This has led Atty. Nedo Valera, Ms Bacarra’s knight in shining armor, to issue a “disclaimer letter” (see letter in this issue of the Mail). He said:

“In behalf of the Ilocano Society of America Foundation, Inc. known as ISA, we are submitting a disclaimer on the published article/announcement (April 15, 2007, ”Miss Teenage RP crowned May 27". This article and its contents were not authorized by our organization and have the effect of misleading the Filipino American Community." (For more info on the disclaimer, see the Letters to the Editor section in this issue.

The ISA of Ms Bacarra also published a big ad in this issue of the Manila Mail.

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Somewhere in this issue is also another story involving the knight in shining armor, Atty. Valera. It is about the tax exempt status of the Migrant Heritage Commission of which he is the chairman. Rawlein Soberano, chair of the Asian American Business Roundtable who is believed to be an Ilongo, alleges that MHC has lost or does not have a tax exempt status! (See story, also somewhere in this issue.) Tsismosos’ comment: NO Comment.

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There is also some fissures in the solid coalition of groups supporting the Filipino Veterans Equity Bill now being deliberated in Congress. While the Democrats in the Senate and House are for granting full benefits to some 13,000 surviving veterans in the Philippines and 7,000 in the US, the Republicans are inclined to give a two-tiered benefit, higher benefit for the vets in the US and lower rate for those in the Philippines. That is right down Eric Lachica’s alley, the ACFV (American Coalition of Filipino Veterans). “GOPs are espousing the position of the veterans who are now American citizens,” according to an intrigador Tsismosos.  “The vets in the US have always been asking for pensions similar to those given to American veterans. The  Veterans Administration want to give a much lower rate to veterans in RP because the cost of living there is much cheaper.

These intriguers that a day after the hearing, members of the ACFV demonstrated in front of the White House carrying a banner that stressed “US Filipino veterans!” Watch if ACFV will join in earnest any lobbying or demonstration to fully support to the bill favored by the veterans in the Philippines.

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Soon there will be no more Joy in the Philippine embassy. Consul Joy Quintana,  the cultural officer who has been active initiating many embassy-sponsored presentations and developed an outreach to the community, is leaving Washington D.C. after completing her stint here. She personally called the editor of the Manila Mail recently to invite him to her despedida party. Joy had created waves in the embassy and the community during her stay. But to some, inside and outside the embassy, she was not really a Joy to work with. (At least she was with Tsismoso.)

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Talking about Rawlein Soberano, he is also alerting the community to sudden birth of some groups in Maryland claiming tax exempt status.

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Wow! Tsismoso is becoming more popular among politicians. Some have been asking him for contributionsm! Recently Tsismoso received a letter from “The committee to elect Eddie Rhodes.” Rhodes, who said he favors the repeal of the Age 75 Driving Restriction and reduction of property tax, was asking Tsismoso to join a fundraising party in Maryland. The only trouble is that Rhodes is running for election to the DC City Council!  .

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Tsismoso has received complaints from some Filipino TNTs claiming that some lawyers give them false hopes. Some allege they were assured of approval of their illegal status for a hefty fee.

There are also information that some desperate TNTs get hitched with some old men in order to get a green card. And many are jealous of Miss Irma Martinez, a maid in Michigan, who was awarded by a court almost a million dollars in back wages for allegedly having been held as a virtual slave for many, many years by two Filipino doctors, Dr. Jefferson and Elnora Calimlim. And Ms Martinez, who said she was not the one who squealed said she was still grateful to the Calimlims, She said ot was the former wife who allegedly squealed to the authorities. Hell hath no fury than a woman scorned.

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The editor passed on to me the Comelec release saying it contained the list of candidates for the Senate and the party list in the May 14 elections. The Comelec message  asked interested parties to click “HERE” for list of senatorial and party list bets. But when the editor clicked it, only the pictures of Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos and Commissioner Florentino A. Tuason, Jr., chair of the Committee on Overseas Absentee Voting, appeared. There was no list of candidates.

Incidentally, Abalos made a two-week visit to the US early this month. Why he chose the US where there are only more than 25,000 voters was not explained. Upon his return to Manila, he declared that not all overseas voters will cast their votes.

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Here are some interesting facts culled from Dr. Rawlein Soberano’s AARB business bulletin: “If you lost a family member in the 9/11 attacks, you’re going to receive an average $1,185,000. The range is a minimum guarantee of $250k all the way up to $4 million. If you are a surviving family member of an American soldier killed in action, the first check you get is a $6k direct death benefit, half of which is taxable.

Next, you get $1,750 for burial costs. If you are the surviving spouse, you get $833 a month until you remarry. There’s a payment of $211 per month for each child under 18. When the child hits 18, these payments stop.

Immigrants are emerging as among the first victims of a growing wave of home foreclosures in the Washington area as mortgage lending problems multiply locally and across the country. Many of these loans start with attractive low “teasers” rates but feature payments that suddenly increase.