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THE OPPENHEIMER REPORT
POVERTY IN U.S. MIGHT GET WORSE
The Miami Herald
Aug. 30, 2007
If you were shocked by this week's U.S. Census figures showing that there are more than 36.5 million people living in poverty in the United States, get ready: It may get much worse in coming years!
Before I tell you why I fear that the gap between America's rich and poor is going to widen even more -- courtesy of a majority of Republicans and some Democrats in the Senate who voted against an immigration reform bill what would have given a merit-based path to citizenship to many of the estimated 12 million undocumented U.S. residents -- let's take a look at the alarming figures released Wednesday.
• The percentage of U.S. residents living below the poverty line dropped slightly last year. But the Center for American Progress, a group that defines itself as ''progressive,'' points out that in absolute numbers the 36.5 million U.S. poor are nearly 5 million more than five years ago.
8 KILLED WHEN TRAINS COLLIDE NEAR RIO
The Miami Herald
Aug. 31, 2007
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil --
A speeding train carrying hundreds of commuters slammed into an empty train near Rio de Janeiro on Thursday, killing eight people and injuring more than 80, officials said.
The commuter train was traveling at nearly 60 mph when it slammed into the rear end of an empty six-car train maneuvering slowly from one track to another, the Supervia company that runs the train said.
Some passengers aboard the commuter train had to be freed by rescue workers using blowtorches to cut through the twisted wreckage.
The collision, about 200 yards from a station on Rio's poor north side, killed eight people, said Pedro Machado, commander-general of the Rio de Janeiro Fire Department.
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RECALLS TOOTHPASTE
The Miami Herald
Aug. 31, 2007
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic --
Dominican authorities have seized 100,000 tubes of Chinese-made toothpaste they fear may contain a potentially deadly chemical that has been linked to dozens of deaths in Latin America, a Health Ministry official said Friday.
The toothpaste, mostly small tubes distributed to hotels in Santo Domingo's eastern district, was seized this week after the health ministry was warned about the product by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Health Ministry official Luis Emilio Felix Roa said.
Most of the seized toothpaste, which may contain diethylene glycol, known as DEG, came in red or green tubes with brand names written in Chinese characters, Felix Roa said. Health officials did not know Friday if the toothpaste arrived directly from China.
EFFORTS TO RECOVER SLAIN LAWMAKERS BEGIN
The Miami Herald
Sep. 01, 2007
CALI, Colombia --
The International Committee of the Red Cross said Saturday a mission is under way to recover the bodies of 11 former regional lawmakers killed this summer while held captive by Colombia's largest rebel group.
The Red Cross did not divulge details such as where the mission would go or how long it would take, but said in a statement that former Presidential Candidate Alvaro Leyva will accompany its team to retrieve the remains.
The legislators were kidnapped five years ago from the Valle de Cauca provincial parliament by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. The rebels say they died June 18 in the crossfire when an unidentified group attacked the camp where they were being held, while the government accuses the guerrillas of executing the hostages.
The Red Cross said it "received information from the FARC about the location of the cadavers of the former lawmakers" and that all "the parties concerned" have guaranteed the safety of its recovery team.
MEXICAN PRESIDENT DELIVERS TEXT BUT NO ADDRESS
The Washington Post
September 2, 2007
MEXICO CITY, Sept. 1 -- For weeks, one question dominated political talk in Mexico: Would he or wouldn't he?
The nation's most powerful lawmakers and its most influential commentators exchanged predictions about whether Felipe Calderon, president of Mexico for nine months, would deliver his state-of-the-union address inside the ornate chamber of Mexico's Congress. In a matter of a few minutes Saturday night, Calderon ended the speculation and simultaneously set off a debate about whether Mexico should end the tradition of its presidents delivering state-of-the-union addresses to Congress.
Shortly after 7:30 p.m., with a national television audience watching, Calderon walked firmly into the legislative chamber and handed over the text of his speech in a bright red box, but did not utter one word of it. Wearing the bright green, red and white presidential sash, Calderon took a microphone in hand, asked the vice president of Mexico's lower house of Congress to pass the speech along to lawmakers and left.
THE OPPENHEIMER REPORT
MEXICO'S FINANCIAL REWARDS FOR STUDENTS MAY HAVE MERIT
The Miami Herald
Sep. 02, 2007
If you asked me what was the most significant news from Latin America last week, I would pick a little-noticed announcement by Mexico City's leftist government that it will give out millions of dollars in financial incentives to the elementary school students with the best grades.
The Mexico City government announced that it will give about $300 a year in cash and savings' account deposits to about 100,000 public school students aged 4-12 whose grade averages are above nine on a scale from one to 10.
The funds will be aimed at getting these high performing students to attend after-school classes so that they can further develop their respective special talents, whether they are in math, science or sports, Mexico City Education Secretary Axel Didriksson told me in a telephone interview.
CHAVEZ SAYS HE COULD GOVERN UNTIL 2027
The Miami Herald
Sep. 02, 2007
CARACAS, Venezuela --
President Hugo Chavez said Sunday he could continue governing until 2027 if voters do away with re-election limits because he needs more time in office to establish a socialist economic model in Venezuela.
He has previously said he could stay on as president until 2021 if his proposed constitutional reforms - which among other changes would eliminate presidential term limits, letting him run as many more times as he wants - are approved.
Government opponents have attacked the reforms, accusing Chavez of seeking to stay in power for decades like his close friend Fidel Castro of Cuba. Chavez denies the charges and says a new constitution is necessary to move Venezuela toward socialism and help the country's poor.
COLOMBIAN ARMY REPORTS 10 TROOPS KILLED
The Miami Herald
Sep. 02, 2007
BOGOTA, Colombia --
Ten soldiers were killed in a clash with leftist rebels in western Colombia, the army reported. Five more were missing.
Army chief Gen. Mario Montoya said the fighting between troops and guerrillas belonging to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, started before dawn Sunday on a mountain pass 11,480 feet above sea level, near the town of Pijao.
Helicopters and reinforcements were sent in but there had been no combat since midday, Montoya said. He did not give details about the five missing soldiers, and there were no reports of rebels killed.
The army said in a statement that the FARC is concentrating in the strategic Andean corridor to attack civilian populations in the western states of Tolima and Quindio.
The FARC has been trying to overthrow Colombia's government for almost a half-century and currently has an estimated 15,000 combatants.
KIRCHNER ALLY LOSES GUBERNATORIAL RACE
The Miami Herald
Sep. 02, 2007
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina --
A socialist beat a candidate allied with Argentine President Nestor Kirchner for the governorship of a key province late Sunday, in a test of the strength of Kirchner's ruling coalition ahead of next month's presidential vote.
Supporters cheered and tossed confetti as official returns showed Hermes Binner winning the Santa Fe race with 46.2 percent of the ballot and 77 percent of the vote tallied. His rival - Kirchner's former foreign minister, Rafael Bielsa - had just 41 percent.
Bielsa declared the trend "irreversible" on television Sunday night, conceding defeat in a province dominated by Kirchner's Peronist party for the past 28 years. Binner also becomes the first socialist governor in Argentina.
IN CUBA, A POLITICALLY INCORRECT LOVE OF THE FRIGIDAIRE
The New York Times
September 2, 2007
Cold War Relic A 1950s-era American refrigerator dominates one woman’s Havana apartment.
Two artists, Alejandro Leyva, left, and Esteban Leyva, with their “General Eléctrico,” found a new use for an old appliance.
ANYONE who thinks the cold war ended years ago clearly has not spent time in Cuban kitchens.
Before he disappeared from public life, an ailing Fidel Castro enlisted the prowess of Chinese industry last year to get rid of some of the most resilient totems of American imperialism: Frigidaire, Kelvinator and Westinghouse refrigerators from the 1950s. The government acquired more than 300,000 new Chinese replacements as the centerpiece of a project to improve energy efficiency in a cash-starved country and eliminate what Mr. Castro called “dragons which devour our electricity.”
PANAMA CANAL BEGINS HISTORIC EXPANSION
The Miami Herald
Sep. 03, 2007
PANAMA CITY, Panama --
Panama blasted away part of a hillside next to the canal on Monday, marking the start of the waterway's biggest expansion since it opened 93 years ago.
In the presence of former President Carter, who signed the 1977 treaty that gave Panama control of the waterway, Panamanian President Martin Torrijos celebrated the start of construction on two wider sets of locks being added to both sides of the canal.
"We are witnesses to an exceptional and unique act," Torrijos said moments after the explosion sent up a curtain of smoke and water.
NICARAGUA'S SOVIET-ERA MISSILES LOCKED IN LIMBO
The Washington Post
September 3, 2007
MANAGUA, Nicaragua -- At a secret location somewhere in Nicaragua, shoulder-fired missiles capable of taking down a jetliner lie behind heavy fencing and locked double doors.
The missiles are dangerous artifacts of another era, a time before the end of the Cold War, when the Soviet Union fed arms to Marxist Sandinistas then in power, and the United States surreptitiously countered by organizing and arming an anti-Sandinista force known as the contras. The bloody conflict between the Sandinistas and contras during the 1980s is long gone, but the Soviet weapons remain, locked in a kind of limbo between Nicaragua and the United States, which fears the missiles could fall into the hands of terrorists.
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, a former Sandinista rebel, has proposed exchanging the missiles for medical supplies, an offer that a U.S. State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, called "unprecedented." Paul A. Trivelli, the U.S. ambassador to Nicaragua, immediately pronounced the offer "very good."
JAMAICA'S OPPOSITION PARTY APPEARS TO WIN
The Miami Herald
Sep. 03, 2007
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica --
Nearly two-decades of one-party rule in this Caribbean nation appeared to have come to an end Monday after voters opted to change course and put opposition leader Bruce Golding and his Jamaica Labor Party in power.
The 31-29 preliminary results gives the JLP a slim majority in the 60-seat parliament, but Jamaicans will have to wait until a final count and possible court challenges before they can say who is the country's new ruler.
"We are conceding no victory to the Jamaica Labor Party until the final count,'' said People's National Party president and current Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller.
Simpson-Miller raised the possibility of challenging some JLP members on the basis they hold U.S. citizenship.
DOMINICA OPPOSITION LEADER SEEKS INQUIRY
The Miami Herald
Sep. 03, 2007
ROSEAU, Dominica --
A Dominica opposition leader called Monday for Parliament to authorize an investigation into real estate owned by Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit.
Dominica Freedom Party chief Michael Astaphan said a public inquiry is needed to probe recent allegations that Skerrit paid up to five times less than the assessed value of two parcels of land in 2005.
''There is too much public debate,'' Astaphan said. ``An inquiry will set things straight.''
In his weekly radio address on Sunday, Skerrit denied the accusations and accused rivals of scheming to damage his reputation. He asked his attorneys to seek an apology from the local newspaper, The Times, which he claims published an ''injurious'' article about the land deals.
Skerrit's spokesman, Anthony Astaphan -- the opposition leader's cousin -- said one of the properties was ''given as a gift'' to the prime minister by the previous owner. He did not disclose further details.
JAMAICAN POLITICIANS TURN TO INTERNET TO STIR UP VOTING
The Miami Herald
Sep. 03, 2007
KINGSTON, Jamaica --
The video clip catches Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller in a ''Howard Dean moment'' -- shrieking, shaking her head, frantically beating her chest and finally shouting, ``Don't draw mi tongue!''
A loose translation of her warning in Jamaican patois to the opposition Jamaica Labor Party: ``Don't provoke me into getting really personal.''
The video is just one of the ways that Jamaican politicians are using the Internet for the first time in the run-up to general elections today.
Candidates on both sides also have posted their profiles on MySpace, Facebook and the hi5 social-networking sites.
But the five-year-old clip of Simpson-Miller, posted on YouTube.com earlier this month by the JLP, has quickly become one of the most-watched videos on the site.
STATE OF MEXICO ADDRESSED, BY INVITATION ONLY
The Washington Post
September 3, 2007
MEXICO CITY, Sept. 2 -- President Felipe Calderón, blocked from delivering the traditional state-of-the-nation address to Congress, called Sunday for changing the format of an annual rite that has become a chaotic embarrassment for Mexico.
Calderón is the second consecutive president to be barred by hostile legislators from delivering the speech, though he was able to broker a compromise that averted the fistfights that stopped his predecessor, Vicente Fox, from addressing Congress last year. In an eleventh-hour deal, Calder?n agreed to hand in a text of the speech Saturday, then address the nation Sunday at Mexico's ceremonial National Palace.
At the invitation-only event Sunday, Calderón vowed to press the United States to enact immigration reforms, push for Mexico to play a larger leadership role in Latin America and improve living conditions for the 40 percent of Mexicans who live in poverty. Ending economic inequality, he said, "is the most important challenge of our generation."
JAMAICA PRIME MINISTER WON'T CONCEDE
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
KINGSTON, Jamaica --
Jamaica's first female prime minister refused to accept a razor-thin defeat that apparently ended her party's nearly 20 years in power.
The opposition Jamaica Labor Party won 31 of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives Monday -- just enough to oust Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and her People's National Party -- according to preliminary returns.
Simpson Miller said several races that were so close that they could switch in a recount and complained of irregularities.
''We are conceding no victory to the Jamaica Labor Party,'' she said.
But the head of an international observer team called the election ``free, fair and credible.''
Albert Ramdin, assistant secretary-general for the Organization of American States, said Tuesday that while there were a few minor problems in Monday's vote typical of any election, nothing was serious enough to undermine the Labor Party victory.
''I believe this election can stand international scrutiny,'' Ramdin, who headed a team of about 40 observers, told The Associated Press.
The final count began Tuesday morning and typically takes about two days as election officers in each of the 60 precincts go through the ballots, according to Jamaica's Electoral Commission.
JAMAICA OUSTS FEMALE PM: EARLY RESULTS
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
KINGSTON, Jamaica --
Jamaica's main opposition won a narrow election victory Monday, according to preliminary results, but the country's first female prime minister said the race was too close to call and the ruling party would not concede defeat.
The opposition Jamaica Labor Party won 31 of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives, enough to oust Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and end her party's nearly 20-year hold on power in the Caribbean country.
Director of Elections Danville Walker said it would take about two days to complete the final count.
"We don't usually have too many things change during the final count, but we must remember that this is a preliminary count," Walker said on Television Jamaica.
CUBA
DON'T EXPECT MUCH FROM RAÚL CASTRO
Opinión
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
The first year of Gen. Raúl Castro's rule is now over, and no significant changes have occurred in Cuba. Yet expectations remain that the younger Castro will follow the Chinese or the Vietnamese model and even find an accommodation with the United States.
Wrong on both counts. Despite economic difficulties, General Castro may offer more consumer goods and food to tranquilize the Cuban population, but no major structural reforms that would open the Cuban economy. In his July 26 speech, he talked about more foreign investments, but emphasized greater discipline and productivity as the road toward improving the economy.
With Fidel alive, or even when he is dead, it would be difficult for Raúl to reject his brother's legacy of political and economic centralization.
Raúl's legitimacy is based on being Fidel's heir. Any major move to reject Fidel's ''teachings'' would create uncertainty among Cuba's ruling elites -- party and military. It could also increase instability as some would advocate rapid change, while others cling to more-orthodox policies. Cubans could see this as an opportunity for mobilization, demanding faster reforms. For Raúl, the uncertainties of uncorking the genie's bottle in Cuba are greater than keeping the lid on and moving cautiously. For the past 47 years, political considerations have always dictated economic policies.
VOTING OVER IN CONTENTIOUS ELECTION BATTLE
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica --
Hours after polls closed, election workers were still counting paper ballots in this Caribbean nation as anxious voters waited to find out who will rule Jamaica over the next five years.
The contentious campaign, complete with political mudslinging and thuggery by both sides, pitted the ruling People's National Party against the opposition Jamaica Labor Party. In power for 18 years, the PNP is trying to win an unprecedented fifth consecutive five-year term to give Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller her own political mandate.
With the country under a tropical storm watch for most of the day, Jamaicans braved long and slow-moving lines to cast their votes in the high-stakes race, where 146 candidates were vying for 60 parliamentary seats.
There was at least one confirmed shooting in a Kingston constituency, Director of Elections Danville Walker told The Miami Herald. No one was killed or injured, he said.
A LOOK AT THE MISKITO INDIANS
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
Hurricane Felix smashed ashore Tuesday on Central America's Miskito Coast. A look at the people who live there:
THE MISKITOS: With about 150,000 people, the Miskitos are the largest Indian group in Nicaragua. They are descendants of the area's original inhabitants, European settlers and African slaves.
HOMELAND: The Miskito territory extends along the Caribbean coast from southern Nicaragua through southern Honduras. Much is low-lying, swampy land.
LANGUAGES: Several dialects of Miskito, Miskito Coastal Creole, English and Spanish.
HISTORY: Britain established a beachhead in the region in the 17th century, an incursion into Spanish-ruled territory, and backed a Miskito monarchy that ruled for two centuries. Britain ceded control in 1860 to a semi-independent Miskito territory, which was occupied by Nicaraguan troops in 1894.
PRESSURE FOR JAMAICA PM TO CONCEDE LOSS
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
KINGSTON, Jamaica --
Jamaica's first female prime minister faced pressure to concede defeat Tuesday as officials began a final tally of ballots from an election praised by international observers as "professional and transparent."
With her party apparently suffering a razor-thin defeat in Monday's vote, Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller refused to give up, saying the final count - expected to take about two days - could shift enough close races for her People's National Party to win.
Preliminary returns gave the opposition Jamaica Labor Party 31 of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives - a margin just large enough to end the governing party's nearly 20 years in power.
DR PRESIDENT ACCUSED OF MISUSING PUBLIC FUNDS
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic --
An opposition party has accused President Leonel Fernandez of misusing public funds and inappropriately creating new government positions to improve his chances of winning re-election next year.
The Dominican Revolutionary Party filed the complaint Monday with the Organization of American States, party spokesman Andres Matos said.
The complaint alleges Fernandez misused $30,000 in government publicity by attaching his campaign slogan to official advertisements and appointed opposition members to government posts to win their support. A Fernandez spokeswoman declined to comment.
The party asked the OAS to open an investigation. A spokesman for the Washington-based organization could not be reached for comment.
FELIX'S EARLY TOLL: 4 DEAD, MORE THAN 150 MISSING
The Miami Herald
Sep. 04, 2007
SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras --
Hurricane Felix's winds weakened steadily but its rain spread wide and deep Tuesday after its top-scale Category 5 core drilled into the remote, extremely vulnerable ''Mosquito Coast'' near the Honduran-Nicaraguan border.
At least three people, including a baby born outdoors in the storm, died in Nicaragua and one man was killed in Honduras, according to early, fragmentary reports. A variety of ominous but unconfirmed accounts said scores were missing at sea.
The confirmed toll seemed certain to rise as information arrived from remote regions. Search and rescue teams could not reach most areas Tuesday night.
JAMAICA: PREMIER FACES PRESSURE TO CONCEDE LOSS
The New York Times
September 5, 2007
Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller faced pressure to concede defeat as officials began a final tally of ballots from an election Monday praised by international observers as “professional and transparent.” With her People’s National Party apparently suffering a razor-thin defeat, she refused to give up, saying the final count, expected to take two days, could shift some close races. Preliminary returns gave the opposition Labor Party 31 of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives, just large enough to end the governing party’s nearly 20 years in power and make Bruce Golding, the Labor leader, prime minister. In an editorial, The Gleaner, Jamaica’s leading newspaper, urged Ms. Simpson Miller to accept defeat. “Political leaders need to both show statesmanship and encourage calm and good sense, not the opposite,” it said.
JAMAICAN PM CONCEDES BUT VOWS TO FIGHT
The Miami Herald
Sep. 05, 2007
KINGSTON, Jamaica --
Jamaica's Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller finally conceded defeat in this week's tight election, though she said her party might still challenge the results of some parliamentary races.
''The People's National Party, as part of its highest traditions, respects and will always respect the voice of the Jamaican people and their will as expressed in the vote,'' Simpson said in a statement issued late Tuesday night and reported by the Associated Press.
Simpson Miller had been under increasing pressure to concede after preliminary results gave the opposition Jamaica Labor Party a 32-28 lead in the 60-seat parliament, enough to end the PNP's 18-year hold on power.
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