Nature does not only call our attention through our eyes but also through our ears. But the cacophony of sounds in the urban setting is at such a high level that we rarely can discern nature’s call on a normal day, even if nature were to shout. We are engulfed in such a thick layer of unwanted sounds - the roar of motorcycle and car engines being revved up, the thumping sounds of rock music coming from a neighbor’s stereo, the discordant singing of a wannabe on a karaoke system or the whir of a band saw slicing through wood - these pretty much have become natural components of our daily atmosphere that we are hardly conscious of them. But we do hear them, although we are unaware that we do, and these sounds (noises?) disturb our inner peace.

Years ago Rachel Carson, in her book “The Silent Spring”, argued to stop the use of DDT as a pesticide because the worms and other insects killed by DDT were eaten by birds and the birds in turn were poisoned. Thus the title of the book - the time would come when there would be no birds singing in the spring time. But if we don’t hear birds sing now simply because there is so much of the other sounds surrounding us, would we miss bird song at all? And would we care if birds disappear altogether?

Local legislators do not deserve respect from the local chief executive (LCEs) if their victory during election was not the direct will of the people, but the will of the political leaders who wanted them elected because of their political and financial influences to the voters.

The essence of check and balance in a democracy is defeated when the local legislators are only used or allow themselves to be used as a toll by the LCEs to serve their political and personal interests because of gratitude.

Councilor Charlie Mariano is an ambitious young man. And I should say, a daring politician whose penchant for so-called big time politics can’t seem to wait. While success had dawn on Charlie for winning 3 consecutive terms as councilor, aspiring for the mayoralty post is a formidable feat for a candidate to achieve and totally different from winning a council seat. So I hope he doesn’t make mistake training his cannon on Mayor Clara Lorenzo Lobregat for the city’s top position come May 2004 elections.

However, being bold enough to entertain the idea challenging Madam Lobregat, I admire the guy for his daringness and self-confidence even if he has not yet filed officially his certificate of candidacy. Charlie deserve’s some amount of praise and respect among other local politicos, at least at this time that no one has yet dared come out publicly willing to face somebody the public believes is unbeatable.

Coast guard District Southwestern Mindanao Chief Capt. Ramon Liwag was promoted to the rank of Commodore. Liwag’s promotion was approved and signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo last October 2.

Liwag is soon to take his oath in Malacañang on the availability of the president.

An insane was arrested after he ran amok and hacked his wife and two sons in Dumalinao, Zamboanga del Sur last Friday morning.

Wounded were Maria Paz Plantar, 39, and her sons Johnrey, 17, and Joefrey 14.

Some 200 children and youth delegates from all over Mindanao are expected to converge in Zamboanga City on Oct. 22-23 for the 2-day Children & Youth Congress at the Garden Orchid Hotel.

The congress spearheaded by the Christian Children’s Fund (CCF), is expected to tackle issues and concerns that affect children’s welfare.

If there is one thing in the Philippines that stands as a towering symbol of Filipino ingenuity and holds the world in awe, it is the rice terraces of the Ifugaos in the mountain provinces. But, that is not all.

In politics, what the Filipino can do is the envy of other nations because they cannot do them. For instance, during the registration of voters the Filipinos can register the dead, the non-existents and those who have left the country to settle in other countries. On election day, they are not seen in the places where their names are registered but they have cast their votes. Sometimes precincts are added secretly. The most common ingenious strategy is the dagdag bawas. If a certain candidate who is not favored by the precinct chairman gets a total votes of one hundred on the tally board the chairman writes only one on the election return. On the other hand if the candidate is idolized by the chairman because he has given him grease money, the chairman will write one hundred on the election return although the candidate got only one vote on the tally board. If the chairman is asked why he is not afraid to do such a glaring election fraud he will answer, with confidence, that if a protest is lodged only the election return will be called to be used as basis for the recounting of votes. The tally board will remain in the school and the tally will be erased after the voting when classes are resumed.

Inspite of the serious state of corruption in all levels of government in the country which ranks the Philippines 3rd in Asia and 11th in the world, very few national and local public officials (elected and appointed) are talking against corruption,

In government service, public officials are servants of the taxpayers and they are expected to serve the communinity the beat they can.

All public institutions have scalawags, inefficient, incompetent, complacent and lazy employees.

The Department of Trade and Industry signed recently separate Memoranda of Agreement with ten (10) large non-government organizations (NGOs) based in Negros Occidental for their participation as outlets for Presyong Tama, Gamot Pampamilya, a project initiated by Trade and Industry Secretary Mar Roxas.

The signing ceremony held in Bacolod City is expected to open the doors for at least 500,000 local folks in Negros to gain access to various low-cost, high-quality quality branded medicines, according to Roxas.

A fisherman was abducted by 11 armed men in Muti, Upper Curuan last Tuesday night.

A police report identified the victim as Ganih Bairula, 38, single, a native of Talusan, Olutanga, Sibugay and temporarily residing at the house of a certain Minie Samad in Muti.

The Department of Trade and Industry is celebrating the 29th

Standards Week with the theme, “Global Standards for the Global

For as long as I can remember and for more than a generation now, we have been holding off and on peace talks with various revolutionary forces. Despite the countless and extravagant dialogues and consultation processes in high places and foreign countries, the peace and order problem in Mindanao and other principalities in the Philippines instead of being abated, has deteriorated to such a condition that no therapy of any nature and efficacy could stop instantly or even slow down the ever-rising rate of deaths and the escalating number of victims as direct and collateral casualties of the daily encounters between government forces and the different revolutionary, secessionist, and even ragtag criminal syndicates.

And yet, our government officials always come out almost on a

This story is told of a funny-sad incident which happened at a wedding reception some time ago. Some guests left the reception before the cake-cutting ritual took place. On their way out they stopped to help themselves to the sugar flowers decorating the multi-tiered cake. Other guests, mostly women and kids, thinking they too could do the same, got up from their seats and helped themselves to the sugar flowers. The cake was not only left bare but, in the jostling as more people came to do the same, the cake toppled over and fell to the floor.

A cake toppling to the floor with the icing smeared all around is a fanny sight, reminiscent of the slapstick routine of old-time TV comedians. But is also a sad thing to think about, that people could be so eager for something as valueless as sugar flowers as to forget their manners. If kids do it, okay, we can understand ... they’re kids after all. It’s bad enough that the adults with them did not restrain them, did not teach them how to behave, but for the adults to behave like the kids did - that is something to be sad about.

Enbuenamente el celebracion del Fiesta Pilar!

Bien alegre gayot el maga hentes de Zaaboanga cay nuay gat algo ya pasa durente el mas di dos seraanadel celebracion del Hermosa Festival. El maga pulis y soldao ya hace gayot diila trabajo de bisia el pueblo con todo sinceridad y sacrificio