Out of my mind

And now I am  completely bewildered.   Can anyone tell me what exactly is the point of the senate hearings on the sex video scandals?  I know the operational objective was "in aid of legislation." But given the line of questioning done by our senators and the level of drama present at today's senate hearing, I am not so sure anymore. Actually, my heart sank at the mere sight of the three senators conducting the hearing.  They just happened to be the three most annoying senators in my list:  Jajajajajamby Madrigal, Jinggoy Estrada, and Bong Revilla.  Talk about portents of worst things to come! (And yes, Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago is not included in my list of most annoying senator.  Aside from the fact that she is in a class all her own, it's really difficult to be annoyed all the time by the lady senator.  She says the most shocking things, yes, but will anyone question the fact that she is soooooo entertaining?) It seemed to me that the whole point was simply ...

I've been asked to comment on the latest tempest in the blogosphere - the Candy Pangilinan issue.  The quick summary:  Entertainer Candy Pangilinan was in Baguio City recently to emcee or perform at a public affair and while at it, she uttered the rather tasteless joke that got her in trouble.  She was supposed to have said something like " Hindi po ako Igorot, tao po ako." It's the kind of thoughtless and tasteless remark that is standard fare in sing along bars where ridiculing people and making very politically incorrect statements are passed off as comedy.  Some people think it's funny. I don't.  That's why I have not set foot inside sing along bars that offer this kind of entertainment in the last 15 years. This is the problem with some entertainers.  They are not able to make the distinction between what is allowed inside a sing along bar - where people willingly part with their money to get skewered - and what should be said in public functions - wh...

That's the great Kidlat Tahimik (born Eric de Guia but he doesn't respond to his Western name anymore) in the pic. That's not me beside him. Truth to tell, I have no idea who that guy is. I just filched the pic from the multiply site of a student who was with me at Baguio City a couple of weeks back for a conference. I did have some pictures taken with Kidlat, taken by other people using their own cameras. I have no idea how I am going to have access to those pics. I am the kind of person who never remembers to lug a camera around in my travels and even when I do, I always forget to take pictures anyway. For example, I was in Berlin in the nineties and only have a couple of pics to show as proof that I was ever there. And the pics that I do have don't even show any of the famous landmarks that firmly establish the locale. Anyway, I digress as usual. I had the rare privilege of interacting with Kidlat Tahimik at the conference. I was chair of the Program of the conferen...