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Bowl sells for Chinese porcelain record $37.7M – Sotheby’s

HONG KONG – A 1,000-year-old bowl from China’s Song Dynasty sold at auction for $37.7 million on Tuesday, breaking the record for Chinese porcelain, auction house Sotheby’s said.

The small piece – which dates from 960-1127 – broke the previous record of $36.05 million set in 2014 for a Ming Dynasty wine cup which was sold to a Shanghai tycoon.

Bidding started at around $10.2 million and the auction lasted for 20 minutes before the winning offer came from a phone bidder.

The bowl – originally designed to wash brushes – is an example of extremely rare Chinese porcelain from the imperial court of the Northern Song Dynasty and one of only four pieces in private hands, according to Sotheby’s.

Measuring 13 cm. in diameter, the dish features a luminous blue glaze.

The sale broke the “world auction record for any Chinese ceramics,” the auction house announced after the bidding.

It exceeded an earlier record made by a tiny white porcelain cup, decorated with a color painting of a rooster and a hen tending to their chicks, created during the reign of the Chenghua Emperor between 1465 and 1487.

The cup sold in 2014 to taxi-driver-turned-financier Liu Yiqian, one of China’s wealthiest people and among a new class of Chinese super-rich scouring the globe for artwork. – AFP

MRC Allied completes deal for stake in solar farm

MRC ALLIED, Inc. on Tuesday completed its acquisition of a 15% stake in a solar farm in Leyte for $5 million, marking its shift to the energy business.

The former property company told the stock exchange it had signed and executed a deed of assignment with Amled International Systems, Inc., one of the owners of Sulu Electric Power and Light (Phils.), Inc. (Sepalco).

Sepalco owns a 50-megawatt (MW) solar project in Barangay Castilla in Palo, Leyte province. It started operating in March 2016. The plant is connected to the grid via a 69-kilovolt transmission line.

MRC Allied bought 157.5 million shares in Sepalco at P1 each for a total of P157.5 million. Before the deal, Amled holds 45% of Sepalco, while SAS Sunrise Pte Ltd. owns 40%. The rest are held by three individuals.

The listed company said it will source the funds for the acquisition from shareholders’ advances.

MRC Allied President Gladys N. Nalda previously said the company was targeting to put up 1,000 MW of renewable energy capacity by 2022. For this year, the company has 160 MW of solar capacity in the pipeline — 100 MW in Clark Green City, Pampanga and 60 MW in Naga City, Cebu.

On Tuesday, shares in MRC Allied rose 5.8% to P0.365 each. — Victor V. Saulon

Weapons cache uncovered at Las Vegas shooter’s house

LAS VEGAS — Authorities said Monday they had recovered a weapons cache including firearms, explosives and ammunition from a house owned by Las Vegas gunman Stephen Paddock, as they upped the death toll from the attack to 59.

Sheriff Joseph Lombardo said officers searching the house in Mesquite, Nevada recovered “in excess of 18 additional firearms, some explosives and several thousand rounds of ammo, along with some electronic devices we’re evaluating at this point.”

Mr. Lombardo said the death toll from the Sunday night assault on an open-air concert on the Vegas Strip had risen to 59, while 527 people had been injured.

He said law enforcement were working four separate crime scenes: Paddock’s room at the Mandalay Bay hotel, the concert venue, the gunman’s house in Mesquite, and another house he owns in northern Nevada which a SWAT team was poised to raid.

The arsenal uncovered in Mesquite comes on top of at least 16 firearms discovered in the Vegas hotel room, from which Paddock launched the deadly assault before killing himself.

Mr. Lombardo said investigators had discovered several pounds of an explosive called tannerite in the Mesquite home, as well as ammonia nitrate, a type of fertilizer, in the gunman’s car.

Asked if they had discovered anything to bolster the claim of responsibility by the Islamic State group, Lombardo replied:

“Good for them — no, we have no evidence of that.”

‘RAT-A-TAT’
The gunman who fired on Las Vegas concertgoers from more than 1,000 feet away on Sunday may have used fully automatic weapons — or guns legally modified to act like them — that allowed him to spray bullets into the crowd of 22,000 people.

A US law enforcement official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters authorities, believed 64-year-old Paddock had at least two of such weapons when he fired from his 32nd floor hotel room, killing at least 59 people and injuring more than 500.

The rat-a-tat sound of the Las Vegas shooter’s gunfire prompted police at the scene to report the gunman was using an “automatic” weapon — a term often used to describe a fully automatic gun that can fire as many rounds as its magazine, drum or belt holds by pulling and holding the trigger.

Those weapons have been largely outlawed for three decades, though Paddock could also have used legal or illegal means to alter semi-automatic rifles, which fire a round every time the trigger is pulled.

“From the audio, that is not someone who has a traditional semi-automatic rifle firing it in its normal condition,” said David Chipman, a former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent who advises the gun control group Americans for Responsible Solutions. “Either it’s a machine gun or it’s been modified. I don’t believe a human can do that with his finger.”

Police said they recovered a total of 42 weapons belonging to Paddock, including 23 from the hotel room and 19 at his home in Mesquite, a small desert town about an hour from Las Vegas. Some were automatic weapons or semi-automatic rifles illegally modified into fully-automatic weapons.

It was not clear when or how Paddock obtained the guns. Chris Sullivan, owner of the Guns & Guitars shop near Paddock’s home in Mesquite, Nevada, confirmed Paddock had legally purchased firearms from the store but did not offer more detail.

The shooting has prompted renewed calls from Democrats for tighter gun laws, though it is unlikely the Republican-controlled Congress will take up such measures.

In 1986, Congress barred civilians from buying or selling fully automatic weapons made after that date, though individuals can legally possess older weapons after passing a background check and obtaining a special permit.

There are about 176,000 pre-1986 machine guns registered with the US government that can be legally transferred, and they typically cost tens of thousands of dollars.

But there are also less expensive legal products that can allow semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15, which are much more widely available, to fire hundreds of rounds per minute.

A “bump stock,” for example, replaces a semi-automatic rifle’s stock, which rests against the shoulder to provide stability and absorb recoil.

The bump stock causes the gun’s recoil to press against the shooter’s finger after each shot, firing rounds much more quickly than possible by pulling it manually.

The website for one such product, Slide Fire, shows several videos in which shooters launch multiple rounds per second in bursts that sound almost indistinguishable from automatic fire. Reviewers have reported that the product permits a shooter to go through hundreds of rounds every minute.

The company did not return requests for comment.

‘SOUPED-UP SEMI?’
Such devices are not outlawed because the trigger is still pulled for each round, even though the rate is faster than possible using only one’s finger.

“There’s very little difference between a souped-up semi automatic and a fully automatic,” said Mike McLively, a policy expert with Americans for Responsible Solutions.

Paddock could also have illegally converted semi-automatic rifles into fully automatic guns, a process made easier by the presence of guides uploaded to the internet.

Nevada law lets residents own machine guns, if they are permitted under federal law. The state does not require licenses, registration or a waiting period for firearms, including semi-automatic rifles.

Shares in gunmakers American Outdoor Brands and Sturm, Ruger & Co rose 3.21% and 3.48%, respectively, on Monday. Gun stocks often spike following mass shootings on fears of stricter gun control. — AFP and Reuters

Shock value

JAPANESE automotive parts company KYB, known for shock absorbers, has added the New SR Special to its product lineup in the Philippines. The newly introduced shock absorber promises to retain the comfortable ride of stock vehicles even as it improves the damping characteristics of their suspension systems, according to Massiveparts, Inc., KYB distributor in the Philippines.

The company explained the New SR Special, which can replace shock absorbers fitted to vehicles when these leave the factory, has different viscosity levels that are 50% heavier on the compression/bumping stroke and 80% heavier on the rebound/extension stroke when compared against standard shock absorbers. This, Massiveparts said, lead to better handling qualities that do not compromise ride quality in the process.

“The New SR Special shock absorber fits most sedans, hatchbacks, SUVs and tuned cars made by brands like Subaru, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda, Ford and Suzuki,” said Gen Leong, marketing manager at Massiveparts. “It is perfect for those who would like to upgrade their daily drive.”

The Philippines and The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)

Immediately after taking his seat in the White House, President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum to formally withdraw US participation from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). In a statement released last Jan. 23, President Trump said he is not supporting the TPP as it will only “undermine the US economy and its independence.” As an alternative, the American Chief Executive introduced alternative strategies which he claims will “put America first and bring jobs back to American shores.”

The TPP was originally planned as the most comprehensive free trade agreement between 12 nations that border the Pacific Ocean. It included Australia, Brunei, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States, and Vietnam.

With the America’s withdrawal from the trading bloc, many thought that the TPP was dead in the water. Recently, however, the remaining member countries announced that TPP will push through with or without US participation. It is a clear sign of America’s decreasing importance in world trade.

The eleven remaining members have a collective GDP of $9.963 trillion, big enough to challenge the economies of China and India. It further boast of 470 million affluent consumers.

The TPP deliberately leaves out China and India since its ultimate objective is to balance the dominance of these two superpowers in international trade. TPP is designed to give other economies a fair chance to secure their fair share of global exports.

At the heart of the TPP is the commitment of each member country to lower trade barriers on 18,000 products, including contentious agricultural crops. In as far as non-trade barriers are concerned, TPP mandates each of its members to install express customs clearing mechanisms for importations coming from fellow-TPP members. It further prohibits them from levying duties for online transactions.

All these make it easier and cheaper to trade among TPP members. They become each other’s preferred trading partners, in effect.

When fully implemented, inter-trade among TPP economies is seem to increase by $146 billion a year. Along with boost in trade comes job creation, enhanced innovation, increased productivity, competitiveness and greater prosperity for all.

Those excluded in TPP, like the Philippines, are seen to lose out on this windfall of economic gains.

NON-TRADE ADVANTAGES OF TPP MEMBERSHIP
Apart from the economic benefits of TPP membership, member countries are also compelled to comply with the basic tenets of good governance.

For one, TPP members are required to join the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC). Participation in UNCAC necessitates strict compliance with its anti-corruption code of conduct including the criminalization of government officials involved in bribery and conflicts of interest.

TPP also mandates its members to adhere to strict human rights standards. As such, it imposes stiff consequences for those who utilize child labor and practice discrimination in the workplace.

As far as intellectual property is concerned, members are obliged to adapt advanced policies to guard against of copyright, trademarks, and patent infringements.

Member countries are further committed to establish an “investor-state dispute settlement mechanism.” This gives foreign investors the right to sue its host country for treaty violations. It is meant to provide investors with basic protection from discrimination, uncompensated expropriation of property, denial of justice, and right to transfer capital.

All requisites considered, membership in TPP accelerates nations to become responsible, progressive, and aggressive exporters within the framework of good governance. It is a win-win situation.

PHILIPPINES PARTICIPATION
Although the Philippines was keen to join the TPP even during its conceptualization in 2005, it was not invited (nor considered) to join the group due to the prohibitive provisions of our Constitution relating to foreign investments.

See, embedded in our constitution are protectionist statues that go against the very tenets of a liberalized trading bloc. In particular, the 1987 constitution prevents foreign investors from owning majority stake in businesses relating to agriculture, fisheries, public utilities, education, private practice, and media, among others. On top of this, foreign ownership of land is prohibited.

Exclusion from TPP will be disastrous for our export industries on two counts.

First, since our key trading partners — Japan, Singapore and Canada, are signatory countries of TPP, not being part of the bloc weakens our competitive position in these markets. Second, the Philippines exports practically the same products as Vietnam and Malaysia. These include semiconductors, electronic products, food and beverages, furniture, garments, chemicals, auto and aerospace parts. Not being part of TPP puts Filipino-made products at a price disadvantage considering the duty-free privilege enjoyed by Vietnam and Malaysia. Duties can range anywhere from 2% to 100%, depending on product category.

The 10-point economic agenda of the Duterte administration calls for the amendment of the Constitutional restrictions that relate to foreign investments. While economic Charter change has yet to be earnestly deliberated upon in Congress, many are optimistic that it will come to pass. This should remove the obstacle to our inclusion in TPP.

Last week, DTI Secretary, Mon Lopez announced that he is reviving our application into TPP. It is doing so with the help of Japan, a strong member of the trading bloc, which is endorsing our application.

The initiative was applauded by local business groups as well as foreign chambers of commerce. Not only will our participation in TPP preserve our existing export markets, it will allow the Philippines to gain a stronger foothold in global trade, a scenario that will benefit Filipino manufacturers, traders and consumers alike. More importantly, inclusion in TPP prevents existing manufacturers based in the Philippines from moving to Vietnam.

The Philippines is currently a signatory to ASEAN, APEC, the World Trade Organization and the East Asian Community Trading bloc. Unfortunately, none of these treaties carry the same weight and scope of benefits as the TPP. For the Philippines to remain competitive and for it to sustain is upward trajectory in economic development, membership in TPP is fundamental.

We applaud Sec. Lopez for being forward thinking and taking this initiative.

 

Andrew J. Masigan is an economist.

Coal industry sees 15% consumption growth amid infrastructure push

By Victor V. Saulon, Sub-Editor

COAL CONSUMPTION is expected to grow an average of 15% each year until the end of the government’s term, driven by robust infrastructure spending, an industry official said.

Consumption “is on an upswing. I’m looking at 10%-20% increase [this year] from the previous year,” Arnulfo Robles, executive director of the Philippine Chamber of Coal Mines, Inc. (Philcoal), said in an interview.

In absolute terms, he placed the growth increment at two million metric tons (MMT) to four MMT this year. The Department of Energy (DoE) estimated last year’s coal consumption at 20.296 MMT, down 6.3%.

“The figure of DoE is also moving,” Mr. Robles said.

Asked about the factors driving the growth in consumption, he cited activity in the power plants and cement sectors “because of the ‘Build, Build, Build’ policy of the government.”

“These are the things that would push the consumption of coal,” he said.

Mr. Robles said that for the next five years, growth is likely to “go along that line. [About] 15% is the average rate, going up until the end of the administration.” The current government leadership ends in mid-2022.

He said coal imports will continue to outpace the use of locally sourced coal with the entry of “supercritical” coal-fired power plants fueled by coal with higher calorific or heating value. These advanced-technology plants are said to be more efficient and emit less greenhouse gas.

Mr. Robles cited Australia, which ships high-value coal to the Philippines, as possibly cornering a bigger share of supply.

Last year, coal from Indonesia amounted to 17.988 MMT, accounting for about 86.25% of the country’s total coal imports. Australia’s share was around 3.03%, DoE data show.

“We are pushing for advanced supercritical technology coal-fired power plants. They use high BTU (British thermal unit),” he said, referring to the amount of heat required to raise water.

Coal-fired power plants burn coal in a boiler to produce steam, which in turn flows into a turbine that spins a generator to create electricity.

“If we have to push for more plants with that kind of technology, then we’ll need more Australian coal more than Indonesian coal,” Mr. Robles said.

As of last year, of the Philippines’ installed capacity of 21,423 megawatts (MW), 34.6% or 7,419 MW come from coal-fired plants, making them the country’s dominant power source.

Cebu provincial government allocates P40M to help towns in solid waste management

CEBU GOVERNOR Hilario P. Davide III has given the green light for the use of a P40-million fund to help municipal and city governments set up garbage disposal programs. Mr. Davide, in a statement, said he will convene the Solid Waste Management Board to discuss with mayors ways to help them comply with Republic Act 9003, the Ecological Solid Waste Management Law. Mayor Ronald G. Cesante of Dalaguete town, who was among those who sought assistance from the provincial government, said several officials are already facing cases before the Ombudsman for noncompliance to RA 9003. “So far only few cities and towns have sanitary landfills. Lack of funds and the high cost of operating the facilities are the reasons LGUs (local government units) are having a hard time complying with RA 9003,” he said. Meanwhile, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office officer-in-charge Baltazar S. Tribunalo, Jr. said there is also an allocation in the 2018 proposed budget for assisting LGUs with waste management programs. Cebu has 44 municipalities and seven cities under its jurisdiction.

Las Vegas shooting tests Trump’s leadership; Wednesday visit set

WASHINGTON/LONDON — President Donald J. Trump said he’ll travel to Las Vegas on Wednesday to meet victims and emergency workers after a killing spree late Sunday that is likely the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, presenting a test of his leadership.

“It was an act of pure evil,” Mr. Trump said in a statement at the White House on Monday. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are assisting in the investigation, he said.

Police said at least 59 people were killed and at least 527 others injured at a concert by a lone gunman, firing from a hotel room overlooking the venue, who later died and whose motive was unclear.

“Hundreds of our fellow citizens are now mourning the sudden loss of a loved one,” Mr. Trump said. “We cannot fathom their pain; we cannot imagine their grief.”

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the terrorist-monitoring group SITE, which cited the Amaq news outlet. Police identified the attacker as a 64-year-old Nevada resident, Stephen Paddock, and said he had killed himself.

ISIL CLAIM
Amaq claimed Paddock had recently converted to Islam, SITE said, but provided no evidence, and Mr. Trump did not mention Paddock’s name, ascribe any motive for his attack, or declare the episode to be an act of terrorism. FBI Special Agent Aaron Rouse said at a news conference in Las Vegas that the bureau had “determined to this point no connection to an international terrorist group.”

An official on the White House National Security Council also said there were no known terrorist connections, but that the government was continuing its investigation.

Mr. Trump spoke with Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and Clark County Sheriff Joseph Lombardo. The White House canceled several administration press events scheduled for Monday.

He later observed a moment of silence with White House staff and the First Lady, Melania Trump, on the South Lawn.

The Department of Homeland Security had “no information to indicate a specific credible threat involving other public venues in the country” after the shooting, it said in a statement.

The shooting could initiate a new round of debate over US gun laws.

Republican Senator Dean Heller, who represents Nevada in Washington, said on Twitter that he was praying for the victims of the “senseless, horrifying act of violence” and that he’d spoken to Mr. Sandoval and would continue to monitor the situation.

POLITICAL VULNERABILITY
Mr. Heller is one of the most vulnerable Republicans in next year’s midterm elections, and the shooting could increase pressure on him to back any Democratic effort to revive legislation that would impose stricter background checks on gun purchasers. He voted against a version of background-check legislation that came close to Senate passage in 2013 after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said it would be “premature” to discuss policy responses such as gun control until authorities have a clearer understanding of the event.

Still, she suggested that Mr. Trump would likely maintain his opposition to additional restrictions on gun purchases. “The president’s been clear that he’s a supporter of the Second Amendment and I don’t have anything more at this point,” Ms. Sanders said.

Some Democratic leaders said immediately on Monday that the episode demanded stronger gun laws. “The nation’s conscience must be galvanized,” Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, where the Sandy Hook shooting happened, said on Twitter.

“Not again,” tweeted Connecticut’s junior senator, Chris Murphy, who’s been outspoken about gun laws since the killing of 20 children and six adult staff members at the school.

BACKGROUND CHECKS REVISITED
Mr. Murphy said late Monday that he will reintroduce a bill requiring background checks of gun purchasers. He said he expects the Las Vegas massacre will probably pressure Congress to act in some fashion, though he saw little chance the Republican-controlled Congress would pass more stringent measures, such as reinstating the assault-weapon ban that lapsed in 2004.

“We are likely better served by focusing on issues like background checks that immediately get more Republican support,” Mr. Murphy said.

Four months after Sandy Hook, the Senate — controlled by Democrats at the time — fell short of the votes needed to advance legislation that would have expanded background checks for gun purchasers. The vote was viewed as a major defeat for gun-control advocates and no subsequent efforts have come as close to passing.

DEBATE RESURFACES
Each mass shooting in the US reignites debate over the country’s treatment of gun rights as virtually sacrosanct. Firearms are involved in the deaths of more than 33,000 people in the US annually, about two-thirds of which are suicides, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Last year, 49 people were killed at an Orlando nightclub. It prompted Democrats to again raise the issue, forcing a series of votes in the Senate, by then under Republican control. None of those efforts succeeded.

After House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was critically injured in a shooting at a congressional baseball practice in June, Republicans said it didn’t show new gun laws were needed. Some suggested lawmakers should arm themselves instead.

Mr. Scalise issued a statement about the Las Vegas attack that was silent on gun control.

“In the face of unspeakable evil, our whole nation must respond with countless acts of kindness, warmth and generosity,” he said.

TRUMP’S CAMPAIGN
Mr. Trump, who won the presidency with the backing of the National Rifle Association, opposes expanded background checks yet has said he supports efforts to strengthen the current system.

He drew rebukes from gun-control advocates during the 2016 campaign when he seemed to suggest that gun-rights activists take matters into their own hands if Democrat Hillary Clinton was elected and got to nominate federal judges.

“If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks,” Mr. Trump said at an August 2016 rally, adding when the crowd responded with boos, “Although the Second Amendment people — maybe there is, I don’t know.”

Weeks after taking office, Mr. Trump signed legislation rolling back an Obama-era regulation that made it harder for people with mental illnesses to purchase guns.

In Las Vegas, authorities said a gunman opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino on an outdoor country-music festival below, sending people fleeing, according to the Associated Press. — Bloomberg

Pru Life UK rolls out fund

By Melissa Luz T. Lopez, Senior Reporter

PRU LIFE UK has rolled out a balanced fund that will allow Filipinos to invest offshore, as part of the life insurer’s push for clients to diversify portfolios and deploy excess liquidity in the domestic market.

The insurer unveiled its Asian Balanced Fund on Tuesday, which enables clients to invest equally in equities and bonds under one platform.

The PRUlink Asian Balanced Fund allows investors to make dollar-denominated placements in bond and equity markets across the region, unlocking fresh opportunities to diversify portfolios among moderate-risk clients.

“We have gotten to the point now wherein we are really encouraging our customers to diversify their portfolio offshore. The main reason is because the capital markets here in the Philippines continue to be shallow,” Antonio G. De Rosas, president and chief executive officer at Pru Life UK, said in a media briefing on Tuesday.

“The fund has grown too big also, so customers need to diversify.”

The local unit of United Kingdom’s Prudential PLC paired up with Singapore-based Eastspring Investments to manage the new investment facility.

Eastspring has $170 billion worth of assets under management as of end-June.

Robert Rountree, global strategist at Eastspring, said the fund manager is investing heavily on tech shares, as well as in companies in the fields of consumer wealth and spending as these are the segments enjoying rapid growth in the region.

Mr. Rountree added that investing abroad would likewise open up opportunities to invest in booming sectors and companies involved in materials and information technology, which are yet to take off in the Philippines. Stock valuations also remain “low” outside Manila, even as dividends trend above global yields.

The Asian balanced fund is the 12th investment platform managed by Pru Life, and will deploy placements into Asian bonds and equities managed by Eastspring in Luxembourg.

Holders of investment-linked insurance policies expressed in the dollar may avail of the balanced fund by Oct. 10.

Pru Life UK is the fifth biggest provider of life insurance in the Philippines, according to data from the Insurance Commission.

The data showed that the company’s premium income totalled P18.116 billion in 2016, accounting for nearly a tenth of the P182.744 billion total for the life insurance industry.

Marking my calendar

The new season of the National Basketball Association season is some two weeks away and like most fans, I, too, am very excited to get the festivities going especially after an eventful offseason, marked primarily by weighty player transfers.

Recently got a copy of the full schedule of the 2017-2018 season from the NBA and I did not waste much time marking some of the play dates I am looking forward to seeing.

Right off the bat on opening day on Oct. 17 (US time) is the clash between the reigning Eastern Conference champions Cleveland Cavaliers and runner-up Boston Celtics.

These two practically stole the limelight during the offseason for the dealings they made between one another and with other teams.

They swapped star players with Kyrie Irving going to Boston in exchange for fellow All-Star Isaiah Thomas along with Jae Crowder.

If that is not drama enough, both teams are coming in souped up with Cleveland now having former league most valuable player Derrick Rose and Jeff Green in the group.

Boston, meanwhile, has added All-Star Gordon Hayward from the Utah Jazz to join Irving as well as talented rookie Jason Tatum.

Also on opening day is the defending NBA champions Golden State Warriors against the Houston Rockets that will see the debut of All-Star Chris Paul in a Rockets red uniform.

On Oct. 19, the New York Knicks will visit the Oklahoma City Thunder that will have Carmelo Anthony facing his former team for the first time after being traded recently from Gotham.

Teammate and fellow All-Star Paul George will get his chance on taking on his old team when OKC visits the Indiana Pacers on Dec. 13.

Philadelphia is one of the teams I am eyeing this season because I want to finally see last year’s top overall pick Ben Simmons play his first official NBA game along with this year’s top pick Markell Fultz and “The Process” Joel Embiid. They debut on Oct. 18 against the Washington Wizards.

Kevin Durant and Golden State reengage his former team the Thunder and reigning league MVP Russell Westbrook on Nov. 22 with “Russ” bringing along “Melo” and “PG.”

On Oct. 26, DeMarcus Cousins plays in Sacramento for the first time since being traded to New Orleans last season and he himself said he cannot wait to play in his former home for he has a lot in his chest that he wants let off. Interesting, right?

And, of course, there is the Christmas Day schedule that will be bannered by the rematch between Golden State and Cleveland. Not much has to be said about this save that it is going to be slam bang.

Also on that date will be Philadelphia versus New York, Washington against Boston, Houston versus OKC, and the Jimmy Butler-led Minnesota Timberwolves against Lonzo Ball and the Los Angeles Lakers.

The thing about this list of mine, this is just some of the many actually in the first three months of the season.

NBA season once again, guys. Should be fun.

 

Michael Angelo S. Murillo has been a columnist since 2003. He is a BusinessWorld reporter covering the Sports beat.

msmurillo@www.bworldonline.com

Teacher’s job: Unlocking human potential

One of my first jobs after college was as a high school and college instructor in Baybay, Leyte at a school run by Franciscan missionaries from Cincinnati, Ohio. Being just 22 years old, and full of youthful energy I managed to set up a school paper and a dramatics group, aside from handling several classes in English literature, English grammar and composition, physical education and even religion! At night, I taught college classes and after 8:30 p.m., I coached newly arrived missionaries on Cebuano and Waray languages. After dinner, I did my lesson plans and caught up with correcting English language compositions. Whew. Good thing I biked around the Baybay town plaza before my evening college classes; and ran around the tennis court at the crack of dawn trying to learn the game.

My last regular job was also as a teacher in a graduate school. Truly, in my checkered career, to this day, I consider teaching my most difficult, demanding and challenging job. It was also among my lowest paid jobs. I was happy to discover later that AIM professors earn their living from consulting work, and that the teaching job is more for psychic rewards.

I am so glad that public school teachers now earn about the same as well-paid start-up call center workers. Because if we are not able to offer decent salaries to the people to whom we entrust the future of our children, how can we ensure that we are getting among the best and the brightest? It is extremely hard work, and calls for much natural talent, uncommon skills, and dedicated commitment beyond the 8-hour week-day.

Why teach? It doesn’t pay all that much.

Working with my students, even from my high school and college teaching days, are some of my most memorable and rewarding experiences. I am still in touch with one of my high school students in Baybay (from almost 60 years ago!) who is now Professor emeritus of Visayas State University, of which she was once president. Dr. Paciencia P. Milan is one of the Philippines’ experts on indigenous trees. Another one, formerly Ida Tan, regional spelling champion and selected later as Most Outstanding Student in the University of San Carlos in Cebu, who married a Peace Corps volunteer, has worked with her husband in various countries as teachers in international schools. Others have become doctors and CPAs.

As a former “tough” executive in ad agencies, I also find satisfaction in the success attained by some of the people who worked with me, some of whom have become marketing directors overseas, and company presidents and CEOs in our country. In fact, as I had hoped and predicted, they have surpassed me in their careers. Many of my secretaries have evolved into effective executives. This is the psychic reward that a teacher reaps as an enabler.

What does it take to become an effective teacher?

Mainly, it is less about being knowledgeable about facts and figures and dictating them to students; and more about knowing how to unlock the hidden potential of students or understudies. It calls for the courage to be demanding, and to set high standards and facilitating the learner’s ability to meet them. It calls for consistency and integrity in order to earn the trust and confidence of the learner.

It also calls for the courage to allow the learner freedom to independently explore, to raise questions, to work hard to discover solutions to issues and problems that they are allowed to encounter, to discover personal abilities they did not know they possessed, until challenged.

One of my fondest memories is helping enable a very shy boy of about 13 years old to perform the soliloquy of Shakespeare’s Hamlet onstage during a school program. His father was well-known as a stage actor and teacher; but he never included his son in stage performances because he was considered too introverted and shy. It took a lot of effort to convince the boy that he could do it. We practiced secretly in a closed room. When the day came for his performance, I told his dad to watch unobtrusively in the back row because I had a surprise for him. His dad was close to tears as he watched his son’s outstanding performance. That year, father and son worked together as actors in a stage play at the Baybay town fiesta. The boy had overcome his shyness and become more outgoing. Last I heard he had become a doctor of medicine.

As we go further into the knowledge- and technology-led global economy, the Philippines, which is lagging behind the rest of the world and even some of its ASEAN neighbors needs radical transformation in its education paradigms. Education is not about teaching methodologies. It is about learning methodologies. Education must more and more become learner-centered. This demands more and more of our teachers who must rapidly acquire new skills as facilitators of experiential learning rather than as mere dispensers of knowledge. This includes simulated experience through the case method in legal education, which is being increasingly adopted in medical and business schools. The Internet has opened up opportunities and vast options for self-education; and teachers must become skilled as guides to the students in accessing and making use of information and know-how to make life better for themselves, their families, their communities, and their country.

In addition to learning skills, this also calls for the right values and sense of responsibility that can best be imparted best through example. The job of a teacher calls for extraordinary skills, sensitivity to learners’ needs, and faith in their undiscovered human potential.

Teachers have to set high standards; and not be content with mediocrity. We have to overcome our culture of “pwede na” and “okay lang.” We must put in place enabling programs, policies and incentives to encourage and enable our best and brightest to become effective teachers, wherever they might be.

A culture of excellence is the key.

Metrobank Foundation’s awards program for outstanding teachers is a good example that encourages this. We must have more public recognition programs. And even more teacher upgrade programs. The business community can certainly help. The Philippine Business for Education can provide opportunities.

 

Teresa S. Abesamis is a former professor at the Asian Institute of Management and an independent development management consultant.

tsabesamis0114@yahoo.com

Margaret Atwood hails Handmaid’s Tale protesters

LONDON – Writer Margaret Atwood on Monday celebrated the use of her literary characters as a protest symbol in the United States, with her novel The Handmaid’s Tale reaching new audiences through a hit TV show.

More than three decades since her dystopian novel was first published, the red capes worn by fictional women forced to produce babies for elite couples have become “an immediately recognizable visual symbol” according to Atwood.

“I’m very pleased that people are able to use it in this way and that it’s had the impact that it has had,” the 77-year-old told an audience at London cultural hub the Southbank Center.

While the success of the book version of The Handmaid’s Tale has endured since it was published in 1985, it has reached new audiences through an award-winning television drama series and the unpredictable political scene under US President Donald Trump.

Those who have donned the striking clothing of Atwood’s characters include a group of women who in June stood outside the US Capitol in Washington to protest the US Senate Republicans’ health care bill.

“You have, practically, a scene from the show where a bunch of male legislators were making decisions about women with no women involved (in) making those decisions. So it’s a good protest thing,” said the prolific Canadian writer.

While activists have brought the fictional figures into modern-day politics, Atwood said The Handmaid’s Tale drama series was not changed despite filming taking place during the election of Trump last year.

“(Program makers) woke up on Nov. 9 and said, ‘We are now in a different show.’ Even though nothing in the show itself had changed, it was going to be framed differently,” she said.

The Handmaid’s Tale series picked up five Emmy awards in Los Angeles last month, including best drama series, just one of Atwood’s stories to make dark predictions about the future.

Her 2003 novel Oryx and Crake charted the destruction of the Earth by global warming, pandemics and genetic engineering. It hit the shelves shortly before the deadly outbreaks of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and bird flu, and as people increasingly became aware of climate change.

The Handmaid’s Tale preempted the Taliban’s misogynist regime in Afghanistan, although Atwood has insisted she is simply skilled at recognizing recurrent themes in history.

“I don’t believe that you can really predict the future, and nor do I believe that is only one inevitable ‘the future.’ There’s a number of possible futures, how you act now can influence what future we end up getting,” she told the audience in London. – AFP

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