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Saturday, March 20, 2010

"Bombshell" Mcgee Supports White


Michelle "Bombshell" McGee, the woman who carried on an 11-month affair with Sandra Bullock's husband Jesse James, supports 'white power,' gives the Nazi salute and does pornographic shoots in her home, it has been claimed.

James has apologized to Bullock after his extra-martial affair became public, reports The Daily Telegraph.

And now, as per court papers connected to Michelle's divorce from and custody battle with Ronald Shane Modica, the model is portrayed as being bi-polar and using drugs, reports RadarOnline.com

In a declaration filed January 27 of this year, Modica says of his ex-wife: "It seems as the years go by Avery's mother slips more and more into stripping, pills, alcohol and performances she does online, pornography that she has brought into her home.

"There have been pornographic shoots there and live web cam pornographic broadcasts from her house."

Modica also revealed that Michelle uses their son's name, Avery, when she performs as her stripper.

Modical also charges about his ex wife: "There are coffins in the living room and child block magnets on the refrigerator that spell out White Power ... her other son Elijah is Jewish and she thinks it's funny that she makes the Nazi salute." (ANI)

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Lady Gaga Fires Back


Lady Gaga has returned fire, suing her former music producer Rob Fusari, a day after he sued her production comapny.  Take that!
Fusari alleges that he dated Gaga when she was just Stefani Germanotta, that he helped establish her and wrote the songs Papparazi and Boys, Boys, Boys, seeking more than $30 million in damages.
According to Bloomberg, Gaga’s lawsuit claims that the contract, “was structured in such a way to mask its true purpose — to provide the defendants unlawful compensation for their services as unlicensed employment agents.”
Robert Meloni, Fusari’s lawyer, said, “It’s one of the most ludicrous claims I’ve seen in 30 years of legal practice and it smacks of desperation. It’s a creative filing that’s going to go absolutely nowhere and has no basis in reality.”

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Windows Phone 101


Devices running Windows Phone 7 Series software won't hit store shelves until later this year, but Microsoft recently offered a peek into the upcoming OS at its MIX10 conference for developers and Web designers. The latest version of Microsoft's mobile platform promises to deliver a radical shift, with a new focus on features like social networking, the Web, and gaming.
The new mobile platform comes not a moment too soon, as Microsoft looks to shed its image as an also-ran in the mobile space. Metrics firm comScore recently reported that, of the 42.7 million smartphone users in the United States, Windows Mobile user adoption had dropped by four points from 19.7 percent to 15.7 percent between October 2009 and January 2010. During that same period, Apple gained just 0.3 percent to maintain its 25 percent marketshare, while Google's Android grew by 4.3 percent to take 7.1 percent of the U.S. market. Research In Motion's Blackberry devices are still the most popular mobile devices in the U.S., claiming 43 percent of smartphone users.
The new mobile OS has several features designed to combat those shrinking numbers. For example, the Windows Phone 7 experience will be tightly integrated with popular Microsoft products including Xbox, the company's highly popular gaming platform; a new version of Microsoft Office for mobile devices that includes OneNote and SharePoint Workspaces; and Windows Live Web-based services like Hotmail and Windows Live.
Microsoft will also place a greater focus on hardware by forcing manufacturers to ship Windows Phone 7 devices with just three physical buttons: Home, Search and Back. Device makers will also be prevented from changing the Windows Phone 7 user interface, and all handsets must have capacitive touch and multitouch capabilities.
Microsoft's announcements during MIX10 were targeted at third-party application developers, but the company's talks revealed even more about how Windows Phone 7 users will interact with their phones. So without further ado, here's what's going on with Windows Phone 7.
Windows Mobile Apps now with Apple-y goodness
Applications for Windows Phone 7 will be able to take advantage of some of the same frameworks that iPhone Apps can, including an accelerometer for motion control, location-based services, multitouch, camera and microphone, and push notification.
Push Notification? Uh-oh...
You guessed it multitasking fans, Microsoft has taken a few ideas from the iPhone playbook with Windows Phone 7, and lack of multitasking is one of them. Just like the iPhone, Microsoft's OS will only allow third-party applications to run one at a time (with the exception of Microsoft's core Windows Phone 7 apps, called hubs). Instead, it will offer push notification, which lets a server send information to a mobile application, like an instant messenger or e-mail program, as opposed to having the app run in the background and then regularly call the server for updates.
Microsoft has left the door open for multitasking to come to Windows Phone 7 Series in the future, according to Wired, but right now the company is too concerned about extending Windows Phone 7 battery life to allow it. Likewise, there are rumors that the iPhone may get multitasking with the next iteration of the iPhone OS.
Marketplace
Windows Phone 7 owners, unsurprisingly, will get their Windows Phone applications from a brand new Windows Phone Marketplace. The new store will be the only channel to get apps onto your Windows Phone, and Microsoft, just like Apple, will have to approve all applications before they become available in the Marketplace, according to Information Week.
One interesting addition, however, is that Microsoft's Marketplace will feature a 'try before you buy' option. There aren't many details on how that will work, but Phone Arena is reporting the length of the trial will be left up to the developer.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Suns Ex-Chief Reacts on Gates, Jobs

Don't expect Jonathan Schwartz to go quietly.
The former CEO of Sun Microsystems has taken to his personal blog, provocatively titled "What I couldn't say...," to dish some industry dirt and tell his side of the story about the demise of Sun. He has already hinted at plans to write a book, and a new post Tuesday suggests a tell-all tome could indeed be in the offing.
"I feel for Google -- Steve Jobs threatened to sue me, too," Schwartz writes, apparently referring to Apple's patent lawsuit against HTC, which makes Google's Nexus One smartphone.
Schwartz says he had just unveiled Sun's Linux desktop, Project Looking Glass, in 2003, when Jobs called him to assert that Sun's graphics were "stepping all over" Apple's intellectual property. If Sun tried to commercialize the technology, Schwartz says, Jobs told him, "I'll just sue you."
As Schwartz tells it, he responded by reminding Jobs about Sun's considerable arsenal of OS-related patents. "Steve was silent," Schwartz writes.
A later meeting with Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer ended on a similar note, according to Schwartz. The Microsoft duo, then its CEO and president, had flown to Silicon Valley to meet with Sun's executive team.
"As we sat down in our Menlo Park conference room, Bill skipped the small talk and went straight to the point, 'Microsoft owns the office productivity market, and our patents read all over OpenOffice,'" Schwartz writes.
OpenOffice is the open-source productivity suite that Sun backed heavily as an alternative to Microsoft Office.
"Bill was delivering a slightly more sophisticated variant of the threat Steve had made, but he had a different solution in mind," Schwartz writes. Gates offered Sun a patent license. "That was code for 'We'll go away if you pay us a royalty for every download' -- the digital version of a protection racket."
Schwartz says he responded by asserting that Microsoft's .Net development platform was a rip-off of Java. "It was a short meeting," he says.
Microsoft declined to comment on the post and Apple didn't respond to an e-mail message.
The former Sun chief had been keeping a low profile since Oracle announced its plans to buy Sun almost a year ago. But he is apparently determined to tell his side of the story concerning Sun's demise, a collapse that some attributed to the waning Unix market and others blamed on decisions by Schwartz himself.
While Tuesday's post is more of an inside look at how corporations wield patents, it seems future posts will start to retell the story of Sun.
"I think I've said pretty much everything I could say as CEO of Sun Microsystems," Schwartz writes in the "about" section of his blog. "The more interesting stuff was what I couldn't say. And that's what this blog (and maybe a book) is going to be about."
"Make that 'definitely' a book," said 451 Group analyst China Martens

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Microsoft to Announce Windows 7 SP 1

Microsoft has announced the first service pack for Windows 7, but has yet to reveal when a beta will be available to users.
The software giant said Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1) will primarily contain "minor updates", including patches and hotfixes rather than new features.
"For Windows 7, SP1 includes only minor updates, among which are previous updates that are already delivered through Windows Update," said Microsoft community manager Brandon LeBlanc.
"SP1 for Windows 7 will, however, deliver an updated Remote Desktop client that takes advantage of RemoteFX introduced in the server-side with SP1 for Windows Server 2008 R2," he added.
Windows 7 SP1 will be released at the same time as Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Microsoft said.
As well as RemoteFX, a new remote-access platform for Windows Server 2008 R2, SP1 of the server-side OS will include a feature called Dynamic Memory, which lets IT staff adjust guest virtual machines' memory on the fly.
However, Windows 7 users may have to wait until the end of the year to get their hands on the update. Earlier this month, Malaysian website TechArp, which has regularly predicted release dates for Windows and its service packs in the past, said Microsoft had shelved plans for a 22-month development cycle for Windows 7 SP1, and would instead release it in Q4.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Judge Reject and Renegotiate 9/11 Settlement

  A federal judge on Friday rejected a legal settlement that would have given at least $575 million to people sickened by ash and dust from the World Trade Center, saying the deal shortchanged 10,000 ground zero workers whom he called heroes.
"In my judgment, this settlement is not enough," said U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who delivered his pronouncement to a stunned gallery at a federal courthouse in Manhattan.
Rising from his chair, the 76-year-old jurist said he feared police officers, firefighters and other laborers who cleared rubble after the 9/11 terror attacks were being pushed into signing a deal few of them understood.
Under the terms of the settlement, workers had been given just 90 days to say yes or no to a deal that would have assigned them payments based on a point system that Hellerstein said was complicated enough to make a Talmudic scholar's head spin.
"I will not preside over a settlement that is based on fear or ignorance," he said.
Of the proposed settlement of $575 million to $657 million, workers stood to get amounts ranging from a few thousand dollars to more than $1 million.
Hellerstein said the deal should be richer. Too much of it would be eaten up by legal fees, he said.
A third or more of the money set aside for the workers was expected to go to their lawyers. Some plaintiffs had agreed at the start of the case to give as much as 40 percent of any judgment to cover fees and expenses. That might have meant $200 million or more going to attorneys.
Hellerstein, who presides over all federal court litigation related to the terror attacks, ripped into the agreement after hearing several ground zero responders speak tearfully of their illnesses and after receiving letters and phone calls from others expressing confusion about the deal.
He said he was speaking "from the heart" out of great compassion for the thousands of men and women who spent time at ground zero.
It wasn't immediately clear whether the judge's actions would kill the settlement entirely.
The deal had taken years to negotiate and was announced March 11, with about two months to go until the first trials.
A spokeswoman for the law partnership that negotiated the settlement on behalf of the workers said she had no comment on the judge's remarks.
Christine LaSala, president of the WTC Captive Insurance Co., a special insurance entity created by Congress to represent the city in the lawsuit, said the judge "has now made it more difficult, if not impossible, for the people bringing these claims to obtain compensation and a settlement."
She said the lawyers would confer with city officials and "try to find a way forward."
New York City's chief lawyer, Michael Cardozo, said, "We have great respect for Judge Hellerstein and will consider his comments, but his reaction to the settlement will make it extremely difficult to resolve these cases."
Hellerstein laid out a number of proposed fixes for what he saw as deficiencies in the settlement and told the two sides to resume negotiations.
He rejected the idea that a third or more of the money should go to the plaintiffs' lawyers and said the legal fees should be paid by the WTC Captive, not the workers.
Hellerstein said workers should have ample opportunities to ask questions and get answers about the settlement, and he offered to go on a mini-speaking tour to get information to the plaintiffs.
"I will make myself available in union halls, fire department houses, police precincts and schools," Hellerstein said.
He said more money should be set aside for people who later develop cancer that may be linked to ground zero toxins. He said he wanted to retain ultimate control over which workers were entitled to have claims paid.
Hellerstein acknowledged that he felt a personal connection to the case, calling it "the greatest burden in my life," but insisted that his unusual intervention was legally and morally necessary, given the importance of 9/11 to the country.
"This is no ego trip for me. This is work," he said.
Hellerstein spoke after several ground zero recovery workers had risen in court to describe a litany of health problems they believe are linked to inhaling the ash and dust left by the collapse of the World Trade Center.
The settlement rejected by the judge would have created a pool of at least $575 million for sick workers. That amount could rise to as much as $657 million if enough people accept the deal. Injured workers would get a payment in exchange for dropping their suits against New York City and the dozens of construction contractors it hired to handle the cleanup.
Money for the settlement would be funded with nearly $1 billion in federal taxpayer money that has already been appropriated.
The deal covers a broad list of ailments suspected of being linked to trade center dust, including asthma, chronic coughing and interstitial lung disease, which involves scarring of lung tissue. Some types of cancer are also covered.
For the plaintiffs with relatively minor ailments, payments would have ranged from $3,250 to $9,760. William Groner, an attorney on the team that negotiated the settlement, estimated that 40 percent to 60 percent of the workers would fall into that category.
The rest were to have divided the remaining millions in the pot, with a handful of the sickest getting $1 million or more. The amount they got would have been based on a complicated scoring system that ranks each illness by severity.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Actress Reacts on Suicide Tweets


Demi Moore has talked highly of Twitter and even used it as platform for good to to promote her and Ashton Kutcher's DNA foundation.

She took things one step further when she contributed to an online chain of posts responding to a young man in Florida's threats to hang himself earlier this morning. "R U rlly asking 4 help?" she tweeted. This must have been after she got back from the 18th Annual "A Night At Sardi's Fundraiser she attended with Ashton last night in these pictures.

Two calls came for the West Coast around 2:30 am to the Seminole County Sheriff's Office reporting the suicide threat and authorities went to the home and took the uninjured juvenile to a hospital. No further details were provided from the Sheriff's Office about the callers identity, but  one of those calls can be traced to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" star Nia Vardalos who tweeted "I called suicide line, connected to FL police, I gave his name+city. They went to home, helped him."  Last April a woman in San Jose tweeted to Demi that she was going to cut her arm and Demi retweeted it causing her followers to make several phone calls to the police.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

British Airways Crew on Strike

 A three-day strike by British Airways cabin crew affecting thousands of travelers is going ahead Saturday after last-ditch talks between the airline's management and union leaders collapsed.

The walkout has forced BA to cancel thousands of flights, but it still hopes to operate around 65 percent of its international schedule over the period.

The Unite union has gathered some support from unions in the United States, Germany and Spain for its action - taken to protest a pay freeze and changes to working conditions - but the other unions have so far stopped short of pledging direct action that would affect BA's ability to refuel and service its planes.

A total of 1,100 flights out of the 1,950 flights scheduled to operate during the walkout will be canceled, but the airline has leased planes and crew from rival carriers to take up some of the shortfall.

At its Heathrow base, more than 60 percent of long-haul flights will operate, but only 30 percent of short-haul. At Gatwick, all long-haul flights and more than half the short-haul flights will run as normal.

"Tens of thousands of BA people stand ready to serve our customers," said BA Chief Executive Willie Walsh. "BA will be flying tomorrow."


Adam Huberman of Issta, a flight and tour agency specializing in trips to Israel, said he was taking 60 to 80 calls a day from passengers planning to travel to Israel before Passover, which starts March 30.

He said the strike couldn't have come at a worse time.

"It is the busiest time of the year," he said, adding that the agency had put on some flights of its own. "Some will be able to go but fares are obviously higher because it's so last minute."

Among others whose plans were affected were the Cardiff County and Vale of Glamorgan Youth Band from Wales, who are scheduled to play in a wind band festival at Carnegie Hall in New York on Tuesday.

Their scheduled Saturday flight was one of the ones BA has canceled, but after television and radio appeals - and a letter to rival virgin Atlantic - BA managed to get them onto alternative planes.

Picket lines will be mounted over the weekend at several entrances to Heathrow, but Walsh said he had "no concern whatsoever" about the threat of solidarity actions in other countries.

The U.S. International Brotherhood of Teamsters urged travelers to find alternatives during the strike.

"We are keenly aware of British Airways' operations in the United States and the cities served by the airline," the Teamsters, who represent 40,000 workers in the aviation industry, said in a statement. "We continue to look at this situation as it evolves and are keeping our options open."

Walsh said it was "deeply regrettable" that the union declined to accept a proposal on pay and working conditions from the airline, adding that offer would be withdrawn once the strike begins.

Unite joint general secretary Tony Woodley said that BA "does not want to negotiate and ultimately wants to go to war with this union."

The prospect of travel chaos in Britain in the run-up to the Easter break also intensified with news that railway signal workers voted in favor of a strike, joining rail maintenance workers. The Rail Maritime and Transport union has not called dates for a walkout of both groups of workers but has refused to rule out the Easter long weekend. The prospective industrial unrest is an unwelcome turn of events for the ruling Labour Party on the eve of a national election.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for the strike to be called off immediately.

"The Prime Minister believes that this strike is in no one's interest and will cause unacceptable inconvenience to passengers," his office said in a statement.

"As the country struggles out of the recession, the last thing we need is the unions holding the country to ransom," said Theresa Villiers, the opposition Conservative Party's transport spokeswoman.

BA argues that the disputed changes - including a pay freeze in 2010, a switch to part-time work for 3,000 staff and a reduction in cabin crew sizes from 15 to 14 on long-haul flights from Heathrow airport - are critical for its survival. Unite argues it was not properly consulted on the changes.

BA said Friday it had offered to modify the changes, even though they had been approved by Britain's High Court, but Unite had declined to put the offer to its members to vote.

Analysts estimate that BA has already lost more than 25 million pounds because of canceled tickets and the cost of contingency plans, which include leasing fully crewed planes from other airlines.

Unite has a second, four-day walkout planned to begin March 27 and has said more strikes will be scheduled for after April 14 if the dispute is not resolved. It has pledged not to walk out over the busy Easter period.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Another Maguindanao Blast

Three people were reported injured after unidentified men hurled a grenade at the house of a high school principal in Maguindanao province in southern Philippines, a radio report said Friday.

Radio dzXL reported that the grenade was thrown at the house of Maguindanao National High School principal Maimona Ampatuan in Shariff Aguak town.

Those hurt were identified as Enrico Ampatuan 8; Norhana Abdulrahman, 13; and Monera Camsa, 30.

Witnesses said two men aboard a motorcycle threw the grenade at the house.

The explosion also damaged three vehicles.

Investigation showed the principal was the target of the attack.

The principal had received several threats allegedly from extortionists, the report said

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Pope Apologize on Irish People

Pope Benedict XVI addresses Ireland on Saturday in a letter apologizing for the sex abuse scandal here — a message being watched closely by Catholics from Boston to Berlin to see if it also acknowledges decades of Vatican-approved cover-ups.

The church is only beginning to come to terms with decades of child abuse in its parishes and schools. The scandals first emerged in Canada and Australia in the 1980s, followed by Ireland in the 1990s, the United States this decade and, in recent months, Benedict's German homeland.

Victims' rights activists say that to begin mending the church's battered image, Benedict's message — his first pastoral letter on child abuse in the church — must break his silence on the role of the Catholic hierarchy in shielding pedophile clergy from prosecution.

That includes abuses committed decades ago under the pope's watch, when he was Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger of Munich, as well as the pontiff's role in hushing up the scandals.

As leader of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Ratzinger was responsible for a 2001 Vatican edict that instructed bishops to report all cases of child abuse to Vatican authorities under strict secrecy; it made no mention of reporting crimes to police.

"Is it not time for Pope Benedict XVI himself to acknowledge his share of responsibility?" said the Rev. Hans Kung, a Swiss priest and dissident Catholic theologian.

"Honesty demands that Joseph Ratzinger himself, the man who for decades has been principally responsible for the worldwide cover-up, at last pronounce his own mea culpa," Kung said.

Benedict, who served as archbishop of Munich from 1977 to 1982, has yet to speak about the hundreds of abuse cases emerging since January in Germany.

These include the Rev. Peter Hullermann, who was already suspected of abusing boys in the western German city of Essen when Ratzinger approved his transfer to Munich for treatment in 1980.

There, Hullermann was allowed contact with children almost immediately after his therapy began. He was again accused of molesting boys and was convicted in 1986 of sexual abuse. He was suspended this week for ignoring a 2008 church order not to work with youths.

Dirk Taenzler, director of the Federation for German Catholic Youth, said his members were appalled by the revelations of abuse in church-run schools and choirs — and wondered why the pope had yet to address his fellow Germans.

"Everyone is suffering from the church's bad image," Taenzler said. "It is an issue in every congregation and everyone is trying to cope."

Benedict's successor in Munich, Archbishop Reinhard Marx, said the pope's letter to Ireland "will of course affect us. The pope always speaks for everyone. It is not ... for specific groups or countries. That word will also be important for us."

Marx said the pope should not be expected to take responsibility for abuses committed by individual priests. "We expect the pope to take a stand on everything every time, but we are responsible for what happens here," he said.

In the United States, where several dioceses have been driven to bankruptcy amid abuse lawsuits, activists called on the pope to be candid about his own failings — and for bishops to be held accountable.

"So far the church hierarchy has been very short on accountability. They've had to be pushed to come clean about their responsibility for anything," said Dan Bartley, president of Voice of the Faithful, a Catholic lay group that lobbies for reform within the church. "He needs to call for any bishops involved in the Irish crisis to resign. But unfortunately we're not expecting that."

Ray Flynn, former US ambassador to the Vatican, said the pope has been slow to speak publicly about the church's abuse crisis because he lacks media savvy, not because he wants to stonewall critics or doesn't care about victims. "He is a very quiet, unassuming, non-pretentious man," Flynn said.

"He's got to be transparent, forthcoming, right out front and point the finger where the blame is," he added. "I think the truth will set you free, and that's what people want."

No country has been harder hit by the child-abuse scandals than Ireland, a nation of 4 million that has paid out more than $1 billion to some 13,000 victims. Victims' advocates say they are tired of hearing church apologies that contain no acknowledgment of how bishops under Vatican direction let child molesters operate with impunity.

"What we probably will get — I hope I'm wrong — are a lot of expressions of regret and sorrow and apology about the horrors of child abuse in the past. I've heard that so often now," said Marie Collins, one of Ireland's most prominent campaigners for victims' rights.

"I want to hear apologies for the actions of the church hierarchy."

Collins, 63, was repeatedly raped by a Dublin priest, Paul McGennis, while in a children's hospital in 1960. Irish bishops knew at the time about McGennis' pedophilia — even confiscating his collection of nude photos of children — but didn't bar him from the priesthood until 1997, shortly before his conviction for abusing Collins and another girl.

Such cover-ups have undermined much of the Irish hierarchy including its leader, Cardinal Sean Brady.

On St. Patrick's Day, Brady apologized for his failure to tell police about evidence he gathered in 1975 from two altar boys molested by the Rev. Brendan Smyth. Smyth kept abusing children until he was finally convicted in 1994. The scandal triggered the collapse of the Irish government.

Three Irish government-ordered investigations from 2005 to 2009 documented the abuse of thousands of Irish children by priests in their parishes and by nuns and brothers in boarding schools and orphanages. Irish bishops did not report a single case to police until 1996 after victims began to sue the church.

Some church scholars say Benedict has sought to encourage a church crackdown on abusers and are hopeful that Saturday's message might offer a fresh start for the church worldwide.

"If we do take serious and proper steps, the house can be cleaned and the church will improve for it," said the Rev. John Wauck, a commentator on Vatican affairs.

"I think that's something to look forward to with hope. I imagine the letter will be quite hopeful and forward-looking," Wauck said.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Noynoy on Street Protest

Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III on Friday said he was willing to join street protests against the Supreme Court decision allowing President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to appoint the next chief justice of the high tribunal.

Aquino said he hopes the people in the provinces where he is set to campaign in the following days will understand if he does not proceed there as scheduled to join protest marches against the Supreme Court decision.

"Meron yatang mga protest marches na gustong ilunsad ng iba’t ibang grupo na tulad ko ay naguguluhan sa decision ng SC (I think there are protest marches being planned by different groups who, like me, are confused by the SC decision)," Aquino told reporters at the Loakan airport here where he is campaigning.

"Sana wala tayong conflict na pinadala tayo kung saan, alam ninyo apat na probinsya siguro tayong pinangakuan na lilitawin natin. Sana maintindihan nila kung tayo ay sumama sa protest movement (I hope there will be no conflict, because we have committed to show up at four provinces. I hope they will understand if I will join the protest movement)," Aquino said when asked whether he would join the protests.

Among the groups reported to be planning to hold protests over the controversial SC decision are the Anakpawis party-list and Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay) who are expected to stage their own protest among Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City at 5 p.m. Friday.

Earlier in the day, various groups staged a rally in front of Supreme Court in Manila condemning the nine justices who voted in favor of the decision allowing Mrs. Arroyo to appoint the next chief justice.

A GMA News report said partylist group Kabataan even set on fire the pictures of the nine justices.

Among those who joined the protest action were independent presidential candidate Senator Ma. Ana Consuelo "Jamby" Madrigal, senatorial candidate Akbayan Rep Ana Theresia Hontiveros, Senator Francis Pangilinan, and Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño.

Pessimistic on motion for reconsideration

The groups said they will be filing a motion for reconsideration against the SC decision.

As if on cue, Aquino said he support any motion for reconsideration to be filed, even as he is not expecting the high tribunal to reverse its decision.

"Sa tradition bihira pag nag-decision en banc na nire-reverse ang sarili nila (Traditionally they rarely reverse a decision made en banc)," Aquino said.

Aquino said that if a chief justice is appointed by the Arroyo administration, there are legal means that can be considered by the new administration, including impeachment of officials involved, if the court decision is later found to be unsound.

"If it can be proven that the decision was not done on sound principles, that might be a ground for impeaching an impeachable officer," he said.

Chief Justice Reynato Puno, the only incumbent Supreme Court member not appointed by Mrs. Arroyo, is set to retire May 17.

Controversial decision

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court voted in favor of Mrs. Arroyo's appointment of Puno's replacement even during the election period.

The court’s decision on Wednesday was a response to separate petitions asking the high tribunal to prevent Mrs. Arroyo from appointing Puno’s replacement.

The petitions were from the Philippine Bar Association, chapters of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, the National Union of Philippine Lawyers and party-list group Akbayan.

In their decision, the nine justices who comprised the majority vote said the appointment ban cited in Section 15 Article VII of the 1987 Constitution only applies to the executive department.

The decision was met with protests from legal experts and critics of the Arroyo administration, who fear that Mrs. Arroyo would be able to tighten her hold on the high court if she is allowed to appoint the next chief justice before she bows out as President on June 30.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Music Collaboration

COLLABORATION IS THE NAME OF THE game in pop music these days. The potent partnerships entered into by today’s recording artists are not only limited to the younger likes of Jason Mraz (“Lucky,” with Colbie Caillat), Miley Cyrus (“We Got The Party,” with The Jonas Brothers), Eminem (“Psycho,” with 50 Cent), Alicia Keys (“Empire State of Mind,” with Jay-Z), and Danny Gokey, who sings Kara Dioguardi’s “I Still Believe” in his No. 4-charting debut collection, “My Best Days.”
Even the famously uncompromising Barbra Streisand had to hand over the producing reins of “Love Is the Answer,” her recent No. 1 standards collection, to jazz luminary, Diana Krall. And, if you check out Akon’s latest album, “Freedom,” you’ll find the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, not only reinventing his huge 1980s hit, “Wanna Be Starting Something,” but also beautifully crooning the anthemic track, “Hold My Hand,” with the 32-year-old Senegalese-American hip-hop artist.
Prison scene
Another song generating a lot of heat—and hits on the Internet (15.5 million views on YouTube as of Monday this week)—is Lady Gaga’s “Telephone,” whose raunchy 10-minute music video starts with a leather-clad women’s prison scene and features the dance diva with gorgeous Beyoncé Knowles in tow, poisoning customers in a diner!
Other must-hear collaborations: Taylor Swift displays another facet of her wide-reaching style and musicality in “Two Is Better Than 1,” her radio-friendly duet with Boys Like Girls. Interestingly, “Break Your Heart,” the No. 1 single on this week’s Billboard Hot 100 chart, is likewise a collaboration—between Ludacris and Taio Cruz. Another infectious single is Daniel Merriweather and Wale’s thematic song-and-rap tune, “Change.”
With the release of her anticipated Pinoy-produced album, “Try Love,” Filipina West End star, Joanna Ampil, is boosting her stock in the local music scene. Among its sleekly produced tracks is her duet with Ariel Rivera—a lovingly rendered revival of Johnny Mathis and Jane Oliver’s “ The Last Time I Felt Like This.” JayR also puts an R&B spin on the Gary Valenciano-Zsa Zsa Padilla/ Regine Velasquez duet, “Muli (Could We?).”
Theme song
After a so-so cover of “You’ve Got a Friend” with Billy Crawford in his recent “Groove” album, Nikki Gil makes beautiful music with her special guy in her third collection, “Somebody to Love.,” which includes the lyrically noteworthy “Bawat Hakbang” (the theme song from the movie, “The Red Shoes”).
This time, Billy contributes his melodically remarkable original composition, “You Are My Life,” which he masterfully sings with Nikki. The couple has contrasting singing styles, but the song surprisingly plays well to their respective strengths. Now, that’s what we call musical synergy!

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

Jeep ni Erap is Back

 With former president Joseph Estrada still lagging behind two presidential candidates, the group that helped him win in 1998 has vowed to give Estrada an extra push that will translate to a bigger winning margin in his comeback bid.
Members of the Jeep ni Erap, the group that the Estrada camp credits as “greatly responsible for the 1998 victory,” held a kickoff rally Friday at the Club Filipino in Estrada’s home city of San Juan.
“President Estrada’s survey ratings are at 18 percent now but we will make sure that this is at least 30 percent by end of April,” Jeep chair Horacio “Boy” Morales said.
“If he won by 11 million votes in 1998, this time we will deliver at least 15 million votes,” he added.
Morales is a longtime leader of the Estrada’s Partido ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) and was the former President’s secretary of agrarian reform during his short-lived administration.
Estrada described Jeep ni Erap as a nationwide group of small and middle-income businessmen that have volunteered to help deliver the votes in May.
Jeep, during the Estrada administration, stood for justice, economy, environment and peace, areas that the former actor pledged would be given top priority.
There are now two volunteer groups helping Estrada at the community-level campaign, both named after public utility vehicles used by poor folk. They are Traysikel ni Erap and the re-launched Jeep ni Erap.
In an earlier interview, PMP vice president Cagayan De Oro City Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said the Jeep Ni Erap and Traysikel Ni Erap campaigns would involve a network of volunteers that could grow to around seven million supporters.

David Mikael Taclino
Inyu Web Development and Design
Creative Writer

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