sofimi

Someone deleted this comment because it was supposedly irrelevant to the discussion:

Meh. I prefer Japan, it’s got the mothaf*cken lifesize Gundam.

Of course someone who can’t see how Lapu-Lapu, Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal, and Jose Abad Santos are worthy of being called heroes of this country would have even more difficulty parsing said sarcasm.

You can’t see how people who sacrificed themselves contributed to the country’s well-being; it’s easier to just accuse them of being sensationalist, petty, and disruptive. You can’t see how the Philippines can crawl out of this deep hole of poverty, corruption, and illiteracy; it’s easier to just run off to some some country where the climate, economy, and telenovelas are better.

But if it were me giving up and running off, I’d pick Japan. It’s got the mothaf*cken lifesize Gundam.

Of course, it’s just you.

Happy birthday, Jose Protacio Mercado Rizal Alonzo y Realonda. Here’s to not dying in vain.

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• Filipino Netizens rally vs. Government's "book blockade" Filipinos take the fight against the Philippine Government's "book blockade" to cyberspace through Twitter, blogs and online petitions. The "book blockade" refers to the decision of Philippine Customs officials to impose a tax on books which are not "educational", such as novels, thereby curtailing the entry of imported books into the country.

Update (05/25/09): The Philippine Star reports that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has lifted the book tax imposed by the Department of Finance / Bureau of Customs. Also, a postscript from Robin Hemley, the first to write about the whole thing.

The Great Book Blockade of 2009 has been buzzing for a few weeks now, but not as loudly as one would have wanted. It’s about the taxation of books and the pathetic notion by Philippine customs that books are not educational. It seems a lot of things are more newsworthy than this.

Like how American Idol finalist David Archuleta appeared on Philippine noontime show Eat Bulaga and suddenly Pinoy twitterers were gushing about him so much that it hit Twitter’s most popular keywords. Unfortunately Filipinos seem to care more about singing sensations than this pressing issue (even Neil Gaiman tweeted about it before most), but some of us realized we could piggyback on the existing buzz. (To be sure, we posted on Plurk too.)

After a couple of hours of tweeting and retweeting, #bookblockade finally made it to the trending topics on Twitter’s sidebar. There’s also a nod to it on The Blog Herald.

It’s exhilarating to realize that in a short span of time you can make a difference. While our efforts haven’t eradicated the taxation of imported books or fired the officials who can’t see how novels are educational or hit the headlines as of yet, it’s still progress. This is the kind of influence that people dabbling in social media—whether personally or professionally—should focus on.

Now go read the timeline so far on the Book Blockade. And keep up the good tweets.

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Websites for <form> function() & .class, the first web design conference in the Philippines and Asia, and the Philippine Web Designers Organization (PWDO) are now up. Visit the site, register for the big event on July 10, and spread the word!

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Reasons I love Plurk, told in a different way. Like many things on the web, microblogging is a popularity contest, but it’s not just what these personalities say. It’s how they use the medium. Add these model citizens, okay?

The Runners-up

Comic haven from velociraptors: XKCD (@xkcd)

One of the greatest, geekiest web comics of all time, XKCD’s syndication on Plurk feels like a match made in heaven and not just a Ping.fm post that reeks of afterthought.

Each comic strip is a click and an inline popup away. Then the “mouseover-text” you find on the website appears as the first reply in the thread, and followers can comment away. XKCD also cares about its new fans, so it also posts old strips aside from the new ones.

See also: The Fail Blog (@failblog) and I Can Has Cheezburger (@ICanHasCheezburger)

Philippine literature 2.0: Jose Rizal (@laonglaan )

Unfortunately somebody snapped up @joserizal already, but what a great way to bring pen names into the 21st century.

More importantly, what a modern way to preserve and propagate the works of our national hero—which in all likelihood will never get read again outside of required readings in high school and college.

Bob Ong (@BobOng) also deserves props since he’s influential in his own right: although I’m told the owner of the account is just a fan, not the already enigmatic author, the reply counts on his posts are off the charts. Taking advantage of online anonymity plus his own take on Pinoy experiences, particularly humorous ones, is refreshing to experience in a place like Plurk.

See also: William Shakespeare (@ WilliamShakespeare)

Satire at its best: George W. Bush (@GeorgeWBush)

He may be out of the White House and is no longer that active as a plurker, but George W. Bush has the probably the best quips in the timeline. And they’re always in context, since they contain links to the news he refers to.

Don’t disappear, because I’ll miss you dearly, GeorgieBoy!

Winner: Paulo Coelho (@PauloCoelho)

Paulo Coelho (of The Alchemist, Veronika Decides to Die, The Witch of Portobello) is a staggeringly industrious writer who’s built an online presence every which way. He blogs, vlogs, tweets, plurks, and more.

He’s got the social media thing down pat, not because he wants to make money but because he wants to engage with his audience. If he’s not discussing developments on his latest book or sharing both funny and inspiring tidbits, he invites his readers to sound off.

Note: Paulo Coelho seems to be the only real person in here.

Special mentions: @phPlurk and @whengmaresigns

I just want to mention phPlurk and thank the people behind it for their generous efforts. An SMS gateway is much more accessible than loading Plurk mobile through 3G or Wi-Fi, and that’s something only Filipinos who actually use Plurk—neither the Western startups nor the big mobile phone networks—would understand. Plurk (and Twitter) are bridging the gap between the Internet and mobile communication, but keep in mind that executing a webapp idea varies across continents too.

And some shameless plugging: When GMA Resigns displays plurk replies in a random fashion and makes for a fun single-serving site. More on it here.

So, who’s up for a local microblogging conference?

Postscript: A rant about Twitter Politicians

Remember the 2007 Philippine local and legislative elections going online? We’re less than a year away from electing a new president, and online campaigning has gotten worse.

I wasn’t going to mention Twitter here but this is to show the other side of the coin, i.e., how to not get it. I’d like to give the Worst Use of Twitter award to Jejomar Binay and even more so, Corazon Aquino. Update (05/10/09): Scratch that, Corazon Aquino’s Twitter account looks thoroughly trashed now—by a French DJ. That is, whoever’s fronting for them, abusing their names, and proclaiming how all this “new media” / “social media” crap will get them sworn into office just like Obama. Philippine campaign season always been about the theatrics instead of the platforms, after all. We just got an upgrade.

But there’s no room for trapo techniques in a medium as simple and transparent as microblogging. So I’ll grab some popcorn then watch them crash and burn in excruciatingly slow motion, as though they haven’t already.

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