Why do you think so many Miss Universe winners come from the Philippines?

 

By: Bjorn Von Possel

As other answers have already noted, the Philippines is currently fourth in the number of Ms. Universe winners produced with the addition of Catriona Gray.

So just taking that contest alone, the country is in a pretty good position. But in the interest of expanding the discussion, we can consider all of the Big Four pageants and see the Philippines is in a very exclusive club.

After Megan Young won the Miss World title in 2013, the Philippines is only the third country to gain at least one crown in all four major competitions.

We also hold the longest streak of winning at least one title in the world. The Philippines had at least one crowned beauty queen in the Big Four from 2013 up to the present. (2013: 2, 2014: 1, 2015: 2, 2016: 1, 2017: 1, 2018: 1)

Finally, (my math could be wrong) the Philippines has the second most number of wins across all four competitions with 15. The US, even with the most Ms. Universe titles, just has 14 across the board, so thanks again Catriona :)

It’s an undeniable fact that the Philippines is a powerhouse in the world of pageants and the reason for that is training.

I elaborate a bit more in another answer

Bjorn Von Possel's answer to Why do Filipinos always win in beauty pageants, more than other Asian counterparts?

Prep is everything when it comes to pageants, and the longer our girls keep practicing their answers, their walks, their smiles, their bearing etc., expect them to keep winning for years to come.

EDIT:

Okay, so the comments insist that Filipinos win because their of mixed race of we have bias towards western standards of beauty aka white.

Let’s set the record straight. Of all the 15 winners the Philippines has had over the four Big Pageants only 5 have a foreigner parent.

Karla Henry (Miss Earth 2008)

Megan Young (Miss World 2013)

Jamie Herrell (Miss Earth 2014)

Pia Wurtzbach (Miss Universe 2015) and

Catriona Gray (Miss Universe 2018)

The rest of our beauty queens were born and raised here (with the exception of Bea Santiago and Precious Lara-Quigaman who both moved to other countries for studies) and Filipino parents.

Seriously, the “there aren’t any pure Pinays” in beauty pageants myth should die.

Women’s group in Monkayo receives BDP’s livelihood project worth P1M

Davao de Oro --- To provide and create income-generating opportunities, the Mt. Diwata Women’s Association in Monkayo received PHP1-million worth of livelihood project funded from the Local Government Support Fund-Barangay Development Program of the National Task Force ELCAC on August 27, 2021.

Governor Jayvee Tyron Uy led the turn-over ceremony represented by Vice-Governor Maria Carmen Zamora together with 1st District Congressman Manuel Zamora, Barangay Captain Pedro J. Samillano, LTC Elson G Ballena of 25th Infantry Battalion, and PCOL Leonard Luna of PNP-Davao de Oro.

 Barangay Mt. Diwata is one of the 65 identified barangays in the province that were cleared from the influence of New People’s Army (NPA) and is now entitled to P20 million funding under the BDP.

 The BDP is a hallmark initiative of the NTF-ELCAC which seeks to bring government programs and development in formerly identified as conflict-affected from the communist groups.

 Alma A. Avila, Barangay Human Rights Focal and Mt. Diwata Women’s Association Vice President thanked the government for helping them earn a steady and sufficient income through the livelihood project named “Table Egg Production Enterprise”.

“Sa ngalan sa grupo sa kababaehan, mapasalamaton kami tungod sa programa sa gobyerno nahimo kaming bulahan pinaagi sa gihatag nila nga proyekto (manokan) diin dako kining tabang sa amoang pang adlaw-adlaw nga kinahanglanon para sa amoang pamilya ug para sa kalamboan sa amoang asosasyon”, Avila said.

 She also encourage all the members to work together and properly manage the livelihood project. “Let us cherish the livelihood project given to us so that this will grow and help us improve our lives”, she added. (Rheafe Hortizano – Provincial Information Office, Photos by PSWDO-DdO)

Why do some people use the term Latinx?

Jean-Marie Valheur

Young, handsome and exceptionally well-endowed

I like to write. All answers I have written, you may copy, you may use any lines you enjoy, you may copy, paste, share, translate, publish at your leisure — just credit me by name, is all. It’s the bare minimum a decent person would do.

Who am I? Just, somebody who likes to write. It’s really not that complicated. I exist, you exist, we all exist. Just briefly. And my brief existence, I dedicate to writing enjoyable little things for no one in particular.

Question: I have been trying to add Spanish to the languages that I can speak and I don't understand why this term is used. Is it a real Spanish term?

My father-in-law at the time, Filipino, was reading an opinion piece in a ‘progressive’ online magazine once. Furiously, he closed his laptop. Then opened it again. Then motioned us to come and have a look. “Since when I am I no longer a Filipino, when did I become Filipinx? What is this madness? Who decides this for me?”

The writer opined that, since Filipina was a feminine form, and Filipino distinctly masculine, the default ought to be Filipinx. He was so mad.

“We fought the Spanish. We fought the Americans. We fought the Japanese. All so we can say with pride that we’re Filipino… now they want to take that from us and make us say we’re… Filipinx… like some sort of space aliens?”

There were a lot of curses. It was beautiful, furious, righteous anger and annoyance. Something tells me if Latinos are as open to the “X” as Filipinos, then this spastic, overly inclusive nonsense will soon be stopped in it’s tracked.

WITH BEETHOVEN UNDER PALMS (XXIX) : Back on air and first diplomatic impressions

A great day of honor awaited all of us: my mother became 90. She had "one more wish". "Let's go to the Waterfront Insular Hotel again", she asked Rossana and me. We went there. After that, she never left the house again. A year later, just four days after my birthday, she never woke up from her nap. In the morning, during breakfast, were her last words, "Those were the best 16 years in my life that I was  allowed to spend with you and our Filipino family".

Yes, that's so true:  the most important thing about having a Filipino family is that you will always have someplace to go, even if it’s your third or fourth cousin from your mom’s side whom you haven’t seen in fifteen years. For Filipinos, when a family shows up at your door, you let them in. Much like how Robert Frost’s famous poem goes, “Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in.”

For months I have received phone calls, emails and even letters telling me when I would finally be hosting a classical music show on the radio again. "And what do you want to do? Can you still manage of all this in addition to your teaching and other work"? Rossana asked me with a big frown. "If you help me, I can do anything", I answered her in a confident voice. The then 104.3 FM Edge Radio Davao gave me time-slots on Sundays: in the morning from 9 to 11 and as replay from 7 to 9 PM. Ludwig van Beethoven and all classic masters were back again. 

While Rossana kept our business in Davao City going, I traveled to Manila several times a year. For several years I have enjoyed speaking to the different ambassadors (photo with Ambassador Thomas Ossowski). Main topics were the situation in Mindanao and the Philippine-German relations. I had learned a lot on the latter subject from my mentor, Monsignore Hermogenes Bacareza, Father Gene. The former Philippine Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany, H.E. Minerva Jean A. Falcon mentioned it during on of her speeches: Philippine-German relations are built on the strong foundations that link the people and culture of two countries. Formal relations between the Philippines and Germany began only in the 1950's, but the social  and economic relations date back to the colonial times when Hamburg opened  a consulate in Manila. The Philippine national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, stayed in Germany from 1886 to 1887. It was in Berlin where he published his novel Noli Me Tangere.

Rossana and I were then invited to Manila: 60 years of Diplomatic Relations between Germany and the Philippines & 24 years of United Germany. A touching event, i.e. together with the Philippine Madrigal Singers and  an amazing violin soloist a la Vanessa Mae.

Back in Davao, I continued my German language teaching. In the meantime, I, as well as my students, had got used to a very special phenomenon: Filipino Time. Picture this: You turn up at an event 30 minutes late. You probably didn't mean to, but that's just how things turned out. When you get there, you realize you're not late at all because the organizers accounted for Filipino time and set the real start of the event an hour later than stated. But I could never imagine being late with my radio program as well as teacher at the university ... .

(To be continued!)

The "Great Resignation"

Unless you’re walking into a glossy, new, upgraded role, leaving a job to head in a different direction can be hard, upsetting and even leave people feeling like a failure. Faced with the prospect of quitting, Denver, Colorado-based organisational psychologist Melissa Doman, MA, says, “typically speaking, people still self-criticize. For many people, their job is heavily tied to their identity and their self-efficacy”.

 

When I blink back after almost 50 years of work, I've quit my job several times. Yes, quitting – particularly without a job to go to – can be emotionally challenging and carry stigma - as writer Joanna York got it to the point. Most of my colleagues  thought that I was rushing into a bad decision. I was already anxious about having quit and their remarks put more doubt in my head.

 

Still, despite these factors, indications are that many people want to leave their jobs. In fact, 41% of all workers are thinking about handing in their notice, according to a recent global survey by Microsoft. In the US, a record number of workers quit their jobs in April 2021, and similar waves are anticipated in nations including the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There’s even a name for it: the Great Resignation.

 

Joanna York describes it like this: There are multiple reasons for this trend, from people re-evaluating what they want from their careers during the pandemic, to the stress of juggling home and work life, or even discontent with employers. Whatever the motivator, many who choose to leave their current roles will find the process emotionally challenging. ‘Quitting’ often comes with negative connotations, both from the people around us and from ourselves, even if we have good cause.

But the upheaval caused by the pandemic – and the sheer number of potential quitters – could help us remove the stigma around resignation, and re-frame it as a more positive choice.  The negative feelings the brain can cycle through after quitting can be significant, with shame, guilt, fear and a sense of failure all common reactions.

 

Also important is asking for advice from the right people at the right time. When I moved to the Philippines for good in 1999, I got the right people at the right time at my side. I tried to temper the fear and the uncertainty. The fact that I made the decision that's right for my life and my career was a privilege. And an opportunity. Or even many opportunities... .

 

The Resiliency of a Filipino is Built into the Culture

 

A little-known fact about Filipinos is that a polite way of greeting someone is to invite them to share your food. When you approach Filipinos while they’re enjoying a meal, they will greet you with a cheery “Kain tayo or Kaon ta,” which translates to “Let’s eat.” Small gestures like this are built into the Filipino culture, one of which is the ironclad habit of helping your neighbours or giving food to those who don’t have it.

But more than generosity and innate friendliness, Filipinos are also some of the most practical people in the world. In the face of hardships, Filipinos are less likely to question why such difficulties could happen but are more likely to accept that bad things do happen. The real question for a Filipino is, what should we do next?

These can be seen during the corona pandemic when so many people lost their jobs. Instead of throwing their hands up, the resilience of the Filipino spirit showed in how most people adapted to their change in circumstances. Whether it’s to sell baked goods online or to learn to buy and sell items via popular eCommerce websites or to find work online, most people in the Philippines looked at what needed to be done and took the next step.

The Resiliency of the Filipino is finding strength in family. There are times when the Filipino culture of having a close-knit family can be a pain, like when your Auntie asks when you’re getting married, something that happens often enough during the holidays. But the great thing about having a close-knit family as most Filipinos do is that there’s always someone to lend you a sympathetic ear and even a helping hand when times get tough.

2021 © BAROK AND TAKYA BISAYA PODCAST

Why was Mindanao not fully converted to Christianity ...

 ... unlike Luzon and Visayas in spite the Philippines being a Spanish colony for over 3 centuries?

By: John Carlo Dacillo

Mechanical Engineer

Space, Technology, Military and Philippine Culture, Politics and History enthusiast. Loves to read all stuff

Because the Spaniards failed to conquer them. The Moros along with Lumads had resisted them successfully. Thing is, only parts of Mindanao were not conquered. Some parts of it were conquered. The natives absorbed Spanish influences like Luzon and Visayas, take Butuan for example and Zamboanga that even speaks a Spanish Creole language. Also, Luzon was not converted in its entirety too because the Spaniards failed to conquer the Highlands, the land of Igorots.

Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine available soon in local drugstores

by Raymund Antonio, Manila Bulletin

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said on Tuesday, August 24, that Pfizer’s vaccine, which has the highest efficacy rate of all COVID-19 vaccines in the market, will soon be available in local drugstores after it received full approval from the United States’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

This file photo taken on November 17, 2020 shows vials with COVID-19 vaccine stickers attached, with the logo of US pharmaceutical company Pfizer. (AFP/ MANILA BULLETIN)

During a virtual press briefing, the Palace official noted that Pfizer’s COVID-19 was also the first vaccine to receive the emergency use authorization from the US FDA.

“Well, magiging commercially available na po ang Pfizer. Kaya konting panahon na lang po at mabibili na sa ating mga botika ang Pfizer kung ito po ang inyong (Pfizer will become commercially available. That’s why in a little time we can already buy in our drugstores the Pfizer vaccine if that is your) preferred brand,” Roque said.

The US FDA on Monday night (Manila time) granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 shot, clearing the path for more vaccine mandates there and abroad. The White House believes that this will persuade unvaccinated people in the country to get their jabs.

In a survey, three out of 10 unvaccinated individuals said they are willing to get their COVID jabs as long as the vaccine received full approval from the FDA.

Roque said that Pfizer-BioNTech still has to be granted with commercial use approval by the Philippine FDA, but he believes this will be a non-issue.

“Dahil meron tayong polisiya ng Philippine FDA ay mas mabilis naaaprubahan for commercial use ang mga bakuna’t gamot na meron ng approval sa mga stringent na FDAs gaya po ng Estados Unidos (Because the Philippine FDA has a policy to quickly approve the commercial use of vaccines and medicines that has approval from stringent FDAs like the United States),” he explained.

Pfizer has a reported 95 percent efficacy rate, a higher rate compared to the other vaccine brands used by the Philippines such as China’s Sinovac and the United Kingdom’s AstraZeneca.

Filipinos’ preference for the Pfizer vaccine was the basis of President Duterte’s earlier order to local government units (LGU) not to announce the vaccine brand in various vaccination sites in the country.

The Philippines has largely procured China’s Sinovac owing to the President’s friendly relations with China, as well as the lack of available supply of Western brands.

Roque also revealed that there will be some 362,700 doses of Pfizer procured by the government that will arrive in the country on Wednesday, August 25. This is part of the five million COVID-19 vaccine doses expected to arrive in the Philippines this week.

© 2021 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.

What are the creation myths of indigenous Filipinos?

 

By: 

Bisaya

https://barokandtakya.com

Every culture has a story or legend that they use to describe the origin of their tribe. For Filipinos, the tale is about these three princesses who wandered out into a vast nothingness one day and were swallowed up by enormous waves, only to be saved by a mighty bird.

With so many years between then and now, most people would think our beliefs are just fanciful tales from old superstitious times. But in fact, as science has begun to show us more and more just how small this world is--that we're all living on one planet with creatures including plants and oceans that we have yet to explore--and faced with environmental changes through pollution and climate change; these fantastical legends now find more meaning than ever before.

The ancient beliefs of our ancestors can be found in the old creation myths, which are more like poetic stories about how everything was made. Here in the Philippines, many of these tales come from indigenous tribes like the Tagalogs, Ifugaos, Mangyans and many more.

The Tagalog people, for example, believe that their role on earth is to tend to rice plants, while it's the spirits' job to take care of everything else on Earth. The ghosts are like little elves, the creator said to them. You're like helpers and guardians of the rice plantation.

Even with this seemingly simple task, some spirits have gone bad, and they cause disasters--they're also known as engkanto. Some enjoy playing tricks on humans by making them hear noises in the night or seeing things when there's nothing there at all.

For the Filipinos, these stories not only tell of how everything was made, but they also teach a moral lesson about how to behave and what happens when people don't apply what they know.

How does the Filipino language sound to foreigners?

 

By: Lea Velasco

I made a German friend listen to some Filipino music just recently, and what he said was actually very interesting as it’s the first time I’ve ever heard a non-Filipino tell me how the Filipino language sounds like to them.

He said “It’s like a mix of Bahasa and Español.”

I can quite understand this interpretation, and it’s so perfectly well put.

It’s basically breaking down the ingredients that made the Filipino language what it is now; South East Asian (More probably Malayan) + Spanish influences.