Ethnic voters encouraged to vote in Nov. elections

LOS ANGELES – In California, the voting landscape has changed. As populations and demographics continue to shift, particularly in big cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco, the factors influencing voter participation have changed with the upcoming November elections. Organizations like the New America Media are studying the reasons for these changes and taking efforts…

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Glendale celebrates Filipino History Month

GLENDALE, Calif. — The City of Glendale  joins the Filipino community in celebrating the month of October as the annual Filipino American History Month. On Tuesday, Oct. 14, the Glendale City Council passed a resolution proclaiming that Glendale “recognizes of the increasing number of Filipinos who live and work in the City, and therefore join…

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Rules to follow for a smile-healthy Halloween

HERE it comes! The season of ghosts, ghouls, witches, and, of course… candy! If you’re savvy about it, there’s no reason for your Halloween fun to come at the expense of your dental health. Rule 1: A little candy all at once is probably better than candy all day long When it comes to your…

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The November 2014 Priority Dates

The November 2014 Visa Bulletin provides more great news for Filipinos, as the priority dates in the various family and employment categories continue to move forward. Each month, the Visa Office of the State Department publishes, in the Visa Bulletin, the priority dates for that particular month, for the various family and employment based categories….

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Worse than Ebola

The Ebola crisis in the West African countries of Guinea, where it started in December 2013 and spread in March 2014 to Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Nigeria, the deadliest ever in history, has been so well-covered in various media that it has eclipsed the notoriety of graver killer diseases in our midst today. True, Ebola…

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Fil-am Creative Celebrates Fil-ams In Horror During Halo Halo-ween Online Event

(Los Angeles, CA October 13, 2014) The Fil-Am directed horror film, “Voodoo Possession” featuring genre legend Danny Trejo hosts online salute to Filipinos in horror. Fil-Am Creative, the largest Filipino American organization for entertainment and media, is hosting a 2-week salute to Filipinos in the horror film genre at Filamcreative.org starting Oct. 17 and leading up to Halloween. The…

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Filipino taxi driver named best in America

LAS VEGAS—An honest Las Vegas taxicab driver who returned $300,000 in cash found in the back of his cab was named as this year’s Best Taxicab Driver in America. Gerardo Gamboa, who has been working with Checker Cab Company for 25 years, received national attention for his simple act of integrity. In December 2013, Gamboa…

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Why should you book through a travel agent?

Traveling is a pleasurable thing to do; but planning a travel? That’s a different story. Browsing the World Wide Web to find the best yet cheapest flight and accommodation fares will yield to cluttered tabs and five long hours; and still, this does not guarantee a wonderful travel. Gruesome, indeed. Good thing, there are travel…

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Exasperated

IN any business, feedback is an essential tool in determining success. A good businessman would know that for his business to really succeed, he must know what his customer base thinks about his products and services. Since time immemorial, Pres. Benigno Aquino III has made “tuwid na daan” (straight path) as his leadership’s mantra. In…

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Alay ng TFC: ASAP LIVE sa LA and a Balitang America Award

BLESSINGS continue to pour in for The Filipino Channel’s 20th year celebration with the opportunity to give back to all our kapamilyas in North America. Just last Tuesday, TFC’s daily newscast Balitang America’s coverage of Typhoon Yolanda’s 24-hour telethon won the 2014 Cablefax Best Shows or Series News, beating Jorge Ramos Fusion Network’s “America”, E! Entertainment’s…

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On deeply appreciating God’s blessings

“I KNOW how to live in humble circumstance; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need.” (Philippians 4:12-14) Such were the words of St. Paul in…

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Qui vive

EVEN the United States, home of one of the best health cares system in the world, is not immune to the deadly Ebola virus, despite prior efforts to block the disease from entering the country. Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian national who came to America to attend his son’s graduation, experienced symptoms of Ebola five…

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Taken for granted

MY San Francisco Bay Area colleague and dear friend, Rodel Rodis, has just written an opinion piece in the Philippine Daily Inquirer entitled, “A sometimes clueless president.”  It bewails what, in effect, was the cold shoulder that Noynoy Aquino gave to Filipino-Americans on his recent trip to the US. The piece was the last thing…

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Readjustment of status

MOST people who follow immigration law are familiar with adjustment of status, which is the process that allows an alien who was inspected and admitted or paroled into the US to apply for lawful permanent residence (LPR) while in the US. Adjustment applications are often filed under INA 245(a) which requires that an alien be…

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I owe the IRS – what can I do?

HERE 10 tips if you owe but cannot immediately pay the IRS: • Pay What you can: Pay promptly to stop additional penalties and interest from accruing.  If you are unable to pay, consider getting a loan to pay the bill in full rather than make installment payments to the IRS. • Additional Time to…

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Can employees challenge employment documents they signed?

WE previously discussed the question of whether an employee’s signature to an independent contractor (IC) agreement binds the employee to the terms of that agreement. We noted that the law determines the worker’s status, not the parties’ agreement.  Even if there was an IC agreement, workers who are treated as employees will not be bound…

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Debt problems: Are you lost in a ‘money fog’?

MAYBE you’ve experienced this before: You’re driving down the road one cold, chilly day and before you know it, you find yourself surrounded by a thick white wall of dense fog. How did you react to the situation?  If you’re like most people, perhaps you felt momentarily lost and confused or perhaps even panicked, not…

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Options to escape the H-1B ‘cap trap!’

THE debate over the United States economy and dearth of high-tech workers has spotlighted the H-1B professional working visa in the press.  Nonetheless, Congress has been slow to respond in the face of economic problems throughout the World and the FY 2014 H-1B quota is sure to be reached within just a couple of weeks…

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Enhancing the culture and spirit of Pangasinan

LOS ANGELES – Pangasinan (meaning “where salt is made”) owes its name to the rich salt beds lining the coastal towns of the region, the prime source of livelihood for its locals. However, it is the roots, the diverse cultural heritage, and the spirit of the people that makes the province—notably the third biggest in…

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