The God Culture: Timothy Jay Schwab Uses a Baby Name Dictionary to Interpret The Book of Jubilees and Claims Noah Mentions Fairbanks, Alaska

The fact that Timothy Jay Schwab really believes Noah referred to Fairbanks, Alaska in the 2nd Temple Jewish text The Book of Jubilees is astounding in it's magnitude of ignorance. Words fail to describe this absolutely ridiculous and outrageous claim. Of all the things Tim says which prove that he is a total fraud who thinks he knows what he is talking about but actually does not, and there are many things he says which prove that, this claim takes the cake. It is the rancid cream at the top of Timothy's rotten crop. It deserves an article all of it's own.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXK1Z8ZZCCk

The first mention of this claim is in his video Flood Series - Part 4: Noah Divides All of Earth: Ham & Japheth from the Book of Jubilees.

32:37: And it extends until it approaches the west of Fara. Here we go again we are on the west coast of Europe. Now we are heading west further. This means across the ocean to the western side of Fara, whatever that is. Again, there is no historical reference to Fara that we can find necessarily, however the word of Fara means beautiful lovely, pleasant, fair and what's to the west of Europe? North America. America, America the beautiful. Coincidence? Maybe. However let's look at this one other way. Here's a thought. There is a place on the western side of North America called Fairbanks Alaska. Beautiful home of the Northern Lights. Again, we are theorizing on this one. But wouldn't it make sense that some place in Alaska would fit this best as the other territories are already solidified? So we're not really stretching to say that.

There is a lot happening in this little paragraph. Tim is discussing the word "Fara" which appears in Jubilees 8:27. Jubilees was composed in Hebrew, translated into Greek, translated into Ethiopic, and then translated into English.  There is no complete Greek or Hebrew text existent. It only exists in full in the Ethiopic. Tim is using the English translation and he says that "Fara" means beautiful. The slide shows the source for that definition is thinkbabynames.com

What does Fara mean?

Fara as a name for girls. The meaning of the name Fara is "lovely, pleasant". Fara is a version of Farrah (Middle English, Arabic): from the English word "fair".

http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/0/Fara

He connects this word, which means beautiful, to America because of the song "America the Beautiful." Then he says "Fara" just might be FAIRBANKS, ALASKA as it is home of the beautiful Northern Lights. 

What does the song "America the Beautiful" have to do with the Book of Jubilees?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America_the_Beautiful

Katharine Lee Bates wrote the words to that song. Was she an unwitting tool of prophecy? Tim does not elaborate but I wish he had because it would have been interesting to hear his mangled explanation.

So, to recap Tim is studying an ancient book written in Hebrew, translated into Ethiopic and then into English, and in order to find out what the obscure word "Fara" means he consults Thinkbabynames.com where he finds the English name "Fara" which means beautiful and then he says it might mean America or Fairbanks, Alaska! That is insane. In order to get to the deep meaning of a word from a 2nd century B.C. Jewish writing he consults a modern day baby name dictionary that gives him the definition of a similar sounding word that is not Hebrew at all and he applies it to modern day Fairbanks, Alaska.

Is this the deep and profound research that Timothy Jay Schwab and The God Culture claim to be doing? Consulting a modern day baby name dictionary to ascertain the meaning of an obscure word in an ancient Hebrew text? Who does that? Not a real researcher. No serious researcher would consult a baby name dictionary to interpret an ancient text. And he has the gall to lash out at scholars who have actually studied Jubilees all their lives and call them ignorant! In this same video he says:

12:04 Yes we read scholars. We find it useful from time to time but many times we read and we really question how they could arrive at such decisions.

They come to their decisions because they have studied the texts, the languages, the religious beliefs, and the culture, all the things necessary to know to put Jubilees in the right context or paradigm. That's how they come to their decisions. How does Tim come to his decisions? What prompted him to interpret the Book of Jubilees by using a baby name dictionary? Who in their right mind would do something so completely and utterly asinine and absurd?

This video was published on July 18, 2017. Three years later Tim published his annotated version of Jubilees. This claim about Fairbanks, Alaska is still part of his system but he has tweaked it. Apparently he realized the absolute stupidity of consulting a baby name dictionary to interpret an ancient text so he gets rid of that source entirely.

On his map on page 86 of Jubilees we read the following.

We do not have a clear track on Fara in history but the directions are extremely clear it is in this region. Especially since Shem is Asia. Fara in Old Norse means “Passage.” That could fit the Bering Strait. The process of elimination says so.

Now "Fara" does not mean beautiful. It's Old Norse for "passage." Tim gives no source for this etymology but it can be found at Wiktionary. It is just as dumb to think that a text originally written in Hebrew used a singular Old Norse term as it is to interpret Jubilees by a baby name dictionary. Why would the Hebrew author of Jubilees, whom Tim claims is Moses, employ an Old Norse word in one and only one instance in his text? Where and when did Moses learn Old Norse? Just how old is this Old Norse word? As usual Timothy does not offer any explanation.

You can see Fairbanks, Alaska is on the map as well as the Fairweather Range. That is because Tim, despite saying that "Fara" is Old Norse, means passage, and could refer to the Bering Strait, still thinks it refers to Fairbanks, Alaska or some similar sounding place like the Fairweather Range or the Farallon Islands. That's what he says in his note to Jubilees 8:27.

Based on the orientation, this crosses the Atlantic to the West Coast of N. America. Likely. Fairbanks, Alaska or Farallon Islands off of San Fran. The 5 great islands affirms this as 4 of them are in N. Canada

On page 259 of the book he makes the same assertion. "Fara" is Fairbanks, Alaska.

In Japheth’s territory, he crosses the Atlantic into the Americas as he is in Gadir and heads into the Ocean to the West. There is no other way to interpret that. The five great islands also give this away as in the Northern Hemisphere of his territory, 5 of the 10 largest islands exist there. However, four of them are in Canada thus North America is invoked. This is why we believe Fara is Fairbanks, Alaska or similar in the area.

What happened to the Old Norse? What about the Bering Strait? Tim makes the wild and unfounded claim that "Fara" in this context is Old Norse, does not give any proof, doesn't give any reason, just leaves it there on the map with absolutely no discussion, and then abandons that interpretation completely in his notes.

Then he contradicts himself by saying that "Fara" is Fairbanks, Alaska! Why? There is nothing Old Norse about Fairbanks, Alaska. The modern town of Fairbanks, Alaska was founded in 1901. How would Noah know anything about Fairbanks, Alaska? Again, Tim offers no rationale for his conclusion and one is left to guess. My guess is that it is due to the phonetic similarity of "Fara" with Fairbanks, Fairweather, and Farralon. 

Tim attempts to both deny and explain all this away in his new video "What Territory Belongs to JAPHETH? Answers In Jubilees: Part 4." In this video he annotates the above map from The Book of Jubilees and has a few words to say about Fairbanks, Alaska.

He starts off this video by telling everyone that he has already mapped out the lands of Shem and Ham. Therefore every reference left when distributing Japheth's portion must fit within that blue territory on the map.

4:09 We will operate with this in mind because we know already this is Japheth's territory by default so to not look for those references within his territory already established his record would really just be willing ignorance which is something we do not want to be known for.

It's a tautology to say that every marker in Japheth's territory is Japheth's territory. What Tim really means is that despite him writing very clearly that Fara means Fairbanks, Alaska  he really did not mean that in a definitive way. Before continuing let's go over the progression here.

1. In his first video, which he has now deleted, he says Fara meaning Fairbanks, Alaska is only a theory.

2. In his map in The Book of Jubilees he has Fairbanks, Alaska as one of many possible interpretations of the word Fara along with the Fairweather Range and the Farallon Islands. Let's not forget that he has a question mark there so it's really Fairbanks, Alaska?

3.In his note to Jubilees 8:27 he says Fara is likely Fairbanks, Alaska.  The word likely and the question mark will be important for his discussion in the new video.

4. He ends his annotated Book of Jubilees by affirming that Fara is Fairbanks, Alaska or something similar perhaps.

In all of those instances Tim is hitting hard for Fairbanks, Alaska above any other interpretation. It is very hard to miss that. For him to deny that is to deny what is plain as day and to gaslight his readers and listeners.

 Back to the video.

8:17 We even place a note on the map, we'll show you, that we are not certain of the connection to Fairbanks, Alaska and there are question marks.

Not certain? What a lie. In his annotated Book of Jubilees he is rather certain that there is a connection to Fairbanks, Alaska in some way, shape, or form. Maybe he is reserving judgment but he says it's LIKELY. That is at least one degree of certainty.  Now he says "we are not certain of the connection to Fairbanks, Alaska" which is why there is a question mark next to it.

18:17 Fara also means passage in Old Norse fitting of the Bearing Strait the passage between the two continents essentially. As well, uh, I mean that's pretty self-explanatory that very well could be because well, Noah, because Noah mentions Alaska that'd be a pretty dumb thing to say, that's not what we say. But somewhere there is an ancient reference on the West Coast of North America to this Fara. That's what it is. Another ancient testament that Jubilees could not have been written by a Pharisee nor in the age of 150 B.C. in fact because these are very ancient directions, far more ancient.

Now the Old Norse angle has been revived. He says it means passage and that it is fitting of the Bearing Strait. But he does not say why. Instead he stumbles over his words and says it's just self-explanatory. I am sure he would deny it but he is once again asserting that Old Norse is in the text. If it is not in the text then his explanation of Fara as being Old Norse is entirely superfluous. 

He finishes by saying Fara is an ancient reference to the West Coast of North America! No matter how you slice it whatever Tim thinks Fara means it HAS TO MEAN a particular place on the West Coast of North America. That is what he says. That includes, possibly, Fairbanks Alaska! But how would Noah know that? Fairbanks was not even founded until 1901. It is not ancient at all.

Here is what Tim wants us to believe. After the flood Noah knew the geography of the entire earth. He used this knowledge to divide the earth among his three sons. Now, this ancient Fred MacMurray gives a portion of the earth to Japheth which consists of Europe and most of North America. In delineating the borders he uses an ancient place name, Fara, to designate the West Coast of North America. Where did this place name originate? Who was living on the West Coast in the time of Noah or before? Tim does not say. But this all falls apart because elsewhere Tim is very clear that Noah got his geography from Enoch. Enoch lived BEFORE THE FLOOD! After the flood it was a different world as Tim says the oceans were formed by the flood. Enoch's geography would be useless in the new world. So where does Noah actually get his geographical information, especially the place name Fara? Tim does not say and I still think he has not considered this objection, Enoch's antediluvian geographical knowledge vs the postdiluvian word of Noah, which completely obliterates his interpretation of Noah's division.

Despite telling us that Fara is an Old Norse word meaning passage and thus a fitting designation for the Bearing Strait just a few sentences later he again changes his tune.

19:36 The Farralon Islands off the coast of San Francisco are right on the 37the parallel even with Gadir, Spain. This offers likely the best tie for the word Fara. However we leave it with question marks because we have again, read the note, no definitive track. What we do know is Japheth's territory includes most of North America as it must.

Now he says the Farallon Islands are likely the best fit for Fara. Does he not know that Farallon is Spanish?

The Farallon Islands, or Farallones (from the Spanish farallón meaning "pillar" or "sea cliff"), are a group of islands and sea stacks in the Gulf of the Farallones, off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States. The islands are also sometimes referred to by mariners as the Devil's Teeth Islands, in reference to the many treacherous underwater shoals in their vicinity. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farallon_Islands

Devil's Teeth!? Perhaps Tim would have second thoughts about the Farallon Islands if he knew that factoid. The point here is that whether it's Fairbanks, Alaska or somewhere else Tim is interpreting Fara based upon modern place-names on the West Coast of North America despite acknowledging that it is an ANCIENT REFERENCE. That is the problem.  

Even more problematic is that he admits "we have again, read the note, no definitive track." That means he is just guessing. So everything from America the Beautiful to Old Norse to Fairbanks, Alaska is just stuff he is pulling out of his hat. The fact that he would even consider Fairbanks, Alaska as being Fara is completely laughable and enough to dismiss him outright as a fraud and a hack who has no idea what he is talking about. His interpretation of Jubilees is indeed rubbish!

Let's hear one last word from this video.

25:08 There you have it this is confirmation that Noah indisputably does refer to Alaska.

After enumerating the large islands in Canada and denying that Noah referred to Fairbanks, Alaska Tim now flips the script and says Noah INDISPUTABLY refers to Alaska. Just not, indisputably, Fairbanks, Alaska. But likely.

This is all too stupid. The Book of Jubilees does not refer to Fairbanks, Alaska.  Any one who thinks it does is a clueless hack and has no idea what Jubilees actually teaches. Tim has no idea what he is talking about when it comes to the word "Fara." Remember, this guy is passing himself off as an expert on Philippine and Biblical history who has engaged in deep research on both of those subjects. He even has a forthcoming book about ancient Philippine history.

Ancient

Philippine

History

Gilded in Gold

A Reconstruction of pre-colonial History and Geogprahy from the Beginning

Just imagine what kind of nonsense will be in that book. Tim is very wrong about Philippine history and I will have more about that later. But right here we see his shoddy method at work. It's less than that. It's not even a method. There is no deep research here. It's akin to throwing mud at the wall to see what will stick. Words cannot describe the profound ignorance Tim displays by using a baby name dictionary to interpret Jubilees. This man has zero credibility.

Close on the heels of the absurdities laid out above is Tim's claim that Bengali slang is in the text of Jubilees. It may not be the second worst claim he has made but it's certainly up there. Let's take a brief look.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXK1Z8ZZCCk

18:00 "And it extends toward the west to the sea of 'Atel.' Okay, where are we again? We're in the western edge of Sumatra basically. So to head west what is the sea you run into immediately? It's the Indian Ocean, right? Okay. So we cannot find a reference to the Indian Ocean as the Atel sea. Just can't find it anywhere. It is an ancient reference thus further proving that this book was written long before 200 to 100 BC. So do we head off around the world at this point and try to find something that sounds similar? Why? The word Atel which sounds like the very popular Indian name Patel is actually Bengali meaning a satirical term for intellectual. So it makes perfect sense that the Indian Ocean would have been referred and referenced in more ancient times as Atel sea. More so it is the sea to the west of Sumatra and we do not believe Noah would miss such a large body of water and skip to where some scholars say to the Atlantic.

"The word Atel...is actually Bengali meaning a satirical term for intellectual. So it makes perfect sense that the Indian Ocean would have been referred and referenced in more ancient times as Atel sea."  What he is saying here is that It makes sense that the Indian Ocean used to be referred to in more ancient times as the Atel Sea because Atel is a Bengali word. But why does that make sense exactly? He does not say. He gives no etymology for Atel except to say it's a Bengali word without explaining why it is a Bengali word within the context of Jubilees. He makes the connection to the Indian Ocean without giving an explanation as to why he does so. 

Keep in mind that Tim  also says that he cannot find any reference to the Indian Ocean as the Atel sea. He is once again contradicting himself. If he cannot find such a reference then he cannot know that the Indian Ocean was ever referred to as the Atel Sea. This fact significantly undermines his claim that the Indian Ocean is the Atel Sea.

Furthermore it simply makes no etymological sense that because Atel is Bengali that it makes perfect sense as the name for the Indian Ocean. The definition of this word is very important to figuring out where Noah is mapping. If it is the Atlantic as all the experts say then Tim is 100% wrong in his mapping. But Tim is insistent that it is a perfect linguistic match in Bengali. He makes this connection  twice in his annotated Book of Jubilees.

...sea of ’Atêl as the Indian Ocean which is Bengali in origin thus the Indian Ocean and definitively by the directions...

Book of Jubilees, Timothy Jay Schwab, pg 28

Book of Jubilees, Timothy Jay Schwab, pg. 85

Atel is a "satirical term for intellectual" in Bengali. It is the Indian Ocean LINGUISTICALLY and in the directions.

Tim could not be any clearer. The linguistic connection between "Atel" and "Indian Ocean" is very important to his case. It is not peripheral or secondary. It is germane. When you put it all together the conclusion is inescapable: Noah was using a Bengali slang word to identify the Indian Ocean. If he wasn't then the connection is superfluous. 

Now, as with Fara, Tim is attempting to sweep all this under the table by denying that linguistic connection.

What Territory Belongs to HAM? Answers In Jubilees: Part 3

18:47 ...claiming we say that Noah spoke Bengali essentially. Well we don't 

20:30 The fact that Atel is Bengali is a bonus which connection we do not require but it is neat that it is there and we are researchers who ask such questions to affirm things we already know. We do not say this is the Indian Ocean because Atel is Bengali. That's stupid. We say it is the Indian ocean because that is the sea to the west of Indonesia where we were in the directions. That's it. And it's nice to know that it comes back full circle and ties that Atel is in fact a word in Bengali. Wow!

That is all a jumbled lie. Tim now says that he does not identify the Indian Ocean as Atel because it is a Bengali word but only because of the directions. The fact is he says both. But now he downplays the Bengali connection by saying it is merely "neat." Why is it neat?  Why is it important to make this connection if it's not actually important? 

In Tim's introduction to the Book of Jubilees he writes that the word Atel is Bengali in origin. In this video he contradicts himself by denying that Noah was speaking Bengali or using a Bengali word. But if that is so then the connection between Atel being a Bengali word and the identity of the Indian Ocean is irrelevant. Either Noah used a Bengali word and there is a Bengali word in the text or there is not. If Noah was not using a Bengali word and there is no Bengali word in the text then Tim's exegesis which employs a Bengali word is impertinent and paralogical.

Funnily enough in this tirade Tim reveals his ethos as a researcher: "...we are researchers who ask such questions to affirm things we already know." Researchers do not ask questions to affirm what they already know. They ask questions to find out the truth of a matter. If Tim is doing research to affirm what he already knows that is called confirmation bias. Again Tim shows us all he is not a real researcher engaged in honest research. He is a parviscient fraud and a hack who used a baby name dictionary to interpret the book of Jubilees and who says he is only looking to affirm what he already knows.

While he is denying the essential linguistic connection between Atel and Bengali with the identification of the Indian Ocean is he aware of what's on the map in his video just underneath Australia?

Atel is a "satirical term for intellectual" in Bengali. It is the Indian Ocean LINGUISTICALLY and in the directions.

His very own map contradicts everything he is saying. Folks, you cannot make up this kind of stupidity. 

Tim has now deleted the videos referred to in this article. 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLru2qbCMGOi7FQ7HiGJcODyJEoBP7-0Md

As you can see Flood Series videos 3 and 4 are now missing from this play list. Tim has replaced them with his Answers in Jubilees videos. He says he is simply updating maps but what he is really doing is deleting evidence of his past false teachings. I downloaded a copy for posterity and thankfully a God Culture fan has uploaded it on his channel. If you want to watch go to this link. 

Concerning the deleting of these videos Tim posted the following on Facebook:

Just letting everyone know as we updated and freshened our graphics with new high resolution, professional-quality maps (oh no, you are not allowed to do that are you?) and more detail for Noah's Division matching our recent publishing of The Book of Jubilees: The Torah Calendar where we invested in incredible maps, you will find in place of Parts 3&4 of the Flood Series in the playlist, new videos of Shem's Division just released as well as Ham's from the latest Answers In Jubilees and Japheth's is already there too but will go live next week. When we update such maps, we don't leave the old ones which serve no purpose for idiots to ridicule who can't even read a map in the first place

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=733353473891339&id=376627072897316

It's simply more deception from The God Culture. They are not merely updating maps. With the deletion of these videos they get rid of teachings as well as discussion in the comments and they reduce their view count. The new map isn't even accurate like the old one is. The new map is a cartoon while the old map was a projection of the earth as it is onto a flat surface. There was a lot of information in that video besides simply mapping out Noah's division to Ham and Japheth. Now Timothy has deleted all of that. 

These new videos are also now labelled as part of 3 different series: Answers in Jubilees, The Flood Series, and 100 Clues. That makes for jumbled playlists and a lot of clutter and overlap. In fact several old videos have now been rebranded to be part of the 100 Clues series. It's more than a little lazy for Tim to retroactively add videos to a series he has basically abandoned, 100 Clues. It is also very disorganized as now several videos are on several different playlists.

It is also a great disservice to his audience. Just read this comment from a new viewer who is looking for Flood Series videos 3 and 4 which Tim mentions in his other videos but has now deleted.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrqCzFOnUmg&lc=Ugw8Ip8ezUyGSAZ_tVx4AaABAg

I would like to thank you for these videos that are meticulously compiled complete with the relevant supporting evidences. These are excellent videos. However I like to make a suggestion to make the viewing of such videos more meaningful. For someone new to this videos, it would be good if you could provide a road map of where to start and proceed. For example, I started with the Revelation series as I happened to chanced upon one of them while doing a video search. It then led me to the Solomon Gold series. Somewhere in the Solomon Gold series it was suggested we see for videos 1 and 2 of the Flood Series which I did. As I proceeded on with the Solomon Gold series, I was asked to see videos 3 and 4 of Flood Series. I did find 3B but could not find 3A as I assumed there should be one. Anyways, my suggestion is that is it possible to provide a road map to all your videos as a guide to which videos should be watched first and how they are logically sequenced? You have hundreds of videos and I would love to go through them. A road map to the logical sequence to view this would be great ... Just a suggestion :)

This guy was watching Tim's videos and following his recommendations to watch certain other videos. But now two of those videos have been deleted leaving this guy wondering what's happening. This is a prime example of why Tim should not have deleted his videos. 

It's not that one cannot grow in their understanding and abandon false teachings. However that is not what Timothy is actually doing. The importance of this video is that it shows Tim had no idea and still has no idea what he is talking about when it comes to the Book of Jubilees. For goodness sake he used a baby name dictionary to interpret that ancient text! And he dares to call me a fool?

P.S.  I am not going to rewrite any of the above but I want to clarify that Timothy has now undeleted the videos for Flood Series 3 and 4. The thing is though they are currently UNLISTED which means you cannot search for them and you won't see them in his list of videos.

Since the videos are unlisted they are unsearchable and invisible which makes them as good as deleted. Perhaps he will rectify this situation in the future.

Retards in the Government 200

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

 

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1411846/bicol-anti-drug-operations-village-chief-killed-4-arrested

A village chief was killed while four other suspects were arrested in a series of operations by police to serve search warrants in two Bicol provinces—Camarines Sur and Albay—on Friday (March 26).

Maj. Louie de la Peña, chief of community affairs development of the Camarines Sur police, said Elmer Casabuena, 50, the village chief of Nino Jesus in Iriga City, was killed when he fired at police officers serving a search warrant for drugs and guns at his house around 1 a.m.

De la Peña said Casabuena was tagged as a high-value target and was on a drug watch list.

A village chief who was a high-value target was killed in a shoot out with police when they came to his house with a search warrant.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1411910/quezon-town-police-chief-sacked-over-alleged-sexual-harassment

The Lucban, Quezon police chief was relieved from his post after a female police officer accused him of alleged sexual harassment, a police report said Friday night.

Major Rizaldy Merene was sacked after the the alleged harassment case last March 25 in Barangay Wakas in neighboring Tayabas City.

No other details of the alleged incident were provided in the report. The victim was not also identified

“The act is not a virtue of a responsible, respected and disciplined police officer,” Quezon provincial police chief Colonel Ericson Dilag said in a statement.

Merene was reassigned to the Quezon Provincial Holding and Accounting Section at Camp Nakar in Lucena City.

A local police chief was sacked over sexual harassment allegations.

https://mb.com.ph/2021/03/27/sk-chairman-nabbed-for-selling-marijuana-in-isabela/

A Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chairman was arrested in a buy-bust operation after almost a year of police surveillance in Barangay Saranay here Friday.

Police Major Fresiel A. dela Cruz, chief of police here, identified the suspect as Joren Palomeno, 24, of Barangay Centro, this town.

Dela Cruz said he and his men, together with agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 2 (Cagayan Valley), cuffed the suspect after he was caught selling marijuana contained in a transparent plastic sachet to a poseur-buyer.

During body search, the operatives seized from him a P500 bill used as buy-bust money, two more sachets of dried marijuana leaves, and a mobile phone placed in his sling bag.

LGU official arrested for selling marijuana.

https://www.philstar.com/nation/2021/03/29/2087768/cop-shoots-worker-over-spat

A police officer reportedly shot dead a worker following a quarrel in Calamba, Laguna at dawn yesterday. 

Leovil Brian Pelletero, 19, was declared dead on arrival at the Global Medical Center due to a gunshot to the abdomen. 

Cpl. Javier Ian Medel of the Cabuyao police station surrendered after the incident that occurred at around 2:25 a.m.

Investigation showed that Pelletero and his friends were having a drinking session at an establishment in Barangay Cabuyao. 

Medel and his friends were at a table beside Pelletero’s group.

The victim and his friends were talking in a local dialect, which reportedly irritated Medel who confronted the group. 

A quarrel ensued between Medel and Pelletero and resulted in the officer shooting the victim dead.

A PNP officer was annoyed by a man's dialect so he shot him dead.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/370421/11-sawang-calero-cops-relieved-for-extortion-rape

The victim alleged that Colita and the 10 other suspects conducted a search operation for firearms inside her house in Tungkil, Minglanilla without presenting any documents. 

“Upon search, no firearm was found. Instead said operatives took valuables from her including money, pieces of jewelry, a bag, and an ATM card,” said Montejo. 

Additionally, she was brought to the Sawang Calero Police Station at around 1 a.m. on March 10, 2021, and ‘illegally detained’ there. 

The complainant added that she was raped twice by Colita who also extorted money worth P170,000 from her. 

Based on the statement of the complainant, Montejo said that right after she was ‘arrested’ she was brought to a hotel in the city. Before she was raped, she added that she was also assisted in the bank to withdraw the money Colita extorted from her.

11 PNP officers raid a woman's house, apparently without a warrant, looking for guns but finding none steal her valuables. She is then detained and taken to a hotel and raped by one of the officers but not before being forced to withdraw P170,000 from a bank. Just a few bad apples of course. Totally an isolated case. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1135530

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Debold Sinas on Wednesday announced the relief of a police officer from the Negros Occidental Police Office after he tested positive for drug use.

Sinas said Pat. Nicolas Martinez is now restricted to quarters while undergoing pre-charge investigation and summary dismissal proceedings within the next 60 days.

Another cop dismissed because of drugs.

Coronavirus Lockdown: Almost Back to Zero, Economic Deterioration, and More!

More news about how the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines is being handled by the public and the government. 

In Philippine politics count on corruption. Count also on that corruption being explained away. Five mayors have been accused of  receiving the vaccine before they should have, cutting the line. They all say, "We did it for the people."

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/781135/mayors-accused-of-jumping-line-for-covid-19-jab-we-did-it-for-the-people/story/

Some mayors defended themselves after receiving show cause orders for getting vaccinated against COVID-19 ahead of the prioritized sectors, according to Joseph Morong's report on Unang Balita on Thursday.

Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez said he decided to get the jab to convince his constituents to get the COVID-19 vaccines amid public apprehension toward the vaccine.

Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal also gave a similar explanation for his vaccination, saying that he did it for the people in his city.

Bataraza, Palawan Mayor Abraham Ibba, for his part, said many of their frontliners had doubts receiving the vaccines so he decided to get inoculated to hopefully alter their perception.

(Many of our frontliners are uncertain about the vaccine. They don’t want to get vaccinated. Since the vaccines are here, I would go first to allay their doubts. I am also a frontliner.”)

Sto. Nino, South Cotabato Mayor Sulpicio Villalobos, meanwhile, said that he was among the last recipients who got the jab during the vaccination of frontliners.

(The frontliners and I got inoculated at the same time. Every batch is by 10. I am near number 40, the last one so to speak.”)

They did it for the people, of course. Why would they do it for themselves. Only four are quoted here but there is one more mayor who got the vaccine as well as other LGUs. They all have the same excuse.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1411207/mindanao-local-execs-who-got-jab-we-only-want-to-show-the-vaccine-is-safe

Mindanao local officials who jumped the vaccine line said they were not doing it to save themselves but to show to their reluctant and fearful constituents that taking the vaccine is safe.

Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong, Jr., the first and only elected government official in the province who received a vaccine together with health workers on Monday, was questioned why he got the jab when he was not a healthcare worker.

Jennie Tamano, the provincial information officer, said Adiong was inoculated to boost the people’s confidence in the vaccine.

“Governor Adiong wants to set an example to his constituents, who mostly do not believe in the COVID-19 virus and vaccination,” Tamano said.

Dr. Alinader Minalang, head of the Integrated Provincial Health Official (IPHO) in Lanao del Sur, said Adiong was qualified to be vaccinated as a frontliner and a person with comorbidities.

“He is asthmatic, the first among the local chief executives, so far, who was inoculated,” Minalang said.

“Municipal mayors who want to be vaccinated will be qualified, only if they are senior citizens or have comorbidities.”

In Parañaque two government employees and an actor allegedly jumped the line to get vaccinated.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1411197/fwd-dilg-councilor-doj-employee-also-allegedly-jumped-vaccine-line-in-paranaque-city

Apart from an actor, a city councilor and a Department of Justice  (DOJ) employee also allegedly skipped the COVID-19 vaccine priority line in Parañaque City, a Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) official said Thursday.

Actor Mark Anthony Fernandez was vaccinated in Parañaque City the other day despite not being a health worker in the vaccination priority list.

“In fact, nadagdagan pa yan dahil naka-receive ako ng information ngayong umaga na merong konsehal din na Parañaque na nagpabakuna rin kahapon at meron din isang empleyado ng Department of Justice na hindi binigay sa akin ang pangalan, mga nagsumbong lang,” DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III said in a televised briefing.

(In fact, there’s more because I received information this morning that a Parañaque City councilor and a Department of Justice employee, whose names were not disclosed to me, were also vaccinated yesterday.)

(They really did not follow the priority list. When we say priority list, if the person scheduled to be vaccinated is not available, the substitute should also be within the priority individuals, not those outside the list.)

Parañaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez has since defended Fernandez’s vaccination, saying he has comorbidities such as hypertension and depression which makes him qualified to be a substitute on the priority list.

It is funny that the governor of Lanao del Sur and an actor were eligible to receive the vaccine because they had existing comorbidities. If you have been paying attention COVID-19 exacerbates existing diseases and that is how people die. Not many people have died from COVID-19 alone. Only about 6% of all COVID deaths are from COVID alone. The rest all had existing health conditions.

Barring these cases the DILG has moved up governors, mayors, and barangay executives on the priority list to receive the vaccine.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/781148/governors-mayors-barangay-captains-moved-up-in-vaccination-priority-list-dilg/story/

Governors, mayors, and barangay captains have been moved up in the priority list of the government for the vaccination rollout, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Thursday. 

Interviewed on Dobol B TV, DILG Undersecretary Epimaco Densing III said the adjustment was approved after he recommended it to the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases 

(They are already considered as A4. Last Thursday, I recommended to the IATF through the Recovery Cluster of the IATF to move them up from B3 to A4.) 

“All 1,715 governors and mayors, and 42,046 barangay captains, inaprubahan po natin na iangat po ang kanilang classification (we approved to elevate their classification),” he added. 

According to Densing, these government officials were previously in the same classification with other essential workers at B3. 

Now, they are included in A4 like frontline personnel in essential sectors including uniformed personnel and those in working sectors identified as essential during an enhanced community quarantine. 

Based on the prioritization of the government, they will receive the COVID-19 vaccines after frontline health workers (A1), indigent senior citizens (A2), and the remaining senior citizens and persons with comorbidities (A3).

They can get the jab before the remaining indigent population (A5) as well as teachers and social workers (B1).

Government officials can now get the vaccine before the indigent population. 

The DOJ says they will be going after illegal swab centers.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1411499/doj-goes-after-illegal-swab-centers

Multiple charges await operators of illegal COVID-19 swabbing centers as well as those who issue or use fake swab test results, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra warned on Thursday.

Guevarra told reporters that those behind the operation of illegal coronavirus testing centers could be charged with violating local ordinances on business establishments, the Consumer Act and Republic Act No. 4688, which regulates the operation and maintenance of clinical laboratories in the country.

Police officers earlier shut down a testing center in Singalong, Manila, that allegedly offered COVID-19 swab tests without a certification from health authorities. The testing facility found inside a house at a residential area reportedly offered swab tests costing P3,000 each.

Recently, several tourists have also been caught and charged for submitting fake negative COVID-19 test results—one of the requirements set by some local governments in destinations that have reopened to local travelers.

On Wednesday, former Health Secretary Janette Garin, now an Iloilo congresswoman, pushed a congressional probe of the fake test results that were even being peddled on Facebook.

“While fake results are partly to blame for the COVID-19 surge, it will also be worth looking into the exorbitant cost of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing … Those caught faking results should be quarantined for three months and help man the quarantine centers,” she said.

Screenshots of conversations involving the peddlers of the fake results showed that the test results can be bought for P1,500 to P2,000.

There is a black market for everything in the Philippines.

Wth Manila going back to ECQ for two weeks the World Bank has forecasted slower economic growth in the country.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/03/27/2087356/philippines-reliance-prolonged-lockdowns-caused-economic-deterioration-wb

The Philippines’ reliance on prolonged lockdowns rather than prioritizing mass testing at the onset of the pandemic caused an economic deterioration that it struggles to recover from, even as regional peers are already seeing significant improvements, the World Bank said in a report.

“The Philippines relied more on prolonged restrictions on mobility rather than an effective test-based strategy,” the WB report said, adding that “countries with greater quarterly growth contraction in 2020 had higher infection rates, imposed more stringent mobility restrictions, had more highly indebted governments and were more dependent on earnings from tourism.”

The report also described the relationship between the number of COVID-19 tests conducted and GDP growth among countries in the Asia-Pacific.

According to the WB, the Philippines conducted only 17 tests per confirmed COVID-19 case, way below the testing in Vietnam (4,277), Laos (2,080), China (1,853), Cambodia (897) and Malaysia (244).

Because of mass testing, mobility restrictions were not as severe, resulting in gross domestic product growth for Vietnam (2.9 percent), China (2.3 percent) and Laos (0.4 percent) in 2020. Cambodia’s GDP also contracted, but only by 3.1 percent, and Malaysia by 5.6 percent.

The Philippine economy, on the other hand, shrank 9.5 percent, its worst in several decades and the sharpest drop in the region.

Considering all these, the World Bank said only China and Vietnam are expected to grow strongly this year by 8.1 percent and 6.6 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Philippines will remain below pre-pandemic levels until 2022, with a projected 5.5 percent GDP growth this year.

Further, new COVID-19 variants are expected to exacerbate outcomes by impairing vaccine effectiveness and increasing coverage levels needed for herd immunity.

“In countries where COVID-19 control has not been achieved, like the Philippines, rapid vaccination is a priority to reduce high numbers of deaths and pressure on struggling health systems,” the World Bank said.

The Palace brushed off that analysis by declaring the country is doing its best. Moody's has also given the Philippines a negative credit rating saying uncontrolled restrictions have lead to a fiscal strain. Despite criticism from within, health workers says the government should rethink its response, and without the government says they have no plan on changing the way they have been fighting the pandemic.

https://www.philstar.com/business/2021/03/21/2085948/record-covid-19-cases-not-convincing-economic-planners-change-tack

Not even the Philippines’ record-breaking coronavirus cases can force President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic managers to change their pandemic fighting strategies.

Instead, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua insisted on their typical tack of keeping lockdowns to a minimum and controlling spending, over a year since the health crisis started, at which point many see the country is back to a grim square one.

“We need to continue managing risks as Covid cases rise. We do this by focusing on localized quarantines and addressing the sources of highest risk so that the jobs/livelihood of the far majority will not be affected,” Chua told reporters in a Viber message.

With more granular lockdowns also come the government’s decision to stay pat against more fiscal stimulus. “The DOF (Department of Finance) has always advocated a policy of conserving all our resources in anticipation of a recurrence of the contagion,” Dominguez said separately.

But for Marikina Rep. Stella Luz Quimbo, an economist, lockdowns and keeping people alive and their welfare protected can be attained simultaneously. In a series of tweets on Saturday, Quimbo noted that between the Philippines and Malaysia, the latter’s cases have peaked and going down already— with COVID-19 exacting far less economic damage than at home.

“The figure with Malaysia begs the question: what have they done differently? We both partially opened up, Malaysia even held their elections. Then COVID cases increased,” she said.

“6 economic stimulus packages including income replacement for those under quarantine, and wage subsidies. That’s the BIG difference: they continue to provide ayuda. We did not,” she explained.

Will localized lockdowns really help curb the rise in cases? This is what has been happening for a year and yet cases continue to rise. No one knows why. Some blame the government. The government blames people not following health protocols as well as new strains. With new strains the goal of defeating the virus by vaccinating everyone may proof fruitless.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/27/21/15-pasay-city-health-workers-test-positive-for-covid-19-after-sinovac-inoculation

Some 15 health frontliners from Pasay City General Hospital (PCGH) have tested positive for COVID-19 after being inoculated with Sinovac's coronavirus vaccines, the hospital's officer-in-charge said.

In a statement, Dr. John Victor de Gracia said most of the medical workers who caught the virus are asymptomatic or with mild symptoms. A health worker, however, was sent to the hospital as "moderate risk." 

They are all in stable condition, he said.

The development came as the country battles a surge of new coronavirus infections, mostly recorded from the capital region, with some hospitals declaring full capacity because of continued fresh admissions reminiscent of last year's peak. 

But de Gracia believed that receiving the Sinovac jab ahead of their infection prevented them from being hospitalized or exhibiting severe symptoms of the virus. 

(I am thankful that we were vaccinated ahead of our virus infection that is why we did not experience anything bad from it. To be honest, if this happened before we got vaccinated, maybe some of us were already critically ill.) 

This person is thankful that the vaccine mitigated the effects of COVID-19. But preventing infection is the purpose of a vaccine!

The new ECQ in the NCR means an 11-hour curfew, no exercising except between 6 and 9 a.m., and perhaps an even longer lockdown as the DOH is recommending at least an additional week to make three. It's looking quite bleak which has Duterte acknowledging that the Philippines is "almost back to zero."

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/03/29/2087861/almost-back-zero-duterte-reverts-6-provinces-gcq-mecq

Duterte in his weekly address said he has found himself "grappling with the issue" of COVID-19 that has infected over 731,000 and killed more than 13,000 Filipinos to date.

In reading the list of areas in new quarantine status, he commented that it was as if the country is in its standing last year when the pandemic hit.

"Kagaya 'yan sa una," said the President, whose administration has come under fire for its pandemic response. "Halos back to zero tayo."

(This is like before. We're almost back to zero.)

"Almost back to zero." Panelo has since spun this to mean "COVID infections are rising." What is there to say? I could tell you about the old man who died outside of an ER because they would not accept him. How about patients being confined in tents and being charged P1000 her hour?  Jobs reopened after the initial ECQ have barely allowed people to get by. The loss of jobs has hit women disproportionately and has stymied equality goals. It's all a mess. Is that why Duterte is "close to tears?"

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/03/31/2088236/duterte-close-tears-warns-bleak-months-ahead

Duterte said the pandemic is taking most of his time and likened his situation to passing through purgatory.

“I’m having a hard time. I’m grappling with the issue of COVID. It takes most of my time actually. More than any other papers, it’s the COVID that is taking my time or most of my time looking for ways, checking what is happening outside,” Duterte said during a pre-recorded public address on Monday, his first since placing Metro Manila and the nearby provinces of Laguna, Cavite, Rizal and Bulacan on lockdown.

“Hay buhay. Kung alam lang ninyo... Para akong dumadaan ng purgatoryo ngayon at this time hanggang hindi matulungan ang lahat ng Pilipino (Oh, life. If you only knew... I’m like passing through purgatory at this time until I am able to help all Filipinos),” he added.

“That is how hard it is para makakuha lang talaga tayo... Gusto ko na ngang umiyak sa harap ninyo pero naubos na ang luha ko (That is how hard it is for us to get vaccines... I want to cry in front of you but I have run out of tears),” Duterte said.

Sincere or not the most cynical would say that this is a great way for Duterte to make the pandemic about himself.

Sugarcane Obstructing the Road

I came upon this scene at 6 in the morning. No idea how long it had been like this.

Long enough for someone to put up a makeshift barricade. Did the driver do that? If so why did he not scoop that sugarcane back into the truck? By 9 the sugarcane was gone. Guess where it went?

To the curb of the street across form the intersection it was obstructing!!! Is there any reason that whoever moved the sugarcane could not call in a truck to come haul it away? I bet it will sit there for a long time. I have seen sugarcane dropped at this intersection brushed over to this same area and just sit there until it deteriorated from the sun and the rain