(Reprinted with editing from Agung Magazine Oct. 2005 issue)

ARCHAEOLOGICAL resources in the Philippines have been extensively studied and generated information on the earliest foundation of the Filipino nation.

The data gathered from these studies have contributed to the insights on the rich cultural heritage of the country. In this, archaeology is considered primarily as a source of general knowledge. The role of archaeology beyond knowledge generation has not been properly realized.

Thus, the Philippine government launched a development project in one of the most significant archaeological sites in the country, the Tabon Cave Complex in Quezon, Palawan where the earliest human remains were found by National Museum (NM) archeologists.

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SAYAN INDIO
Mario Karateka

AKIN kasi et amta inyepasla nen Presidenta Gloria so Proklamasyon 1017 to ya nanbayag na singa sakey simba labat et agni makareen iray karaklan? Dakel nin siansiay sayangeseng ya agni nagnap ya makaingas iray oposisyon tan ingen pati media ta nian nipaonong odino akabalaybay ni kono so pridam op ispit tan pridam to pispoli asimbel ed bansa.

Anggapomet ingen ed pakaamtak so nipasaran Medya, odino anggan inerel; alenleneg labatla imay reyd na polis ed say Deyli Tribyun nen masibeg ya pabliser-kolumnistan Ninez Cacho Olivares no iner inaala kono iray pigaran ompaway ni labat ya kopya tan dokumentos na saman ya dyrayo nasyonal.

No agsay amtak ya mangiiter ni na paga ed kapusoan daray sunggay ed si Nana Gloria et satay Deparsmin op Dyastis nen Sekretaryo Raul Gonzales ta ambabangil iray pasakbay-pakabat to nipaakar ed say kurang na Medya. Balet no tebeken mo, sarayan pospostura nen malabir ya Gonzales, et talagan kaibad “psy-war” na gobyerno—e. sige, Malakanyang ladtan – pian anggaman inuyos lay 1017 et mandeen iray magugulo ed kalye, palapagan tan ere.

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AFTER ALL
Behn Fer. Hortaleza

BY JUNE, this year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) hopes to deploy more computers (actually the third batch of its kind) — that is, 1,200 schools throughout the Philippines.

The DTI guys, a report in the Inquirer said, are now evaluating the “post qualifying” bids for the PCs for Public Schools Project probably to see not just what’s “more advantageous to government” in terms of price but also practical considerations. Mainly, DTI is trying to make up its mind on whether to use open source, Microsoft or Mac for operating systems of the PCs.

Off the bat, many would go for Microsoft. Reason’s simple: it’s more popular and as some techno geeks say, easily adapts to users’ common requirements. But if those DTI characters and DepEd figures know what’s good for their budgets, which, in any case, is not a bulging, fat one, they might want to go open source.

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THE PEN SPEAKS
Danny O. Sagun

GMA has again survived another attempt to unseat her. With that feat she appears now even more determined to stay in her post.

As in previous attempts of her enemies to drive her out of Malacanang, one main fact stood out in last week’s yet another sad episode of the country’s history: There is no alternative leader for people to rally around. With that advantage, GMA appears headed to finish her term unless someone among her political enemies or from her own people suddenly comes out a knight in shining armor.

*****

It’s been five years since the serial bomber first struck in 2001. He/she places explosive devices in garbage heaps apparently to scare garbage collectors as well as scavengers.

Lying low for about a year, the bomber made his presence felt again last Tuesday. The victim was an 11-year-old son of a scavenger who himself was an earlier victim.

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Windows
Gabriel L. Cardinoza
 
At the height of the stand off at the Marines headquarters in Fort Bonifacio last week, a good crowd gathered at the Leisure Coast Resort in Bonuan Binloc not to support an embattled Marine Col. Ariel Querubin but to watch a fashion show featuring Pangasinan’s important people, who are models in their own fields.
 
The fashion show, “06 Fashion Revolution,” was actually a fund-raising activity of the Pangasinan-Washington Sister State Association (Pawassa), a group organized in 1996 as a counterpart organization of the Seattle-based Washington-Pangasinan Sister State Association (Wapssa), for the benefit of its 32 Pangasinan State University scholars.
 
Pawassa is headed by Celia Lambino, wife of Vice Gov. Oscar Lambino, while the Wapssa president is Alma Quintans-Kern, a successful buisness person in Washington State . It was Ms. Kern who initiated the scholarship program about five years ago and so far, there have been several “poor but deserving” students who have finished their courses.

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