BATANGAS CITY, Philippines -- Ending weeks of speculations, actor Christopher de Leon filed his certificate of candidacy for Batangas vice governor under the Genuine Opposition (GO) party at the Comelec provincial office here Thursday evening.
***Is this a movie stilt? How stupid.
Blogged with Flock
MANILA, Philippines -- Some senatorial candidates said Friday they agree with Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago that having smarts from a college education should be a key factor in choosing a candidate, but it should not be the only criterion.
***I agree. In this stupid country, stupidity is number one to be voted by my stupid countrymen.
Blogged with Flock
NEW YORK -- A planned Holy Week exhibition of a nude, anatomically correct chocolate sculpture of Jesus Christ was canceled Friday amid a choir of complaining Catholics that included Cardinal Edward Egan.
***Would've been interesting
Blogged with Flock
AP - A congressional subcommittee accused Google on Friday of "airbrushing history" by replacing post-Hurricane Katrina satellite imagery on its popular map portal with images of the region taken before the storm's devastation.
Blogged with Flock
A bill to legalize abortion in Mexico City has stirred a vicious debate and shaken the country to its roots.
***Mexico is Catholic? Wow.
Blogged with Flock
Reuters - Two accused members of a notorious NewYork crime family turned a strip club into a training groundfor mobsters, prosecutors told the jury on Thursday in closingarguments in a Mafia extortion trial
Blogged with Flock
AP - A taxi driver told police he was stiffed on an $8,200 cross-country fare by a female passenger he shuttled from Beverly Hills, Calif. to North Carolina.
***How stupid can you be.
Blogged with Flock
AFP - Discount shoppers the world over were put on guard Friday after the retail group TJX disclosed that some 45.6 million credit and debit card numbers were stolen by hackers in 2005 and 2006.
Reuters - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Friday it was slapping anti-subsidy duties on imports of glossy paper from China, turning to a new weapon to oppose what it says are unfair Chinese trade practices.
AP - The deadly hemorrhagic form of dengue fever is increasing dramatically in Mexico, and experts predict a surge throughout Latin America fueled by climate change, migration and faltering mosquito eradication efforts.
Crowded bus terminals and lack of tickets highlighted the start of the yearly Holy Week exodus from Metro Manila to the provinces Saturday.
Long winters make cyclists do crazy things. Sometime in early January, I decided to take a shot at a world record riding a streamlined human powered vehicle -- a reclining bicycle with a carbon fiber shell. I'll be aiming for the flying 200m World Record.
As crude oil prices surge on rising political tensions with Iran, a new government report from the US Government Accounting Office (GAO) released Thursday said that the U.S. is unprepared to face an oil supply crisis and urged U.S. policymakers to develop a strategy in order to reduce potential risks related to an oil shock.
***If US is unprepared, it will go to war for oil. What will happen to the developing countries? Wait for the war to finish. Hope US wins.
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Cell phone text messaging will be blocked during this weekend's local elections in Cambodia, where the government is imposing a two-day "tranquility period" to keep voters from being inundated with campaign messages.
***Do that here, and there will be a revolution!
After causing a major stir in 2005 for his lead role in alleged election fraud, former poll commissioner Virgilio Garcillano Jr. again turned heads when he formalized his congressional bid for Bukidnon last Wednesday.
***Vote for this guy and I will maim you to death!
The Genuine Opposition (GO) voiced fears Friday that a major part of cheating in the May 14 elections will be done through overseas voting.The Genuine Opposition (GO) voiced fears Friday that a major part of cheating in the May 14 elections could be done through overseas voting.
No election will be credible in the Philippines. The election has not started, and they are already crying out "cheating". Tsk tsk.
GENEVA - Demand for human organ transplants far exceeds supply, fueling a growth in "transplant tourism" to developing nations where organs can be bought, the World Health Organization said Friday.
***The favorite spot for imports? Poor old Philippines.
SEATTLE - Hackers stepped up attacks Friday on computers running some versions of Windows, a day after Microsoft disclosed a hole related to the mouse cursor.
WASHINGTON - President Bush apologized to troops face to face on Friday for shoddy conditions they have endured at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He shook the artificial hand of a lieutenant and cradled a newborn whose daddy is nursing his remaining, severely injured leg back to health.
**He should be sorry he ever put their asses on a war that does not concern America!
Senator Jose “Jinggoy" Estrada snubbed Friday night the proclamation rally of his half-brother San Juan Mayor Joseph Victor “JV" Ejercito, GMA’s Saksi reported early Saturday morning.
*If he can do it to his own half-brother, can he not do it to a stranger?
The Democrats’ aggressive challenge to President Bush is a striking change for a party that is often on the defensive on national security issues.
Ronald W. Burkle and Eli Broad made a last-minute bid, topping an offer from Sam Zell by a dollar a share.
Growers intend to plant more than 90 million acres in an effort to meet demands for ethanol, food and feed.
AFP - From television revealing that spaghetti grows on trees to advertisements for the left-handed burger, the tradition of April Fool's Day stories in the media has a weird and wonderful history.
AP - Twenty-five years after hostilities ceased, Argentina is opening a new front in the Falklands War.
The Philippines needs to take urgent action or it might not reach a universal goal to reduce its maternity death rate by 75 percent by 2015, a UN official warned Wednesday.
Genuine Opposition candidates Loren Legarda and Allan Peter Cayetano have revealed an alleged plot to rig the election results in the Visayas and Mindanao to ensure the victory of Team Unity senatorial candidates.
***Loren, I know you are leading the survey. But these comments make me lose faith in you.
Actor Christopher de Leon on Thursday evening filed his certificate of candidacy as vice-governor of Batangas, GMA’s 24-Oras reported.
The Supreme Court on Friday appeared to be leaning toward nullifying the arrest warrant issued against Bayan Muna party-list Representative Satur Ocampo, radio station dzBB reported.
MANILA, Philippines - The number of people in Asia infected with the AIDS virus threatens to double over the next five years unless governments do more to stop the spread of HIV, officials said Friday.
Manila police on Friday filed charges of serious illegal detention, illegal possession of firearms and explosives against Armando “Jun" Ducat Jr, who held hostage 26 schoolchildren and four teachers in Manila on Wednesday.
Tort law? Endangering the lives of children
A 28-year-old Filipino sailor was injured in a ship passing through Cook Straight Friday afternoon, New Zealand's TV3 reported.
OK, so the Y-E-Data YD-300 WUSB hub isn’t fully Wi-Fi hence the WUSB tag, which stands for Ultra-Wideband Wireless Hub. In any case the four-port USB hub will “wirelessly” transfer to any dongle plugged into your PC up to 10m away. Transfer speeds are said to be similar to USB 2.0, so it only makes sense to go “wireless.” The question is: would you pay $350 for it?
Product Page [via Digital World Tokyo]
A 16-year-old girl who caught a cold during a school trip to New York was kicked off her flight home because she was coughing.
Reuters - A French Catholic nun who said her Parkinson's disease disappeared after she prayed to the late Pope John Paul declined to call her restored health a miracle on Friday.
Call the Advocatus Diaboli!
Reuters - Suicide bombers killed nearly 130 people in a crowded market in a Shi'ite district of Baghdad and a mainly Shi'ite town on Thursday, one of the bloodiest days in Iraq in months.
AP - An Ethiopian helicopter attacking insurgent positions in Somalia's capital was shot down Friday as government and allied troops battled hundreds of gunmen in the streets, witnesses said.
It would soon be time for dinner and I proposed a glass of the very hoppy Shepherd Neame Spitfire as an aperitif. My friends MsTimidityThinlady and her laddish boyfriend, Jack Behaving-Badly were horrified at such a suggestion. They had all sorts of reasons why a classic British ale was inappropriate. After that, I spent a long winter evening mulling over the extraordinary resilience of the great beer myths. Here are a dozen that drive me to drink (I'll calm my nerves with an Old Peculier if you don't mind).
Quanta, the company responsible for manufacturing the One Laptop Per Child project's XO laptop, plans to sell low-cost mobile laptops based on OLPC technology to consumers in developed countries.
It seems like there is always that guy in the bar that has a crazy story about the beer he's drinking. The worst part, sometimes its believable, so you tell someone, then they tell someone, and thats a beer myth. Here are ten of the more outrageous myths about beer and what you need to know to set that guy in the bar straight.
Definitely not a typical fountain. Very creative.
A list of 5 factors that affect employee productivity. They're blaming your boss! Employees suffer lower productivity from a bad boss, among other things like a lack of proper technology.
While suing Google for allowing pirated clips to be shared on Youtube, Viacom was quietly using YouTube on the media giant's own blogs. Now it turns out that some of Sumner Redston's properties have been even sneakier. Comedy Central Insider has been grabbing funny clips from Google's phenomenally popular video site, probably in breach of its TOS.
Those who enjoy the simpler things in life will gladly welcome the Nokia 5070. This candybar-style phone has no radical design and is chock full of basic features! You’ll get the ability to SMS and MMS, stunning audio messaging, a built-in camera with a terrible resolution, FM radio to listen to NPR on, a stereo headset, and the choice between a red or blue paint job. Doesn’t get any more exciting than this, does it?
Now if that isn’t exciting, I just don’t know what is anymore. It’ll retail for about $135 and will be available in Europe during Q2. A bit of an expensive phone for the lack of features, but it looks solid and is probably choice for someone who doesn’t enjoy thrills.
Press Release [Nokia]
The iPhone will come out on June 11. Someone over at CNET had the bright of calling Cingular (well, AT&T) to ask them when the phone would come out, and the voice on the other end of the line revealed the June 11 date. The date makes sense: Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference begins that same day and, well, we (save for Dvorak) know it’s coming out in June at some point.
So this date, if true, leaves us just 10 weeks away from the in-demand phone’s release. Look at that excitement grow.
Apple’s iPhone will be released on June 11 [CNET]
Michael Phelps set another world record in the pool Friday night. This time, he needed help from his American teammates, including Ryan Lochte, who outdid Phelps with two world records at the world championships. Overshadowed by bigger names on the U.S. men's team, Lochte emerged in his own right with a stunning victory in the 200-meter backstroke.
"I am not chasing the world record. It is chasing me."
He's already earned serious props from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a Nobel Peace Prize nomination for his tireless campaigning on behalf of Africa's poor. So it comes as no surprise Bono has earned himself a place on Her Majesty's royal roster.
The U2 frontman and noted humanitarian activist was bestowed knighthood in Dublin Thursday in a private ceremony attended by family and friends in recognition of his contributions to the music industry and his inspirational efforts to end poverty on the continent of Africa.
British Ambassador David Reddaway declared the Irish rock star, born Paul Hewson, an honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II.
"You have permission to call me anything you want--except sir, all right?" Bono quipped to reporters after receiving the honor. "Lord of lords, your demigodness, that'll do."
Silicon Valley/Colorado based photo and video sharing site Photobucket has 36 million registered users and adds another 85,000 per day. If the growth rate continues, they’ll have 60 million users by the end of the year. More users visit Photobucket each month - 17 million, than Facebook. 56% of those users are under 35, and 52% are female. 300,000 unique websites link back to Photobucket. They move a lot of data.
Fortune wrote a long article on the company yesterday - the first time mainstream press has noticed this already large startup.
Photobucket generates revenue through premium accounts, and advertising on the site. The rumor is that they are nearing break even, and aren’t spending much of the $15 million they’ve raised in venture capital ($8 million or so is left in the bank).
Basically, Photobucket is kicking butt. So the question is, how much are they worth?
$300 - $400 million or more, says Lehman Brothers, the investment bank they’ve hired to explore a sale of the company, in private talks with potential buyers.
Included in the documents distributed to buyers is a revenue breakdown of the company by year. In 2005, Photobucket revenue was $4.35 million, growing to $9.34 million in 2006 and on pace to hit over $32 million this year. Last year, advertising accounted for 68% of revenue. This year, they estimate it will grow to 79%. See full revenue breakdown in the image below.
Photobucket wouldn’t comment on this article, but our sources indicate that a number of acquirors are very interested in the company at this price. Given revenue growth and another deal in this space, this might be cheap.
It also looks like Photobucket will be sporting a new home page design soon. Screen shot is below.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
AP - As of Wednesday, March 28, 2007, at least 3,244 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. The figure includes seven military civilians. At least 2,618 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military's numbers.
This is Roja. She is my friend. She is like the most pretty and sexy intelliectual I know. She debates me at times, which makes me hate her. Not really. She's a wonderful lady. She is a very good person, and would volunteer even if you don't pay her. Well, times changed. Perhaps, she will ask for some dough. Hmmm
WASHINGTON -- US Marines may be tough, but after April 1 they won't be able to show it with big tattoos.
***Only now?
AFP - The environmental group WWF warned on Thursday that bluefin tuna stocks in the Mediterranean and east Atlantic would collapse within years unless the European Union cuts its fishing of the species by half.
"Things have never been better for ABS-CBN. I'd like to say that the official national ratings came out yesterday, and the results show that ABS-CBN is the leading station nationwide," announced Charo Santos-Concio, the network's executive vice-president for entertainment, Wednesday.
This story was found in the GMA News.tv site. GMA is number one! It is impartial and balanced. ABS focuses on personalities. GMA focuses on issues. You don't believe me? Look at Mike Enriquez. (Joke only, Mr. Mike.) GMA focuses on issues, not on personalities. It regards not the person speaking, but the truth spoken.
Hey, our TV broke down for barely a week...and ABS becomes number one? Must've been important, that one vote. Hmm.
The number of immigrants who became American citizens reached an all-time high in 2005, and the percentage of those who did so reached its highest level in a quarter-century, according to a study released Wednesday.
~~ The next thing that will happen here is US will close its doors for a while, making its immigration laws stricter. Sheesh. Should've gone with the first wave.
Jamendo, the free music community, has distributed freely and legally more than one million albums using the popular peer to peer technology BitTorrent. The music is Creative Commons Licensed and is coming from everywhere in the world. Support these artists !
AFP - Most modern mammals can be traced to a surge in biodiversity that occurred long after the dinosaurs were wiped out, according to a new study that challenges a keystone theory about life on Earth today.
AP - Fire broke out on the roof of a 45-story office building Wednesday, sending some workers fleeing into the downtown streets.
AP - It began with a routine ticket check at a Paris train station. What happened next — rioting, looting, tear gas — showed the anger that erupted into violence in France's troubled neighborhoods in 2005 still smolders beneath the surface.
The Philips Xenium NRG — apparently Zorbiantium SPRFLY was already taken — is the first “commercial” mobile phone to use Techitium’s BackuPower system which allows phone users to add a little AAA battery to a phone to get a bit more juice without charging.
The old fella at their booth wouldn’t let me take pictures, but it basically looks like a white Walkman phone with a little bump where you hide the battery — definitely nothing to write home about and there was no mention of actual availability.
The concept, however, is quite cool and would make for a great entry-level phone, especially in developing countries where power — and power jacks — might be few and far between. Will we ever see it and/or ever care? Probably not, but it’s nice to know it’s out there.
Lawmakers are uneasy with assurances they're getting that when old-style analog TV broadcasts go off the air in early 2009, consumers with non-digital televisions and traditional antennas won't be left in the dark.
A man accused of helping his wife commit suicide by allowing her to drive the family minivan off a 300-foot cliff with their children inside pleaded guilty Wednesday to child endangerment in a deal that will likely spare him any prison time.
Helping somebody commit suicide - especially if that someone is not a stranger - is murder.
technorati tags:crime
The “Hello, Garci" tune is making a comeback, this time not to destabilize President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo but to prop up the campaign of the man believed to be behind the infamous poll scandal—Virgilio Garcillano.
This is either being thick-faced, or behaving as an asshole because somebody asks you to run and make a fool of yourself, rather than her. Or just to make the issues on election fraud a little lighter.
AP - Britain's Court of Appeal rejected a suit Wednesday from two authors who claimed novelist Dan Brown stole their ideas for his blockbuster novel "The Da Vinci Code."
London-based WebJam, a community of openly editable personal pages, just raised $2 million from French early-stage VC I-Source Gestion. You can see our earlier coverage here.
WebJam lets you create as many personal pages as you like by using their ajax editor to drop specialized modules onto your page. It’s a little Ning and a little Netvibes or Pageflakes without the open module standards. Default pages start you off with modules for blogs, personal profiles, or personalized start pages. WebJam makes creating or modifying your own page easier by letting you to copy modules or even entire layouts from other WebJam pages to your own page with just one click.
Modules include personal publishing (blog), community (friend lists, bulletin boards…), media (photos, music, rss feeds…), and productivity tools (notepad, search, gmail…). Each of these modules can remain public, visible to friends and registered users, or kept private. Each of these pages also has a community attached to it, which you can invite other users to join. You can use this feature to emulate Ning to a degree by first creating a central group page with the community modules installed, and then inviting friends with profile page modules to join.
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
