No sugar, but
spice from Miriam

Another example of how violent and how unsportsmanlike sports can be occurred in Russia when they were holding their World Cup in football. First, reports said, the fans of both teams were airing vulgar chants against each other. Then someone threw ignited fireworks on the pitch causing explosive bursts and crackling, and also blanketing the field with thick smoke. Officials had to declare the game stopped and 20 fans from the rival groups were arrested.

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Something similar also reportedly happened at the Euro 2012 championship games recently where the teams of Russia and Poland were playing. Those watching the game got frightened because of the clashes between the fans of both sides. What fun will one have while watching a game where violence can erupt anytime? But I wouldn’t have been surprised, if I knew what the teams named themselves. One was called “Torpedo” and the other “Dinamo”. Who would wonder that they would be so bellicose? They were just living up to their explosive names.

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In the meantime, basketball fans all over the country, but especially those in Metro Manila, are palpitating as they look forward to the final games of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, where the top colleges and universities of the country are competing for this year’s championship. I understand the big fights will start today, and alumni of the universities involved are now placing bets on the players of their alma mater.

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In another scenario, also preparing for his own game is the Philippines Number One athlete, world champion eight times over, Manny Pacquiao, who has agreed to face once again his bête noire in the ring. Although he had beaten Juan Manuel Marquez twice, by unanimous decision, the latter continues to believe that he had won both fights and has been hankering for another try at Pacquiao. It could be only pride, but it could also be money, because Marquez knows any fight with Manny Pacquiao is sure to bring in millions of dollars.

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But it could also be plain mule-headedness, because there are people from his own country who keep feeding his ego and telling him that he had, indeed, won those fights, and that is also what he keeps deluding himself. In a way, Marquez could be the Goebbels of sports. Remember Joseph Goebbels of the Nazi team of Adolf Hitler, the German dictator responsible for the massacre of Jews, in one of the most infamous events of history? Goebbels is best remembered for his theory that if you repeat a lie often enough, it will seem to be the truth. Ergo, Juan Manuel Marquez must have repeated to himself so many times that he had won, so that he is now convinced that it is the truth.

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Are they still thinking about the plan to move the country’s international airport to Clark, in Pampanga? I thought that had been set aside after Pampangueña Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had left the presidency. But no, there seems to be movements towards it again, and I am glad to know that many groups are protesting against it. For one the very influential International Air Transportation Association, or IATA, has been quite vocal about its objection to the plan.

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IATA official Tony Tyler was quoted as saying that Clark is too far away from Manila, and that is also said to be the view of Philippine Airlines president Ramon Ang. Tyler pointed out that tourists who come to the country want to go to Manila, which is about 100 kilometers from Clark. Even Filipinos from other provinces, especially in the Visayas and Mindanao, will complain, because it will mean not only more time spent in traveling, it will also mean more expenses and bother. But don’t say that out loud, the Clark proponents might decide to propose the transfer of the capital to Clark!

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The BDO – hope you still remember that is actually Banco de Oro – held a very successful and well-attended briefing at the La Proa Hall of L’Fisher Hotel yesterday on the theme “Philippines, where are we going?” and “Philippine Sugarcane Industry: Challenge and Opportunity. The topics seemed dull, but not with the presence of Senator Miriam Santiago who was the first to wonder where the Philippines is going, and would not be challenged by the sugarcane industry. The senator was a big hit, as usual, with her quips and digs at her fellow solons. But La Miriam would have warmed the heart of Gov. Freddie Marañon when she batted for agriculture and food production for the region. Attagirl, Miriam! By the way, she was looking quite pretty yesterday, and when I told her so, she smiled very sweetly, and even agreed to grant Carla a walking interview.*

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