LOS ANGELES—Retail giant Wal-mart announced on Tuesday, Oct. 7, that it would terminate health insurance coverage for about 30,000 part-time workers in the US. Wal-Mart joins a line of retailers that have cut back benefits in response to the Affordable Care Act, which requires large companies to offer coverage to employees working 30 or more…
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…
AS the weather cools, we are reminded that the summer is over. Autumn is here, which means the Holiday season is right around the corner. Many of us are already making plans for this upcoming Holiday season. We are planning our vacation days, our reunions and gatherings with our families and look forward to the…
LOS ANGELES — The Filipino American Service Group Inc. (FASGI) will be taking part in this weekend’s Choices Expo at the LA Convention Center, to promote its health and citizenship services to the Los Angeles community. Choices Expo is a day-long family-oriented event that aims to showcase the various choices and resources that LA families…
LOS ANGELES — President Barack Obama arrived on Thursday, Oct. 9 for a brief two-day visit with a packed agenda, including a Democratic fundraiser at actress Gwyneth Paltrow’s house, a Cross Campus fundraiser in Santa Monica, and the designation of a national monument. Obama arrived at LAX at around 2pm and attended an event in…
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles City Hall joined the Filipino employees of the city in celebrating the Filipino American History Month. During the city council’s regular session on Friday, Oct. 10, City Councilmembers Mitch O’Farrell (CD 13) and Joe Huizar (CD 14) led in the presentation of a resolution commemorating October as the Filipino-American…
LOS ANGELES – Kalayaan Mendoza, a Filipino-American activist who made headlines when he administered first aid to a tear gassed journalist during the August riots in Ferguson, Mo., is once again returning to action as he is set to join Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) this weekend in the front lines of protests that are expected…
Many people were ordered removed/deported “in absentia” (in their absence) because they did not appear at their removal hearing. However, if they were not properly notified of the hearing date, there could be hope to have the case reopened and have the removal/deportation order canceled. By law, an alien must provide the government with their…
Pop Princess and actress Sarah Geronimo and actor John Lloyd Cruz bagged the top acting awards at this year’s Golden Screen Awards last October 4. The annual award-giving event is organized by the Entertainment Press Society (ENPRESS) in the Philippines. The two stars were awarded for their performance in the Star Cinema movie, It Takes…
LOS ANGELES – Beer drinkers love their beer ice cold. That’s usually 8 degrees Celsius if taken from a regular refrigerator. But what if they could drink beer at the perfect coldness – minus 8 degrees below zero? Beer drinkers in the United States, including Filipinos, can now drink their favorite beer cooled to perfection…
Many patients with coronary heart disease have no chest pains or other symptoms indicative of ischemia (diminished blood flow and oxygen to the coronary arteries that supply the muscles of the heart). As such, this silent (asymptomatic) type of ischemia is treacherous and increases the risk of sudden and unexpected death and other cardiac events….
It is not just the celebrity allure. It is the public, acclaim, the attention, the limelight. It’s a cut above all. Everytime you turn around, someone’s winning an award for something. There are many reasons why the nation seems caught in an obsessive pursuit of recognition. There seems to be no field of human endeavor…
Following the Supreme Court’s recent decision to make same-sex marriage now legal in over half of the US, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a ruling in Clark County, Nevada that banned legal same-sex unions, saying it imposes “profound legal, financial, social and psychic harms” on citizens. On Tuesday, Oct. 7, the court reversed…
LOS ANGELES—Bernadette Yuson, a Filipina math teacher at Cajon High School in San Bernardino, Calif., has had a difficult month. In September, Yuson was accused of using a racial slur against a black student, while rearranging the desks in class. Yuson, who has been placed on administrative leave by the school district, claims to be…
“Speak with parrhesia and listen with humility,” said Pope Francis—using the Greek term meaning to speak candidly or boldly, without fear—to Catholic bishops at the Synod on the family this month at the Vatican. “And at the same time, you should listen with humility and accept with an open heart what your brothers say.” The…
“Bataan has fallen,” said Carlos P. Romulo. When these words resounded from the radios in 1942, the Filipinos knew that the last standing peninsula fighting against the Japanese colonizers was defeated—along with it were hopes of freedom. Flash forward to almost 72 years, the country has long risen; but, in the middle of Bataan is…
LOS ANGELES—Bernadette Yuson, a Filipina math teacher at Cajon High School in San Bernardino, Calif., has had a difficult month. In September, Yuson was accused of using a racial slur against a black student, while rearranging the desks in class. Yuson, who has been placed on administrative leave by the school district, claims to be…
LAND of the free, home of the brave and a nation of immigrants. In one of his Independence Day speeches, Pres. Barack Obama said that immigration makes America stronger. “Immigration makes us more prosperous. And immigration positions America to lead in the 21st century. No other nation in the world welcomes so many new arrivals….
Kababayans in Texas have been feeling scared and vulnerable when the news broke about 100 people in Dallas were exposed to Ebola patient Thomas Duncan. There are about 35,000 Filipinos living in Northern Texas. Fortunately, none of these 100 people who reportedly came in contact with Duncan was Filipino. This was the confirmation given by…
WITH the September Pulse Asia survey on presidential preferences already hitting the papers, the ABB (Anyone But Binay) Brigade must be giddy with joy. I was furnished a copy of an email from a member of US Pinoys for Good Governance (formerly US Pinoys for Noynoy-Mar) that was nothing short of ecstatic: “The latest survey…
Calls for more women voices in gov’t GLENDALE, Calif. — Rachel Pastor Sumagaysay Arizmendi, a Filipino-American councilwoman for the City of Sierra Madre, came out to support the candidacy of fellow Fil-Am Edith Fuentes, who has officially kicked off her campaign for a seat at the Glendale City Council on Thursday, Oct. 2. Arizmendi told…
WE will discuss two recent cases involving clients who truly need a fresh start in life with no debts owed to anyone. The first case involves an individual who has been self employed with his own business for 10 years. The problem in this case is that the IRS levied his bank account last week…
IF YOU cannot pay all your taxes owed to the IRS, you may make an offer to pay a smaller sum to fully pay all taxes, penalties, and interests. This is called Offer in Compromise (OIC). Let’s discuss the pros and cons of OIC. Advantages: If the offer is accepted, you will be left alone;…
Why a fixed monthly salary may shortchange some employees Q: I WORK as a supervisor/team lead at a manufacturing plant. I supervise a few employees but I can’t hire or fire them. I am salaried and I work a lot of overtime because of a heavy workload. I am not paid overtime because my employer…
HOW much debt is too much? Are you worried that you have accumulated more debt than you can afford to pay back? One of the smartest things you can do in managing your finances is to know at all times how much total debt you have. Look at all your bills every month and review…
Lea Salonga made entertainment and social media headlines this week after her performance with the four-man opera group Il Divo at a show on their European tour, titled A Musical Affair. Best known for her Tony Award-winning role in Miss Saigon, the Broadway actress and singer, now 43, made a return to her Disney princess roots with…
THE US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit granted a joint motion to dismiss a case in which it had previously ruled that a person who entered the US through the use of a fraudulent document had not been “admitted” to the US, such that the person was not eligible to seek adjustment of…
FILIPINOS have expressed mixed reactions over new bills enacted into law in California that will help undocumented immigrants be able to work and live in America without fear of imminent deportation, and in their plight to get legal status. California Governor Jerry Brown just signed Senate Bill 1159, which prohibits licensing boards under the state’s…
AFTER weeks of ignoring reports of recruitment by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the southern part of the country, the Philippines has heightened its security in the area. The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have deployed more troops in Zamboanga, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-tawi to monitor the alleged recruitment of…
OPERA was born in Italy at the end of the 16th century. Some say that opera is a stepchild of the arts—a sort of mongrel offspring to ballet, music, drama—and is not a pure art form. Opera is emotional, with jubilant chorus, wild wailings, dolorous themes, melodic preludes, symbolism of torments and delights, as it…
