Piercing Pens

American Idol finalist Jasmine Trias is in Manila and the local media cannot get enough of her as big businesses like McDonald’s and Smart are earning big bucks as they further fan a “Jasmin mania” phenomenon (The telecom company even had its name mentioned in the captions Trias’ front-page photos on the newspapers).

Because she’s a Filipino-American, Jasmine became an instant hit in the Philippines. That the local media cannot get enough of her is a clear manifestation of our fixation with Fil-foreigners. (more…)

This week has been so excruciating for us here at the newsroom. Thanks to ‘Fil-Am idol’ Jasmine Trias who arrived in Manila just a few days ago. A week before that, the bosses were pestering me on how we could get Jasmine for an exclusive sit-down interview. I could not fathom how we had to go through all these brouhaha for a singer we call our own yet aspired to be the American Idol . The day after Jasmine arrived, headlines bannered “Jasmine Trias comes ‘home,’” “Homecoming for American Idol finalist.” This is after Jasmine herself said when asked if she was willing to stay in her supposed ‘home’: “I don’t think it’s possible at the moment. Besides, Hawaii is home for me.”

A month ago, during the Athens Olympics, all eyes were on Natalie Coughlin, the gold medalist swimmer whose grandmother, apparently, was a Filipina. Talks of getting her to play for the Philippines in the 2006 Asian games came about. An officemate agreed with me on how stupid the idea was. Being Filipino seems to have less and less meaning these days. (more…)

The Filipino Chinese community led by Teresita Ang-See vehemently opposes the setting up of a casino in the Chinatown area in Manila. They held a really last month in front of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s “VIP Club” casino to protest what they called a “casino-building spree.”

“This is a call not only for the Binondo and Sta. Cruz areas. This is for Filipinos nationwide. The government plans to set up more casinos nationwide,” Tribune newspaper quoted Citizens Action Against Crime chairman Teresita Ang-See in this report. (more…)

Last month, cell phone thieves killed Today assistant business editor Jose Luis Villanueva after he refused to give up his Nokia 7610. I later learned from a reporter friend who worked with Jose Luis in the information technology beat that the cell phone was just lent to him by a Smart Communications so he could review the new Nokia model’s features and write about it.

A day earlier before Jose Luis met such a sade fate, GMA Iloilo newscaster Chris Misajon was shot by cell phone robbers after he tried to fight the attackers. He died a two days later while being treated in a hospital.

Earlier victims of cell phone thieves even included a priest, as reported last week by “Imbestigador ng Bayan” segment of GMA-7’s 24 Oras newscast. (more…)