To the man whose actions and ideas help politicize me today, Thank You.

A University has been forced to apologise to one of its graduate students after it accidentally threw away a bag of rare lizard excrement which had taken him five years to collect.

Daniel Bennett had been in the Philippines studying the rare butaan lizard, a close relative of the komodo dragon, as part of his PhD at Leeds University. Over half a decade he bagged and sent home 35kg of the reptile’s faeces, which he thought was being held safely by his department.

However, he was horrified to learn that the precious collection of dung had been thrown out by the university during a routine lab clearout.

Oh, that rare Filipino lizard poop. That must have been a shitty day. Badum-ching!

Via The Independent

February 18, 2009—A rare quail from the Philippines was photographed for the first time before being sold as food at a poultry market, experts say.

Found only on the island of Luzon, Worcester’s buttonquail was known solely through drawings based on dated museum specimens collected several decades ago.

Scientists had suspected the species—listed as “data deficient” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s 2008 Red List—was extinct.

(See related bird photo: “Rare ‘Smiling’ Bird Photographed in Colombia.”)

A TV crew documented the live bird in the market (above) before it was sold in January, according to the Agence France-Press news agency.

Michael Lu, president of the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines, told AFP the bird’s demise should inspire a “local consciousness” about the region’s threatened wildlife.

“What if this was the last of its species?” Lu said.

However, the buttonquail is from a “notoriously cryptic and unobtrusive family of birds,” according to the nonprofit Birdlife International, so the species may survive undetected in other regions.

Via National Geographic

Speaking of Filipinas in the White House and YouTube, the internationally known YouTube singing star, Charice Pempengco, has been chosen to sing at president-elect Barack Obama’s inagauration. First his chef, the look-a-like and now, a performer? These are all honorable mentions for Filipinos – but we are still holding you accountable for real change, Mr. Obama. More details are still to be announced.

Via Exemplify

We all know you’ve got a glass ceiling for us Filipinos, mainstream media. But you can’t stop us – we got YouTube locked down. Just check out Filipino composer Diwa De Leon perform a medley of the Legend of Zelda theme music:

Iono wassup with those hats, though.

The White House, that is. After many a debate about who will be cooking for president-elect Barack Obama and his family, a decision has finally, and wisely, been made. If you remember Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s (GMA) last visit to the United States, Bush had to be a stupid guy and make it a point to tell her his chef is a reminder of Filipiner talent. It is this Filipina, Cristeta Comerford, who will remain the Executive Chef of the White House for Obama’s term and possibly beyond. Cristeta Comerford is the first woman and Filipina to hold this position as Executive Chef.

Represent!

Via Huffington Post

Disgruntled Korean War vet Walt Kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, a young Hmong teenager, who tried to steal Kowalski’s prized possession: his 1972 Gran Torino.

A Clint Eastwood film, Gran Torino, is on it’s way and I couldn’t be any more put off than I already am. I don’t know what’s up with these whitey-gon-save-people-of-color movies. Hollywood can keep putting them out and I will never, ever buy that bullshit. Especially this one.

There’s nothing special about this film and it should not be glorified for putting Hmongs on the big screen. Because I can almost guarantee that the portrayal of Hmongs will be plain out silly and demeaning. It’s just one of the many films of it’s kind; Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, High School High, Knights of the South Bronx, and much, much more that escapes me right now. It’s not that I can’t appreciate a good story of an underpriveleged youth of color with little to no resources making good of him/herself, it’s two things about these movies that piss me off.

• It’s always a seamless, determined white person with a heart of gold that so desperately wants to help. (Manifest destiny, anyone?)
• The portrayal of aforementioned youth of color is pathetic. They’re usually shown as these helpless, remedial dummies that have no direction or desire for themselves.

I’ll just reiterate how badly I hate films like this. If anyone wants to waste their money to go see this shit, let me know how it goes. (If I haven’t already told you how it will be.)

Okay, we all know that an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoe at Bush. But besides just poking fun at the issue, we should recognize this act as something more than just another Bush-hater. Professor Jose Maria Sison, chairman of the International Coordinating Committee, International League of Peoples’ Struggle released this press statement about what had happened:

The International League of Peoples’ Struggle joins the Iraqi and Arab peoples and the peoples of the entire world in hailing the journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi of Cairo-based Al-Bahgdadia as a hero for hurling his shoes at the US imperialist chieftain and No. 1war criminal and terrorist George W. Bush.

When he hurled his shoes at Bush, Al-Zeidi clearly expressed the pain and suffering as well as the resistance of the Iraqi people when he shouted at Bush, “This is a farewell kiss, you dog. This is from the widows, orphans and those you have killed in Iraq.

Hurling the shoes at Bush expresses the contempt and condemnation of the people for the horrendous crimes of aggression and occupation committed by Bush against Iraq and the Iraqi people. It is a meaningful and courageous act, a powerful symbolic act of protest witnessed by the people of the world through television and other mass media.

The crimes of Bush include the killing and wounding of millions of Iraqi people, the destruction of the social and economic infrastructure of Iraq, US seizure and control of Iraqi oil and other resources and the perpetuation of US military bases and forces through the US security pact with the Iraqi puppet regime.

The International League of Peoples’ Struggle condemns the physical and psychological torture that the hero of the Arab people, Muntadhar al-Zeidi, is being subjected to and demands his immediate release from the clutches of his US and Iraqi puppet interrogators and torturers.

We should always look at everything in the news critically, with this as a prime example. And once we have done that, then we can poke fun at it again. And again.

Last Friday not only was my weekly reminder that I have two full days until I have to go back to my hell hole job, it was also my lola/grandma’s born day. To be exact, she was actually born on Saturday the 13th in Japan but during her immigration they listed the 12th somehow.

Anyways, being born in 1921 that would make her 87. The average person would assume shes this frail old woman with a hump in her back right? Wrong. Although she stopped dying her hair, and has a shorter attention span than I do believe me shes a G. With only a small Thyroid issue, the doctors say shes healthier than most 20 year olds. Shit, who at 87 still drives, does line dancing and bicycle kick situps in the morning.

Which brings me to this…

Grandma’s Top Life Lessons (in no particular order)

1. All that liq, dro, yos, swine and whatever else you put in your body will eventually catch up. Insert obvious cliche here “everything in moderation”, but seriously. Its no surprise that some of the longest livin peoples, live a green leaf lifestyle and exercise everyday. Although their exercise is dialectical to their living, ours is more like to floss for the Social Network site pictures.

I like to think of it like Jenga. Sure you can make a few mistakes but keep doin it and that shit gon’ fall down. Make smart decisions, and you got a solid foundation. I still get asked quiet often how I can give up *insert Filipino/Japanese/Whatever meat related food*. What it comes down to though is keepin your body clean, either through moderation or deadin’ them habits.

2. Recession. My grandma grew up in the Great Depression, and acts to this day like she still is. Prioritize what you need and minimize what you want. Put some of that paper away for a rainy day. Invest smartly in CDs, bonds, shit somthing. Whatever you can that will double up, and add to your pocket. Think of ya (future) kids. I think the rest is self explanatory.

3. Appreciate what you got. I don’t mean to just cover the tab sometimes for the homies, but to let em know you love em. Also enjoy the time you got with people. Sometimes cats get on your nerves, but show a little heart. Like Marx said, in order to change someone you gotta change their environment. Unless they are acting all shady then fuck em. JK!