What's That on the Basketball Court

I saw the weirdest thing on the basketball court.  

Pretty strange.  What's with all those tarps?  Let's take a look.

It's rice!

Someone is temporarily storing their rice on the basketball court.  How nice of them.  How did they even get it there? It didn't stay long though. But it should never have been there in the first place! What if someone had wanted to play basketball?  They wouldn't be able to because of the huge tarps of rice all over the court.

One thing about living in the Philippines is people use things inappropriately. Like they use their housing lot in a gated community to have a rabbit, duck, and chicken farm.

Do I need to describe how awful this place smells?  And this is in a gated community!

The basketball court is for basketball. Not storing your dried rice. And a gated housing community is not a farm. But in the Philippines it truly is anything goes.

Water Turned off in the Middle of A Shower

I was in the middle of a shower when the water cut off. So I shouted down, "Hey I need the water!"  "No one is using the water," came the reply.  That's when it hit me in an instant and everything became clear.  Just an hour ago while walking the dog I saw the water service truck pass by towards the well.  Obviously they were doing some work and had turned off the water.  

Fuming and wet I slid back into my sweaty workout shorts and biked on over to give them a piece of my mind.

"What's going on?  Why did you turn the water off?  I was in the middle of a shower!," I shouted my body now wet with sweat and scummy with dry soap.

"Oh sorry sir.  We turned it off for safety reasons."

"What safety reasons?"

"We are welding sir and need to keep the pump engine safe."

Now what is this guy even talking about?  They are welding a tow latch which has nothing to do with the water pump engine.  Take a look at how far away the engine is from where this guy is working.

It's housed inside a tiny building.

What safety risk is there?  Seems dubious. They often turn off the water for seemingly no reason.  Anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour.

"When will the water be turned back on?", I asked.

"Maybe thirty minutes, sir."

It was a little longer than that but not too long.  Miraculously the water did not run black and greasy when they turned it back on.

Irregular water and electric service.  That is a way of life in the Philippines.

Jeepney Art 4

Look at what we have here!  It's more Jeepney art.

Martial Law: No Live Target

The first big event of the 14th week of martial law in Mindanao was that the AFP recaptured the police station.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/metro/623073/gov-t-troops-regains-control-of-marawi-city-police-station/story/

Government forces have already regained control of the police station in Marawi City, GMA News' Sandra Aguinaldo reported on "24 Oras," Wednesday. 

The military remains mum on the buildings that they were able to take back from the terrorist group. But officials said there are several important buildings under their control, including some mosques. 

"We have taken over strategic locations within the main battle area. In fact 'yung mga locations po na ito ay areas where we can launch further assault into the area," said Col. Romeo Brawner, deputy commander of Joint Task Group Ranao.

Creeping ever closer to victory the AFP also captured several other important buildings within the main battle zone.  But it was not until a few days later that the second biggest event of the week occurred when they captured the most symbolic of all the buildings in Marawi: The Grand Mosque.  Coincidently President Duterte showed up a few hours later.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/925414/marawi-city-maute-group-islamic-state-president-duterte-mosque-eduardo-ano

President Rodrigo Duterte traveled Thursday to the main battle zone in southern Marawi after Philippine troops finally recaptured a main mosque where Islamic State-linked militants had taken cover with their hostages in the three-month siege of the city, the military said.

Clad in a combat uniform, protective vest and helmet, Duterte congratulated the troops for regaining control of the Islamic Center, an indication they are nearing the final stage in ending the disastrous uprising. It was Duterte’s third known trip to the embattled city.

“I need to be with you to show my solidarity,” Duterte was quoted by officials as telling the troops.

How did Duterte show his solidarity with the troops? In the most characteristic way possible. By dressing up in a costume and staging a photo-op.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/925705/marawi-maute-group-islamic-state-president-duterte-terrorism-2

On his third visit to war-ravaged Marawi City, President Duterte fired a sniper rifle at positions held by Islamic State (IS)-linked gunmen to show solidarity with government troops who have been fighting the terrorists for the past three months, officials said on Friday. 

During his visit on Thursday, Mr. Duterte inspected a devastated community where he spoke with troops and fired the rifle twice from a military sniper’s nest, Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said. 

“The President wanted to be at the front line, so he went to the main battle area,” Padilla told reporters in Malacañang. 

The President was in a combat uniform, wore a helmet and bulletproof vest and carried his own rifle. A collector of guns, including many sniper rifles, Mr. Duterte knew what he was doing, Padilla said.

This was of course all fake.  Every bit of it a piece of carefully crafted propaganda.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/623355/duterte-had-no-live-target-when-he-fired-sniper-rifle-in-marawi-palace/story/

President Rodrigo Duterte did not have a live target when he used a sniper rifle fired at enemy positions on his third visit in Marawi City, Malacañang said on Friday.

Nothing says solidarity with the troops like showing up in battle gear and firing a rifle at nothing. 

Don't think for a moment this is not propaganda. Ex-sexy dancer turned sexy blogger turned sexy propagandist for the Duterte administration Mocha Uson also visited Marawi  with the President and she did not wear full battle gear. If the danger is so high that there was a requirement for protective gear to be worn why wasn't she wearing any protection of any kind? Because it is better propaganda to see the Commander-in-Chief dressed in full combat gear and firing a weapon (this instills patriotism and confidence in Duterte) and to allow Mocha Uson to cavort with the troops in such a way that does not cover up her "sexiness" (this allows her followers and the AFP to gawk at the pretty lady for her body and her bravery in coming to Marawi).

Propaganda

After retaking the Grand Mosque the big question is: Where did everybody go?  Where are the hostages?  Where are the Maute Group fighters? They moved to other buildings!

http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/25/17/fighting-reignites-near-marawi-mosque

The firefight was 100 meters away from the mosque, an ABS-CBN News source said 

The source added that the Maute group transferred to nearby buildings after state forces retook the mosque.

No hostages. No Maute fighters.  No anybody.  Not even dead bodies. How is picking off 40 fighters proving to be so difficult? Imagine if the region was flooded with ISIS fighters.  Would the AFP be able to handle them all?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/08/25/islamic-state-urges-muslim-extremists-wage-war-inphilippine/ 

In the seven-minute long video, produced by Isil’s Al Hayat media centre, a fighter identified as Abul-Yaman from Marawi, appeals to Muslim brothers in East Asia, particularly those in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand and Singapore to migrate to the city “to perform jihad.”

The terrorist group then turns its ire on Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, for running to “his masters, the defenders of the cross, America, along with their regional guard dog Australia” to beg them for help.

What's ironic is that ISIS thinks Duterte is running to the USA for help even calling them one of his masters.  While it may appear that way from the outside,

http://globalnation.inquirer.net/159985/president-duterte-north-korea-admiral-harry-harris-jr-nuclear-attacks-guam

Duterte doesn't think so.

Earlier this week, the president said that he will not invoke the defense treaty with the US if the Philippines confronts China in its violations in the South China Sea, and if the latter chooses the aggressive path. 

"I will not call on America. I have lost trust in the Americans," Duterte said, known for his personal stance against the US.

"Everyone knows that President Duterte doesn’t like or trust the United States, and perhaps this was always his position on the MDT, but why say it publicly?" Gregory Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, told Philstar.com.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/08/24/1732267/analyst-dutertes-stance-puts-defense-capability-risk

More ISIS fighters in Mindanao would propel the humanitarian crisis, which the government denies exists, to spiral out of control. 

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/623327/after-int-l-aid-groups-sound-alarm-ocd-denies-humanitarian-crisis-in-marawi-city/story/

If there is one thing the Philippine government is good at it's denial.  Denying ISIS is in the region. Denying that China is encroaching on Philippine territory. And now denying that there is a humanitarian crisis in Marawi. The fact is the humanitarian crisis in Marawi started long ago.

http://news.abs-cbn.com/blogs/opinions/08/21/17/shattered-lives-marawis-refugees

"On the first day, we weren't too bothered because it was just gunshots. Marawi has always been very chaotic: family feuds or fights over women and money. They're called 'rido' (honour killings). When it's a 'rido', the police don't bother following up." 

"But on the second day, when the bombing started, it was really scary. We knew we had to leave. There were brownouts so we couldn't charge our hand-phones. We had no food. Then, the Maute sent people out to look for men to fight. I hid. They even sent their women door-to-door to search for fighters. 

"Finally, on the third day, we escaped. I couldn't fit them all (he gestures to his kids) on my motorbike, so I had to leave it behind. We piled onto my brother-in-law's Hilux truck along with my wife's family. We could only bring the clothes we were wearing at the time.” 

“We didn't have much. But we've lost it all—at least PHP13000. The house was right in the centre of town in the Barangay Marinaut and that's been burnt down! I saw it on TV. I curse Marawi. I don't want to go back. I just want my children to go to school. I sell some of the canned foods they give us every day at the shelter to pay for their schooling."

When you live in an area where the sound of gunfire doesn't bother you because it's "just gunshots" and police don't even care to investigate murders because they are only honour killings then you are living in the midst of a humanitarian crisis.  The way this man talks about his life as if such chaos is completely normal is a tragedy. It's hard to imagine what could be done to change such a horrible situation. If everything were to go back to normal tomorrow all the degeneracy of life in Marawi would surely reappear.

For those who say that Mindanao is safe, they should think twice.

Mindanao is a patchwork of local magnates: the former Davao Mayor and now President Rodrigo Duterte is a classic example. For nearly two decades, he ruled his city firmly, creating a rare haven of peace and prosperity. As Manila's authority fluctuated; men (and women) such as Duterte were literally the law in their respective bailiwicks. However, if you were to drive just a few miles from Davao, the "Pax Duterte” totally evaporates.  

On the one hand, there is an “alphabet soup” of Muslim groups –from the MNLF to the MILF. Indeed, the Maute were an MILF splinter group led by Abdullah Maute, founder of a so-called “Islamic State” in Lanao. If that wasn't complicated enough, Mindanao is also a major theatre of operations for the Communist fighters, the NPA. It's a confusing blur of religion, ideology, separatism and criminality.  

http://news.abs-cbn.com/blogs/opinions/08/21/17/shattered-lives-marawis-refugees

As the AFP prepares for the final assault on Marawi,

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/08/28/1733447/troops-preparing-final-assault-vs-maute

it must be remembered that there is more work to be done in the area after the city is retaken and the Maute Group is defeated.

As long as terrorism and the ideologies which foster terrorism are allowed to thrive in Mindanao making the island "a confusing blur of religion, ideology, separatism and criminality," and this has been the case for decades, the whole island will remain in the midst of a humanitarian crisis.  The fight will never be over until the Philippines can take off its blinders and stop living in denial of the threats that face the country from within and from without.

Let's Pretend

Last week President Duterte admitted that he cannot control the drug problem. Now he is repeating that admission seemingly to make him seem human after the recent spat of killings in the drug war.  It's the admission of a mistake. And see how brave it makes Duterte because he is only human after all and it takes a real man to own up to his mistakes. Never mind that his whole campaign was built on the promise of ridding the Philippines of drugs.

http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/08/26/1732881/rody-admits-i-cant-end-shabu-menace

“Nangako ako that I will do away with the shabu. Ngayon, alam ko na na hindi ito matutupad, na hindi talaga matapos ‘to (I promised that I will do away with shabu. Now I know it won’t be fulfilled, that this really will not end),” Duterte told soldiers in Marawi on Thursday afternoon. 

But he vowed to pursue his campaign against drugs despite the seeming hopelessness of the effort.

What is the public supposed to do in the face of this admission?  Duterte has broken his promise. Now what? Is it time for his ouster?  Time for another revolution?

He appealed to the public that he be given another chance to work in the remaining five years of his administration to make life more comfortable for Filipinos. 

Duterte admitted his administration is facing a host of problems, but he said with the cooperation of the people, it would be able to surmount all the challenges and make the country progressive.

Headlines ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 

“Pretend that I am doing well. Just give me the remaining years. Five years pa naman. And we will build a strong country and a strong Armed Forces and police,” he said.

The public is now supposed to ignore all the problems Duterte admits exists and the fact that he cannot make good on his keystone promise and simply pretend that everything is fine. As if pretending will make everything bad go away.

It's not as if this is an outrageous thing to ask. The entire nation is living in a pretend world. Pinoy pride infects everyone to the point that the state of the nation is exalted to such a degree that none of the Philippines' many faults are recognised and when those faults are pointed out the response is outrage that they have been revealed rather then introspection and a questioning of how to remedy those faults. Foreigners and natives both make excuses for the Philippines' many failings.

So let's play pretend.

Let's pretend the Philippines cares about the environment.

https://www.rappler.com/science-nature/environment/108276-philippines-plastic-pollution-ocean-conservancy-study

Let's pretend that when Duterte was mayor of Davao everyone was safe.

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2016/04/02/1568394/murder-rate-highest-davao-city-pnp

Let's pretend that Manny Pacquiao lost unfairly to Jeff Horn.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-06/manny-pacquiao-backs-calls-to-review-loss-to-jeff-horn/8682708

Let's pretend that Chidren are safe in the Philippines.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-4507338/Children-forced-sex-mothers-money.html

https://www.rappler.com/nation/171641-philippines-worst-place-children-growing-up

Let's pretend that anyone in the Philippines cares about the rule of law.

https://hrdmemorial.org/fr/philippines-legal-system-under-attack-as-7th-lawyer-shot-dead/

Let's pretend that banning smoking will make the air safer to breathe. 

https://www.untvweb.com/news/vehicles-top-contributor-air-pollution-philippines-denr/

Let's pretend the peso is doing is doing fine and that any depreciation is wonderful.

https://www.rappler.com/nation/171641-philippines-worst-place-children-growing-up

Let's pretend that Filipinos are healthy and beautiful.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/obese-filipinos-now-ballooning/

Let's pretend that the Philippines economy is booming!

http://www.philstar.com/business/2017/03/14/1681058/unemployment-rate-increases-january-2017

This list could go on but let's end it with the most stunning game of pretend happening in the Philippines.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/ted-mcdonnell/poverty-malnutrition-and-disease-make-manilas-happyland-a-ve_a_23033108/

What is "Happyland?"

Happyland is literally built around a dump, or many dumps -- each day people wade through the rubbish looking for anything of value. Tons of chicken scraps are collected from takeaway's garbage bins then recycled by boiling. It's called 'pagpag', and it's sold to hungry families in the slums for a few pesos.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/ted-mcdonnell/poverty-malnutrition-and-disease-make-manilas-happyland-a-ve_a_23033108/

A deteriorating highly congested “refugee camp” surrounded by mini garbage dumpsites is now also known as “Happyland” — a name derived from the Visayan dialect’s name for smelly garbage: Hapilan.

http://www.rutialon.com/2013/02/philippines-happyland/

Happyland started as a toxic landfill called Hapilan, or "smelly garbage" in the local dialect, and was renamed by the locals in hope of better times. It's located about 20 minutes away from the capital city of Manila in the Philippines and photography is usually prohibited.

https://www.cnet.com/news/take-a-360-degree-virtual-journey-through-the-happyland-slum-in-the-philippines/

These people with no hope are living, eating, and playing in a literal garbage dump and with a linguist sleight of hand this awful shambles which should not exist is magically transformed into "Happyland" "in hope of better times." And despite the name change they are still dining on garbage scavenged from the rubbish which is then sold to them to eat.

In "Happyland" they are paying to eat garbage!

Such is the false magic of pretend and such is the game that Duterte is asking the public to play.

Rock-a-bye Pinoy

Rock-a-bye Pinoy in the hammock,

Safe and secure between two trucks.

When the trucks move, 

The hammock will fall.

And down will come Pinoy,

Hammock and all.

Street Tattoo Parlour

Anywhere else in the world this would not be tolerated.  But this is is the Philippines.  In the Philippines you can set up a business of any kind anywhere on a sidewalk and no one bats an eye.

You can even set up your own unregulated, unlicensed, and unsanitary tattoo parlour! Who in their right mind would risk their health by getting a tattoo from some dude on the sidewalk?

Look at that little battery which powers his needle. So cute! No way that poster is indicative of his talent. It could be but I highly doubt it.  Does he change needles?  Are the needles clean? Is he going to set out a little chair or do you have to sit on the curb? It's simply insane that this is allowed. 

And the PNP station is right around the corner!