Mr. Bill Lippman

September 12, 2005
Los Angeles, California
9:30 p.m.

Thank you, Mr. William “Bill” Lippman. Thank you for the hospitality.

Bill brought me to his house in Beverly Hills and showed me his antique collection. Many date back to the 16th and 17th century. The house is a museum. Even his bedroom is a museum.

We had wine and we later went out for dinner at Il Moro, an upper class restaurant in the area, where we had a bottle of wine. I had shrimp in tomato sauce and sea bass for dinner and tiramisu and brewed coffee.

We shared a lot of stories. He said a nephew wrote a book on the floods in New Orleans in 1995 and won a book award. Another book is on influenza.

He can’t just believe that journalists are being killed in the Philippines. He said he knows that our government is corrupt although he admired Cory Aquino.

Bill’s wife, Valerie, has Alzheimer. She has five caregivers. Four of them are Filipinos.

Filipinos are a special people. They just care, Bill said.

Bill is former managing director of Muni Bonds for Smith-Barney before going into his own. He has businesses in Arizona and other states in the country. He has two children.

Bill is a loveable American. Tears rolled down his cheeks when I told him how Filipinos appreciate the education that his country introduced in the Philippines. He became emotional when I thanked him about all the good the Americans gave to the Philippines and how we really need to assert our sovereignty.

He complained about his bad knee and I talked to him how hard it is to survive in the Philippines, especially in Manila, running after the jeepney. He was amazed when I told him the .45 caliber pistol was invented to ward off Moro bandits in Mindanao. He asked how the Philippines fared after the withdrawal of the American bases. He was surprised when I told him it was “business as usual.”

Thank you, Bill. Thanks for showing me the American Indian masks and sculpture, the desks, drawers, tables and weather vane. Thanks for showing me the American way of life.

Good luck to Valerie and my prayers are with you.