Help Out a Fellow Pinoy Blogger
Friday
Feb 9, 2007
There’s a cabinet reshuffling over at the Blog Herald. My fellow problogger Abe Olandres has recently stepped down as Editor of the Blog Herald, and will be exchanging positions with Tony Hung, erstwhile Assistant Editor. Abe cites personal problems that prevent him from giving the Herald more attention at this time.
My recent personal issues/problems have slowed me down tremendously. A death in the family, legal troubles and more- all have piled up on me so quickly that I have been barely able to focus on my work. So I am glad that Tony accepted this role willingly and on such short notice. I will still be around, sometimes writing, but more on the back-end of things and I will continue to help Tony run the site. There’s still so much to do around here, as you know. Amongst other things, we’re getting a few more people into the writing team.
Abe tells me that he’s already spent so much because of the legal problems that it’s taking a toll on his finances. I’m not really sure I can discuss details of the case here, but believe me—it’s really quite stupid. Here’s how Abe describes it.
I run a fairly small start-up web hosting here in the Philippines. One of our former clients runs a forum that we used to host. Several members of that forum were throwing vindictives against a their former employer. That employer sent us a demand letter thru their law firm demanding that we terminate the site or be charged with libel as well. The client moved out from us the following day. However, the employer/complainant has now filed several libel law suits against us claiming that we are the owner of the domain and the operator of the site. The site is still up and running though hosted somewhere else, the domain was also transferred away from us. Still, the complainant is alleging we should have enforced some sort of regulations or control over the content when it was still with us.Apparently, all they wanted is money and this case is just of one of their many business gigs.
If you ask me, I’d say that’s plain harassment. But you know how it is here in the Philippines. Corruption and inefficiency can be found in many parts of government (I should know, I was with government for quite some time). And the judicial system is probably not too prepared in handling such high tech cases yet. Court cases can take years to finish and in the end having to pay lawyers’ retainers, appearance fees and other miscellany (including suhol perhaps?) will be the real killer.
In line with this, some regular readers of the Herald suggested that we help out Abe with his expenses by setting up a legal fund. After all, this is a case where online publications are involved. And this could happen to any blogger (I’ve heard of bloggers in other countries being sued because of comments that readers have posted).
We’ve set up a Xoom link where you can send in funds: https://www.xoom.com/pay/26999757 . Xoom accepts any amount from $25 to $2,500. For smaller amounts, you can send paypal to theblogherald (at) gmail (dot) com.
Mark of Splashpress Media has also given an incentive to contributing:
Let’s try this: for the first 10 x $100 contributions made via the paypal that Angelo mentioned – theblogherald (at) gmail (dot) com – you’ll get a link in “friends” for the rest of 2007. Just specify the link & text you want with the payment.
It’s like an über-discounted advertising rate. But it’s better since you get to help out someone in the process.
We should show our support for Abe, and express outrage at how people can take advantage of individuals like this. In the end, it’s not just about the money. It’s about principle.
U.S. bomb strike in Iraq kills civilians
Friday
Jan 6, 2006
The world’s remaining military superpower, with all the technology in the world to accurately plan and execute air strikes, manages to screw up.
Sad thing is that civilians get caught in the crossfire, and are treated as collateral damage.
From CNN.com: U.S. says bomb hit wrong house in Iraq
A bomb that killed six civilians Monday near Baiji, Iraq, missed its target by 65 feet (20 meters) and hit the wrong home, military officials said.
…
The strike flattened a family’s home, killing six of the family members and wounding three others, said a spokesman for the Salaheddin provincial governor’s office. A father and daughter survived with only minor injuries, he said.
The bomb had “successful effects against the insurgents,” the statement added
…
[The White House] emphasized the U.S. position that its military “goes out of the way to avoid civilian casualties.”
Somehow I’m not convinced.
Search Engine Optimizers attack the Philippine Gov’t. The Administration strikes back!
Thursday
Nov 24, 2005
Activists are now bringing their fight to the Internet. Young Radicals,
a blog featuring “radical youth’s views, activities, debate, ideas,
reviews and literary works” called for a Google Bomb featuring the
profiles of some of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s cabinet officials as sinungaling
(liar), sira ulo (crazy), and bugaw (pimp). This is pretty much similar to the Google Bombing of U.S. President George Bush as “miserable failure.”
The group has likwise succeeded in directing queries for “pekeng pangulo” (or fake president) to President Arroyo’s personal website.
You can try it yourself. Key in “sinungaling” on Google, and the first result is Office of the President Website – The Cabinet – Ignacio “Toting” Bunye. Key in “miserable failure” (even without the quotes), and you get Biography of President George W. Bush. And of course, there’s the query for “pekeng pangulo” which directs users to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s Website.
The Administration has found a way to make it seem that the Google
bombing backfired by redirecting readers referred by Google to the
Young radicals blog. So a user who clicks on the first Google
result (or clicks “I’m feeling lucky” instead of “search”) will think
that the top result for sinungaling or liar is actually the Young Radicals page. Inq7.net even reported about this in an article entitled “Google Bombing on Arroyo Officials backfire”. Check out Migs Paraz’s post about the incident on Pinoy.tech.blog.
When the user clicks, he is sent to the Young Radicals page, apparently
by Google. But is actually the Office of the President’s web server
that was set up to do it. It checks if the user was sent by Google
using the Referrer header. (Mispelled as “Referer”).
But the Young Radicals site claims that the battle hasn’t been actually won by the Arroyo Camp.
Apparently, the government’s set of computer experts and
its rich resources were no match to the overwhelming anti-Arroyo
sentiment now engulfing the country and the internet.
True, the Google bombing incident is now talk of the Pinoy blogosphere
and techie and political e-groups (at least those I’m part of).
And when the blogosphere talks, there’s no stopping what can be said or
done. The best way for the Administration to combat these attacks
is not to resort to their own cyber warfare tactics.
IMHO, it’s best to be part of the discussion themselves.
There is a pseudo-President Arroyo blog over at kgma.wordpress.com. I think it’s high time for President Arroyo to set up a real blog of her own.
Keep your traffic violation tickets: LTO could scam you!
Tuesday
Oct 25, 2005
Got this via email. Apparently, some employees of the Philippine Land Transportation Office, with all its computerization projects, have found a way to perpetrate yet another corrupt practice–this time in the light of having ICT facilities to aid their work.
The scheme basically involves the LTO personnel not deleting your violation from their databases after you pay the fine. You end up paying for your violation twice!
So keep your receipts!
And we thought computerization projects were designed to curb such practices!
If ever you get caught for traffic
violation, please keep the receipts for the penalty you paid until such time
that you renew your license again. With the 3-year renewal period of licenses
and the LTO’s computerization system, their personnel
may have developed a new racket.
This morning, I renewed my driver’s license. The LTO office in
Binan refused to renew it because they said I have an
outstanding traffic violation. They told me that I got caught for reckless
speeding in February 12,
2004 and I failed to settle it. They
showed me a computer printout to this effect. I infomed them that I already settled it, otherwise, I would
not have my license back since, it was confiscated.
They said I might have dealt with fixers
in taking it back. I told them that I never deal with fixers. I also
told them that if they acknowledged that I might have dealt with fixers then,
someone inside the LTO must also be involved since I was able to get my license
back. They said if I really settled it, then I should show them the
receipt and they would delete the entry in the computer — they said maybe they
just missed to delete it.
Of course, I have no receipt to show
them. That was almost two years ago.
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