ANOTHER ROLLER COASTER LIFE

Life is literally just like a roller coaster. We go up, we go down. We wait for a time when it all evens out and we can trust that the falls are over. It doesn't come.

Yes, nowadays, for many of us life is indeed an emotional roller coaster. All over the world. Political instability, wars, terror attacks, climate change with extreme natural disasters, questionable global economical situations, illnesses AND diseases... .

Questions about how to proceed and move on and nobody really has a correct answer. How then?

As usual, a day starts with a traffic jam and continues with terrible conditions at any workplace. The crab mentality seems to have become nothing unusual now. In any case: everyone for himself. Each one by himself/herself/itself alone is quite nice, but together...? Do we have a problem? So what! It's not everyone's cup of tea.

Life seems to be nothing, just being ready to riddle one with bullets. Life seems to be nothing, just being broken through indifference and unreliable and immoral behavior. Life seems to be nothing for those people who don't understand cries from the heart of other people around them - cries for their hearts and families, for justice and for many other things.

Life with all its ups and downs, is just a loan, but for many of our fellow creatures it just seems to be nonsense to be littered like a dump. And, if people try to survive, especially during these days, and if they just experienced (once more!) indifference, arrogance, ignorance or cheating by whomever - they will give up! 

I can assure you that every one of us can at first help in prayers and in reading the bible. "Proverbs" is the probably most down-to-earth book in the bible. Its teachings prepare you for daily life, the street and the market place, but not for the schoolroom. The book offers warm pieces of advice you get; practical guidance for making your way on earth. Proverbs covers any kinds of questions you might have right now. Anybody can relate to the generalities of Proverbs, because this book simply tells how life works most of the time.

While writing this piece, I observed that more and more people struggle through life: tired, hopeless, experiencing their rock-bottoms, believing in fallacious "people" around them. Can a roller coaster go on forever?

We all know, though, that roller coaster rides don't last forever. That's because the roller coaster loses energy to other forces as it does loop-the-loops, curves, and other hills along the way. This friction slows the roller coaster gradually, as does the air that you fly through as you ride the ride.

Our emotions can feel like a roller coaster ride when we allow our thoughts and fantasies to get the better of us. When we think negative thoughts, these affect our emotions in powerful and negative ways.

PH jumps to 9th place in global IP office ranking

 

by Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat, Manila Bulletin

The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) jumped to 9th place in the World Trademark Review’s (WTR) 2021 IP (intellectual property) Office Innovation Ranking from 24th in the previous year, making the Philippines the only developing country to have an IP office in the top 10 out of 60 offices ranked worldwide.

IPOPHL made what the WTR dubbed “an impressive rise,” which also put it ahead of the IP offices of Japan and USA. The office enjoys its current spot along with Spain and Switzerland.

The IP Office Innovation Ranking is an annual project by the WTR, an independent news and information service for trademark professionals worldwide. It surveys how IP offices that offer trademark services are transforming from simple administrative agencies into more technologically advanced organizations. It also takes into account offices’ value-add offerings to help fill the gaps of IP utilization in their jurisdictions.

The report grades IP offices based on: Online Capabilities; Value-Added Propositions; and Public Outreach Efforts.

Under Online Capabilities, the Philippines ranked 11th together with Austria, BENELUX (Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg) and Japan. IPOPHL’s digital capabilities, particularly website functionality and accessibility, trademark e-filing rating and use of AI functionality, were cited.

In terms of Value-Added Propositions, the Philippines and ten other countries ranked second just behind Singapore. Pushing the country’s ranking were its offering of trademark dispute mediation, IP legal advice for SMEs and liaising with enforcement agencies.

Under Public Outreach Efforts, the Philippines ranked 23rd together with Australia, Canada, Sweden and Turkey. Efforts noted include IPOPHL’s conduct of public trademark events; utilization of social media; attendance to non-IP events; and collaboration with other IP offices.

“The good news delivered by the WTR report demonstrates IPOPHL’s adoption of innovations to cope with the pandemic and ensure we can continue to serve the public,” said IPOPHL Director General Rowel S. Barba.

“Our jump in the WTR ranking is the latest to show IPOPHL’s unwavering commitment to serve the public. Yet we aim to reach higher and help local and foreign stakeholders conveniently and strategically utilize their IP assets as essential tools in business recovery and resilience,” Barba said.

At the start of the local community quarantine, IPOPHL fast-tracked putting in place the tools and protocols to allow services online, such as end-to-end registration, mediation, filing of IP violation complaints and other office actions.

IPOPHL also launched its Business Intelligence v2.0 online platform, which incorporates cutting-edge machine learning / artificial intelligence to improve its big data analytics capabilities.

Aside from its thrust towards digitalization, IPOPHL has also been assisting MSMEs, with the launch of its Juan for the World trademark incentive package and the renewal of the Juana Make a Mark and the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Filing Assistance Program last year.

IPOPHL has also been recognized by the World Intellectual Property Organization for its performance as one of only 24 International Searching Authority and International Preliminary Examining Authority (ISA/IPEA) in the world. In the WIPO 2021 PCT Yearly Review, IPOPHL, alongside a few ISA/IPEAs with a 100 percent score, topped the completion of international search reports and the timeliness of transmittal categories.

With increased digitalization, improved services and a wider reach of IP awareness and education campaigns online, IP filings in the first half of 2021 posted a 20 percent year-on-year growth.

Octa: NCR on ‘severe’ Covid-19 outbreak

MANILA. A police officer checks documents at a checkpoint as the government enforced another round of strict health restrictions to control the rise of Covid-19 cases at the outskirts of Quezon City in Manila, Philippines on Monday, January 10, 2022. (AP)

By: THIRD ANNE PERALTA-MALONZO, SunStar Manila

THE National Capital Region (NCR) is experiencing a “severe outbreak” of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) following the increase in average daily attack rate (Adar) to 89.42 percent, Octa fellow Dr. Guido David said on Tuesday, January 11, 2022.

David said NCR’s Adar jumped to 89.42 percent (January 4 to 10) from just 12.71 percent in December 28, 2021 to January 3.

“The Adar increased to 89.41 (percent), which is above the Covidactnow threshold for a severe outbreak (greater than 75 per day per 100K),” David said.

He said the seven-day positivity rate increased to 48 percent, while the reproduction number decreased to 5.22 from 5.65.

He said the decrease in the reproduction number indicates a “slight” downtrend.

“Hospital bed occupancy increased to 57 percent and is likely to exceed 70 percent next week,” said David.

“Overall, NCR is classified as a very high risk,” he added.

The Philippines is experiencing a spike in Covid-19 cases believed to be due to the more transmissible Omicron variant.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III earlier said the Omicron variant is the new dominant variant in the country, overthrowing the Delta strain.

The Department of Health on Monday, January 10, reported a total of 33,169 fresh Covid-19 cases, the highest single-day tally recorded so far since the pandemic began in 2020.

This has brought the country’s total active cases to 157,526.

The NCR is under Alert Level 3 until January 15.

In a press briefing, acting presidential spokesperson Cabinet secretary Karlo Nograles said the Inter-Agency Task Force will discuss the quarantine status in the country by Thursday, January 13.

“Ito ‘yung binabantayan natin total bed utilization pag pumalo ng 71 percent and higher to 84 percent, dito masasabi na i-alert level 4 na ang Metro Manila,” he said.

“As of the moment, hindi pa po tayo nagb-breach ng threshold na yan and that is why Metro Manila still remains under alert level 3,” he added. (SunStar Philippines)