Colorado team again says fewer hurricanes


The latest prediction from the Colorado State University hurricane team called for a season less active than the average.

Philip J. Klotzbach and William M. Gray issued their prediction last week. They expect four hurricanes and 10 named storms. Just one major hurricane of category 3 to 5 is expected, the pair said.

The 1981 to 2010 average is for 6.5 hurricanes and 12 named storms.

The forecast is slightly higher than the one that was issued in April, the pair noted.

"We anticipate a below-average Atlantic basin hurricane season due to the combination of the likelihood of El Niño development along with a slighter cooler than normal tropical Atlantic, they said in the report. "Coastal residents are reminded that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season for them, and they need to prepare the same for every season, regardless of how much activity is predicted."

"Our new early June statistical forecast methodology shows strong evidence over 29 past years that significant improvement over climatology can be attained," the report said. "We would never issue a seasonal hurricane forecast unless we had a statistical model developed over a long hindcast period which showed significant skill over climatology."

This is the 31st year in which the Colorado State University Tropical Meteorology Project has made forecasts of the upcoming season’s Atlantic basin hurricane activity.  Other agencies also predict a less than average hurricane season.

Although hurricanes almost never make landfall on Costa Rican soil, the extended winds can cause major damage.


Another fishing boat yields cocaine cargo


In what seems like a frequent occurrence, law officers reported they found 793 kilos of cocaine on a Costa Rican fishing boat.

The seizure Saturday was made 205 nautical miles off Cabo Matapalo, and four Costa Rican crew members were taken into custody.

The Servicio Nacional de Guardacostas and the security ministry said officers received information about the boat from a U.S. frigate on patrol. The boat is the “María Bonita.”  The cocaine was in a double-walled part of the boat, officers said.

A U.S. drug interdiction patrol at sea stopped the boat May 13 but a full search could not be completed because of the large quantity of ice that was being carried, police here said.

The Guardacostas made two similar seizures since May 8 that total more than three tons.

That figure does not include discoveries on land. For example, Friday Fuerza Pública officers stopped a motorist in San Vito de Coto Brus and found that the vehicle contained 92 kilos of cocaine. That location is near the border with Panamá.


Obama showed U.S. to be a paper tiger

Dear A.M. Costa Rica:

I was rather surprised that you printed the letter from Mr. Barbour that plays fast and loose with the facts about the current U.S. administration. As far as Syria, Obama is on record and video relaying a threat to Mr. Assad if he used chemical weapons. Because of Obama’s lack of competent foreign policy. he had to backtrack on this threat once again, demonstrating his administration as a paper tiger.  If a president issues a threat, he MUST be ready to back it up. Frankly, idle threats do not make the U.S. or the president look strong, but weak.

As far as the military involvements of the Middle East, Obama said we need to get out of Iraq and fight the “good war” in Afghanistan.  At the time we were well on the way of defeating the terrorist movement in that country. Against the advice of the military experts Obama  unilaterally pulled the troops out and the result has been as the military experts told him, the country falls into terrorist hands. This is well under way at this time.

After pulling out of Iraq, Obama set his sights on Afghanistan. Once again the military needed more troops to keep the Taliban on the run, Obama sent half of their request. As a result, we were unable to finish the job and, after a short time, in order to appease his political base, Obama decided to pull out of Afghanistan against military experts' advice. Presidents are never experts on everything, and that is why they have experts to guide them. Our president cannot even pronounce corpsmen properly yet he apparently feels he does not need to listen to military experts.

Mr. Barbour fails to mention the 9/11 attacks in this country that led to the wars in the Middle East. Obviously he did not have any relatives killed by the terrorists, so it apparently does not mean anything to him. We were minding our own business before the 9/11 attacks. He is correct that our policies in the area have been a disaster, especially in Iran. That is hardly the fault of the CIA actions in 1953 but the result of another weak president, Jimmy Carter. Had he backed the Shah of Iran, we would not have an Iran with terrorist leadership ready to bring a nuclear bomb to the terrorist nation. I understand the Shah was a brutal dictator. Does anyone think it is any different under the Ayatollah? 

Unfortunately, it takes between 10 to 20 years for the policies of an administration to play out. Based on history, we will pay a heavy price for the actions of Obama to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in stabilizing the Middle East. As further proof even the Afghan president is too busy to meet with Obama, a direct slap in the face after all we have done for him and his country. Of course, this is nothing new, as even our allies want nothing to do with our current incompetent  and weak president and administration. I have a brother-in-law from the Middle East who still has family, contacts, and property, so I do have some insight as to what is going on in the area.

Now Obama has endangered any U.S. citizen traveling abroad by allowing the Taliban to extort the release of their hierarchy at Gitmo to secure the release of what is now proven to be a deserter from the Army.  Now every terrorist group that wants those held in our prisons for terrorism released or need funding will only need to kidnap an American and set conditions for their release. I shudder to think how this will play out. We would have been more than happy to let the Muslims work out their own problems, but it is they who drew us into the fray. Perhaps Mr. Barbour needs to present ALL the facts not just the ones he likes.


Monoculture has been devastating

Dear A.M. Costa Rica:

Regarding the article on dragón amarillo or the blight that causes orange greening. The article cites a release from the U. of Florida that states that they may have discovered a "treatment" in the form of a three-chemical cocktail that has shown favorable results against the pest that has wreaked havoc on the staple juice orange.

It states that the problem has shown up even here in Costa Rica, and that the government has spent a million dollars already in attempting to combat it.

A million dollars is a drop in the bucket compared to what the Florida citrus industry has already spent. The U. of Florida is just one of many avenues the industry is funding in desperate attempts to solve this scourge.

Needless to say, everyone wants this problem to go away. Oranges are one of natures gems that imparts good health while tasting wonderful.

What the commercial farming "industry" has been experimenting with over the last 60-70 years or so in their practices of massive mono-cropping with simultaneous massive chemical fertilization, as well as herbicide and pesticide usage, has been shown to have short term benefits at best.

While It has allowed farming to continue to expand away from small scale traditionally family run operations into mega-businesses providing huge returns to the corporations who own them, the negative results in their practices have been devastating. Devastating to independent small scale farming communities, devastating to democratic processes, devastating to the environment, and to health.

While workers and populations close by these operations have suffered the worst of the health effects of the toxic chemicals these massive mono-growing tracts use, the downstream effects have had a slower effect.

While the article optimistically states that this three-chemical treatment promised to be the answer in killing the bacteria that has been destroying orange trees, as if it was the "magic bullet." We know that these chemicals are made to kill, so they will have side effects that will be added to the toxic soup the earth is already overflowing in. The corporations profit the very few, while the average citizen foots the bill.