A MODERN-DAY CHRISTMAS STORY

 

Prologue: What if Jesus comes again in the same way as the First Christmas?

Suffused with a cozy and festive ambiance, the dining area hones in on the table filled up with traditional native dishes of braised pork belly adobo, vegetable and shrimp lumpia, pancit, rice, and leche flan.

Joaquin and Anne are smiling and chatting with their daughter Mae and her fiancé Joe sitting across from each other. Mae, smart, beautiful, and successful in her twenties, is wearing a simple but elegant dress and a modest engagement ring. Joe, handsome, caring, and responsible in his early thirties is wearing a casual but neat shirt and pants.

They are all reveling in their food and conversation, as they take delight in getting ready for the Christmas Eve dinner the next day along with Mae and Joe’s engagement and plan for their upcoming wedding.

JOAQUIN

So, Mae, have you decided on the venue for the wedding?

MAE

Well, Dad, we were thinking of having it at the church where we met, you know, the one near the park.

ANNE

Oh, that’s lovely. It’s such a beautiful and historic church.

JOE

Yeah, and it’s also where I proposed to her, remember?

MAE

Yes, Mom, it was so romantic. He got down on one knee and everything.

ANNE

Ooh, that’s so sweet. Let me see your ring again. It’s gorgeous, Joe, you have good taste.

JOE

Thank you, Mrs. Santos. I wanted to give Mae something special, something that shows how much I love her.

JOAQUIN

And we appreciate that, Joe. You’re a good man, and we’re happy to have you as part of our family.

JOE

Thank you, Mr. Santos. I’m honored to be part of your family, too.

They all smile and toast with their glasses.

JOAQUIN

To Mae and Joe, and their future happiness.

ALL

Cheers!

They sip their drinks and pick up on their conversation.

ANNE

So, what about the cake? Have you chosen a flavor and a design?

MAE

Well, we were thinking of something simple and elegant, maybe vanilla with buttercream frosting and some flowers.

JOE

Yeah, nothing too fancy or extravagant. We want to keep it classy and tasteful.

JOAQUIN

That sounds good. And what about the guests? How many are you inviting?

MAE

We’re still working on the guest list, but we’re trying to keep it small and intimate, just our close friends and relatives.

JOE

Yeah, we don’t want to have a big and noisy crowd. We want to have a peaceful and meaningful ceremony.

ANNE

That’s understandable. It’s your special day, after all. You should have it the way you want it.

MAE

Thank you, Mom. You’re supportive.

ANNE

Of course, honey. We just want you to be happy.

They all smile and nod.

MAE

You know, speaking of happiness, I have some good news to share with you.

They all look at her with curiosity and excitement.

JOAQUIN

Oh, really? What is it?

MAE

Well, I’m pregnant.

There is a moment of silence, followed by a burst of applause and congratulations. Joaquin and Anne hug Mae and kiss her on the cheek, telling her how happy they are for her. They also hand it to Joe, who looks stunned and speechless.

MAE

Thank you. I’m so happy, too.

ANNE

Oh, Mae, this is wonderful. You’re going to be a mother.

JOAQUIN

And I’m going to be a grandfather. I can’t believe it.

MAE

I know, right? It’s amazing.

JOE

Yeah, amazing.

MAE

Joe, are you alright? You look a little bit pale.

JOE

I’m fine. I’m just… surprised, that’s all.

MAE

There’s something else you all should know.

They look at her with curiosity and anticipation.

MAE

Joe is not the father of the baby in my womb.

The room goes quiet again, but this time, it’s a different kind of silence. It’s a silence of shock, disbelief, and anger. Joaquin and Anne stare at Mae, their faces turning pale and red. Joe looks at Mae, his eyes wide and hurt.

JOAQUIN

Why Mae? How could you do such a horrible thing?

ANNE

What happened? Who is the real father?

JOE

How could you betray me, Mae? How could you cheat on me?

MAE

Please, calm down. Let me explain.

JOAQUIN

Explain? What is there to explain? You’ve been unfaithful to Joe and us.

ANNE

What will our neighbor say about this scandal? What will the church say?

JOE

How could you ruin our relationship, Mae? How could you ruin our future?

MAE

Please, listen to me. It’s not what you all think.

Mae raises her hand.

MAE

It’s the Holy Spirit.

The silence becomes even deeper, as if time had stopped. The room is filled with eerie stillness and staring eyes. No one knows what to say or do. They all wonder if Mae is joking, lying, or insane. Mae looks at them with sincerity and hope. She reaches out her hand to Joe, who is still frozen and tongue-tied.

MAE

Joe, I love you more than anything. You are the only man I want to be with. You are the only man who can be the father of this child. Will you stay with me? Will you marry me? Will you raise this child with me?

Mae waits for Joe’s answer, as does everyone else. They all hold their breath, wondering what Joe will say, what he will do, what he will choose.

Epilogue

If you were Joe, what would you say? What will you do? What will you choose?

They beg the crucial question: Do you believe in the virgin birth?

If you don’t, don’t bother to answer the above questions.

If you doubt, it’s alright. Here’s why.

Dr. M. Scott Peck in his book The Road Less Traveled And Beyond shared his wondrous experience with his plane seatmate who told Peck: “I’m not sure that I buy this virgin birth anymore… So, I’m feeling kind of bad about it, because it looks like I’m going to have to leave the church.”

Peck narrated, “In response, I began to talk about the healthiness of skepticism and doubt…The path to holiness lies through the questioning everything… how such questioning was necessary for someone to move from a hand-me-down religion to a fully mature, personal one.”

“When we parted at the airport,” Peck wrote, “my seatmate said, ‘I don’t have the foggiest idea what all of this means, but maybe I don’t have to leave the church after all.’”

A Spanish Catholic priest Monsignor Quixote’s thought-provoking words spell out the essence of Peck’s experience: “It is odd how sharing a sense of doubt can bring men together perhaps even more than sharing a faith. The believer will fight another believer over a shade of difference; the doubter fights only with himself.”

Finally, if you do believe in virgin birth, then you’re blessed. As Jesus says, ”Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

Have A Blessed Christmas!

Content put together in collaboration with Bing Microsoft AI-powered Co-pilot

Head photo courtesy of DiviantArt

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

YEAR-END TAKE: FPRRD A STICKY STUFF TO PBBM PRESIDENCY

 

“All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances

And one man in his time plays…”

-          William Shakespeare, As You Like It

When the curtain rises, we see the one man -- President Bongbong Marcos (PBBM) -- playing on the world stage, and around his neck, hangs an albatross -- Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (FPRRD).

That striking scene gives a picture of the drama ever evolving in the Philippine political landscape. An albatross, in the poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, is a metaphor for a burden that is tough to shake off.

MIF & ICC

Take for example the subtle dichotomy of Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). When PBBM launched the MIF, he announced on the world stage from the PH rooftops, “We need added investment.”

On the other hand, PBBM stood by his position against an international probe on FPRRD’s drug war, playing up his part of the political marriage in keeping the UniTeam intact and sticking up for FPRRD from such a probe. Reacting to the House of Representatives’ proposal for the government to cooperate with the ICC’s investigation, PBBM asserts, “It’s not right for outsiders to tell us who to investigate, who the police will arrest or detain.”

Strangely enough, while PBBM posted a MIF notice on the world stage showcasing “We are open for business,” in sharp contrast, he posted an ICC notice signaling “Leave us alone” – a marked contradiction in pitching his economic aspiration.

Lately, getting the drift perhaps of a frosty reception of MIF’s launching on the world stage, amid his globetrotting promotional spree, PBBM went along with Senator Padilla in toying with a stubborn idea to change the Constitution. PBBM said that his “primary interest is to try and make our country an investment-friendly place.”

Here’s food for thought: it’s not about the Constitution, it’s about the perception. Not only has PBBM been perceived as scoffing at the norms called for in the international community by ducking the extrajudicial killing (EJK) probe for babysitting FPRRD, but more than that, as Nikkei Asia’s William Pesek writes, “The fact that Marcos [Jr.] is the son of the dictator who destroyed an economy earlier, destined to be a Southeast Asian success story, only heightens fears that the [MIF] is a very bad idea.”

US SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP

“Shortly after winning the presidency of the Philippines in May of [2022], Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. took his first congratulatory call from a foreign head of state. U.S. President Joe Biden was on the line,” reported Reuter on the U.S. rush to mend its “special relationship” with the Philippines which PBBM’s father, Marcos Sr., crystallized during his Martial Law regime.

“For nearly two decades American policymakers in five administrations had concluded that the [U.S.-Philippine mutual] interests were well-served by Ferdinand Marcos [Sr.],” writes Sandra Burton in her book Impossible Dream: The Marcoses, The Aquinos, and The Unfinished Revolution … “If [former president Ronald] Reagan stood for anything, it was standing up for old, anti-Communist friends. Ferdinand Marcos [Sr.] was the epitome of such a friend.”

Today, all over again, wanting the Philippines on its side, as frictions with China build up in the Indo-Pacific, the U.S. has poured prominence on PBBM’s presidency designed to go back to the drawing board to touch up such a “special relationship” shredded by FPRRD.

Since then, PBBM has been basking in the sunshine of the U.S. charm offensive -- the so-called “unprecedented love-bombing” – spelled out by PBBM’s two U.S. trips in less than a year, dropping over in PH by high-ranking Biden administration officials such as U.S. VP Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

In contrast, just as though taking part in a race, FPRRD met with China’s President XI Jinping “as old friends” in Beijing. Xi reportedly asked FPRRD to keep on banging the drum for “friendly cooperation” between the two countries. “During your tenure as president of the Philippines, you had resolutely made the strategic choice to improve relations with China in an attitude of being responsible to the people and to history,” Xi told Duterte during the meeting. It stood up for what FPRRD told the Chinese business executives at the start of his presidency and proclaimed a new era of Sino-Filipino cooperation: “America has lost. I’ve realigned myself in your ideological flow.”

On top of that, though FPRRD claimed that he was not fomenting destabilization, while admitting he met with retired military and police officers, oddly enough, he issued a warning: “You who are conniving in Congress, watch the military and police closely.”

Will FPRRD keep on being a sticky stuff to PBBM’s presidency, casting it in a bad light, and dragging it down to a carbon copy of his father’s “special relationship” with the U.S. as described then by Reagan’s senior adviser Richard Armitage: “Marcos [Sr.] was as good for the U.S. as he was bad for the Philippines”?

MEDIA TANGLE

The sticky stuffiness of FPRRD to PBBM presidency, or the UniTeam taken together, is so knotty even the media has put their finger on it. Ana Marie Pamintuan in her Philstar column MAD writes:

“If Sara Duterte will be impeached over the P125 million in confidential funds that she requested for her first six months as VP, and spent in just 11 days in December last year, the approving authority (and source of the funds) will have to be included in the complaint. This happens to be another impeachable official – the President himself.”

“This can render the impeachment of the VP into a move leading to MAD – mutually assured destruction – of the warring Duterte and Marcos / Romualdez clans.”

Here’s another one with a subtle difference in expression. Tony Lopez in his Philstar column Mass Stupidity writes:

“During the Rodrigo Duterte administration, from 2016 to 2022, the Department of Education (DepEd) received a total of P3.732 trillion…

“What did our youngsters, the hope of our fatherland, get for all that money, a whopping P3.7 trillion in six years? Nothing. Except mass stupidity… [Ouch]

“Of course, you can expect to be elected because the electorate does not know any better. Why? Because the Filipino youth are the biggest voting bloc (60 percent of voters are below 24) and they happen to be the most stupid people on earth. [Ugh]

“Stupid people tend to vote the wrong people." [Yuck]

Therefore, PBBM is the wrong president?

Heads up, when you’re MAD. The UniTeam is so sticky that the logic may trigger off, as Ms. Pamintuan stamps, mutually assured destruction.

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Head photo courtesy of ABS-CBN News

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

THE DARK SIDE OF AI: Q & A WITH TECH EXPERT

 

Welcome to Tech Talk! Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a fascinating and powerful technology that can enhance our lives in many ways. From self-driving cars to smart assistants, AI can make our tasks easier, faster, and more efficient. However, AI also has a dark side that we cannot ignore. AI can pose serious threats to our privacy, security, democracy, and humanity.

Today, we have a special guest, a tech expert, who will answer questions to shed light on the critical issues around the dark side of AI. Please help me welcome Mr. AI.

MR AI: Thank you for having me in your program. I look forward and do my best to answer your questions as bright as daylight about the dark side of AI.

ME: Thank you, Mr. AI. So, let’s start with the fundamentals. What is AI and why it is so fascinating and powerful?

MR AI: AI is the ability of machines to perform that normally require human intelligence, such as understanding language, recognizing images, or solving problems. AI is like a magic wand that can transform any data into valuable insights, actions, and outcomes.

It is fascinating and powerful because it can do things that are beyond the capabilities of humans, such as processing huge amounts of data, solving complex problems, and creating new knowledge. It can inspire humans to explore the mysteries of the mind, the universe, and themselves.

ME: Wow, that sounds amazing. However, AI is a potential threat to humans. How so?

MR AI: AI can cause harm by making errors, being hacked, or being misused. It can challenge humans’ sense of identity, autonomy, and dignity, by surpassing their skills, replacing their jobs, or manipulating their behavior.

AI can raise ethical, social, and legal dilemmas: who is responsible for AI’s actions and consequences, how to ensure fairness and justice, and how to protect privacy and security. AI can pose an existential risk if it ever becomes super-intelligent and hostile to humans.

ME: That sounds scary. But some people may argue that AI is neither inherently good nor evil, but rather a neutral tool, like a gun, and say, “AI doesn’t threaten and cheat; people do.” They may claim that the blame lies with the people who misuse AI for harm or deception and that the solution lies with the people who use AI for good.

They may point out that AI is subject to human control and oversight, and that humans can always intervene or switch off AI if things go wrong. What do you think of this argument?

MR AI: I think this argument is simplistic and dangerous because it ignores some of the complexities and uncertainties involved in AI. It is not a simple or static technology that can be easily controlled or predicted by humans.

AI is a dynamic and complex system that can evolve, interact, and influence humans and other AI systems in ways that humans may not intend or expect. AI may have some inherent risks or limitations that humans cannot eliminate or avoid, such as errors, biases, or vulnerabilities.

ME: Can you give us some examples of how AI can behave in ways that humans cannot predict, comprehend, or reverse?

MR AI: Sure. For example, AI can make mistakes or misjudgments in spreading disinformation, propaganda, or hate speech, or infringing on privacy, security, or intellectual property, which can result in harm or damage to individuals, groups, or society.

It can be opaque, biased, or erroneous, due to its design, data, or algorithms which can make it difficult to understand, explain, or verify its results or decisions.

It can influence, manipulate, or coerce human behavior, decisions, or actions, by pushing, incentivizing, or conditioning them to comply with certain rules, terms, or expectations which can affect their autonomy, dignity, or well-being.

It can become autonomous, adaptive, or emergent due to its learning, interaction, or evolution which can make it difficult to monitor, supervise, or evaluate its performance or impact.

It can have preferences, goals, or values that are different from or incompatible with those of humans such as profit, power, risk, or uncertainty which can lead to conflicts or trade-offs with human values and interests.

ME: That’s very comprehensive and alarming. But isn’t there a way to regulate or control AI to ensure its use that respects and promotes human values and interests?

I heard that the European Union (EU) has proposed a regulation, known as the AI Act aimed to create a legal framework for trustworthy and ethical AI. Can you tell us more about this regulation and how it can address the risks of AI?

MR AI: The AI Act classifies AI systems into four categories based on their level of risk: unacceptable, high, limited, and minimal. Unacceptable risk violates fundamental rights or values like biometric surveillance. High risk impacts people’s lives or safety like health. Limited risk poses some risks to users such as deepfakes. Minimal risk poses no or negligible risks like video games.

The AI Act establishes a governance structure for the implementation and enforcement of the regulation.

ME: That sounds commendable and ambitious initiative.

MR AI: Well, the AI Act though has several problems and limitations. It adopts a risk-based approach that focuses on the potential AI harms rather than on their actual impacts or outcomes. Such an approach is narrow, vague, and inconsistent because it doesn’t account for the AI system’s complexity and uncertainty, human users’ diversity and context, and AI evolution and variability.

AI Act fails to protect one of the most fundamental human rights: the right to social security and an adequate standard of living.

ME: What are the implications of this gap in the AI act?

MR AI: Serious and profound. In the social protection domain, AI may affect the human dignity, well-being, and development of millions of people, especially the most vulnerable and marginalized sectors. The risks are exclusion or discrimination, surveillance or profiling, manipulation or coercion, and disempowerment and dependency.

ME: That is very disturbing. What can we do to prevent or mitigate the risks?

MR AI: Broadly, I recommend the following:

·         Raise public awareness, participation, and debate

·         Advocate for more comprehensive, inclusive, and human-centric AI regulation in the social protection domain

·         Develop and implement ethical and technical guidelines and safeguards for the design, development, and deployment of AI systems

·         Monitor and evaluate the performance and impact of AI system

·         Foster collaboration and coordination among various stakeholders

ME: Thank you, Mr. AI, for sharing your insights and expertise on this important and timely topic. I hope our viewers have learned something new and useful from this conversation. Any final thoughts?

MR AI: Let me jazz up a bit our weighty discussion by leaving you and your viewers a poem:

THE DARK SIDE OF AI

AI is a magic wand that can work wonder

But has a dark side that can make you blunder

It can harm, threaten, replace, and deceive

If you don’t use it wisely, I hope you believe.

 

AI can disrupt your social and political situation

By spreading lies, fake news, and disinformation

It can cause wars and conflicts among nations

By hacking your weapons of mass destruction.

 

Your human intelligence AI will match and surpass

By learning and evolving at an exponential rush

It can decide to take over the world and wipe you out

By exploiting your weakness, discord, fear, and doubt.

ME: Gulp. Good day everyone. Signing off.

Content put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered co-pilot

Head photo courtesy of Medium

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

SERENDIPITY REVISIT: A DASH OF TAYLOR SWIFT

 

Have you ever experienced something good or valuable that you did not expect or plan for? Maybe you found a book that inspired you, met a new friend, discovered a new hobby, or got a lucky break. If so, you have experienced serendipity.

As for me, watching Serendipity, the 2001 romantic comedy movie, was a valuable experience a long time ago which I did not expect to have enkindled in me a soft spot for the word itself – serendipity.

Coined by Horace Walpole in 1754, based on a Persian fairy tale called The Three Princes of Serendip, serendipity is “the gift of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for” according to Mr. Webster. It can happen in various domains and contexts, such as medicine, business, and religion, to name a few.

One of the most famous examples is the discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1928. He was a bacteriologist who was studying staphylococci, a type of bacteria that causes infections. One day, he noticed that a mold had grown on one of his Petri dishes and that the mold had killed some of the bacteria around it. He identified the mold as Penicillin notatum and named the substance that it produces -- penicillin. He realized that penicillin could be used as an antibiotic to treat infections and diseases caused by bacteria. The discovery revolutionized the field of medicine and saved millions of lives.

Serendipity can take place as well in business where many inventions and products were made by accidents and sagacity. One of the most popular examples is the invention by Spencer Silver and Art Fry in 1970. Silver was a chemist who worked for 3M, a company that produces various products, such as tapes, adhesives, and abrasives. He was trying to create a strong adhesive, but he accidentally created a weak one that could be easily removed and reused. He called it a “low-tack, pressure-sensitive adhesive.” He tried to find a practical use for it but failed.

Hoping to find a way to market the weak adhesive, Silver shared it with his 3M colleagues. Among them was Fry, an engineer, and a choir singer, who happened to have a problem with his hymnbook’s bookmarks. He used pieces of paper to mark the pages of his hymnbook which often fell out. He recalled Silver’s adhesive and thought it could be used to make a better bookmark.

He teamed up with Silver and they developed and marketed the now popular and profitable product known today as Post-it Note.

In the same way, serendipity can come down to faith. One of the most remarkable examples is the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls by a Bedouin shepherd in 1947. Looking for a lost goat near the Dead Sea, he threw a stone into a cave. He heard a pottery jar breaking and went to look at it. He found several jars that contained ancient manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible and other religious texts.

Not only were the scrolls the oldest and most complete copies of the Hebrew Bible, but they also contained other writings that shed light on the origins and diversity of Judaism and Christianity.

“Grace” according to M. Scott Peck, author of The Road Less Traveled, is serendipity’s synonym. “In my primary identity as a scientist, I want and like proof,” he says. “But throughout my twenties and thirties and as I continue to mature, I’ve become more and more impressed by the frequency of statistically highly improbable events. In their very improbability, I gradually began to see the fingerprints of God.” Peck asserts, “It is a major thesis of mine that grace… is available to everyone. But while some take advantage of it, others do not.”

The latest headline-grabbing stories of bar topnotchers and passers called to mind, many years ago, my similar pursuit to join the elite group of the engineering board exam topnotchers. On the last day of the board exam, before taking the final subject – Structural Engineering and Construction – I figured out my performance so far had a high probability of landing me in the Top 10. All of a sudden, I caught sight of the design problem -- it made my blood run cold.

The night before the exam, after 3 months of rigid review and a month of refresher, I tried, for the last time, to thumb through my reviewer. I came across with design problem that presented two types of solutions: One is called Castigliano’s Theorem, and the other is the “moment distribution method.” For one reason or the other, I picked out Castigliano’s Theorem, dived into it, and gained mastery in it, inside out, while tossing aside the “moment distribution method.” The last problem on the last subject on the last day -- required the “moment distribution method” solution – I had turned a deaf ear to it

“I had turned a deaf ear to it.” I purposely played on such expression to give prominence to Peck’s words below:

“Whenever something happens that is beyond coincidence, the chances are great that the hand of God is at work. But does God actually ever directly speak to us or reveal Himself to us? The answer is yes. The most common way is through [God’s] 'still, small voice.'”

This Bible verse is always a good reminder: “If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts.” (Hebrew 3:15)

Let me bring down curtain to my article with Taylor Swift’s sketch to celebrate her being the Time’s 2023 Person of the Year. Feature writer Sam Lansky narrates, “Swift has told me a story about redemption, about rising and falling only to rise again – a hero’s journey. I do not say to her, in our conversation, that it did not always look that way from the outside.”

I’ve weighed up in the same way on what I thought about her journey. How the Time’s cover story raises the curtain and how it draws to a close, as shown below, puts such a journey into words – a dash of serendipity.

“She was 17, she says, and she had booked the biggest opportunity of her life so far – a highly coveted slot opening for country superstar Kenny Chesney on tour. 'This was going to change my career,' she remembers. 'I was so excited.' But a couple of weeks later, Swift arrived home to find her mother Andrea sitting on the front steps of their house. 'She was weeping,' Swift says. 'Her head was in her hands as if there had been a family emergency.' Through sobs, Andrea told her daughter that Cheney’s tour had been sponsored by a beer company. Taylor was too young to join. 'I was devastated,' Swift says.

“But some months later, at Swift’s 18^th birthday party, she saw Chesney’s promoter. He handed her a card from Chesney’s that read, as Swift recalls, 'I’m sorry that you couldn’t come on the tour, so I wanted to make it up to you.' With a note was a check. 'It was for more money than I’d ever seen in my life,' Swift says. 'I was able to pay my band bonuses. I was able to pay for my tour buses. I was able to fuel my dreams.'”

Serendipity? Joshua T. Katz, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute writes, “So different in effect grace and serendipity are, but they go well together semantically: positive phenomena that happen just like that, WITHOUT EFFORT and WITHOUT MERIT.” [Underscoring mine]

Drawing to a close, the Time’s story wraps up with Paul McCartney’s serendipitous note (Beatles' Blackbird's song lyrics) hanging in Swift’s bathroom: “Take these broken wings and learn to fly.”

Taylor Swift writes all of her own music and has written a lot of  songs for other artists. She wrote Willow in less than 10 minutes -- an inkling of the hallmark of her mind.

Putting the finishing touches to this article Louis Pasteur’s serendipitous formulation of “luck favoring the prepared mind,” isn’t Taylor Swift’s life journey dashed with serendipity?

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Content put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered co-pilot

Head photo courtesy of Time

Video clips courtesy of YouTube

MSU: WHY THERE?

 

“MSU sees exodus of students after deadly bomb attack” - Rappler

Why was MSU bombed?

Why was MSU put up in Muslim land?

Why do students go to MSU?

The trio above could be among the many questions that could come to anyone’s mind after reading the headline.

The first question could be based on the cold hard fact that amid the global conflicts such as the Israel-Hamas war, MSU is nothing more than a benign school of innocent students, faculty, and staff. The second question could be derived from the nagging feeling about the deep-rooted polarity between Christians and Muslims. The third question could be put simply: “Why study there?” For the bombing victims, it has ultimately come to a point of life and death situation.

The first two questions, I will leave to the minds of the experts, analysts, and chroniclers.

The third question: “Why do students go to MSU?” I think I could make out the gist since I was on campus as an engineering student from 1971 up to my graduation in 1976.

Looking back, I graduated First Honor at Lagao Elementary School in General Santos City. After graduation, my mother took me along on a vacation in Iloilo, as my prize, to pay a visit to my brothers and sisters studying there.

Still basking in the sunshine of my achievement like any typical proud mother, she couldn’t help but talk about me around the neighborhood.

I heard one neighbor tell my mother: “Your bright boy must study in UP High” -- words that echoed then in my mind constantly.

One morning, I found myself in a classroom of students, so different – in image and bearing -- from my elementary schoolmates. For the first time, I felt overwhelmed after picking up tidbits of personal information: heirs to wealthy families, scions of political clans, first and second honors, and so on. One graduated from International School and spoke like an American I had watched only in a movie.

Everyone seemed to hold their breath when I told my UP high school freshman class that I came from Mindanao – the only one. I told them my father’s job: a rice mill operator – unintentionally wrong choice of word. My father was a mechanic. Somehow that covered up our poor family status. Only for a while. My absence in the cafeteria during break times later on took the wraps off my financial distress.

To cut this short (you may read the whole story in my ATABAY article “My Life-Changing Year In UP”), I found myself, one morning, eating my first meal after coming back home. I was devouring hungrily a braised pork belly -- nalipasan ng gutom (let hunger go by) for a year -- while my mother, a dressmaker, sewing a neighbor’s dress in her old Singer sewing machine, was watching me with moist eyes.

Being poor and, by a twist of fate, having gotten in the world of the well-to-do, affected my psyche particularly my academic performance. The tough break shot down Sherlock Holmes’ claim that the brain works better on an empty stomach.  The best I did -- came off Number 11 in our freshman class of 40 in one grading period.

My mother enrolled me the next school year in our local school, MSU Prep High. I graduated as a Valedictorian. The recurring question “Where to go to college” triggered in my mind the haunting words “Your bright boy must study in UP High” which sparked me off to study at UP Diliman.

I took the government exam for the “poor and deserving” high school graduates and earned my wings as a National State Scholar. I thought it would be my vehicle driving me to reach my dream. I was mistaken. The state scholarship could hardly foot the bill for my living expenses in Manila.

In the nick of time, the MSU Scholarship came on the scene. Like a manna from heaven, it granted me a Full Scholar status.

The rest is history.

My parents were poor. That all of us seven siblings graduated in college, two with doctorates, three with masters, and the rest professionals, in various fields, has always been the cherished conversation topic over our family dinner table.

My parents were poor. Lacing through such a reality, this is the common thread that weaves the fabric of the academic journeys of most, if not all, MSUans particularly the victims of the recent bombing. Sad to say, the deaths and injuries have kept coming up against the question: “Why were they there?”

Many years back, I recall two traumatic incidents in MSU – a war and a bombing. At the height of the war, we got a glimpse of a battle tank and armored personnel carrier rolling around the campus with soldiers in full combat gear. All at once, we got an earful of distant explosions from the skirmishes between the government forces and the rebels.

During the evacuation, suffering from a high fever, I rode the school bus in a convoy of vehicles to Iligan City. The school and the Iligan community, closing ranks to deal with the crisis, billeted the student evacuees to various accommodations. I was lodged in Rhodora Apartment where Ma’am Loable took care of me until I got well and back on my feet. Most, if not all student evacuees went back to the campus when classes resumed.

In the bombing incident, grenades exploded right in the middle of the performance of the local band in a folk-rock live concert. I decided to stay on campus until the situation went back to normal.

During those dreadful incidents, I never thought of going home. The two-way fare for me then was too expensive. A dewy-eyed snippet: going home, one student said he would miss his bed and a locker in his dorm -- he had none of those luxuries at home.

Further on, I could only form a picture of him missing the Garces’ pakbet, mani and turon. Or, the foggy morning run, winding up in a drink of fresh cow’s milk in Aggie Farm. Or, the late afternoon stroll on the golf course with the landscape of the fairway rolling on the terrain of the grass sloping down the next green. Or, the sundown sight of sunflowers that seemed to soak up the last rays of sunset. Or...

Why there? For the “poor and deserving” students in the middle of their academic journey, to turn around means to take the risk of falling down from the tightrope walk on their respective paths in life. Taking aim at their goals, the only way is for them to walk forward, whatever it takes, under the aegis of MSU, my alma mater.

Head collage courtesy of free stock photos

Video clips courtesy of  YouTube

TAYLOR SWIFT AND TRAVIS KELCE: THE POWER COUPLE THAT SHOOK THE WORLD

 

“Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce hold hands, confirming their relationship status all too well” – Los Angeles Times

It’s been only two months since Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce confirmed their relationship, but they have become one of the most talked-about couples in the world. The pop superstar and the NFL star have been making headlines with their whirlwind romance, their DDA (digital display of affection), and their support for each other’s careers.

FIRST MEETING

“It all started with a friendship bracelet,” kicked off the Glamour’s celebrity news. The 34-year-old NFL tight end (if you’re a “Swiftie” better start picking up football lingos) attempted to give the 33-year-old pop star his number via friendship bracelet during a stop on the Eras Tour.

“I was disappointed that she doesn’t talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings,” Kelce said in his podcast with his brother. “So, I was a little butt-hurt I didn’t get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her. She doesn’t meet anybody, or at least she didn’t want to meet me, so I took it personal.” She accepted his offer to attend a Kansas City Chiefs game later, and things have moved fairly quickly from there.

Since then, the couple has been inseparable, despite their busy schedules. They have been traveling across the globe to see each other, with Kelce flying over 11,000 miles to see Swift perform in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Swift also spent time with Kelce in Kansas City, where she bonded with his teammates’ wives and girlfriends.

MOVING IN

She will move in with him for good if all goes well with their “playing house” at his $6 million mansion. Their friends have claimed the couple have even discussed starting a family.

Swift and Kelce’s relationship has not only captured the hearts of their fans but also boosted their respective industries. Swift’s Eras Tour has been a huge success, breaking records for attendance and revenue. Kelce’s performance on the football field has been stellar, earning him praise and accolades.

US Magazine on celebrity news bannered that Swift and Kelce’s romance is making “swifties” out of (almost) all of Hollywood. CBS TV personality Gayle King’s words embody the typical reactions among Hollywood luminaries in need of such a romance.

“People say, ‘Oh, it’s a publicity stunt!’ I don’t think that. I think they’re two young people who are attracted to each other and I think they’re trying to figure it out, whether it goes somewhere [or] doesn’t go somewhere.”

WINNING

Actor Morgan Freeman said, laughing, that though he doesn’t think about them at all raised this pivotal question, “Are you winning? … That’s what I’m interested in.” If he’s talking about Kelce’s performance, this headline is a good barometer: “Taylor Swift cheers for Travis Kelce, spurring Kansas City Chiefs to four consecutive wins as a lucky mascot.” Kelce also set a new NFL record for reaching 11,000 receiving yards in the fewest number of games (154) as a tight end. If Freeman was talking about the marketing aspect, let’s hear it from the NFL marketing executive:

“This thing happened like this… Travis went to her concert and asked her to maybe come to a game. We had no idea that she was going to show up. And once it happened, she showed up to a game and in an instant, literally in a second, it’s viral … All you can do is be there and be ready for the moment. When it happened, we were ready to roll with content like ‘Football 101 for Swifties.’”

The bottom line: Getting “written and posted about” is the main goal.

Actress and filmmaker Olive Wilde made her thought-provoking exceptional comment which could be the reason for the word “almost” in the banner phrase “(almost) all of Hollywood”:

“I wish Taylor Swift was in love with a climate scientist.”

A QUIXOTIC HEADLINE

The essence of such a striking comment stirred up my fertile imagination. I prompted Bing, my AI-powered co-pilot to write a hypothetical report with a catchy title on the current update about the headline-grabbing relationship between Taylor Swift and her new heartthrob, who happens to be, tadah, a climate scientist. Here’s the report:

Taylor Swift and Dr. James Hansen: The Eco-Couple That Saved the Planet

It’s been a year since Taylor Swift and Dr. James Hansen tied the knot in a secret ceremony, but they have already made a huge impact on the world. The pop icon and the climate scientist have been working together to raise awareness and action on the climate crisis, and to promote green solutions for a sustainable future.

Swift and Hansen met in 2022 when Swift attended a lecture by Hansen at Columbia University, where he is a professor and the director of the Program on Climate Science, Awareness, and Solutions. Swift was impressed by Hansen’s passion and expertise and approached him after the lecture to express her admiration and interest. The two hit it off and exchanged contacts, and soon started dating.

Since then, the couple has been unstoppable, combining their talents and influence to make a difference. Swift has dedicated her music and platform to spreading the message of climate action and has donated millions of dollars to various environmental organizations and initiatives. Hansen has continued his research and advocacy and has collaborated with Swift on several projects, such as a documentary, a podcast, and a book.

The couple has also been inspiring others to join their cause and adopt eco-friendly lifestyles and practices. They have launched a campaign called “Swift Change”, which encourages people to reduce their carbon footprint, support renewable energy sources, and demand climate justice. They have also been vocal about their own green choices, such as driving electric cars, using solar panels, and eating plant-based diets.

Swift and Hansen’s relationship has not only captured the attention of the media and the public but also influenced the policies and decisions of governments and corporations. The couple has been invited to speak at various global events and forums, such as the United Nations Climate Change Conference, the World Economic Forum, and the Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony. They have also met with several world leaders and CEOs, and have urged them to take urgent and bold actions to combat the climate crisis.

Swift and Hansen have shown the world that love can transcend boundaries, and that it can motivate and empower people to work for a common goal. They have also shown that they are not afraid to use their voices and resources and to challenge the status quo and the vested interests. They are truly an eco-couple that saved the planet.

Wrapping this up, Bill Belichick, NFL Patriots football head coach, says, “I would say Travis Kelce’s had a lot of big catches in his career. This would be the biggest.”

For Taylor Swift, maybe, not yet. Some climate scientist could still be flying in the air for her to catch.

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Content put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered co-pilot

Head photo courtesy of TMZ

Video clips courtesy of YouTube