Thursday, December 31, 2009
Journey Through The Decade
2000
The "Millennium Scare" was over. The Y2K bug was reverted and the world faced the new Millennium. Before the year ended, the tragic "Rizal Day bombing" killed 22 and injured 100 in one of the gruesome terrorist attack in the Philippines
2001
It was year I graduated from high school. Angelicum College nurtured and guided me which resulted to what I became today. College life in AMA Computer University was not that tough as I found friends right on the first day of classes which later be known as GeForce, short for Gemma Force (Ma'am Gemma is the librarian who became our "mother" in college)
2001 also marked the "9/11 attack" where the twin towers of the World Trade Center was destroyed by a series of planes crashing into it killing almost 3,000 innocent people. This event triggered the war on terrorism which later added more bloodshed.
2002
THe war on Afghanistan has started due to the counterattack of the 9/11.
The International Criminal Court was established in accordance to the 9/11 attack last year. This court was established to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression.
A large section of the Antarctic Larsen Ice Shelf begins disintegrating, consuming about 3,250 km (1,254 miles) over 35 days making global warming a serious treat in our environment.
2003
Siopao Master was born from the Nyoy Volante and Mannos forums.
The tension in the disarmament of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq led the US to declare war on Iraq
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) which started in Vietnam broke out and was rapidly spread all over the world killing thousands.
2004
The Philippines was shocked as the SuperFerry 14 bombing which The Abu Sayyaf guerrilla group is blamed for the deadliest terrorist attack at sea in world history, which kills 116 in the Philippines.
Siopao Master established his first blog in tabulas with the URL http://www.tabulas.com/~siopaomaster
2005
Siopao Master migrated to Blogger with the new URL: http://siopaomaster.blogspot.com
The Roman Catholic Church was shocked when His Holiness Pope John Paul II (Karol J. Wojtyla) passed away on April 2 at his very own room."Our beloved Holy Father John Paul II has returned to his home. Let us pray for him" "Let perpetual light shine on him and let him repose in peace"
April 19, "Habemus Papam!". A new pope was elected. Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger) was the 266th pope and the 1dt pope of the new millenium
Finally, After the long journey of educational atonement, I was officially a graduate with a degree of Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. Participated on the annual AMACU outreach program that gives free education to the less fortunate. The said program encouraged me to be an instructor of AMACU and on May 26, I was finally hired and started Great Teacher Siopao (GTS)
2006
Siopao Heaven bought the domain http://www.siopaomaster.com
Bill Gates stepped down as Chief Software Architect of Microsoft.
Siopao Master bought a PSP and a Nintendo DS.
Milenyo caused destruction in Metro Manila as billboards and other signboards were ripped off causing death and destruction. Since then, every time there's a typhoon, all billboards are mandatory pulled down.
Saddam Hussein was executed for crimes against humanity.
2007
An earthquake caused the internet connection erratic for several weeks.
Sir Siopao bid farewell to his students in AMA Computer University.
Trinoma (Triangle North Mall) was opened directly in front of SM North Edsa. The mall wars at the North has begun.
The book Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released all over the world. millions were sold instantly.
Sandara Park left the Philippines for good.
Sir Siopao was hired at Informatics International College as a CS/IT instructor.
2008
The year started with a shock as my student and fellow gamer THE PWNERER died from an accident. I coudn't grasp the fact that he's dead and i will no longer see and hear his jolly personality.. This year also my very best friend left me for good. She and her husband migrated to Saudi Arabia but promised to keep in touch with me..a promise that was never kept.
Siopao Master started toy collecting and joined Otakai Figure Society.
Sir Siopao and his students had an IT tour at Tsukiden Software Philippines. The event which triggered something in 2009.
2009
Last April, Sir Siopao finally resigned as an instructor in Informatics. He later started working at Tsukiden Software Philippines, a Japanese owned company.
A(H1N1) spread all over the world, Worldwide hygiene was drastically changed due to this epidemic.
The whole world was shocked last June as the King of Pop Michael Jackson died, He was scheduled to have a world tour entitled "This is it" to ver 50 countries. He was aged 50.
Another heavy blow was suffered by the Filipino people as former president Cory Aquino died of cardiac arrest. She was considered as a modern day hero and she had a major part in the Edsa Revolution.
Siopao Master bought http://www.siopaomaster.net for his figure gallery.
Super Typhoon Ondoy struck the Filipino people where they least expected killing a lot of people and destroying properties even on the places not usually flooded. The bravery and patriotism of every Filipino was shown as thousands volunteered in relief and rescue operations.
Maguindanao became the center of the story as a private army massacred hundreds of individuals, men and women. This is the most gruesome crime that was related to politics that was related to the 2010 elections.
The decade taught us to be vigilant and remain faithful to God. The next decade will further test our body and spirit. May we all have the courage and strength to face these ordeal.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
[Review]Avatar

Only the Avatar master of the four elements...wait..wrong movie! It's been confusing to the Avatar: The Last Airbender fans out there but James Cameron got hold of the title Avatar for his movie about humans linking to the bodies of aliens they call "avatar" to secretly mingle with the planet's natives. There was quite a hype when Avatar was shown through out the country. Some mistakenly assumed that it was a "Warcraft" movie, and worst "DOTA". But those idiots didn't know that this one is waayy different from those mentioned. Let's get straight to the point. I will not sugarcoat this review for all I can say is my opinion and no BS. If you are a sci-fi geek like me, you'll know that the concept, plot etc. was a combination of previous successful sci-fi stories rolled up into one story. But hey, I'm not complaining. If you ever had the chance to watch this in 3D, do so, for the money's worth it. Stunning eye candy everywhere. The texture and lighting of the objects were crisp and fully detailed. The flowing water and the raging flames all were rendered magnificently. If you have been playing PC games for quite some time now, these are a wow factor to you. The whole environment of Avatar down to the tiniest insect were given attention which resulted to a very beautiful movie. Some may not appreciate these elements, but gamers and techies like me will surely drool over this masterpiece.
BTW, the moral lesson of the movie? Never get hooked up to your "other life" a.k.a. online life for you will find it hard to continue living in your real life.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Christmas 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
9 Mornings 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
The Channel War
Saturday, December 05, 2009
Maguindanao under Martial Law
Here is the full text of President Arroyo’s declaration placing Maguindanao under martial law:
PROCLAMATION NO. 1959
PROCLAIMING A STATE OF MARTIAL LAW AND
SUSPENDING THE PRIVILEGE OF THE WRIT OF
HABEAS CORPUS IN THE PROVINCE OF
MAGUINDANAO, EXCEPT FOR CERTAIN AREAS
WHEREAS, Proclamation 1946 was issued on 24 November 2009 declaring a state of emergency in the provinces of Maguindanao, Sultan Kudarat and the City of Cotabato for the purpose of preventing and suppressing lawless violence in the aforesaid areas;
WHEREAS, Section 18 , Article VII of the Constitution provides that ” x x x In case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety so requires it, (the President) may, for a period not exceeding sixty days, suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or place the Philippines or any part thereof under martial law, x x x “
WHEREAS, R.A. No. 6986 provides that the crime of rebellion or insurrection is committed by rising publicly and taking arms against the Government for the purpose of xxx depriving the Chief Executive or the Legislature, wholly or partially, of any of their powers or prerogatives.”
WHEREAS, heavily armed groups in the province of Maguindanao have established positions to resist government troops, thereby depriving the Executive of its powers and prerogatives to enforce the laws of the land and to maintain public order and safety;
WHEREAS, the condition of peace and order in the province of Maguindanao has deteriorated to the extent that the local judicial system and other government mechanisms in the province are not functioning, thus endangering public safety;
WHEREAS, the Implementing Operational Guidelines of the GRP-MILF Agreement on the General Cessation of Hostilities dated 14 November 1997 provides the following is considered a prohibited act: ” x x x establishment of checkpoints except those necessary for the GRP’s enforcement and maintainance of peace and order; and for the defense and security of the MILF in their identified areas, as jointly determined by the GRP and the MILF, x x x “
NOW, THEREFORE, I , GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, President of the Republic of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution and by law, do hereby proclaim as follows:
SECTION 1. There is hereby declared a state of martial law in the province of Maguindanao, except for the identified areas of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front as referred to in the Implementing Operational Guidelines of the GRP-MILF Agreement on the General Cessation of Hostilities.
SECTION 2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall likewise be suspended in the aforesaid area for the duration of the state of martial law.
DONE in the City of Manila, this 4th day of December in the year of our Lord, Two Thousand and Nine.
GLORIA MACAPAGAL ARROYO
By the President:
EDUARDO R. ERMITA
Executive Secretary