Government, Sports, Travel

PHILIPPINES’ CONGRESS DECLARES WEEK-LONG RECESS FOR PACQUIAO-MAYWEATHER FIGHT

Leave a comment
Member of Philippine Congress with Pacquiao (Photo: www.rapler.com)
Members of Philippine Congress with Pacquiao (Photo: http://www.rapler.com)

MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – It is pretty much a given that whenever Manny Pacquiao has a scheduled fight, the Philippines comes to a stand still.

The Philippine military and the rebel groups declare a ceasefire, crime rate drops to zero, and road traffic becomes nonexistent.

The May 2nd (May 3 in the Philippines) championship fight between Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, is no exception… and more.

President NoyNoy Aquino has declared May 3rd a National (nonworking) Holiday, and the House of Representatives will go on a 7-day recess, from April 28 to May 3rd.

House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr. told The Adobo Chronicles that he had no choice but to declare a recess because “there’s just not going to be a quorum to be able to conduct official business.”

More than two-thirds of the 290-member House of Representatives will be flying to Las Vegas to be at ringside to support their esteemed colleague.  Pacquiao is an elected representative from his native province of Sarangani.  How they got their tickets and who’s paying for them were not exactly clear.

It is not uncommon for Pacquiao to charter a passenger plane so that his family, colleagues and selected fans can attend his fight in person.

Congress resumes its regular session on May 4th, although many expect that majority of members will be absent, as they will still be dealing with jet lag from the almost 18-hour flight from Las Vegas to Manila.

Government, Law Enforcement, Social Media, The Media

TWEETING OR REPOSTING NEWS SATIRE IS NOW A CRIME IN THE PHILIPPINES

Leave a comment
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is an avid fan of The Adobo Chronicles
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is an avid fan of The Adobo Chronicles

MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – If you live in the Philippines and are reading this story, be forewarned that re-posting it on your Facebook or Instagram account or re-tweeting it is now a crime, punishable by fine and jail time.

Tired of being constantly criticized by The Adobo Chronicles, So What’s News (SWN), The Professional Heckler, Mosquito Press  and many others, President NoyNoy Aquino, with full support from the Senate and the House of Representatives, issued an Executive Order banning re-tweets and re-posts of satirical articles.

The Philippines’ Department of Justice (DOJ) is currently reviewing international laws on Free Speech to see if international sites like The Onion, The Borowitz Report and The Daily Currant, can also be banned from Philippine social media.

The idea for the Executive Order actually came from Turkey.

Recently, a provincial court in Turkey sentenced a college student, Meral Tutcali, to one year in prison for the offense of “insulting a public official” by sharing a satirical news story about a regional governor on Twitter.

The trial was held in Adana, a southern Turkish province, after a complaint by the region’s governor, Huseyin Avni Cos, who discovered last year that he had been mocked in a photograph and headline on Zaytung, a Turkish site akin to The Onion.

Business, Science and Environment

CALIFORNIA’S MANDATORY WATER CONSERVATION: WHY YOUR STARBUCKS COFFEE TASTES DIFFERENT

1 Comment

imageSEATTLE, Washington (The Adobo Chronicles) – If you live in California and are a certified Starbucks fan, you may have noticed that your tall, grande or venti coffee and latte have been tasting different lately. You are not imagining things.

Blame it on Governor Jerry Brown who has instituted a mandatory 25% reduction in the state’s water consumption as a way to deal with the worsening California drought.

As a law-abiding, socially and environmentally-conscious company, the Seattle-based Starbucks has implemented a no-nonsense water conservation measure in all its stores, at least in the state of California.

The measure involves a 25% reduction in the water content of every cup sold at its California stores. This means that your brewed coffee tastes stronger but at the same time, you get 25% less in liquid volume. Stores now also use 25% less ice cubes in their iced coffee.

Many Starbucks coffee fans we talked to didn’t seem to mind the change, but at the same time noticed that they have increased the number of visits to their neigborhood Starbucks store from three to five times daily.

It’s a win-win situation. It helps with the state’s water conservation, it’s good for (Starbucks) business, and consumers get better-tasting coffee.

Click HERE to find out more about Starbucks’ water and energy conservation program.

Your best source of up-to-date, unbelievable news.