THE SLOWEST SPEED AVAILABLE, NOT THE FASTEST, SHOULD BE THE TRUE MEASURE FOR QUALITY OF INTERNET CONNECTIVITY

A Phil. Long Distance Tel. Co. (PLDT) executive was over the news boasting that a recent “research” showed that the Philippines has risen to the No. 12 among countries with high-speed internet connection (in Asia-Pacific). What is he talking about?   I knew for a fact that in Hong Kong and Singapore, as way back as several years ago, the slowest internet speeds start at 12-15mbps (megabits per sec.) and their fastest may be twice or many times that.

In the Philippines, however, where our telcos (telecommunications companies) are making so much money by providing multi-tiered internet packages – internet connection speeds start at an unbelievable slow speed of 375-750kbps (kilobits per sec.) or

RH LAW IS PRO-LIFE, PRO-POOR AND PRO-PROGRESS: FAMILY PLANNING IS A MUST FOR POVERTY ALLEVIATION

Why do the poorest have some of the largest families? Perhaps because they didn't know any better. Implementing the RH LAW of 2012 will result to informed choices and will greatly benefit this sector of Philippine society.

Over-population or high fertility rate is a common factor in underdeveloped or “developing” countries. In fact, all developed nations have low fertility rate that some have zero or negative population growth.

But in developed nations, too, there are significantly less practicing or devout Catholics. This is probably why the Philippines's Roman Catholic Church is holding us back – it wouldn’t allow government to implement an effective population control program and no president has been able to do this for fear of losing their flock’s vote. According to statistics, devoutness is prevalent

JANSPORT BACKPACK ZIPPERS GET STUCK A LOT

Jansport backpacks aren’t inexpensive teens’ school gear, but apparently they’re popular. That is why we’ve had at least 3 over the years for my teenage daughter. They’re the “in” thing in school since she was in her elementary school days. They’re sturdy, with a life-time warranty on service, but they have a problem – the zipper often gets stuck on the covering flap.

And after I searched the internet, I found out that other Jansport backpack owners have been experiencing the same problem. It is not an

SEN. MANNY PACQUIAO AND SEN. TITO SOTTO: WE SHOULD LISTEN TO WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY

I was able to catch a glimpse of the first day of the much talked about Senate hearing on the so-called Extra-Judicial Killings (EJK) and it is interesting to note the responses made by Sen. Tito Sotto and Sen. Manny Pacquiao. I must admit that maybe because they’re not lawyers or PhDs or the like I didn’t have high expectations.

Much to my surprise, the two Senators posed some of the most interesting (and sensible) questions. Sen. Tito Sotto asked a resource person whose husband and father-in-law got killed inside a police station, "What is the penalty for Kara Crus? Isn’t that a minor offense?

TRUCKS AND BUSES NOW AT ROXAS BLVD.: THEY’RE CAUSING HAVOC

I was sadly surprised to see huge container van trucks and buses along Roxas Blvd. the other night on my way to Malabon City from the Mall of Asia (MOA) in Pasay City. For several decades now, trucks and buses have been banned from much of Roxas Blvd. which makes the traffic congestion relatively easier.

Eventually I noticed a lane with the new marking “TRUCKS WITH TABS” that apparently runs the entire stretch of Roxas Blvd. now. The new administration may have been trying to replicate the Circumferential Road 5 (C5) model wherein trucks and buses can use one lane. In the C5 model, however, the single-lane use is strictly implemented – this is evident because a long line of trucks creates a “wall” along