Philippine team sacks US import for Pacquiao insult

 General
Feb 242015
 
Philippine team sacks US import for Pacquiao insult

Philippine basketball authorities have sacked and fined an American import for ridiculing national boxing hero Manny Pacquiao’s quest to become a professional basketballer. Former NBA player Daniel Orton hit the headlines last week after playing against Pacquiao in the local pro-league, a game in which the 1.69-metre (5 foot-6 inch) boxing champion scored a solitary point. “Professional boxer, yeah, okay… professional basketball player, no. It’s a joke,” said Orton, 24, who signed with the Purefoods Hotshots team just this month. Orton appeared to simply be adding his voice to widespread criticism in the Philippines that Pacquiao is a relatively talentless basketballer who gained his coaching-playing role with the Kia Carnival team because of his boxing fame. But his comments were too much for Philippine basketball chiefs. His team sacked Orton late last week, and he posted a farewell to his fans in the Philippines on Twitter on Monday. “I thank God for my time in the Philippines and thank Purefoods for everything. I wish the team the best of luck,” Orton said. Purefoods management refused to comment to AFP on Tuesday. But the team’s top administrator, Rene Pardo, was quoted in local media as saying Orton had been let go for insulting Pacquiao. “Everyone is angry at him… it is like he went to the United States and insulted the name of Martin Luther King,” the ABS-CBN news website quoted Pardo as saying. The Philippine Basketball Association also fined Orton 250,000 pesos ($5,650) for his comments. “This office disapproves of Read More …

Napeñas admits US hand in intelligence sharing during Mamasapano operation

 News
Feb 242015
 
Napeñas admits US hand in intelligence sharing during Mamasapano operation

Relieved SAF chief Getulio Napeñas. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The United States indeed helped the Philippines in terms of intelligence sharing during the Mamasapano operation but not in actual combat operations, relieved Philippine National Police-Special Action Force head Director Getulio Napeñas told a Senate hearing on Tuesday. It was Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto who again brought up during the Senate hearing on incident the issue about the alleged US’ involvement in the operation, citing among others, the Google Maps and US drones that were allegedly used to guide the SAF troopers to locate Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias “Marwan.” “Merong eropanong lumilipad na nagbibigay sa inyo ng aerial view sa command center n’yo that there are American operatives also in their command center na napanaoood n’yo in real time. ‘Yung 84th SAF habang binaril si Marwan, habang kinukuha n’yo ‘yung 84th SAF napapanood n’yo in real time e,” Recto said. (There was a drone which gave you an aerial view in your command center that there were also American operatives also in their command center whom could also see real time. You could also see in real time while Marwan was being shot and while 84th SAF men were being extracted.) “Tumulong ‘yung US counterpart dun sa intelligence but the details of intelligence sharing ay madi-discuss po ‘yan ni Senior Supt. Mendez,” Napeñas said, referring to PNP Intelligence Group Director Fernando Mendez. (Our US counterpart helped in the intelligence gathering, but the details of intelligence sharing will be discussed by Senior Supt. Mendez.) “Meron kaming isang US counterpart du’n sa Seaborn who’s working with them in terms of training…Kasama po na ibinibigay nila ‘yung Read More …

New York’s UniPro launches chapter in San Diego, California

 News
Feb 232015
 
New York’s UniPro launches chapter in San Diego, California

Hon. Consul General Audie de Castro opens the UniPro San Diego launch. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO SAN DIEGO, California – More than 50 members of the Filipino community here on February 6 welcomed the new San Diego chapter of the New York City-based Pilipino American Unity for Progress (UniPro). The gathering at the United Domestic Workers of America (UDW) Community Hall was co-sponsored by UDW, National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA) and Silayan Filipina. Consul General Audie de Castro urged the audience to strive for unity and to promote Filipino American interests in San Diego. “In the past couple of years, our community has worked together better than ever.  A major reason is that I have seen many of you reach out to all generations and to others with different political views.  This is the best time for UniPro to be created in San Diego. I look forward to working with all of you.” Small group discussions tackled what UniPro can do to serve the San Diego area. Some of the recurring themes included the needs for improved communication, greater visibility in the political sphere and professional and personal development. Some of the possible solutions presented were the creation of a Filipino community center, a database of Filipino American organizations in San Diego, regular town hall meetings and leadership and mentorship programs in the community. Attendees in small group discussions at the UniPro San Diego launch. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO UniPro’s San Diego chapter is the organization’s first venture outside of New York Read More …

Hearth Angel: Food videoblogger Liza De Guia

 News
Feb 232015
 
Hearth Angel: Food videoblogger Liza De Guia

FoodCurated videoblogger Liza de Guia on location at a market. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO First posted in PositivelyFilipino.com “Everyone has something interesting hidden in their hearts. I’d like to tell their story,” says Liza de Guia. De Guia, chief storyteller of the video blog, Food Curated, is a young and multi-awarded Filipina journalist living her dream in New York. Here’s the story of her stories. The Food Curated video captured it. The chef spoke no English, but I understood. “I give people my torta, I say ‘good luck,’” says Chef Galdino, a New York food trucker, as he piles ingredients into tortas, Latin sandwiches with pan-seared pork slices, cheese slabs, slivers of lettuce, tomato and onion, slathered with seasonings. The camera zooms a close-up as he serves a sandwich to a hungry customer. The food truck is in Corona, Queens, NYC, but who can resist getting a torta after seeing this? De Guia’s biweekly FoodCurated.com features story after story of the undiscovered food artisan, chef, restaurant, or craft. She presents a finely produced story with every edition on her TV series. After every show, the unknown person, product, or place featured becomes so well recognized business booms for them. De Guia has helped so many with her storytelling. It is no surprise she has been recognized by peers and received so many prestigious awards. Food Curated went on the air in 2009. De Guia has earned four James Beard Award nominations, 2010 to 2013  (a Beard is the “Oscars” in the food world) and was 2012 Webby Awards Official Honoree, Read More …

11.4 million have signed up for Obamacare coverage

 News
Feb 232015
 
11.4 million have signed up for Obamacare coverage

LOS ANGELES — More than 11 million individuals signed up for or renewed health insurance under options made available through the Affordable Care Act, the White House announced February 17. “The Affordable Care Act is working,” President Barack Obama said in a video posted on Facebook. “It’s working a little better than we anticipated.” Sunday, February 15, was the biggest enrollment day ever, the White House said. “In the final day, we had more consumers sign up than we’ve ever had last year or this year in terms of those numbers,” Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell said in the Facebook video. The figure of 11.4 million who have health insurance through Obamacare, however, is a preliminary one that could grow or shrink depending on certain scenarios. This number could be greater, as the administration is offering those who started but weren’t able to complete applications a grace period that ends February 22. But the final number could decline if people who have signed up for coverage in 2015 do not follow through in paying their premiums. For instance, in 2014, 8 million consumers had initially signed up. However, by fall, only 6.7 million remained in the program; some of those who left found other coverage through a job. The majority of Americans obtain health insurance through Medical, Medicaid or their employers, but an additional 10 million uninsured individuals gained insurance last year through the coverage expansion. Some states expanded Medicaid, while another part of the law provides workers and families Read More …

The need to adjust taxation on individuals

 Economy
Feb 232015
 

THERE IS no question that everyone welcomes payday, which is when all of us are sure to have at least some resources to pay for our needs and desires. What isn’t often realized is that the government has paydays of its own, in the form of tax collections. It is these funds that pay for public goods and services which, in theory, help improve the people’s quality of life.

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