SOME friends invited me to go out with them for breakfast after a Simbang Mass. I accepted their invitation without hesitation so that I could spend time with them before Christmas. I haven’t seen them or talked to them for a long time. They have been my friends since my early years as a priest….
Video goes viral A VIDEO of a priest in the Philippines riding a hoverboard and singing at a Christmas Eve Mass went viral, with millions of shares on Facebook and Buzzfeed, and over 200,000 views on YouTube. The unnamed priest was reportedly suspended by the Diocese of San Pablo, Laguna on Tuesday, Dec. 29 for…
BY the end of April of next year, a driver’s license may no longer be sufficient identification for domestic travel in certain states. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is expected this week to decide whether to begin enforcing a decade-old law mandating that states abide by federal standards when issuing driver’s licenses. Since the agency…
A SYRIAN-based leader linked to the Paris attacks that killed 130 people was among 10 Islamic State leaders killed in the past month in targeted air strikes by a US-led coalition. US Army Colonel Steve Warren, a spokesman for the US-led military campaign against the Islamic State (also known as ISIL and ISIS), said Charaffe…
UNITED States First Lady Michelle Robinson Obama heads the list January birthday celebrants. She will be celebrating her 52nd birthday on Sunday, January 17, with her husband, President Barack Obama and daughters Malia and Natasha. Mrs. Obama is a lawyer and writer prior to becoming First Lady. Raised at the South Side of Chicago, she…
ARE you pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant? Do you know someone who is pregnant? While you’re picking out tiny clothes and reading childcare books, remember the importance of your oral health! Pregnancy brings so many physical changes. You crave different things. Your hair feels different. In fact, just about everything feels different. And, your mouth is…
THERE has been much undeserved criticism and condemnation hurled at USCIS and consular officers over issuing a fiancée (K – 1) visa to the female terrorist in the San Bernardino shootings. I would like to offer my defense of those officers, as I do not believe the USCIS and consular officers should be faulted. However,…
THE power to give, take away, and deport. The United States does not welcome you with open arms. It allows non-citizens entry into the United States, under certain conditions. When these conditions are broken, you can expect nothing but the full force of the United States government through the Department of Homeland Security to bear…
In 2010, I was told by confidential sources that we should be very careful about who we elect as president. I thought that as a journalist I would open a topic for discussion. That did not happen but as my sources consoled me—just think when all is said and done you can say “I told…
Hello kababayans. It’s that time again when we resolve to change some of our habits for good. We’re naturally feeling optimistic with the arrival of a new year, a cosmic reset – a time for new beginnings. So we sign up for gym memberships, fill our pantry and fridge with sugar-free, fat-free, flavor-free foods, and…
Since English is the most widely spoken language in the world, it should come as no surprise that there are so many ways to learn about grammar. There are many online tutorials and resources to help you learn, so your English is on point. But how can you accurately check your English grammar? With so…
The battle starts in our minds I HOPE you all had the merriest Christmas with your loved ones. This happy holiday season also heralds the ending of the year, and the beginning of a new chapter in our lives. No matter how crazy and busy our schedules haven been in the last days of the…
BEFORE we charge 2015 to history, we are again reminded to look back and reflect on all the important events that have happened in the past 12 months. This year we celebrated triumphs and suffered defeats. Which way does the Philippines go? Will Filipinos learn from mistakes and lead themselves to better lives, or will…
Across America, given the fractured state of our collective hearts, attempts to embrace the New Year will be paddled with reverence, or a little whoop, a bit of holler and Auld Lang Syne; in splashes of patriotism, the traditional sounds of churning and noisemakers and fireworks that will mingle with the ringing of bells in…
WITH the New Year just days away, several new, important traffic-related laws will go into effect on Jan. 1, designed to address issues of roadway safety and directly impact California drivers, motorists and bicyclists. The new laws, which cover everything from hit-and-run, to DUI laws, electric bicycles and hover-boards, were signed by Gov. Jerry Brown…
ON New Year’s Day, California employees will get a raise. Effective Jan. 1, 2016, the state minimum wage will go up one dollar to $10 an hour. As signed by California Governor Jerry Brown, and voted on in July by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, workers will also have job-protected leave to address…
WITH the new year less than a week away, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is reminding the public that beginning Jan. 1, old Philippine peso bills will no longer be accepted when paying for goods and services. The old banknotes, however, can still be exchanged in banks and BSP offices through the end of…
ON Friday, the 25th, the entire Christian world will celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ 2015 years ago. Christmas is the birthday of Jesus who is the manifestation of God’s love and mercy for mankind. He is consubstantial with the Father, God from God, begotten, not made and through Him all things were made, and…
SARAH Wellens works as a sales representative for Daiichi Sankyo, a Japan-based pharmaceutical company with about 3,000 employees in the United States. The company hired Ms. Wellens, an experienced sales rep, in September 2009. Upon her hiring, she was assigned to a lower level position and lower compensation tier than similar male employees. Over time,…
1. CAPITAL assets include almost everything you own and use for personal purposes, pleasure or investment. 2. The following are capital assets: your home, household furnishings and stocks held in a personal account. 3. The following are not capital assets: • Inventory held mainly for sale to customers in a trade or business. • Accounts…
I KNOW that our economy in the last several years has caused a lot of financial problems for a lot of people. A lot of families are struggling financially every month and are living paycheck to paycheck, thus making it impossible for them to save for their future. They feel like no matter how hard…
Cancer, according to the American Cancer Society, is the second most common cause of death in the US and 8.2 million cancer-related deaths in 2012 based from the World Health Organization estimated data. The astounding figures alone are more than enough to set one’s mode in to a panic attack but such is overwhelmingly the…
Delinquent taxpayers who owe $50,000 or more to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may have their passports revoked under a new law Congress passed and President Barack Obama signed on Dec. 4. The new legislation is part of a law known as the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act. The section is called “Revocation or Denial…
THERE’S a link between gum disease and breast cancer for middle-aged and older women, according to a new study. The report, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, found that women with gum disease are 14 percent more likely to develop breast cancer. Researchers from the University of Buffalo in New York analyzed…
THE Philippines on Tuesday, Dec. 22, approved the sale of the world’s first dengue vaccine, marking the first Asian country to do so. In clinical tests conducted on 40,000 people from 15 countries, the vaccine, Dengvaxia, was found to immunize 66 percent of people aged 9 and older, and reduce the risk of hospitalization by…
AUTHORITIES are stepping up security measures at this year’s Rose Parade and Rose Bowl, following the recent terrorist shooting attack in San Bernardino which rattled the Southern California region. “Recent mass shootings in San Bernardino and Paris will have law enforcement on heightened alert during the events that annually draw hundreds of thousands of spectators into…
MISS INFORMATION MIX-UP FOLLOWING the heated controversy surrounding this year’s Miss Universe pageant competition, many people are taking sides as to who they really support for the prestigious crown. After show host Steve Harvey mistakenly announced on live television that Miss Colombia Ariadna Gutierrez Arévalo was the winner, only to backtrack moments later to proclaim Miss…
In every wish, there will be glimpses of kind virtues, to encourage and console. It could be something modest or even mundane, something fantastic or utterly practical. It can take you to the other side of the world or a walk around the corner. Wishing makes it easier to believe in happiness than pain —…
MANY Filipinos worldwide posted pictures of Simbang Gabi Masses on social media such as Facebook. Their photos showed happiness, harmony and contentment. There were even pictures of parishioners attending Simbang Gabi Masses in flooded churches. That was quite remarkable, wasn’t it? It showed people’s religiosity and devotion to these nine days of Simbang Gabi Masses…
LAST week, I wrote about determined Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach to win in the Miss Universe pageant. In fact, having joined Binibining Pilipinas three times to be able to get where she is now is a sign that this beauty queen is headstrong and cannot be discouraged easily. All the hard work, determination and patience have…
