The Pacman Could Be In for a Double Black-Eye

After his historic claim to fame by beating a certified welterweight champ in Miguel Cotto and taking his seventh boxing championship, what could be next for our hero Manny Pacquiao?

Coming home to the Philippines, he had to tackle the sensational Krista-Manny issue and appease the press people. How did he fare? Yes, he was successful. All credits I afford though to the wife, Jinky, who regained her composure after that cry-at-the-mass incident. True to her commitment to her husband and family, Jinky stood up to the challenge of proving the rumors were untrue. As to the truth of her claims, I wouldn't speculate and I don't really mind not knowing. Nevertheless, she saved Manny from further fuss and buzz of the celebrity world.

Sure Manny beat the hell out of Cotto in that very exciting fight, but he didn't get out of the ring spotless. He also had his share of bruises and bumps including a swollen earlobe. I wonder how confident he was setting a concert right after the fight that he gamely did for not getting too battered to be sent to a hospital. Or was it Kris Lawrence who came to sing in Las Vegas? hehehe.

More singing engagements and appearances awaited the boxing king in the country. Recognitions by no less than the president and cheers from admiring masses were too much to ask for. Parties were everywhere for Pacman. Just last night, he made another concert party on his birthday. Happy birthday Manny!

Amidst the busy schedule of the People's Champ, he still has two colossal things to fulfill in, for me, a very short period of time. While enjoying the exploits of his recent victory, Bob Arum, unable to resist the temptation of a big payout, was negotiating with the Mayweather camp for the Pacquiao-Mayweather slugfest. Sure enough, Arum got the deal and got Manny to agree to a March 13 fight -- a little less than four (4) months from now. Coach Freddie Roach wasn't so optimistic. According to him, the fight requires more preparation since Floyd Mayweather Jr. is no ordinary fighter. While the respected coach expressed his discomfort with the schedule, Arum struck a 50-50 deal with the Mayweather camp and that proved to be too much to decline for Pacquiao. Could this be a case of a half-prepared Pacman going inside the ring against a fully-prepared Mayweather who is armed with sheer arrogance and a ton of boxing pride aside from his exceptional boxing skills? We all know that the guy is a very good fighter which would justify Roach's reluctance.

Notwithstanding time constrains with his upcoming fight, Pacquiao, as willing as he is to become a public official, is also embarking yet again on another congressional bid for, this time, Saranggani Province. The election period begins on February or March. I wonder he would be able to stage his campaign for the position while preparing for Mayweather. We all know that Manny is not really a favorite to win the congressional seat as he failed the first time he tried. Would another bid for it jeopardize his boxing career? Yes. With not much time to prepare for the fight and the distractions of a not so hopeful bid for a government office, The Pacman could be in for a double black-eye. Manny you are a master. You are too good a boxer to be a Jack of numerous trades.

Mabuhay ka Manny!

Manny Pacquiao has once again lifted the country's pride and brought it into the limelight by snatching the WBO Welterweight belt from Puerto Rican Miguel Angel Cotto. Embarking into uncharted territories in boxing history, Pacman is now the only boxer to win seven (7) titles in seven (7) different weight categories. Congratulations Manny! Congratulations my fellow Filipinos!

That's the serious side of it. But, let me just tag this photo as I have always been wanting to do on every photo I see.

"Waaaahhh... Sila na pala ngayon!
Bad ka Kenny!"



photo credit: teampilipinas.info

The Book of Lists: People Whose Names Were Changed by Accident

1. WILLIAM FAULKNER (1879-1962), novelist. After his first book, The Marble Faun (1924), was published, William Falkner discovered that a "u" had been inserted into his last name. He decided to live with the spelling rather than going through the hassle of correcting the error.
2. ULYSSES S. GRANT (1822-85), general and US president. The future civil war general was born Hiram Ulysses Grant. The prospect of entering the US Military Academy with the initials "H.U.G." embarrassed him, so the new cadet reversed the order of his names and started signing himself U.H. Grant. He soon learned that Rep. Thomas L. Hamer, who had sponsored his appointment to West Point, had mistakenly enrolled him as Ulysses Simpson Grant, "Simpson" being the maiden name of Grant's mother. Grant, finding nothing objectionable in the initials "USG", adopted the new name.
3. BUDDY HOLLY (1936-59), singer and songwriter. When Charles "Buddy" Holley signed his first contract with Decca Records, his last name was misspelled as "Holly". Reasoning that others in the recording industry would make the same error, Buddy kept the new spelling.
4. DIONNE WARWICK (1940- ), singer. When her first record, "Don't Make Me Over" was released in 1962, a printing error made Dionne Warrick over into Dionne Warwick.
5. OPRAH WINFREY (1954- ), television personality. Her parents intended to name her "Orpah" after Ruth's sister-in-law in the Old Testament. However, the name was misspelled "Oprah" on her birth certificate. Winfrey has used it ever since.

source: The Book of Lists

The Book of Lists

Two years ago i got hold of this interesting book (thanks to my brother) The Book of Lists by David Wallenchinsky and Amy Wallace. I was amazed at how the authors are able to convey valuable and not so valuable information without having to tire up your eyes with lengthy explanations on various subject matters. It was simple, as the title suggests, they tell their stories in lists. For someone who sees a book as a sedative (???), this was an exception as I got engrossed going from one list to another. My fascination to lists went even further that I began to regularly visit Forbes.com for their equally interesting lists (some of them in picture!). I will share some interesting (although sometimes trivial) things I learned in a series of blog entries from The Book of Lists.

Points of Contradiction

I am commending Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo for his courage and sincerity in personally appearing at a GMA Network program to answer some questions raised regarding his alleged failure to declare properties and the ballooning of his assets over a short period of time. Yet, after watching his supposed act of transparency, the matter gets even more doubtful as the presidential son evaded questions and intended to pass them on to his lawyers. His public appearance, therefore, helped fan the fire of doubt of the people as he appeared to be defensive and too tentative to disclose vital information.

Further investigations by the Vera Files followed while Mikey, along with his lawyer tried for yet another time to address the doubts, this time at radio station DZRH with veteran radio commentator Joe Taruc. Following both the clarification attempts of Cong. Arroyo and the investigations conducted, several contradictions were noted, and hence the following list of observations based on the congressman's statements during the interviews:

1. "She doesn't own anything..." Mikey Arroyo was reffering to his wife, Angela, as having nothing to do with the 20-40 percent Beach Way Park LLC shares his immediate family owns. He also claimed (during the GMA Network interview) that Beach Way Park LLC owns the house at Beach Park Boulevard, Foster City, California. Yet, further investigations verified from the San Mateo County Assesor's Office that the Beach Way house is actually owned by Anegla Montenegro Arroyo, Mikey's beloved wife.
2. "Medyo nagkaroon tayo ng maraming regalo... tapos pag kampanya, siyempre kahit papano maraming tumulong sa atin..." Mikey was referring to the gifts he received during his wedding, the contributions he received during his political campaigns, and the subsequent good investments he had as the source of his assets in question. During his interview with Joe Taruc at DZRH, Mikey explained with his lawyer that the bulk of his additional assets as declared in his later SALNs was that of his wife's as she is independently wealthy (as his lawyer puts it). In an attempt to relate the new claim with his previous explanation at GMA Network, it would appear that his wife gave him enormous gifts for their wedding or his wife (along with other contributors) gave contributions for his campaign.
3. "... tapos pag kampanya, siyempre kahit papano maraming tumulong sa atin..." This was one of the reasons cited by Mikey for his ballooning assets. Investigations however proved that on his statement of contributions and expenses for the past two congressional elections, there were no donations to his campaigns. He reported that his campaigns were funded entirely from his own pocket.
4. "I own about 20-30%... 40... something..." Mikey Arroyo claimed that his immediate family owns that much of the Beach Way Park LLC. Later during the interview at DZRH, his lawyer emphasized that Cong. Arroyo is a minor share holder of the company. This could mean that there has to be only two (2) owners of the company for him to become a minor share holder. This might not be much of a contradiction until he discloses the name(s) of the reported co-owner(s) if there is any.
5. "Those shortcomings were amended the next year..." Mikey admitted to Monsod and Clavio during the GMA Network interview that he made errors in the first time he filed his SALN in 2002. Arroyo filed his regular SALN with P5M in personal assets which he said was erroneous. A supplemental SALN, he said, was filed the next year in the amount of P68.7M making the discrepancy figure more or less P63M. Cong. Arroyo's office a copy to the Vera Files which did not have a "received" stamp or the date of receipt by the Ombudsman. An investigation verified that the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman for Luzon and the Pampanga Human Resource Management Office did not have a record of both Mikey's 2002 supplemental SALN and his 2003 filing.
6. "They told me not to say it here..." Arroyo insisted that the house in Beach Park Boulevard is owned by Beach Way Park Limited Liability Co. (LLC) which he co-owns along with other share holders who, according to him, refused to be named in public. His failure to give the names of his co-owners raised more doubt and promted another investigation. The San Mateo County Assesor's Office has no record of a Beach Way Park LLC owning the Foster City property. The California Secretary of State, The US Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission also have no record of a business entity named Beach Way Park LLC.