On Winning The UK Lotto And Other Nonsense

I received and email today from johncarrick@charter.net informing me that I had just won 1 Million (89M in Philippine Pesos) in the UK Lotto. Here's the letter:

Dear Lucky Winner,


We are pleased to inform you of the result of the just concluded annual final draws of UNITED KINGDOM NATIONAL PROGRAM. After this automated computer ballot, your e-mail address emerged as one of five winners in the category \\"A\\" You are therefore been approve to claim the total sum of 1,000,000 (One Million Pounds Sterling) with the information below:

REF No: UK/9420X2/68/osy TICKET No: 56475600545188


Contact the processing Consultant:

Contact Person: Owen Brown

Email: ukl_2@tlen.pl



PAYMENT PROCESSING FORM.

(1)FULL NAME

(2)FULL ADDRESS.....(3)COUNTRY

(4)AGE...............(5)OCCUPATION

(6)TELEPHONE NUMBER......(7)SEX



Yours Sincerely

Cindy Moore

After my laughter died down, I Google searched "UK Lottery Scam" and sure enough, there they were! You can read about it at the UK National Lottery site here. These scams are so rampant that even vendors in the fledgling eBay Philippines are warned. Discussion boards are filled with Nigerian or 419 scams. The BBC News wrote a feature about those who fight back and are scamming the scammers. Philippine forums like PinoyExchange have a lot to say about this topic.

What's with Gmail anyway? I never used to get scam mail before. They used to go straight into my Spam Box. Now they're coming one on top of the other into my Inbox. Here's another business proposal from rosekone_07@yahoo.com.hk:

Dearest ,


Permit me to inform you of my desire of going into business relationship with you. I got your contact from the internet search where searching for a responsible and humble person who will assist me on this, prayed over it and selected your name among other names due I was dicrected by God to do so, I must not hesitate to confide in you for this simple and sincere business .



I am Rose Kone the only duaghter of late Mr. and Mrs. George Kone My father was a very wealthy cocoa merchant in Abidjan , the economic capital of Ivory coast, my father was poisoned to dearth by his business associates on one of their outings on a business trip . My mother died when I was a baby and since then my father took me so special. Before the death of my father on January 2004 in a private hospital here in Abidjan he secretly called me on his bed side and told me that he has the sum of of ten million,five hundred thousand United State Dollars. USD (US$10.5 million) left in fixed / suspense account in one of the prime bank here in Abidjan, that he used my name as his only duaghter for the next of Kin in depositing of the fund. He also explained to me that it was because of this wealth that he was poisoned by his business associates.



That I should seek for a foreign partner in a country of my choice where I will transfer this money and use it for investment purpose such as real estate management or hotel management . Sir, I am honourably seeking your assistance in the following ways:


(1) To provide a bank account into which this money would be transferred to .(2) To serve as a guardian of this fund since I am only 22years.

(3) To make arrangement for me to come over to your country to further my education and to secure a resident permit in your country.



Moreover, I am willing to offer you 15% of the total sum as compensation for your effort/ input after the successful transfer of this fund into your nominated account overseas. Furthermore, you indicate your options towards assisting me as I believe that this transaction would be concluded within fourteen (14) days you signify interest to assist me. Anticipating to hear from you soon.


Thanks and God bless.


Best regards,

Rose Kone.

If I used any other nick, I would probably reply just for kicks. But I don't want these scammers to think that Filipinos are gullible. So, there you are. Fair warning. Don't let me say, "I told you so!"

On The Barong Tagalog

Source: farm1.static.flickr.com

I feel so bitin that I wasn't able to make a commentary/summation at the end of my last post. But as my brain won't cooperate, I'll post an email from my cousin "Zoyx the Great" instead. Although it touches on Filipino dress, it has a message that can be applied in these contemporary times. However, I don't know what the message is yet:) Go figure:

During the Spanish occupation of the Philippines (over 300 years from 1561-1889) the barong tagalog was required by the Spanish government for Filipinos (Indios) to be worn at most times to show the difference between the rich and the poor. The poor who serve the rich must always be in uniform.

Source: www.filipinoheritage.com

Take their chauffeurs, maids, and employees as examples. They are in uniform to immediately distinguish them from the employers. When the Spaniards colonized the Filipinos, they had to make it abundantly clear who the boss was through the imposition of a dress code. Men were not allowed to tuck their shirttails in. That was the mark of his inferior status.

Second, the cloth material should be transparent so that he could not conceal any weapon that could be used against the masters. Third, as a precaution on thievery, pockets are not allowed on the shirt.

By the turn of the century a new middle class began to emerge among the Filipinos. These were known as the principalia. They have mastered Spanish laws and were able to obtain title to lands. They became successful in business and agriculture and sent their sons to be educated abroad. They were privileged to build their houses in the poblacion around the plaza near the seats of power.

Only a member of the principalia could be addressed by the title DON, and only they were allowed to vote. They had all the trappings of power and status, but for one undeniable fact: they still had to wear their shirttails out, if only to remind them that they were still Indios.

What the Spanish authorities did not smother out was the Filipino's will power and determination to psychologically conquer their colonial masters, through improvisation and reinterpretation. The Filipino's stylistic bongga (flashy dresser) was a reaction against the overt discrimination and insensitive oppression of the Spaniards.

For example, Filipinos were forbidden to use imported silk and fabrics for their Barong, so they ingeniously used pineapple leaves to weave the piña and jusi cloth of the barong, turning the outfit into such delicate material, of luminous silky rich mixture much finer than silk. And to add insult to injury, they hand-embroidered the front with such exquisite abandon: Calado and hand-work all over. Palgrave, the ethnographer noted, "The Capitan's shirt was the native barong, of fine and delicate fiber, embroidered and frilled; it was light and cool and not tucked in the trousers". (Corpuz, 74)

The Barong Tagalog gained its power, prestige, and status when President Quezon, the first Filipino president, declared it the National dress. The status of the lowly inferior Barong thus became another symbol of Filipinos' resistance to colonization.

Source: www.mybarong2.com

After World War II, Philippine presidents began wearing the Barong Tagalog at their installation into office and on every formal state occasion. In contemporary times, the Barong Tagalog is the power dress.

As an abogado de campanilla, you cannot afford not to wear the Barong Tagalog when arguing a case in Philippine courts.

Source: pmindia.nic.in

Today, every visitor and foreign dignitary invited to a Malacañang Palace state function must, by necessity, and dictated by protocol, be dressed to the nines in a Barong Tagalog. The invitations specifically say come in "Barong" instead of the traditional "Coat and Tie". Thus, every one invited to dinner at the Presidential Palace and in many Filipino homes will unknowingly and unwittingly have to experience directly, what it feels to have to wear his shirttails out, to suffer the indignity of having the material of his barong transparent so that he can not conceal any weapon; and horrors, to be accused directly of incipient thievery by having no pockets in his barong to put the silver.

So, when El Señor Spanish Ambassador is invited to a state dinner, you can say, "Ah, what sweet revenge!" It makes you a little bit more proud of your self and your heritage while wearing it.

Blogger's Note: Source of the article above is unknown. I have used minimum, mainly typographic editing.