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"Free" Wi-fi and Open Wireless Hotspots in Makati
2007-12-26 14:35:00
I made a quick check of our new office somewhere in Makati and found several open wi-fi from nearby buildings. Some hotspots offer encryption but maybe unaware of the dangers of minimal security offered by their "secured" wireless Internet.I got connected to an open connection in one conference room without doing anything but didn't proceed since that'd be unethical on my part not even fired up Netstumbler and other wireless security tools.Open wireless hotspots is a common occurrence in Manila (and the Philippines) where people think convenience without an ear for privacy and security. Wardriving will net far too many places for freeloaders.No law is present to deter freeloaders. The E-Commerce law doesn't contain a provision against it while the still pending cybercrime bill is in the doldrums if not plunged into the abyss of oblivion by good-for-nothing "lawmakers."Tags: Philippines, Free Wi-Fi Philippines,
More About: Wireless

Mekeni Food Corporation Modus Operandi/Scam
2007-12-22 14:14:00
A group of people with a vehicle approached my mom in her sari-sari store and introduced themselves as sales agents of Mekeni Food Corporation and offered mom some products from Mekeni plus a cooler in exchange for cash.My mom, being not that easy to fool, didn't bite the offer and instead asked for a number to be called but the number given was never answered. The guys just left sensing they couldn't get anything.A few days later, another group introduced themselves as the "real" representatives of Mekeni Food Corporation but mommy retorted how did they know another group dropped by before them. Again, the people left without selling anything to my always on-guard mom.Last week, I read in a paper a few people arrested for doing just the modus operandi pouncing on poor sari-sari store owners for payment of promised coolers and products of Mekeni but didn't come back after receiving the money.This is a true story that happened at home where unscrupulous people try to scam honest w...
More About: Scam

Nigerian Scam Using Hacked Gmail Account
2007-12-19 16:11:00
I received an email today from a gmail contact of mine who's asking for advanced money for help while in Nigeria. Since I personally knew the supposed owner of the email, I sent a text message informing him of the scam and he replied that his gmail address was really hacked big time.Similar to the old Nigerian 419 Scam , scams like this will ask for advance money to be sent through Money Gram or Western Union that affords them anonynity. The hacker cum scammer sent this email to me as if I'm a sucker for such cheap trick:From: xxx@gmail.comTo: meHow are you doing today? I am sorry i didn't inform you about my traveling to Africa for a program called "Empowering Youth to Fight Racism, HIV/AIDS, Poverty and Lack of Education, the program is taking place in three major countries in Africa which is Ghana , South Africa and Nigeria . It as been a very sad and bad moment for me, the present condition that i found myself is very hard for me to explain.I am really stranded in Nigeria beca...
More About: Gmail , Hacked , Nigerian Scam

Problem of Off-line ATMs in the Philippines
2007-12-18 13:22:00
Ever noticed the long queues at ATMs not only in Metro Manila but the whole Philippines during December besides the horrendous traffic on EDSA and anywhere there's a mall? It seems Filipinos have too much money to burn during Christmas that malls are filled to the brim with shoppers shopping as if there's no tomorrow.The problem is amplified by the seemingly endless list of off-line ATMs of banks. Do you know the cause of the problem? It's just that bank ATMs cash are easily depleted these days that ATMs will display the ATM as off-line due to unavailability of cash while banks are not loading those cassettes filled with cash fast enough due to operational and risk reasons. This problem is worst at off-site ATMs (ATMs unattached to a bank branch) and those in shopping malls.Other causes of off-line ATM are: power failure, ATM failure, communications line failure, ATM host switch failure and other IT problems. In these times, many incidents of debit without dispense wherein an acc...
More About: Problem , Line

The Downside of Low Interest Rates on Banking and Insurance
2007-12-17 15:55:00
Almost everybody's talking about the good side of low interest rates in the Philippines as the time to buy a new house, avail of an auto loan or just borrow money. I don't need to be told of buying my own house since I've been paying for one more than a year already, at the lowest interest rate of zero for three years, that's been draining my bank account every month.A casualty of the falling interest rate is my BPI Platinum account that used to enjoy 7% per annum but now earning very low interest due to small remaining balance and low interest rate. Been thinking of closing it after almost eight years but the weak sentimental side of me is holding on to it.The biggest setback in the interest rate game is the effect on my Insular Life insurance I thought will self-liquidate after nine annual payments but, again, due to low interest rates, my insurance agent informed me i still have to pay the tenth installment, one or more than the original target of nine years.Lesson learned: l...
More About: Insurance , Interest Rates , Banking , Interest , Rates

Nikon D90 or D80s Specifications?
2007-12-12 15:29:00
Been reading a lot of rumors and speculations to the replacement or upgrade to Nikon 's popular D80 camera. Some people think it's a D90, some say D80s or even a D80x.It took 16 months for Nikon to come up with the D70s to replace the D70, and another 16 months to produce the D80 for the D70s. The D80 was released in August 2006, so following the 16 months cycle of Nikon, the replacement D90/D80s/D80x should be announced January 2008.If you hate speculations and rumors like me, I'll just watch this link for the official press release of Nikon International.

BSP/Central Bank Text Scam
2007-12-10 14:11:00
I recently received the following text (shown unedited) from a mobile phone number 0927.482.6153 recently:"Maligayang Bati! Your Simcard # won Php650,000.00 as 2nd Prize winner Pamaskong Pabunos Handog ng Central Bank , Malate Branch last 11.02.2007 to claim ur Prize pls..call me now i'm atty. Roberto B. Mendoza NCR-DTI#.7180sir.200"Note that this is a scam similar to the Nigerian Scam (419) where the "winner" would be asked for advanced money to pay for something in order to claim his prize. After getting the money, the false lawyer of Central Bank will disappear.Note that the Central Bank is no longer extant, it's supplanted now by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in 1993 (that's why you always see year 1993 on the reverse side of Philippine coins). The BSP also does not conduct promos like this, they don't need to (some people are just born suckers particularly for easy money)Philippines
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Pinay Sex Scandal Video Downloads
2007-12-07 14:17:00
Looking for the latest pinoy sex scandal videos and pictures for downloads? I don't think so. I wrote this entry for people to avoid being the latest craze of surging hormone denizens of the Internet much like the calumpit scandal, dumaguete scandal, cebu scandal, la salle scandal and the likes featuring Filipinas or exotic Asians in risque pictures and erotic videos that's choking the Internet.The only thing common with me is that, like scandals, I also travel to many places. You won't find links to them either.How to avoid being the latest pinay sex scandal celebrity:1. Don't allow yourself to be the star of the scandal video by actually not doing it.2. Taking pictures or videos while doing the act puts in the dangerous situation. Remember, if you're the woman, you're always at the bad side of things in this double standard world of Filipinos.3. Doing it inside hotels and motels and other untrusted places is also risky. Arrange the draperies and curtains and turn off the lig...
More About: Video , Downloads , Scandal , Pinay , Canda

Blogger and HaloScan
2007-12-06 14:11:00
Maybe you've also noticed the stupid move by Google/Blogger to limit commenting on Blogger to people with Google/Blogger accounts leaving out other people using another blogging platform.This is a screenshot of the new comment form field with only anonymous or nickname is left without a link back to the commenter.What I did was to install HaloScan for commenting as well as not removing the comments field in my other blog so as not to remove old comments. I need the old comments (as well as it's good for the search engines). My main blog uses a modified classic template so I had to manually edit it plus insert a Google rant.Let me know if you have other solutions for this stupidity.Tags:Blogger and Haloscan, Haloscan

Canon EF-S 18-55 IS: A True Super Kit Lens!
2007-12-04 13:08:00
Just like Canon 's new EF-S 55-250 IS lens, the replacement for the 18-55 kit lens is now the 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 IS (Image Stabilization).I've read good reviews for this lens already that's summarized as "cost-effective" optical quality at a price of less than P10k ($199). It's made of plastic, similar to the super sharp Canon EF 50mm f1.8 lens so I have no problems with that.Getting the 18-55 IS plus the 55-250 IS lens, both economic lenses with Image Stabilization is quite a bargain in a world full of pricey L lenses not intended for hobbyists like me.Canon EF-S 18-55 IS
More About: Super , Lens , True , Anon

Canon EF-S 55-250 f/4-5.6 IS is cheap!
2007-12-02 15:17:00
While at Trinoma in Quezon City, I looked for Infomax at the second floor to ask for the price of the new Canon EF-S 55-250 with Image stabilizer. I just confirmed it to cost only P11,600.00 (about$275), mall price but the unit was not yet available there and will have to wait next year when market price on Hidalgo St in Quiapo might even drop.I only asked but I'm not gonna busy since I've already fixed my mind on buying at least the Nikon D80 with the 18-200 f/3.5-5.6 VR (vibration reduction) next year.I already read canon ef-s 55-250 IS reviews on the Internet and it's always positive for the price. I'm not a Pro so i don't need those pricey lenses.Philippines
More About: Cheap , Anon

Makati Mutiny: Lim, Trillanes Holed Up in Manila Peninsula
2007-11-29 05:28:00
At around 11:30 this morning I received a call from a comrade asking about the situation in Makati particularly Paseo de Roxas, Ayala Avenue and Makati Ave due to reports on ANC about the walk-out of Trillanes during his hearing at the Makati RTC then led a march in Makati Central Business District.Sen. Trillanes, along with Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim and some Magdalo soldiers are currently holed up at Intercontinental Hotel where they reiterate their call for Pres. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to step down.A picture of Ayala Avenue corner Makati avenue is shown below where the once busy intersection is now a virtual parking lot. Makati Shangri-la stands prominently on the right while The Peninsula Manila is on the left of the picture. The large green area is the so called Ayala Triangle.(sorry, i don't have both my cameras with me today, just a crappy camera phone I used here)As of this time, guests of Manila Peninsula were requested to leave. The area is peaceful but tension fills the air....
More About: Mutiny , Nila

Calling 1-800 Number from the Philippines for Free
2007-11-26 13:18:00
Did you ever find yourself frustrated with calling supposedly toll-free number 1-800 or 1-888 from the Philippines to the U.S. and charged the normal cost of an IDD call?I just tried several systems including Yahoo Messenger with Voice and it works. You just need a decent Internet connection e.g. DSL so as not to get a garbled connection.IDD calls here in the Philippines using landlines and mobile phones charge around $0.30/minute (SUN) to $0.40 (Smart/Globe/PLDT). Various call cards using VoIP technology charge much lower rates including those advertising P1/minute calls.Skype charges $0.017/minute while Yahoo messenger charges $0.01/munute calls but require installation of software in your PC plus a relaiable Internet connection. Note: Collect calls from the Philippines to the U.S. is also more expensive than calling from the U.S. to the Philippines directly.Philippines
More About: Free , Calling , Number

Cash Loans from ChinaTrust and BDO Scams?
2007-11-22 15:30:00
O told me she got a text message that goes "Cash loan from Chinatrust and BDO with interest rate of as low as 1.39% per month. We also have carloan financing brand new or second hand unit, car mortgage OR/CR only payoff bank balance with an interest rate of 1%/month. lower interest for brand new. interested...our office (number deleted)"I just told here those loans with small interests are mostly true and not a scam. Flyers are given daily on Ayala Avenue and Buendia in Makati by people advertising them hoping for possible commissions and offered officially by the two mentioned banks.What's only disturbing is that some people resort to using unlimited texting to send out the special offers to random numbers-- now that's called SPAM-- and it's irritating !I commend O for just treating the messages as scams just to be safe since she doesn't need a loan, in fact, she's celebrating her first few days of financial independence after paying off her credit card balance after a few yea...
More About: Loans , Scams

ATM Charges in the Philippines: BancNet, Megalink, Expressnet, Mastercard,
2007-11-16 14:13:00
Updated ATM charges per transaction in the Philippines :Balance Inquiries: On-us/proprietary: Free Interbank (switched by BancNet, Megalink or Expressnet): P1 Cirrus/Maestro: $1 Plus: $1ATM Cash Withdrawal On-us/proprietary: Free Interbank (BancNet, Megalink, Expressnet): P8 to P11 Cirrus/Maestro: $3.5 Plus: $3.0 (these rates apply also to ATM transactions abroad) ENCASH ATM Cash Withdrawal: add P25 or P45 convenience fees on top of normal transaction charge (there is a warning screen for this) Nationlink ATM Cash Withdrawal: add P20 convenience fees on top of normal transaction charge (there is a warning screen for this)Note there is a maximum amount per withdrawal for switched transactions of P10,000.00 via BancNet/ExpressNet or Megalink. For on-us/proprietary transactions, the issuing bank's set amount is applied.Fund Transfers via ATM On-us/Proprietary (if available): Free Interbank: P25 (within BancNet only)Bills Payment via ATM This service is free to all ca...
More About: Mastercard , Aster

Prudential Life Text Scam is at it again!
2007-11-15 14:10:00
Today, O received a text message from 09176167851 that says" FRM: PRUDENTIALIFE INC, Rada Branch- Makati. In line with our '29th Yr Anniversary',w're glad to inform you that you are entitled to receive Privileges from our company.You need to claim this ASAP.For more info please call at 8921731/4741191 look for Ms. Mary Anne Banico Many thanks. 'DISREGARD IF CLAIMED'"Just to warn you, again, of this dubious offer from Prudential Life in Makati, they'll just ask you if you have a credit card and offer you insurance. I blogged about Prudential life Scam before so be forewarned. You'll just waste your time commuting to Makati and braving the horrendous traffic to be tricked by people who don't care as long they can sell something.Ralated Post:Prudential Life: Insurance Selling without ConscienceTags:Prudential Life, Prudential Life Scam, Philippines
More About: Text

Batasan Bombing: Security Lapses
2007-11-13 17:46:00
Last night, flash report on TV broke the news about a bomb explosion at the south wing of House of Representatives, barely a month after the Glorietta 2 blast occurred. Three people were killed including Basilan representative Wahab Akbar.Speaker Jose de Venecia appeared on TV condemning the blast as an act of terrorists or anarchists. (I think it's a targeted assassination plot on a certain personality, but don't quote me on that)I will offer my two cents worth on news like this particularly on the current (in)security practices by people whose job is to protect the lawmakers/congressmen (who, for the record are making much less laws per year yet spending is increasing).First, noticeable is the absence of canine units particularly bomb sniffing dogs.Second, the non-inspection of people entering the premises. I noticed once too often guards, like those deployed in mall entrances, don't really know what they're looking for with their magic sticks wagged at the openings of bags o...
More About: Security , Bombing , Bing

Text2Sawa Unlimited Texting Scam
2007-11-13 15:36:00
I have always been receiving offers about this unlimited texting to all networks in my email address subscribed to various yahoogroups. I contacted the sender once about his offer but offered no explanation on how the system works so i just surmised he's just a guy looking for a quick buckWith Smart, Globe and Sun Cellular offering unlimited texting (SMS) within their networks, it's just highly probable that a technically inclined pinoys with entrepreneural spirit will come up with a bridge or SMS bypass to connect all three unlimited texting services using at least 1 SIM card of the telco.One of them is Text2Sawa, and true to my hunch, the law, however slow, finally caught up with them. The news was even shown on national tv of the entrapment operation. Sadly, only a dealer or distributor was apprehended and not the actual operator and source of the text cards.Globe, Smart and Sun warned the public that the unlimited texting feature is for personal use only and not for purposes l...
More About: Unlimited , Scam

Dulce and Rene Saguisag Accident
2007-11-09 15:01:00
Yesterday morning when I first opened my daily dose of news, I immediately read the current headline about the death of Dulce Saguisag, wife of Atty and former senator Rene Saguisag when a speeding dumptruck rammed their van in Makati City. Dulce Saguisag, a former secretary of DSWD died on impact while Atty. Rene Saguisag remained in critical condition. As expected, pictures, videos and old clips of the former senator was shown on TV. Doctors interviewed even said he's responding to simple commands and has a high chance of recovery from brain damage being an intellectual.I used to admire the former senator when he was a human rights lawyer and fought the the despotic president Marcos. He became a senator after the People Power revolution.My faith and admiration for him were shattered when he became the lawyer who defended the now convicted, later pardoned, former president Erap-- which is a mockery of justice. He's now planning to fight the writ of execution of the forfeiture of ...
More About: Accident

Philippines Renewable Energy Bill
2007-11-06 14:03:00
Renewable energy, defined as energy sourced from inexhaustible or easily replenishable energy sources like sunlight, wind, ocean tides, and geothermal heat or others like biomass and biofuels.In the Philippines , more than half of the power plants run using bunker fuel and coal making the power sector highly vulnerable to the surging prices of oil in the world market.Recent legislation called for the ethanol addition to gasoline where ethanol used can be produced locally using sugarcane, but the move diverts food sources into power needs much like corn production in other countries diverted to ethanol.The Philippines is currently the world's second largest producer of geothermal energy, next only to the United States. That's mainly due to the presence of many volcanoes inside the Pacific ring of fire. The geothermal plant in Tiwi, Albay is one prime example.There are studies that pinpointed several viable locations to harness energy from the wind and the wind farm in Bangui town in...
More About: Energy , Renewable Energy , Renewable , Bill

Glorietta "Bombing": Citizen Journalism or Irresponsible Blogging?
2007-11-02 14:08:00
Last October 19, 2007, I received a call around at 1:30pm asking me where I was and to confirm if there was indeed a bombing of Glorietta 2. At that moment, I noticed my officemates were trying to browse the already slow Inquirer.net website. I tried to browse Philstar.com but information presented was vague so I switched to Inquirer.net's express edition and the initial report was an LPG tank explosion.Within minutes I received pictures of the "blast site" in my email showing gory pictures and lurid details even showing bloodied faces of victims killed that can be identified. Thought of posting the pictures but the better part of me told me to exercise restraint. I didn't blog about this "bombing" incident in the first place due to many reasons: I don't have a first hand account of the incident, I don't use pictures taken by other people unless I have explicit permission, and I don't want to generate blog traffic out of the incident. Besides, the excruciatingly slow investigat...
More About: Journalism , Blogging , Bombing , Citizen

Eye-Fi Wireless Memory Card (SD)
2007-11-01 15:39:00
Got wind of this cool memory card, called Eye-Fi, that automatically transmits your picture to your home wireless network eliminating the need to take out the card out of you camera to transfer the images. All you need to do is turn on the camera when near your home wifi network.Just be careful in setting up your wireless network at home to prevent electronic eavesdropping.Technical specifications of the wireless card.Tags: Wireless +Memory +Card , Eye-Fi,
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Bouncing Checks...Almost!
2007-10-30 14:13:00
I have been paying my condominium unit for more than a year already and I admit, it's really been draining my finances. I got the condo unit, somewhere in Pasig and still under construction, for zero interest payable in three years that's why I have such a high monthly payment. I issued three years of checks to pay for it using my Chinabank current/checking account, my salary account actually.Yesterday, I withdrew P2000 pesos to pay for an unexpected expense with my mommy but this morning when i went to the office, I, again, withdrew P900 but when I looked at the available balance, the amount fell short of my required funds for the check to be deposited tomorrow so I immediately accessed my Chinabank Online to verify and requested my officemate to transfer P820 to my account as I handed him the cash.Just one of the wonders of Internet banking here in the Philippines that there's no transaction fee for intra-bank funds transfer and also I didn't have to pay P1200 service charge t...

Cheap Airline Tickets Fraud
2007-10-26 16:37:00
I've received information for many months now on the proliferation of scams offered in public places where unscrupulous people openly offer cheap flights, domestic or international, to various destinations or discounted air fares.Uninformed people will pay in cash but the miscreants will buy the plane tickets under the buyer's name using stolen credit card credentials online and pocket the cash they receive.Upon check-in at the airport, presentation of the credit card used to purchase the tickets will be required for boarding and so the unknowing victim won't be able to board his flight.Tips to guard against fraudsters and scam artists like these:1. Purchase airline tickets online yourself or through a reputable travel agency.2. Make sure names on the credit card and airline tickets match3. The mode of payment on your e-ticket should always indicate cash if you paid for it in cash. If not, question the ticket issuer.4. As always, my favorite advise to people: If it's too good to...
More About: Fraud , Tickets , Cheap , Airline , Tick

Pardon for Erap is a Mockery of Justice
2007-10-25 14:18:00
I was thinking for few days now of posting my disapproval of the granting of executive clemency for Erap floated around. Today, such pardon was granted to Erap by PGMA and as always I see it as a mockery of justice. We've gone through many years of trial and now he's again a free man? So now I know that any powerful person can commit plunder, not admit guilt even if proven to be guilty and still roam free. Only in the Philippines!News reports tell PGMA did it for national unity. National unity what? Just because of political pressure and the never-ending sword of damocles in the form of an impeachment did PGMA in? Or maybe PGMA is seeing her own future when the law finally catches up with her. This country will never be united since everybody wants to be the one seated in Malacanang. Politicians will always quarrel among themselves and the cycle of impunity will never end.Regarding the Department of Justice , I have a still pending motion for approval and a clarification on a case ...
More About: Pardon , Mock

Format New USB External Hard Drive
2007-10-24 12:09:00
I just acquired a new external hard drive, a cheap 100GB USB for only P3850 (plus the P250 casing) at PC Bodega in New Manila. My officemate also got one but was unable to use it immediately since he doesn't know how to format an external hard disk via USB.I directed my officemate to this link in order for him to format the drive, using Windows XP's Disk Management utility, so that it'll also show on My Computer.Now I have lots of data backup jobs to do, including pictures backed up in various CDs and computers :)Format New USB Hard Drive
More About: Hard Drive , External

Recover Data from Hard Disk Crash or Corrupted Partitions
2007-10-21 16:39:00
Crashed hard drives? Corrupted HDD and other media not detected by your operating system? In case you're led to this page through search engines, I know I don't have to remind you to create backups of all your precious data in your hard drives, compact flash (CF), memory stick (MS), Secure Digital (SD), MMX, USB Flash Disk s (Thumb drives), and other media. Losing precious files, sometimes precious memories not just pictures, is really such a pain in the *** but there're services and solutions out there to recover your data even partially if you have the money for it.A free data recovery software/utility available is PC Inspector that I once used to successfully recover files from a corrupted USB thumbdrive. It can also be used to undelete files.Recovering data from physically damaged hard drives involves qualified engineers and technicians, often involving a clean room and spare similar hard drives to replace damaged parts of the disk including the electronics, heads and motor.Th...
More About: Data , Hard , Hard Disk , Crash

Escalator Ipit Gang in Glorietta
2007-10-19 15:46:00
I received this email about an incident in Glorietta , what those cretins do in buses they now do inside malls with all the security guards presentbe warned, unedited email below~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~```Dear All:I would like to share with you my horrible and scary experience last Friday night at Glorietta. Maybe, by being aware of this incident, you will be more vigilant as you do your leisure shopping.It was one rare moment on a weekday that we, my daughters and I would have the chance to have a leisure evening together. And a rare occasion that I would go around Glorietta as I am used to the South shopping malls.Anyway, we took the escalator leading to the Rustans store (the Bon Apetit entrance). The same escalator to the bus stop at Ayala Avenue . I was about 5 steps away from my daughters and in front of me were 2 people (a gay and a girl) in white.They were about 5 to 6 steps ahead of me. I noticed that these 2 people were walking backwards and to my mind, how could adults play...
More About: Gang

DIY Hardware Keylogger
2007-10-17 08:05:00
Browsing the net is just one of my primary job requirements just to stay updated on many developments in this rapidly changing world. Though this is not new, I got interested in the DIY Hardwar e Keylogger featured here using a microcontroller. I don't have a microcontroller programmer so I won't be able to build this one.I'm also looking for a DIY hardware kelylogger for USB like this one.I want to have one of those devices since I'm always trying to find new ways to defeat keyloggers and other malware.

Quo Vadis, Paete?
2007-10-13 06:22:00
Paete, my beloved hometown sandwiched between the slopes of the Sierra Madre mountain range and the moribund Laguna de Bay, is the home of world-renowned people famous for woodcarvings, ice and vegetable carvings, sweet lanzones and papier mache.This pride of place of mine got a beating when I got hold of Manila Bulletin's September 29, 2007 (Saturday) issue that contained the Commission on Audit's annual report of Regions 3 and 4 was published.Look at what I've found:In a nutshell, Paete ranked 27th out of 27 towns in Laguna and the 198th of the 200 towns in Region 4 in terms of income, or in this case, the lack thereof, owing to a net loss recorded in 2006, The accountant's report trumpeted by the ruling party during the recent elections showed a rosy picture of Paete's financial statement but didn't tally with the audited report's negative income statement. Did Paete become too reliant on IRA and dole-outs for funding? Did the town spend more than what it can earn that led...
More About: Quo Vadis