Saturday, June 13, 2020

The God Culture: "Solomon's Treasure" Book Cover Review

The God Culture is writing a book which will distill all their videos about the Philippines into one handy, portable source. Timothy Jay Schwab claims he has been working on this book for a few months now but it has yet to be published. However Tim is ready to go as soon as the book is finished. He has posted all the information on Google Books. The title is "The Search for King Solomon's Treasure: The Lost Isles of Gold & the Garden of Eden."


Tim has a cover and even two ISBN numbers registered for this book.

https://books.google.com.ph/books/about/The_Search_for_King_Solomon_s_Treasure_L.html?id=mHE4zQEACAAJ&redir_esc=y
You are about to embark on the most monumental journey of all archaeological discoveries. The mother load that would make the likes of Indiana Jones salivate. The true land of gold in all of history which leads to the location of the Garden of Eden and Land of Creation identifying the Rivers from Eden en route. Though founded in the Bible which is the origin of this saga, examine the history, archaeology, geography, science, linguistics, etc. which all converge to reveal what the world knew and somehow misplaced about a century ago. This is a mystery no longer and now, you will know the whereabouts of the lost isles of gold...
"The most monumental journey of all archaeological discoveries?" Has Tim been doing archeological research in the Philippines since he moved here? Did he discover the Palace of the Queen of Sheba or any of Solomon's mines or any physical evidence proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Philippines is Ophir, Tarshish, Sheba, Seba, Havilah, and The Garden of Eden? Will there be pictures of The Garden of Eden which Tim claims lies beneath the Sulu Sea? Or will it just be more of the same fraudulent nonsense as is in his videos?

The publisher is listed as God Culture. What does that mean? Is The God Culture now a publishing company? The ISBN numbers lead nowhere. 
Obviously it is impossible to do a book review because there is no book yet. What we can do is a book cover review. Believe it or not the cover reveals quite a lot.

This is the same font used in The God Culture's videos.
https://youtu.be/7vDhLkHrrLc

It looks like Scotch tape font. The font shows a continuity between the book and the videos. Whatever is in the videos will be in the book. Perhaps a little tweaking and maybe even some new stuff. But I think overall the book will follow the video series quite faithfully.

 The front cover is from a stock photo on Shutterstock.
Does Tim have an account with Shutterstock? Has he used other photos from Shutterstock in his videos? This photo aptly illustrates the title: Solomon's Treasure. However many books about Solomon and his gold have the word "mines" in the title.
https://comicvine.gamespot.com/uncle-scrooge-108-the-mines-of-king-solomon/4000-13734/

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2166/2166-h/2166-h.htm

Haggard's book is certainly the most famous of all the books about King Solomon's Mines. A real adventure story with Allan Quatermain set in Africa and not the Philippines. Why would Timothy choose the word "treasure" instead of "mines" or "gold" for the title of his book? His video series is titled "Solomon's Gold." And why isn't the word "king" in the same font size as "Solomon's Gold?" King should be right next to Solomon since that is his title and office. "The Search for King: Solomon's Treasure" does not sound right yet that is how the title reads. Maybe Tim will correct this major flub before the book goes to publication.

Leaning against the treasure chest is what appears to be a map. Or maybe it's an ancient book or two stone tablets. One page reads:
ophir
sheba
tarshish
land of adam & eve
garden of eden
rivers from eden
land of creation 
no longer enigmas
The other page has a map of the Philippines. That's because he claims the Philippines is all the places listed on the opposite page. Enigma solved!

There are two blurbs on the cover.
"The monumental case for the Philippines no one can disprove."
"No one can disprove?" Sure. Let's put this book in the hands of real archeologists, historians, linguists, and geologists and hear what they have to say. If the case is "monumental" I will except the evidence to be "monumental." Again I ask has Timothy been doing archeological research here in the Philippines to prove his case? Or will he be quoting the same materials and making the same faulty arguments as in his videos?

 The second blurb is:
"History, geography, and prophecy restored."
When was any of that lost? Tim just released a new video where he says:
6:50 Now over three years the extent of challenges to our finding Ophir consists of either attempting to debate with side notes that aren't even points within the case. Come on. Raising scriptures that don't even apply or misreading them. Ignoring the restoration of history which, by the way, leads to the restoration of prophecy. But, and we hear this every now and then, because it is not the single topic of salvation which this view dismisses almost all the rest of scripture. That's ignorance. Don't be one of those who ignores Isaiah and Malachi especially as Yahuah God warned his people perish for lack from knowledge. There is none of the Bible that we should not be studying and understanding. 
https://youtu.be/0CP4RVtXUFo?t=410
If a true understanding of history leads to a true understanding of prophecy then by no means has Timothy restored prophecy because he has concocted a fake history of not just the Philippines but also the Kurds and Sub-Saharan Hamitic negroes who he claims are Semitic Israelites from the tribe of Judah! He claims that all three of those people groups are Israelites!
A Kurd, Filipino, and American slave. Do these people look like the are from the same genetic group?

His most recent video is all about how Philippine Independence Day, June 12th, 1898, is seven days after Pentecost according to the Hebrew calendar. That is despite him telling us elsewhere he does not even know the real calendar!! Tim makes a big deal of these dates but does he realize that the Philippine Independence movement was run and led by Masons? 
It is quite interesting to note that despite the Masonic roots of the Philippine struggle for independence, the leaders were all Masons and the first constitutional program, written by Apollinaro Mabini, was dismissed as being too steeped in the principles of Freemasonry, they did not succeed while the revolutions in America and France, which were also led by Masons and steeped in the fraternal doctrines of Freemasonry, did succeed.
https://philippinefails.blogspot.com/2018/06/june-12th-as-independence-day-is-lie.html
Is Tim telling us that God honors the declaration of Philippine independence which is rooted in Freemasonry? His point is actually quite dumb and ignorant because as even he acknowledges Philippine independence did not come until 1946. Tim has zero understanding of how the Philippines became independent or why the date was moved from July 4 to June 12 in 1962. It was moved because President Macapagal got mad when the US Congress refused to send a payment of $73 million. 

https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP79-00927A004000060004-0.pdf

Eventually the US Congress worked it all out and sent the payment but now the Philippines is stuck celebrating a lie every single year.  The same lie Tim attempts to infuse with a spiritual meaning! Read my article "A Brief and True History of the Philippines' Road to Independence" to learn the true story of how the Philippines became independent.

Tim also lies about the Greeks sailing to the Philippines for gold and misinterprets maps and directions to Chryse which is the Golden Peninsula aka the Malay Peninsula. Tim does not even have a correct understanding of the Earth because he thinks it is flat and motionless! He does not even believe the universe exists.
30:30  Now the word universe is not even actually a Bible word or concept. Think about that. Yahuah is never referred to in scripture as the Lord of the universe.
Timothy Jay Schwab does not understand the nature of reality yet he wants us to believe he has restored history? What a joke! He does not understand history in the slightest.

He also fails to understand that all the prophecies in the Bible do indeed revolve around the salvation of God's people through Jesus Christ. Tim lacks a throughly Christocentric view of the scriptures. Jesus Christ is the subject of the Bible. He is the great theme of the entire book. As Jesus Himself said:
John 5:39 Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
Such a view does not dismiss almost all of the Bible. Such a view is the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself.

The forward to Tim's book is written by Dr. Grepor "Butch" Belgica.
https://greporbutchbelgica.com/pages/about-butch
He earned a Masters Degree in Divinity (1989) and his Doctorate in Ministry (1991) from Friends International Christian University, Merced, California, USA.
Belgica's story is too long to reprint here. Basically when he was a young man he killed a guy, spent time in prison, found Jesus, and turned his life around. He was even Speaker of the House at one point! What concerns us here is his doctorate. Timothy refers to him as Dr. Belgica on the cover of his book but does he possess a bona fide Phd.? Did the man write a doctoral dissertation?

The first clue that he did not is that there is no mention of his BA. Everybody knows you get your bachelors, then your masters, then your doctorate. The second clue is that the school he got these degrees from is an unaccredited diploma mill.


https://web.archive.org/web/20080629051823/http://www.ficu.edu/accreditation.htm

Show me his doctoral dissertation and then I will change my opinion that his degrees are fake. Belgica has a new job these days working for the Duterte administration.
Appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte as Presidential Adviser for Religious Affairs under the Office of the President.
Pretty interesting that Tim knows all these powerfully connected people isn't it? All he did was make some Youtube videos about a subject Filipinos have been researching for years. Pedro Paterno came on the scene 100 years ago saying the Philippines was Ophir and everyone has forgotten him. In fact he was ridiculed during his lifetime. But Tim, a foreigner, is lauded and fêted! And much of his information is lifted directly from Filipino bloggers.

 Now for the one part of this cover that reveals so much. That is the author.
Timothy Schwab
What!?? Here is what I wrote a few months ago:
What we don't know is who is on this alleged team of researchers. What are their qualifications? They say they will be publishing a book soon. Who will be the credited author? Tim? The God Culture? If it is "The God Culture" who will get authorial credit? Will Tim then introduce us to his team of researchers?
https://philippinefails.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-god-culture-team-of-researchers.html
If The God Culture is a a research team then why is Tim getting all the credit? This lends further support to the notion that there is no team of researchers called The God Culture. It's only Tim and Anna. If there was ever a time to reveal the names and expertise of this supposed team it would be in this book. Tim is writing a book involving many scientific disciplines, claims he has a team of researchers familiar with those disciplines, and yet only Timothy Schwab gets authorial credit? It does not make any sense. Perhaps he will rectify all that before finally going to print. 

 I cannot wait for this book to be published. It looks like it will be big, glossy, and colorful with many pictures. It will be fun to see what exactly is inside. I predict Tim will use my own research which is the English translation of Dionysius Periegetes and the three sources cited to claim Philippine gold was found in 1st century Egypt.  That would be Legeza, Peralta, and Villegas. Tim did not know about any of those resources until I used them in my rebuttals to him. 

I will certainly be buying this book (if it is for sale) and I will certainly be reviewing it here. Let's hope it is published soon.
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Friday, June 12, 2020

Retards in the Government 158

It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption in the Philippine government. 


https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/05/20/manila-village-chief-in-hot-water-after-daughter-in-law-took-cuts-from-cash-aid-for-displaced-workers
A barangay chairman in Tondo, Manila is in hot water after his daughter-in-law was accused of taking cuts from the government’s cash subsidy for displaced workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Rose, real name withheld on request, told ABS-CBN News she was informed by Barangay 153 that she qualified for the Department of Labor and Employment’s program called TUPAD (Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers.) 
She stopped working in a boutique when the lockdown was imposed mid-March to curtail the spread of COVID-19. 
Joe Anne Felisa Dionisio, who was overseeing distribution of the cash aid, told Rose she would only get P1,000 from the subsidy. 
Joe Anne, the daughter-in-law of Barangay 153 Chairman Herman Dionisio, told Rose the rest of the funds would be used by the barangay. 
Rose claimed the money at a remittance center, only to learned she was entitled to an aid worth P5,370. 
“Ginamit nila ‘yung pangalan ko na wala akong kaalam-alam,” she said. 
Rose then confronted Joe Anne and asked the latter to sign a document certifying that she only got P1,000 and the remaining amount went to the barangay.
The daughter-in-law of a barangay captain was allegedly skimming from the SAP funds. She told one lady she would only get P1,000 with the rest to the used by the barangay.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/04/20/palace-tells-un-body-freedom-of-expression-not-absolute
The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, in its report, called attention to supposed efforts to vilify dissent in the Philippines. It said that while there are thousands of rights advocates in the Philippines, they have been subjected to attacks, with some groups being associated with communists or terrorists. 
"Freedom of expression is not absolute; it is subject to derogation," Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque, a human rights lawyer, said in a Palace press briefing. 
He cited the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which has a provision that penalizes persons spreading false information "geared to promote chaos, panic, anarchy, fear, or confusion" while the country is in a public health crisis.
This is not the first time the Palace has said free speech is not absolute. But they are missing the point. Of course criminal speech like threats, libel, and speech geared to promote chaos (like yelling fire in a crowded building) will always be prohibited. What the UN is concerned about is activists being attacked or maligned for the things they say. "Freedom of expression is not absolute" is simply poorly worded and makes the administration look tyrannical.
A Manila cop was slapped with rape and induced abortion complaints for allegedly abusing a female criminology student, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has said. 
Police identified the accused cop as Police Captain Heherson Zambale, who is assigned at the Sta. Cruz Police Station. 
Citing report from Manila Police District chief Police Brigadier General Rolando Miranda, the alleged rape incident happened last March 7. Police said the victim had initially applied for an internship. 
Aside from Zambale, complaints were also filed against the cop's wife Aliah Zambale and two other individuals before the Manila City Prosecutor's Office on June 1.
The fact that his wife has also had a complaint field against her makes this case even more egregious. She was in on it and wanted to protect him at any cost.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/741313/ano-says-155-barangay-execs-referred-to-ombudsman-over-alleged-cash-aid-anomalies/story/
A total of 155 barangay captains and officials have been investigated and referred to the Office of the Ombudsman due to alleged anomalies in distributing cash aid from the Social Amelioration Program, Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año said.
It's not clear if these numbers are new or are part of the hundreds who have already been investigated.
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Deputy Administrator Mocha Uson is in the hot seat again for allegedly calling yesterday's anti-terrorism bill protesters as terrorists. 
In a now deleted tweet yesterday afternoon, Mocha said: "Hahahahaha galit na galit na mga terorista nagtipon tipon na sila." 
Her tweet was screenshot by netizens and it went viral, making her a top trending Twitter topic today. 
Some Twitter users believe the OWWA deputy administrator taunted hundreds who protested in University of the Philippines yesterday for opposing the anti-terrorism bill certified as "urgent" by President Rodrigo Duterte. 
"Mocha Uson called the protesters 'mga terorista.' This further proves that anyone can be labeled a terrorist. Literally anyone!" A Twitter user said. 
Mocha is always putting her foot in her mouth and making the government look bad.  In this case it appears she justified the concerns of many who say hat the anti-terrorism bill would criminalize protestors as terrorists by calling protestors terrorists.
https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2020/06/04/2018691/nbi-files-murder-planting-evidence-raps-vs-cops-ragos-killing
The National Bureau of Investigation's Death Investigation Division has filed murder and perjury complaints at the Quezon City Prosecutor's Office against Police M/Sgt. Daniel Florendo and four others over the killing of former soldier Winston Ragos. 
Aside from Florendo, others facing complaints are police trainees Joy Flaviano, Arnel Fontillas, Dante Fronda and Dalejes Gaciles, according to a copy of the NBI report posted by News5.  
The NBI's DID also filed complaints of planting of evidence against Florendo and Police S/Sgt. Hector Besas. 
NBI spokesman Ferdinand Lavin earlier said the .38-caliber handgun that police said Ragos was reaching for may have been planted after he was shot dead.
Cops charged with planting evidence and with murder!
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1287384/cop-guns-down-fitness-instructor-in-leyte
Based on the report reaching the regional headquarters of Eastern Visayas police based in Palo town, Leyte, Managbanag had a drinking session with four others on the street at about 10:45 p.m., June 5. 
Corporal Ronel Tapales, 32, who passed by the areas advised Managbanag and his companions to stop their session, citing a city ordinance that prohibits drinking liquor in public. 
But instead of heeding the warning of the police officer, Managbanag challenged Tapales to a fistfight. 
Tapales said he refused but Managbanag assaulted and attacked him. 
The policeman ran away but he was allegedly cornered near a bamboo fence. Managbanag, he said,  tried to grab his service firearm, prompting him to shot the man.
Cop sees a group of men drinking, tells them to stop, is assaulted, and runs away!  Then when he is cornered the man tried to grab his firearm causing him to get shot dead. Is this what they teach at PNP training school? To run away??

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/741601/5-san-juan-cops-relieved-from-posts-for-disregarding-baguio-health-protocols/story/
Five policemen from San Juan City were relieved from their posts for allegedly disregarding the standard health and safety protocols in Baguio City amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 
In a statement on Monday, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Police Major General Debold Sinas said he ordered the transfer of the five to the NCRPO's Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit pending investigation on the incident. 
The five policemen were part of the convoy of San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora.
The mayor and his entourage avoided a checkpoint in Baguio and 5 police men who were part of that group have been relived from their posts.
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/regions/741560/magalong-says-san-juan-mayor-zamora-s-convoy-disregarded-baguio-checkpoint/story/
The entourage of San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora violated health security protocols when they sped off from a checkpoint into Baguio City, Mayor Benjamin Magalong said Sunday. 
In a statement released online, Magalong said Zamora's six-vehicle convoy, including uniformed personnel, arrived in Baguio City around 2:30 p.m. on Friday, June 5, 2020. 
"When his group was flagged down for inspection, the driver of the lead vehicle just slowed down a bit, and merely told the checkpoint personnel that he was part of a convoy, pointing out the vehicles tailing his police car, then forthwith sped off with the Mayor's entourage in tow," the Baguio Mayor said. 
The convoy was then requested to undergo triage examination for the coronavirus at the BCC where a facility was set up by the City Health Service Office to accommodate them. 
"From this narration of facts, it can be reasonably sensed that Baguio's health and safety protocols have been violated and the regulatory mechanism of quarantine check and triage examination at the Naguilian facility was not followed," said Magalong.
The Mayor of Zamora has apologized and the Mayor of Baguio has accepted his apology but the investigation into the violation of the city's health protocols is continuing.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said he is taking responsibility for the delayed release of compensation to COVID-19 infected healthcare workers, hours after his remarks pinning the blame to his staff was aired on national TV. 
“While I expressed disappointment towards some members of my team, I acknowledge that this is still responsibility as SOH,” Duque wrote in a tweet Friday noon.
That's very nice of him to take the blame after shifting it to his staff.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1289594/qc-cop-faces-administrative-charges-for-positive-result-in-random-drug-test
A Quezon City police officer will face administrative charges for testing positive for illegal drugs, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) said Wednesday. 
Major Gen. Debold Sinas, NCRPO chief, said the urine samples of Staff Sgt. Arthur Santos II tested positive for methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) during a random drug testing of 70 police officers last May 28. 
After a confirmatory test, Santos again yielded a positive result. 
Sinas said he ordered Santos disarmed while police were preparing administrative complaints against him.
Several employees of the Bureau of Customs-Port of Ninoy Aquino International Airport did not follow safety protocols amid the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). 
According to Jun Veneracion's report on "24 Oras" on Wednesday, the employees were caught on camera neglecting social distancing measures and not wearing face masks properly. 
"Sometimes nakikita namin may nagbababa ng mask nila up to the nose level, which is very dangerous for our people as well," BOC spokesman Jet Maronilla said. 
So far, a total of 45 Customs employees tested positive for COVID-19, most of them were from BOC-Port of NAIA.
Well that's no good!
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Thursday, June 11, 2020

Coronavirus Lockdown: No Jeepnies, Wasted Vegetables, and More!

The country is now gradually reopening with Manila going from ECQ to GCQ and other places going from GCQ to MGCQ. This reopening has been fraught with chaos.


Jeepenies are dirty, smelly, cramped, and cheap but they are how the people get around. What will happen without them?

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1285323/crisis-seen-in-absence-of-jeepneys
Anger mounted in Metro Manila on Tuesday over lack of public transportation for workers allowed to return to their jobs after three months of quarantine, with senators calling the situation an emerging crisis and slamming transportation officials for their insensitivity and lack of foresight. 
Jeepneys, UV Express vans, and most public utility buses remain prohibited, even though more businesses were allowed to resume operations. 
Transport officials refused to allow jeepneys and UV Express vans to go back to their routes because these vehicles accept fare only in cash, which is the only way the majority of commuters—the low-income earners who don’t own smartphones—pay for their rides. 
The ban on jeepneys and city buses backfired on the government’s economic reopening plan, with thousands of workers again failing to get to their jobs or begging for rides on Tuesday and transport officials not backing down. 
“Three months under [quarantine] and still they have no clear plan in place. What happened to foresight? It’s good they have air-conditioned vehicles. Why don’t the DOTr officials try to commute from their homes to their offices?” Binay said. 
“[The] DOTr knew that Metro Manila and the rest of the regions will soon be transitioning to the new normal. They knew that 30 percent of those in [Metro Manila] will start going to work by June 1— and then they will deploy trucks for free rides [that] compromise and breach all health protocols, particularly physical distancing,” she said. 
Binay also criticized the ban on jeepneys, describing it as “unrealistic, anticommuter at antiworker.”
The government reopens the economy but bans jeepnies because they do not accept cashless payments. This leaves millions of people stranded and unable to get to their jobs unless they take the free truck ride provided by the DOTr.  This truck ride breaches the social distancing protocols. It's caused a real mess and the MMDA blames it all on the commuters!

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1285288/mmda-commuters-to-blame-for-chaos
MMDA General Manager Jose Arturo Garcia said the people “seemed to have lost focus” that the new coronavirus that causes the severe respiratory disease COVID-19 was still around and could spread wider with the easing of restrictions on public transportation. 
“They were focused on traveling even though they [knew], just as the Department of Transportation said, our first priority is health and safety,” Garcia said in a radio interview. 
He cited the crowding of hordes of commuters along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Monday, with no one giving others a wide berth as they waited for rides that never came. 
Garcia also mentioned the crowding on a truck that police deployed to ferry stranded commuters. 
“When they saw the free rides, many commented on social media that commuters fought over these, they were on the road, there were no lines. They were each to his own and forgot that the priority is to stay safe from [the coronavirus],” Garcia said. 
Ariel Inton, head of Lawyers for Commuters’ Safety and Protection, slammed Garcia’s remarks as insensitive, “assuming that people are stupid or stubborn.” 
“The only reason they are outside is because we reopened so many businesses, and they would not have gone [out to go to work] if they [had not been] asked,” Inton said. 
But they banned jeepneys, UV Express vans, and city buses that serve most of the routes through business districts in the metropolis because it would be difficult to implement the cashless fare system on these vehicles, making them risky for virus transmission. 
But without these vehicles, low-income workers, the bulk of Metro Manila’s workforce, cannot go to work. Transport officials encourage the use of bicycles, but don’t say how people can ride bicycles under heavy rain during the rainy season, which is almost here.
What did they expect?
A Filipino traveler from Japan who arrived in Manila on June 1 is at a loss waiting for a COVID-19 swab test that he said may never happen. 
Andy Navarrete, a banker in Manila, told Inquirer that when his repatriation flight from Japan arrived June 1 at Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), he expected a COVID swab test to be administered right there, and then stay in a hotel for two to five days to wait for the results. 
Navarrete is married to a Japanese who lives in Japan with their four children. He left Manila to visit his family in Japan just before the lockdown was imposed on March 16. His return flight to Manila had been postponed due to the extended lockdown, until finally he boarded a repatriation flight on June 1. 
“The Coast Guard commandant at the airport gave us an orientation (on the testing protocols for arriving travelers), but he said they cannot do the tests because they had no test kits,” Navarrete told Inquirer. 
Navarrete and the other passengers were advised to proceed to their respective hotels where a coordinator will arrange for the tests. 
He is not an OFW (overseas Filipino worker) so he knew he would pay for his own hotel stay. 
“There was no transportation from the airport so I also had to hire a taxi at my expense,” he said.
Th guy returned home, was told to quarantine pending a COVID-19 test, had to do to so at his own expense, but there are no tests available! 

Nine individuals were ordered to swim in a canal in Barangay San Antonio in Davao City as punishment for violating the curfew amid the quarantine. 
According to Cedric Castillo's report on "24 Oras" on Wednesday, the curfew violators fear they might get sick after swimming in the filthy canal. 
Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, meanwhile, also condemned the punishment, saying it was "not humane." 
However, barangay officials said there was nothing wrong with the punishment.
That is absolutely disgusting and no way is that a canal.  That is a sewer!

 During the lockdown people have been without a job and an income. That means they cannot pay their rent.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/740896/covid-survivor-leaves-rented-house-over-arguments-with-landlady/story/
A single mother who survived the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on Tuesday left her home in Barangay Batasan Hills, Quezon City to escape further arguments with her landlady who pressuring her to pay the two months of rent that she owed. 
According to Ivan Mayrina’s report on “24 Oras,” Mary Glen Dosal had several arguments with her landlady Vicky Mariveles over her failure to pay the P7,000 rent that she owed. 
On Monday, barangay officials helped settle the conflict by giving Dosal until June 15 to leave her rented home, though she need not pay the P7,000. 
However, Dosal decided to leave earlier than June 15.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said tenants cannot be forced to pay for missed rent or move out of their houses amid the pandemic. 
“The grace period will begin either upon the lifting of whatever community quarantine. Puwede siyang hindi pa magbayad or gamitin niya ‘yung memorandum circular on rental natin. Ang 30-day grace period will already commence at the time that she is able to work,” Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castelo explained.
This is horrible especially seeing as Duterte repeatedly warned landlords not to pressure tenants for rent and the DTI has mandated that all tenants be given a 30 day grace period to pay up.

It's funny how the pandemic has effected everything.  And not funny ha-ha.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1286298/tomato-glut-forces-farmers-to-dump-produce-at-vizcaya-ifugao-roadsides
On June 2, tons of tomatoes were abandoned along the roads of Tinoc town in Ifugao. A week earlier, tomatoes were also dumped at roads in the Nueva Vizcaya town of Bambang. 
“The sorry sight of dumped tomatoes add to the woes of farmers,” who are suffering from the impact of the quarantine imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), said Adrian Albano, administrator of the Ifugao Highland Farmers’ Forum in a June 4 telephone interview. 
The supply glut had also been attributed to “the erratic scheduling of transport of vegetables from Ifugao,” he said. 
Tomatoes were priced down to P4 to P5 a kilo, which was too far from “the desirable P12 a kilo so that farmers can profit,” Albano added. 
This was reflected in the June 4 transactions at the Nueva Vizcaya Agricultural terminal in Bambang. Squash was sold for P6 to P7 a kilo there, while yellow ginger was he purchased for P15-18 a kilo. 
Farmers donated some of the crops to quarantined communities, Albano said.
The quarantine has made led to an "erratic scheduling of transport of vegetables from Ifugao" which has lead to a dramatic price drop. This has led to farmers dumping their crops on the side of the road. What a waste!

Public transportation continues to be an issue in some cities. In Cebu the cops have decided to give free rides to commuters.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/315464/police-deploy-patrol-cars-to-offer-free-rides-to-commuters-in-cebu
With still less public transportation on the road, commuters are still having a problem finding a ride even as Cebu City has shifted to general community quarantine (GCQ). 
But the riding public got a bit of a help on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, as police stations took the initiative to deploy their mobile patrols and offer free rides to commuters on the streets. 
According to Police Brigadier General Albert Ignatius Ferro, director of Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), the move is part of the Philippine National Police (PNP) program called “Libre Sakay.” 
“This is not a new initiative. [We did this] even before, when we were still in ECQ. We prioritize the old, pregnant women and persons with disability,” said Ferro. 
There were no specific routes for the free rides as patrol cars went around the city to search for those who needed a ride.
Not all deaths of frontliners during the pandemic have been from COVID-19.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2020/06/07/2019145/pnp-doctor-dies-after-being-sprayed-disinfectant
Another source said Gutierrez became ill after he was sprayed with sodium hypochlorite, a chemical also referred to as bleach. 
Directly spraying the chemical on a person, especially if not diluted, is dangerous due to its high level of toxicity, the source said. 
Gutierrez was wearing personal protective equipment but the source said it does not matter for as long as the victim inhaled the chemical. 
“You should not directly spray that chemical on a person,” the source said. 
A similar incident happened on June 1 in the same facility just two days after Gutierrez’s death. 
According to a police report obtained by The STAR, two PNP medical personnel became sick after undergoing decontamination at around 3 p.m. 
The two police officers were being disinfected after taking 10 swab samples from COVID-19 patients. They were brought to the PNP General Hospital when they had difficulty breathing.
Sounds like a stunning case of negligence.

Two more illegal COVID-19 clinics catering to the Chinese have been raided and shut down.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1287497/2-more-underground-clinics-for-sinos-busted-total-now-6
On Friday afternoon, the National Bureau of Investigation also found a makeshift rapid testing clinic in a Las Piñas City market. 
The bureau’s National Capital Region chief Cesar Bacani said agents who conducted a surveillance operation saw about a hundred Chinese nationals undergoing tests at the clinic for COVID-19. d 
Authorities were still verifying if the Chinese were working for a Philippine offshore gaming operator, or POGO. 
The NBI earlier gathered that they were undergoing testing as a “preemployment” requirement, Bacani said. A still-unidentified Chinese physician was said to be facilitating the tests, reportedly assisted by a Filipino. 
A total of six illegal clinics catering to Chinese nationals have been discovered since April, including two in Parañaque that were raided earlier that month and in May.
If these clinics are used as a preemployment screening for POGOs then there are surely more of them.

 In the new normal eating out will never be the same again.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1287802/iloilo-city-restaurants-seat-stuffed-toys-for-distancing
At Royal Zhang Palace in Grand Xing Imperial Hotel on Iznart Street, teddy bears and other stuffed toys are seated alternately in four-seat tables to keep customers apart. This means only two will be seated at each table. 
Ronito Medianista, head waiter of the Chinese restaurant, said the idea came from hotel managers to prompt physical distancing among diners. 
To diners, the idea of sitting with 22 mostly teddy bear toys in brown and white colors appears to be refreshing. “They are excited because they have ‘company’ when dining here,” Medianista told the Inquirer. 
At Razon’s By Glenn Iloilo in the Festive Walk Mall, dining table mates include Walt Disney cartoon characters Mickey Mouse and Goofy, and just seeing them is enough to cheer one up. 
“Our customers are happy when they see the stuffed toys. We have received many inquiries if the toys are free or for sale,” said Patricia Kaye Mislang, the store’s franchisee who collected the cuddly toys while working at Walt Disney Parks and Hotels in California. 
She said the restaurant was mulling over the possibility of selling the toys or giving them for free for a minimum order at customers’ requests.
It's like date night with a stuffed Teddy Bear or Mickey Mouse.

 The new normal means no more back riders on motorcycles. But there might be a way around that.
https://www.panaynews.net/motorcycle-with-divider-solution-to-angkas-ban/
Necessity is the mother of invention – and motorcycle modification. 
With the firm stand of the national government prohibiting backriders on motorcycles at this time of coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. thought of a modified motorcycle design that ensures no physical contact between the driver and the backrider. 
He submitted his proposal to Land Transportation Office (LTO) assistant secretary Edgar Galvante through LTO regional director Eric Lenard Tabaldo late afternoon on June 5. 
The modified motorcycle design featured a divider or windshield made of non-porous and transparent material installed between the driver and the backrider. 
Defensor personally commissioned a builder in Iloilo City to execute his design using the motorcycle of his staff. 
The modified motorcycle was presented to the public on Friday afternoon. 
A handle bar has been attached to the divider’s frame that the backrider could grip for a more secure ride. 
As part of the health protocol, said Defensor, both the driver and backrider must wear crash helmets, facemasks and gloves and perform disinfecting procedures immediately before and after the trip.
In my area I am not sure if back riders are banned or if people just don't care because I have seen 2 and 3 on a bike just like before the pandemic.

 The quarantines have hit everyone hard causing jobs and money to disappear. One little boy has stepped up to help his family.
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/familyandrelationships/741512/9-year-old-boy-sells-medals-he-won-at-school-to-buy-food-for-family/story/
A nine-year-old boy recently went viral for selling medals he had won at school to buy food for his family amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. 
For P20 each, he was willing to sell the medals so his family could have something to eat. 
His mom Cherryl, who worked as a security guard and househelp, had lost her source of income due to the pandemic. That’s when Kenneth decided to sell his medals. 
However, because of the pandemic and the possibility of classes resuming online, Kenneth felt hopeless because he didn’t have a computer or a strong internet connection. 
Because of their financial problem, Kenneth began selling his medals online. 
Fortunately, generous donors responded and sent help to the family. 
Dr. Khristian Santos, who owned an online laptop shop, gave the family a laptop. The “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” team, meanwhile, gave the brothers their own internet broadband and financial aid. 
Kenneth was willing to let go of all his medals for his family. After all, he said, his greatest pride was his mother.
It's not clear if he actually sold the medals or if people saw what he was doing and stepped in to offer help. It would pretty callous if somebody actually bought them.

Liquor bans are being lifted across the country but drinking in public is still banned. That has not stopped some from going hog wild.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1288172/6-arrested-in-ecija-for-alcoholic-binge-that-violated-gcq-protocol
Six people, including a senior citizen, were arrested after they were caught in a drinking session that violated protocol, according to police here. 
Lt. Col. Alexie Desamito, the town’s police chief, said the six were consuming alcoholic drinks at a public place, which is banned by guidelines under general community quarantine (GCQ), supposedly a response to coronavirus transmission less restrictive than enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). 
Those arrested were identified as Ricardo Francisco, 62; Giliver Pagtalunan, 29; Orlando Bernabe, 45; Florante Balbin, 43; Maricel Rauza, 38; and Andy Simon, 30. 
Police said they caught the suspects after responding to a report that one of them pointed a gun at a farmer.
Does every drinking party in the Philippines have to involve a gun?

Church has been cancelled during the quarantine but now worshippers are being allowed to congregate once more.  In smaller numbers of course. For Catholics there will be paperwork.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1288934/catholics-must-fill-out-form-when-going-to-church
Catholics will have to bring pens when they go to church, as they will have personal information forms to fill out when the government allows religious gatherings to resume under a more relaxed coronavirus quarantine. In an administrative decree issued on Monday, the Diocese of Pasig said the requirement would be part of the rules for the reopening of churches for the celebration of Mass. 
The personal information forms will be used for contact tracing to halt the spread of the new coronavirus in the country.
“At the entrance doors of the church, they will be given a form, which they can bring [to the pews]. They will fill [out] the forms upon [sitting] in the pews, [giving their name, address, contact number, date and time of the Mass attended and seat number],” said Pasig Bishop Mylo Vergara.
Will paperwork really halt the spread of the virus? 

 This year's Independence Day celebration in Rizal park will be very different.  

With only a handful of participants, the gathering at Rizal Park in Manila on June 12 to celebrate the country’s 122nd anniversary of independence is perhaps the smallest ever. The Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has allowed the celebration of Independence Day but “this is limited to 10 people only,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said on Tuesday.
Who will these 10 people be? Does this include spectators?

 Some COVID-10 patients have been experiencing neurological symptoms. Could that be why one patient in Cebu committed suicide?
https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-many-patients-reporting-neurological-symptoms-136692
In a statement posted Tuesday evening, Dr. Gerardo Aquino Jr., VSMMC medical chief, said the patient “was admitted due to Covid-19 pneumonia” on Monday and was staying in a room at the third level of the regional hospital. 
Aquino said the nurse on duty noticed on early Tuesday morning the sudden behavioral changes on the patient, who would sing then shout and hit the room's glass door with his fist. 
The guard on duty then spotted the patient roaming around the third-floor lobby and ignored calls to calm down. 
“The patient forcibly broke the glass window near the elevator and jumped to his death towards the ground floor of the ND Building,” Aquino said.
It sure seems that way.
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