Family news: Good election news

 The local elections put back the family who has been good running our city, so that is good news. 

Dr Angie and the family were over at his house celebrating last night...the opposition was the family whose late mayor was behind the hit that killed our nephew, and who were behind the hit that tried to kill the next mayor on the way home from our nephew's funeral several years later. 

the clans run the place, so when the murderous mayor couldn't run, he ran his daughter, and the opposition won, but when he went to Congress, his sister is running the place now.

The idea is that even if they are incompetent, their relatives will help them run the place.

As I said: Politics here is a blood sport, and our province is known as the wild west of the Philippines (not as bad as the Muslim areas, but violence alas is still part of the system).

I think I wrote about this incident before but it gives you an idea of how things work.

After our nephew and the family of the opposing candidate was shot, that mayor won the election, so during the fiesta he sat in the front of church during the fiesta mass, which was said by the local bishop.

Here, they collect money but the custom is that larger amounts be put in an envelope and taken to the front of the church to put the offering in the basket there ...

so when our cousin Chona was taking up her offering, she had to pass the mayor behind the murder of her brother, and it was too much for her (she lives in Chicago after all)...so in passing the mayor she shook her fist at him and said "You, YOU!" 

The bishop must have noticed because he held a mass and had all the local politicians come and pledge they would do no violence during the election cycle.

And voila, no violence: the next shooting was a few days after the election. 

It took ten years to get the mayor indicted for murder, but he died before trial, and of course he had a full Catholic funeral including a  KofC bodyguard.

So anyway, the streets were quiet when I went to the bank: Just a regular level of security.

wishing for world peace

 So the headlines are hyperventillating about the new Pope's recent sermon:

Pope Leo XIV appeals for 'no more war' in first Sunday message,,,Tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square and on the Via della Conciliazione leading to the Vatican broke into applause at the call for peace on what was a joyous occasion despite Leo's solemn message

yup. Reminds me of this:

.... one of the things Pope Francis did that annoyed the Trads was his outreach to moderate Muslim leaders. Trumpiboy is doing the same thing with his Abraham accords, including his recent moves to delink American policy from   the aggressive Israeli war  e.g. telling the Houthis he wouldn't bomb them since they agreed not to bomb ships... (alas they bombed Israel instead, and whoops: FAFO...) 

So Gracie is right: You need law and order to stop the bad guys before you pretend wishing for world peace will work.

Voting day in the Philippines

LOOK: Regular voting hours have begun. Sen. Koko Pimentel, who is running to be Marikina City 1st District representative, has just cast his vote at the Leodegario Victorino Elementary School. #VotePH2025 | @jasonsigalesINQ

•⁠ ⁠Follow https://t.co/EDjVS4ZXKk's election… pic.twitter.com/U6itvOT31n

— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) May 11, 2025

 the voting is the midterm election, meaning we are voting for the mayor and local officials.

Joy went to her parent's farm's area to vote, and Kuya will go to our farm's location to vote also.  Both had registered before they married and moved into Lolo's house in the main town (which is now the business compound plus house). Myself, as a US citizen I cannot vote, but will stay off the streets since sometimes fights break out.

The maid said there was a lot of security in town, including army patrols. 

Kuya said there was a lot of illegal vote buying, the price was money plus rice. The maid, who is involved with the political group Gabriela, denied the money part, but admitted that a sack of rice was being given out by some politicians, but that you had to be careful in toting it home because of all the security.

I am homebound so can't confirm any of these rumors.

Happy Mother's day

 

can peace come to Goma?

so do the PC crying about genocide (as if a one percent death rate meant genocide) have been ignoring this wars elsewhere.

This one is complicated, but could the US and Qatar broker a peace deal?  FOLLOW THE MONEY:

.....

the anti war types used to shout: No lives for oil. But no one seems to be shouting: NO blood for lithium batteries.

And yes there is a China connection.

One African point of view from February.

I gotta stop reading conspiracy sites

I was happy at the election of a missionary from Peru as the next pope until I watched a video from a liberal catholic newspaper where the priest being interviewed gushed about how quickly he was elected by a bunch of Cardinals who didn't know much about him, implying the speed of his election was due to the Holy Spirit.

And I immediately thought: Holy Spirit? or manipulation by the modernists similar to how they pressured Benedict to resign and got in Pope Francis?

....

then I was reading about the India Pakistan mini war, and saw that defense sites were watching it closely to see how the modern weapons worked, especially Chinese vs western weapons.

So was someone manipulating India to respond forcefully?

------------ 

on the other hand, without the internet, would we know about how some elites plan to save mother gaia by causing another little ice age?

politically correct atonal music wins the Pulitzer prize.

 In the days when the self proclaimed liturgists were pushing poorly written hymns on the American church, I used to have a criteria if a hymn was good: If you heard the drunks singing it on the way home from the bar, it was a good hymn.

so can anyone sing along with this music if they were drunk? How about if they were sober?

But the elites who push bad art, bad architecture, and badly written books on you are giving this lady a Pulitzer prize.

And since she is a FilAm, it is being lauded in our local news papers.

here is a video from a few years ago about her music:

 

So why did she get the Pulitzer prize for this atonal music  with no melody, and no rhythm, sort of like a poor imitation of Stravinski (i.e. not original) that no one except the elitist can or world listen to?

The explanation under the YOUTUBE video explains:

June 17, 2021 — Asia Society Triennial artist, composer, and percussionist Susie Ibarra's Fragility Etudes are studies into a world of sound that reflect humanity's interdependence and mutual existence alongside the natural environment. Ibarra’s dynamic score explores this interconnectedness through polyrhythms and concepts from the physics of glass.

Whatever.

but can anyone listen to it?

compare and contrast: the hot hits here:

 Yes I know: I am a Philistine, and  actually prefer Glen Miller to the Red hot chili peppers.

why beauty matters:

but is he a Cubs fan?

« God cares for us, God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail ! We are all in God's hands. Therefore, without fear, united hand in hand with God and among ourselves, let us move forward. » pic.twitter.com/AkHijYfYdK

— Cardinal R. Sarah (@Card_R_Sarah) May 8, 2025

.....

 the new Pope is a Chicago guy who worked in Peru as a missionary (and I believe is a citizen of that country).

Being an ex missionary, this means a lot of the culture war stuff will not work. 

In Peru, the Shining path rebels killed a lot of innocent peasants, so maybe liberation theology might not be popular. On the other hand, seeing corruption, atrocities by both the insurgents and the government military, including government overreach of arrests, and the wide gulf between the rich and the poor makes one a bit less sympathetic to Trumpieboy's push for big business and his plan to deport a lot of people who are just wanting to live in a peaceful land and work hard to support their families.

sigh.

But the really important question for Yanks is: Is the new Pope a Cubs fan? 

Grok answers:

Yes, Pope Leo XIV, previously Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, is reportedly a Chicago Cubs fan. Born in Chicago, his support for the Cubs has been noted by sources like ABC News and has sparked enthusiastic reactions among fans on social media.

But according to USATODAY, his brother claims he is a WhiteSox fan.

Full story from @WGNNews on the Pope's true baseball allegiances: https://t.co/gTnkfFAAAZ

— Josh Frydman (@Josh_Frydman) May 8, 2025

for non Yanks, Wikipedia has an entry about the White Sox vs Cubs feud.

Yum.. Pancit

 Our fiesta time is over, but one of the big part of the fiesta is that people travel to the town to attend the parade and parties.

And that means food.

....

this gets it right: Philippine culture is about family, and that includes family parties with food.

///

And don't forget adobo.

,,,,

ten popular foods when yuu hold a party

...

Father Leo's cooking show always stresses food and family and God...

 

Papal Baby Back Ribs

 the history of feeding the Cardinals at the conclave.

the recipe for those baby back ribs can be found here.

it reminds me of this old time commercial:

.....

BBC Has an article here about how to feed those attending the conclave.

Historically, food has presented a potential risk: a cardinal's ravioli might be stuffed with an illicit message from the kitchen staff; or a cardinal could sneak a vote update to the outside world with a dirty napkin.

....The code of conclave secrecy goes back to 1274, when Pope Gregory X established the regulations that still partly dictate how papal elections are run today. As with the coronation of many popes, his was controversial. It also had the distinction of being by far the longest, taking almost three years (1268-1271) to reach the majority consensus required to appoint a new pope. According to Italian canonist Henricus de Segusio, who served in that conclave, local residents threatened to restrict the cardinals' food to hasten a resolution.

 

....

Gambero Rosso has an article discussing the actual menu of what will be eaten.

The Conclave menu is based on a simple but essential principle: provide energy without heaviness, as advised by nutritionist Giorgio Calabrese to Adnkronos. It’s a formula not far removed from the meals typically served in the Santa Marta canteen—when the residence functions as a simple guesthouse—with dishes expected to be replicated for this occasion. The aim is clear: to ensure a strict and balanced diet, capable of sustaining a body and mind engaged in a crucial task, while fully respecting individual dietary needs and medical conditions such as diabetes, common among the 133 cardinals present....Pasta or rice with light sauces, white meat, oven-baked fish, seasonal vegetables directly from the Vatican gardens, salads, and fresh fruit. This is the selection for the main meal— foods that are minimally processed but rich in vitamins and minerals.