Confession of a dying criminal

 

“The confession of evil works is the first beginning of good works.”

—Saint Augustine

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THE confirmation made by retired international boxing referee Carlos “Sonny” Padilla Jr. that he helped rob Aussie visitor Nedal Hussein of a victory to save Manny Pacquiao from a knockout loss in a WBC international championship 22 years ago in Manila, can be compared to the confession of a dying criminal.

Pardon my comparison, but I was among those who were jolted by Padilla’s belated confession as he only confirmed what we had known about that controversial bout that happened two decades ago.

The 88-year-old former movie actor, whose last known address was in Las Vegas, may not be under duress when he admitted the scam in a video that became viral, but he must have been bothered by his conscience.

Or he was only reckless and became too much talkative as he gets older.

We admire his honesty though even if his embarrassing admission would surely taint his reputation and blot Pacquiao’s legacy in one way or the other.

Let’s hope he isn’t dying literally.

It was actually a bizarre interview as Padilla was caught laughing while confessing he declared a cut from a headbutt as having come from a legitimate punch, which eventually resulted in a 10th round TKO win for Pacquiao.  

The so-called long count he made on then 22-year-old Pacquiao, who was decked by Hussein with a clean punch in their 12-round WBC international super-bantamweight fisticuffs on October 14, 2000, was not actually a secret among those who understood boxing.

 

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Because of that anomaly, Padilla was actually hated by Australian fans and disrespected by Hussein’s trainer Jeff Fenech, a former world bantamweight champion from Australia, who knows a lot about boxing’s red light district.

Padilla’s act of dishonesty occurred in the fourth round when Hussein delivered a coup de grace that sent Pacquiao to the canvas, forcing a 10-count.

But Padilla, before the horrified Australian and Filipino fans, allowed Pacquiao as long as 18 seconds to get up after being dazed, and let the contest continue despite Hussein’s protests. Fenech, a known ring hooligan, nearly attacked him.

The father of actress Zsa Zsa Padilla is now in the limelight once again for admitting he gave a long count after being told that it was an important bout for Pacquiao to win, as well as making other moves that hindered Hussein’s ability to win.

Pacquiao’s controversial win over Hussein came eight months before he was given a world title shot in the IBF crown held by Lehlo Ledwaba in Las Vegas, where he made a good account of himself.

 

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“Manny was not a world champion yet, he was only good in the Philippines,” Padilla said in a recent interview with the WBC’s YouTube channel, which has now been made private. “That fight, I’m about to go and leave the following day and they told me ‘Carlos, please-this is an important fight for Pacquiao, because the winner will have the chance to fight for the world championship’.

“So, you know the opponent, Hussein, or whatever his name was. He is taller, younger, stronger, and a dirty fighter, managed by Jeff Fenech. So in the seventh round, I think [it was the fourth round], Manny got knocked down, I thought he was going to get up, but his eyes were cross-eyed.

“I am Filipino, and everybody watching the fight is Filipino, so I prolonged the count. I know how to do it. When he got up, I told him, ‘Hey, are you okay?’ Still prolonging the fight. ‘Are you okay?’ ‘Okay, fight!’ and then Hussein……because Manny was not like Manny is now, he wasn’t trained by Freddie Roach yet, he holds on for his dear life, and the guy throws him, and he went down again. I said to the opponent, ‘Hey, you don’t do this.’ You know, I was prolonging the fight. ‘You don’t do that. Okay, judges, (point) deduction’.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Expect amazing?

“Everything I know about morality and the obligations of men, I owe it to football (soccer).”

― Albert Camus

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

WE are sad that amid the excitement and thrill soccer fans all over the globe felt since the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 unwrapped on November 20, hooliganism, threats and intimidation have taken center stage involving major characters in the world of sports.

We’re referring to the two incidents that hogged sports headlines while soccer fans were in the middle of pre-championship match celebration for the apparent successful staging of the beautiful game in the gulf region for the first time in history.    

First, the reported threats of imprisonment and torture made to the  families of Iran’s World Cup soccer team if the players failed to “behave” ahead of the match against the USA on November 29.

Second, the “warning” sent to Argentina star player Lionel Messi by equally famous Mexican boxer Saul “Canelo” Alvarez for “disrespecting” Mexico.

These are actually unnecessary distructions meant to snatch away the euphoria felt by fans anywhere in the world.

When the Emirate of Qatar bagged the hosting of the FIFA World Cup 2022 in December 2010, a slogan that proclaimed “Expect Amazing” was released and reverberated all over the soccer world.

What amazing things do we have to expect now that threats of violence and pure and simple hooliganism have tainted the FIFA affair?

The Iran team hullabaloo erupted following the refusal of Iranian players to sing the nation’s national anthem in their opening match against England on November 21.

The players were reportedly called to a meeting with members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and told that their families would face “violence and and torture” if they did not sing the national anthem or if they joined any political protest against the Tehran regime.

 

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This reportedly prompted the players to sing the anthem before their second game against Wales last November 25, which saw 2-0 victory for Iran.

Sam Kiley quoted a source closely monitoring Iran’s security agencies operating in Qatar over the World Cup period that dozens of officers from the IRGC had been drafted in to monitor the Iranian players who are not allowed to mingle outside the squad or meet with foreigners.

“There are a large number of Iranian security officers in Qatar collecting information and monitoring the players,” Kiley quoted the source.

The Portuguese coach of Iran’s national team, Carlos Queiroz, reportedly met separately with IRGC officers following their threats to Iranian players and their families.

The players had been reportedly promised “presents and cars” ahead of the England game but the regime had switched to threatening players and their families after the humiliation of the team’s refusal to sing their national anthem.

In another scandalous outburst, Alvarez, who never had the opportunity to fight Senator Manny Pacquiao when the latter was still active as a prizefighter, was quoted in the reports as saying in a tweet, “Did you see Messi cleaning the floor with our shirt and flag????”

 

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The popular Mexican ring dynamo apparently was referencing a video in which Messi appears to kick a Mexico shirt that is on the floor during Argentina’s celebrations in the changing room.

Reports said there was no indication that Messi kicked the shirt intentionally, instead appearing to do it accidentally as he took off his football boots.

“He better pray to God that I don’t find him!!” Alvarez added in another tweet, with a series of angry emojis. “Just like I respect Argentina, he has to respect Mexico! I’m not talking about the country as a whole, just about the bulls**t that Messi pulled.”

Argentina beat Mexico 2-0 on November 26 in a tense game in Group C where Messi scored the opening goal, before Enzo Fernandez sealed the victory late on to keep Argentina’s World Cup dream alive following a shocking opening round defeat to Saudi Arabia.

Widely considered one of the best pound-for-pound boxers ever after winning world championships in four weight classes, Alvarez added in one reply to a journalist: “It’s one thing them being better than us (in football), it’s another thing to have respect.”

Messi’s former Argentina teammate Sergio Aguero responded to Alvarez on Twitter, saying: “Mr. Canelo, don’t look for excuses or problems, surely you don’t know about football and what happens in a changing room. The shirts are always on the floor after games have finished due to sweat and then if you look properly, he makes the movement to remove his boot and accidentally hits it.”

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

Gutsy demand

 

“I request the audience to not mix cinema with politics.”

—Ram Charan

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

The case of a contrabida becoming an “important character” in the movies was exemplified in the call by the Iranian state media for the United States to be kicked out of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 after the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) changed the Islamic Republic of Iran’s flag on its social media platforms to show support for thousands of protesters in Iran.

It’s like the riding in tandem motorcycle killers telling the cops to leave the check points or else. The nerve.

Iran’s saber-rattling came at least two days before the much-anticipated US vs Iran match in Group B on November 29.

If it was as psywar tactic meant to demoralize the American booters, we will know during the match at Al Thumama Stadium.

Iran must have been infuriated when USSF had temporarily displayed Iran’s national flag on its official Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts without the emblem of the Islamic Republic.

CNN reported that a now-deleted graphic of the Group B standings posted on November 26 displayed the Iranian flag only bearing its green, white and red colors.

US Soccer told CNN on Sunday that it wanted to change the official flag for 24 hours to show “support for the women in Iran fighting for basic human rights” but always planned to go back to the original flag.

The change “was a one-time graphic,” US Soccer told CNN. “We have the main flag on our website and other places.”

The emblem is currently back on the flag on US Soccer’s social media channels.

 

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Just when impulsive shoppers thought they’ve survived temptations after the “Black Friday”, they were in for a big surprise: there’s a deadlier animal called “Cyber Monday.”

I managed to “survive” these post-Thanksgiving Day shopping tsunamis by pretending they didn’t exist, and by not opening the links of the tempting offers sent directly to my email and cell phone by retailers.

If I accidentally opened one, I refused to further scroll down in order not to be magnetized by the shopping list’s mouth-watering deals.

As I mentioned in my previous article, stores were willing to dive down to as low as 81 percent discount during “Black Friday.” The discounts offered on “Cyber Monday” were almost identical.

Following the Thanksgiving weekend in the United States, “Cyber Monday” is an e-commerce term for discounts, special promotions, and sales only on that particular day as online retailers’ answer to the

brick-and-mortar stores’ “Black Friday” shopping extravaganza.

On this day, traditional retailers offer exclusive, website-only deals.

The result suggests to some that “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” have merged into a combination of in-store-and-online shopping experience that has blurred the distinction between the two days.

 

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It falls four days after Thanksgiving and was created to encourage consumers to shop online. Although “Black Friday”—the day after Thanksgiving—remains the busiest single shopping day of the year, the arrival of COVID-19, perhaps combined with other factors, resulted in $9 billion in online spending on “Black Friday” in 2020 and $10.8 billion on “Cyber Monday,” according to Investopedia.

Traditional brick-and-mortar retailers reportedly devote increasing amounts of time and energy to online sales to compete with each other as well as with their cyber rivals.

For 2021, the National Retail Federation predicted online spending would amount to between $218.3 billion and $226.2 billion over the holiday season.

This represents up to 27% of the $843.4 billion shoppers are expected to spend in November and December.

Consumers reportedly relish “Cyber Monday” for several reasons. Many people don’t want to spend time away from family during the holiday just to get a bargain, while others don’t want to wait in the long lines that form on “Black Friday.”

“Cyber Monday provides consumers with a convenient, hassle-free way to shop and cash in on some great deals. And with most retailers now offering free shipping as an incentive to shop on Cyber Monday, it makes shopping online even more attractive,” Investopedia reported.

Although Cyber Monday had its origins in the United States, it is now an international concept.

Many e-commerce companies around the world use the term to market promotions to boost their sales at that time of year.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

Pray for the poor, not the cardinal

 

“True prayer is neither a mere mental exercise nor a vocal performance. It is far deeper than that-it is spiritual transaction with the Creator of Heaven and Earth.”

—Charles Spurgeon

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

PONTIFICIO Collegio Filippino (PCF) Rector Gregory Ramon Gaston has urged Filipinos to pray for former Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle emphasizing that Pope Francis gave Tagle other assignments, including efforts to assist the new officials of Caritas International.

Tagle’s new tasks came when he was ousted from Caritas International, the charity arm of the Catholic Church, according to Gaston in a recent interview with Church-run Radyo Veritas.

We have no problem with that.

Everyone needs to pray; we all need prayers—Catholics and non-Catholics, sinners and saints.

But, wait a minute. Why will Tagle need the people’s prayers when he is enjoying his life in the Vatican-based Caritas International?

Gaston and Tagle, as “soldiers” of God, should be the ones to pray for us. It’s the people that need more mercy, forgiveness and daily bread.

Even if he was “ousted” in his lofty position, Tagle would not go hungry or live in the gutter.

He is richer than you and me.

 

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Except if he is ill or battling a life-threatening disease, ordinary Filipinos will have to first pray for their families—sons and daughters—who are wallowing in poverty before they will think of kneeling in the prayer room or in the church to pray for the well-fed Tagle.

If we open his refrigerator randomly, he has more cheese, chocolate cakes, grapes and apples than the ordinary Filipinos, who are the ones that need the prayers to be able to live a decent life and eat three square meals a day.

There are more Filipinos who need not just prayers but livelihood, medical and social assistance. Pandemic has not yet totally left. Many people are still unemployed if not underemployed.

Many Filipinos still live below the poverty level, but some Church authorities and scumbags, who use the bible and the words of God to mesmerize and bilk the faithful, live like kings and privileged emperors.   

Although Tagle is supposed to “live an ordinary life” like Jesus Christ as what the Bible-toting preachers proclaim in the sermon, we all know that some archbishops, cardinals, and hypocrite parish priests live in affluence; many of them own mansions and luxury vehicles.

Some so-called spiritual leaders (not just in the Catholic Church) even scandalously parade their queridas and queridos. Sin veruguenzas!

 

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A lot of pride and may be geopolitics will be at stake as pundits rev up for the November 29 encounter between nemesis Iran and the United States in Group B of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 at the Al Thumama Stadium.

Believe it or not but the western press has installed the US as the favorite (50 percent) to beat Iran (23 percent). The probability of a draw is 27 percent.

How can it be when Iran has just scored one of the, so far, three upsets in the Cup when it recently beat Wales, 2-0, while the US was recently held to a scoreless draw by England?

The US isn’t expected to win the World Cup which is the domain of Brazil, Argentina, Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, and England. The draw versus England, a soccer heavyweight, actually smelled like a win for the Americans.

“A draw’s not the worst thing, but I felt like there were stretches of where we showed confidence and had a lot of the play, and created chances, and even could have won the game” US midfielder Christian Pulisic said. “But all in all, I thought we managed it quite well.”

But the Stars and Stripes will be in the prime position to advance in the knock out stage with a win over Iran. But if Iran wins, it will have a tremendous psychological repercussion on the ongoing strife between the two nations now that Iran is on the radar of international conflict for its human rights abuses in the ongoing suppression of protest actions related to women’s rights.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

‘Black Friday’ temptations

 

“I generally avoid temptation unless I can’t resist it.”

—Mae West

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

IF we lived in the Third World, we would not experience being tempted by the “Black Friday” shopping madness mainly because the inferior economy doesn’t have the “star quality” or capability to offer a bonanza or windfall being enjoyed by the consumers in the United States, the beacon of abundance and unlimited prosperity.

Thus we don’t have the bagsak presyo attraction in the Philippines similar to the ones being dangled to American consumers during the Thanksgiving Day (November 24^th ) and “Black Friday.”

They call it “doorbusters.” With or without inflation and, perhaps, recession, shops in the United States offer prices that are hard to ignore and resist: when they woo the consumers during the special holidays they dive down from 60 to 81 percent.

Giant malls that house shopping establishments like Macy’s, Nordstrom, Marshalls, JCPenney, Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, Old Navy, Best Buy, Sears, Target, Dillard’s, Ikea, etcetera lead the tempting offers.

First timers in America who happen to celebrate the Thanksgiving Day and “Black Friday” will definitely succumb to these mouth-watering sales.

 

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I am embarrassed to admit that I was once tempted—but not tainted—during my early years living in the US. Tempted to imagine to indulge in a mindless shopping spree, but not tainted to perform or implement it for obvious reason: I’m penniless (read: no extra budget for such unnecessary splurge).

A week before the Thanksgiving Day and “Black Friday”, shops started to bombard prospective buyers with appealing items accompanied by offers for a bagsak presyo or really cheap prices and attractive discounts.

In a world powered by technology, consumers are constantly looking for the latest and greatest gadget.

At T-Mobile, I was offered succulent freebies: a new iPhone 14 unit and Apple Watch plus 50 percent discount in iPad Generation 9. Although I could avail them in normal days, modesty aside, owing to my good record as a paying subscriber, I was told “these are part of our Thanksgiving promo.”

Thanks but no thanks. I have been buying used or refurbished gadgets for electronics.

Andre Woroch, an expert in consumer buying, had warned us that while a new device often brings the potential for improving a person’s life, consumers shouldn’t confuse these purchases with investments. Just like a new car, electronics lose value as soon as they are taken for a spin.

 

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“We live in a world in which significant technological improvements in the consumer electronics and gadget verticals are seen on an annual basis,” says Joshua Weiss, CEO Of TeliApp, a company that develops and executes digital media marketing strategies for a variety of brands including those in the consumer electronics space.

“As such, 1-year-old devices will depreciate significantly, especially because the cost for better and brand-new items continues to go down.”

Though short product cycles and saturated markets add to the rapid depreciation of consumer gadgets, demand for new tech continues to rise, Woroch warned.

In fact, she stressed, the technology industry is estimated to grow 3.2 percent in 2017 and earn $321 billion in retail revenues, according to a semiannual report from the Consumer Technology Association.

While fighting depreciation may feel like a losing battle, there are certain steps consumers can take to save money on the gadgets they need.

She gave the this advice: Compare features and specifications carefully. Electronic manufacturers, brands and retailers bombard consumers with ads promoting the newest devices that tout better performance and superior features, making it hard to resist the urge to buy.

While many shoppers justify splurging on a new device for updated specs, experts caution that the differences between old and new may be minimal, and the price to upgrade may not be worth it.

“Many of these new models do not have major, innovative upgrades, but rather small internal hardware modifications, like a slightly faster CPU clock speed,” says Emily Shapiro, marketing associate at iPowerResale, a site that specializes in reselling refurbished, used and overstock Apple products.

Consumers should review potential product purchases carefully, looking over specs in detail, or seek guidance from product experts to understand key features.

Since many electronic retailers charge restocking fees of 10 to 15 percent of a returned item’s purchase price, an impulse purchase could cost even more in the end.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

   

 

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

       

 

Rooting for the underdog

 

“If you’re an underdog, mentally disabled, physically disabled, if you don’t fit in, if you’re not as pretty as the others, you can still be a hero.”

—Steve Guttenberg

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

IT’S a natural tendency for sports fans to root for the underdog in any competition and close rivalry.

Saudi Arabia’s recent 2-1 conquest of Argentina in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar was considered as one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.

But the “one for the books” (the exact words used by Saudi coach Herve Renard to describe the gigantic soccer upset) defeat by a highly touted team that produced Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi, and Gabriel Batistuta was not the first earthshaking event in the World Cup.

Let’s consider it as soccer’s version of Mike Tyson’s scary KO defeat from slow-moving Buster Douglas in Tokyo in 1990, or Rafael Nadal’s embarrassing 2012 Wimbledon loss to unknown Lucas Rosol.

In the 1990 FIFA World Cup or the 14^th FIFA World Cup, Cameroon also pulled a dramatic shocker in the opening match, 1-0, over Argentina, the defending champion and the most feared soccer team in the world at that time.

Upsets and shockers are part and parcel of the World Cup. They aren’t new. World Cup is not known as the most beautiful game in the universe for nothing.

François Omam-Biyik, who now works as Cameroon’s assistant manager, scored Cameroon’s lone goal, a downward header, that shocked the world.

Omam-Bitik, who also scored against Sweden in the first round of the 1994 World Cup, and brother Andre, helped Cameroon to the quarter-finals.

His appearance in the 1998 World Cup was his third. In his 73 appearances, had Omam-Biyik scored a total of 26 goals. He is Cameroon’s record World Cup player with 11 matches in three tournaments.

 

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We don’t know what will happen next to Saudi Arabia, which is in the company of intriguing group of teams in Group C composed of Mexico and Poland, both known to have very little styles of play.

ABC News has reported while everyone else in Saudi Arabia was having a great old time, Saudi booter Yasser Al-Shahrani was facing the prospect of emergency surgery.

The defender copped a knee to the face after colliding with goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais in a sickening clash in the dying moments of the game, it was reported.

With Al-Shahrani laying unresponsive on the ground, referee Slavko Vincic reportedly made the bizarre call to allow play to continue, in another controversial moment after Iranian goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand was allowed to play on despite his own sickening head clash in their match with England.

Meanwhile, after the loud shellacking of Argentina in 1990, Cameroon had cruised to a Cinderella run.

It earlier bested Nigeria and ousted Tunisia in the final playoff, Cameroon qualified for the 1990 World Cup. Cameroon were drawn into Group B with Argentina, Romania and the Soviet Union in the final tournament.

Cameroon later defeated Romania 2–1 and lost to the Soviet Union 0–4, becoming the first side to top a World Cup Finals group with a negative goal difference.

In the second round, Cameroon defeated Colombia 2–1 with the 38-year-old Roger Milla scoring two goals in extra-time.

Cameroon faced England in the quarter-finals. After 25 minutes, England’s David Platt scored for England, while in the second-half, Cameroon came back with a 61st-minute penalty from Emmanuel Kunde and took the lead with Eugene Ekeke on 65 minutes.

England, however, equalized in the 83rd minute with a penalty from Gary Lineker, while Lineker again found the net via a 105th-minute penalty to make the eventual scoreline 3–2 for England. The team was coached by Russian manager and former player Valeri Nepomniachi.

 

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We have more interesting chess news from US national master Marlon Bernardino, who recently covered the Asian Juniors and Girls Chess Championships at the Knights Templar hotel in Tagaytay City.

Bernardino reported that National Master Eric Labog Jr. of the Philippines bested International Master Raahul V S of India November 22 to bounce back into contention.

He added that Labog’s third win against one draw and a loss gave him 3.5 points, a half point behind pacesetter top seed International Master Saha Neelash of India, International Master Harshavardhan G B of India and International Master Sugar Gan-Erdene of Mongolia who totes 4.0 points each.

Also with 3.5 points are Chatterjee Utsab of India, Dziththauly Ramadhan of Indonesia and Fide Master Daniyal Sapenov of Kazakhstan.

In other results, Harshavardhan G B split the points with Neelash while Gan-Erdene drew with Utsab.

The 19 year old Labog, a freshman student at Immaculada Concepcion College, earlier loss to Neelash in Monday’s fourth round.

International Master Daniel Quizon edged countryman Mar Aviel Carredo to score 3.0 points and climb at 8th to 14th places along with International Master Michael Concio Jr. and National Master Christian Mark Daluz of the Philippines.

Woman International Master Bach Ngoc Thuy Duong of Vietnam routed Woman International Master Nazerke Nurgali  of  Kazakhstan to remain on top with 4.5 points, half point ahead with top pick Woman International Master Assel Serikbay of  Kazakhstan and Woman Fide Master Mitra Asgharzadeh of Iran, both tallied 4.0 points apiece.

Two players follow with 3.0 points each, namely Woman International Master Ravi Rakshitta of India and Femil Chelladurai of India.

Thirty two boys from eleven countries are competing the junior division while 20 players are participating in the 9-round Swiss system tournament among the girls. Bernardino said the championship is organized by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines on behalf of the Asian Chess Federation.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

World Cup and Twitter imbroglio

 

“When you’re part of a World Cup, it’s always now or never.”

—Kevin De Bruyne

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

LET’S hope our regular monitoring of the ongoing The FIFA World Cup Qatar won’t be disrupted or “shortchanged” in the Twitter now that thousands of its employees—including key technical workers—have either stopped working (read: quit) or been laid off these past two weeks.

Sadly, the bloody carnage in this popular social media was bad timing because it occurred even before the start of the world’s greatest sporting event hosted by the peninsular Arab country whose terrain comprises arid desert and a long Persian (Arab) Gulf shoreline of beaches and dunes.

There are soccer fans who find it convenient to check the latest stories and results in the social media, and Twitter is among the leading sources of these stories in a unique platform.

In this age of fast information technology, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, WhatsApp, Reddit, Pinterest, SnapChat, and Linkedin play pivotal roles in the dissemination of accurate facts and data.   

Like ordinary news hunters who want to know the stories fresh and as quickly as possible, soccer fans love to know the scores in each match especially in the heart-thumping elimination rounds conveniently from their gadgets and mobile phones.

They are excited to know how top favorite England will tame the resurging Germany and how perennial winner Brazil will tackle the swashbuckling Spain.

 

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Twitter can’t afford to make its patrons and users disappointed and neglected in these coming weeks when the world is agog over the Beautiful Game.

While Elon Musk is busy streamlining Twitter’s workforce and tackling both the veiled and open recalcitrance of employees against his rigid management style, soccer fans are pinning their hopes for accurate and crispier coverage of the World Cup primarily in this gigantic social media platform.

The Verge has reported that after purging nearly two-thirds of Twitter’s 7,500-person workforce in three weeks, Musk is hiring again.

During an all-hands meeting with Twitter employees November 21, Musk reportedly said the company was done with layoffs and actively recruiting for roles in engineering and sales and that employees are encouraged to make referrals, according to two people who attended and a partial recording obtained by The Verge.

His comments were made the same day that an unspecified wave of cuts hit Twitter’s sales department, which has lost almost all of its senior leadership since Musk took over.

 

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US chess master Marlon Bernardino, who dabbles in sports journalism, recently delivered to me a sad news about Filipino GM Regelio “Joey” Antonio’s participation in the 30^th FIDE World Senior Individual Chess Championship held at the Hotel Cenacolo in Assisi, Umbria, Italy on Sunday.

“Joey Antonio falters in Italy chess,” Bernardino wrote in the story he sent to this writer as he disclosed the individual standings after Round 6: (Open 50+ division) 5.5 points—GM Darcy Lima (Brazil), GM Frank Holzke (Germany) 5.0 points—GM Ivan Morovic Fernandez (Chile), GM Milos Pavlovic (Serbia) 4.5 points—GM Rogelio “Joey” Antonio Jr. (Philippines), GM Maxim Novik (Lithuania), GM Zurab Sturua (Georgia), GM Vladislav Nevednichy (Romania), GM Dejan Antic (Serbia), GM Klaus Bischoff (Germany), GM Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant (Scotland), IM Krizsany Laszlo (Hungrary), IM Fabrizio Bellia (Italy), IM  William Paschall (USA), IM Klaus De Francesco (Germany), FM Stephen Dishman (England), FM Kok Siong Teo (Singapore)

Bernardino reported that Antonio (Elo 2397), the 13-time National Open Champion, lost a crucial battle against GM Darcy Lima of Brazil (Elo 2415) in the sixth round.

“Antonio, a long-time vanguard of Philippine Chess, was using the disadvantageous black pieces while playing against Lima. The game was ended after 45 moves of Bogo Indian Defense,” wrote Bernardino.

The 60-year-old Filipino GM now has 4.5 points to  share 5th to 17th places with GM Maxim Novik (Lithuania), GM Zurab Sturua (Georgia), GM Vladislav Nevednichy (Romania), GM Dejan Antic (Serbia), GM Klaus Bischoff (Germany), GM Ketevan Arakhamia-Grant (Scotland), IM Krizsany Laszlo (Hungrary), IM Fabrizio Bellia (Italy), IM William Paschall (USA), IM Klaus De Francesco (Germany), FM Stephen Dishman (England) and FM Kok Siong Teo (Singapore).

Antonio would be playing against Sturua in the seventh round.

 

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Bernardino said the 60-year-old Lima, meanwhile, shared the leadership board in the Open 50+ class tournament with a total of 5.5 points, the same output of GM Frank Holzke of Germany (Elo 2476), who brought down Novik after 53 moves of Gruenfeld Defense.

GM Ivan Morovic Fernandez of Chile and GM Milos Pavlovic of Serbia toppled their respective rivals to climb at third to fourth places with 5.0 points apiece.

International Master Angelo Abundo Young (Elo 2309) defeated Ulises Decozar (Elo 2102) of the United States to score 3.5 points and create a twenty seven-way tie for 36th places together with seventh round opponent FM Milan Kolesar of Slovakia (Elo 2136).

In the Open 65+ class, International Master elect and Fide Master Jose Efren Bagamasbad (Elo 2051) beat Eero Patola (Elo 1830) of Finland to raise his total 3.0 points. The 66-year-old Bagamasbad was tied at 84th to 112th places. He would be meeting Olav Thoresen of Norway (Elo 1874) in the next round.

Bernardino said the triumvirate would like to thank NCFP Chairman/President Rep. Prospero “Butch” Arreza Pichay Jr. and NCFP CEO GM Jayson O. Gonzales for supporting their Europe chess campaign as well to POC President Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino Jr. for helping to secure their Schengen visa on time.

Bernardino and Roberto M. Racasa serve as the triumvirate coaches, trainers and second.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local papers in Iloilo.—Ed)   

 

 

Deaths in snowstorm

“The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of a world and wake up in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment then where is it to be found?”

—J. B. Priestley

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

THE first warning I received when I started shoveling snow 14 years ago was, “don’t do it if you have a weak heart.”

Thus, I wasn’t surprised when authorities pointed to cardiac arrest to be the cause of the first two deaths reported related to the snowstorm that recently lashed Buffalo and other Western parts of New York.

Heart attacks have been known to occur while shoveling heavy amounts of snow.

But, I learned later that even if we have no history of heart problem, anyone—male or female—can die of heart attack and chest pain by trying to remove heavy snow, a vigorous physical activity.

Especially if we do it randomly and don’t throw caution to the wind.

Shoveling the white stuff can not only hurt our back, but it can also be hard on our heart.

This has been proven several times when I shoveled snow in Canada, here in the United States, and in other countries with large snow during winter season.

The storm in Buffalo was predicted days in advance with a precision that was stunning in both its timing and placement. It’s been in the news several days earlier.

It still left several towns stunned by its ferocity and overwhelmed by its relentlessness.

And as with other lake-effect storms, others farther north wondered what all the fuss was about and whether their time would come.

Despite days of warnings, snow-removal efforts were hampered by motorists who disregarded driving bans and travel advisories.

 

-o0o-

 

According to 2019 research, exercising very hard (like we do when shoveling snow) can increase our heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen requirements of our body.

Health officials say blood vessels are tighter in the cold weather, making it harder for blood to pass through them. Combine that with the stress of physical activity, and it can mean disaster for some unsuspecting shovelers, warned The Weather Network.

According to MetroHealth, patients who have a known heart disease condition, have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and/or are smokers are at highest risk of a heart attack while shoveling snow.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation recommends that anyone who has ever had a heart attack, stroke, or heart surgery should have someone else do the shoveling or should speak to their doctor before taking on such a task.

While shoveling the snow, health officials want us to watch for the following warning signs: lightheadedness, dizziness, being short of breath, tightness or burning in chest, neck, arms or back.

If we experience any of these warnings signs while shoveling, we are advised to sit down and rest. If the feeling continues for more than a few minutes we may call 911.

We have been told to talk to our doctor before tackling the snow and that we should avoid shoveling immediately after waking up in the morning as most heart attacks occur early in the morning when blood is more prone to clotting.

 

-o0o-

 

Before doing it, we must wait for at least 30 minutes and warm up our muscles before starting by walking for a few minutes or marching in place.

We aren’t supposed to eat heavy meal before shoveling as our blood gets diverted form the heart to the stomach.

Also, we can’t drink coffee or smoke for at least one hour before or one hour after shoveling or during breaks.

These are stimulants and elevate your blood pressure and heart rate.

According to The Heart and Stroke Foundation, we must use a small shovel: shovel many small loads instead of heavy ones and begin slowly and take frequent, 15 minute breaks.

Before doing it, we must drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration and dress in layers, to avoid hypothermia (low body temperature) or overheating.

It’s important that we also cover our head and neck (50 percent body heat lost through head and neck) and cover our mouth (breathing cold air can cause angina or trigger breathing problems.

The Buffalo News has reported that Orchard Park, Elma and Blasdell were the hardest hit of the Southtowns, with all three reaching 4 feet of accumulation by 5 p.m. November 18.

The lake-effect storm’s path was expected to move northward overnight, with Buffalo and Kenmore taking a hit, and to a lesser extent in the Northtowns and Niagara County. While accumulations were expected to fall well short of the 4½ feet just south, WIVB meteorologist and Buffalo News contributor Don Paul said winds would pick up to 15-30 mph over the weekend, limiting visibility.

Between November 18 (Friday) afternoon to when the storm ends November 21 (Monday), southern Erie County could get one foot to 2½ feet more, added the paper.

The Buffalo area was expected get an additional one to two feet, while Niagara County could receive eight inches to 12 inches more, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Liz Jurkowski.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

Amazon, my ex future employer?

 

“Never get married in college; it’s hard to get a start if a prospective employer finds you’ve already made one mistake.”

—Elbert Hubbard

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

UNTIL recently, I kept on receiving invitations through email and calls/text messages to work part time in Amazon; I have been asked “to report for interview” in Staten Island, NY and “earn up to $20.65/hour” as Amazon Warehouse Worker.

I have been offered “a $100 bonus with proof of Covid-19 vaccination” for a job as Warehouse Team Member in Chelsea, NY.

“Up to $3,000 sign on bonus” has been dangled for me to work as Amazon Warehouse Attendant. And so on and so forth.

We lost our jobs when New York locked down in March 2020, the start of pandemic’s harrowing incursion all over the globe.

New Yorkers, as well as other residents in other states, had to rely on unemployment benefits from the Department of Labor (from $600 to $1,200/week for more than a year, at least).

How “sweet” it is to be in the United States during the pandemic, declared one undocumented Pinoy immigrant, who brought home a whooping one-time payment of $15,600 from the $2.1 billion state budget intended for all undocumented workers in New York affected by Covid-19.

In July 2021, when New York started to go back to the mainstream after a nearly two-year hiatus from economic and employment activities, my plan was originally to work at Amazon; I was attracted by its salary package—and there was plenty of openings. Amazon jobs are arguably among the best in the post-pandemic period.

 

-o0o-

 

But after landing a post-pandemic job in Manhattan, I held the Amazon quest in abeyance.

However, Jeff Bezos’ multinational technology company that focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence, didn’t stop wooing me, modesty aside.

I stuck to my Manhattan employment but didn’t shut the door on the possibility of accepting the company’s offer for a part time.

Until I received the news November 17 that Amazon was planning to lay off thousands of employees and the job cuts and buy outs will extend in 2023.

With this development, Amazon now becomes my ex future employer.

Amazon CEO, Andy Jassy wrote in a post on November 17 that the job reductions were a part of the company’s annual operating planning review.

Jassy explained that this year’s review was complicated by the “challenging spot” the economy is in, coupled with the fact that Amazon rapidly hired employees in recent years.

According to CNBC, the e-commerce giant offered “voluntary severance” packages on November 15 and 16 as it continued to enact substantial layoffs across the company, according to CNBC.

Human resources and employee services were reportedly among the divisions that received the buyout offers.

 

-o0o-

 

While Amazon’s third-quarter earnings saw improvement over earlier in 2022, overall profits were below expectations. As a result, Amazon had been cutting back in a number of areas even before this week’s layoffs and buyouts, wrote Sara Lord and Nina Raemont of cnet.

In the past few months, Jassy halted testing on Amazon Scout, the company’s robot home delivery initiative. He’s also shuttered the Amazon Care tele-health and nursing service, as well as Fabric.com, a long-time online fabric retailer.

The cuts, along with high attrition, reduced the headcount at the company by approximately 80,000 between April and September, according to the Times. Amazon imposed a hiring freeze for small teams in September, followed by a corporate-wide freeze earlier this month.

The layoffs at Amazon reflect the turbulence facing the tech industry. Twitter, Microsoft, Meta and Google also have let go of workers in recent months. 

Amazon will provide employees who voluntarily leave the company with a severance payment equal to three months of pay, along with one week of salary for every six months of tenure, CNBC reported citing internal documents.

The news of buyouts comes amid massive layoffs that the company confirmed in a blog post November 16, after days of rumors about job cuts.

“We notified impacted employees yesterday, and will continue to work closely with each individual to provide support, including assisting in finding new roles,” Dave Limp, Amazon’s senior vice president of devices and services, said in the post.

“In cases where employees cannot find a new role within the company, we will support the transition with a package that includes a separation payment, transitional benefits, and external job placement support.”

Amazon didn’t say how many jobs have been cut, but The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have reported that the cuts affect around 10,000 corporate employees—not warehouse workers—during its busiest time of the year.

If that number is accurate, the Times noted that this would be the largest layoff in the company’s history.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)

 

 

 

 

 

Wrong investment

 

“Friend, there’s no greater investment in life than in being a people builder. Relationships are more important than our accomplishments.”

—Joel Osteen

 

By Alex P. Vidal

 

IN the financial world, a wrong investment will cost us a fortune.

The money we want to double or grow and hope to help improve the quality of our life evaporates because of unwise outlay.

In human resources, hiring wrong or unqualified employees will compromise the good standing, efficiency and growth of the company.

In relationships, a wrong choice of friend will give us plenty of trouble and inconvenience; a wrong choice of partner in life will deprive us of true happiness and give us emotional and mental anguish.

A wrong choice of business partner will drain our assets and resources and give us tremendous stress and king-sized headache.

An “investor” normally is a person or entity who outlays capital in order to produce an income or to make profits.

Investing is the act of putting forth capital with the expectation of income or profit. Personal investing is buying financial securities or property for the purpose of making a profit.

Donors and big financial backers of politicians also consider the campaign funds they spend as “investment.”

They don’t give something out of nothing.

They invest to candidates who will “give back the favor” if the candidates win and, thus, have instant access to public funds and infrastructure or public works projects.

I’ll scratch your back, you scratch mine. A quid pro quo.

 

-o0o-

 

When the late former Senator John Osmeña was campaigning for reelection many years back, he called billionaire Lucio Tan several times on the phone.

The Philippine Airlines (PAL) bigwig ignored his calls.

“Naga ring lang tapos naga off gulpi (the phone suddenly turns off after ringing),” the Cebuano politician groaned in Hiligaynon. “Isa lang ang boot silingon sini. He doesn’t want anymore to invest with me.”

Osmeña, whose popularity had waned and was no longer in contention to win, must have realized he was not anymore “bankable”.

He didn’t anymore press his luck and stopped calling Tan, an astute businessman.

Why do I know the story? Because I was with Osmeña inside the van in Iloilo when he called Tan during the campaign for his reelection in 2004.

Donors and former supporters of come-backing former US President Donald Trump have started distancing themselves after he announced his candidacy November 15 night in the 2024 presidential election.

The donors, including some Manhattan moguls who used to bankroll his campaign in the 2016 and 2020 elections, probably didn’t want anymore to “invest” with him.

 

-o0o-

 

Political “investors” must be seriously reading the political landscape. They are aware that in the just concluded midterm elections, almost all—except for a few in the smaller states—of Trump’s handpicked candidates lost miserably.

These candidates for governor, senator, representative, and secretary of state were mostly forceful election deniers and unhinged characters who embraced Trump’s embarrassing lies about President Joseph Biden’s legitimate win in 2020.

Because they lacked the substance and credibility, they have contributed heavily in the destruction of the Republican Party, according to the consensus of experts and analysts.

Even daughter Ivanka would no longer “invest” for her dad’s third stab at the presidency.

“While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena,” daughter Ivanka said in a statement that came the same evening that the former president announced his plans to run for president again.

“This time around, I am choosing to prioritize my young children and the private life we are creating as a family. I do not plan to be involved in politics.”

“We will continue to support my father—as his kids,” she said in the statement first reported by Fox News, adding that she was proud to have been a part of the Trump administration.

But didn’t they know that dad Trump loves to be underdog? He might be a “wrong investment” for some political donors, but some pundits think he can  still oust all other GOP aspirants in the primaries and end up running away with the official GOP nomination and challenge in a rematch President Biden in 2024.

(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor of two local dailies in Iloilo.—Ed)