In 2008, Wall Street recklessness causes the financial crisis that left eight million Americans unemployed and millions more with mortgages and retirement savings run into the ground. Businesses shut their doors and new graduates faced uneasy, unrelenting unemployment. In 2010, we passed reforms to make sure that Wall Street could never crash our economy again….
[Editor’s note: This column is one in a series written by University of California President Janet Napolitano as part of a partnership with New America Media, whose members include this publication.] EARLIER this summer, University of California campuses granted bachelor’s and advanced degrees to 67,000 individuals, each with stories of personal aspiration and accomplishment. For…
IF there is a singular issue that makes many kababayans gravitate toward the Republican Party, it’s the issue of the right of women to have an abortion — a right traditionally fought for by Democrats and opposed by Republicans. On Monday, June 27, the Supreme Court (SC) upheld such right of women by striking down…
A FAVORABLE decision is expected soon from the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague to strengthen the Philippines’ maritime case against China over its expansive claim in the disputed water of the South China Sea. The international court is expected to rule over the decades-long conflict soon. Citing peaceful resolution on the jurisdiction over…
IF taxes are to be collected only by the government, then Rodrigo Duterte, incoming president of the Republic of the Philippines, actually acknowledges the existence of another government within the country: the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army. You see, the CPP-NPA also collects “taxes” from businesses and Duterte has publicly urged companies operating…
THE 4-4 vote by the Supreme Court was a big blow not only to President Barack Obama’s legacy, but to the hopes and dreams of many undocumented immigrants — including many kababayans and their families. Because it was a tie, the highest court’s ruling leaves in place an appeals court decision which ruled that Obama overstepped…
IT may be less than a month away from the Republican and Democratic National Conventions, but the respective presumptive nominees for parties — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton — have sharpened their attacks against each other. Polls suggest that Hillary Clinton is winning in the match-up this early. According to a CNN/ORC poll released on…
THERE has seemingly been a string of criminal incidents where police officers have instantly shot suspected drug peddlers and pushers upon encounter. Is change really coming to address criminality and the growing illegal drug trade in the Philippines? Or is this a ploy to clean up their ranks? It is unpleasant to see officers you…
(Publisher/Editor’s/OpEd Editor’s note: The following is part of the statement released by the author about her acceptance of the offer from President-elect Rody Duterte to make her Secretary of Education. She is the lead convenor of Social Watch Philippines.) 1. All my life I have been exposed to the challenges of education in the Philippines….
GRIM news of insurgency and terror attacks are thrust onto international headlines every day. Although modernization demolishes geographical barriers and moves the world toward an amalgamated economy, clashes among cultures continue to have a damaging impact on world peace and security. Because of cross-cultural ignorance, the essence of civilization is compromised. In one senseless act…
Jess Matubis, who has worked under more Philippine presidents at close quarters than most broadcast journalists, recently posted the following blog by president-elect Duterte’s Agriculture Secretary- designate, Manny Piñol: “NO MORE JUNKETS, NO MORE FIRST CLASS TICKETS, NO MORE EXPENSIVE SUVS, NO MORE EXPENSIVE LUNCHES FOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS IN THE DUTERTE ADMINISTRATION “1. All officials…
SEVERAL emerging markets in the world have experienced exceptional economic strides. These nations are mostly highly export-driven with strong inflows of capital and investment and well-capitalized banking institutions. Many emerging markets have already “emerged.” Now that it is no longer the “Sick Man of Asia,” it is high time for the Philippines to experience this…
JUNE is here! The season of weddings and new beginnings unfold as the days get warmer and longer. It is unfortunate, though, that half of the marriages these days end in divorce. It does not have to be that way. It should not be that way. I just attended a beautiful wedding in New York where…
CHANGE is indeed coming. The transition of power to President-elect Rodrigo Duterte’s administration has become more apparent even in the incoming 17th Congress. In the House of Representatives, a Congress shake-up is currently ongoing after several members of the ruling Liberal Party have decided to curtail its “Tuwid na Daan” (Straight Path) engagement for Duterte’s…
REMEMBER “C5 at Taga”? For the benefit of those with short memories, in January 2010, with the presidential campaign in full swing and Sen. Manny Villar leading in the surveys on presidential aspirants, the Senate debated a report recommending the censure of Villar “for improper and unethical conduct.” Villar, who owns one of the biggest…
EACH year, we celebrate Memorial Day to honor those who gave their lives serving in our armed forces. The holiday is particularly close to my heart because I’m a veteran and also because it comes at the end of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. My parents immigrated to the United States when I was 3…
This race to the White House is not like any other, especially when you look at the front-runners of each party. In past elections, voters generally have fallen in love with their candidates of choice, giving each a boost in favorability ratings. The winning candidate usually has the highest favorability rating — the one that…
WHILE most of the country is joining the bandwagon of President-elect Rodrigo Duterte, the Church is keeping its stand and keeping a close eye on the incoming leadership. Earlier in April before he won the votes, Duterte has already shrugged off a possible support from the Church. He even warned Catholics to not vote for…
TIME is of the essence for Filipino World War II veterans who are now living in the United States but are still counting years to finally have their children and grandchildren with approved petition to join him here and enjoy the remaining years of their life together as a family. With the Obama Administration parole…
CREATING a lot of buzz in the United States these days is a law in North Carolina which forbids transgender people from using public restrooms that comport with their gender identity. If a person is born male, then he should go to the boys’ bathroom, and conversely, those born female should go to the girls’…
“THOSE who kill my country will be killed. Simple as that. No middle ground. No apologies. No excuses,” incoming President Rodrigo Duterte warns, as he is bent on giving the country the facelift it needs as soon as he is sworn into office on June 30. Despite his snarky remarks and unconventional approach to politics,…
WHEN Sen. Grace Poe conceded on the day of the May 9 election after the numbers showed it would be mathematically impossible for her to overtake the lead of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte and that she placed third after former DILG Sec. Mar Roxas, many kababayans in the Philippines were surprised. Surely this is…
C’MON, just a day after the elections: Who remembers the platforms of the five presidential candidates, the topics they discussed in three presidential debates, or even their campaign slogans? The more than 15 million Filipinos who voted for Duterte were not really voting for this 71-year old man, who for 22 years has been Davao…
EIGHTY ONE PERCENT turnout among registered voters in the Philippines is a reason enough to celebrate in a country that has complained about apathy among Filipino people, who have much to complain about lacking in the will and push to do something to do something about the problems that beset the nation. After more than…
THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) proudly announced on Monday, May 9, that of the 54.4 million registered Filipino voters, about 40 million or 81.62 percent exercised their right of suffrage. This year has seen the fastest transmission of election returns since the automated poll was introduced in 2010. At 10:50pm on Monday, the transmission rate…
“MABUHAY ang NPA!” Rodrigo Duterte has exhorted in his speeches. And Jose Maria Sison, Communist Party of the Philippines and New People’s Army founder has acknowledged Duterte’s promise that if he becomes president, the NPA will have one foot in Malacañang. Said Sison: “Sabi niya, kapag ako ang presidente, isang paa ng NPA nasa Malacañang…
I COULD not believe my ears when I heard Pres. Benigno Aquino III say in a television interview that he is working on an alliance among presidential candidates so they could come together and work out something to defeat Philippine Presidential Election front-runner Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte. It seemed as though Aquino was lifting…
Political jousts in this country are eternally exciting, entertaining, somehow also enlightening and, from the point of view of those who become objects of vicious black propaganda attacks, absolutely infuriating. Remember the malicious tag of “Brenda” hurled against a leading presidential candidate a few years ago that was intended to put her mental faculty in…
MANILA—Former Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito denied on Monday, May 2 the money laundering charges filed against her in connection with the $80.9 million stolen by hackers from the Bangladesh Bank and laundered to the country. In a 15-page counter-affidavit, Deguito asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to dismiss the complaint…
The United States has always been a nation of immigrants. At every turn in our history, we have become stronger and closer by recognizing the richness in each of our many cultures. Nevada, like America, is stronger for its diversity – not only from the greater Asian-American and Pacific Islander community, but also the great…
