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research center here Special to A.M. Costa Rica
The international teaching, research and outreach of Texas A&M University takes on an added dimension with the start of operations at the new Soltis Center for Research and Education in Costa Rica, the university reported. The project is the result of a donation by alumnus Bill Soltis, and his family, said the university. Soltis, a 1955 Texas A&M mechanical engineering graduate who lives in Houston and has had a long career in construction, with most of his business done in Costa Rica, approached university officials in 2005 about the possibility of creating the facility, they said. His vision was to provide more international experiences to A&M students, known as Aggies, while protecting the unique ecological setting and creating awareness for preservation. The university said he proposed building the center’s classrooms, dormitories and related facilities at his expense on a 40-acre site and offering a long-term lease on 250 adjacent acres of rain forest. The site is near the town of San Isidro de Peñas Blancas, which is located about a two-hour drive from San José, the university said. With all aspects of the proposal by Soltis now met — including construction of a large academic building and eight dormitories capable of accommodating up to 60 students and faculty — the university regents in December formally authorized the university to enter into a contract with the entity jointly created for its operation, the Casa Verde Research Center S. A. to support academic and research programs. “We are most grateful to Mr. Soltis and his family for making this facility available to our students and faculty for a multitude of beneficial uses in both teaching and research initiatives,” said Texas A&M President Elsa Murano, “and we share his commitment to maintaining and enhancing the environment in this place of special ecological importance.” Said Soltis: “Wanda and I are just thrilled that we can provide a facility for future generations of Aggies to both learn another culture and also understand the importance of conserving the beautiful places in the world like the Monteverde Rainforest in Costa Rica.” Murano said the first students are expected to go to the Costa Rica Center during the early part of the spring semester. Formal dedication of the center is planned in June. Initial student users of the Costa Rica Center will be from the College of Education and Human Development, the College of Geosciences and Texas A&M’s Dwight Look College of Engineering. President Murano noted that other academic units of the university are expected subsequently to take advantage of its unique ecological setting and ideal location for a variety of educational endeavors including the Memorial Student Center FISH organization for freshmen, and the Engineers with Borders. Additionally, the center is envisioned as serving as a base for programs benefitting residents of the area around the rainforest — teaching English to local school children and developing water management programs, for example. Texas A&M faculty also identified a number of potential research programs in conservation sustainable design, hydrology, mapping of rain forest and others. Our readers' opinions
Where is power grid threatwhen controls can be manual Dear A.M. Costa Rica: Subject: Threatened Internet-initiated sabotage of U.S. power grid by Russia or Chinese hackers as reported recently in the media. This is another instance of alarmist, incorrect reporting by the media. They say that not only the grid but utilities namely water and sewage plants could be shut down by action via the internet. The media does not say how this would be accomplished. Now, the grid is a network of high voltage transmission lines. Shutting down the grid means that the stations and substations serving the grid must be shut down. First of all, most processes are computer controlled. The computers are dedicated to the utilities and plants they serve and are not connected to the Internet. Secondly, the control panels in these facilities have a selector switch enabling the plant to switch from computer to manual control on computer failure. Any links to data to the plants via the Internet can be interfaced to prevent hacking actions and presumably this has already been taken care of. John Whiley
Lifting bank secrecy rule leaves reader unhappy Dear A.M. Costa Rica: This latest decision to abandon the tenets of personal privacy and allow foreign governments access to any Costa Rican bank accounts they might feel like snooping around in has left me in shock! Is the Legislature TRYING to destroy the fragile economy of this nation? While the article in A. M. Costa Rica said that this action was as a result of criticism by an "international organization that promotes taxation," this is principally about pressure from the United States and the insidious "IRS," (Infernal Revenue Service), which thinks that Americans who no longer live in the U. S. and therefore consume no services/resources whatsoever should still pay taxes, even as more and more billion dollar American corporations send jobs offshore, escape paying THEIR fair share of taxation and suffer no consequences whatsoever. The article went on to say that "The organization.....also listed Malaysia, Philippines and Uruguay. Larger countries that have a reputation as tax havens were not listed, and the initial report from the organization did not say why the four countries were singled out." Oh PLEASE! The larger countries were not listed because it's easier to threaten smaller countries with weaker economies! You didn't see Switzerland, the most notorious haven for dirty money on the planet listed did you? The Swiss hide and launder more cash in a day than any of the four listed countries do/could do combined in 50 years! The United States government has been pressuring the Costa Rican legislature to allow them access to bank accounts here for years, and to their credit, the legislature has resisted up until now. One has to wonder what carrot/stick the U. S. used to finally pry this concession out of the Costa Rican government, (where's the transparency of government, amigos?), and whether or not Don Oscar, et. al., ever considered that this lunacy will most definitely provide yet another reason for Americans to choose another country in which to retire/invest at a time when this nation needs every tourist/investment dollar it can lay its hands on. I wouldn't want to ride in a car driven by these visually challenged legislators because it would be hitting every tree, boulder and parked bus in its immediate vicinity along its way to the cliff it seems hell-bent on exploring. Dean Barbour
Manuel Antonio
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| A.M. Costa Rica third newspage |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Monday, April 13, 2009, Vol. 9, No. 71 | |||||||||
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Homicides make up a third of
the holiday death toll
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Homicides continue to be the biggest cause of violent death over the Semana Santa holidays. The Cruz Roja listed 11 deaths due to firearms or knives since Saturday, April 4. Water deaths were close behind with 10 fatalities reported, said Cruz Roja. On a brighter note, the Cruz Roja said that its 470 employees and volunteers made 67 successful rescues, the majority, 37, at beaches. The report covers Semana Santa until about noon Sunday. The holiday ended at midnight Sunday, and today is a regular work day for most Costa Ricans. Traffic was reported to be heavy but without major problems coming from holiday locations into the Central Valley. |
In Bahía Ballena Thursday,
the Cruz Roja said that four persons were
carried away by the tide and that one person died there. Two persons
were rescued and one person still is missing, the rescue service said. Elsewhere the Cruz Roja said its personnel participated in six searches including one in the mountains of Pital de San Carlos where four persons were missing. They were found in good health about 6 a.m. Saturday, the Cruz Roja said. But in San Miguel in Guanacaste at a place known as Playa Javilla a 14-year-old with the last name of Esquivel vanished in the surf Thursday morning. He still is missing, the Cruz Roja said. Usually traffic accidents are the major cause of deaths over holiday periods, but this year, the number is about five, perhaps due to heavy enforcement of the country's new harsh drunk driving law. |
 Ministerio de Gobernación,
Policía y Seguridad photo
Police saved these figures of Judas in Heredia and made the
arrest above in Santa Ana |
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Police detain 140 during Judas
Night excesses in valley
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Youngsters went wild Saturday night and early Sunday. Fires broke out in Santa Ana and several communities in Heredia. Police detained 140 persons. Three Fuerza Pública officers and a member of the Policía Municipal de Santa Ana suffered injuries there. In Heredia four officers were hurt. In San Rafael de Heredia in a location known as Getsemani, a mechanics shop burned to the ground, said police. In the Heredia community of Barva, the police station in the district of San Pedro came under attack from rock throwers, and windows and the metal portón suffered damages. Fuerza Pública officers said they grabbed six youths there. The lawlessness was the annual Quema de Judas or "burning of Judas," which has increased in violence each year. The principal goal is to burn a figure representing Judas, the apostle who identified Jesus Christ to the temple enforcers, according to the biblical story of His crucifixion. But the night also results in blazing blockades of local roads, attacks on local homes and stores and rock throwing at passing cars. |
Heredia always has been a trouble
spot, but this year, Santa Ana and
the section of Lindora, Pozos and Piedades saw disturbances, according
to Pablo Bertozzi, the regional Fuerza Pública director. Some 30
youths
were detained in that area, he said. They were menacing homes,
businesses and even a school, he added. Two fires broke out in vacant
lots, one in Lindora and one in Chispa. In all some 92 persons were detained in the Provincia de Heredia, according to Raúl Rivera of the Fuerza Pública there. Some 19 were caught in the section known as El Bajo Los Molinos. Youths burned tires, wood and plastic and even threw rocks at news vehicles, said police. Police handled disturbances in Santa Bárbara as well where some violence took place at the municipal building. A steel curtain was pulled apart and a computer suffered damage, police said. In Alajuela in Barrio Lourdes de San Rafael, a police car was showered with stones and significant damage resulted. One arrest was made. Two other patrol cars suffered damage in San José de Santa Rita, police said. |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Monday, April 13, 2009, Vol. 9, No. 71 | |||||||||
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Mexcio's ambassador to U.S.
seeks more cooperation
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By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Mexico's ambassador to the United States says there must be extensive cooperation between the two countries to defeat drug cartels that have killed thousands of people in Mexico's northern border states. The ambassador spoke in Washington days before President Barack Obama heads to Mexico to meet with President Felipe Calderón. The Mexican ambassador, Arturo Sarukhan, said his government is engaged in a fierce battle with drug traffickers that export illegal narcotics to the United States, but that Mexico cannot win the battle alone. "You need two to tango. And as Mexico seeks to shut down the flow of drugs coming into the United States from Mexico and South America, we need the support of the United States to shut down the flow of weapons and bulk cash," he said. The Obama administration has boosted the number of federal agents and augmented other resources along the U.S. border with Mexico in response to the increasing violence by drug gangs. In addition, Obama has dispatched Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and other top officials to Mexico to formulate a coordinated response to the trafficking threat. Obama has noted that the United States must reduce its appetite for illegal drugs. Sarukhan praised the flurry of consultations between the two countries, as well as the boost in U.S. personnel along the border. He expressed reluctance to comment on American domestic affairs, but suggested that a renewal of the now-expired U.S. ban on assault weapons would be helpful in curbing the flow of high-powered armaments to Mexican drug cartels. "We have seen a dramatic rise of assault weapons being seized in Mexico. There is a direct correlation between the |
expiration of the assault weapons
ban, and our seizures of assault
weapons. We cannot determine how Congress and the administration will
move on this. What we will say is this is one of the instruments — by
reinstating the ban — that could have a profound impact on the number
and caliber of weapons going down to Mexico," he said. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has voiced support for reinstating the assault weapons ban, which expired in 2004, saying it would be beneficial to both the United States and Mexico. Pro-gun sources question the idea that the drug cartels are arming themselves with black market U.S. guns. The gangs use fully automatic weapons, rocket launchers and other types of weaponry that are not easily purchased in the United States, these sources say. Estimates of what percentage of weapons go to the drug gangs from the U.S. range from 90 percent to 15 percent. Asked about the safety of visitors to Mexico, Sarukhan said that, while the drug war has engulfed the country's northernmost states, the rest of Mexico is safe for visitors and tourists. He urged anyone traveling to the border cities of Tijuana and Ciudad Juarez to be cautious. Obama heads to Mexico City Thursday for an overnight stay before continuing to Trinidad and Tobago for the fifth Summit of the Americas. Combating border violence is expected to top discussions with Mexican President Calderón, along with trade and commercial issues and immigration concerns. Mexicans comprise a large proportion of the more than 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States. During last year's presidential campaign, Barack Obama pledged to pursue comprehensive U.S. immigration reform. He has not spoken in detail on the issue since taking office in January. |
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Bolivia's Morales goes
on political hunger strike By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Bolivian President Evo Morales has begun a hunger strike to demand that the nation's congress pass an electoral law ratifying a date for general elections in December. The president was quoted Thursday as saying he was starting the strike "to defend the vote of the people." He also accused members of the opposition-led Senate of trying to block the legislation. The election bill has been held up by demands for an updated voter registry, arguments over whether Bolivians living outside the country should be able to vote, and a dispute over the number of seats in congress that should be assigned to native groups. Bolivians recently approved a new constitution that allows Morales to seek a second, five-year term in December's elections and gives more power to the country's native majority. Morales is Bolivia's first native president. He was elected in 2005. The new constitution also creates a new Congress and calls for limiting the land holdings of white and mixed-race farmers in gas-rich eastern provinces. Fidel Castro calls Morales to express his support By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro says he has phoned Bolivian President Evo Morales to express support for his hunger strike. In an article published on a Cuban state Web site, Castro said he called Morales Friday, after meeting in Cuba with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. Castro said he relayed a message of solidarity on behalf of Chávez and himself, and expressed their confidence in the Bolivian president's victory. President Morales began a hunger strike Thursday to pressure lawmakers to pass a controversial electoral law ratifying December 6th as the date for general elections. Morales has said he will refuse to eat until the electoral measure passes Bolivia's opposition-led Senate. The Bolivian leader is a loyal follower of Castro, just like Venezuelan President Chavez. In addition to Bolivia, Castro said he and Chávez discussed the Venezuelan leader's recent visits to China, Japan and Iran. Chavez said he was visiting Cuba to prepare for an upcoming summit of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, which will be held Thursday, one day before the Summit of the Americas begins in Trinidad and Tobago. |
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| Latin
American news digest |
Dog
adoptions scheduled for Saturday at clinic By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Stop Animal Suffering Yes!, known as SASY, will hold a dog adoption day Saturday at the clinic of veterinarian Elsa Chang, 100 meters north and 50 meters east of the AM/PM in Guachipelin. The event is from 9:30 a.m to 3 p.m., and all dogs are vaccinated, dewormed and neutered, the group said. Donations are accepted, the group added. SASY is an all-volunteer organization dedicated to the eradication of animal abuse and suffering in Costa Rica, according to its Web site. At a recent fundraiser, the organization raised $40,000 of which $35,000 is being used toward helping animals, according to the group's Web site. Obama talks to Garcia about financial crisis By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
President Barack Obama called his Peruvian counterpart Friday to discuss a range of issues including the global financial crisis and an upcoming pan-American summit. The White House said Obama called President Alan Garcia to discuss how to restore economic growth to the hemisphere and other shared goals. Obama said he is looking forward to working with Perú toward a successful Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago this week. He also thanked Garcia for Peru's regional leadership in combating drug trafficking. The 5th Summit of the Americas will be Obama's first opportunity since becoming president to address most members of the Organization of American States (OAS). |
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