Pinoy creates new martial arts system in Ireland

A Filipino martial arts expert has created his own fighting style in Ireland.

Grand Master Modesto Llanera established the Llanera Fighting System after mastering other forms of martial arts.

"Nung dumating ako sa point na umabot ako sa 7th degree sa Shorin Ryu, umabot na din ako sa 7th degree sa Arnis or Eskrima, at yung napag-aralan ko na ibang style, parang nakita ko na merong kulang. So na-create ko muna yung Eskrima, o Llanera eskrima and combat martial arts," Llanera said.

Llanera’s interest in martial arts started when he was young.

Chinese action superstar Bruce Lee played an instrumental role in his being encouraged to further master his craft.

"Nagsimula ako actually noong 7 years old palang ako. Ang unang napag-aralan ko is actually boxing, kasi ang father ko, amateur boxer yan eh. Pero nung panahong yun medyo kasikatan ni Bruce Lee kaya sinabi ko sa father ko baka pwede niyang bigyan ako ng instructor sa ginagawa ni Bruce Lee. So dinalhan niya ako ng dalawang instructors, one is an Aikido instructor, pangalawa yung Karate instructor," Llanera said.

He also said although the Irish are much heftier and taller than Filipinos, the Llanera Fighting System works against them.

"Ang aking mga estudyante nakita nila iyong superioriority in terms of speed, at saka yung power ng, lalo na at meron kang weapon or stick. so meron tayong extension ng kamay which is advantage 'yan kung kamay lang o open hand ka lang or kicking lang," Llanera said.

All proof that no matter in what arena, the Filipino ends up supreme. With reports from ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau, Roderick Garcia, Dublin, Ireland

Former Mideast OFWs find good fortune in UK

Overseas Filipino workers are not only looked up to in the Middle East where most OFWs are deployed, but also in the United Kingdom where Britons are appreciative of Filipinos’ abilities, ABS-CBN Middle East News Bureau reported.

Joey Marine, a Pinoy waiter in North Somerset, United Kingdom, told ABS-CBN Balitang Europe that he transferred to the UK after several years of hard labor in the Middle East. He is making full use of all the knowledge and experience he gathered working in Bahrain.

Marine worked in Cyprus, Bahrain for almost 14 years. But he said it was in the UK where he found good fortune.

"Buhay Pinoy dito ay maganda, masaya, at lalong lalo na sa sahod. Kung ikukumpara sa ibang bansa, mas maganda dito," Marine, who is head chef at Yoji Restaurant in North Somerset, said.

JR Francisco, another Pinoy who is working as a Chef-de-Party also at the Yoji Restaurant, said he actually had a good job in Manila as a cook at the Century Park Sheraton.

Now, he said, even though he is far from his family, "OK lang naman (buhay namin dito) masaya kasi, puro Pinoy kami."

In the morning, his duties include setting up the hotel’s sushi bar, after which he has to wait on tables. "Work lang kami ng work dito."

George Georgiou, managing director of Yoji Restaurant and Pavillion, is impressed with his Filipino workers’ customer management and creativity.

"They are very good at what they do, they are impeccable with what they can do with their hands," Georgiou said.

And he does not only admire their work ethic, and their manners are also admirable.

"They work very well. They are fantastic. They are dedicated to their work. They are just very, very good employees," he added.

In his restaurant, the Filipino employees are happy and satisfied.

After work, they get together for a few laughs over Filipino food. And because of the beautiful scenery England is known for, they also sightsee a lot, and this eases the loneliness they all feel.

At the Yoji Restaurant and Pavillion, Filipinos practically in charge of running the place, and this is proof that the Filipino worker is much admired in England and in other parts of the world. -- With reports from Charles Tabbu, Middle East News Bureau, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Merger of Geological Survey, NOAA pushed

Article posted July 04, 2008 - 02:43 AM

WASHINGTON - From climate change to volcanoes and earthquakes, the world's growing problems have leaders in earth science proposing a merger of U.S. government agencies that study the planet.

Creation of a new Earth Systems Science Agency, as urged in this week's edition of the journal Science, would be done by merging the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Included in the group making the proposal are former heads of both agencies as well as others who have held science policy positions in the U.S. government.

"The United States faces unprecedented environmental and economic challenges in the decades ahead. Foremost among them will be climate change, sea-level rise, altered weather patterns, declines in fresh water availability and quality and loss of biodiversity," the group warned.

D. James Baker, NOAA administrator from 1993 to 2001, said the group felt the divided responsibilities among agencies made it harder to get things done.

"We felt that laying this (idea) on the table would have a lot of positive aspects," said Baker, who now works on deforestation concerns with the Clinton Foundation.

With a $4 billion (€2.5 billion) budget and 12,000 employees, NOAA, a part of the Commerce Department, studies the atmosphere and oceans. USGS, part of the Interior Department, with a $1 billion (€630 million) budget and 8,500 workers, focuses on fresh water and the Earth, including such threats as volcanoes and earthquakes, and has a biological arm.

The group proposing the new agency had long been concerned that science programs that are part of regulatory or management agencies tend to be downplayed at budget time, said Charles Groat, a former director of the Geological Survey and now interim dean of geosciences at the University of Texas.

"Given the challenges the country faces in the environment and energy," he said, the two agencies could make a significant contribution to science.

And the combined agency would provide a strong group on behalf of science, he said, working in collaboration with the National Science Foundation, NASA, the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy and National Institutes of Health.

Creation of the new agency also would revive the name ESSA. Before 1970, NOAA was known as the Environmental Science Services Administration.

In addition to Groat and Baker, signing the proposal were Mark Schaefer, former acting director of the Geological Survey; former White House science adviser John H. Gibbons; Donald Kennedy, Food and Drug Administration commissioner from 1977 to 1979; Charles F. Kennel, former associate administrator of NASA and director of its Mission to Planet Earth; and David Rajeski, who formerly served in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Council on Environmental Quality. - AP