Walkout to Defeat?

Today’s walkout by the opposition at the House Justice Committee hearing is a strange one and may betray the weakness of their position.  A walkout is essentially a surrender — a decision to discontinue playing the game perhaps hinting thatanother game is worth playing.

Walkouts have been a powerful symbol and in their own way, instrumental in each EDSA.  In EDSA 1, there were many walkouts. The Enrile-Ramos walkout was one of the last.  But we should not forget the COMELEC computer operators who marched out of PICC without any idea if they would live to see the morning.  Or the dramatic walkout by the air force symbolized by the Sikorsky helicopters landing in Camp Crame’s marching field. 

EDSA Dos started with Chavit Singson’s walkout; pushed forward by the impeachment panel’s walkout and capped by the military’s walkout symbolized by then Gen. Angelo Reyes’ appearance at the EDSA Shrine.

Somehow, today’s walkout isn’t up to par with those momentous walkouts. (more…)

SWS Survey on Judges & Lawyers

The Inquirer reports that lawyers have more access to resources and technology than members of the bench. 

<big yawn>

So what else is new? Should it be the other way around? Well, the Inquirer report seems so when it opens with the following line:

THERE ought to be a law.

They’re way off the mark here.  I can’t think of any judicial system in the world where judges make more money or have access to superior resources than practicing attorneys.  I understand in Singapore, judges are paid $100,000 a year — a substantial sum but I’m sure it’s less than what partners (and maybe senior associates) in major firms make.   (more…)

DSL Down, No Blogging

My DSL conked out on me for about 4 days and I haven’t had a chance to blog.  Well, that’s not the whole reason but it’s as good as any.  I’ve been to busy to sit down and write something.  Work is piling up ’round here.  Exam papers to grade,  opinions to write, contracts to review, etc. 

So, I’m happy about the holiday.  I could use the time to catch up on some work.  Will I be successful?  I doubt it because unlike other people, I don’t delay gratification.  I’d rather watch “Air Crash Investigation” or just zone out.  But I have to try, right?

Impeachment Ennui

Boring. Boring. Boring.

Those opposition people better get their act together.  We’re not yet at trial and the Administration’s men in Congress are already running circles around them. 

Delay. Delay. Delay. 

This impeachment thing is about as exciting as watching mushrooms grow.  Certainly, we’re all in the dark and getting bull-shit thrown all over us. 

I want my IMPEACHMENT TV! 

Now! (more…)

Why Don’t They Get It?

Malacanang’s Bobby Tiglao denied the President was in tears when she left her meeting with Archbishop Lagdameo.  What’s wrong with you, man?

We want her to cry!  We want to see her in tears like Dinky Soliman with snot running down to her lips, puffy eyes, with tearful references to her kids and something about looking at yourself in the mirror in the morning.  

No mascara please.  The last thing we need is a President looking like a racoon.  We’re going for sympathy here!  Not comedy.

We want our President to be human for a change.  To admit she was wrong. That she made a mistake. That she’s really sorry. Really really really sorry.  Sorry enough to kick all her family members and cronies out of government (she can quietly put them back in when the dust settles).  She should go to confession.  Attend prayer rallies.  Ask forgiveness from God, Allah, Jose Rizal and whatever deity you have.  Get on her knees, spread out her arms and raise her eyes to heaven  . . . for three days straight.  Go out to the EDSA Shrine and go on a one-day hunger strike and give Fr. Reyes a chance to run for a change.  Get herself nailed on a cross in Pampanga. Self-flagellate. Walk on glass. Walk on her knees in Antipolo after walking all the way from Malacanang. 

And we’ll forgive her. 

All of us.

Promise.

ISAFP Pick Up Service

In news today, DILG Secretary Angelo Reyes could not explain the legal basis for the ISAFP raid on Segundo Tabayoyong’s room in San Mateo, Rizal.  Unless the Constitution was on a hiatus (it does have a nasty habit of doing that), the ISAFP should have secured a warrant, conducted the raid and then seized the evidence.  But he says, they didn’t seize the evidence, it was handed over to them.

Reyes said Carmela Cabuhat, owner of the house rented by Segundo Tabayoyong, had “turned over” the ERs to a police-military team, as well as a gun, assorted ammunition and campaign materials allegedly found in Tabayoyong’s room.

“We didn’t confiscate these. These were turned over to us,” Reyes said in a news conference at the CIDG-NCR headquarters in Camp Crame.

I guess Sec. Reyes completely forgot about the Constitutionally-protected right against unreasonable searches and seizure.  After all,  a cabinet member and alter ego of the President can’t be bothered by this thing we call the Bill of Rights.  It’s such a hassle to go through the process outlined in the Constitution what with everything else he has to do.

And anyway, this wasn’t a search and seizure, it was a voluntary turn over — by Carmela Cabuhat.  I don’t know about Sec. Reyes but I don’t think Tabayoyong’s landlady was authorized to waive his Constitutional rights.  I imagine only Tabayoyong could do that.  But it’s been about 15 years since I took up Constitutional Law.  Things might have changed. 

Still, one has to give credit to the police and ISAFP for making sure the evidence turn over was done right. 

So, while we’re at it, I’ve got these 40 boxes of junk in the back.  My wife’s been after me for months about it and it’s becoming an irritant on our marriage.  So, Sec. Reyes, who can I call in the ISAFP for a “turn over”? 1-800-ISAFP2GO?

Internet Piracy?

I received the following invitation by email:

PIRATE CINEMA, Vol. I
“Welcome to the Scene”, Pt. 1 - 3
Auditorium, Film Institute, College of Mass-Communication, Plaridel Hall
Thursday, August 18, 2005, 5:30 PM
Introduction: Dr. Tilman Baumgaertel
Every pixel in this screening has been downloaded from the internet for free.

     _.–”"–._
    /  _    _  \
_  ( (_\  /_) )  _
{ \._\   /\   /_./ }
/_”=-.}______{.-=”_\
_  _.=(”"”")=._  _
(_’”_.-”`~~`”-._”‘_)
{_”            “_}

Sounded intriguing.  So I went.
(more…)

Disini is Here

Suffering from a dash of narcissistic curiousity, I googled “Disini.”  Nothing beats Google in giving you a snapshot of your digital self’s relevance.  Which isn’t far from what Pinoy Top Blogs does for Dean — it gives him a sense of “belonging to something big.”

Apart from my Firm  site and my blog, I’ve discovered that there is now a site called “Disini Disini Home” an on-line home accessories shop.  I’ve always known about the Disini portal in Malaysia. I even got myself a free email account (jj@disini.com.my).  But the store was a new site that I must say is nicely done.

Someone told me a few years ago that disini in Malaysia and Indonesia means “here”  which is why it’s a good name for a portal.  The Disini Disini Home store is (like our Firm name) repetitive and maybe expresses an urgency to close a transaction (”Don’t look there! Look Here! Here!”).  At any rate, I’ve always wanted to own the disini.com domain name but someone else beat me to it.  A check with Network Solutions gives the following: (more…)

Are Bloggers Parasites?

I read Judge Posner’s article entitled “Bad News” in the New York Times about media in general.  There’s a portion there where he discusses bloggers and the threat they pose to traditional media.  He also calls bloggers “parasites” for taking content from traditional media without paying for it. Then they have the temerity to criticize conventional media.  Talk about biting the hand that feeds you.

I’m guilty of this.  I link to media sources all the time.  I just did it now — to the New York Times, no less.  And I don’t pay them a centavo (assuming I knew what it looked like). 

But am I a ‘parasite’?  For that matter, fellow blogger, are you? (more…)

Pinay Becomes White House Executive Chef

The New York Times reports that a Filipino-American, Cristeta Comerford, has been appointed the first female White House Executive Chef.  For a country starved for good news, this is most welcome!  I know for a fact that pinays are great cooks. No wonder that the top blog  in the country (run by the top blogger) is a cooking site. 

Mabuhay ang Pinay!

VoIP Becomes Less Secure from Wiretapping

According to my brother, GMA would have been better off using Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) when calling Commr. Garcillano because VoIP  calls can be encrypted and are therefore more secure.  Well, the Electronic Frontier Foundation reports that the Federal Communications Commission just issued rules expanding the scope of the Communications Assistance to Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) to cover broadband Internet communications.  The CALEA is a US statute that directs telephone equipment manufacturers to make their hardware easy to tap.  Expanding the law to broadband Internet means, that even encrypted VoIP calls can be tapped into very easily (after they get a warrant, of course). 

So, what Joel said may no longer be true in the near future. As they say, the only thing standing between the government and your privacy is a judge.

UPDATE:  Wired reports that a legal challenge to the FCC rules is likely.

Defensor’s Not-so-Astute Defense

Sometimes, timing is everything.  In the case of DENR Secretary Mike Defensor, he’s a bit off.  In disclosing an expert’s opinion that the “Hello Garci” tapes have been spliced, he draws attention back to something that was just about to leave the radar screens.  Unless, he’s been hiding under a rock the past few weeks, the current issue is the La Vista pay-offs and the impeachment, not the tapes.  I can understand Cong. Nograles’ irritation (a soundbyte had him doling out unsolicited advice for the DENR Secretary: “Stop politicking and get back to work!”).  The Congressional inquiry on the tapes was drawing to a close and Mike’s presscon just gave the committees a new lease on life.  More media attention, more scrutiny of the tapes, more debates about what the President allegedly said or did.  Take out those rings once more, the circus is about to start up again.

It’s like a bad dream you’re about to get out of were it not for that dose of demerol that sends you straight back to la-la land.  Which is were Nograles probably wishes Mike Defensor would just go. And stay.  Let the big boys handle this.  Go hug a tree or something.

He has a point though.  Mike’s defense - or what passes for it - is near useless.  In the first place, the President (in the minds of most people) already admitted that she was on the tape talking to Garci.  An assault on the tapes won’t change that.  In the second place, the President’s allies have always espoused the view that the law declares the tapes inadmissible in any proceeding for any purpose.  So, arguing the tape’s authenticity is a waste of time.  In the third place, the evidence he presents does not put to rest the authenticity of the tapes.  There will be, as usual, a debate about this.  Read the PCIJ’s take on Mike’s analysis.  The public perceives the tapes as authentic and the President not worthy of trust.  It’s not likely public perception will change because of this new evidence.  Although, Manolo Quezon has some observations worth noting.

In short, there is no legal, political or PR value to all of this.  To top it off, he’s making waves about yesterday’s news.  To paraphrase a Clinton campaign sign:   “It’s the impeachment, stupid!”

Is Mendoza’s Testimony Hearsay?

Sen. Miriam Santiago was in the news today for again coming to the aid of an upopular President.  She’s razor sharp and articulate (in her own inimitable way). To her critics (and those of the President’s), the clarity she brings to a legal situation must be a source of frustration.  You don’t agree with her but damn it, she’s right!

This latest episode involving Capt. Carlo Mendoza’s testimony against Commr.  Garcillano falls in that category.  The Inquirer reports:

Santiago managed to elicit an admission from Mendoza that he had no personal knowledge of cheating in the 2004 election and that his testimony was based primarily on what he had heard Garcillano say when he served as the latter’s chief security officer from April to June last year.

This prompted another Arroyo-defender and lawyer, Sec. Bunye to comment:

Bunye also told reporters that “many people [were] fed up with the continued presentation of witnesses who merely give hearsay testimonies.”

But is that statement really true or just half-true? (more…)

Zuce’s Docs

Check out the PCIJ Blog entry containing copies of the Zuce affidavit and annexes.  In the past, one had to rely on the accuracy of media reports on documents submitted during government.  Myself, I’ve never read any of the relevant documents in the Erap impeachment trial.  I’ve contented myself with news reports and what I saw on TV.  This is the beauty of the blogosphere — we can get information, raw and unedited. 

Back to the Zuce docs: 2 items for me stand out.  The first is the memo addressed to Secretary Joey Rufino describing Commr. Garcillano as an individual who has “delivered  almost every electoral pleasure of the administration.”  Nothing like a key phrase that can be understood in different ways.

The second is Secretary Rufino’s handwritten endorsement of Garcillano per “The Antidote Group.”  Who they?  Do they give electoral pleasure too?

A [Not So True] Raul Roco Story

Over bottles of beer last Friday night, a very senior partner at a major law firm told us his Raul Roco story.  What follows is not what he actually said or what actually happened.  You can imagine  the beer and the conversation got in the way.  But I hope I got it right.  Otherwise, this guy is liable to grab me by my collar and say “What’s your problem, Disini?”

First we preface by saying this all takes place in a job interview between this very senior partner and a (I suppose) newly-minted lawyer, Raul Roco.  The interviewer has his own style.  He figures that if the applicant got as far as his office, he’s probably smart enough to work in the firm.  If not, then something must be terribly wrong with his hiring committee. 

So, this interview is anything but conventional.   (more…)

Writing from Ubuntu

I might as well be in a foreign country. 

I’m currently hacking away from a 4 year old computer with a 700Mhz processor and 128MB of RAM.  It just about conked out on us until a student of mine, Emer Banez (aka Josep Estrada), suggested (and later installed) Ubuntu Linux.  (Thanks, Emer!) 

I must say, I like the interface.  Bless the hearts of the folks at Ubuntu for including just about all the applications a home user would need. 

I’ve always been an advocate of Free Software and even took out a membership at the Free Software Foundation (just to get a chance to see Richard Stallman in person).  But this is the first time I’ve actually used Linux. 

So far, so good.

Now I have to install a wireless network card on this thing.  Any suggestions?

Does ABS-CBN Have a Case Against Dream?

Cocktales this morning reports that:

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp. said it was suing Dream Satellite not for competitive reasons, as reported here Monday, but for intellectual piracy in Dream’s re-broadcasting ABS-CBN channels. “ABS-CBN, as in any other broadcast stations, owns its broadcast signal and should be sufficiently compensated if any other entity intends to broadcast the same,” the Lopez network said in a statement.

According to the grapevine, GMA Network Inc. also filed a similar piracy case against Dream.

(The case was also reported here, here, and apparently affected the Sassy Lawyer personally)

The way I see it, the case against Dream can be broken down into two (2) parts: First, Dream is not permitted to re-broadcast Free-to-Air TV signals to its subcribers because the broadcaster “owns its signals.”  Second, Dream is not excused from paying royalties on the ground that it is required to carry Free-to-Air TV signals by relevant regulations of the NTC.

I’ll take the second one first.  (more…)

Blogging at iBlog Mini: Gloriagate Blogging

Our first iBlog Mini entitled “Blogging Gloriagate” went well this morning.  Our speakers were  Manuel Quezon III and Alecks Pabico of the PCIJ Blog.  PCIJ bloggers, Sheila Coronel and Yvonne Chua, and Journalist-Blogger, Jove Francisco,  were also present and fielded questions during the open forum.

Thankfully, J Angelo of The J Spot blogged during the event (here, here, here, here, here  and here).

Sound files of the proceedings will be posted at the iBlog blog. 

I’m especially grateful to the folks at the UP Law Internet and Society Program for putting this together and doing a great job.

For pics, go here.

I hope to see you at the next one.

All Lawyers are in fact Open Source Advocates

Joi Ito points out that all lawyers treat contracts the same way open source advocates would like to treat software.  Next time you see your lawyer, ask him about this.  As for my clients who read this,  you know the answer.  I write my contracts from scratch and I have a copyright to all of them (all registered with the National Library!).

Thanks to Sacha Chua for pointing this out.

UPDATE FROM SACHA:

I received this from Sacha today:

Here’s the source so you can properly credit it (and use other
interesting snippets):
http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20050727214837480 =)
See (11:03)