Before Pinoy Big Brother landed on primetime teevee, there was much sincere and real drama i experienced with my instant friends on Juy 11, 2005. We were totally strangers, and surprisingly lived in one roof. Jeff a former dj with two kids and a pretty wife. Beth was tired of shooting commercials for tv and print. Raine a professional tourist guide. Lotte quit her job as a preschool teacher. Arlyn, Carlitos, Lalaine and I were simply bums.

In just a blink of an eye, we were like crazy people wanted to be ONE. We shared the same room (sometimes), same kitchen, same comfort room, and there was so much fun first hour in the morning, and last hurray in the evening. We played charade almost every night, and excited the next day on our breakfast prepared by the cook-in-charge for the day, but as happened, it was Jeff our resident cook.

There was so much fun in just a little span of time; the little misunderstandings between Jeff and Lotte, Carlito and Arlyn, Raine and Jeff, and our group fights with some ugly neighborhoods led by Gollum, the oldman who was trying to invade our mind with his fake credentials. The laughters and cheers as if we were senior high schools giggling over Jeff and Raine´s bloopers. The psychotic acapella game of Jeff ¨this is a book, a what? book, a what? a book? a book? ahh a pen!¨ The tricky dog- game of Raine ´the dog died yesterday, did the dog die? Listen¨ The loudly gossips on Carlito´s love affair with her unknown lovers in his G-blog. The thrift-smile of chinese girl Beth, and the crouching and sexy outfits of Lalaine who had seen our unseen housemates. Not to forget the slowmo Lotte who put conspiracy on our game called concentration but she wrongly named it combination, and the pretty and determined Arlyn.

Three years after we parted ways, when days that we were grasping molecules to see the larger picture of life (OWS?). I heard Lotte now a public teacher in Bulacan, Lalaine a geodetic engineer in a certain plantation in Batangas, Beth in Discovery Channel Asia, Arlyn a happy international stewardess based in Great Britain, Raine a wife, Carlito´s back in the US, and unexpectedly Jeff died of cancer last year.

It has been a year that none of us tried to say hi and hello on whatever means. We were overwhelmed by the surprised twist of friendship that we built and saddened by the same day expiration of our literally bonding in one roof. Friendship has expiration too, but the date, that we do not know. What important is the immortal memories that we had shared and how each of us significantly shared life with so much ease, even in just 30 days.

All eyes on continuing war in some parts of Mindanao; i read a press release from the Office of Representative Mujiv Hataman defending Moslems and Islam from his colleague Representative Teddy Locsin on the latter´s privilege speech on Moslems and Islam in general. The statement is academically written that i need to consult some books to reveal its deeper meanings.

The book of Khaled Abou El Fadl from UCLA entitled On The Great Theft, Wresting Islam From The Extremists a great help. The book is about the internal divisions within Islam. Khaled Abou El Fadl has successfully and clearly presented; first, the Islam according to puritans. Second, the Islam according to moderates. In between these two divisions, it is the former dominates the notion of what is Islam in the eyes and minds of moslems and non-moslems all over the world.

The contemporary moslems are in denial by the continuous calls to reunite moslems, while on the other hand, still unsure of the contradictory statements on what is islamically legitimate or condemnable. There is a crises in determining thoughts on what Islam is and what is not. From within the circa of  puritans, where is Islam in the bombing of Sunnis by Shites and vice versa? Where is Islam in war between Iran and Iraq, eliminating each other completely? The definition of what is Islam and what is not becoming a relative terminology, given the undying fights and wars within Islam of what is truly and what is totally unislamic.

I find it interesting that fights between puritans and moderates are fights over moslems in the Middle East countries or any Islamic state against moslems living in a totally opposite living condition such as in Europe and America. One factor i see is pressure, these moslems living within a moslem environment are directly affected by strong opposition of the world towards them and in effect, they tend to romanticize the need to defend Islam to the extent of violent jihad. While the other moslem condemns violent jihad, and they feel to defend Islam through propagating real Islam and real conception of jihad, because of pressure to harmoniously live accordingly in a foreign land.

In the book, there is no explanation if there is in any ways puritans who are conducting jihad not the like of the extremists. They are fighting to win over a piece of islamic land, fight over self-determination. Are these MILF fighters falling under definition of Puritanism? I believe in my understanding, this might being misunderstood and might also fall under the same context of puritanism as extremists, jihadists, unmerciful human beings.

The foremost idea here is the contradiction of utopia Islam and the real Islam as may i call it. In real Islam, there is no moral and ethical objective standard for goodness and its obligation to investigate Godliness and the absence of it, disqualifying the rule of submission in utopia Islam as mathematical and prophetic traditions. In utopia Islam, the standard for goodness is the puritans themselves, proclaiming themselves as the only Islam.

In today´s Islam, there is n doubt that puritans are everywhere, the theology of puritans as the only Islam implanted in everyone´s mind and eyes. Putting this in the cultural background of Moslems in the Philippines, this puritanism theology is part of adat, a time immemorial culture and tradition and practice according to Islam and/or from the culture of Arabia which incalculated to local folks. This later divulge into a no distinction between what Islam is and what is not.

The conservatives are not significant in shaping the future of Islam. Thus, Abou El Fadl is saying that conservatives are formed part of the islamic world and definitely not puritans. In this case, i strongly disagree, these conservatives are formed part of the puritans, what is Islam for them is the same theology of the puritans less the agitation.

Finally, Khaled Abou El Fadl made a huge step ahead to defend Islam from the extremists. So, if you have this blurring idea on what Islam is and what is not, the book will give you a tool in objectifying Islam from the prevalent questions on puritan Islam and on violent jihad.

How can world be so imperfect? Holy Books are saying God created human beings to praise Him, that is the primary reason. In situation where dynamics of life are very cruel; He gave endowments, the senses of hearing, touching, tasting, and seeing for us to attain reality. Ironic that reality is something that is against “live life to its fullest”. Something is missing, that is the sense of heart which is the very instinct that triggers us to decide things.  It is the faculty to think, and when a person is torn between reality and sensual illusion, the sense of heart is there to give judgment.

Anyway, 10 steps away from this secret paradise in Lingayen Gulf is a squatters area.


Joans of Arc


Little "Rowie"


Almond Eyes


Helping Hands


Winnie and Pooh


Crucifixion

There is no hope in the current Philippine politics. A .50 text promo is not worth to mention in a State of the Nation Address, diverting real issues of price increases in all commodities. The political advisers of the President are more than idiots boasting that VAT can help the poor. Eh in the first place, the poor can not afford a +12% VAT.

The dishonorable Speaker of the House Nograles said in the opening of the 2nd session of the 14th congress, that he will never be an underdog of the Palace. That statement a big ass in his face. He became the Speaker of the House because of collaboration campaign effort of Arroyo Congressmen Mikey, Datu and Iggy, plus a funnyface ¨croco¨ Villafuerte against then Speaker Jose de Venecia. Poor de Venecia, his former allies and friends from Lakas and Kampi political parties voted against him in exchange of monies.

Eh, how can Speaker Nograles avoid the Arroyos? Really, Nograles do not have the power and authority over the other congressmen. The pork barrel is not anymore directly under the office of the House Speaker, after de Venecia was ¨shoo¨, the Palace transferred the funds under the Office of the President, meaning these huge ¨croco¨ congressmen are directly getting their pork barrel to the President, in exchange of allegiance. Such a mole! It´s a mole world afterall. ANNOUNCEMENT: I am stepping back to Kadu4VicePresident! hahahaha.