June 11 2013 Edition

The whereabouts of whistleblower Edward Snowden were shrouded in mystery on June 10 as US lawmakers demanded his immediate extradition from Hong Kong over his sensational leaking of an Internet surveillance program. Snowden, a 29-year-old technology expert working for a private firm subcontracted to the US National Security Agency, checked out of his Hong Kong hotel after revealing his identity to the British-based Guardian newspaper on Sunday. The private contractor has become an instant hero for transparency advocates and libertarians around the globe following his exposure of the NSA’s worldwide monitoring of private users web traffic and phone records. But the US government appeared to be gearing up to take action against Snowden on Monday with senior lawmakers branding his actions as “treason” and saying he should be extradited from Hong Kong as quickly as possible.


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Aries Rufo, a veteran journalist, recently launched “Altar of Secrets,” a book on the abuses of bishops and priests. The first of its kind in the Philippines, the book exposes sexual misconduct, political interference, and financial mismanagement by bishops and priests. These include investigative stories on a high-ranking prelate who fathered a child and later resigned, and on multimillion-peso donations to Radyo Veritas that remain unaccounted for. Rufo demands accountability from the Catholic clergy. “Not only are they accountable to the people, but also to a higher source from where they draw their moral responsibility.” Veteran journalist Miriam Grace Go, said the book can actually strengthen the Catholic Church. It’s tough love, she said. “Aries is somebody who loves his Church. [But] how else can you fix it and make it stronger and more effective in serving and ministering to the flock, but by cleansing it?”


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Two global personalities who are 90+ years old are in the hospital: Prince Philip the longest-serving royal consort in British history, and Nelson Mandela of South Africa. The royal patriarch who is 92 and is recovering from exploratory abdominal surgery, is considered as UK Queen Elizabeth II’s “strength and stay all these years.” Mandela, the frail 94-year-old who is back in hospital with a lung infection, is beloved by most most South Africans for the “Rainbow Nation” he strived for despite endless persecution at the hands of white apartheid rulers. Mandela paved the way for peaceful reconciliation, which he selflessly strived for despite being incarcerated by the apartheid government for 27 years, and which saw the fragile nation sidestep civil war.


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The United States welcomed an agreement between North and South Korea to hold high-level talks later this week in Seoul after months of tension. The accord came at marathon talks lasting into early Monday which were aimed at rebuilding trust after months of soaring tension and threats of nuclear war. But State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki cautioned it was still too early to talk of renewing talks between the United States and North Korea as the West seeks to rein in Pyongyang’s suspect nuclear program.


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Even before he resigned from the Philippine Daily Inquirer as contributing cartoonist on June 7, Pol Medina Jr had been reflecting on the possibilities of new media. How would the overweight characters of his popular and long-running “Pugad Baboy” comic strip fare if they invaded cyberspace? How will it connect to a generation that’s way unfamiliar to the milieu that gave birth to this satire in the 1980s? There was then this romantic notion of caricatures and comic strips best appreciated in print. Not anymore, he told Rappler. The leisurely pace by which print could be read and the certainty of electronically accessing old material converged. If the audience has gone online, that’s where he’s thinking of moving “Pugad Baboy” too. He is aware that fans have been urging him to embrace the online medium. “The world has gone digital. Paper is being replaced by glass. Obviously the future of information is in cyberspace,” he said.


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The @HillaryClinton account was verified by Twitter within hours of coming online, and the potential future presidential candidate quickly gained more than 100,000 followers. In her lighthearted Twitter debut on June 10, Hillary Clinton poked fun at her own image and fuelled speculation about what the future holds for the former secretary of state. Her profile had these: wife of former state governor and president Bill Clinton, a “hair icon, pantsuit aficionado, glass ceiling cracker” and ending with a wink at her presumed presidential ambitions: “TBD” — to be determined. She posted a single tweet, expressing gratitude to Adam Smith and Stacy Lambe, the pranksters responsible for a popular satirical website “Texts from Hillary.”


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Tycoon Lucio Tan is “seriously” looking into selling his group’s remaining 51% majority but not controlling stake in Philippine Airlines (PAL). This was according to the disclosure of San Miguel Corp, the diversified conglomerate that acquired 49% minority but controlling stake in the legacy carrier. San Miguel, which has its hands full with its own diversification plans on top of its aviation assets, earlier said it is not buying Tan’s stakes. Tan acquired PAL in the 1990’s, when the government privatized it. The Tan group has been looking for PAL buyers several times in its financially troubled past.


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Finally, one airport will open during the 6-year term of President Benigno Aquino III: Laguindingan Airport in Northern Mindanao. He inspected the newly built airport again on Tuesday, June 11, before the June 15 opening. Bigger and in a more geographically safe location, Laguindingan’s operations will replace the decades-long Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro City as the gateway to the south. The airport project has been in the works since 1991 and former President Macapagal Arroyo was gung-ho about pushing for it, but it is Aquino who will oversee its opening. The Aquino government has lined up several airport projects to boost tourism and trade.


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In the eyes of global energy company Shell, two main visions could play out based on their latest energy outlooks that explore economic, political and social forces that could shape our world. In the first scenario, the world is more orderly, yet economic growth is a bit on the slow side, mainly due to control of governments in introducing changes and policies. In the second scenario, the world is more volatile, economies more prosperous, and government more limited — It’s a more turbulent world. Shell recently released the “New Lens Scenarios” energy outlook, which uses 3 types of “lenses” to take a peek into our present issues, and what our future could look like.


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Apple unveiled its upcoming computer operating system OS X 10.9 Mavericks at its 2013 Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco on June 10. The new OS will not see the design overhaul given to its mobile counterpart iOS, but builds on existing efforts to merge both worlds. Apple CEO Tim Cook is calling this update the “biggest change” since the introduction of the iPhone back in 2005. The new user interface sees a major design overhaul, with a flat design, translucencies, and a new thinner font. The new design changes are said to make the phone appear bigger.


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