Sunday, September 1, 2024
Home Blog Page 137

Give the Gift of Life at the Blood Drive

by the El Reportero’s staff

 

The holidays often inspire a desire to give back in appreciation for all the gifts we’ve been given.

A great way to do that and make an immediate impact on our community is by donating life-giving blood. This is especially true during the holiday season, when donations tend to decline as people are busy traveling, shopping, and attending events.

To make it easy to donate, Vitalant is hosting a Redwood City blood drive on Tuesday, Dec. 17 from 1 to 6 p.m. at the Downtown Library located at 1044 Middlefield Road.

All donors receive a special pair of donor socks.

 

Dancing at Cha Cha Cha into 2020

Brighten up with live Latin music at Cha Cha Cha. Great groups, great music in the heart of the Mission District in SF. Superb for listening and dancing while you enjoy tasty tapas and cocktails.

Come and delight with Quinteto La Moderna on Dec. 10, and John Villalobos on Dec. 17, from 8:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., at Cha Cha Cha, 2327 Mission Street at 19th St., San Francisco. Free Admission.

 

Yoshi’s Oakland presents Pacific Mambo Orchestra

The Bay Area’s own 2014 Grammy® Award winning 20-piece Latin Big Band ‘Pacific Mambo Orchestra’ is celebrating its 10-Year Anniversary with the release of its 3rd album, entitled ‘The III Side.

The new album is featuring guest artists Jon Faddis, Dafnis Prieto, Herman Olivera and Alex Britti.

PMO’s sets will include all brand-new material and never-heard-of-before musical premieres, including Sergei Rachmaninoff’s 2nd Piano Concerto Mambo-style……what?

PMO is directed by Mexican-born Pianist Christian Tumalan and German-born Trumpeter Steffen Kuehn, each one a highly skilled and experienced artist in their own right. The Orchestra’s instrumentation consists of 4 Trumpets, 4 Trombones, 5 Saxophones, Piano, Bass, Timbales, Congas, Bongos and 2 Lead Singers, the charismatic Christelle Durandy and Armando Cordoba.

Powered by a sensational Percussion section featuring Venezuelan Timbalero Omar Ledezma Jr, Carlos Santana’s own Karl Perazzo on Congas and Peruvian Braulio Barrera on Bongos, the band also showcases savvy improvisers forged in the region’s most celebrated Latin bands.

On Jan. 2-3, 2020, at Yoshi’s, Jack London Square, Oakland.

50 people you need to know, now

San Francisco Public Library presents Changemakers: Bay Area Disability Pride

 

With funding from the Library Services and Technology Act and federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, San Francisco Public Library, San Mateo County Libraries and San Jose Public Library joined forces to develop a series of programs aimed at advancing a more inclusive society for people with disabilities.

SFPL worked with curator Fran Osbourne to develop the Changemakers exhibition, which also appeared at the San Mateo Public Library in 2019. Osbourne orchestrated the selection process for the featured “changemakers”, which includes over 50 people who have made outstanding contributions to the disability community through activism, arts and culture, business, education, leadership, science and technology and sports. She also partnered with local art programs considered to be leaders of social change and inclusion. All of the exhibition artists have a regular artistic practice and work in studios with a group of their peers. Instructors are usually professional artists and offer support rather than direction.

For all the events dates and times in January 2019, please visit: https://sfpl.org/releases/author/public-affairs/

 

City of Redwood City Launches Pilot Program with Downtown Streets Team

Help the Homeless Get Back into the Workforce and Housing

 

The City of Redwood City recently launched a two-year pilot program run by the Downtown Streets Team to help individuals who are currently homeless, or at-risk of becoming homeless, transition into long-term employment and housing.

To participate, people experiencing homelessness should attend a Downtown Streets Team Weekly Success Team Meeting, held every Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the Dragon Theatre, located at 2120 Broadway in Redwood City. At the beginning of the program the volunteers will focus on downtown from 8 a.m. to noon daily. Soon, the team will expand it to other areas of the city.

Jen Canela wraps up a successful year by releasing his fifth single “Más Nadie”

by the El Reportero’s news servies

 

The international superstar, Jen Canela closes his year off on a good note with the release of his newest musical venture titled Más Nadie alongside Puerto Rican artist, Mackie. The song is available worldwide on all digital platforms and comes in hand with a music video found on YouTube.

Más Nadie is the fifth single Jen releases this year. It incorporates tropical rhythms and is accompanied by a mix of reggae.

 

Los Tigres Del Norte’s album pays tribute to Vicente Fernández

The northern group, Los Tigres Del Norte, pay with admiration and respect, a tribute to the so-called Charro de Huentitán ’in an off-series album, “Divine Women.”

The North Tigers put their style to this theme inspired by Martín Urieta, where they are also accompanied by the mariachi notes.

 

Ecuador National Library will reopen for national cultural benefit

The government of Ecuador is working to accelerate the reopening of the National Library, which will be located at the Eugenio Espejo Convention Center, in the center of this capital.

The next inauguration of the installation will be a reality thanks to an agreement signed between the Ministry of Culture and Heritage and the municipality of the Metropolitan District of Quito.

The legal mechanism was signed by the minister of Culture, Juan Fernando Velazco, and the mayor of Quito, Jorge Yunda.

According to Velazco, the institution will be a space for consultation and research work, in addition to offering social and cultural service, of special relevance to citizens.

The agreement seeks to combine efforts for the promotion, dissemination, coordination and safeguarding of the State’s documentary heritage, through the implementation of the Eugenio Espejo National Library.

The Library will have deposits for hemerographic, bibliographic and documentary material, reading rooms that seek to provide comprehensive attention to citizens, administrative and technical areas, spaces for cultural management, programming of educational activities and links with the community.

The agreement will last for 20 years and may be renewed by agreement of the parties.

 

León, Guanajuato, prepares for its annual 26-day party

The state fair will run from January 10 until February 4

León, Guanajuato, is getting ready to host the 144th annual State Fair, a 26-day celebration featuring concerts, shows, rides, gastronomy, sports and much more.

“The 2020 edition of the León State Fair will surprise with its grand display of spectacles, presentations and shows for national and international visitors,” said the head of the festival board, Juan Carlos Muñoz Márquez, at a press conference in Mexico City.

From January 10 to February 4, Palenque de León park will dazzle with events such as the show Destino: A Trip through Mexico, created exclusively for the fair by Mexican producers, which features acrobats from 17 different countries.

There will also be a concert by DJ Steve Aoki, among other attractions for people of all ages.

“The Secretary of Tourism and the municipality of León are making a joint effort to create a more accessible fair, a fair for the whole family that offers security and respect on the part of the people of León,” said Muñoz.

Federal Tourism Secretariat official Hilario Pérez León acknowledged the importance of the fair to tourism at the national level.

“The León State Fair has been put on since 1876 and in 2018 it was declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Guanajuato,” she said. “It’s also celebrating its 144th anniversary, consolidating its place among the three largest festivals in Mexico.”

Guanajuato state Tourism Secretary Teresa Matamoros Montes said the fair only gets better each year.

“It’s an event that’s strengthened and eagerly awaited by locals, which provides a wide cultural offering for all families… It is estimated that the fair will bring in 3 billion pesos (US $157 million) in tourism [revenues],” she said.

Five thousand inventions in limbo and under “secrecy orders” at the US Patent Office

by Jon Rappoport

 

I wrote and posted this article in 2018. I recently revisited it and confirmed how important this information, gathered by Steve Aftergood, is.

For decades, people have been accusing the government of hiding advanced technology. Here we have a serious clue. Something in the record and on the record. It is only a very small piece of the puzzle, but it’s a potent piece, if you’ll stop and think about it.

The world is waking up to censorship of information by the press, by corporations, and by government. Here we have what amounts to a US government POLICY of censoring certain inventions, groundbreaking inventions.

Here is my brief 2018 piece:

How many of these patents, if granted, would be game changers for planet Earth? Who knows?

Buckle up. Here we go.

From FAS (Federation of American Scientists), Secrecy News, Oct. 21, 2010, “Invention Secrecy Still Going Strong,” by Steven Aftergood:

“There were 5,135 inventions that were under secrecy orders at the end of Fiscal Year 2010, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office told Secrecy News last week. It’s a 1% rise over the year before, and the highest total in more than a decade.”

“Under the Invention Secrecy Act of 1951, patent applications on new inventions can be subject to secrecy orders restricting their publication if government agencies believe that disclosure would be ‘detrimental to the national security’.”

“The current list of technology areas that is used to screen patent applications for possible restriction under the Invention Secrecy Act is not publicly available and has been denied under the Freedom of Information Act. (An appeal is pending.)…”

“Most of the listed technology areas are closely related to military applications. But some of them range more widely.”

“Thus, the 1971 list indicates that patents for solar photovoltaic generators were subject to review and possible restriction IF THE PHOTOVOLTAICS WERE MORE THAN 20% EFFICIENT. Energy conversion systems were likewise subject to review and possible restriction IF THEY OFFERED CONVERSION EFFICIENCIES ‘IN EXCESS OF 70-80%’.” (Emphasis is mine.)

“One may fairly ask if disclosure of such technologies could really have been ‘detrimental to the national security,’ or whether the opposite would be closer to the truth. One may further ask what comparable advances in technology may be subject to restriction and non-disclosure today. But no answers are forthcoming, and the invention secrecy system persists with no discernible external review.”

If you’re one of those people who maintains that advanced technology is being held away from the public, here is an overall smoking gun that validates your stance.

And you can see that breakthrough energy tech, which would radically lessen the need for oil, would be on the secrecy-do-not-release list.

What else is on the list? Old Tesla patents, for example?

The US Patent Office is an official chokepoint for the “planned society”—or should we say the “restricted society.”

But this is not to say advanced technology is always shelved or scuttled. The patent applications, in suspended animation at the US Patent Office, can be quietly disclosed, for example, to government researchers engaged in black-budget projects, where the data and the research are turned to “other uses.”

Innovative inventors, who can revolutionize society for the good, incur risks if they submit their patent applications to the State. Getting trapped in limbo, while outright theft of their research occurs, is one of those risks.

On the other hand, if a giant corporation has an invention that deploys the genetic engineering of food crops, and adds millions of tons of toxic pesticides to the environment, its patent application sails through review at the Patent Office…

(Jon Rappoport is the author of three explosive collections, The Matrix Revealed, Exit From The Matrix, and Power Outside The Matrix).

 

 

Is western media credible anymore?

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

 

Dear readers:

 

Many of us have heard so much about fake news and all of that, lately. So, Tyler Durden bring us this interesting analysis piece that puts into question the mainstream media, going back to their coverage of the wars in the Middle East to Latin America. Hope you enjoy it. – Marvin Ramírez.

 

by Tyler Durden

Authored by Prof. Engr. Zamir Ahmed Awan for The Saker Blog

 

Western media is spreading fake news and fabricating stories with evil intentions. Western Media is biased and creating unrest and chaos in various parts of the world. Media is being used by the Western world to coerce, influence and achieve their ill-political motives. Unfortunately, Western Media is already dominating and controlling public opinion throughout the world.

Let me give you a particular example of the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation). BBC reported that the Saddam Hussain regime in Iraq possesses Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). America along with its allies attacked Iraq, destroyed Iraq, killed millions of people, damaged Infrastructure, Power Houses, Telecommunication, Hospitals, Schools, Churches, Mosques, Roads, Industry, Oil Wells, Refineries, etc. Finally noticed that there were no Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Later on, the British Prime Minister of that time, acknowledged that the BBC news was not accurate, and information about WMD was not correct. But after damaging a country totally and harming millions of people, pushing Iraq into stone ages, one’s mere apology may not be accepted and may not be forgiven by humanity, irreversible damage to Iraq may never be forgotten by the history.

It is worth mentioning, Iraq was a very stable, oil-rich, and total welfare state under President Saddam Hussain. Education, health care was free of cost to its citizens, plenty of food, variety of food was available abundantly. Electricity was available in all parts of the country in abundance sufficiently. Fuel and items of daily use were available everywhere conveniently. The society was very much stable, satisfied and living a comfortable life. All factions of the society were enjoying harmony and was a tolerant society. It might be possible a few exceptionally politicians opposing the ruling party “Bath” or President Saddam Hussain, were victimized. They might be few in numbers or two digits only. But the vast majority of the nation was comfortable with the rulers.

But after the US war on Iraq, today, people of Iraq are facing a shortage of food, fuel, electricity, medicines, and items of daily life. No free education and health care are provided by the government. The society is extremely polarized, intolerance and factionist are very much common. Terrorism, lawlessness, and chaos are witnesses everywhere.

Is publically apology is sufficient to cool down the suffering of millions of Iraqis? Can anyone ignore the dirty role of the BBC? Is it possible, people of Iraq forget the BBC? Can the victim forgive the BBC?

It is only one example only. The same trick was played in the case of Syria. BBC reported that the Syrian Government possesses Chemical Weapons and is using against rebellions.

Western Alliance NATO, under the US leadership, attacked Syria, killed millions of innocent people, displace millions of common citizens, damaged the whole country, and pushed the Syrian into stone ages. Forced the Syrian people to take asylum in the Western World where they are humiliated, especial the women and children are being abused. A huge portion is forced to live in temporary camps within the country, where life is very hard and lacks the basic amenities of daily life. Western World has made the life on common Syrian misery and curse only. While Syrians was a very stable country, may not be very rich, but with all basic amenities available conveniently.

Nature has blessed the Syrians with best fruits and vegetables, and traditional Syrian food is one of the important attractions in the region. The people of Syria are very pretty and a superior creature. They can compete any beauty villain in the world easily. The law and order situation was very much comfortable and society was stable and living in harmony.

The same is the case of Libya, where ill-motivated fake news led to the destruction of a sovereign country. A very stable, oil-rich nation turned into chaos and lawlessness. A nation with all comforts and facilities has been deprived of even basic needs of life. A sate with total welfare for its citizens has been changed into a lack of everything like food, medicines, fuel, electricity, etc.

The situation in Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia, and Afghanistan is not much different than this. The US admits its role in spreading fake information about Afghanistan and admits its failure in Afghanistan. Pakistan, Turkey, and Iran are on the list and Western World is engaged in a hybrid war, where media is the basic weapon and in some cases over-engaged in spreading fake news and fabrication of stories to create chaos and promote instability.

In Pakistan, we noticed many illegal radio stations operating by Western-funded NGOs, spreading hate, misinformation, and troubles only. Many media houses and individual journalists are hired by Western World and used as front-man or under-cover operation of hybrid war in Pakistan.

Only in the Middle East, around two million people have been killed, several million have been displaced from their homes, either to live in Camps or to move to other countries seeking asylums.

In fact, the world is full of such examples and unfortunately, the developing world is the victim and under direct target.

The recent reports regarding Mike Pompeo regarding lies, cheating, stealing, etc are further confirmation that information is deliberately changed to achieve designed results. The US role in

1970s ‘Operation Condor,’ in which South American dictators systematically tortured and killed dissidents in the region. An estimated 60,000 people were killed by the Latin American states in the clandestine operation, 30,000 in Argentina alone.

Covert operations, ousting democratically elected governments, inciting revolts and supporting transnational companies are run of the mill actions for the CIA, all justified as part of the fight against those who question U.S. interests. Actions that continue until this day. In 2018, one of its offshoots, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) channeled over US$23 million to meddle in the internal affairs of key Latin American countries, under the flagship of “human rights” or “democracy,” which represent a real menace for national sovereignty and the continuity of progressive governments in the region and the world.

These are the only few known facts, there must be much more in various parts of the world similar incidents and fake news or spread of misinformation.

I believe the Western World is misusing Media and the spread of distorted information as an unarmed wing or tool of defense and diplomatic strategies, to achieve their evil goals. It seems Western media is notorious for spreading fake news and the fabrication of stories. They have lost their credibility at all. The intellectuals and people with common sense no more believe Western Media anymore. The credibility of Western Media is challenged and lost recognition among the people having conscious.

I understand some of you may disagree with my opinion and maybe offended but at least it may initiate an open debate.

Let’s build a better world, where tomorrow should be better than yesterday. Our next-generation must not face the same challenges which we have faced. Love humanity, love peace, seek the truth.

Researchers find strong links between working memory and age, sleep quality and mood

by Grace Olson

 

Working memory is an important part of a person’s day-to-day activity, and numerous factors affect it. In a recent report, scientists linked three health-related factors – sleep, age and depressed mood – to working memory. Their findings, which appeared in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, focused on the qualitative and quantitative aspects of working memory and how these three factors affect them.

https://www.medicaldaily.com/working-memory-affected-sleep-and-mood-study-finds-434910

Effects of sleep quality, mood and age on working memory

Working memory (WM) is a part of a person’s short-term memory which helps with temporarily storing and managing information. The process is often used in tasks that require a higher level of cognitive ability – including assessing situations, speaking a language and navigating a person’s surroundings.

Several studies have examined how different factors affect WM. A study in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, for instance, concluded that having an unpleasant emotional state impeded WM, especially in people who quickly become anxious. Problems in WM is one of the markers of cognitive decline and other age-related conditions.

A separate review that examined the relationship between sleep deprivation and WM affirmed that lack of sleep inhibits optimal working memory performance. The research suggested that reduced performance was due to reduced neural activation in parts of the brain related to WM.

Quantitative and qualitative memory

For Weiwei Zhang, a co-author of the current study and a psychology professor at the University of California (UC), Riverside, most studies on working memory had a piecemeal approach – they only looked at one potential factor at a time. As he and his team pointed out, these factors were, in fact, closely related.

The researchers wanted to examine how these three factors affect WM – more specifically, its qualitative and quantitative aspects. The former refers to the accuracy of memory while the latter refers to the amount of information a person recalls.

To gather data, they conducted two studies that used a short-term recall task in order to assess WM.

For the first study, they sampled 110 college students, who self-reported measures of regular sleep quality and depressed mood. Sleep and mood are often linked to reduced quantitative aspects of WM.

In the second study, they examined the qualitative relationship between WM and age. They gathered data from 31 members in the community. Ages ranged from 21 to 77 years old.

The first study revealed that poor sleep quality and depressed mood contributed to worse quantitative WM. It meant that people who slept less and had longer negative moods were less likely to store short-term memory.

As for the second study, researchers identified that age had an inverse relationship with WM precision. It meant that as a person ages, he or she is more likely to confuse details and have less accurate recollections.

Overall, the researchers determined that these three factors have dissociable effects on WM. They believed that considering multiple factors, instead of one, could help advance future interventions and treatments for WM.

How to maintain an optimal working memory

Sleep, mood and age are part of any person’s life. Here are some natural tips to ensure that these three work together to maintain proper working memory:

  1. Get a good night’s sleep. Good sleep contributes not only to a better mood but better working performance as well. Increase sleep quality by sticking to a sleep schedule, keeping the room cool and dark and not eating at least three hours before bedtime.
  2. Try meditating. This practice helps process emotions and is known to improve mental health. Join a yoga class or conduct some research on yoga exercises at home.
  3. Eat more healthy foods. These include fruits, vegetables and nuts. These are rich sources of antioxidants, which help combat oxidative stress. The symptoms of oxidative stress, like wrinkling and cognitive decline, appear with age.
  4. Exercise. More physical activity boosts a person’s mood as well as his overall health. (Natural News).

Proposed public charge rule change, tied up in court, has huge chilling effect on immigrants 

by Mark Hedin

Ethnic Media Services

 

Federal courts have temporarily blocked the public charge rule change from going into effect, but its chilling effects continue to reverberate. The number of immigrants who, fearing the consequences of the rule change, have taken or plan to take steps to drop out of public services for which they are eligible far exceeds the actual number who would be at risk if the rule ever goes into effect, research data show.

In August 2019, the Trump Administration announced a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) final rule to make changes to “public charge” policies that govern how the use of public benefits may affect individuals’ ability to enter the U.S. or adjust to legal permanent resident.

Under longstanding policy, if authorities determine that an individual is “likely to become a public charge,” they may deny that person’s application for lawful permanent residence or their entry into the U.S. Certain immigrants, including refugees and asylees and other humanitarian immigrants, are exempt from public charge determinations under law.

A May study by the Urban Institute found of adults in immigrant families almost 14 percent  reported that they or another adult family member had dropped benefits or skipped applying for them,  even on behalf of a child, rather than take on the perceived risk of exposure to new rules. Among low-income families, that number rose to more than 20 percent, the study found. Programs they shied away from include: SNAP (food stamps) CHIP (children’s health insurance), and Section 8 and other types of housing assistance.

Nationwide, the families of 22.7 million people’s families include immigrants who could potentially fall victim to the chilling effect created by fear of public charge rules changes.

The proposed rule change was due to take effect Oct. 15 this year until four different federal courts all ruled to block it and issued injunctions against implementing it.

But long before, as word of the proposed rule change began leaking out ahead of its October 2018 announcement, millions of people feared being caught in its clutches and avoided using government programs intended to help them and their families lead healthier, more successful lives.

Nationwide, said Randy Capps of the Migration Policy Institute, “So few noncitizens are eligible for the safety net programs covered by the rule that those who would be affected is estimated to be in the low tens of thousands,” not millions, as cited incorrectly by both officials and the news media.

A Michigan government study found that “of 86,298 noncitizen legal immigrants receiving public assistance from the state health department, only 611 may find a tougher path to legal permanent residency if they continue receiving public benefits.” That’s less than 1 percent.

For those already in the United States, the category of people who most need to be cautious about public charge rules aren’t those receiving benefits, but those who plan to travel beyond U.S. borders.

“If I had one message for every immigrant in America I would say, ‘Look, if you’re a green card holder, don’t leave for more than 180 days,’” said former Obama administration official Doug Rand, a co-founder of Boundless.com.

The public charge rules, even if toughened as proposed, simply don’t apply to many people already in the country. Not to asylum seekers or refugees, citizens or those applying for citizenship, nor DACA, or those with green cards. Use of benefits by family members and past use of benefits also is irrelevant, even under the proposed tougher rules.

“The list of programs now considered in the public charge test is more limited than it seems at first blush,” Sara Feldman of the National Immigration Law Center said. “The impact will mostly be restricted to use of food stamps, housing subsidies and cash assistance. While Medicaid is included, there are so many exceptions in the rule that few people enrolled in the program would be impacted.”

“And use of public benefits is only one factor considered when determining who gets a green card,” Feldman added. “Immigration officials also take income, health condition, English proficiency, and other factors into account.”

The people who have most fallen victim to public charge rules are those applying to come to the United States. Since 2016, the State Department has cited public charge issues more aggressively. Visa denials on public charge grounds jumped from 1,000 in 2016 to 12,000 in 2018 at U.S. consulates around the world.

But half of those denials already have been overturned, and more may be overturned as the time-consuming appeal process continues, the Migration Policy Institute’s Jeanne Batalova pointed out at a telebriefing co-sponsored by Ethnic Media Services, the Immigrant Legal Resource Center and the National Immigration Law Center.

“The brutal irony is that people are still disenrolling from public benefits when they don’t have to,” Rand said.

Mark Greenberg, senior fellow at the Migration Policy institute, told Ethnic Media Services in a phone interview after the telebriefing that “It’s very unclear what problem the administration thought it was going to solve, because Congress had already agreed 20 years ago to public charge-based restrictions,”

“The number of people who would be denied adjustment of status based on benefit use would be low because they aren’t eligible (for those benefits),” he said, far fewer than the number feeling the effect of the proposed rule change while it wends its way through the courts.

Mexico, US, Canada sign modified trade deal but business leaders divided

Dispute resolution panels, stricter labor rules among revisions to USMCA

 

by Mexico News Daily

 

Officials from Mexico, Canada and the United States signed a revised version of the new North American free trade agreement on Tuesday, paving the way for the trilateral pact to take effect in 2020.

Foreign affairs undersecretary Jesús Seade, Deputy Prime Minister of Canada Chrystia Freeland and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer signed a protocol to modify the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) at an event in the National Palace in Mexico City attended by President López Obrador and other officials.

The revamped trade pact stipulates that within seven years, 70 percent of steel used in automaking must be melted and poured in North America in order for vehicles to qualify for zero tariffs. The rule largely shuts the door on semi-finished metal from China and elsewhere. The same rule for aluminum was not included but the three countries agreed to reconsider the possibility in 10 years.

The amended agreement – which was not made public – also allows for independent experts to carry out inspections of workplaces in Mexico to verify their compliance with new labor laws that guarantee greater rights and freedoms for union members, according to the United States and Canada.

However, undersescretary Seade denied that foreign labor inspectors would work in Mexico and said that disputes between USMCA countries would be resolved through panels.

Among other modifications, the revised accord imposes stricter labor rules that aim to reduce Mexico’s low-wage advantage and loosens intellectual property rules for medications, which is expected to help keep prices down.

A ratification vote on the revised pact could take place in the United States House of Representatives by December 20 but Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell indicated that the upper house wasn’t likely to consider the agreement until early next year.

Ricardo Monreal, leader of the ruling Morena party in the Mexican Senate, said the revised deal will go to the upper house immediately, adding that debate will begin this week. Freeland said that no ratification timetable has been set in Canada but urged parliamentarians to pass it quickly, declaring that the deal was in Canada’s national interest.

Speaking after the signing ceremony, López Obrador described the updated pact as an “agreement of global dimension,” declaring that it will attract new investment to Mexico, stimulate economic growth, create jobs and reduce migration.

He thanked lawmakers in the United States as well as U.S. President Donald Trump.

“I’m obliged to acknowledge the respectful treatment we’ve received from President Donald Trump. Some people thought that reaching this agreement wasn’t going to be possible . . . that we weren’t going to understand each other, that we were going to fight, that we were going to butt heads, and look how things are,” he said.

For his part, Lighthizer described the pact as “the best trade agreement in history,” asserting that it will make all three countries richer.

“… We in the United States have a stake in Mexico being richer. It’s important for us that Mexico succeed and I think this agreement is going to make that more likely . . .” he said.

Lighthizer praised López Obrador for supporting the deal, whose original incarnation was negotiated before he took office.

“In the middle of this negotiation, you were running for election, you took the high road, the road that was best for North America and for Mexico, you never got involved in politics with respect to this. It was a very impressive thing for all of us to watch …” he said.

Later Tuesday, Mexican business leaders offered varying assessments of the modified pact.

Among those who expressed support were Mexican Business Council president Antonio del Valle and Business Coordinating Council chief Carlos Salazar.

“We’re very happy; I believe that this [agreement] is extremely important for our country, it provides certainty for large investments… That’s why we generally agree with everything that was signed,” Salazar said.

Mexican Employers Federation (Coparmex) president Gustavo de Hoyos took a very different view, charging that Mexico had ceded too much ground.

“We’re happy that the negotiation has finished. If it went on longer we could have ended up handing over the Isthmus of Tehuantepec . . . What’s been made clear is that this government is a bad negotiator, there is a clear step backward [for Mexico] from what we got in the close of negotiations on November 30 [2018],” he said.

“I believe that what happened here is [that Mexico adopted] a position akin to [former president Antonio López de] Santa Anna … Since half of Mexico’s territory was ceded in the [1848] Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo . . . history hasn’t recorded a government that ceded more,” de Hoyos added.

He questioned why López Obrador thanked Trump considering that the “new agreement was developed under threat from beginning to end” and said that the private sector was not consulted before the revised deal was signed.

“… They [the federal government] went far beyond the limits [of] . . . the country’s best interest … We hope that we don’t find any surprises in the fine print,” de Hoyos said.

In response, Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said that Coparmex’s position was indicative of an “ideological difference” with the government whose resolution will not be possible.

“… We think … that having a lax position [on labor issues] is bad for the economy. There is a difference there [with Coparmex] and of course they’re going to be against the matter being included in the agreement.”

Source: El Economista (sp), Milenio (sp), El Financiero (sp), Reuters (en) 

 

In other Mexico news:

 

Minimum wage commission considers increase to 127 pesos per day

It will go to at least 117 pesos, up from 102, said a commission member

The federal minimum wage commission is considering raising the basic wage to as high as 127 pesos (US $6.61) per day in 2020, a 23 percent increase over the current wage of 102.68 pesos.

A member of the Conasami council told the newspaper Milenio it is planning on the new wage being at least 117 pesos (US $6.09) per day.

“We had talked previously about a base of 117 pesos, so it’s probable that it will be more,” Enrique Octavio García Méndez said. “We are waiting for the latest information from the Bank of México and the treasury office … he said.

Sources close to Conasami said the council is in permanent session and it was possible it will propose a range of minimum wages as early as Friday.

The wage is set at the beginning of each year and has historically been kept low for fear of stoking inflation.

In January, the wage went up 16 percent and for the first time in many years represented an amount that would provide the average family with the minimum for remaining above the poverty line, as set by the social development agency, Coneval.

Sources: Milenio (sp), El Sol de León (sp).

Environment secretary bullish on lithium, calls it Mexico’s ‘new oil’

Víctor Manuel Toledo also highlighted Mexico’s potential for solar energy

 

by El Reportero’s wire services

 

Lithium will be Mexico’s “new oil,” Environment Secretary Víctor Manuel Toledo said on Thursday, highlighting the country’s large deposits of the metal used in the manufacture of batteries, among other products.

In fact, the biggest lithium project in the world is in Sonora, according to the company Mining Technology.

It said in August that the mine being developed by Canada’s Bacanora Minerals and China’s Ganfeng Lithium in the municipality of Bacadéhuachi is estimated to hold proven and probable reserves of 243.8 million tonnes, containing 4.5 million tons of lithium-carbonate equivalent.

Bacanora has been operating a pilot plant in Hermosillo for the past four years, producing what it says is high-quality, battery-grade lithium carbonate samples for potential customers.

Construction of the mine was first announced by Sonora Governor Claudia Pavlovich in May 2018 and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2020. Production capacity in its first stage of operations is expected to be 15,500 tons per year of lithium carbonate, Mining Technology said, while capacity will double to 35,000 tons per year in a second stage.

That prospect led Toledo to declare that lithium will be Mexico’s “new oil.”

Potential lithium reserves have also been identified in Baja California, San Luis Potosí and Zacatecas.

The metal, Toledo reporters at the presidential press conference, is “the base not just of computers but also storage batteries” for cell phones and electric cars, among other products.

Therefore, “Mexico should be capable of making electric cars in public factories,” he said, adding that the secretariats of the Environment and Energy are currently analyzing that possibility with Mexico’s “best experts” in the field.

“We’re also one of the richest counties in solar radiation and we’re going to be a country that exports energy to the United States and Latin America,” Toledo added.

“The two most important areas in Latin America for solar radiation are the northeast of Mexico, the deserts, and the border between Chile and Bolivia . . . We’re going to be a solar energy power.”

Source: El Financiero (sp), El Imparcial (sp), Publimetro (sp

 

López Obrador stresses trade deal with US and Canada is positive step

The Free Trade Agreement between Mexico, the United States and Canada (T-MEC), signed on Tuesday, is good for the country as it is attached to its laws, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said this Wednesday.

On evaluating this tripartite trade deal in his morning press conference at the National Palace, the president added that it includes beneficial conditions for workers.

He noted that it also includes more foreign investment and will improve wages, regardless of the government policy of increasing basic salaries.

In this regard, he considered that more labor will be demanded and in many cases this will be qualified, specialized and better paid. In addition, unions will not be allowed to negotiate with companies behind the backs of workers.

Consequently, the agreement, he reiterated, is in accordance with our law, including taking into account workers, as union leaders cannot sign contracts without these being made known to members.

He said that the T-MEC has a global dimension because it will attract a lot of investment from all parts of the world, including Latin America, as Mexico offers a very strong market.

 

China-Latin America and the Caribbean Business Summit opens in Panama

Nearly 2,000 business representatives and officials from China, Latin America and the Caribbean will meet this Monday for the first time in Panama as part of the XIII China LAC Business Summit.

In previous statements to the press, the President of the organizing committee of the event, Gabriel Barletta, highlighted the role played by this mechanism in the last 13 years, mainly in those nations in the region with which the Asian giant maintains official relations.

He said that Panama’s political and economic stability, which favors the business environment between entrepreneurs and investors, the geographical position and the multimodal logistics platform influenced the decision to hold the meeting in this country.

Barletta added that the Summit will facilitate access to new markets and consolidate Panama as the gateway for entrepreneurs from other latitudes to the American continent.

‘China-LAC is a promotion mechanism and a platform that seeks greater economic cooperation, focused on boosting trade and investment,’ he said.

The China-LAC Summit, which since 2007 brings together companies from China, Latin America and the Caribbean, will meet until Wednesday in the capital’s Atlapa Convention Center.

A Merry-Achi Christmas – SF

by the El Reportero’s staff

 

Led by the incomparable José Hernández, Mariachi Sol de Mexico® returns to Davies Symphony Hall for a festive musical tribute to Mexico’s Christmas traditions!

Experience a truly international celebration, with the ensemble singing and playing holiday favorites from both Mexico and America in a vibrant performance that will have the whole family dancing in the aisles.

San Francisco Symphony, 201 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco. Tickets $35–$125. Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. – 10 p.m.

 

Dancing at Cha Cha Cha into 2020

Brighten up with live Latin music at Cha Cha Cha. Great groups, great music in the heart of the Mission District in SF. Superb for listening and dancing while you enjoy tasty tapas and cocktails.

Come and delight with Quinteto La Moderna on Dec. 10, and John Villalobos on Dec. 17, from 8:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., at Cha Cha Cha, 2327 Mission Street at 19th St., San Francisco. Free Admission.

Give the Gift of Life at the Blood Drive

The holidays often inspire a desire to give back in appreciation for all the gifts we’ve been given.

A great way to do that and make an immediate impact on our community is by donating life-giving blood. This is especially true during the holiday season, when donations tend to decline as people are busy traveling, shopping, and attending events.

To make it easy to donate, Vitalant is hosting a Redwood City blood drive on Tuesday, Dec. 17 from 1 to 6 p.m. at the Downtown Library located at 1044 Middlefield Road.

All donors receive a special pair of donor socks.

 

City of Redwood City Launches Pilot Program with Downtown Streets Team

Help the Homeless Get Back into the Workforce and Housing

 

The City of Redwood City recently launched a two-year pilot program run by the Downtown Streets Team to help individuals who are currently homeless, or at-risk of becoming homeless, transition into long-term employment and housing.

The Downtown Streets Program provides these residents in need with volunteer work experience they need to gain the necessary skills to get jobs, as well as basic needs stipends, employment resources and intensive case management.

Volunteer work will include litter pickup, emptying trash receptacles and reporting vandalism and graffiti. As part of the program, participants will be offered social work services to help them find jobs and learn about other support programs available, including low income housing opportunities.

To participate, people experiencing homelessness should attend a Downtown Streets Team Weekly Success Team Meeting, held every Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the Dragon Theatre, located at 2120 Broadway in Redwood City. At the beginning of the program the volunteers will focus on downtown from 8 a.m. to noon daily. Soon, the team will expand it to other areas of the city.

 

50 people you need to know, now

San Francisco Public Library presents Changemakers: Bay Area Disability Pride

 

With funding from the Library Services and Technology Act and federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, San Francisco Public Library, San Mateo County Libraries and San Jose Public Library joined forces to develop a series of programs aimed at advancing a more inclusive society for people with disabilities.

SFPL worked with curator Fran Osbourne to develop the Changemakers exhibition, which also appeared at the San Mateo Public Library in 2019. Osbourne orchestrated the selection process for the featured “changemakers”, which includes over 50 people who have made outstanding contributions to the disability community through activism, arts and culture, business, education, leadership, science and technology and sports. She also partnered with local art programs considered to be leaders of social change and inclusion. All of the exhibition artists have a regular artistic practice and work in studios with a group of their peers. Instructors are usually professional artists and offer support rather than direction.

For all the events dates and times in January 2019, please visit: https://sfpl.org/releases/author/public-affairs/

Sold out The Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico for one magical night of rock and roll

by the El Reportero’s news services

 

Enjambre was established as one of the most important bands of the Latin American continent on Nov. 30 by taking over the Domo de Cobre (the copper dome). It created a deep connection with the 16,000 fans who sold out the Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City.

Girls Go Ska, a band chosen from more than 320 university bands in a contest organized by Enjambre and their team to support emerging talent, took the stage.

Lori Meyers, the special guests of the night, demonstrated why they are one of the largest groups in Spain. Their songs – exquisitely executed – connected with the Mexican public that is already receiving them as their own.

Domo de Cobre was darkened and the public was thrilled to receive Enjambre. They began to hear the first notes of Secuaz, one of the new songs by the band from Zacatecas, which was designated to open one of the most important shows of their career.

 

Fifth edition of the International Central American Film Festival arrives in Los Angeles

A great opportunity to know some of the realities through the lens and professionalism of the artists of the region

This weekend will be presented for the fifth consecutive year the International Festival of Central American Cinema in Los Angeles, with the aim of showing a little of the talent and realities that are currently living south of the southern border of Mexico.

The event that begins Friday at La Plaza de la Raza, to learn about dreams and conflicts in Central America, but told through artists who reside in the region.

The three-day festival that begins on December 6 will feature 20 short films, documentaries and movies that the Angels can enjoy completely free, as well as knowing and expanding their knowledge about different peoples, their different languages, their accent, their traditions, etc. .

The International Festival of Central American Cinema has been presented five times in Los Angeles and this time Mexico and Cuba are the invited countries with their respective films: Bibi, and This is your Cuba.

 

Los Van Van celebrate its 50th anniversary

Los Van Van band on the occasion of the five decades of its foundation.

The musical group, created by bass guitarist, arranger, and composer Juan Formell in 1969, reaches its 50th anniversary with nearly 30 recorded albums and important awards, especially the 2000 Grammy Award for its album ‘Llego… Van Van’ (Van Van is here).

The songo rhythm, created by Juan Formell alongside Cesar ‘Pupy’ Pedroso and Jose Luis Quintana ‘Changuito,’ is the sound that has distinguished the work of the band, which has performed on several of the most important stages of Cuba and the world.

Also known as the ‘Train of Cuban music,’ to many Los Van Van, directed at present by Samuel Formell, is one of the most important popular dance music groups in Cuba.

Book on economics by Mexican president on sale online

The new book by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, entitled Hacia una economía moral (Towards a moral economy), is now on sale online, publishing house Planeta announced.

In a brief Tuesday press release, the publishing house informed that the volume will be sold at a price of 7.99 euros, equivalent to 171.59 Mexican pesos.

Planeta notes on its website that ‘Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador offers, as no other president of Mexico had done before, an intimate and eloquent dialogue about the specific results of his first year in government.’ The synopsis of ‘Hacia una economia moral’ states that ‘the paradigm we are building is based on the conviction that generosity is stronger than selfishness, empathy is more powerful than hate, collaboration is more efficient than competition, freedom is more constructive than prohibition, and trust is more fruitful than distrust.’

President López Obrador has insisted that the economy must be based on ethical principles that counteract the neoliberal model.

The print edition of the book was released in bookstores on Dec. 1.

 

1...136137138...598Page 137 of 598

SELECTIONS

POPULAR TICKETS

POPULAR CATEGORY

ABOUT US

Welcome to our Marvin J. Ramirez website! We are an innovative newspaper located in the heart of San Francisco. With a relentless passion for telling powerful stories, we inform our community with truthful news, insightful analysis, and compelling reporting.

Contacto: lreportero@aol.com

FOLLOW US

© Copyright 2023. Agenciadigital.pw. All rights reserved.