Obama and Other Mind Bogglers

Image by jmtimages via FlickrNo I have not have made myself scarce in my blog to escape being tagged to promote prayer for the Philippines. :) I must admit online games had caught up with me the last few days. For a few days, I was Nortrom the Silencer, caught up in a death grip with minions of the dark forces that comprise the scourge camp.

I survived the onslaught.

The last time I wrote a post here was when George Bush was still president. Now it's Barack Obama's time. Well, good luck, sir.

Of course, I would much prefer Sidney Poitier to be the President of the United States of America. Or Morgan Freeman. Maybe Denzel Washington. But such is life - with its surprise twists and turns.

I was at the mayor's office of this small town, renewing business permits for a small computer store we have. The town mayor was bantering with a retired female school teacher. Both are in their 60's. The mayor told the teacher, "If you deigned to keep me then as your boyfriend, you're now the first lady of this town."

The female teacher broke in laughter. "You're always drunk then. How could I even consider you seriously no?"

The mayor's eyes lit up in amusement. "Yeah, I was always drunk. Even landed in jail for rowdy behavior a couple of times. Hahaha."

This former good-for-nothing bloke has now become an exemplary mayor. The missing puzzle - how he got his act together - remains a mystery to the casual observer. And thus the surprising twist in the story.

I hope life dishes us all more happy surprises. For the world - a kinder and gentler American government through Barack Obama. For the Philippines, a prayerful nation may serve her in good stead perhaps. We can only hope so. And for me, not to be sucked in the world of make-believe again. Fingers crossed and hope to die. :)

Warcraft Is the Leading Cause of College Dropouts?

Image via WikipediaA Federal Communications commissioner pointed out that video game addiction is the "leading cause" of college dropouts. Interestingly, the FCC commissioner singled out World of Warcraft (WoW) at the same breath.

The story has gained traction as it got cited in Boing Boing and Gamepolitics.com. What is odd though is that the reference to the leading cause of college dropouts, with the blame attributed to WOW, is a part of a laundry list of issues with regard to privacy, pornography, cyberbullying, and hodge podge of other concerns. The research was not conducted by the Federal Communications Commission itself, but was cited only as anecdotal device in Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate's speech.

Which does not detract from the interesting point the commissioner has made:

With the explosion of educational resources available online, one might think parents would be 100% pleased with the internet’s role in their children’s lives. But surveys show just the opposite: a late 2006 survey that showed 59% of parents think the internet has been a totally positive influence in their children’s lives-- down from 67% in 2004.

You might find it alarming that one of the top reasons for college drop-outs in the U.S. is online gaming addiction - such as World of Warcraft - which is played by 11 million individuals worldwide.

However threadbare the claim was I find a bit of truth in the statement. I have several friends who recently dropped out of college on account of DOTA. Well, you don't have to own up people, but you know who you are. Hahaha. What was that you glibly said to me and to whoever cares to listen? "Ang pag-aaral ay sagabal sa DOTA." (Rough translation: Studying sucks as it interferes with DOTA)

When your girlfriend sends you a text message or calls in the middle of a frenetic defense of your Sentinel base, you stall until you fend off the attacking scourge minions, then you grudgingly attend to the insistent call or text, with this remark - "Ang mga babae talaga sagabal sa DOTA." (Translation: I wouldn't dare say women/girl friends of WoW players suck. No, no, I would not go there. Just take this to mean, your precious superman would appreciate it very much if you buzz off and give him a moment with his thing. Let's say for another 12 hours? hahaha)

As for me, I had cured my DOTA addiction. For me it is a piece of cake. I don't want to be called names, flamed and cursed at in this world of make-believe. It's that simple.

Besides I find another addiction - blogging.

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