HAVE you ever faced a situation in your life where you needed help so badly but you were just too afraid or embarrassed to ask for it? Perhaps you felt confused and overwhelmed with the problem that you spent sleepless nights trying to figure out what to do. As a bankruptcy attorney, over the years…
On January 30, 2014, the House GOP released its “Standard for Immigration Reform,” which proposes to allow undocumented immigrants to legally live and work in the US, if they “come forward and get right with the law” and are “willing to admit their culpability.” They must also pass a “rigorous” criminal background check, pay “significant”…
“VANITY of vanities. All things are vanities!” Some thinkers say that these words from the Book of Ecclesiastes are the harshest words of the Old Testament Bible and yet the most Christian ones. It’s because they prepare us for the words of Christ in the Gospel. They expose us to the ruthlessness of life and…
(Part 2) In a previous article, I discussed various forms of immigration relief and benefits that are available now, which you (or your children) could be eligible. Here are some more of the now – existing benefits available, while waiting for CIR: Provisional Waiver (PW) Certain people are not eligible to adjust status in the…
INTERNATIONALLY known Filipina stage actress and singer Lea Salonga heads the lists of prominent personalities celebrating their birthday this February. Lea will celebrate her 42nd birthday on Saturday, February 22. Lea is most known for her role of Kim in the highly successful musical, Miss Saigon, for which she won the Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk,…
Celebrating and unwinding may mean a drink or two. As long as we enjoy the merriest season of all or any occasion (or no occasion at all in any given day) with discipline and responsibility, the joy will bless us with many happy memories we can cherish forever. In today’s world of seemingly unending stress,…
They consist of running bits of metals through the flesh of men — large, small, pointed, square, round and splintered bits that tear and kill. It is not the metal in its natural state, but the metal fashioned by the intelligence of man — a being who’s great, builds space ships and goes to the…
FILIPINOS have long desired for a more open and accountable government — a dream that may become reality soon enough. Gone are the days of secrecy and authoritarianism. President Benigno Aquino has successfully made “Tuwid na Daan” the country’s mantra, to help restore people’s faith in politics and politicians. After the revelation brought upon by…
WE have been inundated with letters and emails, inquiring about the status of the Philippines’ call for the United States to designate Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which would give more visa relief to Filipinos in the wake of super typhoon Yolanda. TPS would help about 1 million Filipinos in the United States with expiring or…
for two Filipinos – Koh and Franz, music is life; and they’ve found a brilliant way of sharing the passion for music through a bamboo. Yes, bamboo – grown and crafted by skilled Cebuano artisans. While taking a time off from their job, New York-based architect Franz Ignacio and Japanese-Filipino archaeologist Koh Onozawa were introduced…
LOS ANGELES – The Philippine Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) launched the Premium Food Philippines on Friday, January 24, at the Colombard Room inside Crowne Plaza Hotel near Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), to promote premium food products to be exported the US market. Premium Food Philippines is a program created by Philippine Department…
LOS ANGELES – According to a member of a Filipino-American delegation that met with US State Department representatives on January 23, the decision on the Philippines’ request for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) could come in as early as a few weeks, and as late as two months’ time. Pilipino Workers Center Southern California Executive Director…
Aliens who engage in certain criminal conduct are inadmissible or ineligible for a visa or admission into the US. INA 212(h) authorizes the waiver of inadmissibility arising from the following: (1) conviction or commission of a crime involving moral turpitude; (2) convictions for 2 or more offenses for which the aggregate sentence was 5 years…
Enroute to San Francisco, I saw glossy posters of people, waving happily as they hop into a plane. I realized what a lying society we inhabit. Airborne inside the belly of a metal container at 30,000 feet above sea level and traveling at 500 miles an hour can do funny things to one’s guts. San…
EMPLOYMENT-based immigration to the United States generally entails a three-step process: 1) Labor Certification (under the “PERM” program); 2) Immigrant Visa Petition approval; 3) Green Card issuance (or Consular Processing, if abroad). As many of our readers know, PERM labor certification consists of a serious of recruitment activities to test the job market. If no…
LOS ANGELES – In efforts to ensure that they get health coverage by January 1, Californians rushed in December to enroll in health plans offered at Covered California, the state’s health plan marketplace. During a press briefing, Covered California Executive Director Peter V. Lee said that more than half a million Californians signed up for…
LOS ANGELES – If Disney’s Frozen wins an Academy Award in March, Filipino-American songwriter Robert Lopez could join the elite EGOT winners’ circle. EGOT is an acronym for the four most prestigious awards in the entertainment industry: the Emmys, the Grammys, the Oscars, and the Tony awards. Currently, only 11 people have achieved this milestone. Lopez could…
Health insurance plans through Dec. 31, 2013; January enrollment pushes total beyond 625,000; Medi-Cal enrollment under the Affordable Care Act tops 1.2 Million SACRAMENTO – Covered California and the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) announced recently that 500,108 Californians enrolled for health insurance and selected plans through the end of 2013 under the…
SEN. Bong Revilla’s privilege speech on January 20 seems to have generated more hatred for the actor-senator, instead of alleviating the public’s ire over his alleged involvement in the multi-million Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF or better known as the pork barrel) scam. Inquirer.net opinion writers, Conrado De Quiros and Randy David have regarded his…
(Part 2 of 2) LAST week, I shared the first part of the speech by Atty. Arnedo Valera, Legal Counsel of the Philippine Nurses Association in America (PNAA) and Executive Director of the Migrant Heritage Commission (MHC), delivered at the FIRST GLOBAL SUMMIT OF FILIPINO NURSES 2014 in Manila on January 16. Part 1 discussed…
(Part 2 of 2) Immigrants POLL workers: Permanent legal residents who are not citizens may serve as poll workers in California elections. Employer threats: Employers are prohibited from inducing fear by threatening workers to report their immigration status if they complain about working conditions. Lawyers: Illegal residents who pass the state bar exam may be…
MAX Taylor started work for Nabors Drilling as a “floorhand” on an oil rig in June 2010. Joe Mason and Jaime Mendez were Taylor’s supervisors. Several times a day, Mason called Taylor a “queer,” “homo,” and “gay porn star.” Taylor protested to Mason that he was not a homosexual and that he had a girlfriend….
The predominant influence of Rhythm and Blues, a music genre coined and abbreviated “RnB” or “R&B”by Billboard Magazine’s Jerry Wexter in 1948, undeniably opened a great opportunity for aspiring singers and songwriters one of which is fast-rising Fil-Am singer-songwriter-producer Eric G. Garzon, more popularly known as Eric G. A multi-faceted artist with diverse talents is…
Suppose you were a Chapter 13 debtor for the last two years of a 48 months plan then your mother dies leaving you as your inheritance a fully paid house with a fair market value of $250,000. Your Chapter 13 plan pays only 10% of your credit card debts of $100,000, leaving $90,000 to be…
I often get asked whether filing for bankruptcy can be avoided in finding a solution to debt problems. I usually tell people that filing for bankruptcy should be a last resort, not a first option. Before filing for bankruptcy, you should weigh the advantages against the disadvantages. How will filing change your financial situation and…
THEY say love is lovelier for the second time around and this holds true for actress Angel Locsin and actor/TV host Luis Manzano. It can be remembered they were a couple a few years back. When they ended their relationship, Luis became involved with Kapuso actress Jennylyn Mercado while Angel dated footballer Fil-Brit Phil Younghusband. …
The body is a wonderful natural chemical factory. Whatever we eat, drink or apply to our body is absorbed and automatically transformed to energy (fuel) or to various hormones and substances that control our total bodily function, including thought processes, mental state, behavior, and cellular responses and reactions. Medications and drugs we take are likewise…
(Part 1) All of us are hopeful that, in the upcoming year, Congress will pass some form of comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) that could eventually lead to legalization and citizenship for the millions of undocumented people in the US. However, I must emphasize that, at the present time, there is no immigration reform, so there…
The Filipino American Seniors Association (FASA) held its 20th Anniversary Celebration at Los Serranos Country Club last January 19, 2014 from 6 p.m. -12 p.m. The induction of new 2014-2015 officers was administered by Honorable Peter Rogers, Mayor of Chino Hills City and keynoted by Honorable Helen Barber-Dela Vega, the Consul General of the Philippines….
Some things light up — an uneasiness that, at first, you wouldn’t know how to define. But then you eventually do, and a shudder rises up and down your spine. Sometimes, it wouldn’t be much of a line. It doesn’t have the poetry of “I-breathe-the scent-of equality,” or the elegant journalism on the verge of…
