LOS ANGELES — Filipino fashion designer Alexis Monsanto had a monumental 2014, wowing fashion-forward crowds with his Spring/Summer 2015 collection. On Nov. 18, 2014, Monsanto was the headliner of Fashion Houston Five (FH5) and kicked off the four-day event. Acclaimed designers and brands, including fellow Filipino Monique Lhuillier, Zac Posen, Herve Leger, BCBG, and Rebecca…
WITH a growing middle class, strong domestic demand, stable economic policy and GDP growth, even doing business can be more fun in the Philippines. By providing a dynamic and mature market to further its recovery, the new year is deemed promising for one of Asia’s emerging economies. Forecasts on its economic performance are also expected…
LESS than a week before Pope Francis’s visit to the Philippines, excitement and faithful anticipation have spread among Filipinos, not only in the Philippines but around the world. Grateful for the prayers the new leader of the Catholic Church has offered for Filipinos amid all the challenges and disasters our kababayans have faced especially in…
WITH less than two years left on the term of Noynoy Aquino, I think he can use some help in straightening out the liko-liko and smoothing out the baku-bako on his Tuwid na Daan. “The Straight Path” is, after all, supposed to be the showcase of the Aquino presidency, the concretization of his campaign slogan,…
TO many people, the New Year signifies a chance to have a fresh beginning. People dispose of old personal items and clean out the closet in order to make room for the new. The same line of thinking goes with getting rid of the spouse upon realizing over the holidays that your spouse is stuck…
Overcome your fears: Make your dream family business real this year! IT sounds and feels great to be born in a family that owns a business. If you are born in a family that successfully owns a family business, you would know that despite the hardships it entails, there is pride, honor and a relatively…
The trial of a man accused of a deadly shooting rampage at Los Angeles International Airport in 2013 that killed a TSA officer is tentatively scheduled for next year. Defense lawyers for defendant Paul Ciancia, the 24-year-old man who was charged with 11 federal counts in connection with the November 2013 attack, told a federal…
Nine people who visited Disneyland or Disney California Adventure Park in December have confirmed cases of measles, according to the investigating officials from the California Department of Public Health. The cases were reported in California and Utah, and likely occurred when the victims visited the theme parks between Dec. 15-20, 2014 officials said. “It is…
In a world running at digital pace, many newspapers have long been forced into the traditional news magazine model, with larger form writing and more big picture thinking. But we still have to do it every day, after all, there is only so much wisdom one can summon in a few hours. We are aware…
REPUBLICANS assumed full control of both chambers of Congress for the first time in eight years, on Tuesday, Jan. 6. Republican leaders met keenly to get President Barack Obama’s signature on some bills and to confront him with their own legislative agenda. The new Congress planned to move swiftly toward a veto showdown with the…
LOS ANGELES – For the fourth consecutive year, the city hit record-breaking tourism with 43.4 million visitors in 2014. “LA is serious about being the destination for people who are visiting the United States,” Garcetti said Tuesday, Dec. 6 during an announcement at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), where…
Project estimated to cost $68 billion AFTER years of legislative battles and planning, construction for the first segment of California’s $68 billion high-speed bullet train has begun. Gov. Jerry Brown, who was at the groundbreaking ceremony in downtown Fresno on Tuesday, Jan. 6 said high-speed rail is crucial in moving the state toward sourcing half its…
THE process of jury selection for the trial of accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev began this week under tight security. The case could be the nation’s most closely watched terror trial since the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. On April 15, 2013, Tsarnaev allegedly detonated a pair of homemade pressure-cooker bombs at the Boston…
NETFLIX users living abroad who use virtual private networks (VPNs) to watch shows blocked in their countries may no longer be able to use the tactic to do so. The online television network has always prohibited certain American shows and movies from being seen in foreign countries due to licensing agreements. However, users living abroad…
LOS ANGELES – For the fourth consecutive year, the city hit record-breaking tourism with 43.4 million visitors in 2014. “LA is serious about being the destination for people who are visiting the United States,” Garcetti said Tuesday, Dec. 6 during an announcement at the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), where…
HAPPY New Year to all! I hope that our hearts are filled with gratitude to God for all the blessings that we received from him last year. And like Mary who “kept all these things, reflecting them in her heart,” I hope that we recognize the hand of God working mysteriously in our lives to…
Bad genes and poor lifestyle choices aren’t the only reasons some people get cancer. A Johns Hopkins Medicine research study attributes most cancer cases to plain old bad luck. “All cancers are caused by a combination or bad luck, the environment and heredity, and we’ve created a model that may help quantify how much of…
THE flu has become a national epidemic, and the number of deaths it is blamed for—including 15 children this past year—continues to increase, as flu season begins its peak usually between the months of December and February. The latest figures, released Wednesday, Dec. 31 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cover the…
THE world was shocked over reports of the sudden disappearance of yet another Malaysia-based aircraft. It was the third time in 2014. AirAsia flight QZ8501 was scheduled to arrive to Singapore, but went missing early Sunday, Dec. 28 with 155 passengers and 7 crewmembers on board. Earlier statements of the company said the aircraft disappeared,…
THE NEW YEAR may be the beginning of the end of so many sleepless nights and uncertainties for many undocumented immigrants. Many of our kababayans may be eligible to benefit from President Barack Obama’s executive order on immigration. This unilateral measure may give some 5 million undocumented immigrants temporary relief from deportation, and the legal…
“ Be careful when having your residence deeded to a living trust. Upon death, if the A/B trust splits into a trust (Survivor’s Trust A) and an irrevocable trust (Bypass Trust A), there could be tax consequences. If the residence is assigned to the irrevocable trust, the exclusion is lost. That may not be a…
THE year 2014 has been an interesting time for employment law with the legislature and the courts defining additional protections to employees. The following are some of the laws that may interest our readers: New minimum wage laws took effect in July 1, 2014 Effective July 1, 2014, California’s minimum wage was raised from $8…
IF you are experiencing debt problems, you may find it difficult to talk to other people about it to the point that you are not getting the help that you need to find a solution. I understand. Debt is a very personal matter so most people don’t feel comfortable discussing it with anyone. Like most…
After Pres. Obama announced Executive Action (EA) on November 20, 2014, many people asked whether a new Republican Congress can or will attempt to block those measures, especially Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA). In my opinion, once these programs are implemented, the Republicans cannot or will not…
It is typical, if not natural, for Parties to a divorce case to start hiding assets and income from each other as soon as divorce is anticipated. Spouse’s are thinking ahead of the game on how they can outsmart the other spouse so that they end up with the larger portion of the pie. This…
THE past few months have seen news headlines in the Philippines, rerun in FilAm media across the US, screaming about the corruption and unexplained wealth of Vice-President Jejomar Binay. Binay, who has continued to enjoy a wide lead over other “presidentiables” like Mar Roxas, Grace Poe, Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Alan Peter Cayetano, has dismissed these…
The history behind the tradition BAGONG TAON for us Filipinos in America will always remind of of the deafening paputok of superlolo, machine guns, lucis, bawang, and the burning of old gulong that leaves black soot in our nostrils the next day. These are all believed to shoo away bad spirits and welcome the good…
BEFORE we bid 2014 adieu, we are reminded to look back and reflect on all the important events that have happened in the past 12 months. Will Filipinos learn from their mistakes and lead themselves to better lives and meaningful democracies, or constitute a false dawn? Despite some low points on the country’s track record,…
THE old year is put to bed. One’s business is finished. We commemorate the year past while invoking the illumination of the year’s days of authentic indulgence, simplicities, celebration and closure. As we welcome the new year, we need to put the old year’s unfinished business—mistakes, regrets, shortcomings, disappointment and bad memories as well—behind us….
The National Asian American Coalition (NAAC) has teamed up with OneWest Bank to offer financial education services to Filipinos. On Tuesday, Dec. 23, representatives from OneWest Bank visited Island Pacific locations in Panorama City and Canoga Park to gain an understanding of how the market serves the needs of the Filipino community. “Through our partnership…
