I WAS at Fully Booked Rockwell this weekend and treated my niece and grand-daughter to one illustrated book each on Philippine folklore which they chose themselves from the shelves.  I was very sorry that I wasn’t able to preview what they chose because I found out that one of them — “Ang Alamat ng Ampalaya” published by GMA 7 — had such an unoriginal and superficial plot full of stereotyped images of women. but worse, it ended with the main character, because of her supposed vanity, being turned into an ugly ampalaya by a fairy.

GMA 7 should be ashamed to have published such material, specially now that: 1) media all over the world have been exhorted to upgrade their depiction of women, 2) the ampalaya is listed as among the top 10 medicinal plants from the philippines, and 3) parents, teachers and the media industry are doing their part to promote the consumption of vegetables among children.

If the comic book is based on a TV story, that, too, should be pulled out — or better yet GMA 7 should produce another episode and publish another version correcting this degradation of the ampalaya, and of women. Just because most young kids are not yet very articulate doesn’t mean media should assume they are dumb. Also, some of the stories being promoted as “folk tales” may have been based on the prejudices that may best be left to oblivion.

Fully Booked might want to be more careful in its selection of local children’s books. They’re the only ones most people can afford to buy in their shop.

– Anna Leah Sarabia

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THE ITEM on the front page of the Inquirer anent TV viewers exasperated by being bombarded by too many commercials is timely.

I was beginning to think I was the only one whose intelligence was being insulted. Not just too many commercials but product names permanently affixed on the screen while the action is live. And to rub salt on the wound, they would flash another product name in the middle of the screen while the action is live, obscuring our view of the fighters!

And while I’m at it, how about the TV coverage of basketball games, particularly the just-concluded NCAA and UAAP games? So the PBA board is instituting some new rules to make the games more exciting — and to increase gate attendance, right? I suggest they first look into the manner by which the TV station covering the games operates. Perhaps the members of the board would want to watch the games on TV instead of at the venue. They will suffer the same fate TV viewers go through. Because of too many commercials in between time-outs that go beyond the time limit, we miss a lot of live action. And to pan the cameras on movie actors and politicians when the ball is live is exasperating. If I want to see actors and politicians, I’d watch a movie or go to Congress (I would not waste my time, though). But I watch the games to watch the games, period.

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IT hasn’t been a week since the “Desperate Housewives” hoopla over a joke that was taken out of context. And yet, here we are again with the Cory Aquino reference in “The Daily Show.” Before some journalist write an editorial about pitying Jon Stewart or the producers of The Daily Show, I feel compelled to once again shed some light on the CONTEXT of the satire.

Before I start, please view the entire satirical skit if you haven’t done so already. It’s quite too common for people to get so riled up without even seeing the “offending” video.

Now that you have seen it, let me shed some light to the context of this segment. The main character on the segment, “Samantha Bee,” embodies the typical ignorant American who, at this point in time, still thinks America is not ready for a woman president. It is actually her character and what she represents that the piece is actually poking fun of, not Corazon Aquino. Now, let’s see the supporting arguments for this.

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MR. Noynoy Aquino, I am sorry to hear you were offended about the jokes of “The Daily Show” where your mother was part of it.

You must remember we live in a democratic country — the United States of America where people are free to express their opinion. Masyado kang pikon.

Actually your mom deserves that kind of joke because all the mess of our country started from the Aquino administration, bulok sa lahat na administration… You’re lucky you were elected last election but if you run for president… no way… over my dead body. Shame on you!

– Lorimer Tubo, San Jose, California (via e-mail)

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WHILE by culture it is shocking to see on national television lawmakers and supposedly highly respected professionals shouting and/or physically hitting each other in the middle of a heated debate, it has somewhat become acceptable to the general populace considering that it happened several times in other countries.

But what becomes shameful is to realize that lawmakers are the ones breaking their own laws, with what happened in that so-called executive session in the Senate regarding Neri in connection with the NBN/ZTE scandal.

Whoever is telling the truth, it is unfathomable to even think that some senators went down from their level by becoming so unethical and breaking a simple rule. Whatever the reason is, Sen. [Joker] Arroyo was right to discipline those who broke the rule and whether he is just being defensive or being upright, [the Senate] really has to find out who allowed these people to further break the rule.

How can an ordinary civilian be expected to follow the law when those people [who are] highly regarded are the ones breaking it for whatever reason? Likewise, how can ordinary Juan feel secure with his privacy and to some extent his security when even in the Senate chamber, there is no security?

What a shame further to note that these senators are now fighting literally instead of being one in knowing the truth regarding the scandal. They are professionals, highly educated, voted by most because of their credibility which includes their moral and ethical backgrounds, but what are they now and what will they be tomorrow? Anything new or any more surprises?

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COMELEC Chair Benjamin Abalos’ resignation was not an act of delicadeza but of desperation still for the administration’s self-preservation.

Efforts of some administration allies in the Senate fell short of quelling public interest in what has been dubbed as the NBN telenovela, hence the need for Abalos to sacrifice his leech-like holding on to power. Still, Abalos’ resignation fails to squash growing calls for transparency and accountability for those involved in the NBN scam. He is just a maggot in an exposed can of worms.

Moreover, Abalos, not CHED Chair Romulo Neri as earlier perceived, is now surfacing as the “real deal in the NBN deal.” Secretary Neri only directed the blame to Abalos while he continues to invoke Executive privilege to save his post and his principal. Abalos, on the other hand, has nothing else to lose if he decides to tell all.

– Sarah Katrina Maramag, Vice Chairperson, Anakbayan, Quezon City, Philippines (via e-mail)

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IF everything about the Philippine economy is as rosy as President GMA paints it (and as gushed over by American businessmen), why do polls consistently reveal that one out of every three Filipinos wants to leave the Philippines?

And why does a recent study reveal that 30 percent of Filipino families “go hungry”?

– Perla Manapol, Newbury Park, California (via e-mail)

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TODAY’S headline story (”Neri was ready to talk about ZTE“) is proof that the PDI is downgrading itself from a broadsheet newspaper to a typical tabloid.

It did not [give] any news but gossip, hypotheses, hearsay, and political intrigues. PDI should be aware that its audience is not that dumb. We have too much of Tiktik, Taliba, and Abante. Please start relaying real news. Leave the tsismis to the Buzz and Startalk.

– Russel De Vera, Baltimore, Maryland (via e-mail)

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“WOW! Again?”

The only thing I could muster to say after reading about the NBN fiasco. Seems like anything that Malacañang offers on the table, the opposition would grab it and throw it back together with a bomb attached to it… Don’t get me wrong, I am not pro-administration nor am I pro-opposition. I am just amused at reading about these things.

“I prefer a country run like hell by Filipinos to a country run like heaven by Americans. Because, however bad a Filipino government might be, we can always change it.” — Manuel L. Quezon

A famous quote by MLQ… and we took it literally. It had been more than 100 years and the direction we’re going is backwards. “Amusing,” I said? Well, I just got used to it. It was very annoying at first, then you get frustrated, then you just get used to seeing these things.

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WE need broadband in the Philippines. Cyber-Ed is simply abstract for a country who can’t even fulfill its constitutional duty to educate all citizens.

But my question is? Why pay a hefty fee to the Chinese when our own engineers and scientists can solve the problem of connectivity. All they need is a budget. Why spend billions for the Chinese when a hundred million would suffice? A billion spent on research and development within the Philippines itself will give us a return several thousand times that.

Even if the research fails in the end we could always get something out of it, precious knowledge that we will never get by outsourcing projects. In short, I don’t trust politicians and high-powered wheelers and dealers. In my opinion, they make a potentially strong country weak and a potentially rich country poor.

But I trust our engineers and scientists. This is where I want my taxes to go, to Filipino researchers and innovators, not to cheating politicians and rich boys with comb overs. This is my money, our money, not their money.

– Brian Brotarlo, Iloilo City, Philippines (via e-mail)

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