|
|
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
| |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
|
Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for more details |
|
||
|
San
José, Costa Rica, Friday, July 10, 2015, Vol. 15, No. 135
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
|
RACSA finances
seem to be a state secret
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The contralora general went to a legislative committee Thursday to discuss the finances of Radiográfica Costarricense S.A., the Internet provider that is a child of Grupo ICE. Normally this would be about as exciting as watching paint dry. But the contralora general's agency, the budget watchdog, issued a statement before the noon meeting that it would be private. Having a private session before any legislative committee is unusual. The decision by the Comisión de Ingreso y Gasto to hold a private hearing certainly is not comforting to firms and individual who have accounts and Internet connections with the provider known as RACSA. The statement also said that Marta Acosta, the contralora general, would not answer questions before or after the closed session. Also Thursday, Carlos Manuel Obregón, the president of the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad announced what the company said were strategic controls over subsidiaries so that RACSA could emerge from its financial crisis by the end of the year. The financial troubles with RACSA have been long-standing. Although it was set up as an Internet provider, the institute, known as ICE, decided to become a competitor of its own subsidiary. Advertisers carry a lot of ethical clout By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Today, when news of a sports scandal breaks, it becomes a problem for everyone involved, including corporate sponsors and advertisers. They can pay a heavy price for their actions or inaction. “Sponsors and advertisers really have to react almost immediately when news of a scandal breaks," said Lee Igel, co-director of Sports & Society, a New York University academic program. "Before, in the past, even in the past handful of years, we've been able to see that there can be a little bit of a waiting. You can really try to read the market, read customers and see how people are feeling. Now, that no longer exists.” In the case of football's governing body, the stakes are particularly high, perhaps so high that no major sponsor has yet to pull out. Igel said there is too much money and too many years of planning involved for any sponsor to easily back down. Meanwhile, four sports marketing executives and an unnamed “major U.S. sportswear company” — widely presumed to be Nike — are at the center of investigations into alleged bribes and kickbacks. Economist Fredy Marin said the Fédération Internationale de Football Association established its own set of financial rules, leaving corporations with little choice. “The rules were there," Marin said. "The only thing that they had to do was accept it. They say, ‘OK, if you want to advertise, you have to pay extra fees in order to gain your rights. Are you willing to do it?' 'Oh, is there another option? No! So, I have to do it.’ ” Ethics and compliance expert Jeff Thinnes of JTI, Inc., a business strategy consultant, thinks otherwise. He said corporations collectively carry heavy economic weight and influence and only need to understand how to use it effectively. “Of the roughly 12 tier-one and tier-two corporate sponsors, if you look at their collective annual revenue, you reach something like $450 billion," Thinnes said. "I mean, if they were a country, that would put them roughly 25th or 27th on the list of GNI top countries in the world.” Thinnes said that what's missing in the world of sports is an integrity pact, an agreement among competing corporations to increase transparency about how they pursue opportunities. Federal law helped boost women's soccer By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The U.S. women's soccer team is a powerhouse on the world stage. The American women just won a record third World Cup, beating Japan Sunday in Vancouver, Canada, in demonstrative fashion, 5-2. That record is startling considering that international football is far from the most popular professional sport in the United States. Plus, the U.S. women have never finished out of the top three teams since the women's World Cup debuted in 1991, and have never missed out on the Olympic gold medal since winning silver in Sydney, Australia in 2000. The U.S. men's team, in comparison, lags behind perennial football juggernauts such as Germany, Argentina, the Netherlands and Brazil. The American men have never even made it to the semifinals in the modern era of World Cup competition, and only made it to the quarterfinals once, in 2002. So why is there such a disparity in success between the two U.S. teams? "I think you have to begin with the fact that almost every country in the world prioritizes their men's national soccer team," said Steven Goff, who covers international football for The Washington Post. "On the women's side, there are only about 10 or 20 countries that take it seriously. "The second point is that the development of men's international soccer goes back 100 years," Goff added, "and the U.S. men's development system for soccer really didn't get started in earnest until the 1970s and 1980s, so we're decades and decades behind in men's soccer development. That's not something you can make up overnight or even within 10, 20 years." George Quraishi, founder and editor of the U.S.-based soccer publication Howler Magazine, also said the U.S. men had a late start relative to the rest of the world. He points out that the American men went 40 years without competing in a World Cup, a stretch that ended in 1990. They have qualified for every World Cup since then. "That’s a long period of time to go without just participating in the World Cup," Quraishi said. "But now young players see they're the guys they’re supposed to look up to playing in the World Cup, knowing that that’s a possibility, having expectations, having the coaches who have that experience, who sort of retired from playing soccer and can go and help the next generation of players achieve the same. "It would be pretty shocking now for the U.S. men not to qualify for the World Cup for a couple of reasons, but for a long time that wasn't the case," Quraishi said. "The expectation wasn't there." In terms of the women's game, Goff and Quraishi agree that the United States has made a commitment toward the success of women's sports, including soccer, that goes far beyond what many other countries have done. A centerpiece of that commitment is Title IX, the U.S. federal law passed more than 40 years ago that prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender in any federally funded education program. Title IX forced universities to invest in women's sports, and soccer benefited tremendously from funding created under the law, according to Quraishi. "And I think what we see with the women is the U.S. was one of the first countries to really establish a strong tradition of women playing soccer and to put the programs in place," Quraishi said. "I think college soccer had a lot to do with it. We had a feeder system from the very beginning. Teams like North Carolina, UCLA have been providing talented players to the national team for decades now." Immigration order aired today in court By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Whether millions of illegal aliens in the United States could apply for temporary legal status will depend on the ruling of a federal appeals court in New Orleans, which will hear the case about an executive order by President Barack Obama today. President Obama issued the executive order last November, deferring deportation of nearly five million undocumented immigrants who met certain standards, but the court has blocked its implementation because Texas and 25 other states brought a lawsuit against it.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this Web site are
copyrighted by Consultantes Ro Colorado S.A 2015 and may not be
reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
||||||
A.M. Costa Rica Third News Page |
|
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, July 10, 2015, Vol. 15, No. 135 | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| New minimum salaries are online as first pay day approaches |
|
|
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Ministerio de Trabajo has published the new minimum salaries for the second half of 2015. The list by job category reflects a .94 percent raised that was negotiated last month as well as a special 1.04 percent increase for low-paid domestic help. A domestic worker is now supposed to make 170,901.34 colons a month, some $324. Some employers have complained about the salaries of university graduates who may need months of training. A university graduate is supposed to receive 512,552.17 colons a month, according to the new schedule. That's about $971. Those who studied longer and obtained a licenciado should get 615,083.69 colons or about $1,165. |
Heading the
list are graduate journalists or periódistas
who are
supposed to make 757,535.85 colons a month. That's about $1,434.35. A
number of public relations workers at state institutions call
themselves periódistas
to
take advantage of that job category. The new salaries went into effect July 1, so the July 15 pay day will be the first that many employees see the increase. Employers point out that in addition to the salaries, they must pay to the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social each month an amount based on the new figures. In addition, riesgo de trabajo or workplace insurance also is based on salary amounts. And then there is the year-end aguinaldo that usually is the equivalent of a month's pay. The new list by job categories is HERE! |
| Another load of suspicious wood snagged by police in La Cruz |
|
|
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
How likely is it that police will stop a trucker whose vehicle is carrying more than 300 planks of wood. A good guess would be very likely. And that is what happened Wednesday in La Cruz, Guanacaste. The truck had 339 planks of what is called here cocobolo. The name in English is rosewood, one of the most desirable species. The Fuerza Pública said that the driver produced a receipt for the wood, but that it was inconsistent. Police agencies in rural areas are very sensitive about wood cargos because there is so much pilfering from trees on public land. |
 Ministerio de Seguridad Pública photo
|
| Tax agency finds many merchants who are failing to follow
the law |
|
|
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The tax agency and the tax police went shopping during June and the early days of this month and found 2,500 cases of merchants who were violating the law in some ways. Nearly 1,000 failed to provide the appropriate receipts, facturas, for purchases. Some 45 firms were just not enrolled as taxpayers. The agency, the Dirección General de Tributación, said that 40 percent of the establishment in some way were violating the law. The businesses visited were in Puntarenas, Guanacaste, Heredia, Alajuela and the northern zone. The penalties for these violations are relatively modest. |
Failing to
provide facturas results in a
fine. A second offender's business may be closed for
up to five days, the agency said. The receipts or facturas are a way that the agency has to check if a business is filing an honest tax return. Professionals soon will be asked to issue their facturas electronically by use of a central computer under the control of the tax agency. The tax police also were on the lookout for retail items that may have been smuggled. The agency reported that in 19 cases there was confiscation of a product. The tax agency has even set up a lottery that individuals can enter by providing copies of their facturas. The idea is that the tax agency will compare the factures with the existing records to check up on the firm that issued them. |
| You need to see Costa Rican tourism information HERE! |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this Web site are
copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado S.A. 2015 and may not
be
reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
||||||
 |
 |
||||
| A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page | |||||
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, July 10, 2015, Vol. 15, No. 135 | |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| Researchers find that some healthy people are testing old at
38 years |
|
|
By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
An international team says there may be a reason why some people seem to stay young well into their dotage. Researchers from the U.S., Britain, Israel and New Zealand observed that at the physical age 38, the biological age of individuals was all over the map. Some 38-year-old bodies were still in their 20s, while others were nearly 60. Dan Belsky, a professor of geriatrics at Duke University’s Center for Aging and a study author, said the findings, that people decline faster or slower physically beginning at a relatively young age, go counter to what is commonly believed. A second surprise, he said, "was how much variation in that change there was in that population. People really did age very slowly or very rapidly.” Investigators analyzed data from the Dunedin Study, a long-term health study in New Zealand seeking clues to factors involved in aging. Eighteen biomarkers, including blood vessel integrity, kidney and liver functions, measurements of metabolism and immunity, were measured in a group of 1,000 people beginning at age 26. The health biomarkers were taken again when the participants were age 32 and again at 38. |
A calculation
based on the readings was developed to determine
each volunteer’s pace of aging. Then, Belsky said, tests usually
reserved for older individuals were given to the participants. “We tested their balance, we tested their strength, we tested their motor coordination," he said. "We interviewed them about physical limitations they may have, having trouble climbing stairs, carrying groceries, walking a mile. And we also gave them some cognitive tests. And what we saw was that the study numbers we had measured to be aging faster were having more physical problems; they were weaker, they had poor balance, they were not as coordinated. And they were more likely to report physical limitations. And they are still 38 years old and mostly free of any chronic disease.” Then, researchers conducted what was in some ways the ultimate litmus test of aging: They asked college students to look at pictures of the participants. "They rated those faces as either looking young or looking old," Belsky said. "And the very same study numbers we had measured to be aging very rapidly were also rated by the Duke undergraduates as looking older.” The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. By studying the rate of aging, investigators hope they can get a jump on some age-related diseases earlier in people's lives. |
Here's reasonable medical care
Costa Rica's world class medical specialists are at your command. Get the top care for much less than U.S. prices. It is really a great way to spend a vacation. See our list of recommended professionals HERE!amcr-prom
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents of this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado
S.A. 2015 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
||||||
|
A.M. Costa Rica's Fifth
news page
|
||
 |
 |
|
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, July 10, 2015, Vol. 15, No. 135 | |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| Trump surges after comment citing illegal immigration By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Donald Trump is surging in the polls, and that has a lot of Republicans worried. A recent CNN/ORC poll had Trump in second place nationally with 12 percent support, trailing only former Florida governor Jeb Bush who had 17 percent. Trump was ahead of other Republican contenders, however, such as Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Marco Rubio of Florida, as well as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who formally enters the race Monday. Trump set off a firestorm during his formal announcement last month with his blast at illegal immigrants. "They are bringing drugs. They are bringing crime. They are rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus reportedly told Trump on Wednesday to tone down his comments on immigration, though Trump disputes that characterization. The comments also have drawn critical responses from some of Trump’s Republican rivals. Bush told voters in New Hampshire that Trump’s views are “way out of the mainstream of what Republicans think.” Trump’s surge in the polls, both nationally and in the early contest states of Iowa and New Hampshire, comes at an opportune time for his supporters. Trump is hoping to make the cut in the first debate among Republican contenders Aug. 6. The debate will be carried by the Fox News Channel, which will limit the debate to the top 10 Republican contenders based on a mix of national polls. Trump appears to be striking a chord with conservative voters who favor a crackdown on illegal immigration and who also like Trump’s blunt style, especially his vows to confront China on trade issues and to pursue a more aggressive stance in confronting the Islamic State. But Trump appears to be a double-edged sword for Republicans. His participation in the debate could boost the television audience and might offer some lesser known Republicans an opportunity to become better known. Some Republicans are concerned, though, that Trump’s presence will overshadow the rest of the field and his strident comments on illegal immigrants could hurt the party next year when Republicans hope to boost support among minority voters, especially Hispanics. Three more current or former Republican governors are set to join the already large field of Republican presidential contenders for 2016. Walker is expected to announce Monday. Ohio Gov. John Kasich will follow the week after, and former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore will announce his bid in early August. That will bring the Republican field to 17 contenders just as the first televised debate is scheduled for Cleveland Aug. 6. Analysts say Walker and to a lesser extent Kasich could have a major impact on the field. “No matter how much people look at running during the next year as performance art, at some point someone is going to say, 'well, what have you actually done?' And Walker and Kasich have a record that they can be proud of,” said Republican analyst Scot Faulkner. Faulkner is a big fan of former president Ronald Reagan, but he doesn’t see anyone of that stature in the 2016 field, as yet. Walker has won three elections in Wisconsin in four years including a recall battle sparked by his efforts to end collective bargaining for most public workers in his state. He has appeal to social conservatives, Tea Party activists and some mainstream Republicans looking for a contender who can compete with Democrat Hillary Clinton in battleground states in 2016. At the moment, Walker leads the Republican field in Iowa, which kicks off the 2016 nominating process early next year with its caucus vote. Kasich looks to position himself as a moderate in the field and could gain traction should Bush stumble. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also is targeting moderates and will make his stand in New Hampshire where he hopes to take advantage of his ability to win over voters in small settings like town hall meetings, which New Hampshire voters like. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has been drawing some big crowds in Wisconsin and Maine, and recent polls show he has cut Hillary Clinton’s formidable lead in both Iowa and New Hampshire. Sanders has focused his campaign on trying to level the economic playing field for the poor and middle class. “This great country and our government belong to all of the people and not just a handful of very wealthy people,” Sanders told an enthusiastic crowd of more than 10,000 people recently in Madison, Wisconsin. Sanders has struck a chord with liberals and college students, said John Fortier with the Bipartisan Policy Center. “Right now the criticism of Hillary Clinton from the left that maybe she is too hawkish on foreign policy and not enough concerned about inequality is coming from Bernie Sanders, and he is getting some traction.” Most experts believe Mrs. Clinton will prevail in the end, but they acknowledge that Sanders is creating some buzz on the campaign trail. Mrs. Clinton told CNN that her campaign always believed the Democratic primary race would be competitive and wherever she speaks she also brings up the income inequality argument that Sanders has made as his calling card. Mrs. Clinton also told CNN that “people should and do trust me,” an acknowledgement of polls that show voters are less trustful of her in the wake of controversies about her use of a private email account while secretary of State, and questions about the fundraising practices of the Clinton Foundation. Sanders’ supporters are encouraged by his bump in the early contest states of Iowa and New Hampshire, and they would love nothing more than a surprise early win in either state they believe would transform the Democratic race from a coronation to a grass roots battle for support. House hosts heated debate over the Confederate flag By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
As the southern U.S. state of South Carolina prepared to take the Confederate battle flag down from its capitol grounds, passionate debate over the flag issue unexpectedly erupted on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. Republican Rep. Ken Calvert of California introduced an amendment to a spending bill Thursday that would have reversed an earlier House amendment banning the display of Confederate flags at federal cemeteries and the sale of the flags in national park gift shops. In reaction, Democrats lined up to denounce the proposal on the House floor. “What exactly is the tradition the Confederate battle flag is meant to represent? Is it slavery, rape, kidnap, genocide, treason or all of the above?” demanded Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York. But Republican Rep. Steven Palazzo of Mississippi argued in a written statement: "Congress cannot simply rewrite history and strip the Confederate flag from existence. Members of Congress from New York and California cannot wipe away 150 years of Southern history with sleight-of-hand tactics." A small version of the Confederate flag makes up the top corner of Mississippi’s state flag. Republican House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio sought to avoid further conflict, pulling the spending bill along with the flag amendment from the day’s voting agenda. Boehner told reporters: “I think it is time for some adults here in the Congress to actually sit down and have a conversation about how to address this issue. I do not want this to became some political football.” Asked if he personally thought Confederate flags should be displayed in federal cemeteries, Boehner said he did not. Pulling the bill did not stop the Democrats. Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California introduced a privileged resolution that would ban any state flags that include elements of the Confederate flag from the U.S. Capitol complex. Using a privileged resolution, Ms. Pelosi was attempting to force a vote without approval from the Republican leadership. Tempers flared on the House floor. Both Democratic and Republican members shouted loudly and banged on chairs over whether a vote should be held on the Pelosi’s resolution. The Republican majority prevailed, and the measure was instead sent to committee, where a hearing will be held. Afterward, House Democrats held a news conference asking why the Republican leadership felt it needed to hold a hearing on banning any image of the Confederate flag from the U.S. Capitol and congressional office buildings. The Democrats argued that the flag is an historical artifact and should be relegated to museums. A spokesman for Boehner released a statement saying he was trying to find a mature solution to the sensitive flag issue and accused Ms. Pelosi of staging a cheap political stunt on the House floor. Public and private initiatives to ban the Confederate flag were reignited after nine parishioners of a black church in Charleston, South Carolina, were fatally shot during Bible study June 17. Photos later emerged showing Dylann Roof, a white youth who has been charged in the shootings, holding the Confederate flag, which many Americans consider a symbol of the American South's era of slavery and white supremacy. FBI chief says his agents broke up July 4 terror plots By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The head of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation said Thursday that agents broke up a number of terror plots in the weeks leading up to the Independence Day holiday. "I do believe our work disrupted efforts to kill people, likely in connection with July 4," Director James Comey told reporters. He said more than 10 people were arrested. But he gave no information about what they were plotting or where they planned to strike. Separately, a national security source said multiple overseas plots by Islamic State sympathizers had also been halted in recent days. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security had issued warnings of possible terrorist attacks to be carried out on July 4, when millions of Americans were celebrating Independence Day with concerts, parties, picnics and fireworks shows. Comey said the Islamic State group was encouraging would-be homegrown terrorists to act and that some of those arrested had been communicating with the militants through encrypted message platforms. The FBI has pressured tech companies to remove encryption that gives users privacy protections that cannot be broken by law enforcement. Comey estimated that dozens of people influenced by Islamic State have "gone dark" and disappeared from the FBI's watch because of encrypted data. The director said said the FBI was especially challenged because Islamic State-inspired terrorists are highly unpredictable and act on the spur of the moment. Comey noted that the FBI does not discount the possibility that an individual who plans an act of terrorism for a particular day such as July 4 might randomly decide to kill someone earlier. He cited as an example the case of a 26-year-old terror suspect who was fatally shot by police in Boston last month after authorities said he lunged at them with a military-style knife. The FBI has said he had been scheming with other men, both now facing charges, on a future plot to kill a conservative blogger known for provoking Muslims but decided to change plans.  Voice of America photo
The Ernest Hemingway villa
in Havana.Hemingway
home in Havana
links U.S. and Cuban cultures By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Finca Vigia, Ernest Hemingway’s Havana home, is a grand reminder of Cuba’s past and its love for the famous American author. It’s about to undergo a major restoration, a project made possible, in part, by warming diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Cuba. “Ernest Hemingway is really something that unites them," Hemingway’s grandson, John, said in a telephone interview from Spain. "He is apolitical. He is for the Cuban people. He is very much an American writer. He is the perfect bridge between the two countries.” President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raúl Castro began rebuilding that bridge when they met at the Summit of the Americas in April. Since then, a sense of anticipation has been building on the island nation, and among many Cubans living in the U.S. Marc Hanson from the Washington Office on Latin America said the change was long overdue. “Our Cuban policy has run counter to our values for quite some time," he said. "Younger people don’t get it. Most people don’t get it. And even in the Cuban-American community, what we’re seeing now is that they increasingly don’t think it’s the right strategy going forward.” Although opposition continues in the U.S. Congress to lifting the decades-long economic embargo, mainly because of human rights concerns, American companies are already seeking ways to do business with Cuba. The younger Hemingway, a frequent visitor to the island, said the Cubans are ready. “They want change. They want a normal life," he said. "This is something they are very anxious about. They want it. They are really looking forward to seeing change, to a kind of liberalization in relations and enjoying the kind of normality that other countries have." Russia called top threat to U.S. national security By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
A U.S. general ranked Russia and China as the number one and two threats to the United States national security. “Russia presents the greatest threat to our national security,” Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford said Thursday during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Russia’s behavior is nothing short of alarming, he added. Asked whether the United States should provide lethal weapons to Ukraine, Dunford said that from a military standpoint, it would be a reasonable response. Without that kind of support, Ukrainians are not going to be able to defend themselves against Russian aggression and fight against pro-Russian separatists in eastern region of their country, Dunford said. Chairman of the committee, Arizona Sen. John McCain interjected, saying that “in Europe, Vladimir Putin's Russia continues its onslaught in Ukraine." “But even as Russian troops and equipment execute this neo-imperial campaign to undermine Ukraine's government and independence, the United States has refused Ukraine the weapons it needs and deserves for its defense,” he said. Relations between Russia and the West have sunk to the lowest point in post-Cold War period, because Moscow's annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and its support for pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. The United States and the European Union have imposed sanctions on Russia, but so far no lethal arms are provided to the Ukrainian forces. Asked about China, Dunford said he would rank that country as the second potential threat to the U.S. national security. “China is not necessarily our enemy,” but said it is his responsibility to evaluate the military capability of that country vis-à-vis the U.S. national security. In his prepared testimony, Dunford said China’s “rapid military modernization and growing defense budgets, have led many in the region — including the United States — to question its long-term intentions.” Dunford also listed North Korea and the so-called Islamic State militant group among other top threats, though he pointed out his ranking was not an indication of the order the U.S. should deal with each potential threat. |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents of this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2015 and may not be reproduced anywhere without
permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica's sixth news page |
|
||||||||
| San José, Costa Rica, Friday, July 10, 2015, Vol. 15, No. 135 | |||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
||
|
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The weather is looking up. A tropical wave, a trough of low pressure, passed over the country without generating substantial rain. At 8 p.m. the Instituto Meteorológico Nacional said that the most rain, some 75 millimeters or about 3 inches, fell on Cerro Chitaría in the Central Valley. Elsewhere in the country there was a scattering of rain with the largest amount being about 15 millimeters, a bit more than half an inch. The prediction for today is for cloudy skies with thunderstorms on the Pacific coast and perhaps in the Central Valley. There might even be some rain in drought-stricken Guanacaste later today, the institute said. The weather institute said in an evening report that rivers had returned to their banks. Emergency officials were concerned about the latest tropical wave because previous ones have brought so much rain and damage. Plus the system looked fierce on weather radar in the late afternoon. President Luis Guillermo Solís visited a shelter in Sarapiquí Thursday and later visited shelters in Pococí, Limón, Matina and Turrialba. The number of individuals in shelters was reduced by half to about 827 Thursday, said the national emergency commission. Most roads were reported open, and the biggest job now becomes evaluation of the damage from the third weather emergency in three weeks. The Servicio Nacional de Salud Animal expressed concern for some 14,000 head of livestock in the northeaster part of the country where the rain and damage was the heaviest. Some efforts will be made to bring in feed. The tropical waves are unique to the tropics although some have been known to pass over the southern part of the United States. They are believed to be the product of wind currents in Africa. These troughs of low pressure travel west and frequently circle the globe. The wave that passed over the country late Thursday and early today ended up becoming a disturbance off the coast of Guatemala, said the U.S. Hurricane Center. The center said it expected the system to organize and become at least a tropical depression over the next few days. Monetary Fund cuts growth prediction By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The International Monetary Fund trimmed its 2015 global economic forecast Thursday, saying the main culprit was weaker growth in the United States, the world's largest economy. The Monetary Fund is predicting 3.3 percent growth across the world this year, down from its 3.5 percent prediction in April. With foul winter weather in early 2015, the American economy contracted two-tenths of a percentage point in the first quarter, and the Monetary Fund has cut its U.S. growth forecast for the year to 2.5 percent, just slightly above the 2014 figure. But the Washington-based agency is projecting 3 percent growth in the United States in 2016, with global growth accelerating to 3.8 percent. |
| Costa Rican News |
AMCostaRicaArchives.com |
Retire NOW
in Costa Rica |
CostaRicaReport.com |
| Fine Dining
in Costa Rica |
The CAFTA Report |
Fish
fabulous Costa Rica |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food |
|
| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The
contents of this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2015 and may not be reproduced anywhere without
permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details |
||||||
| From
Page 7: Economics minister promotes commerce in Guanacaste By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The economics minister is visiting Guanacaste just in time for the marimba festival. The festival is in Santa Bárbara de Santa Cuz for three days through Sunday as a tourism draw and to keep the musical instrument and its associated culture alive. The minister, Welmer Ramos, began a visit Thursday with the goal of developing commercial contacts in the area. The Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Comercio said the hope is to discuss initiatives that will provide help in the development process. Today the minister and his team will be in La Cruz, Santa Cruz, Nicoya, Carrillo and Hojancha where they were expected to discuss reducing paperwork and encouraging small and medium enterprises to consider financing through the Sistema de Banca para el Desarrollo. |
