As I write this, there are others who type and publish their own commentaries online. Every other second or so a new entry shoots across cyberspace and you could only guess as to how much information becomes available to the public with just one click of a button. We could not reckon the exact figures or value of sources, or is it that we do not bother reckoning at all?

Sometimes it just gets so comfortable living life in the fast lane. We watch the most jocular YouTube videos, read and get absorbed by the latest entries even those from the likes of bryanboy and delfindjmontano, hack into the lives of the most desirable as well as the most notorious people behind those Friendster profiles, all in one sitting. And after all the blablahs and the boohoos, we only unplug ourselves from the World Wide Web, and that’s just about it.

A few months ago, I finally gave in to my sister’s incessant demand that I join her in her most recent obsession, though she prefers to call it an "investment." I’ve decided to join the bandwagon by signing up for an account in Multiply. With a quite favorable broadband internet access and a cup of coffee by my side, voila! I have yet again created another personal place in cyberspace, another means to propagate my sporadic drama via the technology of internet. WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) web authoring programs can really go a long way, especially if you’re the type who doesn’t have time to read HTML for Dummies. See full text of commentary

As seen from the budget cuts plaguing state education, the president may have to do harder to fill the gap between what she preaches and what she does. Far worse than lip service are the billion-peso anomalies in the midst of the education crisis embroiling the highest officials of the land.

According to the human capital theory, the economic development of a nation is a function of the quality of its education. In other words, if people are more educated, the greater the chances of economic development.

When Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was sworn into office on June 30, 2004 as the country’s 14th President, she vowed to give “education for all.” After four years, the country’s out-of-school rates ranked among the highest in Asia, even exceeding rates of Indonesia and Vietnam.

Rising resource shortages characterize the crisis in Philippine education. The proposed budget for education this year only represents 2.19 percent of the Gross National Product (GNP), compared to the ideal six percent of GNP as pegged by the International Commission on Education for the 21st century.

There is a significant decrease in government allocations for public education. The share of national government in state colleges and universities’ (SCUs) financing has been steadily declining from 85 percent in 2001 to 77 percent in 2005. See full text of feature article

7 February 2008

How can we preserve the komedya and other traditional theater forms in the country?

The Komedya Fiesta 2008 aims to create awareness whilst promoting understanding of and appreciation for the komedya through a month long event of performances, conferences, workshops, exhibits and colloquia.

The Fiesta is a seven day event scheduled every Friday of February 2008 at the Amphitheatre of UP Diliman. It was organized in celebration of the UP Centennial by the University of the Philippines Office of the Chancellor through the UP Centennial by the University of the Philippines Office of the Chancellor through the College of Arts and Letters (CAL) and in cooperation with the Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts (OICA). At the forefront is National Artist for Literature and CAL dean Virgilio Almario who wishes to create a national theatrical form with the komedya and the zarzuela. See full text of news feature article