This site, being run by a non-partisan and non-profit group from the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, monitors the factual accuracy of the statements, ads, speeches, interviews, and news releases by major US political players. The g goal is “to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship, and to increase public knowledge and understanding.”<br /><br />It's motto: "Holding politicians accountable."<br /><br />Recent example: “Obama says his health care plan will garner large savings – $120 billion a year, or $2,500 per family – with more than half coming from the use of electronic health records. And he says he’ll make that happen in his first term.” The group says that statement is “overly optimistic, misleading and, to some extent, contradicted by one of his own advisers. And it masks the true cost of his plan to cover millions of Americans who now have no health insurance.” Then the group proceeds to explain and analyze why Obama is wrong.<br /><br />There’s also a lot fact checking stuff on John McCain, and Hillary Clinton policy pronouncements.<br /><br />We need something like this for the 2010 presidential election. In fact, we need it to enhance and advance democracy in this country. Who should do this? Suggestion: why not our universities like UP, Ateneo, LaSalle, UST and others form a consortium for this? They should gather a pool of experts, researchers and a secretariat for this effort as soon as possible. Local and multilateral institutions who care about “governance” may contribute money to finance its operations.<br /><br />This way politicians and decision-makers would be forced to study and think through the issues before they could even think about opening their mouths.<br /><br />What do you think?Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-15167959487750760512008-06-16T22:06:00.000-07:002008-06-16T22:14:41.633-07:00Obama is a free-market guy after all!US presidential candidate Barack Obama after all “loves the market,” contrary to his earlier posturing as a protectionist. On CNBC, courtesy of Paul Krugman’s blog “<a href="http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/16/mundus-vult-decipi-ergo-decipiatur/"><strong>Conscience of a Liberal</strong></a>,” he said: “Look. I am a pro-growth, free-market guy. I love the market” to the dismay of globalization hater Naomi Klein <a href="http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080630/klein"><strong>who castigated Obama</strong></a> for appointing in his policy team Chicago School economists who are supposed to be disciples of free market guru Milton Friedman.<br /><br />Says Klein: <span style="color:#6600cc;">“Obama's love of markets and his desire for "change" are not inherently incompatible. "The market has gotten out of balance," he says, and it most certainly has. Many trace this profound imbalance back to the ideas of Milton Friedman, who launched a counterrevolution against the New Deal from his perch at the University of Chicago economics department. And here there are more problems, because Obama—who taught law at the University of Chicago for a decade—is thoroughly embedded in the mind-set known as the Chicago School.”</span><br /><br />Politics and politicians—they are the same all over the world. I wonder if his sentiment extends to international trade, say the Doha Round of trade talks where American leadership is sorely needed. But who knows, he might just change his tune again once he feels it’s necessary to do so just to get the votes? It’s really all about political marketing, if ever there is such a thing. And by the way, if John McCain loves the market and Obama loves the market, will anybody tell me who is who?Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-56807274694226761652008-06-12T21:16:00.000-07:002008-06-13T02:52:08.571-07:00The old narrative about OFWs is passéWe usually think of OFWs as “modern day heroes” and it’s so easy to see why. The dollar they send back home is the linchpin that’s preventing the Philippine economy from disintegrating. They work so hard in foreign lands, suffer loneliness and isolation, and some got abused by their employers—all in the name of the dollar or euro that they desperately need to feed their families, send their kids to school, build dream homes and ultimately prop up the economy. But blogger and writer Jessica Zafra has <a href="http://jessicarulestheuniverse.com/2008/06/11/diasporama/"><strong>an interesting counterintuitive take</strong></a> on this in her review of Chito Rono's film "Caregiver":<br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">“Hey, we’re not exactly sitting by the pool sipping banana daiquiris either. Most of us work, all of us have problems. It is also possible to experience alienation and isolation in your homeland. How about a little respect for the Pinoys who stick around and do the best they can in truly trying circumstances? No one has a monopoly on suffering, but everyone has a unique story. We need fresh insights on the Pinoy experience at home and abroad, ...”<br /></span><br /><em>Oo nga naman.<br /></em><br />What social observers often miss is the fact that <a href="http://davidllorito.blogspot.com/2007/09/from-ofw-to-pinoy-expat-analyzing-malu.html"><strong>the narrative about OFWs may have changed</strong></a>. We often refer to OFWs as economic refugees driven to foreign shores by want and desperation. These days, however, a significant proportion of OFWs are high paying professionals (medical professionals, engineers, software engineers, artists, skilled workers, among others) who are attracted by a host of factors other than economic. It’s the brave new world of globalization and our professionals, the crème de le crème of society who may actually have lots of opportunities here, are exercising their options to enrich their lives by experiencing how it is to live in foreign cultures and climes. It’s a decision no different from those Americans, Koreans, and Europeans who settled here in the Philippines for the love of the warm weather and the beautiful beaches.<br /><br />With the advent of technologies like Internet chat, global roaming, SMS, video conferencing, voice-over-internet calls, it’s possible that the imagined negative social impact of labor migration on family cohesiveness may not actually be that alarming. Maybe, maybe not. But what I'm trying to say is that the old story line by now should be passé and we need to appreciate that.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-31408219006310288732008-06-11T18:16:00.000-07:002008-06-11T21:31:44.921-07:00The secret sauce for progress: lessons from 13 economiesIf you want to lick poverty, it’s necessary to achieve high economic growth. That’s commonsensical, right?. But how do you achieve high economic growth and sustain it? Experts say there is no silver bullet. But in a latest <a href="http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/NEWS/0,,contentMDK:21771716~pagePK:64257043~piPK:437376~theSitePK:4607,00.html"><strong>study by the World Bank on 13 fast growing economies</strong></a>, experts say they were able to identify the ingredients of a secret sauce. These fast growing economies <span style="color:#000099;">fully exploited the world economy; maintained macroeconomic stability; mustered high rates of saving and investment; let markets allocate resources; and had committed, credible and capable governments.<br /></span><br />These 13 countries are Botswana, Brazil, Hongkong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Malta, Oman, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. These countries posted 7 percent growth rates over 25 years or more after World War 2.<br /><br />How to sustain high growth? Says the Report: “For growth to be sustained, it must be growth that takes into account that we are living in a more and more globalized world,” says Danuta Hubner, European Commissioner for Regional Policy. “We need growth that is using all the opportunities that are offered by the global economy.”<br /><br />There you go! Globalization, and making the most out it, is the key.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-22952102542118320212008-06-09T04:23:00.000-07:002008-06-09T19:44:57.316-07:00The Brits to burn their trash!We are suffering from the garbage crisis (trash are everywhere) and yet, we don’t seem to know how to deal with it effectively. Why not recycle it by burning the stuff to generate power? I’m not talking about the old clunky incinerators here but gasification. Britain has recently decided it’s the <a href="http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1812346,00.html"><span style="color:#990000;">way to go to deal with its own garbage crisis</span>.</a> Says the Time Online Report:<br /><br /><span style="color:#3333ff;">“Gasification mixes waste with small amounts of oxygen, then heats it at a high temperature — around 1,830 degrees Fahrenheit — in an air-tight chamber. The resulting syngas — a cocktail of light gases, including methane and natural gas — is burned, boiling water into steam to run a turbine. </span><a href="http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/environment/article/0,28804,1730759_1731383_1731989,00.html" target="_self"><span style="color:#990000;">Gasification is an established technique</span></a><span style="color:#3333ff;">, already used with fossil fuels, particularly coal. Applying it to rubbish opens a new and abundant fuel source. "As a waste-disposal method, it seems to make a lot of sense," says Jonathan R. Gibbins, an energy expert at London's Imperial College.”</span><br /><br />Why don’t we consider this type of technology here? The most environmentally conscious countries like Norway and Germany have been using this type of technology. Says the Report:<br /><br /><span style="color:#3333ff;">“Energos — which operates five gasification plants in Norway and one in Germany — says that on balance, the plant will shrink the island's carbon footprint. It will emit the about the same amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere as does decay from the landfill. "The benefit is, we're producing electricity" from a renewable source, Grimshaw says. Because those 2,000 homes won't be getting power from a fossil fuel plant, Energos estimates that will cut carbon emissions by 2,000 tons.”</span><br /><br />Technologies like these are probably expensive. But who says that caring for the environment is cheap?Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-19098532238544372362008-06-05T23:44:00.000-07:002013-05-16T23:28:25.488-07:00Boracay, party island<div author="davellorito" author_possessive="davellorito's" class="bodytext" id="item_body" style="font-family: georgia;">
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Even at midnight, the green tea at Lonely Planet Cafe near the Regency Hotel in Boracay looked too green for comfort. A feet away, tourists—mostly girls from as far as Korea, China, US and Europe— in tight minimal summer clothing were grinding their hips against the frenetic urgent beat, their hands raised up high swaying like tree branches being battered by the monsoon winds. Lumen, Kathy and I were not daunted. After all, neither we were there for tea nor the humanly distraction, but a place to sit, chat, breathe fresher air, and feel the white powdery sands push up through our toes. We just had a long walk along the shorelines under the gaze of the distant stars. We needed the break to clear our senses overwhelmed by the discussions that never seem to end.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Surveying the scene, I realized how Boracay has become a place of Becoming, where souls regulated by social mores and expectations could be what they want to be. Then they return to their prim-and-proper selves once they get back into their natural abode.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“It has become a place to get laid,” says one inebriated soul whose identity I cannot recall. “It's more like a place where predators of all types converge—sexual, corporate, or commercial or the combination thereof,” says another intoxicated "social philosopher."</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Harsh assessment, shall I say. Unfair. </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Despite the overcrowding, there are still some nooks an crannies in the Island where one could enjoy solitude, a corner to write poems and contemplate the meaning of life and the universe. </span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">For the right price, of course.</span></span></div>
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Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-57915917703568031902008-05-22T16:13:00.000-07:002008-06-11T00:05:53.852-07:00World Bank: from the outside coming in<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mCUGQ6LlMotl_QV4GDbFvkDOZ4uUfqdMYtKrLvex1rwm-onr3oul_U-WltzEhQVC3NLMgSU8ab4bET8kxCB4rnR01KRk_21tBfcg01RJnNNgDi4Y2-usCguSzJQPynoiEjFz/s1600-h/forblog2.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5203418050119032722" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; CURSOR: pointer" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mCUGQ6LlMotl_QV4GDbFvkDOZ4uUfqdMYtKrLvex1rwm-onr3oul_U-WltzEhQVC3NLMgSU8ab4bET8kxCB4rnR01KRk_21tBfcg01RJnNNgDi4Y2-usCguSzJQPynoiEjFz/s200/forblog2.JPG" border="0" /></a><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >Stan Grant introduced himself in a voice that reminded me of those gritty CNN reporters doing business in time of war. In fact, Stan was a former CNN reporter who recently joined the World Bank to do communications work. He used to cover the Asia-Pacific and most of the political hot spots in the world. I asked him why he left his exciting career for a less adrenalin-driven one at the Bank. It's because, he said, he wants to see and learn from the inside how the Bank works. “How about you?"<br /></span><div class="bodytext" id="item_body" author_possessive="davellorito's" author="davellorito"><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >Tough question. </span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >I joined the Bank about two weeks ago, the reason why I'm here in Washington DC. I'm on training. Some friends and colleagues who learned about my decision had mixed feelings. Ping G (my editor in chief) and Leah D (managing editor) at Entrepreneur magazine/Summit Media congratulated me. But there are those who gave a disconcerting, even hostile, reaction. It was as if I'd betrayed some unwritten code or sold my soul to the devil. “I always thought of you as a non-conformist who might get bored working for a rigid and formalistic organizations like the WB,” said another. </span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >I answered Stan: “There are so many opportunities for learning new things; that really excites me. I had a glimpse of how the Bank works when I joined a team of researchers who did the social assessment of Mindanao in 2003 to help families displaced by the war recover their lives. Since then, I was wondering how interesting it would be to become part of a global institution that is doing lots of things in areas like poverty alleviation, governance reforms, infrastructure development, the environment, among other things.”</span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >And indeed, there is so much of such learning opportunities here in Washington DC. There would be much more when I'm back in Manila.</span></p></div>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-78943884956102167982008-05-21T05:12:00.000-07:002008-05-21T13:55:22.779-07:00Japan and the English language: a view from Washington DC<span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >“<span lang="en-US">Seeing my country Japan from the distance, from here in Washington DC, I could see it as someone who is aging and tired, less aggressive, insular.” That comment came from my friend Nobu Saito, business journalist par excellence, who is based here in Washington DC. That really surprised me because I always knew Japan as a technology advanced country and a leading producer of electronic gadgets, cars, machines, and high tech. </span></span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >“<span lang="en-US">That is just my opinion, anyway,” he said.</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"> </span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)"></span></span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0)">Nobu picked me up last week from my hotel, Windsor Inn, at 16<sup>th</sup> Street Washington DC, so we could have some catching up. Nobu and I became friends during the Jefferson Fellowship where we traveled through the US, China and India together with a dozen other journalists from the Asia-Pacific. This guy has a great sense humor, quick wit, and deep intelligence that could easily reveal through the fog of beer, red wine, and the spirited laughter.</span></span></span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >If there's one country to watch, he says, that should be South Korea. It's high tech industries is conquering global markets and the young Koreans are going out into the world, into the United States, Australia, Europe and the Philippines to learn the English language and other things that the globalized world can offer. It's so aggressive, dynamic and innovative, says Nobu. “The Japanese people should do the same, should go out into the world.”</span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >“<span lang="en-US">But the Japanese is still the leading producer of cars, photocopiers and leading edge technologies,” I countered.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >“<span lang="en-US">Yeah, but you should take note that companies like Toyota, Canon and other big firms from Japan are no longer “Japanese,” he said. “They are now global companies,” he said, apparently implying that the identity of these firms are no longer linked to the Japanese flag.</span></span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >I don't understand why companies or corporations should have definite national flag to look up to. It's the brave new world of globalization and the borders have become meaningless. But certainly, Nobu's take on the need to master the English language is something that resonates with me. Despite all the obvious economic and probably social benefits of learning English, there are still in our midsts those who think that going native, or going “Filipino” for “nationalistic” reasons” at the expense of English is the way to go. That probably explains why we can't seem to muster enough political and public will to bring our knowledge and use of the English language up to a higher level.</span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-size:100%;" >Well, that's just my opinion anyway—to use Nobu's words. </span><br /><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(0,0,0);font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >Thanks for that meeting, Nobu. I really appreciate our exchange of ideas!</span>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-81471667538099553282008-05-18T14:00:00.000-07:002008-05-18T14:16:31.490-07:00The DC as Obama country?If it's only Washington DC that determines the fate of America, Barack Obama should be president this coming American presidential elections. I don't know but most people I've met here are all crazy about the audacity of Obama's presidential hope. Obama T-shirts are selling like hotcakes. Or so it seems.<br /><br />Over brunch, Mara, a DC-based journalist friend asked me how I think an Obama presidency would impact on the Philippines. And how Filipinos perceive him.<br /><br />"I really think most Filipinos do not really care who sits at the White House," I answered. "Of course, Americans don't care what Filipinos think either. Obama or McCain or Hillary--America will always pursue her own 'national interest' and it would be good it that interest would converge also with our interest, whatever that is. But one thing is certain: Most Filipinos would always be pro-American for historical and many other reasons."<br /><br />I added: "But in general, many Filipinos seem to like Obama, maybe because he looks cute, talks smoothly, and appears different from the typical American politician. Just like in the Philippines, people who want "change," whatever that means, would always vote for a politician who looks and talks quite differently from the usual, typical politician."<br /><br />Yeah, we want a duck that doesn't quack like a duck.<br /><br />Personally, I'm concerned that an Obama presidency would drift towards protectionism. That's would be bad for the trade-oriented Southeast Asia, given his tendency to pander to local protectionist passions. But I could be wrong. His anti-free trade and anti-outsourcing tirades are probably just political marketing, and its something that he cannot enforce anyway given that American businesses are able to maintain global competitiveness because of outsourcing.<br /><br />But his foreign trade policy statements suggest that an Obama presidency would never be expected to lead the push for a global free trade deal the way Bill Clinton did,or tried, when he was at the White House. That would be bad for developing countries. But then again, neither Hillary nor McCain are probably inclined towards a new and better global trade deal. So let's see.<br />Anyway...<br /><br />Hey Mara! Thanks for that really nice chat and brunch. Really love that we were able to catch up. And oh, Busboys and Poets [the restaurant] is really great. I enjoyed being there a lot! See you next year, my friend.Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19345719.post-7487515646311200172008-05-14T05:14:00.000-07:002008-05-18T14:07:53.042-07:00End of domestication?<span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">So the superstition is not true after all.</span> <p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">No one gave me any travel bag last December so I thought I was in for a life of total domestication in 2008. I really thought so when I won an electric flat iron during the company raffle. Nothing beats a flat iron as a symbol for domesticity, right?</span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">Well, I was probably wrong because I'm now on a journey back to Washington DC to attend the World Bank communicators' forum. (I'm at PAL's Mabuhay Lounge, enjoying the free Wi-fi). I'm excited because it will a great opportunity for learning new things in the field of communications. Also, I'll probably be seeing some relatives and friends: Judith Kliks and David Pitts from the IVP [International Visitors Program, State Department] as well as Mara Lee and Nobuhiro Saito, all DC-based journalists, from the Jefferson Fellowship last Spring 2007.</span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">Of course, I just love DC! I just can't get enough of its historical monuments, museums, huge public buildings, and wide open spaces for the public sphere. In May, the temperature there ranges from 11-21 degrees C, probably just like Baguio City. It's perfect for an occasional visitor like me. I'm not sure though if I would have the chance to go around.</span></p><p lang="en-US" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 0in;font-family:georgia,times new roman,times,serif;" ><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">So friends, wish me good luck!</span></p>Dave Lloritohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13592787212335457164noreply@blogger.com3