21. Senator Richard "Dick" Gordon gets ninth ray approved in Congress.

Early this year, the Senator pushed for the addition of the ninth ray of the sun in our Philippine flag stating that our Muslim countrymen need to be recognized as citizens who fought against the colonizers long before the revolt. He hopes that this will foster ties between Muslims with the rest of the country.

22. The Obama-Arroyo meeting "brings pride for the entire nation," proclaims Malacañang, but it's "a mistake," says the Washington Times.

Malacañang proudly claimed that Pres. Arroyo was invited by US Pres. Obama to the Oval Office for a meeting–a meeting that, sources have claimed, was the fruit of "intense lobbying" by the Palace since Obama became President. The 45-minute meeting was called "a mistake" in an editorial published by the Washington Times, which also said that the meeting would be used to validate Arroyo's deteriorating presidency.

23. The Philippines is named most dangerous place for journalists in the world

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) named the Philippines the most dangerous country in the world for journalists, second only to Iraq, following the November 23 massacre in Maguindanao which resulted in a death toll of at least 52 people, journalists included. According to IFJ General Secretary Aidan White, "This is an event which shocks journalists around the world to the core."

24. Marc Jacobs publicist Tim Garcia goes under house arrest in style.
Dressed in "head-to-toe designer" including Alexander McQueen jeans and YSL boots, Tim Garcia, the son of former general Carlos Garcia, opened up about his dilemmas to Peter Davis of The Daily Beast. While the elder Garcia is in custody at the PNP Detention Center for a P303-million plunder case, his son, who is an American citizen, is under house arrest in a Park Avenue apartment and described his 95-day stay in jail (before posting $1 million bail) as "life altering," adding, "I was in an orange jumpsuit and then after a month, they change it to khaki. I will never wear a jumpsuit in my life. The thought of that jumpsuit just makes me cringe."

25. The Bureau of Customs imposes book taxes.

Based on a new interpretation by a certain Customs examiner named Rene Agulan, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) began to impose taxes on imported books deemed "not educational."Dubbed as "The Great Book Blockade of 2009" by Robin Henley, Nonfiction Writing Program Director of the University of Iowa, the imposition of taxes was halted after Pres. Arroyo reversed the BOC ruling one month later.