Websites for <form> function() & .class, the first web design conference in the Philippines and Asia, and the Philippine Web Designers Organization (PWDO) are now up. Visit the site, register for the big event on July 10, and spread the word!
The easy way out
Someone deleted this comment because it was supposedly irrelevant to the discussion:
Meh. I prefer Japan, it’s got the mothaf*cken lifesize Gundam.
Of course someone who can’t see how Lapu-Lapu, Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal, and Jose Abad Santos are worthy of being called heroes of this country would have even more difficulty parsing said sarcasm.
You can’t see how people who sacrificed themselves contributed to the country’s well-being; it’s easier to just accuse them of being sensationalist, petty, and disruptive. You can’t see how the Philippines can crawl out of this deep hole of poverty, corruption, and illiteracy; it’s easier to just run off to some some country where the climate, economy, and telenovelas are better.
But if it were me giving up and running off, I’d pick Japan. It’s got the mothaf*cken lifesize Gundam.
Of course, it’s just you.
Happy birthday, Jose Protacio Mercado Rizal Alonzo y Realonda. Here’s to not dying in vain.
Seriously, what kind of person worships a country because they’ve got awesome telenovelas? What kind of person closes his comment form and takes back his words after repeatedly defending them just because he can’t stand the heat.
Seriously, I want to go see that Gundam.
And the award for Best Use of Plurk goes to…
Reasons I love Plurk, told in a different way. Like many things on the web, microblogging is a popularity contest, but it’s not just what these personalities say. It’s how they use the medium. Add these model citizens, okay?
The Runners-up
Comic haven from velociraptors: XKCD (@xkcd)
One of the greatest, geekiest web comics of all time, XKCD’s syndication on Plurk feels like a match made in heaven and not just a Ping.fm post that reeks of afterthought.
Each comic strip is a click and an inline popup away. Then the “mouseover-text” you find on the website appears as the first reply in the thread, and followers can comment away. XKCD also cares about its new fans, so it also posts old strips aside from the new ones.
See also: The Fail Blog (@failblog) and I Can Has Cheezburger (@ICanHasCheezburger)
Philippine literature 2.0: Jose Rizal (@laonglaan )
Unfortunately somebody snapped up @joserizal already, but what a great way to bring pen names into the 21st century.
More importantly, what a modern way to preserve and propagate the works of our national hero—which in all likelihood will never get read again outside of required readings in high school and college.
3rd Mini Web Design Conference: speakers, sponsors, sketchnotes!
The Philippine Web Designers Organization held another successful <form> function() & .class Mini Web Design Conference last January 22, and we’re really thankful for everybody who supported us once more.
Speakers
It was a full roster again for the night, and it’s amazing how topics remain fresh and diverse each time. See if you can match the images above to the talks below:
Stop blogging, regulate the Internet – Pangandaman, Esleyer, Sadsad
Three stories in three weeks condemning the use of the Internet for freedom of speech. (Or libel, you decide.) We’re on a roll!
Listen.
There have been two big headlines in Philippine news this past few weeks. I’ve already written about one of them; it’s time for the second—which, unfortunately, involves a dear friend.
If there’s one thing I know about this guy, it’s how disarmingly honest he is. And from what I know, this trait also belongs to his father, who happens to be one of the DOJ prosecutors accused of bribery (50 million pesos) in the “Alabang Boys” drug case.
So please take a moment to read his letter to The Philippine Star and hear them out. Excerpts have also been published in Jarius Bondoc’s column.
I’ve talked about politicians’ tendencies before, but what about ours? We tend to close off the possibility that there are, indeed, people in the government who endure and sacrifice to serve the country.
It’s time we listen to their side.
Elitist geek haters vs. emo jologs Friendsters (Twitter vs. Plurk)
Warning: comparing Twitter and Plurk is messy. Both are different things to different people, and unless these people agree to disagree the debate will never end.
Here’s my response to The Death of Plurk and the comments on it. This is by no means comprehensive, just lengthy enough to be a standalone post.
Entitlement
“Sorry na po, sorry na po…tama na…tama na po…”
“Hindi nila kami kilala! Sabihin mo nga sa kanila kung sino ako!”
“Nakakahiya kayo. Singkwenta’y sais anyos ang tatay ko. And kapatid ko kakatorse anyos. Anong ilalaban nila sayo?”
“Tatandaan kita!”
“Maam, umalis na po kayo, may mga baril sila…Maam…umalis na po kayo please…”
Friday, December 26, 2008. Bambee dela Paz and her family had an encounter with a father-son political tandem on the golf course. They ended up beating her father and brother. (More links here: Ade Magnaye’s plurk and Noemi Dado’s blog)
At around 1:30 PM today, at Valley Golf and Country Club, Antipolo City, Mayor Nasser Pangandaman, Jr., Mayor of Masiu City, Lanao del Sur, his father, Secretary Nasser Pangandaman of the Department of Agrarian Reform, and company, beat my defenseless 56-year-old dad and my 14-year-old brother to a pulp because of some stupid misunderstanding on the golf course.
The world has gone crazy. by Bambee dela Paz
Politicians tend to have this twisted sense of entitlement and propensity to violence once they get sworn into office. It’s the money, the fame, the power.
But you are public servants, not rock stars. You were elected into office because we, the people, were somehow convinced that you are capable of steering the country in a better direction. Mauling people just because you were wronged in some petty way is not part of your job description. Nor is it an excuse to display the power put into your hands by us, the people.
Look, we all crave for the money, the fame, the power. We all feel deprived and deserving of a better life, whether as citizens of a third-world country or a receding global economy.
But you are not gods among humans. You and I are mere specks in the universe.
