ON March 11, 2016, the US Department of Homeland Security released its final rule enhancing the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program for F-1 international students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The new STEM-OPT extension is a 24-month period of temporary training that directly relates to the student’s program of study in an…
THE US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued warning on the use of tanning beds at home and salons. Tanning increases the risk for melanoma, a deadly type of skin cancer, by up to 59 percent! More than 2.5 million teens, mostly girls, use tanning booths each year in the United States. Just like…
US reaffirms alliance with incoming PH president US President Barack Obama on Tuesday, May 17, personally called presumptive Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to congratulate him on his victory. “President Obama noted that the successful election and record voter participation were emblematic of the Philippines’ vibrant democracy,” the White House said in a statement released Tuesday,…
THE exclusion from gross income of discharged qualified principal residence indebtedness is extended for two years through December 31, 2016. It applies to discharge occurring before January 1, 2017 or subject to an arrangement entered into and evidenced in writing before January 1, 2017 code section 108(a)(1)(E) amended by the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes…
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,…
A NEW comprehensive report examining Los Angeles County’s park needs revealed that nearly half of residents live more than half a mile away from a park. The report comes as funding for County parks nears expiration in 2019. “I don’t believe this type of needs assessment has ever been attempted anywhere in the country before,”…
They call it hormonal mischief. It is the new perspective coming into view in every woman’s major life passage. A midlife agitation, literal and poignant — first, the gushing, like the reddening of a dying tree as it blazes out in the funeral autumn with a flowing canopy, then reduced to basics, forced to lie…
THE neuromuscular program at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) became recognized as a Certified Duchenne Care Center, making it one of only 10 in the United States and the only one in Southern California. On Friday, May 13, in a small ceremony on the hospital grounds, 11-year-old Ian Saur Sunga, a Filipino-American with a…
CHANGE. A six-letter word that’s easily spelled than done. This concept is basically embedded in every platform and in any campaign speech we heard from presidential candidates. But if there’s one thing we have in common with these aspiring presidents, it is our desire for change. In fact, it is most likely the only thing…
“THE Spirit is present only when charity, joy, peace, patience, endurance, kindness, generosity, faith, mildness, and chastity are deeply in our lives—and permeate the air around us.” –Fr. Ron Rolheiser, OMI This Sunday is Pentecost Sunday—the great feast when we commemorate that time when the Holy Spirit came down upon the apostles and assembled as…
“ It is with great honor that such a program is finally being implemented so that Filipino WWII Veterans can finally be together with their loved ones once again.” ON May 9, 2016, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) formally announced that it will be begin the much deserved “Filipino World War II Veterans Parole”…
Q: I WORK as a “team member” in the service industry in Los Angeles. Before we clock-in for our shift, we are required to attend a “huddle,” or a meeting where we discuss events during prior shifts, our assignments, etc. These “huddles” last 15 to 20 minutes every day. Should we be paid for these…
AN action under the DVPA (Domestic Violence Protection Act) seeking a restraining order often is necessary to protect parties from abuse or domestic violence perpetrated by the other spouse or significant other. At times, it is effective in preventing harm to one of the parties. At the same time, this process is sometimes…
YES, you can be. Terrible, but it happens. In a landmark case, the Supreme Court held that a conviction for willfully filing a false tax return is a deportable offense under our immigration laws. It reached the same conclusion with respect to a conviction for aiding and abetting in the preparation of a false return….
PERHAPS you’ve considered filing bankruptcy but in the back of your mind, you have one or two questions that you’ve always been afraid to ask. In counseling thousands of people over the years in my practice as a bankruptcy attorney, I have found that most people have the same fears and concerns about bankruptcy. From…
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…
I am struck by women who are no longer young. At the same time, startled by the beauty of their old faces. Lived, grooved and puckered as they may be, their hair grizzled; they make their glossy contemporaries at any senior center seem parodies of women. They show that they have lived and have…
IN commemoration of Mother’s Day, labor organizations, domestic workers and their advocates demonstrated Monday, May 9, at Los Angeles City Hall’s South Steps to support a bill that would make overtime pay permanent for domestic workers. Members of the California Domestic Workers Coalition, which seeks to advance dignity and respect for domestic workers and their…
The phenomenal invasion of British boy bands during the mid-60s had inevitably clouded and unsuspectingly misted up the predominant supremacy of the then most idolized musical entertainers, balladeers, crooners, and vocal groups relentlessly topping the US Billboard chart. It was a perceptible sign of an impulsive musical revolution that altered the landscape of music and…
There is no question that diet plays a very important role in health and the development of cardiovascular diseases, metabolic illnesses, and some forms of cancer, especially of the gastrointestinal tract. One particular diet—one high in saturated fat and cholesterol, and low in fiber—consisting mainly of red meats (pork, beef, non-skim dairy products, etc) and…
BEGINNING on June 8, 2016, certain family members of Filipino World War II veterans may apply to come to the US (through “humanitarian parole”) and wait in the US until the priority date on their family based petition becomes current. This program, announced on May 9, 2016, is called the Filipino World War II Veterans…
FOREIGN professionals wishing to immigrate to the US (as permanent residents) may do so under 3 general classifications: • 1st Preference (EB1) – extraordinary ability foreign professionals; outstanding researchers and professors; and multinational executives and managers known as “priority workers” • 2nd Preference (EB2) – foreign professionals with advanced degrees and professionals of exceptional ability…
IN celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM), utilities company Southern California Edison (SCE) on Friday, May 6, awarded business and community partners for their contributions to energy efficiency and the greater Asian American community. “Having this celebration helps us recognize the importance of this community’s contributions to Southern California, to the nation,” said…
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…
THERE are situations in both Divorce and Child Support cases where the Summons and Petition resulted to a default against one party for failing to respond on time. In certain situations, the defaulted party failed to respond on time because he or she did not even know that he or she was served with a…
All of Los Angeles County’s sufferings come through the doors of the emergency room. Accidents, shootings, heart attacks, beatings, rapes, suicides—just as gory and heart-stopping when I was covering the police beat for People’s Tonight of The Journal Group in the Philippines, before I defected to Hollywood. Stories that would make you clasp your chest…
A FILIPINO federal security officer suspected of fatally shooting three and wounding three others was arrested Friday, May 6, the Associated Press reported. Eulalio Tordil, 62, is linked to shooting victims at mall and supermarket on Friday, less than 24 hours after he allegedly shot his estranged wife, Gladys Tordil, 44, in the parking lot…
