2013: Year In Review

The bad news of the year is the total destruction of the Visayas in the Philippines. The generosity of the global community in its timely assistance deserves everyone’s accolades.

We understand the hardship our brothers and sisters had to endure having been pummeled with super storms in 1968 and 1977, the infamous Jean and Kim.

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Locally, the 25-percent pension pay reduction floored some 3,000 retirees and their families. This amidst slated increases in health pension, deductibles, medication, cost of food, power bills, gasoline and other skyrocketing increases by early next year. Combined, it knocks more than 100 percent in the purchasing power of individual families. Dios mihu!

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Arrogance of ’13 solely belongs to pro-casino legislators who had the gall ignoring the will of the people who shot the issue down twice in recent past.

The guys and gals need to revisit their civic class notes to review and come to grips with the purpose of a plebiscite. I’m sure that the conduct wasn’t rooted in the public trust we have in legislators. Is arrogance and purposeful ignorance the suspect reciprocal answer?

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Throw in our esteemed Washington Delegate Kilili who simply ignores demands by his people to engage in meaningful discussion on his pathway to citizenship proposal for 12K foreigners here. The fear of crashing the apple cart of indigenous hegemony is a perfectly legitimate concern.

But he prefers ignoring the call for healthy discussion. Indigenous voters aren’t enamored with Kilili’s arrogance on this score.

The most vocal indigenous group views Kilili’s support of the measure as an ill-conceived immigration scheme (backdoor policy) to upset the apple cart of indigenous political hegemony. It’s a tough issue to mute and not when locals are on the front line. Should be an interesting 2014.

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The trip by four legislators to Guangzhou for an “educational” trip on liquefied gas (all expenses paid by a firm) is but hypocrisy. Each spouted his integrity isn’t compromised for going on a “freebie.” Would “emasculated” of integrity fit the bill? You see your inability to discern the truth from the apparent isn’t a license to lie.

That the trip is a “freebie” instantly compromises your integrity from A-Z. Mirrored against principle-based reasoning, the argument buckles against the powerful headwinds of logic for lack of truth and validity. Your spout may have progressive tenses but suffers deficiency in syntactical consistency or it must be an exaggerated poetic diction paralyzed by contradiction. Lamely asymmetrical!

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Catholic Pontiff Pope Francis is Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year.” He’s a revered religious leader by billions hailing from all corners of the global village. He eclipsed the late African leader Mandela and “selfie” President Obama.

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This year too marks the death of the retirement program for active employees. Well, after years crafting to ensure its demise, politicians finally had their Christmas wish: Killed the program altogether with gradual insolvency. I suppose Santa isn’t coming to town to visit active employees upon exiting service, di ba?

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This year’s fraud is the Obamacare rollout or mirabile dictum that consumers discovered they couldn’t keep, period! It remains a disaster and the single most problematic issue for Democrats heading into 2014 election. It’s a political iceberg downstairs, powerful headwind upstairs for Democrats. Is the administration implementing this mess here?

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The Navy wishes to expand its training area. We disagreed, alluding to the provision of Covenant Section 802 that asserts the U.S. has “no present need….” That was 35 years ago. But take a look at Covenant Section 806, subsections “b” and “c”.

Uncle Sam only need write the CNMI for additional real estate provided it has secured U.S. congressional approval and funds. Subsection “c” also grants Uncle Sam the right to eminent domain.

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The year ends with “Dalai este.” The NMI is roasted in over half-a-billion dollar debt while piling it up with persistent deficit spending. Next stop is the grocery store to buy the new Bankruptcy Oil to fry our fingers into breadfruit chips, di ba?

After the dust of WWII settled down across these isles, it was reconstruction time as the U.S. military moved in to assist rebuild the Northern Marianas community.

The indigenous people are better equipped with Japanese over a strange language known as English. It was another chapter learning how to speak it. Learning English has its own humor too. Here goes:

At a flag ceremony, a Navy admiral participated and heard us sing the Stars Spangled Banner. Every word was clear up to “at the twilight last evening.” We mumbled every word after that while struggling to stay in tune. After the ceremony, the admiral said, “That was a nice rendition of our national anthem in the vernacular.” Sorry, admiral, we had to impress you!

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A kid found his mom’s driver’s license. He studied it, looked up and said, “Now, I understand why dad left you. You had ‘F” on sex,” you know, the gender identity: male or female. Eh, kids are smart too, yeah?

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At a state funeral, a legislator was reading a resolution of condolence. He was instructed to keep his eyes on the text. But he decided to look out at the crowd as though he’s a seasoned speaker. As he returned to his copy, he said, “…and it is the sense of the…to extend our deepest condom…to the family of the late…” This happens when one pretends to be what he’s not. Not so smart, yeah?