Another One Bites The Dust

Another rural bank in Bohol declared a bank holiday on Wednesday after it experienced heavy withdrawals by its depositors following the closure of a rural bank in December 2008.

LPG Shortage Artifical

The supposed shortage in the supply of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is only "artificial" created by unscrupulous re-fillers and dealers, Vice President Noli de Castro said Wednesday.

Shell At It Again

Major oil player Pilipinas Shell will increase the price of its gasoline by P1 per liter effective 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, but reduce the price of diesel by P0.74 per liter and kerosene by P1 per liter, vice president for communications Bobby Kanapi said Tuesday.

Coffee, Anyone?

A 21-year study finds that moderate coffee drinkers are much less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.

SINULOG BOYCOTT

BOYKOT SA SINULOG?

Unsay mahitabo kon magkasabot ang mga sakop sa media sa di pag-cover sa Cebu City Sports Center sa Sinulog Grand Parade sa sunod tuig? Unsay sangpotanan kon magkauyon ang mga sibyaanan sa radyo ug telebisyon nga sa ikatulong Dominggo sa Enero 2010 isibya ang naandan nilang mga tulomanon ug di na maghago paggasto og dakong kuwarta, ni pagpakatap sa tanan nilang kawani ug kahimanan?
Lisod ning mahitabo apan may mga sukaranan pagboykot sa sentro sa parada:
• Gipabayad ang mga Sugbuanon sa grandstand bisan ilang buhis ang gigasto sa kalihokan; ug
• Di angayng mamugos ang media pag-cover sa dapit nga mora silang sanglahon nga gipalayo sa kalihokan.
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Karaan nang reklamo ang pagpalayo sa mga tigpasiugda sa Sinulog sa TV cameras gikan sa grand stage. Hagbay rang naglisod ang mga sibyaanan sa telebisyon pagpasabot sa ilang viewers nganong morang field demonstration ang ilang coverage. Apan morang ginudnoran og asin ang nagngutngot nang samad dihang kuwang na lag diyutay nga patungtungon sa mga tigpasiugda sa stage ang Sinulog photographers, nga ang kasagaran way klarong outlets.
Sa sinugdanan, nagduda kong may mga sakop sa Sinulog Foundation (SFI) nga tua kapusta sa photographers ug nagdumot sa TV stations. Apan nahadlok kong, sama sa naandan, kuwarta na say hinungdan. Kay ang matag magpa-rehistro nga maniniyot pabayron og P500.
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Atubangan sa talagsaong kalamposan sa Sinulog 2009, way mangahas pagpamuyboy sa SFI. Apan sa kinauyokang bahin sa ilang kasingkasing nahibawo sila sa dakong tampo sa media sa kalamposan sa Sinulog. Gawas kon nituo nga igo nang pila ka libo nga nakabayad ug nakalingkod sa grandstand pagsangyaw sa kanindot sa parada.

Obama Makes History

Americans love a good speech and particularly a great inaugural address. As Barack Obama prepares for his inauguration, the stakes are particularly high. He is competing with ghosts of eloquent presidents past along with his own high rhetorical standards. He is taking office as the country’s first black president, healing centuries of racism and dehumanization, during a staggering economic crisis, with America bogged down in two difficult wars, with Islamist terrorists still threatening, and amid serious concerns about Iranian and North Korean nuclear weapons

Facing such troubles, it would seem that mere words can do little. But the magic of American democracy – and part of the alchemy of leadership – is that the right words and even the right gesture can make history. The inaugural address debuts the president’s Bully Pulpit, with hundreds of millions not just listening, but yearning for direction, especially today.

Back in April 30, 1789, a visibly nervous George Washington delivered the country’s first inaugural address. The great man’s humility – his awkward gestures and trembling hands -- moved the crowd. Many rejoiced that they had witnessed virtue personified, with individual and national greatness reinforcing one another.

Twelve years later, Thomas Jefferson entered office during a highly divisive period. He made the moment with words not deeds. Jefferson’s patriotic pronouncement “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists” was healing, reassuring the losing Federalists that they remained Americans.

These two founders paved the way for a rich history of tone-setting inaugural moments. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln tried uniting the country by rhapsodizing about the “mystic chords of memory” binding Americans. Even though the effort failed and a bloody Civil War ensued, four years later, Lincoln welcomed back Southern rebels “with malice toward none and charity toward all.”

POEA Should Review Nurses' Contracts

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration should scrutinize the labor contracts that the Sentosa Recruitment Agency in Manila is asking selected Filipino nurses to sign before deployment to the United States.

According to data from British firm Netcraft, 30 million new Web sites made their debut in 2008, a 17 percent increase over the previous year, Le Figaro reported Monday.

There are now 186.7 million web sites around the globe. In 2007, there was a 40 percent growth of new Internet outlets since 2006, which brought about the millionth Web site.

Last year, online advertising investments reached US$49.8 billion, according to ZenithOptimedia, owned by Publicis Groupe.

This year, Internet advertising expenditure is predicted to escalate by 19 percent, Le Figaro reported. ZenithOptimedia noted that by 2011 online ad spend may represent 15.6 percent of the global marketing field.

That the world of traditional media is in crisis, nobody doubts. However the question raised by Michael Hirschorn of the Atlantic, is just how long the industry can continue in its current situation. He takes the example of the struggling New York Times and hypothesizes about the end coming sooner than anyone expects - May in fact. Whilst the NYT going out of business within months looks highly unlikely, its current financial status leaves this seemingly far-fetched theory every so slightly more plausible. The conundrum of the newspaper industry at large is that online readers massively outnumber print readers - but there is little benefit in having volumes of online readers when the profit that comes with them is minimal. The Internet is forcing newspapers to stop and evaluate how they communicate the news. Sites such as Google are offering everything to users, and are progressively edging traditional institutions out.

Interestingly, Google insists it does not want to overtake the printed press - in a recent interview Eric Schmidt, Google's CEO seemed keen to find a salvation for traditional newspapers and discover a way for the two to co-exist in harmony. He is however unsure of exactly what that solution is and is reluctant to buy a newspaper outright or simply provide them with a cash injection as 'it would help solidify the ownership structure, but it doesn't solve the underlying problem in the business'.

In his article, Hirschorn goes on to speculate about different methods of money saving for newspapers, and the NYT in particular. He mentions borrowing money against company buildings, selling assets or cutting dividends (a step the NYT has already taken), but somewhat pessimistically declares that these all precede the staff cuts that the New York Times has been so publicly keen to avoid.