MikeLigalig.com

Scientists at the Mayo Clinic in Florida have identified the cell’s microprocessor that controls cell growth. Called microRNA, this biological controller instructs the cells to stop dividing the moment they have replicated sufficiently, The Telegraph reports. When that happens, microRNA triggers the production of a protein called PLEKHA7, which then breaks the cell bonds and stops growth. In cancerous cells, that process doesn’t work properly.

The doctors were able to switch on cancer in cells by removing microRNAs and preventing them from producing the protein. Then they found they can reverse the process, stopping tumor growth and potentially changing cancer growth. All a patient would need would be an injections containing microRNAs that would reinforce the existing supply in cancer cells.

“We have now done this in very aggressive human cell lines from breast and bladder cancer,” Department of Cancer Biology professor Panos Anastasiadis said.

Major cancer breakthrough: Doctors solve long-standing mystery of how to stop cancer from growing

BGR News   
Chris Smith
August 27, 2015



Cancer is a terrifying disease that researchers around the globe are obsessively working to cure. Now scientists from the USA have made a breakthrough discovery related to how cells replicate in cancer patients, how to put a stop to the process, and even how to reverse a tumor.

What happens in a healthy organism is that cells are constantly replicating and replacing themselves with identical copies. A mechanism inside the body handles growth to make sure cells don’t overproduce.

When that mechanism malfunctions in an organ, the cells don’t stop growing, and they develop into tumors. Usual treatment involves a combination of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, depending on many factors. But in the future, a new kind of treatment might be available to cancer patients that will make the others obsolete.

not bad. the philippines is in the top 20 choice, at number 18.

And rounding out the top three is the tiny island of Malta, located in the Mediterranean sea. This is a popular spot for expats who like to work; 67 percent of respondents say they are generally happy with their career prospects.

On the other end of the spectrum, Kuwait has been labeled the worst place in the world for expats: 53 percent of respondents are unhappy with the vibe from local residents, and the overall quality of life leaves a lot to be desired.

Greece and Nigeria also came in at the bottom of the list for expat destinations.

https://www.yahoo.com/

The small South American country is a favorite among expats for several reasons. First, 91 percent of respondents pointed to the cheap cost of living as a selling point. In addition, the weather is nice, healthcare is cheap, and the country ranks first when it comes to finding friends and feeling welcome.


Ecuador tops the list of the best destinations for expats. (Photo: InterNations)

Of those expats living in Ecuador, 56 percent are Americans with an average age of 51.9 years. And this isn’t just a pit stop on to somewhere else, 45 percent say that they might stay forever.

In second place is Mexico, where 70 percent of expats agree that making friends is easy, and 81 percent rate the cost of living favorably.

The Best (and Worst) Places in the World for Expats

Brittany Jones Cooper
Editor, Yahoo Travel
August 25, 2015


The city of Quito, Ecuador. (Photo: Thinkstock)

Have you ever dreamed of leaving it all behind? Of packing up and spending the rest of your days in an exotic locale?

If so, maybe you should consider a move to Ecuador.

According to a survey conducted by InterNations, a networking group for expats, Ecuador is the best place in the world for foreigners to settle down. The survey reached out to 14,000 respondents in 195 countries who gave their feedback on life in their adopted country, and for the second year in a row, Ecuador topped the list.

Lava flows out of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano, one of the world's most active volcanoes, as it erupts on the French island of La Reunion in the Indian Ocean. AFP/VOA

Tens of thousands of protesters from Gujarat’s Patel community participate in a rally in Ahmadabad, India, demanding affirmative action for better access to education and employment. AP/VOA

This U.S. Coast Guard photo shows a polar bear observed off the stern of Coast Guard Cutter Healy, while it is underway on a mission in the Arctic Ocean in support of Geotraces. Geotraces is Healy's second science mission of the summer, and is an international effort to study the distribution of trace elements in the world's oceans. AFP/VOA

One of the giant panda cubs is examined by veterinarians after being born at Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington, Aug. 22, 2015. The National Zoo in Washington says its adult female panda has had twins.  Becky Malinsky/Smithsonian National Zoo/AP/VOA

A migrant man reacts as he is caught between Macedonian riot police officers and migrants during a clash near the border train station of Idomeni, northern Greece. Macedonia declared a state of emergency on its borders Thursday to deal with a massive influx of migrants heading north to Europe. AP/VOA

A wounded Ukrainian serviceman plays with a dog at a compound of the main military hospital in Kyiv.  A charity project initiated by the Canadian organizations, MSAR Service Dogs and Courageous Companions, provides training of service dogs for psychological rehabilitation of servicemen and veterans of the anti-terrorist operation in eastern Ukraine.  Reuters/VOA

Yasutaro Koide, 112, receives the Guinness World Records certificate as he is formally recognized as the world's oldest man at a nursing home in Nagoya, central Japan. AP/VOA

Reuters/VOA

    On the afternoon of Aug. 18, at about 3 p.m., “the ponente passed around a final copy of the majority opinion which was not the version voted upon during the morning’s deliberation. Rather, the copy offered for signature was substantially the Aug. 14, 2015 circulated version granting bail on humanitarian grounds.”

    This ponencia does away with Enrile’s entire argument thusly: “Yet, we do not now determine the question of whether or not Enrile’s averment on the presence of the two mitigating circumstances could entitle him to bail despite the crime alleged against him being punishable with reclusion perpetua, simply because the determination, being primarily factual in context, is ideally to be made by the trial court.”

I do not doubt Leonen’s version. And the way this whole issue was handled reminds me of how the Supreme Court under Renato Corona handled the GMA travel issue. Forcing through. What kind of decision-making is this?

http://opinion.inquirer.net/

    “When this case was called again for deliberation during the En Banc session on Aug. 11, 2015, the member in charge (now the ponente) proposed the idea of dropping all discussion on the legal points pertaining to whether bail was a matter of right and focusing the grant of bail on ‘humanitarian’ grounds. The member in charge committed to circulate a draft for the consideration of all justices.” And Leonen averred that he was open to listen to all arguments.

    A revised draft was circulated on Aug. 14, based on granting bail to Enrile based on his medical condition. Leonen responded with a letter to the justices, stating that this new proposal gave rise to certain new issues which had to be threshed out thoroughly.

    During the Aug. 18 en banc, the ponente would not agree to wait for more extensive written reflections on the points raised by Leonen. “Insisting on a vote, he thus declared that he was abandoning the Aug. 14, 2015 circulated draft centering on release on bail on humanitarian grounds for his earlier version premised on the idea that bail was a matter of right based on judicial notice and the judicial declaration of the existence of two mitigating circumstances.” (The vote was 8-4.)

Don’t misunderstand, Reader. I thought Enrile should be granted bail, because the evidence against him was not strong (I had read the case files), and his age certainly did not contribute to the risk of his fleeing. Worse, he had been in custody for over a year now. Does it take that long to determine whether the evidence against him is weak or strong? If so, why? After all, we’re not talking about a person’s guilt or innocence. For that, we need a trial, which can take years.

What is interesting about the Supreme Court decision is how it came about. This is related by Leonen in his dissent. In case you can’t spare the time to read, let me give you a condensed version:

    A draft decision was submitted by the member in charge early this year. This draft mainly adopted Enrile’s legal arguments. Leonen and Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe submitted their reflections on this issue, and refutations and arguments were exchanged in writing. Their point was that the Sandiganbayan committed no grave abuse of discretion, and Enrile’s petition should be dismissed.

But this column is not really about Enrile, but about the Supreme Court decision that granted him bail, overturning a Sandiganbayan decision. What is incomprehensible about the Supreme Court decision is that the reason for granting Enrile his request was not based on the legal arguments that he offered but, rather, on humanitarian, age-related health grounds, which he didn’t even ask for (so sure was he of the strength of his legal arguments).

The high court, in an excess of solicitude, may have forgotten that the Sandiganbayan gave standing orders authorizing that Enrile be taken to any hospital immediately if he exhibits symptoms that cannot be treated at the PNP General Hospital. So there was nothing to worry about, health-wise.

Reader, go to the Supreme Court’s website (www.sc.judiciary.gov.ph), read the majority decision (16 pages), and then read the dissenting opinion of Associate Justice Marvic Leonen (29 pages). I think you will agree with me that Leonen’s dissent had much more substance in it, and was certainly better argued, than the majority opinion. That his dissent was supported by Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno and Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio seems to validate my opinion. Those three have competence and integrity in spades. In fact, I got the feeling, when reading the majority opinion, that they first wanted to make sure that Enrile got bail, and then they mustered all the arguments they could, to support that decision.

Get Real

How SC decision on Enrile bail came about


Solita Collas-Monsod
Philippine Daily Inquirer
August 22nd, 2015

I got to see Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile up close and personal yesterday morning at his residence. For only a short while, mind you, but it helps that he lives right across the street from our house, and so one can dispense with formalities, and ask to be called when he had time for a chat.

The good news (it depends on where you sit) is that he looked hale and hearty. Of course I know he has ailmentsâ€"macular degeneration, for one, and the usual age-related “conditions” (heart, diabetes, etc.)â€"but he looked better than I do, and he has 18 years on me. He definitely looks much better than he did when he was presiding over the Corona impeachment trial.

And he is also raring to go. With relatively little time left (he is 92, after all), although he may surprise us yet, he is committed to serve God and country, and to hell with everything else. His position seems to be that he owes nothing to no one and is afraid of no one. So be prepared.

Filipinos go to the polls next year to elect a new president, with Aquino prohibited from running for another six- year term. Since 2010, his administration has pursued tax evaders and corrupt officials, allowing it to collect more revenue to build roads and schools and boost cash handouts to the poor, while shrinking budget deficits.

Standard & Poor's has upgraded the Philippines' credit rating four times during Aquino's tenure and all of the three big ratings companies assess it as investment grade.

Strong growth fundamentals, a large English-speaking population, fiscal and monetary prudence, and political stability support the positive outlook on the economy, said Andrew Wood, the Singapore-based head of Asia Country Risk Research at BMI Research, part of Fitch Group.

"The Philippines' large and growing labor force, along with increased policy-making credibility, should continue to draw investors' interest over the medium term," he said. "We believe the Philippines can continue to outperform the region."

_ Contributors: Clarissa Batino, Siegfrid Alegado and Ian Sayson in Manila and Lilian Karunungan in Singapore.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/

Outflows from Philippine stocks have also been more modest than for regional peers. Some $332 million has been pulled from the country's shares this quarter, compared with $587 million from Indonesia and $1.6 billion from Thailand. The Philippine benchmark share gauge is down 13 percent in three months, trailing drops of 13.8 percent in Thailand, 14.3 percent in Malaysia and 21 percent in Indonesia.

Saturna, the Malaysian unit of Saturna Capital, is overweight Philippine shares in its Asean portfolio as the country is a regional bright spot and less dependent on foreign funds, said Monem Salam, Saturna's president in Kuala Lumpur.

There are pockets of concern in the Philippine economy including companies with high levels of foreign-currency debt and property developers that engage in shadow banking, said the IMF's Peiris. The Philippine Exporters' Confederation warned last month that the peso's resilience was a potential threat to shipments. The currency is 20 percent overvalued, said Claudio Piron, co-head of Asia FX and rates strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Singapore.

Peso sovereign notes are the best performers in Asia after Taiwanese securities in the last three months, according to Bloomberg indexes. Thai debt returned 1.6 percent, while Malaysian and Indonesian paper declined 1.1 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively.

Around 10 percent of Philippine bonds are foreign-owned, according to BPI Asset Management and Trust Group, part of the country's second-largest lender. That compares with 39 percent in Indonesia, 31 percent in Malaysia, and 17 percent in Thailand at end-March, Asian Development Bank figures show.

"Philippine fixed-income assets stand out versus their Asian peers largely due to the dominance of domestic investors," said Mario Miranda, senior vice president at BPI Asset in Manila.

Money sent home by Filipinos living abroad, which makes up about 10 percent of GDP, increased 5.6 percent to $12.1 billion in the first half from a year earlier. A net oil importer, the Philippines has also benefited from falling crude prices. The country ran a $3.3 billion current-account surplus in the first quarter, compared with $1.5 billion in the same period of 2014, according to central bank data.

The Philippines' consumption-based economy and steady dollar inflows mean it's insulated from China's yuan devaluation and U.S. interest-rate increases, according to Jay Peiris, the International Monetary Fund's representative in Manila.

"It's very hard to think of a country that's less vulnerable," he said in an Aug. 20 interview.

"It's definitely the regional star," said Edwin Gutierrez, who helps oversee $13 billion as the head of emerging-market sovereign debt at Aberdeen Asset Management in London. "In a world starved of growth, Philippine growth -- albeit slowing -- is holding up relatively well," he said, adding that a relative lack of foreign participation had protected the country from capital flight.

The economy expanded 5.7 percent last quarter from a year earlier, according to a Bloomberg survey before data due Aug. 27. That would be an improvement from 5.2 percent expansion in the first three months, although slower than 6.1 percent in 2014. Indonesian and Malaysian growth slowed to 4.67 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively, last quarter, while Thai gross domestic product increased 2.8 percent.

A burgeoning business-process outsourcing industry is aiding the Philippine economy. Revenue from BPO, which includes customer call centers as well as the farming out of accounting tasks, will rise to $21.2 billion this year and $25 billion in 2016 from $18 billion in 2014, according to the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines.

Philippines becomes regional star as gloom descends around Asia

By Ditas Lopez, Bloomberg News

MANILA, Philippines â€" It's more what the Philippines doesn't have than what it does have that's making the country Southeast Asia's safe haven amid an emerging-market rout.

Relatively low levels of foreign investment in its bonds and stocks are shielding the Philippines from an intensifying selloff, while a comparative lack of raw materials means it's less vulnerable than Indonesia or Malaysia to sliding commodities prices. Stability under President Benigno Aquino stands in contrast to Thailand, ruled by the military since May 2014, and Malaysia, where the prime minister is facing calls to resign amid a political scandal.

Philippine local-currency sovereign bonds returned 2.9 percent over the last three months, the most in Southeast Asia. The peso has held up better than its peers, losing 4.5 percent, compared with drops of 8 percent in Thailand's baht, 12 percent in Indonesia's rupiah and 18 percent in Malaysia's ringgit. The benchmark Manila stocks index has also declined the least in the region over the period.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/533761/news/nation/how-supreme-court-justices-voted-on-enrile-bail-petition

This is the heart of the public scorn that has met the Supreme Court’s decision allowing Enrile to post bailâ€"that, as we said in this space last Monday, the eight-person majority who voted in favor of Enrile “had to twist this way and that to rationalize its decision.” The apparent partiality of the ruling, its nature as a “special accommodation”â€"as Associate Justice Marvic Leonen described it in a blistering dissentâ€"does the Supreme Court’s reputation no favors.

Just when the high court has made strides in recovering public standing with its widely hailed decisions striking down the Disbursement Acceleration Program and PDAF and upholding the Reproductive Health Bill, its ruling on Enrile is an unfortunate throwback to its muddled period of contorted, questionable decisions in the Arroyo years, when the Constitution’s express prohibition on midnight appointments, for instance, could be set aside by the justicesâ€"or read in the most creative mannerâ€"to favor the irregular appointment of one of their own.

One step forward, two steps back. And since it is the Supreme Court’s own solid reputation at stake, we feel the disappointment all the more keenly.

http://opinion.inquirer.net/

Enrile’s public life is even more problematic: the architect of martial law, a principal accused in coup attempts against the government of then-president Corazon Aquino, the alleged beneficiary of documented dagdag-bawas operations in the 1995 elections that sent him to the Senate at the expense of Aquilino Pimentel Jr., and now the most high-profile of the raft of government officials accused of plunder, graft and related cases in the pork barrel scam.

This is not the kind of record any man would claim as immaculate and unblemished, and Enrile himself has never done so. Not in the campaign advertisements he has done over the years, in which he never raised his virtuousness or his clean public record as his qualification for office, instead confining his appeal to gut issues and cheery bromides (“Gusto ko, happy kayo!”). Neither did he use a “solid reputation in both his public and private lives” as an argument in his plea for bail. But, as with the humanitarian argument of old age that Enrile himself did not raise, but which Bersamin plucked out of thin air to employ as a fuzzy justification for the petitioner’s release, the matter of Enrile’s “reputation” suddenly became central to his caseâ€"apparently all at the sole instigation of the author of the ponencia.

Enrile has a “solid reputation in both his public and private lives”? Let’s see. The state of his marriage has been discussed and made public by no less than his former wife, Cristina Castañer Enrile, who revealed on television the serial infidelities she had suffered in her years with Enrileâ€"some 38 instances spread over 56 years. Not only that; she confirmed the widespread rumor that her husband and his erstwhile chief of staff, Gigi Reyesâ€"now Enrile’s coaccused in the plunder caseâ€"did have an affair, that “it lasted too long” compared to the others, and that it was what pushed her to leave for the United States so she could seek divorce.

Enrile’s private life, of course, even for a politician as powerful and enduring as he is, should ordinarily be of no concern to the publicâ€"but for the fact that, in this case, his long-time confidant Reyes would emerge, from accounts of whistle-blowers in the pork barrel scam, as the alleged principal conduit for at least P172 million in kickbacks from Enrile’s Priority Development Assistance Fund allocation from 2004 to 2010. That reported affair became imbued with public interest the moment public funds were involved. As this newspaper reported last Monday: “Documents from the Commission on Audit that formed part of the evidence submitted by the NBI against Enrile showed that he admitted that it was his signature that appeared in the documents, which authorized Reyes to conduct transactions involving his PDAF allocations on his behalf.”

EDITORIAL

Solid reputation?

Philippine Daily Inquirer
August 26th, 2015

According to the Supreme Court’s majority decision in Enrile vs. Sandiganbayan, Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile should be granted bailâ€"for the nonbailable charge of plunderâ€"because, well, he has much to lose if his plea was denied. “With his solid reputation in both his public and his private lives, his long years of public service, and history’s judgment of him being at stake, he should be granted bail,” wrote Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin.

What on earth is a reasonable public to make of that statement?

i believe the owner patterned the dog's grooming after himself.

i second, third, and fourth the emotion, mr emoticon!

clearly, too, even their historic claim is ambiguous.

despite stories from my father who was a late teener of a soldier during the war while his youngest brother, the uncle that i never saw, was tortured by the japanese and had eventually died of his wounds, i can't help but appreciate the japan and the japanese of today with their discipline, formal manners, and sincere empathy. that war is past. we filipinos move on.

which reminds me... maybe we are daft, maybe we are imbeciles or just a plain, old forgiving nation. other countries execute authoritarians and kleptocrats and their families. we continue to elect ours into office.

not all is dismal after all

back to the dismaland where dismal is king

But not everyone is a fan.. .This Banksy mural depicting pigeons holding anti-immigration signs was destroyed by the local council in Clacton-on-Sea, England on October 1 after the council received complaints that the artwork was offensive.

http://edition.cnn.com/

Despite his anti-establishment roots, Banksy has gone on to garner great enthusiasm from the high-end art market world. This stencil print "Love is in the Air" sold for $248,000 in 2013.

The amusement park theme also made its way to New York's Lower East Side, during his month-long "residency" with this ghoulish exhibit "Grim Reaper Bumper Car."

Banksy famously took his firebrand style to the streets of New York in 2013, with a series of artworks appearing over the course of a month in neighborhoods around the city.

...Not to mention many a humorous dig at Britain's police force.

Banksy's work often plays with overtly political themes such as surveillance culture and state corruption.

The secretive street artist had built his reputation on playful images that began appearing on the walls of London and Bristol in the early 1990s. This image is from 2006.

This killer whale jumping out of a toilet piece by Banksy was also on the grounds.

Over 50 artists from 17 countries are represented among the works shown. However, Banksy did contribute a selection of new works of his own, including this installation of a woman being attacked by seagulls. (Yes, you can take a seat next to her if you want.)

One of the highlights of the exhibition? The staff, who were convincingly glum throughout.

Big Rig Jig, a sculpture by Mike Ross, on display at Dismaland.

In fact, many of the artworks shown were politically motivated. This one by Peter Kennard and Cat Phillips makes quite a clear statement about Britain's current political leadership.

It's not the kind of thing you expect from a seaside art exhibition, but there's no doubt an audience for it. And not just the usual art fanatics streaming in from out of town for the Banksy experience and something from the gift shop.


It opened for residents at 11am today, who redeemed a voucher in the local newspaper, with queues forming around 7.30am. It will open for the general public tomorrow - dailymail.co.uk

Passersby on the way to the aquarium or the beach or home stop to ponder the ominous Dismaland sign and ask about admission without even knowing what's happening. It's a fun fair, some suggest, or an opening.

"It seems like an evil version of Disney," a little girl in a GAP jumper muses near the barriers.

Well, art has always been open to interpretation.

Dismaland runs from August 21 to September 27, 2015

http://edition.cnn.com/

But it's clearly not just Disney in the spotlight here. One of Banksy's new works on display, ostensibly a game, has visitors navigating boats of migrants surrounded by floating bodies.


Not every piece was quite so whimsical. This more topical installation -- one of the many games at the amusement park -- makes a powerful statement about the ongoing migrant crisis.

Behind the Ferris wheel and the high interest loan shop for kids seeking allowance advances, there's the activist corner. After taking in the art, visitors can explore a geodome covered in protest posters and the anarchist bookstore, or receive advice about collective bargaining and unions. A girl with cropped hair and a defiant smirk offers tips and kits for hacking bus stop billboard displays.


People get a first glimpse of Banky's Dismaland. Pictured is a spoof payday loan for children who want extra pocket money - dailymail.co.uk

As was expected, the artist isn't here to speak to his mission directly, or why he's sending up Disney, but the artists on hand were more than happy to theorize.

"[Disney] is vulnerable, to me," says Jeff Gillette, the Orange County-based artist who juxtaposes Disney characters with images of slums and dumps. "They're such a big presence and such a big part of culture and symbolic of so many things. It's hard not to f**k with them."

(To add insult to corporate injury, signs at Dismaland say lawyers are banned, along with spray paint, marker pens and knives.)


The airport-style entrance, created by artist Bill Barminski, to artist Banksy's biggest show to date, entitled Dismaland - Dailymail.co.uk

 
This is, of course, the Banksy who has built a reputation for leaving often political, frequently comical graffiti everywhere from London to Gaza; the street artist known for exploring war, political corruption, hope and revolution with stencils and spray paint; the anonymous figure whose identity remains unconfirmed.


It's not the first time Banksy has played on the amusement park theme. In a poignantly different scene from earlier in the year, a child in Beit Hanoun walks past a mural that depicts children using an Israeli watchtower as a swing ride.

What we do know is he was raised in nearby Bristol, and that he's been planning this for months. There's been speculation for weeks about what was going on at the site -- formerly a public pool. Locals were told it was a film set.

There are rides, yes, and three galleries featuring pieces from the likes of Damien Hirst, Jenny Holzer, and Banksy himself, along with lesser-known artists. Many of the over 50 artists from 17 countries exhibiting share a common irreverence toward the political and cultural establishment.


In this image, a Palestinian child stands next to a Banksy mural of a kitten on the remains of a house that was destroyed during the battles between Israel and Hamas militants in the summer of 2014, in the Gaza town of Beit Hanun on February 26 of this year.

Surrounding it: an upside down slide fashioned from a battered old truck, an old-school carousel, a Ferris wheel. Inside, Cinderella's coach has crashed, surrounded by clicking paparazzi.


This Cinderella piece -- taken inside of the decrepit castle at the center of the park, riffs on the death of Princess Diana.

Here it is: the latest exhibition from Banksy, the art world's favorite agent provocateur. Billed as a "bemusement park" and modeled after Disneyland, it's a warped vision of the so-called "happiest place on Earth". Officially opening to the public on Saturday, August 22 (it's open to locals only tomorrow), it's Banksy's largest exhibition to date and the 4000 allotted daily tickets, priced at less than $5, are expected to sell out fast.

Welcome to Dismaland: Banksy's new grotesque art theme park

Allyssia Alleyne, CNN
August 21, 2015


Banksy's 'Bemusement Park': Dismaland

(CNN)The seaside town of Weston-super-Mare in south-west England is gray and gloomy when we arrive.

"Welcome to Dismaland," a dead-eyed girl in Mickey Mouse ears greets us at the gates of the old public pool.


Marketed as a "bemusement park," it features work from fellow contemporary artists Damien Hirst, Jenny Holzer and Jimmy Cauty, and will run for six weeks.

We're hassled by testy security guards at metal detectors before we catch sight of the main attraction: a decrepit fairytale castle in a moat of murky water and a crashed police van.

This alone means that no country involved is going to lie down and simply concede on this issue. At the moment, a complex series of claims, based on different arguments, spreads across the various features of the area. What constitutes an island has become important because of the stipulation under UNCLOS that this gives rights to extensive maritime areas around it â€" up to 200 nautical miles. Thus the attempts to define even features which most of the time are submerged under water as islands.  Since 2009, spats between contesting parties, some of them including the Philippines, have increased. Most of these have involved fishing or lifeguard vessels. But everyone knows they are proxy for harder, military assets. Even the United States has been increasingly sucked in, protesting neutrality but evidently keen to see China’s space pinned back and its grand claims circumscribed. More’s the pity, however, that the US is not a signatory to UNCLOS, somewhat eroding its moral authority here.

One of the most striking features of this hugely complex issue, however, is that it pits two views of the world in a head on collision. Very broadly, the Philippines are claiming that international law is dominant, and that it needs to be the common language by which to resolve all these issues. For China, however, the prime claims are historic, and these take precedence.  While not wishing to over-simplify this issue, this is the fundamental challenge for the South China Sea disputes â€" its contesting parties are operating in different conceptual universes and are unwilling, or unable, to speak the same language to each other. This makes resolution, as things stand at the moment, almost impossible. China is likely to simply dismiss an unfavourable judgment from The Hague this month, if it comes, as illegitimate because history, not modern law, takes precedence here.

Despite this, tactically just one legal judgment spreading a little legal light on the issues in the region would be significant. It would, ever so slightly, increase the role of law, not history or political might, as the most sustainable route to an eventual resolution of the South China Sea travails. For that reason, the Philippine move is an important one, and its outcome, beyond all the arcane details and the confusing context, potentially highly meaningful.

http://www.policyforum.net/

This is because, with the Philippines, they share one major bone of contention, which this judgment might clear up a little more â€" and that is about the now infamous nine-dash line asserted by China, which stretches almost 1,500 kms from the coast of Hainan, China’s most southerly point. This violates the principle of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) allowing separate countries 200 Nautical Miles of space around their coastal regions, skirting the edges of Malaysian, Vietnamese, Philippine and, at some point, Indonesian, territory. Broadly, the Philippines is stating that the nine-dash line violates this and needs to be questioned, and, even better for them, shown to be invalid.

The most benign interpretation of the nine-dash line is that it is a hangover from an era in which maritime law was non-existent and which understanding of sovereign borders was in its infancy. The historic origin of the line comes more from the Republic of China (in charge of the Mainland up to 1949, and now based in Taiwan) rather than the People’s Republic, something that creates an extra layer of confusion. It is not even certain where the precise extent of this line is. The one thing everyone can agree on is that it lays symbolic claim to a huge territory of strategically very important waters, with trade and military routes crisscrossing it in an area that is fast becoming the world’s most dynamic economic region.

Secondly, this court has no decision-making powers over territorial rights. That needs to be done through the International Court of Justice, and all the disputing parties have to agree to bring a case to this body â€" something that has so far proved impossible.

The main likely outcome of this current case will be to strengthen the principle that international law has a role to play in the ultimate resolution of the contesting claims. Whether Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan and other actors in this issue will line up with the Philippines and agree with this, let alone China, is a moot point. All of them have different agendas.  But for all of them, except China, it is in their interests to do so.

South China Sea’s judgement day

Ruling on dispute between China and the Philippines will be meaningful, even if it doesn’t quickly lead to resolution

Kerry Brown


PHOTO: NASA

July 2015 - Government and governance, International relations, Law | Asia, Australia, East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, The Pacific, The World

An important ruling is imminent on contesting claims in the South China Sea between China and the Philippines. But will it hold any water, and what is the significance?

A significant judgement is expected some time this month in the Arbitral Tribunal in The Hague under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Brought by the Philippines against China, it will be the first time that legal experts in an international court will opine on matters related to the contesting claims in the South China Sea.

Not that anyone should expect UNCLOS’s judgment, when rendered, will do much to clear things up overnight, or even in the short to medium term. Firstly, China is not offering a counter-submission and will not recognize the current process if a judgment is issued against it.

all meme images from http://radyo.inquirer.net/

and the memes had fun...

and the OFWs are supposed to trust the BOC employees with opening balikbayan boxes?

The other government offices rounding out the not-so-prestigious list are:

    Land Transportation Office -32 in 2013 (-26 in 2012)
    House of Representatives -28 in 2013 (-6 in 2012)
    Philippine National Police -24 in 2013 (-12 in 2012)
    Department of Public Works and Highways -22 in 2013 (-21 in 2012)
    Bureau of Internal Revenue -10 in 2013 (-20 in 2012)

According to the SWS, the ratings of agencies' sincerity in fighting corruption were graded into Excellent (+70 and above), Very Good (net +50 to +69), Good (+30 to +49), Moderate (+10 to +29), Neutral (-9 to +9), Poor (-10 to -29), Bad (-30 to -49), Very Bad (-50 to -69), and Execrable (-70 and below).

Changes were considered "notable" when the rating moved in a different grade.

The SWS has yet to release a Survey of Enterprises on Corruption for 2014.

http://cnnphilippines.com/

Survey: Customs tops list of most corrupt Philippine agencies

By CNN Philippines Staff
March 15, 2015

(CNN Philippines) â€" In the Philippines, corruption exists in all levels of the government, especially among high-level civil servants, according to the US Department of State Investment Climate Statement released two years ago.

The Bureau of Customs, tops the list as the most corrupt government office in the country based on Social Weather Station (SWS) data released in 2014.

The results of the 2013 SWS Survey of Enterprises on Corruption showed that six government offices showed little improvement in their efforts to fight corruption.

The survey gave the bureau a "very bad" rating of -63 for 2013, which was a tad worse compared to the -46 “bad” rating the BOC received the year before.

The worst ratings the BOC got from the poll body were during 2005-2009, when it received an "Execrable" rating.

ikaw man na si black kitty. nasuya sa akong ka-cute.

What You Can Do If You See Warning Signs

    #Create a Safety Plan. Don’t wait for “proof” of child sexual abuse.

    #Look for patterns of behavior that make children less safe. Keep track
     of behaviors that concern you. This Sample Journal Page can be a helpful
     tool.
   
     See our Let’s Talk Guidebook for tips on speaking up whenever you have a concern.

    If you have questions or would like resources or guidance for responding to a specific situation, visit our Online Help Center.

Share Prevention Tip Sheets in Your Community

We encourage you to print and share these tip sheets in your family and community.  Our tip sheets are licensed under the Creative Commons (link is external), which allows you to reproduce them as long as you follow these Guidelines. Please contact us about permissions and to tell us how you plan to put our resources to work. You can also buy high quality, print versions of selected tip sheets in bulk in our Store (link is external).

For more information and guidance, please visit our Online Help Center.

-from http://www.stopitnow.org/ohc-content/tip-sheet-7

Physical warning signs

Physical signs of sexual abuse are rare.  If you see these signs, bring your child to a doctor.   Your doctor can help you understand what may be happening and test for sexually transmitted diseases.

    #Pain, discoloration, bleeding or discharges in genitals, anus or mouth
    #Persistent or recurring pain during urination and bowel movements
    #Wetting and soiling accidents unrelated to toilet training

Signs more typical in adolescents

    #Self-injury (cutting, burning)
    #Inadequate personal hygiene
    #Drug and alcohol abuse
    #Sexual promiscuity
    #Running away from home
    #Depression, anxiety
    #Suicide attempts
    #Fear of intimacy or closeness
    #Compulsive eating or dieting

Signs more typical of younger children

    #An older child behaving like a younger child (such as bed-wetting or
     thumb sucking)
    #Has new words for private body parts
    #Resists removing clothes when appropriate times (bath, bed, toileting,
     diapering)
    #Asks other children to behave sexually or play sexual games
    #Mimics adult-like sexual behaviors with toys or stuffed animal
    #Wetting and soiling accidents unrelated to toilet training

Behavior you may see in a child or adolescent

    #Has nightmares or other sleep problems without an explanation
    #Seems distracted or distant at odd times
    #Has a sudden change in eating habits
    #Refuses to eat
    #Loses or drastically increases appetite
    #Has trouble swallowing.
    #Sudden mood swings: rage, fear, insecurity or withdrawal
    #Leaves “clues” that seem likely to provoke a discussion about sexual 
     issues
    #Writes, draws, plays or dreams of sexual or frightening images
    #Develops new or unusual fear of certain people or places
    #Refuses to talk about a secret shared with an adult or older child
    #Talks about a new older friend
    #Suddenly has money, toys or other gifts without reason
    #Thinks of self or body as repulsive, dirty or bad
    #Exhibits adult-like sexual behaviors, language and knowledge

Tip Sheet: Warning Signs of Possible Sexual Abuse In A Child's Behaviors

Any one sign doesn't mean that a child was sexually abused, but the presence of several suggests that you begin asking questions and consider seeking help. Keep in mind that some of these signs can emerge at other times of stress such as:

    # During a divorce
    # Death of a family member or pet
    # Problems at school or with friends
    # Other anxiety-inducing or traumatic events

#1 | Can Treat Lice With Anise Seed Extract



According to Green Med Info, coconut oil mixed with Anise Seed is a simple lice treatment.

http://weekendcollective.com/

#2 | Can Treat Cold Sores



Coconut oil’s antiviral properties make it a great way to heal cold sores quickly. It also acts as a pain reliever. (Green Med Info)

#3 | Helps Build Muscle



Just as MCFAs are great for burning fat, they’re equally as good at building muscle. You can find coconut milk in Muscle Milk because of its MCFAs benefits. (Dr. Axe)

#4 | Improves Skin Issues like Burns, Eczema, Dandruff, Dermatitis and Psoriasis



The secret to coconut oil’s ability to help with all of this is its incredible moisturizing properties. The fatty acids in the oil make it great for cleansing, moisturizing and sun protectant. It also has anti-oxidants that help heal the skin. (Dr. Axe)

#5 | Helps Prevent Cancer



People who were given coconut oil were less likely to develop tumors and more likely to fight off cancer cells.

#6 | REDUCES INFLAMMATION AND ARTHRITIS



Coconut oil relieves inflammation and pain for people suffering from Arthritis. Its MCFAs ease and loosen up stiff muscles and joints. It acts as a pain reliever, anti-inflammatory and muscle/joint lubricant. (Be Healthy with Coconuts)