April 2025 Recap

April 2025 Recap

It's only the middle of April and yet the news is already too much for my little brain to handle. There are way too many earth-shaking things going on at a fast clip to make sense of, especially in this unusually cruel weather.

So Sad: Kris Aquino Says She Has 9 Autoimmune Diseases

In a deeply personal update on Instagram, Kris Aquino revealed her ongoing battle with multiple autoimmune conditions, including 1. autoimmune thyroiditis, 2. lupus, 3. systemic sclerosis/scleroderma, 4. rheumatoid arthritis, 5. chronic spontaneous urticaria, 6. EGPA (eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis), 7. fibromyalgia, 8. polymyositis, and 9. mixed connective tissue disease. Poor thing! Having just one of those is tremendous suffering enough -- how much more nine? The public of course responded with an outpouring of prayers and support for her continued strength and healing, but with one advising her to seek the help of an albularyo.

Hilarious: Mistaken Identity: ICC Lawyer Mix-Up

In a bizarre twist on social media, American author Nicholas Kaufmann became an unintended target of political confusion. Supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte bombarded Kaufmann’s accounts, mistaking him for Nicholas Kaufman—the Israeli-British lawyer defending Duterte in the ICC case. Despite Kaufmann’s repeated clarifications, the flood of messages continued, some even coming from apparent bots, according to his later posts.

Ridiculous: “Grocery Gang”: Strange Names on Government Fund Records

Ma. Ceres Doyo wrote a column article that is hilarious, a great departure from her usual serious, profound tone, but only because the incident is simply ridiculous. To paraphrase, she noted that a recent audit of confidential funds used by Vice President Sara Duterte and the Department of Education revealed highly suspicious signatories—names like Mary Grace Piattos, Jay Kamote, and Mathew Keso—sparking laughter and concern across the country. Lacking any official documentation in national databases, these names appear to be fictitious, and lawmakers are now demanding answers: who created them, and where did the money actually go? Rep. Paolo Ortega dubbed them the “team grocery” due to their food-themed aliases, while House hearings revealed that many supposed recipients had no traceable records. The fallout includes impeachment articles against Duterte and legal challenges filed with the Supreme Court.

"Comic relief or criminal deception?" she asked, and continued that, while some find humor in the audacity of the fake names, the gravity of the situation remains. Was it a sloppy cover-up or a deliberate whistleblow in disguise? The answer remains unclear, but the implications are serious. Calls for accountability are growing louder, Doyo noted.

Worrisome: A Sudden Tariff War

U.S. President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs—10% across all imports, with steeper rates for select nations and an especially over-the-top tariff for China. I had to review what tariff means and had to read several columnists and economists (Balicasan, Habito, et al.) to try to make heads and tails of it, but I am not sure if I was properly schooled in it, especially since there are widely divergent opinions on the matter. In the end, I was reduced to asking myself, "What's going on?"

Similarly, the more I read about various lawyers' take on the ICC arrest of Duterte, the more I got confused on which side to listen to.

Scary: Will China Invade Taiwan Soon?

Meanwhile, tensions rise over a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan. This cliffhanger awaits our estimated 250,000 OFWs in that island-state that courageously chose democracy over communism, yet the United Nations chose NOT to officially recognize its independence and sovereignty, or at least honor its heroism.

Looks like we need to get busier praying harder than before.

Interesting: Resurrection from the Dead

In science news, Colossal Biosciences claimed the first "de-extinction" case, that of the dire wolf—though some experts argue it's closer to a genetically modified grey wolf.

I wish that, someday, they would be able to bring back the dodo, Tasmanian wolf, and other interesting creatures that we humans have, in our collective stupidity, decimated.

On a Happy Note: A Historic Moment for Filipino Artists on Broadway

Now this is something I can understand.

Great news for long-time theater fans like myself! This month marked a groundbreaking achievement for the Filipino community in the performing arts. For the first time ever, reports Lea Salonga on FB, seven Filipino actors are starring simultaneously in four different Broadway productions—a moment of immense pride for Filipino-Americans and, of course, Filipinos. They are Nicole Scherzinger ("Sunset Boulevard”), Darren Criss ("Maybe Happy Ending”), Lea Salonga herself (in Stephen Sondheim’s “Old Friends”), Tatianna Cordoba ("Real Women Have Curves"), Eva Noblezada (“Cabaret”), Marie-Claire Hall (“Operation Mincemeat"), and Kay Sibal (“Six the Musical”). According to the Broadway legend, the milestone highlights the growing influence and exceptional talent of Filipino artists in global theater.

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Over at YouTube, several restored Filipino film classics have been uploaded for free viewing. I am reminded of my old quest to watch all the films listed to be among the best. The long vacation ahead is perfect timing.

Food for Thought: Side Hustle Culture

How do people survive nowadays when inflation rates reach sky-high?

What I notice around me is the phenomenon of side hustles. In the halcyon days of yore, this was called "sideline" or "moonlighting."

Just looking around, I can see people moonlighting or working on the side during off hours or weekends as event host, event organizer, online seller and reseller or pasa-buy delivery person, sari-sari store operator, long-haul van driver, artist, masseur, teacher/tutor, hair and makeup artist, dancer/choreographer, vlogger, singer, writer, videographer, small resto operator...

I wonder if people in the upper echelons ever wonder how ordinary Filipinos actually make do and get by, what kind of meals they have from day to day, etc.

Under the Radar: New Pinoy Parlor Games

Last year (2024) saw a sudden spurt in the number of creative party games or parlor games. In our home last Christmas, my siblings, nephews, and nieces tried almost all of those games, to cacophonous results. Among my favorites is the one where several singers line up in front of the videoke to take turns singing lines of a usually high-register song. The game is a great opportunity for those gifted with the voice but a laughable disaster for those who are not as gifted, and that's where the fun of the game partly lies. Another favorite is the very physical yet cerebral game "Eh Ikaw?" currently made popular by the comedy group SPIT. Look it up, in case you don't know what I'm talking about.

These novel games have ushered in a, er, golden age in Philippine party games.

Cause for Dismay: Gutter-Level Campaign Utterances

Apparently, kabastusan (coarseness and vulgarity) is now the new normal. Look at these lines that the public accepted by laughing at the jokes delivered by election candidates, not by a stand-up comedian in a comedy bar:

“Minsan sa isang taon ang mga solo parent na babae na rineregla pa — Nay, malinaw na rineregla pa — at nalulungkot, minsan sa isang taon pwedeng sumiping ho sa akin (Once a year, female single parents who still have their monthly period and feel lonely, once a year you can have sex with me).” - Pasig congressional candidate (and lawyer too!) Christian Sia

“The nursing scholarship is only for women, not for men. And only for beautiful women. It is a no-no for the unattractive, because if a male patient who is already weak is attended to by an ugly nurse, what would happen to him? Their illness could get worse.” - Misamis Oriental Governor Peter Unabia

"Kung ang aking kalaban ay isang Vilma Santos lang na laos na, hindi ako takot." - Mataas na Kahoy, Batangas Vice Mayor Jay Ilagan (And I was, like, huh? I can't forget the last movie I watched with Vilma Santos in it titled "Extra".)

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Scatter became a popular gambling game after e-sabong somewhat waned It's quite hard to believe that these big, big names in local showbiz died within weeks of each other Pilita Corrales, Nora Aunor, and Hajji Alejandro. Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa died. After spending 38 days in hospital for double pneumonia, Pope Francis suddenly died at age 88 just a day after greeting well-wishers on Easter at the Vatican grounds on his popemobile and after meeting with US Vice President JD Vance. Tributes poured in from all over the world from all walks, hailing him as a "pope for all." After the great Myanmar quake came a series of earthquakes here in the Philippines and around the world, and this tells us that these tectonic movements are interrelated. I remember a time when this relationship had been denied and laughed at by expert volcanologists. But they seem to have changed their tune in recent years. Aba, bongga! Lav Diaz had a new film, 'Magellan,' starring Gael Garcia Bernal, and to be shown in Cannes, no less. But who will watch a 10-hour film? Or even its whittled down (3-hour) version? On April 27, scores of revelers of Filipino-descent died in Vancouver, Canada after an SUV driven by a man of Chinese descent rammed through the crowd while they were celebrating Lapu-Lapu Day. In contrast, a piece of sad news for fellow cinephiles: After rescuing 240 films from permanent erasure from our collective memory, ABS-CBN shut down restoration unit, with project head Leo Katigbak reportedly describing it as “a casualty of the efforts to close down the company in 2020.”