Plant trees or we all die

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”

—Abraham Lincoln

By Alex P. Vidal

WE should have started planting trees massively at least 70 years ago.

And while doing it, deforestation should have been done sparingly if it couldn’t be avoided.

Life could not exist on Earth without trees because they produce most of the oxygen that humans and wildlife breathe. 

Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen using the process of photosynthesis.

If we did, several towns that submerged in the fifth district of Iloilo when typhoon “Ursula” terrorized Panay Island on Christmas Day would have been protected.

Several lives would have been saved especially the six family members who perished in a flood in Batad, Iloilo.

Storms normally bring heavy rains and strong winds, but if our mountain slopes are surrounded by trees, water can’t easily inundate the villages below like what happened in Balasan town, where all of its 23 villages were reportedly flooded.

Iloilo Governor Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. was so disturbed and alarmed that he reportedly called for expansion of tree planting activities in the mountains to reclaim secondary forest lost in irresponsible and reckless deforestation.

This is a wise move. The governor may need the total support of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan to pursue this herculean task.

-o0o-

We may be late, but it’s better to do something than crying over a spilled milk; it’s better to light a candle instead of cursing the darkness.

Sometimes only during calamities can our resolve be revitalized.

We are motivated to do something or spring into action with absolute urgency only after we have been caught off-guarded and unable to save lives and properties.

On the other hand, we can’t prevent people from cutting down trees. We need to build stores, houses, and other buildings. 

We also cut down trees to clear land for agricultural use. In some cases, trees are cut down for wood for fires to heat up our homes and cook food.

If we cut trees, it’s but logical that we also plant more trees. 

If we continue to be neglectful and irresponsible, we will wake up one day on the verge of being swept away by heavy floods to the kingdom come when heavy storms bombard us like a thief in the night.

Planting of trees is a responsibility that must be carried out by all people regardless of sex, economic status, age, religion and political affiliation.

We shouldn’t rely on our government alone.

We must think of what we can do for our environment, and not what our environment can do for us, to paraphrase JFK’s popular adage on government and our role.

-o0o-

Let me share this “Tree Riddles” from the Trees Group:

This is the place for the most interesting tree riddles, forest-themed brain teasers, and nature-inspired puzzles, as well as riddles about trees, environment enigmas, and woodland conundrums.

What weighs more, a pound of leaves or a pound of logs?

They both weigh the same.

Which side of a tree has the most leaves?

The outside.

What kind of trees do you get when you plant kisses?

Tulips.

How do you get down from a tree?

You don’t. Down comes from a duck.

What gets a year older whenever it rings?

A tree.

What can pass through a tree without rustling any leaves?

Sunlight.

The more of it there is in the forest, the less you can see. What is it?

Darkness.

What looks like half a spruce tree?

The other half.

How far can a monkey run through the rainforest?

Just halfway. After that, it’s running out of the rainforest.

What color is the rain in a painting of the rainforest?

Water color.

Which animals can jump higher than a tree?

All of them. Trees can’t jump!

How many oranges grow on a tree?

All of them.

What’s the same size and shape as a giant sequoia tree, yet weighs nothing?

A giant sequoia tree’s shadow.

What do you get when you cross a fallen tree with a very organized feline?

A catalog.

There are 52 birds perched on a single tree branch. A poacher comes along and shoots one of those birds twice. How many birds are on the tree branch now?

There are no birds on the tree branch now. The bird that was shot fell off, and the rest of the birds flew away after the first shot.

What tree has two eyes but can’t see?

White Pine.

Which is more likely to break one of the laws of nature, a large rock or a large tree?

A large rock, because it’s boulder.

What does a tree sapling become after it is 30 days old?

Thirty-one days old.

I’m the part of a tree that is not in the sky or under the ground. I can move throughout the day and change shape. What am I?

Its shadow.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

Promotion of Ilonggo values

"With the right people, culture, and values, you can accomplish great things."
--Tricia Griffith

By Alex P. Vidal

THERE are many ways to advertise to the world the tradition and greatness of Ilonggos.
One of them is to showcase in whatever means our culture and festivals that reveal who we are and what we are as a people.
For instance, there is a festival in Iloilo that promotes the values of Ilonggos.
Celebrated by the Municipality of San Rafael every October of the year, it is called Tawili Festival.
According to Capitol executive assistant Ruel Von D. Superio, “Tawili” is the local counterpart of Bayanihan or volunteerism, involvement, concern and sharing.
"Tawili was prominent in the way of life of the Ilonggos. In many instances, people in the neighborhood would gather to work for their neighbor," Superio explained in his recent Facebook post.
"It could be a work in the farm or in his household. As a result, no one would be lacking of helping hands in times of need and in times of sorrow."
Superio, who accompanied Iloilo Gov. Arthur "Toto" Defensor Jr. during the festival's opening ceremony in San Rafael October 21, said "the festival reminds everyone of the importance of unity and cooperation as an essential ingredient for peace, development and progress."

-o0o-

Iloilo Airport terminal supervisor Art Parreño should initiate a move to donate to Guimaras Province some of the more than 100 umbrellas the Iloilo Airport management seized from departing passengers in August this year.
The airport umbrellas can help the Department of Tourism in Western Visayas which will be staging for the first time the Guimaras Umbrella Festival on November 9, 2019.
It was reported that during the festival, the Department of Tourism (DOT-6) will provide 1,000 umbrellas to pumpboats ferrying passengers to and from the island province of Guimaras.

-o0o-

There is good reasons for Ilonggos to continue to be supportive to our Chinese community.
The tsinoys are known to enormously help pump up the local economies of areas where they are located.
Business is always good in local communities with strong presence of Chinese economic activities.
In fact, a new report from Credit Suisse (CS) shows that wealth in China is ticking up, and the country now accounts for 100 million of the richest 10% of people in the world.
There are 99 million Americans in the same category, it was reported.
The United States still has many more millionaires--18.6 million, or 40% of the world's total, versus 4.4 million in China, it was further learned.
It's also adding to the millionaire count at a faster clip.
The report credits low interest rates and Republican tax cuts for the country's 11th consecutive year of rising wealth.
The average American is also still much richer than their Chinese counterparts, with US wealth per adult at $432,365 compared with $58,544 in China.
A most recent report said China holds claim to a growing piece of the pie, replacing Europe as the principal engine of global wealth growth. That's in spite of the trade war that's weighing on the nation's economy.
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

We worry for tourism

“The thing about tourism is that the reality of a place is quite different from the mythology of it.”
--Martin Parr

By Alex P. Vidal

WE are worried for tourism in Iloilo and Guimaras in particular, and in Western Visayas in general, following the travel advisory issued by the United Kingdom urging its citizens to avoid travel on ferries and passenger boats in the Philippines following the recent Iloilo-Guimaras Strait maritime mishap that killed nearly 31 boat passengers.
Travel advisories issued by European and American countries always have ripple effects and are monitored and followed by other continents with large business and tourism contingents that regularly circumnavigate the globe.
In the age of internet, the recent UK travel advisory can travel and spread around the universe faster than the tsunami and quicker than the speed of a bullet train.
At this time when our tourism has been reaping inroads and dividends owing to the aggressive and productive campaign instituted by the Department of Tourism (DOT) regional office headed by Director Helen Catalbas, we can’t afford to reap a negative publicity in the global market and altogether slump to square one.
Instead of a leap backward, it must be a long jump forward.

-o0o-

Guimaras, producer of the best mango in the world, is undoubtedly a tourism wonder and the only viable means to get there vice versa is through a passenger boat.
With UK’s recent travel advisory, tourism and business in Philippine islands that rely heavily on ferries and passenger boats to connect the tourists and their destinations like Guimaras, Boracay, Bohol, Palawan, among other favorite spots in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao will certainly suffer a dent.
The UK travel advisory exhorted its citizens to avoid travel on ferries and passenger, particularly from June to December, the season when the country is frequently hit by tropical cyclones.
The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: “They are often overloaded, may lack necessary lifesaving equipment or be inadequately maintained and have incomplete passenger manifests. Storms can develop quickly and maritime rescue services in the Philippines may be limited.”
Let’s hope a new travel advisory from Europe and America will soon come out; this time to pave the way for a quick Renaissance of tourism industry in Western Visayas and in the entire Philippines.

-o0o-

The “dark past” of Supt. Roland Vilela, penciled in to be the next chief of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO), circulated in the media faster than his credentials and accomplishments as police official.
This came after his name was reportedly chosen recently from among the list of police officials by Iloilo Governor Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr.
In the past, police officials who would occupy important positions in the Regional Police Office down to the provincial police offices were hailed for their good record and good behavior in press releases prior to assuming their respective assignments.
In the case of Supt. Vilela, it’s the opposite.
As long as he was not yet convicted of any criminal act, he could still perform his tasks as a PNP official; Ilonggos can still give him the benefit of the doubt.
He wouldn’t be allowed to stay in the PNP if he had been found guilty of hooliganism or any serious moral and criminal misconduct.
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

Gov. Toto Defensor’s ‘social justice’

“There is not Communism or Marxism, but representative democracy and social justice in a well-planned economy.”
--Fidel Castro

By Alex P. Vidal

THE presence of billionaire industrialist Enrique Razon during the oath-taking ceremony of newly-elected officials in Iloilo Province at the Iloilo capitol lobby June 28, was timely and expedient.
In the world of philanthropy where Mr. Razon belongs, the phrase “social justice” is very relevant and is heard a lot.
Iloilo Governor Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. vowed to serve the province of Iloilo based on “social justice” in a speech during the oath-taking ceremony administered by Supreme Court Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza.
Social justice is originally a Catholic term, first used about 1840 for a new kind of virtue (or habit) necessary for post-agrarian societies.
The term has been bent by secular "progressive" thinkers to mean uniform state distribution of society's advantages and disadvantages. It is really the capacity to organize with others to accomplish ends that benefit the whole community.
If people are to live free of state control, they must possess this new virtue of cooperation and association.
This is one of the great skills of Americans and, ultimately, the best defense against statism, according to Michael Novak, George Frederick Jewett Scholar in Religion, Philosophy, and Public Policy.

-o0o-

According to the United Nations, “Social justice may be broadly understood as the fair and compassionate distribution of the fruits of economic growth.”
Social justice refers to a concept in which equity or justice is achieved in every aspect of society rather than in only some aspects or for some people.
A world organized around social justice principles affords individuals and groups fair treatment as well as an impartial share or distribution of the advantages and disadvantages within a society.
Formal definitions for social justice vary in wording, but there are commonalities among them. 1. Equal rights 2. Equal opportunity and 3. Equal treatment
Although he admitted that “I can not do it alone,” the new governor appealed to all: “Please join us in implementing programs that uplift lives such as those of our farmers and fisherfolk. Please join us in improving the barangays, in sharing the wealth and resources of the province. There can be no justice without peace, so please continue to help us.”

-o0o-

Social justice includes a vision of a society in which the distribution of resources is equitable and all members are physically and psychologically safe and secure. Social justice involves social actors who have a sense of their own agency as well as a sense of social responsibility toward and with others and the society as a whole. (Teaching for Diversity and Social Justice, Adams, Bell, Griffin, 2nd ed., Routledge 2007)
The absence of social justice results in social oppression.
Racism, sexism, ageism, classism, ableism, and heterosexism are some forms of social oppression in society.
Societies and individuals form hierarchies of oppression in which certain types of oppression are addressed and others are not.
Oppression of certain groups or individuals can result in social or legal exclusion, discrimination, inequitable distribution of resources, and emotional and physical consequences.
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo)

Biron vs Defensor: Icy rivalry like Carlsen vs Caruana, McEnroe vs Lendl

“The rivalry is with ourselves. I try to be better than is possible. I fight against myself, not against the other.”
-- Luciano Pavarotti

By Alex P. Vidal

NEW YORK CITY -- This is the first time in recent memory that two aspirants for governor of Iloilo Province in the Philippines haven’t used a mud, so far, to pull each other down in order to pull themselves up.
Although Dr. Ferjenel “Ferj” G. Biron and lawyer Arthur “Toto” R. Defensor Jr. belong to two clans with emerging tentacles for political dynasty, they appeared to have defined the local politics in a higher level and their brand of introducing themselves in public is just fair to middling.
Familiarity and camaraderie could be another factor why the gentlemen have maintained cordiality and restraint toward each other as colleagues in the House of Representatives: Biron (4th District) and Defensor (3rd District).
To the delight of Ilonggo voters, they haven’t used violent or bedraggled tactics to get someone’s goat, and are just focusing their forces on their platforms and what they are capable of doing once elected to the highest office in the province.

-o0o-

Their balmy rivalry can be compared to the tranquility that attended the pre-match comportment of the forthcoming World Chess Championship rivalry between champion Magnus Carlsen (Norway) and challenger Fabiano Caruana (USA) which will be held in The College in Holborn, London on November 8-28, 2018.
Unlike the Fischer vs Spassky (1972), Karpov vs Korchnoi (1978), and Karpov vs Kasparov (1984) FIDE matches, there are no verbal fireworks, so far, between Carlsen, 27, and Caruana, 26.
This is a match between the top two players in the world in terms of FIDE Elo rating: Carlsen is world number one, and Caruana world number two.
This is quite unique in fact; the last time the world championship was a battle between the highest ranked chess players was in 1990 between Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov.
Carlsen dethroned Viswanathan Anand in 2013 in Chennai, and successfully defended his title against the same Indian grandmaster in 2014, and against Sergey Karjakin in 2016. Caruana will be his third match opponent next month.

-o0o-

We also vividly recall the rivalry between tennis greats John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl in the 1980s.
There was no love lost between McEnroe and Lendl, who faced each other countless times in key matches.
Radio Praha’s Jan Velinger said the two have contrasting styles: McEnroe was unbridled emotion while Lendl kept a grim poker-face.
Their most famous match-up was in 1984 at the French Open where Lendl came back from two sets down to win his first grand slam title.
That particular match came down the wire: “Ivan Lendl has finally won a grand slam championship! He showed great courage in rallying from two sets down to accomplish it. For John McEnroe… an American once again leaves empty from Paris.”
While Lendl smiled when it was over, McEnroe did not wait for the mic to congratulate his opponent but instead walked off the court. The rivalry was nothing if not bitter.
But the two tennis legends have long since put mutual differences behind them.
Before their exhibition match in Bratislava, Slovakia in 2014, McEnroe addressed the story of a less than charitable comment once attributed to him.
“Ivan and I certainly had our moments where we weren’t the best of friends or getting along very well. But to me he is one of the very best players in the history of our sport, so… that comment that he was the ‘worst No.1’ definitely didn’t come from me. I played him too many times and lost to him too many times for that to be true.”

No knee-jerk reaction on Defensor’s transfer to PDP-Laban

“In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.”

--Franklin D. Roosevelt

By Alex P. Vidal

NEWARK, New Jersey -- When big names in Philippine local politics jump from one political party to another, it is normally greeted with derision and mockery from the deserters’ hitherto party mates and rivals.

They are tagged as “opportunists” and dismissed as “balimbings” (fruit with scientific name Averrhoa carambola) or turncoats.

Such was the misfortune that befell politicians in Iloilo City led by Rep. Jerry Trenas and Mayor Jose Espinosa III, who abandoned the Liberal Party (LP) for the administration’s Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) last year.

Political rivals took turns in lambasting “ingrate” Trenas , Espinosa and some of their ilk in the city council.

Their political enemies also utilized the social media to ridicule their move to leave LP and embrace President Rodrigo Duterte’s political party.

It’s always an earthshaking event for their detractors; the kind of opportunity to skin them alive in public their detractors would never allow to slip away. Politics 101.

-o0o-

Not in Iloilo province.

When Governor Arthur “Art” Defensor Sr. disclosed last year that he, his son, Iloilo third district Rep. Arthur “Toto” Defensor Jr. , and 4,000 other local officials from their district will take their oath as the newest members of the PDP-Laban on January 18, 2018, nobody from the governor’s political rivals--or potential political enemies--raised a whimper.

Team Defensor’s scheduled “mass oath taking” would be administered by House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez at the Pototan Astrodome in Pototan town, 30 kilometers north from Iloilo City.

No admonition even from Iloilo fourth district Rep. Ferjenel “Dr. Ferj” G. Biron, Rep. Defensor’s rumored rival for governor in 2019.

Rep. Biron, who admits he has big respect and admiration for Gov. Defensor despite his loss in the 2013 gubernatorial race, probably didn’t want to sully the Defensors’ significant date with political history.

It would be awkward for the lawmaker from Barotac Nuevo to criticize the Defensors’ transfer from LP to PDP-Laban if he was eyeing LP’s official nomination for the top capitol post.

-o0o-

Some provincial board members and municipal mayors who have remained loyal to LP also didn’t find it necessary to rebuke the Defensors’ decision to transfer even for the sake of “check and balance” and, to some extent, publicity.

They probably got Gov. Defensor’s message loud and clear: he needed the President’s blessings for Toto Defensor’s candidacy in 2019.

From the very beginning, the governor never hid his cards and was even excited to immediately lay them on the table without beating around the bush: he wanted the congressman son to be the administration’s standard-bearer in 2019.

Defensor would have been chided both by allies and detractors as hypocrite if he did not admit his decision to walk away from LP to PDP-Laban had something to do with political survival.