But I was stuck in cyber Iloilo, particularly at Sun Star Iloilo's website.

The headline reads like this as of 9:55p.m. of September 17: Police prepare transfer of 'bad' cops to Mindanao.

Bad cops to Mindanao? Our Mindanao is the country's dump site?Of course I heard something like this a hundred times before.

Assignment to troubled areas must have meant either as punishment or as training ground for leaders.

There was even a supposed rule in the military before that a general gets appointed only as AFP chief of staff, if he has become the chief of the AFP's most troublesome area, the Southcom (now divided as Eastern and Western Mindanao commands). That's another thing, yes.

But this police disposal scheme is foul. Isn't it? Yes, this might punish erring officials, but are they looking at consequences as far as police work (in Mindanao) is concerned?

And this has passed of as a national policy?

(This is not only the decision of the Iloilo police but also the national government what with the approval of DILG Sec. Ronaldo Puno and concurrence of Ilonggo Justice Sec. Raul Gonzales Sr.)

If indeed the Arroyo administration has looked at Mindanao with priority and sincerity, then how could they explain this decision?

Felix Mirasol, community environment and natural resource officer, confirmed to MindaNews Wednesday that witnesses have identified the culprit described as a young man who failed to attend information
drive on the Philippine Eagle (pithecophaga jefferyi).

Mirasol is the Mt. Kitanglad Protected Area superintendent.

Kagsabua was last sighted on July 7 and was known to be missing between July 8 and 10, Mirasol said. He said a search operation was immediately launched.On July 12, he said, the transmitter gadget attached to the eagle's body was found buried at least six inches in the bank of creek.

Kagsabua is reportedly the first eagle fitted with a satellite transmitter and a VHF radio to monitor his activities.

No carcasses were found, but Mirasol said feathers identified to be of the eagle were found near the gadget. Walter Dalasanay, head of the Kitanglad Porters Association, also reported recovery on July 15 of
two avian feet believed to have belonged to Kagsabua.

Mirasol said he ordered a "full blown investigation" on July 14.

Mirasol quoted Celestinano Yabunan, head of the Kitanglad Guard Volunteers (KGV), as saying on Wednesday that three witnesses are signing an affidavit that they saw a man, whose name was not made
available as of press time, shot and ate the male eagle in La Fortuna village, next to Lupiagan, where the eagle was released by officials of the Philippine Eagle Foundation and other government and community
officials in March this year. (To be updated)

Sometimes I shut my senses out in order to avoid the hassle. But, normally that isn't possible.

Maybe its the same surge of terror that pushed me to post this piece even if I had been plagued with a mysterious strain of "blog silence". Mute, but not muted.

I work for a local newspaper here whose owners, a family, happens to have other small business endeavors.

In the neighborhood is a small bakery and a general merchandise store. For what we call a spirit of community, we reporters and business personnel share the same "rest shop" with the newsboys, the bakers, the store helps, maids and even the janitor.

One of these "neighbors" is "Ricky" who used to work as encoder. He once shared his dream to work in a banana plantation for greener pasture.

Then one day, we stopped seeing him. His employers told us he finally got the call from the company to work as a field man in the banana plantation in Bumbaran, Lanao del Sur.

In the next opportunity for us in the "neighborhood" to get-together, we talked about his finally getting a redemption. It was unique because we talked about his dream being fulfilled instead of "back biting" on him, as the case when somebody is not around.

Don't get me wrong. We are all happy about our work. We know we don't earn much but this is about choices we made separately based on certain circumstances. We just recognize that we just couldn't stop from aiming for the better.

That's how we saw Ricky's move. And he just went ahead of us.

But we were surprised that about 10 days later he did an apparition. He returned to his old work.

He told us about how he and about more than 50 other workers were sent back because of skirmishes in the conflict-stricken town.

Ricky was sort of cursing the conflict that sen him back. He looked relieved to be out from there, yes, but he looked like he wished the skirmishes weren't there.

Man is really resilient. Ricky is forced to settle in second best just to survive.

But I was pondering on it in between reportorial deadlines. His dream wasn't really that big.  He just wanted to get a job and thanks to the trouble he couln't count on it.

Working in a plantation isn't even that "ideal" but for Ricky it was his momentary "ideal".

I do not want to blame Ricky's fate to the stalled peace process. There are surely more reasons out there.

When do we ever see a full stop of the Mindanao conflict? When do we ever see a stop on  the silencing of voices?

How many of the likes of Ricky would have to mourn their small dreams being shattered by misunderstanding?

Oh by the way, allow me the caveat. There are a lot of reasons to return to blogging. A thousand good reasons to highlight the good news of people succeeding.

I hope this one isn't much waste of free blog space.

From the MindaNews dispatch >>>> Hope for the New Year is high nationwide at 91%  but in Mindanao, residents were more hopeful for 2007 than they are for 2008, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.
The survey, conducted nationwide from November 30 to December 3 but released only on December 28, showed Metro Manila as the most hopeful,  at 95%; Visayas at 94%; the rest of Luzon at 91% and Mindanao at 87%.

The survey asked “Angdarating na taon ba ay inyong sasalubungin na may pag-asa o pangamba?” (Is it with hope or with fear that you enter the coming year?).“In Mindanao, however, hopefulness for the New Year slightly declined, from 90% in  2006 to 87% in 2007,” a press statement from the SWS said.

In Metro Manila, “hopefulness of the New Year is up eight points, from 87% in 2006 to
95% in 2007, the highest recorded New Year hope in the area since the 92% in 2002.”

Hopefulness for 2007 and 2008 remained the same in the rest of Luzon (91-92%) and Visayas (93-94%).

Last year, NCR was the least hopeful, at 87%. This year, it is the most hopeful, at 95%.

Mindanao was least hopeful in 2000 about their expectations for 2001, with only 78% saying they were hopeful in facing 2001.

By yearend of 2001, Mindanao was approaching 2002 with more hope, at 86%. In 2002, hopefulness for 2003 was even higher, at 94%.

The year 2003, however, turned out to be a “war” year for some parts in Southwestern Mindanao and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), as government forces attacked Buliok in Pagalungan, Maguindanao, displacing at least 400,000 in the immediate environment and neighboring provinces.

In 2003, hopefulness for 2004 declined to 92% and dropped even more by yearend 2004 with only 87% of Mindanawons hopeful of a better 2005. By yearend, fewer people approached 2006 with hope, at 84%. But expectations by yearend improved as 90% of Mindanawons approached 2007 with hope.

New Year hope is also high across socio-economic class, “88% among the middle to upper classes ABC, 92% among the masa D class and 91% among the very poor class E,” the SWS said.

The survey also showed that the top two resolutions nationwide for 2008 are “to have a better family life” (12%) and “to work harder or look for work” (11%).

“To work harder/look for work/venture into business” (19%) is the top response in Metro Manila, while “To have a better family life” (15%) is the top New Year’s resolution in the rest of  Luzon.

In Mindanao, “To  improve attitude or to become a better person” is the top resolution (12%) in Mindanao and in the Visayas (11%).

“The survey question on hope versus fear about the New Year was patterned after the polls conducted annually by the Allensbach Institute of Demoskopy, a pioneering opinion research center in Germany.  Since 1991, German hope in the coming year has not exceeded 58%,” the SWS said. (MindaNews)

I'm back to my home province Bukidnon and on my day one as editor of Malaybalay's Central Mindanao Newswatch.

Actually I'm just a consultant to the 19-year old weekly paper. From 2000 to 2004, I worked as a full time staff here, from being a marketing officer, reporter and editor before resigning in April 2004 and joining the Davao staff of MindaNews in June 2004.

After a meeting with the manager in the morning, I was scheduled to meet the communication development interns from Bukidnon State University.

Tomorrow, I hope I really make it to Bendum, Busdi, Malaybalay City for an assignment with MindaNews. I will stay connected to our cooperative of journalists based in Davao City.

These and a correspondent work with the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN) should keep me busy as a freelance reporter in this province.

For a while I would miss Davao City, but this should be a welcome respite --back to base.

I hope I could still give substantial updates on Mindanao from Bukidnon. Best wishes to all.

I am trying to prepare myself to surrender the Macintosh laptop the office has allowed me to use.

D' Mac has been a useful tool even if I complained a lot about its configurations in detecting wi-fi internet in most of the city.

As I move to my next assignment, I have to bid Mac good bye. Now, I'm forced to rejoin a thing of the past.
After 40 months in a dungeon, I have to resurrect my old pal, Aero, a Compaq Contura subnotebook. I acquired it second hand in 2001. Those who are familiar with the model know its in "obsoletecomputer.com."

Compaq introduced the model in 1994 and axed it years later. Anyway, I have to contend to using it for text process work while waiting for my dream laptop. Dream, dream.

While others say good bye to a computer model to welcome a more modern replacement, the opposite is happening with me. As a friend said in an unsolicited advice -- "at least be happy it suits your minimum need for now."

Just like other professionals, reporters have become common users of laptops at work.

It has become increasingly an imperative tool for journalists reporting on Mindanao. The equipment's handy size suits the mobility required to cover the news.

Most of Mindanao's towns still do not have wi-fi internet technology. Even at least, the more basic indicator --an internet cafe in each town is not yet there.
But with the advent of USB tech and wireless internet around Mindanao's cities, the comfort of using a laptop is more evident.

Owning and using a laptop has become a goal of most, if not all, journalists.

Many veteran journalists (or 'better' journalists), however, might find this silly. Still many refuse to adjust to the technological even if they say they embrace change in general.

I heared from the stories they tell, that tools of the trade during their time include the pen, notebook, the big vintage recorder and the typewriter. For those covering out of town, they could find refuge (if you call that refuge now) in the telephone booth where they dictate word by word their copy to the desk people via a long distance collect call.

The notebook and pen tandem is as classic as the Homer's Iliad and Odessey. They are ancient but timeless tools.

The vintage recorder is now replaced by Mp3s and mobile phones with recorders, which use digital technology. And the typewriters, many of which are now collectors' items, give way to the PCs, laptops and personal gadgets that are capable of sending digital material via 3G technology.

More and more reporters use a laptop at work on site or offsite that slowly it is becoming a standard tool, just as the notebook and pen.

Technology has made work easier, indeed. For journalists, the speed afforded them by the laptop and the internet technologies means a lot. To some it means the job itself.

Of course, still some argue that when we still did not have these technologies, work was still done and was done pretty well.

I'm sad I can't have Mac for now and have to make do with Aero. But on the other hand, it is relieving. Most of Mindanao's communities are still in "typewriter stage". If you go to the communities many of the children still do not know how a personal computer looks like in "person".

Gives me enough consolation for having Aero. Again, for now, bye Mac.