Friday, September 27, 2024
Home Blog Page 253

Honduras president asks for support to fight extorsion

by the El Reportero’s wire services

Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández on Sunday asked people to support the police operations aimed at disarming a complex network of extortion in the country.

“We need more information,” underlined the head of Government when he called on the victims of that crime to report their cases to help authorities to fight what he considered one of the biggest challenges being faced in Honduras.

He also admitted the courage of people whose testimonies allowed capturing criminals during mass raids carried out by authorities as part of the so-called Operation Tornado.

According to a military spokesperson, the members of the Army and the National Anti-extortion Force has arrested 1,123 criminals so far.

In addition to capturing gang members who collected the so-called “war tax” in public transportation, a few days ago, the agents arrested 21 police officers and two army officers who were linked to that criminal network.

Considered one of the worst scourges in Honduras, extortion has forced more than 40,000 commercial establishments to close over the past decade and 130,000 jobs have been lost.

Sinaloa cartel has the biggest air fleet in Mexico

The Sinaloa Cartel might be considered the biggest airline in Mexico, stated a local newspaper Tuesday, taking into account that the number of confiscated airplanes from that criminal organization in the last 10 years.

Mexican newspaper El Universal said that military authorities confiscated 599 airplanes from the Sinaloa Cartel, in which they were able to move cocaine and marijuana all over Latin America in the last 10 years.
The air fleet by the Sinaloa Cartel is superior to the one by Aeromexico, the biggest commercial airline in the nation, with 127 airplanes.

The newspaper said that if the Cartel were a legal organization, it would compete with Aeromexico and every other airline in the country.

Information from the Mexican National Defense Ministry estimated the Sinaloa Cartel operates 4,000 clandestine airline tracks of between 500 and 1,000 meters long, located in the mountains in the north of Mexico.

Cases of Zika, dengue and Chikungunya increase to 35.000 in Honduras

The number of people affected by Zika, Dengue and Chikungunya increased to more than 35.000, the Ministry of Health of Honduras reported today.

The Vice Minister of Health Francis Contreras said that the country already registered more than 19.000 patients with Zika, and 76 with Guillain Barre Syndrome associated with the virus.

“It is not common the occurrence of so many cases of Guillain Barre syndrome. If the situation continues, by the end of the year the number of cases could reach the 300″, Contreras warned.

He also noted that 238 pregnant women remain under medical surveillance for suspected infection, mostly in the departments of Cortés, Francisco Morazán, Yoro and Choluteca.

A special concert celebrating Oscar de la Renta

Oscar de la Renta at his fashion show at Neiman Marcus- Chevy Chase, MD

Compiled by the El Reportero’s staff

The John Santos Sextet plus special guests

The name Oscar de la Renta is synonymous with grace and magnificence in design and taste. He rose through international ranks to earn historical immortality over a sixty year period in which he became a household name.

Born in the Dominican Republic of a Dominican mother and Puerto Rican father, he was acutely aware and proud of his Caribbean roots. In honor of those roots and his international journeys and pedigree, The John Santos Sextet has prepared a musical program reflecting the deep and wide-ranging influences of de la Renta’s spirit: an eclectic blend of traditional Antillean music from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, classical and period as well as avante-gard jazz.

For the occasion, John has enlisted the participation of two special guests in addition to the stellar line up of his Sextet, José Roberto Hernández – vocals, guitar Melquís Naveo – percusión dominicana.

Friday, April 29th, 2016, at 6:30 p.m., at The De Young Museum, Golden Gate Park San Francisco. FREE!
http://deyoung.famsf.org/calendar/live-music-john-santos-sextet-and-special-guests

Two Latin Rock Giants come Together in SF

Tierra rolls into San Francisco to share the stage with San Francisco’s own Richard Bean & Sapo.

Southern California’s Latin Rock legends Tierra, led by Rudy Salas, will perform at our inaugural show at The Goldenvoice venue, The Social Hall. Located around the corner from the Regency on Van Ness, the Social Hall has been bringing some very original shows and has now invited the Latin Rock crowd to come and be a part of the Goldenvoice Music family.

Sharing the stage with Tierra and bringing their hot sounds will be original “Suavecito” writer and singer Richard Bean and his group Sapo. After leaving Malo, Richard Bean continued his songwriting prowess with songs for his newly formed group Sapo, which had as one of its original members, Raul Rekow. We can only imagine that he will be there in spirit to join his former band on stage as they perform on a big stage in San Francisco like back in the day.

Opening the show will be Santana Tribute band from Sacramento, Sacred Fire. Latin Rock is alive and kicking again in the City where it started. Buy tickets here or by calling LRI at 415-285-7719 or writing DrBgMalo@AOL.com

On Friday April 29, at the SOCIAL HALL SF, 1270 Sutter Street, San Francisco. For info call 415-777-1715.

A 91-year-old man translated Don Quijote de la Mancha

by the El Reportero’s news services

It’s been more than 10 years in the making, but Quechua speakers will now be able to read El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha thanks to the efforts of 91-year-old Demetrio Túpac Yupanqui. The Peruvian professor and journalist just completed his translation of the second part of the Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra book from the original Spanish to the most widely spoken language family of the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

As anyone who’s tried translating from Spanish to English can confirm, it’s no easy task to preserve the meaning or concepts words hold across languages. “Cervantes uses some words in Spanish that are hard to translate into Quechua,”the Peruvian journalist said. “One example is the term hidalgo, which in Spanish means son of a nobleman. But the closest word to that in Quechua is a term for a person who has authority in society, and there are occasions where it’s better to respect the original word.”

And the work is still not done. Yupanqui wants to give Yachay sapa wiraqucha dun Qvixote Manchamantan an extra Andean touch. He wants artists from Sarhua – a district in the Víctor Fajardo province in Peru – to draw illustrations for the book. The first part of book is filled with colorful images.

It is this attention to detail that made Miguel De la Quadra-Salcedo, a Spanish reporter, tap Yupanqui for the project in the first place.
“One day Miguel arrived and, with his Basque accent, told me that he was coming to ask me to translate Don Quijote because in various parts of Argentina and Cuzco they told him that I was the person who could best translate it,” he said. “He surprised me, but I told him that I would do it with the dedication that the work deserved.”

In case you can’t appreciate how much work really went into this feat, then consider that the book is 928 pages in English. (by Yara Simón).

More news about Don Quijote:

Mexican writer Fernando del Paso awarded Cervantes Prize

Mexican writer Fernando del Paso today received the Cervantes Prize 2015 from Spanish King Felipe VI, in the 400th anniversary of the death of the playwright who gives name to the award.

The solemn award ceremony, the most important of Hispanic literature, took place in the auditorium of the Madrid University of Alcala de Henares, attended also by Queen Letizia and acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

The monarch stressed that Del Paso, is the sixth Mexican receiving the Cervantes, honored ‘in the best way our language with the expertise of a goldsmith able to get the best shine from precious metals’.

Paraphrasing the author, Felipe VI distinguished his work entitled Travel around the Quixote (2004), as a book that was born from ‘a curiosity that became love and then turned into an obsession.’

Retired UCR professor looks forward to continuing an “inspiration tsunami”

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, professor of poetry emeritus at the University of California, Riverside, has been appointed to a second term as the nation’s top poet, an honor he said will enable him to continue sharing the “inspiration tsunami” he experienced in the last year.

Herrera, who retired from UC Riverside in 2015, is one of several multiyear laureates, a group that includes UCR alumnus Billy Collins (2001-2003). His second term begins Sept. 1.

Herrera served as California poet laureate from 2012 to 2015. He is the first Hispanic to serve as poet laureate for both the state and the nation.

A 91-year-old man translated Don Quijote de la Mancha

by the El Reportero’s news services

It’s been more than 10 years in the making, but Quechua speakers will now be able to read El Ingenioso Hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha thanks to the efforts of 91-year-old Demetrio Túpac Yupanqui. The Peruvian professor and journalist just completed his translation of the second part of the Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra book from the original Spanish to the most widely spoken language family of the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

As anyone who’s tried translating from Spanish to English can confirm, it’s no easy task to preserve the meaning or concepts words hold across languages. “Cervantes uses some words in Spanish that are hard to translate into Quechua,”the Peruvian journalist said. “One example is the term hidalgo, which in Spanish means son of a nobleman. But the closest word to that in Quechua is a term for a person who has authority in society, and there are occasions where it’s better to respect the original word.”

And the work is still not done. Yupanqui wants to give Yachay sapa wiraqucha dun Qvixote Manchamantan an extra Andean touch. He wants artists from Sarhua – a district in the Víctor Fajardo province in Peru – to draw illustrations for the book. The first part of book is filled with colorful images.

It is this attention to detail that made Miguel De la Quadra-Salcedo, a Spanish reporter, tap Yupanqui for the project in the first place.

“One day Miguel arrived and, with his Basque accent, told me that he was coming to ask me to translate Don Quijote because in various parts of Argentina and Cuzco they told him that I was the person who could best translate it,” he said. “He surprised me, but I told him that I would do it with the dedication that the work deserved.”

In case you can’t appreciate how much work really went into this feat, then consider that the book is 928 pages in English. (by Yara Simón).

More news about Don Quijote:

Mexican writer Fernando del Paso awarded Cervantes Prize

Mexican writer Fernando del Paso today received the Cervantes Prize 2015 from Spanish King Felipe VI, in the 400th anniversary of the death of the playwright who gives name to the award.

The solemn award ceremony, the most important of Hispanic literature, took place in the auditorium of the Madrid University of Alcala de Henares, attended also by Queen Letizia and acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

The monarch stressed that Del Paso, is the sixth Mexican receiving the Cervantes, honored ‘in the best way our language with the expertise of a goldsmith able to get the best shine from precious metals’.

Paraphrasing the author, Felipe VI distinguished his work entitled Travel around the Quixote (2004), as a book that was born from ‘a curiosity that became love and then turned into an obsession.’

Retired UCR professor looks forward to continuing an “inspiration tsunami”

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — U.S. Poet Laureate Juan Felipe Herrera, professor of poetry emeritus at the University of California, Riverside, has been appointed to a second term as the nation’s top poet, an honor he said will enable him to continue sharing the “inspiration tsunami” he experienced in the last year.

Herrera, who retired from UC Riverside in 2015, is one of several multiyear laureates, a group that includes UCR alumnus Billy Collins (2001-2003). His second term begins Sept. 1.
Herrera served as California poet laureate from 2012 to 2015. He is the first Hispanic to serve as poet laureate for both the state and the nation.

16 AGs begin inquisition against ‘climate change disbelievers’

by Hans von Spakovsky

Beginning in 1478, the Spanish Inquisition systematically silenced any citizen who held views that did not align with the king’s. Using the powerful arm of the government, the grand inquisitor, Tomas de Torquemada, and his henchmen sought out all those who held religious, scientific, or moral views that conflicted with the monarch’s, punishing the “heretics” with jail sentences; property confiscation; fines; and in severe cases, torture and execution.

One of the lasting results of the Spanish Inquisition was a stifling of speech, thought, and scientific debate throughout Spain. By treating one set of scientific views as absolute, infallible, and above critique, Spain silenced many brilliant individuals and stopped the development of new ideas and technological innovations. Spain became a scientific backwater.

As an old adage says, those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. So we now have a new inquisition underway in America in the 21st century—something that would have seemed unimaginable not too long ago.

Treating climate change as an absolute, unassailable fact, instead of what it is—an unproven, controversial scientific theory—a group of state attorneys general have announced that they will be targeting any companies that challenge the catastrophic climate change religion.

Speaking at a press conference on March 29, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said, “The bottom line is simple: Climate change is real.” He went on to say that if companies are committing fraud by “lying” about the dangers of climate change, they will “pursue them to the fullest extent of the law.”

The coalition of 17 inquisitors are calling themselves “AGs United for Clean Power.” The coalition consists of 15 state attorneys general (California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington State), as well as the attorneys general of the District of Columbia and the Virgin Islands. Sixteen of the seventeen members are Democrats, while the attorney general for the Virgin Islands, Claude Walker, is an independent.

The inquisitors are threatening legal action and huge fines against anyone who declines to believe in an unproven scientific theory.

Schneiderman and Kamala Harris, representing New York and California, respectively, have already launched investigations into ExxonMobil for allegedly funding research that questioned climate change. Exxon emphatically denounced the accusations as false, pointing out that the investigation that “uncovered” this research was funded by advocacy foundations that publicly support climate change activism.

Standing next to Schneiderman throughout the press conference was the grand inquisitor himself, former Vice President Al Gore, who has stepped into the role of Tomas de Torquemada.

Gore, who narrated a climate change propaganda film in 2006 entitled An Inconvenient Truth, praised the coalition, stating that “what these attorneys general are doing is exceptionally important.” Neither Gore nor the “AGs United for Clean Power” has any concern over the First Amendment or the stifling of scientific debate.

When pressed on the effect such investigations and prosecutions will have on free speech, General Schneiderman claimed that climate change dissenters are committing “fraud” and are not protected by the First Amendment.

This comes on top of U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch admitting that the Justice Department is discussing the possibility of pursing civil actions against climate change deniers, and that she has already “referred it to the FBI to consider whether or not it meets the criteria for which” federal law enforcement could take action.

As we have said before, “[l]evel-headed, objective prosecutors should not be interested in investigating or prosecuting anyone over a scientific theory that is the subject of great debate.” And yet that is exactly what the AGs United for “Political” Power are going to do.

Fortunately, there are other state attorneys general who understand the importance of the rule of law as opposed to what they say is an “ambition to use the law to silence voices with which we disagree.” Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt and Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said they would not be joining this coalition:

Reasonable minds can disagree about the science behind global warming, and disagree they do. This scientific and political debate is healthy and should be encouraged. It should not be silenced with threats of criminal prosecution by those who believe that their position is the only correct one and that all dissenting voices must therefore be intimidated and coerced into silence. It is inappropriate for State Attorneys General to use the power of their office to attempt to silence core political speech on one of the major policy debates of our time.

Although the Spanish Inquisition ended almost 200 years ago, the American Climate Change Inquisition appears to be just getting started. By threatening legal action and huge fines against anyone who declines to believe their climate theories, the attorneys general in this coalition are trying to end the debate over climate change, declaring any dissent to be blasphemy regardless of what many scientists believe.

This strikes a serious blow against the free flow of ideas and the vigorous debate over scientific issues that is a hallmark of an advanced, technological society like ours.

(Hans von Spakovsky @HvonSpakovsky.Senior Legal Fellow, Heritage Foundation.Former FEC Commissioner, DOJ lawyer.New book: Obama’s Enforcer: Eric Holder’s Justice Dept. 1st generation American).

A special report on the National Emergency in the United States of America – Part 2 of two

Senate Report 93-549: War and Emergency Powers Acts, Executive Orders and the New World Order – PART 2 OF TWO

From data available on the web

The Introduction to Senate Report 93-549 (93rd Congress, 1st Session, 1973) summarizes the situation that we face today – except it is far worse today than it was in 1973!
“A majority of the people of the United States have lived all of their lives under emergency rule. For 40 years [now 66 years], freedoms and governmental procedures guaranteed by the Constitution have, in varying degrees, been abridged by laws brought into force by states of national emergency. The problem of how a constitutional democracy reacts to great crises, however, far antedates the Great Depression. As a philosophical issue, its origins reach back to the Greek city-states and the Roman Republic. And, in the United States, actions taken by the Government in times of great crises have – from, at least, the Civil War – in important ways, shaped the present phenomenon of a permanent state of national emergency.”

The Forward to the Report states in part:

Martial rule was kept secret and has never ended, the nation has been ruled under Military Law by the Commander of Chief of that military; the President, under his assumed executive powers and according to his executive orders. Constitutional law under the original Constitution is enforced only as a matter of keeping the public peace under the provisions of General Orders No. 100 under martial rule. Under Martial Law, title is a mere fiction, since all property belongs to the military except for that property which the Commander-in-Chief may, in his benevolence, exempt from taxation and seizure and upon which he allows the enemy to reside.

President Lincoln was assassinated before he could complete plans for reestablishing constitutional government in the Southern States and end the martial rule by executive order, and the 14th Article in Amendment to the Constitution created a new citizenship status for the new expanded jurisdiction. New laws for the District of Columbia were established and passed by Congress in 1871, supplanting those established Feb. 27, 1801 and May 3, 1802. The District of Columbia was re-incorporated in 1872, and all states in the Union were reformed as Franchisees of the Federal Corporation so that a new Union of the United States could be created. The key to when the states became Federal Franchisees is related to the date when such states enacted the Field Code in law. The Field Code was a codification of the common law that was adopted first by New York and then by California in 1872, and shortly afterwards the Lieber Code was used to bring the United States into the 1874 Brussels Conference and into the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907.

In 1917, the Trading with the Enemy Act (Public Law 65-91, 65th Congress, Session I, Chapters 105, 106, October 6, 1917) was passed and which defined, regulated and punished trading with enemies, who were then required by that act to be licensed by the government to do business. The National Banking System Act (Public Law 73-1, 73rd Congress, Session I, Chapter 1, March 9, 1933), Executive Proclamation 2038 (March 6, 1933), Executive Proclamation 2039 (March 9, 1933), and Executive Orders 6073, 6102, 6111 and 6260 prove that in 1933, the United States Government formed under the executive privilege of the original martial rule went bankrupt, and a new state of national emergency was declared under which United States citizens were named as the enemy to the government and the banking system as per the provisions of the Trading with the Enemy Act. The legal system provided for in the Constitution was formally changed in 1938 through the Supreme Court decision in the case of Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, 304 US 64, 82 L.Ed. 1188.

On April 25, 1938, the Supreme Court overturned the standing precedents of the prior 150 years concerning “COMMON LAW” in the federal government.
There is no federal common law, and congress has no power to declare substantive rules of common law applicable in a state, whether they be local or general in their nature, be they commercial law or a part of law of torts.” (See: ERIE RAILROAD CO. vs. THOMPKINS, 304 U.S. 64, 82 L. Ed. 1188)
The significance is that since the Erie Decision, no cases are allowed to be cited that are prior to 1938. There can be no mixing of the old law with the new law. The Common Law is the fountain source of Substantive and Remedial Rights, if not our very Liberties. (See also: Who is Running America?)
In 1945 the United States gave up any remaining national sovereignty when it signed the United Nations Treaty, making all American citizens subject to United Nations jurisdiction. The “constitution” of the United Nations may be compared to that of the old Soviet Union.

Documentation –
Executive Order 1 – http://www.historyplace.com/lincoln/proc-1.htm;
General Orders No. 100 (April 24, 1863) “Lieber Code” –
http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/FULL/110?OpenDocument.]
Senate Report 93-549 (93rd Congress, 1st Session, 1973) –
http://www.barefootsworld.net/war_ep1.html;
The Trading with the Enemy Act (Public Law 65-91, 65th Congress, Session I, Chapters 105, 106, October 6, 1917);
National Banking System Act (Public Law 73-1, 73rd Congress, Session I, Chapter 1, March 9, 1933);
Executive Proclamation 2038 (March 6, 1933); Executive Proclamation 2039 (March 9, 1933);
Executive Orders 6073, 6102, 6111 and 6260;
Title 12 USC, Section 95a – http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/12/95.html;
Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, 304 US 64, 82 L.Ed. 1188;
and the United Nations Treaty.

All documentation is available through your local government document repository library branch or at the Library of Congress.

Observations – Arguments which suggest that the Treaty of Paris of 1783 was not a lawful or legal treaty of peace between warring nations and that the American Colonies never really attained or obtained lawful or legal sovereignty, must also presume, by their own argument, that the Constitution for the united States of America and the Bill of Rights were never organic documents of true lawful or legal standing.

Conclusion – The Constitution for the united States of America and the Bill of Rights are no longer in effect in their original form or where they conflict with the United Nations Treaty and other international agreements. Citizens of the several States of the Union who were formerly sovereigns protected by the common law are now United States citizens and are thus subjects to International Admiralty jurisdiction.

The importance of sleep, even mild lack of sleep might cause problems

by Ben Fuchs

One of the key weapons in the so-called “War on Terrorism” is what the George W. Bush administration officials called Enhanced Interrogation Techniques. Featuring nebulous or mildly discomforting names like “waterboarding”, “the attention grab” and “long time standing”, that inspire confusing or perhaps mildly uncomfortable images, EITs are either lauded as wonderful tools for saving American lives or illegal government-sanctioned torture.

One of the most dramatic apparently is too severe to make the list of officially approved EITs. While no one officially owns up to it, according to at least one released prisoner, a British national, “one guard had told him that he was following orders by making as much noise as possible while detainees …tried to sleep.”

So what’s wrong with a little sleep deprivation? Can’t be that big a deal right? Wrong! Sleep deprivation is a big deal, a very big deal. Aside from the obvious grumpiness and irritability associated with a lack of shut eye, sleep deprivation can have serious consequences for overall health and wellness.

According to Professor Derk-Jam Dijk of the Surrey Sleep Research Center in the U.K., not getting enough sleep can lead to various health challenges including depression, diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

Even mild sleep deprivation, such as is caused by sleeplessness or insomnia can cause problems. In a University of Surrey (UK) study, researchers found that simply getting less than 6 hours of sleep (which, according to WebMD, is the case for 1 out of 5 Americans) can cause substantial changes in genetic activities that support immunity, metabolism and healthy responses to stress.

The human body is deigned to grow, repair, renew and thrive under conditions of rest. During periods of rest and generous time spent in sleep, growth hormone secretion increases, anabolic biochemicals arise and the body’s defense (immune) system restores itself to maximize its ability to fight microbes and environmental toxins.

And, as shown in research by the doctors at the Cleveland University Hospitals Case Medical Center, now we know it is not just biochemistry that benefits from sleep, its beauty too! Scientists studying the skin showed that lack of sleep increased signs of cutaneous defects and diminished the tissues ability to recover from sun exposure. In the published research the skin of pooped participants also showed increased signs of skin aging, including fine lines, uneven pigmentation, reduced elasticity and a lower self-perception of their attractiveness and facial appearance. Apparently, it’s not called “beauty sleep” for nothing!

There are nearly 100 sleep disorders recognized by health professionals, but the most common cause of lack of sleep is stress and tension. Relaxation techniques such as slow deep breathing and progressively contracting and relaxing muscles from the toes to the forehead and scalp can be very helpful. There are also stress-soothing nutritional supplements that can be helpful for improving sleep time. GABA is wonderfully relaxing. Try taking 500mg at bedtime. A one or two hundred milligram dose of 5HTP can help. And taking 3-6 mg of Melatonin at bedtime (I like the sublingual, under the tongue form) can not only induce sleepiness it can also give you some great dreams. Other potentially beneficial nutrients include Magnesium (1000-2000mg), Inositol (500-1000mg) and Lithium Orate (5-10mg).

The human body is an incredible self-healing and renewing biological system, but its regenerating powers depend on rest. We need our zzzz’s! If we’re tired enough we will do anything to get some sleep, even it’s only a 30 second catnap. While many of us don’t recognize it’s vital nature, the requirement for sleep is a physiological imperative; it’s a biological must, it’s involuntary, and there is a severe price to pay for overriding it whether it’s via your conscious will, or anyone else’s.

New transit lanes have Mission residents seeing red

by Josh Wolf

A red strip of paint running down one of San Francisco’s most well-known streets has ignited a controversy that has divided the city over transit, parking, bicyclists, and local businesses.

In February, initial changes to Mission Street that involved removing some bus stops began to draw some ire within the community. People struggling with mobility issues were suddenly burdened by a longer walk to get to the bus stop, and at least one business was displaced by the changes.

It soon became clear that these changes were part of a larger new initiative to reduce travel time on the 14-line, which bisects the city and carries thousands of passengers between the Mission District and Downtown each day. While the news of these changes generated some complaints, the community frustration would grow into a noisy chorus soon after the work was completed.

By the middle of April, a wide strip of red paint covered the Southbound outer lane of Mission Street all the way from Cesar Chavez Street to South Van Ness. From Cesar Chavez Street to Randall Street, the city painted one lane in both directions red. These red lanes are now reserved solely for busses and taxis, and regular vehicle traffic is now being diverted from Mission Street with forced right turns into quite neighborhood streets.

These changes have created both frustration and confusion among drivers and left cyclists with no clear indicators how to traverse Mission Street. On the morning of Monday, April 25, a car rolled over onto its side in an accident at Mission and 23rd Street after drivers became confused by the turns, said witnesses.

Merchants say the changes have decimated business along Mission Street. Some of the loading zones that businesses relied upon to keep their inventory stocked and there are now fewer parking spots available along Mission Street for shoppers.

“Local businesses have reported a 50 percent drop in income, seniors are walking twice as far to get the bus stop, not to mention our kids are walking twice as much to get on the bus. The mayhem is overflowing side streets and confusing drivers, endangering the lives of pedestrians,” said Iswari Espana, a community activist who is running for City Supervisor in District 9, where most of the street modifications are located.

“Our local government once more fails to address issues that affect our community. We, the residents and business owners were not asked for our input. I find this unacceptable. I think that the construction of these lanes have made the transit system exclusionary to the residents in the area, placing our children, disabled, seniors, drivers and cyclist in harm’s way.”

David Campos, the current supervisor for District 9, has also spoken out against the changes. In a message posted on Facebook he called on the San Francisco Municipal Transit Agency to make “a radical shift in the program.”

“While I understand the intention was to enhance the commute of 65,000 transit riders, the changes look better on paper than in practice,” said Campos. “Most people working by, living on and driving down Mission Street will tell you that the new transit-only red carpet lanes are anything but glamorous.”

Joshua Arce, a candidate in District 9, points to Campos as one of the causes of the quagmire.

“The way that the current Supervisor and his staff have approached the issue of the red lanes displays a lack of leadership,” said Arce. “Rather than getting involved after the red lanes were introduced, our leaders should have engaged local businesses around their needs and concerns before their introduction…. We need to promote sustainable modes of transportation for our communities, but because of this lack of leadership a lot more work is now required.”

Some transit activists are worried that the city is poised to roll back the progress made to prioritize public transit and suggest that the changes will work fine once people get used to them.

“The paint has hardly dried. Yet the transit only lanes on Mission Street may go away soon,” said The San Francisco Transit Riders Union in an e-mail blast to its members. “It is a betrayal of the 65,000 riders who are served by the 14, 14R and 49 buses, as well as a betrayal of the Transit First charter of this city.”

One of the strongest criticisms against the transformation is that the community wasn’t properly notified about the street changes.

“I think there could have been more outreach to small business owners and street vendors,” said Darcel Jackson, another candidate for District 9 Supervisor. “I think the money could have been used to give low or no interest loans to business owners to improve store front facades to attract more people to the Mission.”

Many residents have suggested that the new lanes would have been more manageable had the buses been relegated to the center lane instead of the one along the curb. Since the outer lane is reserved for buses alone, it is no longer legal for anyone but taxis to pick up or drop off people along Mission Street. This is a significant challenge for people using ride-share services like Lyft or Uber, but it is also a problem for residents to shuttle their loved ones from the nearest bus stop.

“After all the promises, the red bus lanes have saved a whole two minutes on the commute, and at what cost? Our small mom-and-pop shops on Mission Street that bring so much life to our neighborhood have seen foot traffic disappear,” said District 9 Supervisor candidate Melissa San Miguel.

“It’s already a lot of hard work to run a business, and our city shouldn’t make it harder for these small business owners to survive. Many of these shops have been in this neighborhood for a long time and they are all working hard to make a living for their family, for their kids and their grandkids. We need a fix to our system that truly works for everyone – our transit riders, pedestrians, residents, and business owners – and not another failed plan from a bureaucracy.”

Americans pay more in taxes than food, clothing and housing combined

It now takes 46 days for Americans to pay federal, state, and local individual income taxes

by Kurt Nimmo
Analysis

The Tax Foundation has released a report ahead of the annual federal income tax deadline next week and the results are startling.

In total Americans will fork over $3.3 trillion to the federal government this year. When state and local taxes are added to this figure, the amount is nearly $5.0 trillion, or more than a third of the nation’s income.

Remarkably, the average American will pay more in taxes than he or she spends on food, clothing and housing combined.

According to the report, it now takes 46 days for Americans to pay federal, state, and local individual income taxes. The tax imposed on payrolls adds 26 days and sales and excise taxes 15 days. Property taxes add 11 days on average and corporate income taxes nine days. The figure is rounded out by inheritance taxes, customs duties, and other taxes that require an additional seven days to pay.

Prior to the War of 1812 Americans paid taxes on distilled spirits, carriages, refined sugar, tobacco and snuff, property sold at auction, and corporate bonds. During the war the government imposed a sales tax on gold, silverware, jewelry and watches. In 1817, the government did away with the tax and returned to collecting revenue through tariffs on imported goods. Prior to the Civil War, “Congress could afford to run the federal government on tariffs alone because federal responsibilities did not include welfare programs, agricultural subsidies, or social insurance programs like Social Security or Medicare,” writes Thomas R. Eddlem.

The first income tax was imposed in 1862 during the Civil War. Compared to today’s rate, Lincoln’s income tax burden was light—an individual earning from $600 to $10,000 per year paid tax at the rate of 3% while incomes in excess of $10,000 paid a higher rate. Sales and excise taxes were added and a so-called “inheritance” tax imposed. The office of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue was established in 1862. It had the authority to assess, levy, and collect taxes through seizure of property and income and through prosecution, much like the IRS today.

Following the war, the income tax was rolled back and taxes were collected primarily on tobacco and distilled spirits. In 1894, the government attempted to revive the income tax, but the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional because it was not apportioned among the states as spelled out in the Constitution.
The income tax became a permanent fixture in 1913 (along with the Federal Reserve) when the 16th Amendment was adopted. At the close of the First World War in 1918, internal revenue collections passed the billion dollar mark for the first time. The figure was $7.3 billion at the start of the Second World War. In 1943, a withholding tax on wages was imposed and it increased the number of taxpayers to 60 million. Tax collections went up to $43 billion by 1945.

By 2015, the federal government collected a record $3.25 trillion in revenue, according to the Treasury Department. The receipts included tax revenue from individual income taxes, corporate income taxes, social insurance and retirement taxes, unemployment insurance taxes, excise taxes, estate and gift taxes, customs duties, and other miscellaneous items, notes Ali Meyer. Most of the revenue came from individual income taxes. Despite this huge amount of expropriated money, the federal government spent around $3.69 trillion, creating a deficit of approximately $438 billion.

Aware of the burden imposed on average Americans presidential candidate Donald Trump has proposed a revised taxation scheme that allows Americans to keep $10.4 trillion to $11.98 trillion of their money over the next decade, while Ted Cruz promises to slash $8.6 trillion from mandatory federal taxes.

Socialist turned Democrat Bernie Sanders, on the other hand, would radically increase the tax burden on Americans. He proposes a top tax rate of 73.5 percent and increased taxes on Americans across the board. The Sanders tax plan would result in 10.56 percent lower after-tax income for all taxpayers and 17.91 percent lower after-tax income for the top 1 percent. When accounting for reduced GDP, after-tax incomes of all taxpayers would fall by at least 12.84 percent.

Hillary Clinton claims she will force the wealthiest to pay more taxes and has vowed to shut down corporate loopholes. “On a static basis, the tax plan would lead to 0.7 percent lower after-tax income for the top 10 percent of taxpayers and 1.7 percent lower income for the top 1 percent. When accounting for reduced GDP, after-tax incomes of all taxpayers would fall by at least 0.9 percent,” explains the Tax Foundation.

Ecuador: National Morning declared, death tall rises

by the El Reportero’s wire services

The President of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, declared on Sunday, April 24, eight days of national mourning in honor of the victims of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the country last April 16.

The earthquake affected the whole country, especially, the province of Manabi and the southern region of Esmeraldas.

The death toll from the quake rose in the last hours to 654.

According to a report, until 18:30 on Saturday the number of missing people was 68, the number of injured people reached 16.601 and 25.640 people are staying in shelters. The text adds that 113 people were rescued alive.

The powerful earthquake destroyed or affected 9.730 buildings in Manta, Portoviejo, Pedernales, Canoeing, Jama, Bahia de Caraquez, Muisne and other cities in the provinces of Manabi and Esmeraldas.

According to the Ecuadorian authorities, once the stage of search and rescue of survivors is completed, the government will focus on providing temporary shelters for the victims, and then will start the reconstruction phase.

The national government sympathizes with the families of the victims and will provide all the support required, in accordance with the Constitution and the law.

Correa expressed his eternal gratitude to the international community and to the general public for the many expressions of solidarity due to what he called the worst tragedy suffered by Ecuador in almost 70 years.

MALDEF wins court order blocking Texas immigrant harboring law

HB 11 provision targeted homeless shelters and landlords

SAN ANTONIO, TX – A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on April 14, blocking the immigrant harboring provision of HB11, which was enacted in the 2015 Texas Legislative Session. Judge Ezra, of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, ruled that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on their claim that the Texas immigrant harboring law is preempted by federal law: “Congress created a federal statutory scheme regarding the harboring and transporting of undocumented aliens so pervasive that it left no room in this area for the state of Texas to supplement it.” Slip Op. at 39.

Judge Ezra also concluded that the Texas immigrant harboring law conflicted with federal harboring law in key respects and thus was likely preempted. Slip Op. at 41-49.

Although the court dismissed two other claims put forward by the plaintiffs, the court held that because the Texas immigrant harboring provision was likely unconstitutional, it should be blocked.
The Texas immigrant harboring provision in HB 11 created a new state felony offense under which individuals could be arrested and prosecuted for providing shelter or renting a home to undocumented immigrants.

“Residents and taxpayers are ill-served by elected officials who continue to legislate in service of short-term political opportunism, rather than in answer to critical needs of residents,” said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF President and General Counsel. “Texas should respond to this court order by reorienting its lawmaking away from anti-immigrant posturing.”

The plaintiffs in the case are two landlords who do not ask tenants for proof of immigration status as a condition of renting property, the Executive Director of RAICES, an organization that provides shelter and legal services to undocumented immigrants, and the Bishop Enrique San Pedro Ozanam Center, a homeless shelter in Brownsville, Texas.

“The Texas immigrant harboring law placed everyday businesses and charities at risk of criminal prosecution,” stated Nina Perales, MALDEF Vice President of Litigation and lead counsel in the case. “Texas now has the dubious distinction of having joined all the other states whose attempts to regulate immigration have been struck down by the federal courts,” continued Perales. (By MAlDEF).

1...252253254...602Page 253 of 602

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.