JOEY3 LIVE

I officially became a member of the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino for many reasons, not the least of which is my sense of loyalty to both President Joseph Estrada and Makati Mayor Jejormar Binay.

More importantly, I believe in what the party stands for and what I can do to help the Pwersa attain its goals.

I am a businessman. By the grace of God and through sheer hard work, I have been able to set up a number of successful businesses. As an economist, I see what ails our country and why so many of our people remain poor. I see the lack of development and the absence of enough opportunities for our people.

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I’m using the above date as the title of my post today because millions of people believe it to be an auspicious day. The world as we know it will end on this very specific date, or so they believe.

The basis for this frightening scenario is an old Mayan calendar, the last day of which is Dec. 21, 2012 . By implication, after this date, there will be no more time. And therefore no more Planet Earth.

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It was a sad death of a magnificent creature of the sea. A whale shark (known locally as butanding) was found floating off the Manila Yacht Club along Roxas Boulevard yesterday, its belly filled with nails and bits of plastic.
Having ingested so many indigestible items was the probable cause of death.
For some time now, people who run and/manage resorts along the Cavite shoreline have been complaining that the big shipping lines dump their garbage at sea, just before entering Manila Bay waters. Some of their debris float towards shore rendering beaches unsafe for swimming.

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I guess by this time most everyone has heard or read that I have been included in the senatorial slate of former President Erap Estrada’s Pwersa ng Masa. To be honest, I had a hard time deciding if I should run or not, and with what party.

For the record, I had been invited by two other opposition parties, but Erap asked me first. In the past few months, he had invited me on several occasions to join his Pasasalamat caravan. I was amazed at what I saw.

The 72-year-old Erap excites large crowds as much as any teen idol everywhere in the Philippines . I think the only other person who can match his charisma is his late best friend Fernando Poe Jr.

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As a basketball fan, I’ve been intrigued by the Japeth Aguilar saga. I have to admit that I admire the kid for preferring to play for Smart Gilas, which serves as a de facto national team, instead of the PBA team that drafted him.

For a while, it looked like Aguilar would be prevented from ever playing pro ball, but everything has now been settled. All thanks to Manny V. Pangilinan, who has become a patron of our favorite sport. Through a series of clever trades, Aguilar is now officially with Smart Gilas, which is playing as a guest team in the PBA. I congratulate Aquilar and the other members of the team for opting to play for flag and country instead of turning pro.

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Because Metro Manila has not yet recovered from the effects of Ondoy, it is easy to forget that typhoon Pepeng caused equally devastating damage to Northern Luzon . My home province of Pangasinan was among the hardest hit, with Dagupan City also almost totally crippled by Pepeng.

Unlike Ondoy which came and went in a matter of hours, Pepeng lingered in the north for several days. During all that time, the rains fell nonstop.

I know that both the government and the private sector’s capacity to rehabilitate the flood victims in the National Capital Region have been stretched to the limit, yet we cannot ignore our brothers and sisters in northern Luzon whose homes have been damaged.

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We have not yet fully recovered from tropical depression Ondoy and we now have to brace for the coming of typhoon Pepeng.

By all accounts, it will be as deadly as Hurricane Katrina was to the state of Louisiana and its main city of New Orleans not too long ago. Pepeng will be deadlier than typhoon Milenyo of a few years ago which hit Metro Manila hard.

In other words, Pepeng will be deadly. The only good thing is that our shared experience with Ondoy has made all of us better prepared.

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I just read a news story about a woman in Stamford , Connecticut who was beaten up by several other women after she sang badly at a karaoke club.

The reaction was little extreme, to say the least. No matter how badly she sang, the lady did not deserve to be assaulted. At most, she could have been booed of the stage, or the sound system cut off or minimized during her performance.

I have to admit that I am no high-scoring karaoke singer myself. You know today’s machines which give a score after every song? It can serve as a reminder to some that they should stick to what they do best.

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Very quietly, a great Filipino died a few days ago. He was a true nationalist. His name was Sotero Laurel and he was my uncle.

Tito Teroy, as we called him, lived to the ripe old age of 90. He left this earth peacefully.

Being a Laurel , of course he was from Batangas, part of the clan which included his father, former Philippine wartime President Jose Laurel, and brother to Salvador , or Doy as everyone called him, vice president under President Cory Aquino, as well as to former Speaker Jose Laurel Jr.

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Whenever I have the time – not very often these days, I have to admit – I like to play tennis. I also work out at my favorite gym every now and then, but I don’t enjoy working out as much as I do a game of tennis, usually against friends from way back.

I also try to keep up with news of the top players, staying up to watch on cable, as time allows. A couple of days ago, I missed the US Open which was surprisingly won by Kim Clisjsters over Serena Williams.

Too bad for Williams whose meltdown ruined what had been a tight match. Sort of reminded me of the bad old days of John McEnroe, an ultra talented player with a short fuse. Sorry, but I don’t buy her statement that she lost her cool because she was just too passionate about the game. She just could not accept the fact that she was being humiliated despite being heavily favored to win.

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