“All countries, big or small, strong or weak, are equal members of the United Nations.” —Nong Duc Manh I NEVER realized I would one day wink at New York City’s United Nations (UN) headquarters literally. The “United Nations” I knew was a popular street in Ermita, Manila where we personally witnessed
September 22, 2022
“The United Nations is our one great hope for a peaceful and free world.”—Ralph Bunche FILIPINOS are not strangers in the United Nations (UN). The presence of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in the 77th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) where he was scheduled to address the General Assembly on September
September 21, 2022
“It’s the right and also the responsibility of member states to express their views. And my role as the present of the General Assembly is not to comment on this. I’m here to protect and respect the rules.”—Miroslav Lajcak BECAUSE of his association with the controversial family, all eyes and ears
September 20, 2022
“As we take our places in the General Assembly and at the Council meetings, let us begin all our work in the name of God, for the solution of all our problems is a spiritual one.” —Warren R. Austin ANTI-MARCOS protesters may not be able to penetrate the main areas leading
September 19, 2022
“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way – things I had no words for.”—Georgia O’Keeffe THE best reason to visit Washington D.C. nowadays is the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. If we
September 17, 2022
“It is not all right for Russia to decide Ukraine’s future.”—Antony Blinken I DROPPED by outside the White House in Washington D.C. at past five o’clock in the afternoon on September 13 and chanced upon seven placard-toting Ukrainians protesting the Russian invasion in Ukraine on their 202nd day. “We gather here
September 15, 2022
“Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.” – Bertrand Russell DO we still believe in superstition in this age of cybernetics and space travel? There are people nowadays who continue to consider superstition as part
September 14, 2022
“I like a man who looks like a bad boy but knows how to treat a woman like a queen.”—Candice Swanepoel I “LOST” my queen exactly a year ago. She didn’t die like United Kingdom’s Queen Elizabeth II, who died in Balmoral Castle on September 8, 2022 at 96. Krisztina is
September 13, 2022
“Tennis is a mental game. Everyone is fit, everyone hits great forehands and backhands.”—Novak Djokovic NOW that 17-year-old Pinay sensation Alexandra “Alex” Eala is the new darling of the US Open junior singles, we expect tennis in Asia, particularly in the Philippines, to experience a Renaissance. Eala’s conquest of No. 2
September 12, 2022
“You can’t change who you are, but you can change what you have in your head, you can refresh what you’re thinking about, you can put some fresh air in your brain.”—Ernesto Bertarelli A SELF-HELP book copyrighted in 2000 promises to multiply our mental power with “simple and enjoyable” exercises scientifically
September 10, 2022
“Each one of us has our own evolution of life, and each one of us goes through different tests which are unique and challenging. But certain things are common. And we do learn things from each other’s experience. On a spiritual journey, we all have the same destination.” —A. R. Rahman
September 9, 2022
“The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection.”—Michelangelo I THOUGHT there was no need for me to travel to Florence, Italy’s Uffizi Gallery to have a “close encounter” with Sandro Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus. Inside the fabulous Avant Gallery at the Hudson Yards in Manhattan,
September 8, 2022
