On Miriam Quiambao and ignorant, violent cretins

I support Miriam's freedom to express her beliefs, no matter how bigoted I think they are. If she thinks being a "true" Christian is all about following biblical morality, so be it. If she thinks all the absurd and barbaric customs in the Bible are God's absolute "Truth", so be it. She can have these beliefs for herself if she wants to. But, they are hers; other people don't have to share it, and we are not required to respect them, especially when they don't make any sense, or when they incite violence or espouse inequality.

Miriam's sugar-coated homophobia is only a speck of a larger problem: the rampant, barbaric homophia in our country. Look to any article where Miriam Quiambao's homophobic comments are discussed and you will find hordes of ignorant, violent cretins who call out for LGBT genocide.

I'm sure there were some people who wanted her dead for her repetitive, hypocritical tweets. But, only from the anti-LGBT wall have I seen self-identified "human beings" calling for the death of their fellowmen just because they are not straight. And they call themselves Christians? Jesus must be very proud.

In response to: theguywithablog.blogspot.com
Image from: filipinofreethinkers.org

Jesus doesn't need your repetitive rhetoric.

I just saw this in my News Feed today and I thought I'd tear it up for Christ's sake (you can take that both ways).

 

Greatest man in history...

Speak for yourself. Nobody ever gets to declare the greatest man in history.

...named Jesus

Hardly. More like, Yeshua bin Maryam.

...had no servants, yet they called him Master.

Master can also mean 'adept' (which he was) not just 'lord of servants' (which he also was if you consider all his yes-man disciples).

Had no degree, yet they called him Teacher.

You're speaking in contemporary terms. No, he did not receive a degree from university; nobody else did. All you needed to do was to study the scriptures or the law, which all rabbis did (including Jesus).

Had no medicines, yet they called him Healer.

So could a witch-doctor.

He had no army, yet kings feared Him.

What were their names? From where? There is a story about one king who feared his coming; he was paranoid.

He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.

If you consider the popes and the bishops and the vast papal armies part of Jesus, then yes, he did conquer most of the known world in a span of two thousand years -- quite forcibly and with a lot of blood.

He committed no crime, yet they crucified Him.

Actually, he did: He was executed for blasphemy and sedition, grave crimes at that time for both Jews and Romans.

He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.

Okay, look: Historically, we don't even know for sure if he was ever born. Aside from the gospels we have -- which, by the way, were strategically picked from 20 or so other gospels of the time, written at least a hundred years after the supposed time of Jesus of Galilee -- we have nothing else but ambiguous archaeological clues.

Re-post if you believe.

When has believing ever trumped actual doing? Even if I did believe, it doesn't really prove anything, and it won't help the cause of christian love and hope, in the same way that posting a photograph of your favourite cartoon character helps stop child abuse. If you really love Jesus (I know I do), go out there and share that love with actual people. Make it practical and relevant instead of passing on some meme on Facebook about how lucky you are to be a "Christian".

I wish to use the genuine love this Hallmark holiday has generated to wish all mothers the best of fortunes!

May Maia, the Good Mother, the Nurturer, mother of Swift-footed Hermes, bless all mothers on this day and for ever; my mother, grandmothers, aunts, grandaunts, sisters, cousins, and friends no less.

Happy Mothers Day!

If it was Kate's idea to plant trees in Westminster, I love her already!

According to this article, the idea was definitely hers: Kate loves the outdoors and, according to the Daily Mail, she ordered more than four tons of foliage to create an English country garden setting inside Westminster Abbey, including pyramid-shaped ornamental Hornbeams to frame the choir and a "living avenue" of 20-foot-tall, 15-year-old English Field Maples through which guests walked to their seats. The cost? About 50,000 pounds, or $83,335.

I hope the trees get replanted, though!

I am serious when I say I am a monarchist.

And it has little to do with the recent wedding of the Duke of Cambrige, Prince of Wales-Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg and Kate of wherever-the-fuck-is-Middleton (I say this in jest; don't kill me).

I admit, though, that my allegiance is hardly rational and is almost purely sentimental (so don't argue politics with me just yet). I am an advocate of secularism and I love my democracy; but my concern and affection for Their Majesties go back several generations in my family and are very difficult to dismiss. I choose to continue keeping that love.

All that said, I wish the royal couple well. If the United Kingdom must remain a constitutional monarchy -- and I pray it does for it to remain the United Kingdom -- it is only natual that we wish the newly-wed couple the best of all things: Hail and be well, Ye Duke and Duchess of Cambrigde! We wish you continuance and prosperity. God save the line of Kings!

PS: The Majesties mentioned above refer to the King and Queen of Spain, but may also extend to their kinsmen (which just about includes every royal house in Europe), thus also the Queen of the UK (sovereign of my adopted culture) and her newly-wed grandson.

I get really angry when people laugh at others with 'disabilities'. Challenge assumptions!

via youtube.com

Farewell, AJ Perez: I do not know you, but I wish you well as you go.

Antonello Joseph Sarte Perez, more popularly known as AJ Perez, dies at 18.

I had no idea who he was until he died. I do not watch local entertainment very much. But still, I mourn him: Someone so young snatched from our world by an untimely death. That I knew him very little does not matter to me, at all. A death is a death and we all must mourn our dead, for we are all born of the same earth and must return to the same stars.

I have always had an undiscriminating empathy for those who pass away and those they leave behind, regardless of whether I knew/know them at all. With the recent passing of my father, that sensitivity has only grown deeper, especially for those who meet death at such a young age and by accident. That sort of shock, pain, and loss is undescribable.

Antonello Joseph, brother in the earth, I wish your spirit strength to fly to the land beyond the setting sun, beyond the curtains of this world, beyond pain and strife and sorrow. May your memory and legacy live on in the hearts of those who love you, and your guidance shine on those you love.

I pray for the same peace for all who have died today. In truth, may the Ancestors receive you all in love.

Kristy Fermin has been on my 'Fuck You Very Much' list since god-knows-when.

Abuse of Power by Coalition Against Trafficking In Women – Asia Pacific (CATW-AP) on Monday, April 11, 2011 at 6:38pm

Dear Editor,

Women friends asked me, why is Cristy Fermin even allowed to say the following on air in defending Willie Revillame?

1. "…dalawang lalaking personalidad lang ang parang pinapayagan ng publiko na maging ‘matulis’. Si Rico J. Puno lang atsaka si Willie. Pag sila ang nagdeliver para bang malaking karangalan mo pag mabastos ka."

2. "(Aiza) Seguerra should not talk about morality as she lives an immoral life."

The first justifies sexual harassment when done by certain individuals. Is there a worse way of humiliating women than by dignifying harassers? The second maligns lesbians as immoral. Both are appallingly, terribly sexist statements which condone abuse of women.

Media has long played a critical role in objectifying women, including children (as shown by the now controversial episode of Willie Revillame’s program), and this has led to the normalization of abuse against us. Men have thought it acceptable to harass or buy women (and children) as long as one is able to ‘deliver it well’ ala-Rico J. or Willie R. Those who own media outfits as well as advertisers capitalize on the sexual objectification of women and children. Homophobia and stigmatization of lesbians is also a form of gender-based violence.

We have had enough. It is high time that we talk about the role of media in stereotyping, sexualizing and justifying abuses and violence against women and children. It is heartening that artists are speaking up against these forms of abuse.

Corporate media, stop profiting at our expense!

Civil society, let us join hands in shaping a more responsible and gender-sensitive mass media.

–
Jean Enriquez
Executive Director, Coalition Against Trafficking in Women – Asia
Pacific (CATW-AP)
Telefax: +632-4342149

via sssip.wordpress.com

This sliced my heart. Then I burst into laughter.

via smilepanic.com

1. Because I love Keanu Reeves, his acting prowess aside. Actually, I think he might have been my very first boy-crush!
2. Because this is so mean that it's hilarious. I hope Keanu does cheer up on Cheer Up Keanu Day because I'm going to start hurting people if he doesn't.

Hypatia Day

"All formal dogmatic religions are fallacious and must never be accepted by self-respecting persons as final."

"Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better than not to think at all."

"Life is an unfoldment, and the further we travel the more truth we can comprehend. To understand the things that are at our door is the best preparation for understanding those that lie beyond."

These are words attributed to Hypatia of Alexandria, considered the first notable woman in mathematics, who also taught philosophy and astronomy. Today marks her 1,596th (?) death anniversary. Although she was widely esteemed for her wisdom and ethical virtue in life, she got caught up in political turmoil and was murdered by a mob of zealots. Her murderers were nonetheless honoured, and their leader made into a saint. Today, we strip them off of this false honour, and deliver it to the sixty-year old pagan they murdered.

Honour her today (and for the rest of your life, if you can). Uphold her virtues and the things she loved. Read on Neoplatonism, astronomy, or mathematics. Study the Hellenistic civilisation of Alexandria. Learn Greek. Do rituals in her honour: Fast for an entire day as a form of ritual reconciliation, as she was murdered during the season of Lent, or recite a poem or prayer in the fashion of the ancient Greeks.

However you do it, the important thing is that she is remembered, and that the events that led to her death (and the deterioration of Alexandria) never be allowed to rule again.

Who was Hypatia?
Some of us know her through their religion (like me), some of us through their science, and some of us through Rachel Weisz. As a Hellene and a freethinker, I feel that it is my obligation to write about her on this day. Below, I have listed several important details about her life, most of which I owe to the Mos Maiorum Foundation's well-researched article on Hypatia, written by my Heathen friend Hrafnkell Haraldsson.

• The exact date of her death is unknown, as only the month is historically attested. Traditionally, the occasion has been placed at the mid point of the Ides of March (the 15th), during the season of Lent.
• Hypatia was the daughter of Theon, who was head of the Museum or Library of Alexandria during the reign of Theodosius I, possibly its last.
• She was around sixty years old when she was murdered.
• Hypatia was a Neoplatonist philosopher. She most likely assumed the divinity of the entire cosmos.
• Hypatia was a Pagan, though her Paganism was likely of a philosophical or intellectual variety than the popular form celebrated through public sacrifices. We know little of her private rites, however.
• She was the author of several commentaries, including one on Diophantus, an astronomical canon, and a Commentary on Apollonius' Conics.
• Hypatia was not a fan of religious intolerance and coercion: Pupils of all sorts of inclinations were drawn to her, not only Pagans, but also many Christians, two of which would later become bishops. She did not seem to have "converted" or even tried to convert any of her Christian pupils to Paganism, even the philosophical variety.
• Hypatia was not a Pagan activist: She is not known to have joined any of the public riots between Pagans and Christians, as her own circle included both.
• The burning of the Royal Library of Alexandria may or may not have occurred during her lifetime. There are four possible time periods in which the Library may have been burnt down:

1. Julius Caesar's Fire in The Alexandrian War, in 48 BCE (an unfortunate accident).
2. The attack of Emperor Aurelian in 270 CE to suppress revolts.
3. The outlawing of Paganism by Emperor Theodosius I or at the decree of Patriarch Theophilus in 391 CE.
4. The Muslim conquest in 642 CE.

• There is also the possibility that the Great Library was not entirely destroyed at any of these time periods, but slowly deteriorated over the passing of these events. We do, however, have evidence of several Pagan temples, which may have doubled as schools, libraries, or research institutes, being converted or destroyed at that time.
• Hypatia was a brave woman: There is basis for the rumour that she stood "like a lion" between prefect and bishop; that she shared with Orestes the conviction that the authority of the bishops should not extend to areas meant for the imperial and municipal administration.
• Hypatia was riding through the city in her chariot, on her way home, when the Christian mob, led by the parabalanai, turned their frenzy upon her. The ringleader, acting under Patriarch Cyril's direction, was apparently a lector named Peter. Hypatia was hacked to death in the gloom of the so-called Caesar-church (Caesareum) and her body burnt. This church was the old centre of the imperial cult in Alexandria and was recently converted (as had so many temples) into a church. It was also the see of Cyril himself - his headquarters, if you will.
• Some reports suggest she was flayed with ostraca (pot shards, not actual oyster shells) and set ablaze whilst still alive, though other accounts suggest those actions happened after her death.
• Cyril justified the deed by proclaiming it part of the unrelenting war on Paganism. The path was now clear to turn on both Jews and Pagans and make Alexandria a Christian city (a specific kind of Christian, to be exact).
• Two scholars have different opinions on who is to blame for her murder: J.M. Rist blames the rabble, claiming Cyril had no part to play in their conclusions about Hypatia’s influence over Orestes, and excuses Cyril of all charges save one, that of covering up the crime. But Dzielska holds Cyril responsible, even if he did not commit the murder himself (and she does not think he planned it either), though he created the atmosphere that led to her death as "the chief instigator of the campaign of defamation against Hypatia." After all, it was his city, and his watch, and the parabalanai were under his direct command, as was Peter the Lector. Another scholar, Pierre Chuvin, has a harsher verdict. He makes clear that "His hands cannot have been entirely clean, since the murder was committed in his own patriarchal church."
• The murder of Hypatia, a sixty-year-old woman, was not only an act of hatred but also a criminal offense warranting a swift and severe response from those charged with upholding the law. That response never came; those who committed the crime were unpunished. In fact, as we already know, Patriarch Cyril was canonised a saint.

A gruesome tragedy, no doubt. But well remembered. In the words of Newell Fisher, the atheist Druid who spearheaded Hypatia Day on Facebook: [This] is a sobering reminder to always be prepared to look again at history before assuming that things could not have gone another way.

Khaire Hypatía.

Am I Being Mean?

Confirmed. May sapak sa ulo si Cesar Montano. Matinong tao ba ang ganiyan uminom? (In English: Cesar Montano is a nutter. Is that how a sane man drinks his water?)


Lol. Lmao. Rotflmao.

Silly Representations Of High Society

In a local soap opera, two ladies from a supposedly "affluent" family pick a fight with a handsome idiot (who apparently had picked a less commercially attractive woman over the wealthy lady's daughter).

Overacting 80's teen actress says: "I can't believe you're choosing yung pangit na 'yan over my anak."

Translation: "I can't believe you're choosing that ugly girl over my daughter!" and "Hindi ako makapaniwala na pinili mo yung pangit na iyan at hindi ang anak ko!" in unadulterated English and Tagalog respectively.

Her daughter (played by half-Japanese, big-breasted actress) adds: "You slat!" (She probably meant 'slut'.)



Is this how they portray "high society" on TV? They sound more like social climbers. With all that money, you would expect some form of higher education.

Yet again, we are given proof of good money put to waste on the production of garbage, the propagation of garbage, and overpayment of garbage.

PS: Who do you think the actresses in question are? Clues: Romnick Sarmienta and Motorolla.

Barrack Obama not the first African American president?

I just do not get it when people call Barrack Obama the first "black" or African American president. He is not just "black", he also happens to be "white". Whilst his father is a native-born Luo from Kenya, his mother happens to be of English descent. That makes him "mulatto" and not "negro" to use Hispanic terms.

Apparently, for many Americans, having at least one black ancestor makes you just black. Makes you wonder if they have really gone past the old racist beliefs. Even the concept of separate, unmovable races is in fact outdated. In Africa alone there are all sorts of physiological features: Capoid, Caucasoid, Negroid, Pygmoid, Nilotic, etc. Identities based on physical features do not seem to make sense anymore.

Paalam, Kuya Kiko (4 Oct 1964 - 6 Mar 2009)

I was planning to write a long elegy. But I am at a loss for words, really.



For the Ever Young, the Master Rapper, The Man From Manila, Francis "Kiko" Magalona. Hail and well-part to you! Hanggang sa muling pagkikita, Dakilang Makabayan. Buhay ka pa rin sa aming mga puso at sa aming mga mithiin. Kung sino pa nga naman ang mestizo, siya pa ang mas nagmamahal sa bansang ito. May our kind increase!

More Bedtime Stories

Speaking of stupidly ever after, I totally forgot to include this one time she refused to correct a very obvious mistake of hers. I do not remember the exact words so the following are not verbatim.

Pretty Lady: "Oh, that's a funny movie, Meet the Zohans!"

Guest: "I think you mean You Don't Mess With The Zohan."

Pretty Lady: "That's what I said. Meet the Zohans, Don't Mess With The Zohan, it's all the same."



No big deal, we all have our stupid moments. But to refuse enlightenment when it is presented to you? Now, that is entirely a different matter. I personally believe it is a sin. If there is something worse than ignorance, it is wilful ignorance ie: the dangerous kind.

Celebrity Bedtime Stories: Lucy Torres

Once upon a time, Lucy Torres, in her show 'The Sweet Life', was presented by her guests pictures of their trip to Thailand. One of the pictures had Buddhist monks in their everyday robes.



The pretty lady said:

"Ang galing 'no! Kahit naka-sarong sila, mukha pa rin silang lalaki!" (Wow, even with sarongs on, they still look like men!)

First of all: hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha! Second, it is not called a sarong. Third, a sarong is also worn by men in many cultures including our own. Fourth: you are a public figure, educate yourself for crying out loud, goodness forbid that kids might believe you.

This is not the first time she has said something moronic. Once, she had continuously referred to replicas/models as 'toys' after being corrected twice and complained about a certain collectible that cost 70,000 PHP, saying it was worth the price of a good bag. Eh?

And she lived stupidly ever after.

Buy some brains, woman!


Disclaimer: This is not too say that the pretty lady is entirely stupid or is not a sensible person in other areas. My angst is simply a reaction to how she projects herself on TV. And by what she has shown me, her light is received as dim, dull going abysmally dull.