Documentary — GuardiansPress

If You Were On Her Shoes

April 4, 2010 by admin ·

The reigning Binibining Pilipinas-Universe Maria Venus Raj has been dethroned after beauty pageant organizers allegedly found some “inconsistencies” on her birth certificate. And as a result of which, she’ll be replaced by Bb. Pilipinas runner-up, Helen Nicolette Henson to represent the country in a forthcoming Miss Universe Pageant. Now, looking back into what really transpired is that if you were on her shoes, what would you feel?

Modesty aside, had these BPCI organizers really been doing their job honestly and religiously then all these things now could have been possibly prevented. Granting that all their allegations against this very talented and beautiful lady from Camarines Sur are all true and authentic, but the mere fact that the organizers know about it after a series of constant interviews and queries made by them, and aside probably from the organizers initiative in conducting a background and thorough check towards all its contenders, then it is presumed that they had fully admitted the fact because if not, then she should no longer be permitted to vie for that title and stand before the eyes of million Filipino people only to be humiliated later on publicly.

Nevertheless, how disheartening really the organizers decision because it was not the fault of Ms Raj, hence, they are putting the shame upon her for the blunder they’ve made. Thus, with all of the foregoing, I do not see any reason why she should have been strip of her title just because of the organizer’s ineptitude. Well, the recent interview made by ABS-CBN TV host Boy Abunda in one of their show, Ms Raj reveals that they’ll be filing a case against the pageant’s organizer which to our mind is the best thing for her to do. Anyway, you have all our support Ms Raj whose only fault is winning that title.

Filed Under: Documentary, Personal ·

Ancient Egyptians Lived Like Gods On “Junk Food” – Study Finds

February 26, 2010 by admin ·

The artery-clogging food and drink habitually consumed by the kings and queens of ancient Egypt would be classified as ‘junk food’ by contemporary standards and certainly guaranteed an early death rather than immortality, British scientists have found.

Bountiful banquets offered to the gods and eaten by Egyptian priests and their families were laden with saturated fat and bursting with calories – from the highly-popular goose to fortified bread, eggs and rich milk.

Researchers at Manchester University in northern Britain have found that hieroglyphic inscriptions on temple walls and the priests’ mummified remains bear the unmistakable signs of damaged arteries and heart disease.

Their findings, published in the medical magazine The Lancet Friday, said salt intake was also high and alcohol consumption would have exceeded modern recommendations.

Sumptuous meals of beef, wild fowl, bread, fruit, vegetables, cake, wine and beer were offered to the gods at the temple up to the three times a day, and often the priests would take the leftovers home to their families.

‘There couldn’t be a more evocative message: live like a god and you will pay with your health,’ said Professor Rosalie David, who led the study.

The findings also showed that blocked arteries caused by rich diets are not just a modern malaise, she said.

The findings are based on a new translation of hieroglyphs in Egyptian temples to reveal the offerings menu, much of which was rich in saturated fat and would be classified as ‘junk food’ now.

Goose, which was commonly consumed, provided 63 per cent of its energy from fat, of which 20 per cent was saturated, said the study.

In addition, the priests ate a type of bread fortified with fat, milk and eggs, while cakes were typically made with animal fat or oil.

Salt intake was also likely to have been high, since it was often used as a preservative.

Mummified remains of the priests showed high levels of calcified hardened deposits on the walls of arteries – clear signs of atherosclerosis, the narrowing of diseased blood vessels.

‘There is unequivocal evidence to show that atherosclerosis is a disease of ancient times, induced by diet, and that the epidemic of atherosclerosis which began in the 20th century is nothing more than history revisiting us,’ said co-author Professor Tony Heagerty, a heart expert.

The Manchester team looked at computed tomography (CT) X-ray scans of 22 mummies of high social status Egyptians. In 16 of these where hearts or arteries could be identified, nine mummies showed evidence of calcification.

The state of the priests’ arteries and hearts may explain why even the ancient Egyptian elite had low life expectancies of 40 to 50 years, the study said.

It pointed out that the rich fare was markedly different from the frugal, mostly vegetarian diet of ordinary Egyptians. M & C

Filed Under: Documentary, Research & Study ·

DOJ OKs Murder Raps VS Ampatuan Sr, 196 Others

February 9, 2010 by admin ·

The Department of Justice on Tuesday recommended the filing of 57 counts of murder against former Maguindanao governor Andal Ampatuan Sr. and 196 others linked to the gruesome massacre of 57 people in Maguindanao last November 23.

In a 78-page resolution, the DOJ eight-man panel of investigation prosecutors led by Senior State Prosecutor Leo Dacera said “the confluence of events before and immediately after” the massacre took place led them to conclude that Ampatuan Sr., his son Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Gov. Datu Zaldy “Puti” U. Ampatuan, Datu Akmad “Tato” Ampatuan, Sr., Datu Norodin Ampatuan, and Datu Jimmy Ampatuan connived with the actual perpetrators.

The panel said evidence on record showed that the respondents instigated the plan to ambush members of the Mangudadatu clan on their way to the office of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Cotabato City to file the certificate of candidacy of Esmael Mangudadatu for the gubernatorial post in Maguindanao.

It said witnesses identified respondents Datu Andal “Unsay” Ampatuan, Jr., Datu Kanor Ampatuan, Datu Bahnarin A. Ampatuan, Datu Mama Ampatuan, Datu Sajid Islam U. Ampatuan, Datu Anwar Ampatuan, Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Jr., Datu Ulo Ampatuan, Datu Ipi Ampatuan, Datu Harris Ampatuan, Datu Moning Ampatuan, Mogira Hadji Anggulat, Parido Zangkala Gogo, Jun Pendatun, Kagi Faizal and Sukarno Badal as having directly participated in the massacre.

“These respondents were plainly pinpointed as among those who fired their high-powered firearms which consequently ended the lives of their intended victims. Positive identification of a person being implicated in a crime, when categorical, resounding, consistent, and without any ill motive on the part of the eyewitnesses testifying on the matter, is given credence. Considering such positive identification of these respondents as direct participants in the commission of the crime of murder, they should be indicted,” the DOJ said.

The DOJ panel said there is viable evidence to prove that some members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) “dipped their fingers in the preparation and subsequent consummation of the despicable killing of the victims.”

“There is direct evidence that these respondents agreed to commit the crime. Their acts and the attendant circumstances surrounding the commission of the crime unveil a common aim that would make all of them co-principals in the crime committed. We can deduce from their communal conduct a common design, concerted action and concurrence of sentiments… All the conspirators are answerable as co-principals regardless of the extent or degree of their participation,” the resolution said.

Aside from the murder charges, Ampatuan Sr. and the 196 accused are also facing rebellion charges for allegedly mobilizing supporters to resist, defy and undermine security forces who were investigating the massacre last November.

Judge Vivencio Baclig of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 77 is currently conducting the hearing on the rebellion charges in Camp Crame. He is expected to rule on the defense lawyers’ motion to stop the transfer of the suspects from Cotabato City to Manila.

Prosecutors asked the court to transfer the Ampatuans after the Supreme Court granted a petition seeking the transfer of the rebellion case from Cotabato City Regional Trial Court to Quezon City due to the Ampatuans’ strong influence in the ARMM.

Andal Sr. is currently detained at the Camp Panacan Hospital in Davao City. Other Ampatuan clan members linked to the massacre were also arrested and confined in military camps. Yahoo Daily News

Filed Under: Documentary, News ·

The Man Behind Philanthropic Work

January 10, 2010 by admin ·

Alexander von Furstenberg is the son of Diane von Furstenberg and Prince Egon of Furstenberg. With her sister Tatiana, both were raised by their parents in New York City, hence, his parents divorced in 1972. Alexander attended Brown University, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1993. It was there that he met Alexandra Natasha Miller, the youngest daughter of the American-born Duty Free Shops billionaire Robert Warren Miller. They got married on October 28, 1995, at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in New York City. They had two children, Princess Talita Natasha and Prince Tassilo Egon Maximilian, named after his paternal great-grandfather. However, the couple got separated and were later divorced in 2002. He is now currently engaged to Ali Kay, the keepMe owner.

Nevertheless being the Founder, Co-Managing Member and Chief Investment Officer of Arrow Capital Management, LLC, Alexander von Furstenberg serving as a Partner & Director led the restructuring of Diane von Furstenberg Studio, LP, a global luxury lifestyle brand, taking it from $1 million in annual revenue to more than $200 million. He has acted as Chief Investment Officer of Arrow Investments, Inc. since 2001, the private investment office which serves his family. In addition to the philanthropic work accomplished through his position as a Director of The Diller – von Furstenberg Family Foundation which is a private family foundation that provides philanthropic support to various non-profit organizations. The Foundation is guided by the shared values, concerns and passions of the Diller – von Furstenberg family.

Filed Under: Documentary, People ·

Trapped In Tora Bora In 2001, Osama Had Written His Will

December 1, 2009 by admin ·

World’s most wanted terrorist Osama bin Laden had written his will as US troops closed in on his hideout in Tora Bora mountains of Afghanistan in December 2001, but walked out “unmolested” after American military leaders decided not to send reinforcements to pursue him.

The US military “could have captured or killed Osama bin Laden in 2001 if it had launched a concerted attack on his hideout in Afghanistan,” according to a damning Congressional report that comes on the eve of unveiling of a new Af-Pak policy by the Barack Obama Administration.

The 49-page report “Tora Bora Revisited: How we failed to get Bin Laden and Why it Matters Today”, prepared by the staff of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and released today, points finger at then Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and his top military commander Tommy Franks for turning down requests for reinforcements to pursue Laden.

Laden, trapped in the rugged mountainous area in eastern Afghanistan, expected to die and had even written a will, said the report, commissioned by Committee Chairman John Kerry.

“On or around December 16, two days after writing his will, bin Laden and an entourage of bodyguards walked unmolested out of Tora Bora and disappeared into Pakistan’s unregulated tribal area. Most analysts say he is still there today,” the report said.

“Fewer than 100 American commandos were on the scene with their Afghan allies and calls for reinforcements to launch an assault were rejected. Requests were also turned down for US troops to block the mountain paths leading to sanctuary a few miles away in Pakistan,” it said. The Times Of India

Filed Under: Documentary, Facts, Foreign News ·

Philippines: The Gruesome Massacre of 57 People

November 25, 2009 by admin ·

I was really saddened to the fact, while it is true that the Philippines having been home to some of our modern-day great heroes, but it cannot be denied also that it has once again proved to the entire world being one of the most dangerous country for journalists, following the massacre of people in broad daylight at Maguindanao area.

Police said the convoy of more than 40 people, including 12 journalists, were accompanying Ginalyn Mangudadatu, the wife of Buluan vice mayor Ismael Mangudadatu, to file his certificate of candidacy to run for provincial governor when they were stopped by some 100 heavily armed men and taken hostage on a remote highway in Barangay Salman near the town of Ampatuan.

A few kilometers off the main highway, on a remote hilltop covered with waist-high grass, bodies lay with twisted hands reaching in the air. They had been shot point-blank.

Nearby, bodies were being laid out under banana leaves as police – whose faces covered against the stench – unearthed a mass grave containing the victims from Monday’s ambush (November 23) on an election caravan.

The discovery now brought the death toll to 57 -an unprecedented act of violence at the outset of the country’s election season.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo declared a state of emergency in Maguindanao and a neighboring southern province, sending extra troops and police to try to impose the rule of law. “No effort will be spared to bring justice to the victims and hold the perpetrators accountable to the full limit of the law,” she said.

Arroyo’s peace adviser Jesus Dureza said he met Tuesday with Andal Ampatuan, the family’s patriarch, and received assurances that his family would cooperate in the investigation. However, it was not clear how far Arroyo’s administration would go in trying to force the provincial warlords to give up their weapons and private armies.

Julkipli Wadi, a professor of Islamic studies at the University of the Philippines, said he doubted the national government’s resolve in trimming the powers of political dynasties like the Ampatuans because they deliver votes during elections.

“Because of the absence of viable political institutions, powerful men are taking over,” he said. “Big political forces and personalities in the national government are sustaining the warlords, especially during election time, because they rely on big families for their votes.”

Nevertheless, among the journalists reportedly slain were Ian Subang (Dadiangas Times), Leah Dalmacio (Forum), Gina dela Cruz (Today), Marites Cablitas (Today), Joy Duhay (UNTV), Henry Araneta (DZRH), Andy Teodoro (Mindanao Inquirer), Neneng Montaño (formerly of RGMA), Bong Reblando, (Manila Bulletin), Victor Nuñez (UNTV), Macmac Ariola (UNTV), Jimmy Cabillo (UNTV), Bart Maravilla (Bombo Radyo, Koronadal) and lawyers Cynthia Oquendo and Connie Brizuela, according to a statement from University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication (UP CMC), citing reports.

“This incident not only erases all doubts about the Philippines being the most dangerous country for journalists in the world, outside of Iraq, it could very well place the country on the map as a candidate for a failed democracy,” the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines said in a statement.

Filed Under: Documentary, News, Politics ·

Iran Plans War Games To Protect N-Plants

November 22, 2009 by admin ·

Iran will begin large-scale air defense war games on Sunday to help protect its nuclear facilities against any attack, a senior commander said.

Brig. Gen. Ahmad Mighani also suggested Iran could itself produce an advanced missile defense system which Russia has so far failed to deliver to the Islamic Republic and which Washington and Israel do not want Tehran to have.

Iran believes Russia’s delay in supplying high-grade S-300 missiles was due to pressure by Israel, not technical problems as cited by Moscow, Mighani said.

“We are hopeful the Russians will ignore the pressure of the Zionist lobby,” Fars news agency quoted him as saying on Saturday. Iran refers to Israel as the “Zionist regime.” The military maneuvers will last for five days and involve both the elite Revolutionary Guards and the regular armed forces against a hypothetical enemy, Iranian media reported.

The United States and Israel have not ruled out military action if diplomacy fails to resolve the row over Iran’s nuclear program.

Iran, which says its nuclear program is solely to generate electricity, has threatened to hit back at Israel and US if it is attacked. “This week’s air defense maneuvers will be held with the intention of protecting the country’s nuclear facilities,” Mighani said, Fars reported. State television said the defense drills would “ensure better protection” for these facilities. Arab News

Filed Under: Documentary, Foreign News, Foreign Policy ·