UP’s Coffee

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Year 2007, the University of the Philippines Visayas welcomed a new breed of media students. The Broadcast Communication course which was solely designed for broadcasting majors was developed into Communication and Media Studies which caters to aspiring journalists, advertisers, and future broadcasters.

The Division of Humanities innovated a new flavor of coffee; with just a little bit of mixing and a bit of stirring, the long before plain coffee now becomes 3-in 1 coffee. They believed that this newly developed coffee will be of a great ‘hit’ to consumers. That’s why after the approval of the product, the coffee makers excitedly launched it thinking that its new packaging will attract and promote a bandwagon of potential consumer-buyers.

As expected, it was a hit to the consumers. In 2007, 35 slots were opened and immediately filled in 35 aspiring media practitioners. But little by little, the consumers are leaving the brand. After 2 years, 29 consumers are left.  What happened to the missing 6? Weren’t they satisfied with the CMS 3-in 1 product that’s why they chose to use other brands?

In a survey conducted to the consumers of the product, it was found out that the major reason why consumers switch to other brands is that the CMS coffee lacks the essential factor to improve the taste of the product. The essential ingredient that the CMS coffee has been missing out is the “organization”. There is lack of organization in the sense that the consumers are still confused of what the course is all about. Unorganized offering of subjects to be taken in each semester and unplanned internship are the current problems of the consumers— all these things concern their future. All these things are encountered simply because of disorganization among the coffee makers.  This has something to do with the implementation of the product. The consumers are not fully oriented as to how this product works— its extent and limitations. Everything is unclear, things left unexplained and questions unanswered.

What’s wrong in the process is that these coffee makers are still up to now in the process of experimenting. What’s wrong is that they already released the product into the market, yet they are not sure of its quality. Some consumers just stick with the product because somehow they’ve learned to love it; because somehow they don’t have a choice.

For Sale: Instant boyfriend/girlfriend

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Courtship is one of the most exciting, romantic and special time for women. This is the time where couples get the chance to look for a potential partner. It is the time where a man has to work hard to get his girl fall for him and the time where the girl feels secure knowing that the guy went to great lengths to win her heart.

In Philippine custom and tradition, courtship is more subdued, discrete and indirect compared to Western Cultures. This practice which dated back to the Spanish time strictly abides to conservative norms set by the society for pursuing a woman. Traditionally, a man cannot just approach a lady and ask for her name or address. If a man sees a woman she likes, he should seek the help of a mediator or “tulay” in Tagalog, to ask the permission of the girl’s father if he can visit her in their house. “Harana” or serenade, sending love letters and “paninilbihan” or servitude are just some of the traditions being practiced by traditional Filipinos.

Today, although a lot of traditional courting practices are still being observed, there are modifications and “evolutions” that have been made that give the traditional Filipino courtship a modern version.

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Now, the modernized courtship in the Philippines revolves on the liberalism of Filipinos. With the influence of Western culture through the intervention of modern technologies, modern courtship these days is going fast. Our very own “Harana” turned into a song dedication on radio, love letters evolved into text messages, and “pamamanhikan” later becomes a family dinner in restaurants—-making the traditional year-long courtship turned into weeks, days or even a couple of hours.

With the advent of new technologies, little by little the Philippine courtship becomes cheaper and cheaper— literally. In just a few hours of conversing through sending text messages and e-mails, one can easily find a partner. With just a peso, (barely a peso since there’s text promos now a days) the courtship is being done.

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No wonder relationships these days don’t stay long compared before. This is because in the first place, the foundation of the relationship is not strong. Now, you can just easily approach a lady walking on the street and ask for her phone number. A few talking and flirting on the phone will give you an instant boyfriend/girlfriend. You could even see couples having their first dates holding hands and PDAs (Public Display of Affection). —things that are completely forbidden in the context of traditional courtship.

In courtship, hard work and patience are important in order to achieve a long lasting relationship. If the guy had waited long enough and had gone through different tests just to win the woman’s heart, it will teach him to value the woman and not to give up on her easily. And for the lady, enough time will give her chance to think deeply and decide whether the man is really the one meant for her. This way, there will be less complications since it will allow both parties to know each other better.

Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me

www.manilamaildc.net

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has officially declared her intention to run for Congress in the 2010 election. She formally announced on Monday, November 30, that she will be running for representative in the second district of Pampanga.

It has been more than 8 years since PGMA took the position to lead the Filipino people. It has been 8 years of ruling, of cheating and of corruption. It has been 8 years of suffering. Does President Arroyo deserve a second chance in whatever office? It is indeed a very hard question that our brothers and sisters in Pampanga will have to respond to in the upcoming election.

It’s less than 5 months, and once again we are going to decide for the fate of our local districts and country in general. As the cliché goes, ‘One vote could make a big difference’. So before we pick our choice and give our trust to these full-of-promises politicians, let us first evaluate what kind of person are we going to put on the position.

The Hello Garci Scandal, the Fertilizer Fund Scam, the NBN-ZTE deal, the First Gentleman’s hidden accounts, the million peso worth of dinner at Le Cirque, New York—- these are just some of the scandals that our President had faced in her 8 years of administration. Is this the kind of leader we would want to lead us? 8 long years of serving—- serving for her own pocket and bank account.

It is not yet too late. The decision is in our hands. We write the destiny of our country, so we better choose the best character of our story wisely. Filipinos are smart people. We know more than enough not to again give her power. We know better not to trust her once more. And we know a lot to let her repeatedly fool us. If the president was capable of fooling her people once, there’s no question she can do it over and over again.

We can’t afford to make a wrong decision, pick a wrong choice and suffer once more. 8 years of suffering is too much, we no longer want to extend our agony. She has already fooled us before, shame on her. But if we’ll let her fool us again, then it’s a big shame on us.