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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Snafu, Katyn and Brokeback By Antonio C. Abaya Written March 12, 2006 For the Standard Today, March 14 issue SNAFU MEETS FUBAR. Rome Farol emailed from the US that �I've just finished reading your column and could only commiserate with our countrymen who are the unwilling pawns in the never-ending struggle among the many different forces of evil trying to topple one another to get their fingers on the pie of wealth and power! �There's a new acronym ---heavier in meaning than SNAFU--- used by the US military, that's more apropos to the current Philippine situation, and it's called FUBAR: F**ked Up Beyond All Recognition. �And considering that it's a recurrence of a similar situation that happened more than 20 years ago, perhaps the more appropriate term to use would be another US military acronym: BOHICA (Bend Over, Here It Comes Again); since the Filipino people are being screwed again! Dang!.....� F**ked Up Beyond All Recognition. Hahahaha! I like that. It also best describes George W�s self-imposed mission to bring �freedom and democracy� to Iraq. Thank you.***** KATYN MASSACRE. Ross Tipon of Baguio City emailed to correct me that the Katyn Massacre by the Soviet Army of officers in the Polish Army took place in 1939, (not 1945 as I had written), and that the number of victims reached 20,000, (not 5,000 as I had written). In August 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed a non-aggression treaty in which the two totalitarian states promised not to attack each other, to guarantee which Nazi Germany allowed the Soviet Union to occupy the eastern half of Poland, plus Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, in exchange for Soviet neutrality towards Germany.. It was during this occupation that the Polish officers were killed in Katyn Forest, almost certainly on orders of Stalin, to prevent the emergence of an anti-Soviet, non-communist regime and army in postwar Poland. In September 1939, Nazi Germany invaded the western half of Poland, which marked the beginning of the Second World War. In June 1941, Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. ***** BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. I am glad to know that most of the judges in the recent Oscar Awards have apparently the same opinion as mine, that this was a boring, over-rated film that was deliberately preceded by organized buzz by hyperactive press agents, but was really a dud�. and decided not to give it the Best Film Award. This year�s crop of Oscar-nominated films was a generally underwhelming one. I thought Steven Spielberg�s Munich was not compelling enough, despite the abundant factual material that it was based on. And I thought that George Clooney�s Good Night and Good Luck lacked dramatic tension. Stephen Gaghan�s Syriana tried to achieve the immediacy of a TV newscast by jumping from one seemingly unrelated scene to another � some scenes last only a few seconds � but I thought the technique was overdone to the point of annoyance. I do not like hillbilly music, so I have not bothered with Walk the Line. And I have yet to watch Crash. In my opinion, Philip Seymour Hoffman, who had previously played mostly supporting roles (in The Talented Mr. Ripley and Happiness, for example), deserved the Best Actor Award for his role in Bennett Miller�s Capote, but I have yet to see the film in its entirety as the two globalized DVDs that I bought of it turned out to be both defective. If you were to ask me, the best Oscar film this season was Rob Marshall�s Memoirs of a Geisha. I thought it captured the flavor of the geisha sub-culture despite the fact that its screenplay, its music score, its cinematography, its direction, some of its principal acting, and the book on which it was based�.were all by non-Japanese. Quite an achievement on that score alone. But if you�re looking for a really good film, I recommend Dias de Santiago, made in 2004 by the Peruvian director, Josue Mendez, about whom I had previously seen or read nothing. Filmed sometimes in cinema verite style, and shifting from color to black-and-white to accentuate the mood of a scene, Dias is a character study of the Peruvian Everyman, indeed of Everyman everywhere. After serving six years in the Peruvian Navy SEALs, Santiago returns to civilian life in the seamier parts of Lima, and is bewildered and overwhelmed by his new environment. His stint in the military had conditioned him to live a predictable, organized Spartan existence, and to believe that �without order, nothing exists.� But in his new life, he is confronted everyday with physical and moral chaos, senseless frivolity, casual promiscuity and gratuitous self-indulgence. How he copes, or fails to cope, is the soul of this poignant film.***** Reactions to [email protected]. Other articles in www.tapatt.org OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |
| Reactions to �Snafu-Katyn-Brokeback� I disagree with your assessment of 'Brokeback Mountain'. Far from being overrated and boring, it is magically atmospheric and subtle � just like Annie Proulx's short story in every way. And please do not forget that, far from being over-hyped, this film came out quietly in a handful of theatres in the East and West Coasts of the USA. Since then, the critical praise has been overwhelming, and audiences all over the USA and around the world love it. You are certainly entitled to your opinion. But it does not explain away why the film continues to be loved the world over -- even after the Oscar snub. Thomas Pe, [email protected] March 14, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Subject: Anti-Americanism Just a note on country music � people do not refer to it as such pero� we like country music: - Shania Twain, Kenny Rogers, Don MC Lean (The American Pie type of songs) and remember when Achy Breaky Heart was the rage? Anyway, I never thought these singers or songs were �country� until I went to graduate school. Filipinos are more �country� than you think. Frederick Alfredo, [email protected] March 14, 2006 MY REPLY. OK, Fine. But why are your comments under the subject of �Anti-Americanism�? Are you saying that those who don�t like hillbilly music are anti-American? wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Sir , Iparating ninyo naman pag-may interview kasi sa T.V. diyan sa mg lagiing nasa kalsada na mahililg magsisigaw, sa mga party list na congressman na. people VOTE THEM give them a chance na MAUPO SILA SA CONGRESSO PARA NAMAN HINDI SILA SIGAW NG SIGAW SA KALSADA LAHAT NG GUSTO NILANG IPATUPAD O HINABGING E SA SA CONGRESSO NA NILA IDAAAN AT HINDI SA KALSADA. USELESS LANG PALA NA PAUPUIN SA CONGRESSO, IMBES NA MAGTRAHO E NASA KALSADA. AT SA MEDIA PAKISABI NAMAN NA BILANGIN NILA ANG NAGRARALLY AT YONG MGA MGA TAONG BAYAN NA AYAW NA YONG PINAGGAWA NILA SA KALSADA NA KASAMA ANG MGA REPORTER NATIN. MAJORITY NG MGA PILIPINO LALO NA YONG NASA PROBINSYA NAIINIS NA SA KANILA. AT DOON SA MGA TAGA U.P. STUDENT PINAG-AARAL NATING MGA TAX-PAYER HINDI PARA MANGGULO SA KALSA. aT YONG CURRICULUM ALISIN NA POLITICAL SCIENCE, TINGIN KO UNIVERSITY NA YAN NG MGA COMUNISTA. DAPAT SIR MAG CONCENTRATE SILA SA SCIENCE AS IN SCIENCE BAKA MAKATULONG PA ITO SA BANSA. PAKI PANGARALAN NINYO SIR YANG MGA YAN LAHAT YAN, MAHIYA NAMAN SILA. BAKIT WALANG NAIINTERVIEW KASI SA MAJORITY NA NAIINIS NA SA PINAGGAGAWA NILA. ILAGAY NINYO KAYA SA LAHAT NG DIARYO AT T.V. THANK YOU, SIR Alexander Carranceja, [email protected] Kuwait, March 14, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Re: Your comments on "Memoirs of a Geisha": I consider the book as one of two reference books for students of Japanese culture, the other being "Shogun". "Memoirs" expands the geisha concept and practice in Shogun, and brings it up to the Modern Era. I perceived the movie as an Americanized version, modified for American tastes. However, it managed to retain the historical and cultural ambiance of the book. Victor Lim, [email protected] Faculty Member, Asian Institute of Management March 16, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony: Forget for the moment about my passion for the sport of boxing, but I understand from almost everyone who has seen the film that Cinderella Man could have won the Oscar but for the leading star's misdemeanor in a New York Hotel which had nothing to do with the film. I have yet to see the movie Cinderella Man, but I have read the book. Jimmy Pimentel, [email protected] Sydney, Australia, March 16, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Sir, Thank you for making me a part of your directory. I must say I enjoy reading your work and you help me arrive at certain conclusions of the daily dose of ironies and sometimes rather atrocious developments around. I got particularly interested in your column titled, Snafu Katyn Brokeback because of your commentary on movies we have these days... Truly, the movies seem to be the better option to focus on at present because it presents more logic than what is happening in real life, most especially, in real Philippine life! How about an award/citation for the personalities in the Philippine setting by yearend? I am sure you and some of your friends can come up with the most striking categories to suit these characters... sabi nga, abangan! In my little coner, amidst all these in Philippine politics and whatever, I'd rather stick to what I recently picked up from one of the emails sent to my way which goes: Work like you don't need the money... love like you've never been hurt... dance like nobody's watching... sing like nobody's listening... live like it's heaven on earth! It's my choice to love and live life, bahala sila if they want to waste it! Melanie Lapore, [email protected] March 16, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww . Reactions to �Freedom of Depress� (March 14, 2006) Dear Sir: The following article about the Philippines appeared recently in various U.S. newspapers: http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0315/p07s02-woap.html If you have any reactions to it, I'm sure your readers who love to know what they are. Also your non-Philippines readers would be curious to know if the article accurately portrays conditions in the Philippines. The following quote came to mind when I read what you wrote: "No wonder our [masses] are, or grow up to become, stupid and ignorant, and vote for stupid and ignorant candidates during elections": - As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying it. Words are to confuse, so that at election time people will solemnly vote against their own interests. (Gore Vidal) N. Abu, [email protected] March 20, 2006 MY REPLY. I read the article but found nothing particularly original or insightful or interesting about it. wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.. Let�s have all the freedoms all our patriotic Filipinos aspire for and be in suspended animation till kingdom come. It�s all a big joke and continues to be funnier and funnier. Let the good times roll! Julie Hernandez, [email protected] March 20, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww I agree with Mr. Antonio Abaya in his column dated March 16, 2006, entitled 'Freedom of Depress', that our local news are no longer educating us in presenting their news to us. They are focusing more on the bad news rather than giving us the good ones. Imagine how can you sell the creativities and the discoveries of Filipinos or even our tourist spots if they are not showing it to the general public. But we cannot compare the Philippines to other countries, because that is what we are enjoying right now, 'democracy' after the Marcos Era. Under this democracy, TV stations (except for Channels 4, 9, and 13) are still owned by private companies. Because of these, only agencies like KBP can give guidelines on TV networks. I am not in favor of PP#1017, a de facto Martial Law, I am not a lawyer, but as far I am concerned, you can only put the state in the emergency status in case of invasion, calamities, and rebellions. When GMA declared the State of Emergency, she mentioned in her speech that the 'enemies of the states' are already captured. So what can be her reason for declaring it? And how can you say that the state is in danger if actually GMA is the one in trouble. During that time she can just alert the police and the military to protect the palace against the anti-GMA protesters. I just hope the government will stop threatening the media. Remember we are in a democratic country and remember in our Bill of Rights, we have 'Freedom of the Press'. Andrew Jimenez, [email protected] March 21, 2006 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (The following was emailed to us, author unknown) Lovers of the English language By Anonymous Can you read these right the first time? 1) The bandage was wound around the wound. 2) The farm was used to produce produce. 3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse. 4) We must polish the Polish furniture. 5) He could lead if he would get the lead out. 6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert. 7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present. 8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum. 9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes. 10) I did not object to the object. 11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid. 12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row. 13) They were too close to the door to close it. 14) The buck does funny things when the does are present. 15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line. 16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow. 17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail. 18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear. 19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests. 20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend? Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig. And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices? Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it? If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell? How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on. English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible. You lovers of the English language might enjoy this. There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and that is "UP." It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP? At a meeting, why does a topic come UP? Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report ? We call UPour friends. And we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver, we warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the house and some guys fix UP the old car.At other times the little word has real special meaning.People stir UP trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses. To be dressed is one thing but to be dressed UP is special . And this UP is confusing: A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP .We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night. We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP! To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary. In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4th of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions. If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP,you may wind UP with a hundred or more. When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP. When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP .. When it rains, it wets the earth and often messes things UP . When it doesn't rain for awhile, things dry UP . One could go on and on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now my time is UP, so........... Time to shut UP .....! wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (The following was emailed to us, author unknown) George W. Bush is a Saint By Anonymous. An American Methodist bishop was asked by Bush intermediaries that when Bush attends services next Sunday, the bishop should praise Bush and call him a saint--in exchange for a $300,000 donation to the Church. The bishop thought for a while and agreed, since he needed the money. Come Sunday and Bush at church, the bishop proceeded with his homily: "The honorable President of the United States, who today is in our midst, used to be a lazy student. He lied about his military service; lost every business his father allowed him to run; drunk booze and imbibed drugs till his brains got fried; executed a record number of convicts as Texas governor; got elected to the presidency by the Supreme Court in 2000; lied about invading Iraq; preached hypocrisy and more lies about spreading democracy in the Middle East; hypocritically put on a pilot's uniform and pretended to fly an F-14 with a real pilot; destroyed the country of Iraq for nothing; killed, maimed and injured 20,000 American troops in Iraq for nothing; killed tens of thousands of Iraqis for nothing. �Most of all, the president loves to be on vacation one-third of the year and shows no signs of intellectual activity in his head. �Right now, the president continues to assure us that everything is under control and we are headed for victory. Yes, my pious brethren. COMPARED TO VICE-PRESIDENT DICK CHENEY----PRESIDENT BUSH IS A SAINT." wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (The following was emailed to us, author unknown) Australia Gets into the Map By Anonymous AUSTRALIA GETS DRUNK, WAKES UP IN NORTH ATLANTIC Tired of Being Isolated and Ignored, Continent Isn't Bloody Moving Sydney, 800 miles S. of Nova Scotia (SatireWire.com) � After what witnesses described as an all night blinder during which it kept droning on about how it was always being bloody ignored by the whole bloody world and would bloody well stand to do something about it, Australia this morning woke up to find itself in the middle of the North Atlantic. "Good Lord, that was a booze up," said a bleary-eyed Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, speaking from his residence at Kirribilli House, approximately 600 nautical miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. According to Australians and residents of several countries destroyed or lewdly insulted during the continent's nearly 7,000-mile saltwater stagger, the binge began just after noon yesterday at a pub in Brisbane, where several patrons were discussing Australia Day and the nation's general lack of respect from abroad. "It started off same as always; coupla fossils saying how our Banjo Patterson was a better poet than Walt Whitman, how Con the Fruiterer is funnier than Seinfeld, only they're Aussies so no one knows about 'em," recalled witness Kevin Porter. "Then this bloke Martin pipes up and says Australia's main problem is that it's stuck in Australia, and everybody says 'Too right!'" "Well, it made sense at the time," Porter added. By 2 a.m., powered by national pride and alcohol, the 3-million-square-mile land mass was barging eastward through the Coral Sea and crossing into the central Pacific, leaving a trail of beer cans and Chinese take-away in its wake. When dawn broke over the Northern Hemisphere, the continent suddenly found itself, not only upside down, but smack in the middle of the Atlantic, and according to most of its 19 million inhabitants, that's the way it's going to stay. "We sent troops to Afghanistan. You never hear about it. We have huge government scandals. You never hear about it. It's all 'America did this,' and 'Europe says that,'" exclaimed Perth resident Paul Watson. "Well, we're right in the thick of things now, so let's just see if you can you ignore us." Officials on both sides of the Atlantic conceded that would be difficult. "They broke Florida," said U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher. "And most of Latin America is missing." Meanwhile, victims of what's already been dubbed the "Australian Crawl" are still shaking off the event. "Australia bumped into us at about midnight local time," said Hawaii governor Ben Cayetano. "They were very friendly � they always seem friendly � but they refused to go around unless we answered their questions. But the questions were impossible. 'Who is Ian Thorpe? Do you have any Tim Tams? What day is Australia Day?'" "Fortunately, somebody here had an Unimportant World Dates calendar and we aced the last one," Cayetano added. Panama, however, was not so lucky. "Australia came through here screaming curses at us to let them through," said Ernesto Carnal, who guards the locks at the entrance to the Panama Canal. "We said they would not fit, so they demanded to speak with a manager. When I go to find Mr. Caballos, they sneak the whole continent through." When Caballos shouted to the fleeing country that it had not paid, Australia "accidentally" backed up and took out every nation in the region, as well as the northern third of Venezuela. They then made up a cheery song about it. By late morning today, however, not everyone in Australia was quite so blithe. "We've still got part of Jamaica stuck to Queensland," said Australian army commander Lt. Gen. Peter Cosgrove. "I think we might have declared war on it. I don't bloody remember. Maybe it's time to go home." Cosgrove, however, is not in the majority, and at press time, U.S., African, and European leaders were still desperately trying to negotiate for Australia's withdrawal. But the independent-minded Aussies were not making it easy. In a two-hour meeting at midday, Australian representatives listed their demands: immediate inclusion in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a permanent CNN presence in all 6 Australian states, a worldwide ban on hiring Paul Hogan, a primetime U.S. television contract for Australian Rules Football, and a 4,500-mile-long bridge between Sydney and Los Angeles. U.S. negotiators immediately walked out, calling the Australian Rules Football request "absurd." Copyright (c) 2002, SatireWire OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |