President Rodrigo Duterte’s recent “friendly exchange” with Chinese President Xi Jinping over rights to exploit the natural resources of certain areas of the South China Sea (AKA West Philippine Sea) has alarmed Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, former Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario, and several of our honorable senators, notably Senators Franklin Drilon, Richard Gordon,…
PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte may have had the best intentions in declaring martial law in Mindanao following the escalating violence in Marawi City in Mindanao, but many Filipinos in America continue to be haunted by the ghost of Marcos-era martial law years. “Takot ako. In the horizon looms big and clear contamination ng ISIS,” Duterte explained…
He followed the footsteps of his father who sang for the group S.O.S. (A Society of Seven) in Hawaii. He went back to his birthplace in 1982 to pursue his musical career and released his first album that went platinum in a span of five months. Thus, began the journey of the man who would…
They say growing old is one exceptional privilege not granted to many as it is the crown of a full life… the final act in one’s role play on earth. During one’s youth, the days are seemingly short and years are quite long but as one grows old, days seem dragging while years are getting…
Aleksandra Flasz out-designed her competitors to walk away with the grand prize of $100,000 PHILIPPINES (May 25, 2017) – Without any professional background in interior design, Aleksandra Flasz, a Polish fashion design graduate and model was crowned the winner of Sony Channel’s first original production, The Apartment: Rising Stars Edition. In a grueling 40-hour design…
IF a person commits certain immigration violations (such as fraud, or overstaying in the US for over six months and then departs, etc.), the person may not be eligible to receive a green card, unless the person applies for, and is granted, a “waiver of inadmissibility” (or “forgiveness”) on a Form I-601. To be eligible…
Coconut water (buko juice) is a popular drink in Asia and South America. The top ten countries on the list of world-leading coconut producers according to volume are: Indonesia, Philippines, India, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, Mexico, Thailand, and Malaysia. The Philippines export more than $1 billion worth of coconuts to the United…
While most individuals are deep in their slumber at 2 a.m., Shanna Mendiola’s day is already beginning. By 2:30 a.m., like clockwork, she arrives at NBC4 Southern California, where she has been the meteorologist for the weekday morning newscast, “Today in LA,” since March. And for the next five hours, it’s nonstop as she prepares…
Thirty three years ago, my husband left me. He died. Leaving a house filled of daughters, young and adorable, innocent, with the world on their side. In the face of adversity, we were not permitted to ask, “Why me?” You can ask, but you won’t get an answer. Through the years, I’ve learned the hard…
Someone uses your social security number to file a fraudulent tax return to claim a refund or get a job. An employer’s tax identification is stolen to create a false Forms W-2 to support fraudulent refunds. When To Know Your Identity Has Been Stolen – The IRS Send You A Notice: • You filed more…
GENERALLY, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…
I WAS out of the country for close to a month to join my husband as he fulfilled a promise: to take his parents to the faith-based Marian Pilgrimage Tour in Europe. This was my husband’s way of honoring his parents who are celebrating their birthdays this May as octogenarians. They have devoted their lives…
THE Philippines extends its condolences to the victims’ families and voiced solidarity with Britain in the fight against extremism following the deadly terror attack in Manchester, United Kingdom that left 22 people—including children—dead and 50 injured. “We are in solidarity with the United Kingdom in addressing and combating violent extremism,” Philippine Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella…
THE rooms of the dormitories are now clean and empty, and the seminary is quiet, for the academic year has ended and the seminarians have left for summer vacation. Some of them finished their long years of seminary formation — seven years for most of them — and they are now preparing for ordination, ready…
ON THE DAY President Donald Trump embarked on his first trip abroad, White House lawyers have reportedly been researching impeachment proceedings in preparation for what is now becoming more of a probability than just a possibility: removing Trump from office. This oversized baggage Trump took with him has been a consequence of his firing of…
“IT ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.” — Mark Twain It is the time I prepare myself for worship on Sunday — by reading beautiful and poetic stories from the Bible. Our knowledge of the Bible was limited to memorizing…
ONE of the goals of bankruptcy is to allow debtor-filers to start anew. This means that after filing bankruptcy and getting a discharge of their debts, these debtors will be in a position to move on financially. Allowing these debtors to keep certain basic assets despite a bankruptcy filing is one way of helping debtor…
Q:I WORK as a nurse at a hospital that has a strict policy of no unapproved overtime, and no going on breaks unless we are relieved by another nurse. We are forced to skip our breaks if there is no reliever (which happens a lot because we are often understaffed). As for overtime, we don’t…
GENERALLY, in California, property acquired by a spouse prior to marriage is considered separate property under family code section 770 while those acquired after marriage are considered community assets under family code section 760. How do you characterize real property purchased prior to marriage but with the mortgage principal paid down using community income or…
BE conservative with deductions if you want to avoid audits. Be aggressive and you increase your risk of IRS scrutiny. Play the odds and you invite an audit. The question then is—is it worth the risk? No, it’s not. Saving a few dollars compared with what could be a disastrous experience of dealing with the…
“ Let me get one thing straight, just because you can pay your minimum monthly payments each month doesn’t necessarily mean that you do not have a debt problem” WHILE credit can be a great asset when used wisely, a lot of people tend to misuse it and they acquire more debts than they could…
Generally, a sanctuary city is viewed as a place where individuals without lawful immigration status may reside without undue fear of targeted raids, harassment and mass deportation. So-called sanctuary cities do not provide immunity to those residing in the U.S. without status. Anyone who resides in the United States without authorization is at some risk…
DURING Pres. Trump’s candidacy, and after he was elected, he stated that among the ways he would combat terrorism would be through “extreme vetting,” which would include a “rigorous evaluation” of visa applicants to determine if they support terrorism. Recently, the State Department listed possible additional questions for visa applicants who have been determined to…
Providing a smoking area within the same building with one ventilation system is like designating a urinating area in a swimming pool HealthJustice Philippines, a vigilant think tank and advocacy group with legal expertise in tobacco control and health promotion and a Bloomberg Awardee for Global Tobacco Control, sent out a press release on May…
This month, Journey had a nine-show residency in Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino’s The Joint. The famed rock band is comprised of co-founders Neal Schon (lead guitarist) and Ross Valory (bass), longtime members Jonathan Cain (keyboardist) and Arnel Pineda (lead singer), and virtuoso drummer Steve Smith. This series of performances is…
To honor the extensive and often overlooked achievements of the Asian Pacific American (APA) community, the United States designated the month of May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM). Just as the U.S. celebrates Black History Month in February, members of Congress in 1977 decided to introduce resolutions to designate a period in which…
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte emphasized the need of eradicating drug impunity during the World Economic Forum (WEF) on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Thursday, May 11, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In his keynote speech, Duterte urged the international leaders to pursue a drug-free community to protect the younger generation from harm brought…
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s net worth went up by over P3 million during his first six months in the office, according to his latest statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) released by the Office of the Ombudsman on Friday, May 12. In his SALN, Duterte declared a net worth of P27.43 million as…
PART 1 CUSTOMER Service Dashboard: The goal is provide tools and resources in resolving tax matters. The “Customer Service Dashboard” was launched in March 1, 2017 with estimated time frames for your wait time. For more information go to: https://www.ftb.ca.gov Deductions for Taxes Paid or California Other State Tax Credit (OSTC) Legal Ruling 2017-01: California resident…
“HE is a good guy. I hope you can let this go,” was what President Donald Trump told his sacked FBI Director James Comey. This was documented by Comey in a contemporaneous memo on he wrote on February 14, 2017, to document the details of their one-on-one meeting after Trump asked VP Mike Pence and…
