TANKED!

That's the word of the day. Why? Because the US pretty much made history today. The Bailout Plan failed in the House of Representatives. Granted, it was a seriously flawed plan, but it was an option. Still, it got intensely heated, and thus, the 228 No - 205 Yes result. There's gonna be lots of scrambling this week. The (already slumping) stock market practically tanked immediately following that decision, closing at -777. That's lower than 9/11, and a record for a single day of trading. The global financial markets just had a meltdown. In other related news, Wachovia has also been picked up by Citigroup, making it the latest and largest banking casualty. Oh, and there's a not-so-hot stirring at my job.

Dontcha love Mondays? I know ya do.

Amidst Tragedy, comes Hope and Unity.

The recent Sichuan Earthquake on May 12, 2008 was devastating. Going beyond Beijing and Shanghai, it left thousands dead, and even more homeless and helpless. The 8-hour long Artistes 512 concert (led by Andy Lau and participated by more than 500 stars and artists from Hong Kong, Taiwan and China), donated a huge sum to the victims. Their wonderful song is called Promise (there are 2 versions of the song). You can view the whole concert in parts here. Now Jackie Chan is collaborating with JYP Entertainment and several popular Korean stars and artists to help raise additional funds. The end result of the I Love Asia Project is a melodic, beautiful and dramatic song called Smile Again. I hope you enjoy it. Get your lyrics to Smile Again here. GO ASIA!

《承諾》
多少人 多少幸福被搶奪(jacky cheung)
多少生活在一瞬間被埋沒(karen mok)
一切變沉默(andy hui)
淚光在眼眶閃爍(andy hui + hocc)
塵埃沾滿了失落 的輪廓(hocc + shirley kwan)
(情願是我)(wong ka keung)
不必說(joey yung)
你們背後還有我(joey yung + hacken lee)
未來就是崎嶇也會陪你過(hacken lee)
一個你(eric tsang) 一個我(gigi leung)
扛起不需要脆弱(gigi leung)
前面越走一定會 越寬闊(miriam yeung)
(你還有我)(fama + kin, keung @ the wynners)
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落(andy lau)
為了你我再苦也不躲oh no~(wong ka keung)
我要你重獲 原來的生活(kenny bee + maria codero)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(justin)
不必說(alan tam + kenny bee)
你們背後還有我(kenny bee)
未來就是崎嶇也會陪你過(pakho chau + wilfred lau +louis cheung + pong nam + ying cheong yau)
一個你(at17)
一個我(ivana wong + charmine fong)
扛起不需要脆弱 (joyce cheng + tse ting ting)
前面越走一定會 越寬闊(khalil fong)
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落 (eliza chan)
為了你我再苦也不躲(edmond leung + william so)
oh~no…(eliza chan)
我要你重獲(teddy robin)
原來的生活(teddy robin + eason chan)
原來的生活(adlib by justin)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(anthony wong)
** 縱然山搖地破 也要安然渡過 有你有我 **(eason chan + alan tam + kenny bee)
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落(lam yee sun)
we are the world(george lam)
為了你我再苦也不躲(lam yee sun)
we are the world(george lam)
我要你重獲 原來的生活(law ka ying)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(liza wang)
我要你重獲 (andy lau) 原來的生活(alan tam)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(andy lau + alan tam)
vega acappella………
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落(teddy robin + lam man chung)
為了你我再苦也不躲(girl group#1)
我要你重獲 原來的生活(girl group#2)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(group)
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落(group)
為了你我再苦也不躲(group)
我要你重獲 原來的生活(group)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(alan tam, kenny bee + kin @ the wynners)
* 誰都會有恐懼面對黑暗的角落(group) with khalil fong adlib
為了你我再苦也不躲(group)
我要你重獲 原來的生活(group)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(group)
我要你重獲(alan tam) 原來的生活(kenny bee)
認定了這一輩子的承諾(alan tam + kenny bee)





<조성모>얼마나 아프니 정말 너무 많이 힘들 꺼야
<클래지콰이>어둠 속에서 한줄기 빛도 보이질 않아
<박용하>가슴이 너무 아파 눈물조차도 흐르질 않니
<나르샤,간미연>어디로 갈지 몰라 맴돌다가 주저 앉아 있니

I’ll be on your side 함께 할게
I’ll give you my hand 내 손을 잡고 일어나.
눈물이 마를 때까지
나의 어깨에 기대 서 쉬렴 다시 일어나
웃는 네 모습을 기다릴게.

<성룡>둘러 보아도 아무런 희망도 보이질 않고
<황정민,채연>이 긴 어둠은 끝이 나지 않을 것만 같고
<김동완>하루 하루가 너무 길고 힘들게만 느껴지니
<김아중>일어날 힘도 없어 제자리에 주저 앉아 있니

<신혜성>I’ll be on your side 함께 할게
I’ll give you my hand 내 손을 잡고 일어나.
눈물이 마를 때까지
<손호영>나의 어깨에 기대서 쉬렴 다시 일어나
웃는 네 모습을 기다릴게.

<김태희>잊지마 네가 힘들고 지칠 때 마다
<한혜진>내가 여기 너의 뒤에 서 있다는 것을.
<전혜빈>넌 혼자가 아냐 내가 여기 곁에 서 있는 한
<임정희>Cause I’ll always be here for U

<임정희,휘성>I’ll be on your side 함께 할게
<선예,휘성>I’ll give you my hand 내 손을 잡고 일어나.
눈물이 마를 때까지
나의 어깨에 기대서 쉬렴 다시 일어나
웃는 네 모습을 기다릴게.

<박진영>I’ll be on your side 함께 할게
<장나라>I’ll give you my hand 내 손을 잡고 일어나.
눈물이 마를 때까지
나의 어깨에 기대서 쉬렴 다시 일어나
웃는 네 모습을 기다릴게.

<김연아>다시 웃는 모습을 기다릴게



Special thanks to Aaron for providing me this link.

FUNi, the Savior.

That's the title I have dubbed the R1 studio known as FUNimation. In a surprise announcement at their AX2008 panel, FUNimation announced that they have struck a deal with (the supposedly defunct) Geneon to market and distribute several remaining titles and licenses that were orphaned. Geneon will still maintain their licenses and will oversee production of the dvds (after all, most of the materials were already completed before their sudden departure from the R1 anime market). In addition, Sojitz, an ex-partner with ADV, has also approached FUNimation. The result is that FUNimation now also owns the rights and licenses of all Sojitz titles previously held by ADV. Bad news for ADV, great news for FUNimation and anime fans out there. That is a huge number of titles added under FUNimation's wing, but I believe they can handle it. CEO Gen Fukanaga has made TONS of fanboys and fangirls wet their pants with this announcement. And AX2008 isn't even over yet! FUNimation FTW! Now the question remains on how these titles will be handled. Will they continue releasing singles for those partially-released titles? Will they just restart the whole title via boxsets? Will we have to double-dip on some titles? Regardless, now I can complete Rozen Maiden Träumend and Red Garden. I am SO excited! Can the 4th of July 2008 weekend get any better?

One step closer to Equality.

I'm not usually one to follow LGBT news very closely, but this one warrants an honorable mention. May 15, 2008. In a 4-3 vote, the California Supreme Court ruled that domestic partnership isn't enough, and gave their blessing that marriage is based on love and the ability to raise a family, not sexual orientation. Thus, same-sex marriage is deemed legal in the most populous US state, making California the second state that condones same-sex marriage. You don't have to be a resident to obtain a marriage license, but of course, your license would only be recognized only in Massachusetts. A monumental victory indeed. Throngs of wonderful people celebrated the decision in the San Francisco City Hall, and many couples have already made marriage proposals and appointments for marriage licenses. But the fight isn't over yet. Far from it. Religious right-wingers are rallying to delay the implementation of the new ruling while escalating their efforts to put a nationwide Constitutional amendment that would define marriage as the union of one man and one woman thus outlawing same-sex marriages and domestic partnerships altogether). Of course, the LGBT community is pressing even more fervently across the nation to protect their hard-earned victory. Who can blame them? And I completely support them. The presidential elections are coming up very soon, and you have 2 minority leads in that race. It will be a very interesting, tense and terse environment. And just how will Nevada fare out? We have a lot of Californian residents here, and Las Vegas is one of the most popular destination to tie-the-knot (hokey drive-thru weddings notwithstanding, of course). We could use some help with this economic downturn, and we always support love. Stay tuned to gay.com for the latest updates!

Of Rice and Responsibilities.

Rumor has it that there is a severe global rice shortage. Well, it may be true now, after Cyclone Nargis hit the Irrawaddy Delta in Myanmar just this past week. But prior to that...there is actually a surplus of rice. But due to bad weather, higher food costs due to rising fuel prices, and human neurosis, rice hoarding has started to occur, as well as export limitations/bans. Costco and Sam's Club has started limiting the amount of rice each customer can purchase. One could blame corn ethanol and drilling limitations as causes, but I highly doubt it. Corn is grown in different types of soil, and yields hardly enough fuel to replace oil. And increasing the number of oil drilling locations would be a very short-term solution at best. Destroy the environment, deplete the resources. Not a smart move. Instead, we need to keep on plugging away at finding a fuel alternative that is environmentally friendly, is efficient, and can be manufactured on a very large scale. Oh, and yes, we need to stop being so wasteful! Why do we need Hummers and SUVs? Why do we only eat one bite out of our meals? We are all the cause, and only we can solve it.

PS. So today I got charged an additional $1 for the rice that came with my dinner tonight. Some places charge you for second servings. Some charge you for rice that goes with your takeout. Some charge you regardless. A few still don't. But remember that rice is a major component in many other basic ingredients, such as flour. And no flour means no cakes or pasta! There's proof that a rice shortage is coming into reality.

Too Little, Too Late.

As of right now, the number of casualties in Myanmar reaching 100,000 or more is a very real possibility. Cyclone Nargis swiped and wiped the Irrawaddy Delta, causing a huge loss on the world's rice supply (which was already in jeopardy due to economic depression). Myanmar's government downplayed the severity of the cyclone, and the militaristic Junta didn't respond when the Nargis did hit. In fact, the Junta has just (very grudgingly) allowed foreign aid to the areas affected. Due to that, thousands more will die due to lack of clean water, food, shelter and fighting (much less money). Why the Junta is so anti-foreign aid is beyond me, but their lack of prompt action cost them a big chance to win the hearts and souls of the Nargis survivors. Ridiculous. How a country is supposed to make progress when it insists on being absolutely self-reliant (with a military-style way ruling to boot) is beyond me. Even now when they're (barely) allowing any form of aid in, they insist on hijacking that aid and slapping a self-promoting label, just to boost their own image for the upcoming elections. How low can you get? It's very shady, and very sad. My best wishes to the survivors and those living there.

PS. My wishes goes to the people of northeast Japan who survived the recent 7.2-magnitude earthquake.