iNews Briefs
Cayman Islands government calls for Heroes Day Award nominations
Nominations for the Heroes Day Awards in Health Services are now open. Forms are available online at www.ministryofhealth.gov.ky
. Monday, 30th September, is the deadline for submissions.
The public is encouraged to nominate their heroes to be recognised for their contributions towards the development of health services.
Cayman Islands NS Golf Club has 1st winner of Social Corporate League
Team Appleby had the honour to become the very first winner of the Cayman Islands North Sound Golf Club’s Social Corporate League.
70 players played in the league ranging from first timers to low handicappers. The series ran over a six week period. Each team included at least one female golfer per match. Fiona Crellin and Brian Ross led team Appleby.
DOJ announces Ferguson Police Dept. Civil Rights Investigation
From National Law Journal
Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. announced on Thursday (4) that the U.S. Department of Justice had initiated an investigation into the practices of the Ferguson, Mo., Police Department.
The civil probe will investigate whether the police department “engaged in systemic violations of the Constitution or federal law,” according to a Justice Department statement. The department already has a separate, ongoing criminal civil rights investigation into the Aug. 9 fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown by a Ferguson police officer.
At a press conference on Thursday, Holder said he heard from Ferguson residents about the “deep mistrust” between the community and law enforcement during a visit to Ferguson two weeks ago, according to prepared remarks the department provided. Holder said:
These anecdotal accounts underscored the history of mistrust of law enforcement in Ferguson that has received a good deal of attention. As a result of this history—and following an extensive review of documented allegations and other available data—we have determined that there is cause for the Justice Department to open an investigation to determine whether Ferguson Police officials have engaged in a pattern or practice of violations of the U.S. Constitution or federal law.
Holder today also announced that the department would be working with the St. Louis County Police Department to review its policing practices and its handling of the protests in Ferguson following Brown’s death.
Artist and conservationist Guy Harvey debuts T.V. documentaries
By Carlos Frías From Quickpulse
The ultra-realistic sea life works of artist Guy Harvey are set to pop up in yet another unexpected location: your television set.
Harvey, whose marine wildlife paintings grace everything from T-shirts to cruise ships, has produced a pair of hour-long documentaries that will begin airing Saturday night at 9 a.m. on the cable network Destination America.
Harvey — equal parts artist, marine biologist and conservationist — produced the documentaries with Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and producer George Schellenger. An avid underwater cameraman, Harvey also helped film each of the films.
The first film, “Giants of the Gulf,” takes viewers inside Harvey’s encounters with whale sharks off Isla Mujeres, Mexico. He gets up close with these world’s-largest fish — which can grow up to 45 feet long — as they come to these remote islands near the Yucatan peninsula to feed once a year.
“Sharks of North America” explores man’s complicated relationship with sharks. Harvey spends time both in the water with man-eating Tiger Sharks in North America, Whitetips in the Cayman Islands (where he lives most of the year), and makos, hammerheads. But he also tells the story of a of a young woman recovering from a brutal shark attack who has become an outspoken shark conservationist.
The films will each will air twice during September with “Giants of the Gulf” premiering Saturday 6 at 9 a.m. (Comcast channel 113 in West Palm Beach, DirecTV channel 286).
EU Needs Solution to Ukraine Crisis That Would Respect Its Territorial Integrity – Ashton
MILAN (RIA Novosti) – EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Saturday that the European Union needs a sustainable political solution to the Ukrainian crisis that respects Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
“We need a sustainable political solution that respects Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty,” Ashton told reporters following the informal talks between EU foreign ministers in Milan.
“All ministers expressed deep concern about the recent aggression by regular Russian forces… They were very clear that there is no military solution,” the EU’s foreign policy chief said.
Ashton added that she will have talks with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Brussels later in the day.
On Saturday, the European Council gathers in Brussels to appoint senior positions and discuss the situation in Ukraine.
Since mid-April, Kiev has been conducting a military operation against the southeastern regions of Ukraine that refused to recognize the legitimacy of the new government after a February coup.
The West has repeatedly accused Russia of building up forces on its border with eastern Ukraine and supplying independence supporters with weapons, a claim Moscow has rejected.
Over 2,500 people, including the victims of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crash, have been killed and more than 6,000 injured since the start of Kiev’s military operation in eastern Ukraine, according to the United Nations.
US ends funding for Caribbean HIV/AIDS programme
From Guyana Times
The University of the West Indies (UWI) says it has been advised by the United States that it has ceased funding for a regional HIV/AIDS training programme.
The UWI said that Washington had advised of the shift from September 1 as a result of a global policy shift. It said due to the change, the funding for the UWI-based Caribbean HIV/AIDS Regional Training Programme (CHART) and other funded health training partnerships, have been discontinued.
In a letter sent to the UWI, the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA), which manages US funding for HIV/AIDS globally, said “all PEPFAR (US President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief) programmes are being realigned to meet the 50 per cent care and treatment earmark mandated in authorising US legislation.
“The shift in programme focus will not include funding (of) training activities or human resources for health activities that have been the focus of the Caribbean HIV/AIDS Regional Training (CHART) Network’s scope of work. Likewise, the shift in programme focus will also affect the current Infectious Disease Residency partnership.”
The US Government said that diplomatic notification of this policy re-alignment has already occurred. HRSA said there will be a transition period, which began globally on September 1 and which will be completed by December 31 this year.
UWI Vice Chancellor, Professor E Nigel Harris, has expressed his regret at the decision made and on the early implementation timeframe. He said such a decision will have adverse implications for staff employed under the UWI CHART Programme, and meetings had been held with the affected staff members regarding this development and to discuss its implications. (CMC)
For more: http://www.guyanatimesgy.com/2014/09/06/us-ends-funding-for-caribbean-hivaids-programme/
Unusual high tides in Cayman Islands raises concerns
From Thursday (4) Grand Cayman has been experiencing unusually higher tides, especially on the north side of the island.
Local residents have said they have never known it so high with one Caymanian saying it was the highest for over 60 years.
From Lime Tree Bay to East End it is noticeable with estimates between 6 to 8 inches heights over the norm.
Areas in Snug Harbour are covered by water.
A Cayman Islands National Weather Service official said he did not know why the tides were higher than normal.
eHealth initiatives take off in the Caribbean
From The Daily Observer
WASHINGTON, Sept. 6 – The PanAmerican Health Organization (PAHO) says new eHealth initiatives are springing up in countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, in parallel with the increasing use of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) in the region.
PAHO however says while these initiatives have the potential to improve access to and quality of health care, few countries have policies in place to guide their development or exploit their full potential.
These are among the findings presented in the current issue of the Pan American Journal of Public Health (PAJPH), PAHO’s scientific journal.
Devoted entirely to eHealth, the special issue highlights the wide range of efforts currently under way in the region and presents emerging evidence about key factors that determine their success.
“Wisely used and widely applied, eHealth can be a strategic tool for improving access, expanding coverage, and increasing the financial efficiency of health care systems,” PAHO’s Domincan-born director, Dr. Carissa F. Etienne, writes in the editorial.
“ICTs are already revolutionizing access to quality comprehensive care, bridging many difficulties and enabling primary care to resolve more health issues,” she adds.
The authors say only seven countries in the region have adopted national policies on eHealth, although 19 countries have general policies on ICTs.
For more: http://antiguaobserver.com/ehealth-initiatives-take-off-in-the-caribbean/
Tracy Morgan still struggling after tragic car accident, dependent on wheelchair
From Inquisitr
It’s been a bit since we’ve heard an update on comedian Tracy Morgan. The last we heard about Morgan’s condition is when he was released from a rehab center following his hospitalization after he survived a deadly car accident.
Now, details have emerged about Morgan’s ongoing struggle to heal from the June accident that happened on the New Jersey turnpike. The accident, which killed Morgan’s friend and fellow colleague James McNair, left the actor in a wheelchair.
Attorney Benedict Morelli spoke with The Star-Ledger about Morgan’s condition and how the road to recovery hasn’t been an easy one. Of the 30 Rock star’s condition, Morelli said that while he is making progress, he is still relying on a wheelchair to get around. That said, it might be months before he could walk unassisted.
Late fees on Cayman Islands government credit cards could be tens of thousands
Following a Freedom of Information request by CNS they are reporting late fees appear to be common on cards issued to public servants and ministers.
“CNS has asked for the credit card statements of every government issued credit card from 2007 to date and so far only a handful of entities have responded in full. However, from the information commissioner’s office, the first agency to make a complete and full disclosure, to the ministry of planning most of the entities who have released statements record late fees and large interest payments.”
The article says “with no central control over the management of government credit cards the late fees bill to the public purse over the last decade could easily exceed $100,000”.
For more: http://www.caymannewsservice.com/politics/2014/09/08/late-fee-cc-bill-unknown
Censors’ board welcomes Caribbean filmmakers
From The Daily Independent
The Director-General of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), Ms. Patricia Bala, has said that Nigeria would be willing to collaborate with movie makers and other players in the film industry in the Caribbean, particularly Trinidad and Tobago, to avail themselves of the benefits in the Nigerian movie industry. Nigeria is seeking links with the country and the NVFCB gave the indication in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago’s capital, during the annual Emancipation Celebration.
At the 14th Annual Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Symposium at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre, Bala noted that: “At the NFVCB, we have our eyes on a win-win partnership with credible interests in Trinidad and Tobago to deepen our bond and nurture the gains of our cherished emancipation and self-determination without losing grips on the equally vital need to be relevant players within the global scene.
“I will like to leave you with a firm understanding that tremendous and massive opportunities abound in Nigeria’s movie industry for those interested from Trinidad and Tobago to tap into.
“These opportunities are in the form of contents that are both culturally relevant as well as a value chain of entrepreneurial activities that are mutually beneficial”.
Among those who spoke at the event were Waheed Olagunju, Executive Director, Business Development, Bank of Industry, Nigeria; Dr. Judith Aidoo, one time banker of the year in New York, Minister of Trade, Industry and Communications (Trinidad and Tobago) Vasant Barath and Al Washington, Director, Africa – USA International Chamber of Industry and Commence.
For more: http://dailyindependentnig.com/2014/09/censors-board-welcomes-caribbean-filmmakers/
Cayman Islands’ Humane Society host road show fundraiser
Nearly 20 dogs were on show at Grand Cayman’s Dart Park on South Church Street last Saturday (6) for a Humane Society road show that was part fundraiser and part adoption effort.
All the dogs were wearing orange and yellow colored “Adopt Me” covers.
Local dog trainer Heidi Suarez was also there to perform tricks with her border collies Hendrix, Sadie and Ginseng.
The shelter has more than 70 dogs and around 50 to 60 cats at present.
Cayman Islands Humane Society
Hours and Contact: Monday to Friday 11am to 5pm, Saturday 9am to 4pm
Sunday – for dog walking 9am to 12pm. We welcome dog walkers everyday!
Physical Address: 153 North Sound Road, George Town, Grand Cayman (Next to A.L. Thompson’s)
Mailing address: PO Box 1167, Grand Cayman KY1-1102, Cayman Islands
Website: http://www.caymanislandshumanesociety.com
Phone: (345) 949-1461
Emergency Phone (after hours – for injured animals needing assistance):
(345) 326-1461
Corporation Bankruptcy New Filing Alert: Order Regarding The Motion/Application For Approval of a Settlement Pursuant To Rule 9019
On September 5, 2014, an order regarding the motion/application for approval of a settlement pursuant to rule 9019 was filed in the bankruptcy case of Caribbean Petroleum Corporation and its affiliates.
The filing was assigned docket number 2140 and is described on the court’s official docket as follows:
Order Approving Settlement Agreement Between Caribbean Petroleum Liquidation Trustee and Santa Paula Oil Corporation (Related Doc # [2127]) Order Signed on 9/5/2014. (Attachments: # (1) Exhibit 1) (SH)
Caribbean Petroleum Corporation filed for bankruptcy protection, or had an involuntary bankruptcy petition filed against it, on August 12, 2010. The bankruptcy case is pending before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The case number for the lead bankruptcy case is 10-12553. The bankruptcy case is currently assigned to United States Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross. The law firm of Unknown is acting as lead bankruptcy counsel to Caribbean Petroleum Corporation in the bankruptcy case.
Missing teenager on Grand Cayman found
John Gray High School took to social media to share the good news that teen that was reported missing, Manaseh Ferguson has been found.
The 13 year old boy from George Town was reported missing today after a family member said that the he was last seen on Friday wearing his John Gray High School uniform.
The Digital Library of the Caribbean
From Around DH in 80 Days
The Digital Library of the Caribbean (dLOC) is a cooperative digital library for resources from and about the Caribbean and circum-Caribbean. dLOC provides access to digitized versions of Caribbean cultural, historical and research materials currently held in archives, libraries, and private collections. dLOC’s diverse partners serve an international community of scholars, students, and citizens by working together to preserve and to provide enhanced electronic access to cultural, historical, legal, governmental, and research materials in a common web space with a multilingual interface. The amount of open access content available through dLOC surpasses many commercial Caribbean collections and includes newspapers, official documents, ecological and economic data, maps, histories, travel accounts, literature, poetry, musical expressions, and artifacts. dLOC now provides access to 2,033,881 pages of content related to the Caribbean. dLOC registered a cumulative total of 39,831,281 hits from April 2006-March 2014.
dLOC runs many innovative programs, and research initiatives. Programs include a digitization training program for international partners and a Caribbean Studies K-12 Educational Outreach program. Projects include the Haiti: An Island Luminous and the Protecting Haitian Patrimony Initiative. In addition to its wonderful work in generating new research, dLOC has also begun to play a role in the preservation of Caribbean digital humanities. Such is the case of our feature on Day 40, About Face.
Link: http://dloc.com/
For more: http://www.arounddh.org/jekyll/update/2014/09/06/day77/
Caribbean disaster experts pass on their knowledge to the Pacific
From Radio Australia
There’s no doubt with experts from one hundred countries in Samoa, the SIDS conference was a melting pot for an exchange of ideas and initiatiives.
Caribbean disaster experts pass on their knowledge to the Pacific (Credit: ABC)
When it comes to disaster risk management, the open exchange of ideas and strategies can save lives in small island states.
Launched in 2004, the Caribbean Risk Management Initiative has served as a knowledge platform to boost disaster response and cooperation in the Caribbean.
The executive director of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency, Ronald Jackson, believes there’s much the Pacific can learn from the initiative.
Presenter: Richard Ewart
Speaker: Ronald Jackson, executive director of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency
The science behind those never-melting ice cream sandwiches
By Mary Beth Quirk From Consumerist
If you find the idea of ice cream that doesn’t melt after sitting out for hours in 80-degree heat unsettling, you aren’t alone. And because you can’t believe everything you hear on the news, our knowledge-thirsty compatriots at Consumer Reports decided to test out those never-melting ice cream sandwiches for themselves.
As well as observing how fast ice cream sandwiches melt on a hot day, Consumer Reports food scientists enlisted the aid of professional tasters to try the five different brands of ice cream sandwiches and describe them.
The Nestle ice cream started to drip 10 minutes in, with the Klondike bar joining in after 15 minutes in 100-degree heat. Ice cream sandwiches from Blue Bunny, Walgreen’s Nice! brand and Walmart Great Value were still holding together after 30 minutes, with the Walmart brand sandwich mostly intact after an hour.
And the common observation about all five? Gumminness, said testers.
“Higher quality ice cream melts clean on the mouth,” one tester noted, adding that these left an “almost foamy feel on the tongue.”
And while Walmart had said that its sandwiches melt slower due to having less cream than other ice creams, it’s no surprise the ice cream tasted gummy, because all five brands have gums added to them to prevent melting and ward off crystallization when freezing.
Check out Consumer Reports’ video of the science experiment at link below:
For more: http://consumerist.com/2014/08/11/the-science-behind-those-never-melting-ice-cream-sandwiches/
Thank You Uncle Sam
From Zacks.com
I want to thank the US government for their typical incompetence in providing reliable economic data. I have ZERO doubt that the 142,000 job additions reported Friday morning is completely wrong and will be revised upward in the future.
The best part about this report is that the Fed will consider it a dose of caution as to not raise rates too soon. Again, their two stated goals are to achieve maximum employment and keep inflation in check. At 6.1% unemployment (and a ton of underemployment) then they will not raise rates too quickly…which is good news for stock valuations.
This is truly a Goldilocks report for investors as most everything else points to acceleration in GDP and corporate earnings while the Fed stays on the sidelines. I’m happy I got back to fully long Thursday just in time for the breakout.
Best,
Steve Reitmeister (aka Reity…pronounced “Righty” )
Executive Vice President
Visit www.zacks.com/performance
Cruise ship tourist triple in 8 years and new deep water port in TCI
Two stories in Turks and Caicos Weekly News showing Cayman should be concerned
EAST CAICOS CRUISE PORT
A NEW deep water port is set to be built in East Caicos allowing a second point of access for cruise ships in the TCI.
Cash from a multi-million dollar European Union fund for development will go towards construction of the facility – details of which have yet to be finalised.
Minister of Finance Washington Misick made the announcement during his address to the House of Assembly last week.
He explained that the cruise industry is extremely lucrative, and revealed that the Grand Turk Cruise Centre is likely to welcome a record breaking one million passengers this year.
CRUISE SHIP TOURISTS TRIPLE IN EIGHT YEARS
- Mon, Sep 08, 2014
MORE than one million cruise ship passengers are set to arrive at Grand Turk Cruise Centre this year.
The figure is a staggering three and a half times more than in 2006 when just 300,000 tourists visited the country by sea.
For more: http://tcweeklynews.com/cruise-ship-tourists-triple-in-eight-years-p5411-127.htm
Taiwan restaurant apologizes for naming a dish “Long Live the Nazis”
By Mary Beth Quirk From Consumerist
While I suppose there could be a worse name for a pasta dish, “Long Live the Nazis” is pretty much as horrifying as it gets. Yet the manager of an Italian restaurant in Taiwan says they had no idea the moniker for menu items featuring a German sausage would be a bad idea. Or just completely offensive.
“When we were deciding on a name for this pasta dish, it never occurred to us that the word Nazi would stir up such controversy,” the 24-year-old manager of the restaurant tells the Wall Street Journal’s China Real Time blog, along with an apology.
She explains that the motive behind the name was to make the connection in customers’ minds between the German ingredients in the dish to the country.
There’s also a pizza under the same name, or there was until a local TV station featured the restaurant’s dish last week.
But before that segment brought on an onslaught of complaints, the manager says no one had anything bad to say about it.
“In fact, it is considered one of our most popular dishes,” she said.
Unsurprisingly, both Israeli and German officials in Taiwan are not pleased with the name and its connection to the murder of 11 million people, saying they’re shocked at the lack of understanding about history and mass killings at the hands of the Nazis, according to the European Pressphoto Agency.
The WSJ reports that the new name of the pasta and pizza dish is “Long Live Purity,” because, “We hope from now on, customers who eat this dish will enjoy it in sheer joy,” the manager said.
Maybe it’s better to just call it “German sausage and pasta.”
Changes in fees for U.S. consular services effective September 12, 2014
From Bahama Islands Info
NASSAU, Bahamas — On August 28, the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs announced changes to the fees for some U.S. consular services. The new fees will go into effect on September 12. The fees for visitor (B1/B2) and student (F1/M1/J1) visas were not affected by the change and will remain the same.
The Bureau of Consular Affairs, which operates on a fee-for-service basis, is adjusting the fees to more accurately reflect the costs of providing services based on the most recent update to the Bureau of Consular Affairs’ cost of service model. The fees for most categories of immigrant visas will change, while fees for nonimmigrant visas largely remain the same. All visa applicants will be charged the fee in effect on the day of payment.
Under the new schedule, processing fees for nonimmigrant and immigrant visa applicants will change as follows. Administrative service fees, such as documenting renunciation of citizenship, have also been revised to reflect the real, unsubsidized cost of providing these services.
The Department will accept public comments at www.regulations.gov on this interim rule for 60 days after the date of publication. At the close of the comment period, the Department will review and consider any comments received from the public and the published final rule will include responses to the comments received. More information about the fee changes may also be found on the Department of State, travel.state.gov Internet site at: http://travel.state.gov/content/travel/english.html and on the Fees for Visa Services webpage.
See attached for fees.
