What's in a color?

From a ubiquitous pink, the metropolis is set to go all green. That’s what the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) authorities have set their minds on, and to some quarters who insist on rendering malice to this planned overhaul of the metro’s color scheme, MMDA Gen. Manager Robert Nacianceno retorts that green is not a political color. Albeit, it is the universal color of pro-environment advocates which is the mandate that the agency hopes to serve. Did you know that they have a full staff dedicated to the greening of the metro? They have horticulturists, tree doctors and landscape planners to attend to the thousands of trees the agency has planted during the watch of Chairman Bayani Fernando to whom credit should go for his vigilance and creative solutions. The new MMDA administration now under former Judge Oscar Inocentes is likewise dynamic, with a clear foresight of what a busy metropolis like Metro Manila needs.

The wet season is upon us again, and while memories of the flash floods of Ondoy are still fresh in our minds, the agency has started to gear up for the torrential rains as early as January of this year. They have started de-clogging esteros and strategic canals, but as early as March, these were found to be clogged again, thanks to our irresponsible mindless citizens. Their pumping stations are on the alert, manned 24 hours as assured by MMDA management, so citizens who report flooded areas should be able to raise somebody from the station, even at 3 a.m. Alert citizens should call 136 and please don’t forget to give the exact location of the problem.

These pumping stations have recently been installed with telemetry units to enable the pumping stations to go on automatic mode when needed. However, the pumping stations are only efficient if the outlets are cleared of clogging debris, so we cannot over-emphasize the need to educate our citizens not to throw their garbage into the canals. The informal settlers (squatters) and residents of low-lying depressed areas are the first victims of floods, yet they choose to learn their lessons the hard, sometimes fatal way. The images of desperate people clinging to flimsy styropor boxes carried away by rampaging brown waters still fester like a fresh wound, and we hope we never again have to go through that in this lifetime.

They have also enhanced their mobility with their recent acquisition of fifty motorcycles and 700 radios to respond to our citizens’ needs. Our flagship TV show, Motoring Today, is in constant touch with this agency since the time of Chairman Bayani with whom we share the advocacy of safe and responsible motoring, and we have always found them to be responsive to motoring concerns that our viewers regularly bring to our attention. Kudos!

Hats off to the PNP

Kudos too to the Philippine National Police for keeping an open mind on their planned extension of the gun ban which expired last Thursday, June 10. Even as talks continue between the two opposing sectors of this move, the PNP has decided to keep the original timetable, for now at least, and has effectively lifted the ban. Though nothing definite has come out of the summit recently held, the group of responsible gun owners which I never realized has grown so big until they were polarized and galvanized into action, hopes that the merits of their cause as presented in the summit will be thoroughly studied and considered by the PNP. Restricting the permits to carry is

 en effective recourse that needs to be strictly implemented, and I think many in the group, as well as most ordinary citizens will agree with me that more police visibility definitely works to deter criminality. Those checkpoints serve not only to give assurance to the immediate localities but the constant presence of law enforcers keeps the criminal minds at bay. Yes, the total gun ban is not the answer, because as they say,” an armed society is a polite society”, but let’s keep those checkpoints.             

Pure unadulterated poker

On the leisure side, the game of Texas Hold’em has really taken the country by storm. The brilliant marketing ploy of televising the real action has spun magic for this new variant of poker, and the game has really caught on, especially with the younger set. The thing is, now even ladies have been bitten by the bug and it is considered chic to play poker against a motley group of students, professionals, entertainers, boys and girls.

I have been playing poker, the good old purists’ variant, for decades now, having learned it from my Dad who had a true passion for it in his younger days. Rather than have his sons get tempted into less pernicious card games, he taught us this gentleman’s game early on, and my brother Rey and I have been hooked on it ever since. We’re serious poker players, and we’re proud of it. But sadly, the “card-bearing” members of the old group I think is slowly waning into oblivion. I do try my hand at Texas Hold’em (or “All In”, as we sometimes call it), and still play it occasionally, but it’s really more for the company than the love of the game. In fact, I try to host a game about twice a month at the Sports Den of the Valle Verde Country Club among the motoring group (industry & media), but again I think it is more the all-night banter that I relish.

The highs of a brilliantly played deal, the constant, relentless focus, the psychological warfare waged on the table all night long, the reading of someone’s body language, the taunting with bold bets, the bluffs and near-bluffs, the subliminal mental count of cards discarded in a pile, the harmless “check”, the reading of a token bet – all these constitute a poker player’s highs. Poker players normally have regular groups going on a weekly (or twice weekly) basis, and friendships have been forged on the poker table. But when the game is on, there is a friendly but rather fierce competition that needs to be faced for the night, and serious poker players take on a gladiator’s demeanor of conquest. These are what I miss with the Texas Hold ‘em version. Some of the poker players I talked with share the same concern about the possible demise of good old traditional Filipino purist poker with its unlimited variations of basically the same basic deals. These deals which have constantly evolved throughout the years have decidedly Pinoy names, but all poker players know them instinctively. It would be a crying shame to let these Pinoy creations fade into oblivion. Would all you warriors of the “purist poker” out there allow this to happen to our gentleman’s sport?

I remember we used to hold “Pinoy purist poker” tournaments back in the eighties and again a few years back, and we had a good crowd going during those tournaments, until the advent of the “all in” variation. Some quarters have been egging us to go into it again. I wonder if we have enough warriors out there who will venture into the arena. Let’s get some feedbacks from you guys and see if we can keep the sport going.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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