village idiot savant

Our socialistic and feudalistic bent

2009-07-14T12:49:00.008+08:00

Our store sits at the intersection of CM Recto and Magsaysay, two of the busiest thoroughfares in Davao City. As such, when transport groups decide to call a strike -- like yesterday, for example -- I always enjoy a ringside seat to the festivities.

Do I mind the shouting and the flag-waving? Not in the least bit. Rallies add a touch of color to the humdrum existence of Davao City. Without this outlet, who knows where all the pent-up rage would go? Besides, the rallyists aren't really a bad sort. They smile and wave and pose gamely for pictures. In the end, we're really all just folk.

If there's any criticism that I might level at our cause-oriented groups, it's the disappointing lack of focus. Rallies nowadays aren't nearly as charged nor as deadly as they were in 70's and the 80's; but that's because they suffer from a smorgasbord of issues that the rallyists want addressed.

Case in point: yesterday's rally mean to protest the high pump prices. And yet the banners and placards presented a whole list of grievances, ranging from oil deregulation to Charter Change to human rights violations to excessive fines to EVAT to the perennial and venerable US-(insert administration name here) regime. Each one of these is a worthwhile cause to rail against, in turn, but all of them at the same time? Yes, they're all interconnected somehow, but:

Ano nga ba talaga, ate?!

Over the typically muddled messages, calls against oil deregulation came at the forefront during yesterday's rally. No surprise here: oil deregulation has been a favorite whipping boy since well during Ramos' tenure. As with many things, deregulation looked good on paper but stumbled in the implementation with too few players in the field at the time it came to being. Have things improved since then? Nowadays, we have smaller players like SeaOil and the home-grown Phoenix, ventures that might not have been possible without deregulation.

But putting that aside, the rallying cry calls for a return of fixed gasoline prices, with government pegging the mark. Does anyone else see the irony in calling for more government control in the same breath as calling for the same government's ouster?

Ano nga ba talaga, ate?!

At the political grassroots, it seems to me that we tend towards socialism. We demand government structures that aggressively redistribute wealth in favor of the masses. The chances of that are nil, considering economic and historical evidence; and yet many continue to delude themselves with that hope because of the small and marginal concessions doled by the political chieftains.

At the same time, the concept of the benevolent political chieftain who will magically solve all our problems continues to loom large in our landscape. It's ingrained in our culture, this concept of a village head to whom we turn to for arbitration and dispensation, be it the barangay captain or the mayor or the governor or the congressman, ad nauseum. In Davao City, you only need to turn your head this way and that to see how much of it politicians have already apportioned for themselves: basketball courts, streets, sidewalks, barangay halls, and schools all constructed "through the initiative of."

So we live within this state of constant tension: on the one hand, looking for a change in leadership, and on the other, apportioning them more power and more control and more leverage over our lives.

How does it end? Take a guess.

Goodbye, Marie

2009-07-13T13:20:00.002+08:00

I just found out that my friend, Marie Paynor-Sia, passed away last Friday. She had been battling cancer for the last few years. Just when I thought things were on the up-and-up, well....

It's been over ten years since we were at IBM, but I still remember those days at work and off work. Marie was educated abroad, so she spoke with this distinct American twang. But rather than turning us off with any airs it was quite the other way around -- it was we who kidded her about it, and she took all the ribbing good-naturedly.

One story forever engraved in my mind, although I wasn't actually there. Marie and some officemates were playing a parlor game and the word they were looking for was maple syrup. And Marie kept saying "Aunt Jemimah! Aunt Jemimah!" pronouncing it "Je-MY-muh" as was proper. And everyone looked at her and wondered, what is she talking about? Until someone said, "Ah, Aunt Je-MEE-mah!"

Another story: she was driving along EDSA when a truck bumped into her car. She was all right, thank goodness, but there was a problem: she had switched plates on her car to skip coding. Regardless that it was the truck driver's fault, all the liability was hers. She called Jeff and he immediately came to her rescue. Story was (as I heard it) he smoothly slipped a P500 into the cop's hand, and that got her off. Not that I'm condoning the act, but it was sweet. Small wonder they got married a few years later.

My very last memory of her: her despedida party at their house in Quezon City. Just a quiet night with friends. I remember she gave us these commemorative coin tokens as her parting gift. I'm sorry I didn't agree to play the harmonica that night.

Fast forward a few years later: people grow apart, yes, but then there's Facebook. I knew she had cancer, but it was good to see her messages from time to time. Despite the battle, she and Jeff managed to bring up two lovely daughters. So you say hello, drop a note every now and then, and hope for the best.

This morning, despite my resolution to keep away from Facebook, I took a peek, and there was the message from a friend.

Hi IBM Friends, For those who do not know yet, Marie Paynor Sia passed away last Friday, July 10, 2009....

The shock gives way to sadness and regret. Regret for messages never sent and harmonicas never played. Ah, life.

I dropped by her Facebook page for one last look. So strange to see all those messages from friends addressed to her, despite knowing she'll never read them; and yet so right nonetheless, one last chance to say goodbye, to tell her how much she will be missed.

And though it feels strange it also feels right, so I also say my own goodbye.

Farewell, Marie. We will miss you very much.

Geek

2009-07-12T11:01:00.005+08:00

Last week, a friend pointed me out to a list: 150 ways to tell if you're a true geek. Of course, I had to take a look. While some of it was amusing, and some of it truly far out, at some point, I had to pause and ask myself: Why am I taking this test? What do I even care?

If you think about it, "150 ways to tell if you're a true geek" sounds very much like it would have come out of women's magazines that feed on the insecurities of their target demographic from their cover blurbs alone: "10 Ways to Tell If He Truly Loves You", "Are You Too Fat? Are You Too Thin?", "How to give a better blowjob", and so on. (Of course, the one question they never really ask is: "Do you take too many quizzes? Take this test to find out.")

Really, it's just sad.

So I submit, along with all the references to Star Trek, Zork, Apple ][, Lego, and Mythbusters, item number 151: "You don't care if other people think you're a geek or not."

Back before the term became fashionable, I did all the geeky stuff because they were fun and thought-provoking and challenging and, let's face it, a little different from what the rest of the world did. I didn't do them for anyone's approval. Be darned if I'm going to start now, just because some opinion poll says so.

These days, you can practically buy your way into geekdom. Want to be part of the geek set? Buy an MacBook, an iPhone, an iPod Touch, a Blackberry, and a DSLR. Worship and discuss anything that Joss Whedon and J.J. Abrams will turn out, even if it's utter crap. Read the latest juvenile novel or anime, fangirl or fanboi about the brooding hero or heroine, and dress up like they do.

There's no more heartache in being a geek because it's already so fashionable. Heck, you'd be way out there if you didn't have any public quirk. And gone, along with that tiny bit of angst, is that joy of discovery that someone else out there shares your secret passion because, hey, all you need to do is just check if the group already exists on Facebook.

Being a "geek" nowadays is just too much work, because there's so much to keep up with and so many expectations to live up to. The geeks never really had their revenge; instead, they were coopted into the mainstream. They sold out.

That just breaks the spirit of what it is to be a geek.

Am I a geek? Are you a geek?

I don't care. I really don't care.

Google Chrome OS

2009-07-08T20:16:00.001+08:00

Google has announced a new operating system due mid-2010.

From the post:

Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010. Because we're already talking to partners about the project, and we'll soon be working with the open source community, we wanted to share our vision now so everyone understands what we are trying to achieve.

...

Google Chrome OS will run on both x86 as well as ARM chips and we are working with multiple OEMs to bring a number of netbooks to market next year. The software architecture is simple — Google Chrome running within a new windowing system on top of a Linux kernel.

Doctor Who movie?

2009-07-08T19:49:00.004+08:00

Can it be true? A Doctor Who movie, with David Tennant in the lead? The news is all over the web, with possible confirmation at Comic-Con.

Who should be the companion? Rose Tyler? Martha Jones? Donna Noble? Someone new?

World eBook Fair

2009-07-08T17:55:00.002+08:00

Already posted this on my Plurk but I thought it deserves another push: for one month, July 4 to August 4, the World eBook Fair is making its entire collection available for download. Their collection comes from a variety of sources, including Project Gutenberg, World Library, Baen Books, the United Nations, and many more.

What are you waiting for? Have a look now!

Thanks to Ken for the heads up.

...and on 07/08/09 10:11

2009-07-08T10:11:00.001+08:00

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Posted on 4:56 07/08/09...

2009-07-08T04:56:00.002+08:00

Heh. Pretty cool, eh?

Understanding the Boot Process

2009-07-07T17:42:00.001+08:00

Understanding The Boot Process

A presentation I put together on the PC boot process, covering both Linux and, ugh, Windows. Cross-posted in Ubuntu Living.

Tambis

2009-07-05T13:46:00.004+08:00

Our tambis tree is also in full bloom.

I got curious as to what tambis was actually called. A quick search on Wikipedia turned up the name Syzygium samarangense, more commonly known outside the Philippines as the Java apple. The syzygium genus is quite large, however, encompassing over 1,100 species.

Heh. They look pretty.

Avocado harvest

2009-07-05T13:34:00.002+08:00

Avocado harvest from our backyard. No, I ain't kidding. Yes, you can have some, but only if you're my friend. ;-)

Why Apple sucks

2009-07-04T23:12:00.002+08:00

'Nuff said.

P.S. Yes, I know about the hack to get the update without paying Apple the $9.95. No, I won't do it.

Noise barrage against HR1109

2009-07-04T11:46:00.002+08:00

Students, teachers, and other folk took to the streets yesterday afternoon to protest against HR1109, that little bit of Con-Ass treachery that the House of Repestentatives put together. A group gathered around the park on Roxas, banging pots and posts and passing motorists to honk their horns. I went down, of course, and took pictures.

Next time, I'll bring noisemakers of my own.

Just a little rest

2009-07-04T11:36:00.001+08:00

Teaching Lit

2009-07-03T23:00:00.003+08:00

Today I brought a double-barreled shotgun to class. The shotgun's name was "Hills Like White Elephants" and the class was Lit 2 - Literatures of the World. I needed the shotgun because I now sat on the other side of the teacher's table. I needed to make a good impression. A shotgun makes a good impression. I like to think the students went away impressed.

With a shotgun, you can make people talk. As a teacher, the greatest challenge is to get the students to talk. By talk, I mean about the subject at hand, not to each other. That challenge runs double for us here in the Philippines, where we're taught since birth to keep quiet and do as we're told. "Hills" got my students talking.

To get them to talk, I had to wield the shotgun a little creatively. Like a bludgeon maybe, whacked over their heads several times. As gentle as whackings go. "Hills" doesn't lend itself to a casual read -- it takes several times before the story reveals itself. What exactly are these two people talking about? What is this "thing" that seems to hover over them?

To get to that answer, we took another path. How do you characterize the man? How do you characterize the woman? Do you think you could be friends with this woman? What would you say to her? After a few tentative and timid mumbles, somebody blurted out: "The man is arrogant and manipulative." And then: "The woman is too submissive to the man."

Indeed?

"If she were my friend, I'd tell her to stand up for herself." "A relationship is supposed to be two-way; it can't all just be about what the guy wants." "She shouldn't just consider the happiness of other people; she should also consider her own happiness."

"So what are they talking about?" Still more furrowed brows, unsure about the answer. "If you were sitting next to them in a cafe, and you eavesdropped on their conversation, what would you think they were talking about?"

"I would say they have a big problem."

"A big problem, you say? What sort?"

And then, the answer dawns on the class.

"Hills" is about as perfect as a short story can get; and that's why it's perfect to start of a literature class. It's short, it's spare, but it's very deep. Don't weigh them down with theory or structure just yet. Hit the ground running. Literature is about stories. Get
started with a story.

A little later, I'm the one surprised by the revelations of hitherto-undiscovered meaning. My students are nursing students in their senior year, and to them this is just a minor subject; but
they're bringing their own experience to bear on the story.

"You say the beer means something?"

"Yes, sir. It's a depressant."

"Really, I didn't know that. I thought people drank beer to be happy."

"In small quantities, yes, beer gives you a good feeling. But if you drink too much, it has the opposite effect. You'll fall into a depression."

It's my own eureka moment as I discover another aspect of "Hills" I hadn't seen before.

And so the ideas start coming out. They're coming in trickles, yes, but they're steady trickles. There's still a ways to go to get to the free-flowing and -- dare I say it? -- heated discussions we normally see in workshops. But this is a start. I'm happy.

Always bring a double-barreled shotgun to class. Bludgeon, poke, cajole, and shoot.

The Writing Schedule

2009-07-02T11:49:00.003+08:00

At the beginning of the year, I resolved to write one short story per month. Like all resolutions, I proceeded to break it.

No, I'm not proud of myself. That's just how we roll.

Ironically, I also got three stories published in the first half of the year, so far my best start: one in Vin Simbulan's dragon anthology, and two thus far in Philippine Graphic.

On the other hand, these were stories I wrote way back in 2006. The lesson here: it can take a long time for your work to see the light of the day.

So let's see now: I have three more stories in the pipeline, just waiting for either the editor to decide or the publisher to print. And three more that need heavy revisions before I'm happy enough to even consider sending them out. Yep, that's how we roll.

Problem is: once these are out, I'll have nothing. Gasp!

Last week, I finally made good on my resolution. The only way to get the story written is to write. Yeah, it's ridiculously simple, isn't it. But the stories don't get written for a variety of reasons: work, school, baby, Facebook.

Hmmm, Facebook, mostly. But more on that later.

Now every night I start writing at 9PM, and I don't stop until I've put in at least 500 words. Not a whole lot to be sure, but the baby steps have already gotten my past the 3,000-word mark for a new story, one percolating in the back of my mind since last year (a domestic sci-fi/horror story, and yes, it's Filipino, dammit.) I'm proud of my progress. Another couple of nights and the story should be done.

Ah, but is it any good? Of course not! But that's how we roll.

All about Greek mythology

2009-06-30T13:12:00.001+08:00

Here's a fantastic resource on Greek mythology.

Wondering

2009-06-30T12:41:00.004+08:00

Don't get me wrong, I'm happy enough to teach at Ateneo de Davao. Sometimes, though, it gets me wondering.

You see, I'm teaching because I want to give back. Ten years in corporate IT, several more years of fiddoodling with Linux and open source, I've certainly got something to share. And please don't tell me that I'm doing it for the salary because, heh, if I showed you my payslip, you'd probably snigger and snark. Let's not even talk about the silly bureaucracy inherent in any large organization.

I'm wondering, though, if an Ateneo falls within the community that I ought to be giving back through. Religious roots aside, Ateneo ranks way up there in terms of tuition and matriculation fees. The students can certainly afford. Will the knowledge that I'm imparting get passed on in turn? Or will it just be used to fuel selfish careers? I don't know, and perhaps I'll never know -- it's that old saw again about the sowing and the reaping.

On the flip side, Ateneo has excellent -- if underused -- facilities, and that fulfills the working environment that I need. I've been trading notes with friends from other schools and the labs I work with are miles ahead of what they have. I would feel constricted otherwise.

So now the dilemma: if I work with the less privileged, I would also be drastically scaling back the lessons I can teach, even far more than what I'm already doing now with my students at Ateneo. In terms of need, I might be reaching a more deserving audience, but they won't receive the best of what I'd be able to give.

And on the flip side: I wonder if teaching at an upper-class school matches the spirit of my original intent. Am I doing the good that I'm supposed to be doing? Or have I become a tool for just another capitalistic endeavor?

Ah, questions, questions.

Posting from an iPod Touch

2009-06-30T07:31:00.001+08:00

Test post blogging from my iPod Touch using BlogWriter.

Yes, I do have an iPod Touch. Please don't laugh. It wasn't my idea. My Dad got it for me (I got an 8G but he bought himself a 16G.)

And no, I am not an Apple zombie.

A Murder in Davao

2009-06-29T17:09:00.005+08:00

When you live in a place where crimes go unsolved and unpunished, even a front-page atrocity manages to elicit only a shrug. "Poor fellow," you say, and you go on about your business.

That, in a nutshell, summed up my response to the recent murder case of Dr. Rogelio Peñera, head of the local DOH team monitoring swine flu in Davao. I wondered what could have prompted someone to kill him; after all, he was neither activist nor politician nor criminal. As I said, when crimes go on unsolved, callousness steps in.

But when you know someone who knows the victim, perspective changes somewhat. The victims no longer remains an anonymous name, but becomes a person, one you might have known. That, too, is what happened to me when I received an email from a Dumaguete friend.

Hi, Dom, he was my classmate in high school. Have you heard anything else about this? I've only just heard because I don't regularly open my PSHS email. Would appreciate any updates. Our classmates are planning to go to Davao for his funeral tomorrow.

Perhaps the way the media report the news goes a long way to desensitize us. This is how the Philippine Star covered the story:

Two unidentified gunmen shot dead last night the head of the Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit of Department of Health (DOH) Region XI, who was tasked to address and monitor A(H1N1) flu cases here.

The victim, identified as Dr. Rogelio Peñera, in his early 40s, was reportedly killed when he arrived home at around 6:30 p.m. last night in Countryville Subdivision, Cabantian Road, this city.

DOH Region XI assistant regional director Dr. Salvador Estrera said Peñera was rushed to the Davao Medical Center but was declared dead on arrival.

Peñera’s teenage daughter also reportedly suffered minor injury when she sustained a gunshot wound in the hand.

Davao City Police Office said the two suspects were waiting for the victim at his house and fired at him when he got out of his car. Elements of the Buhangin Police Station immediately launched a massive manhunt for the killers.

Peñera was the one giving media updates on the flu. He had also been going around the barangays to give lectures on the viral infection. “I really do not know why he was killed. He was such a good man,” Estrera said.

He described Peñera as a good and efficient worker, adding that the victim’s death would be a big loss to the DOH Region XI office.

As it is, just another story.

First-person account previously posted here removed on request of original sender. Please don't ask me for a copy as I have also deleted it from my files. An official statement from Dr. Peñera's friends is coming soon.

Blender animation from my student

2009-06-28T10:23:00.001+08:00

I previously showcased my summer student Angelie's work on Synfig on this blog and in Ubuntu Living. Now it's time to show off a character animation done in Blender by another student, Paul Jims Cabahug. Paul had just picked up on the tool last summer, did all the research (with only encouragement from me, as I don't know Blender), and put together the animation by himself in two weeks.

An touching side note: during his presentation, Paul said he named this character Rusty, after his beloved dog who passed away.

The Girl Who Doesn't Age

2009-06-27T10:14:00.005+08:00

Over at Slashdot, I found a link to the story of a girl who doesn't age. The original article came from a feature story from ABC News, with accompanying photos.

Brooke, left, at 16, with younger sister Carly, 13, on the right. Photos from ABC web site.
The amazing story in a nutshell: Brooke Greenberg, already 16 years old, still has the body of an infant; she stopped growing when she was two. Brooke's medical condition has left her with the mental and verbal capacity of a toddler. She's also had several bouts with tumors, cancers, and seizures, all from which she recovered quickly.

Brooke and Carly three years ago.
So far the only person known to have this condition, Brooke has baffled specialists. Brooke may hold the key to why and how humans develop and grow old. They're analyzing her DNA to determine specific mutations. However, she has not been diagnosed with any genetic syndrome or chromosomal abnormality.

The lead doctor involved in Brooke's case, Richard Walker, has a web site chronicling his findings. The original case study is available for download.

D'Oh!

2009-06-26T23:11:00.000+08:00

Weeks before the first reported case of swine flu in the country, the Department of Health already held daily press conferences on the spread of the virus. Perhaps that was meant to display the department's proactiveness in the face of an impending crisis. But as in the case of the boy who cried wolf, too much too soon may not be very wise either. After numerous warnings, but with no victims in sight, some broadsheets began to wonder -- in the front pages no less -- whether Filipinos had a natural immunity to A(H1N1). Of course, now we know that just isn't so.

Still, with all the attention the department and press coverage, the watch inadvertently became a waiting game. When the first case finally surfaced, well after all our Southeast Asian neighbors reported theirs, it sounded like sigh of relief: "Sa wakas, may swine flu na tayo! Hindi na tayo huli sa ibang bansa!"

Be careful what you wish for, so they say.

At first, the DOH's defensive stance seemed impenetrable. Infection number one, a young girl, flew in from abroad. Immediately the DOH sought out all other passengers seated within the vicinity. Smart move, and very aggressive, our tax pesos visibly at work.

And yet the screen of invincibility all fell apart come the first day of classes on June 8. Two infected DLSU students shut the university down for a week. Apparently eager to get in on the game, the Commission on Higher Education pushed back the opening of college classes a week later; surprisingly, the Department of Education, Culture, and Sports pushed through the schedule. The logic behind this? College students were more likely to have travelled abroad. Like, wow.

But you can't hold off school forever, just like you can't stop the wheels of business and everyday life. Classes started. Vacationeers reported back to work. And the reports of swine flu infections rose, and rose, and rose. As of this writing, the Philippines has over 700 cases, the highest of any country in Southeast Asia.

What happened to all the protective measures? What happened to the airport screenings? What happened to the vaunted proximity tracking? So despite all the early advisories and the panic-inducing daily press briefings, the virus has managed to spread so quickly after all? Are these 700 cases really A(H1N1) to begin with? No one seems to know.

Instead, we get confusing verdicts like "low-level" infection, the first such term I've heard in use since swine flu started. Does that mean that it's not a serious problem, after all?

Neither is the CHED any help in its new guidelines: "Suspend classes on the first infection, but proceed with classes if you already have two or more." What imbecility is this?

It seems to me that it all boils down to this: after feeding the swine flu panic, and unable to contain swine flu at all, both agencies ultimately fall back to the mechanism they know best: spin machines. Unfair to say, perhaps, of the doctors and nurses actually working on the problem, but it's not them I'm speaking of. I mean, instead, the top levels of these departments, secretaries Duque and Lapuz, who have used swine flu as their opportunity to, well, hog the headlines.

Oink to you, gentlemen, oink to you.

Steve Rude

2009-06-24T22:56:00.003+08:00

Recognize the character above? If you do, then your comic tastes run along the same lines as mine.

If you're looking to follow his future adventures, head on over to Steve Rude Art to buy the PDF versions of the comic (sadly, Mr. Rude will go on hiatus after the latest arc concludes). Only 99 cents per issue.

And, no, you may not copy my files. It's only 99 cents, for cryin' out loud, you cheapskate!

Articles and conjunctions not included

2009-06-24T22:15:00.005+08:00

From the Gawker comes this amusing report about Philippine Airlines niggardly ways:

Jeff Koyen got an email from a representative of "Mabuhay, Philippine Airlines' inflight magazine," asking permission to reprint an article he'd written. For 15 cents per word. Oh, but:

Dear Mr. Koyen,

My sincerest apologies, but I failed to mention that the words "a", "and", and "the" are not included in the rate. Would you still be interested in writing this piece for us?

Now I don't know if this story is actually true or not but knowing Philippine Airlines, I tend to think that it is.

It reminds me of another story, also unverified, about how Mabuhay ran a travel photography contest with the fine print that "all entries become the property of Mabuhay." End result: they built up a collection of stock photography without having to pay the non-winning photographers a cent. Smart, eh? Too smart.

May I suggest to future contributors of Mabuhay to drop all articles and conjunctions from their submissions. After all, if Mabuhay isn't willing to pay for them, there's no reason to include them, right?