Viceroy to Open Caribbean Overwater Bungalow Resort in 2021 – Caribbean Journal

Posted on by

Viceroy is planning a 2021 debut for its highly-anticipated overwater bungalow resort on the Caribbean coast of Panama.

The Viceroy Bocas del Toro Panama will be opening its doors in 2021, according to Viceroys Web site.

The long-awaited resort, which would be one of just a few overwater resorts in the wider Caribbean region, was first announced back in 2016.

The resort, set in the spectacular archipelago of Bocas del Toro, will include 42 private overwater villas, the pinnacle of what makes this destination truly extraordinary, according to the company.

In all, the new Viceroy will span 457 acres, with a total of 186 rooms and residences.

The Viceroy Bocas del Toro Panama will also include eight eateries and lounges, a number of pools, a spa, meditation space and a fitness center.

This the Viceroy vibe, with a tropical twist, the company said on its Web site.

Once completed, the resort would join a select group of overwater resorts in the region, most notably those run by Sandals Resorts International, which has been steadily growing its collection of overwater accommodations in recent years.

The property is being designed by Zurcher Arquitectos in Costa Rica, with interiors by Wimberly Interiors.

The Viceroy would join a handful of boutique overwater resorts in Panama like the popular Punta Caracol Acqua Lodge, also set in Bocas del Toro.

The move also marks what seems to be a growing trend of development in the Western Caribbean, from the continued boom in hotel development in Belize to this summers announcement by Kimpton that it would be opening a resort in Roatan, Honduras.

Viceroys Caribbean portfolio includes a resort in the Riviera Maya.

Last year, the company opened a new hotel in Mexico, the Viceroy Los Cabos.

For more, visit Viceroy Panama.

CJ

Read the original post:

Viceroy to Open Caribbean Overwater Bungalow Resort in 2021 - Caribbean Journal

Panorama of Food and Nutritional Security in Latin America and the Caribbean – World – ReliefWeb

Posted on by

November 12, 2019, Santiago de Chile - The prevalence of adult obesity in Latin America and the Caribbean has tripled since 1975, affecting one in four adults in a region where hunger has grown once again, reaching 42.5 million people, according to a new United Nations report issued today, the Panorama of Food and Nutritional Security 2019.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization (PAHO / WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Program (WFP), called for countries in the region to develop urgent actions to address the increase in malnutrition.

The document highlights the need to promote healthier food environments through taxes and incentives that favor healthy food, social protection systems, school feeding programs and the regulation of food advertising and marketing. The agencies also stress the importance of improving food labeling with frontal nutritional warning systems, ensuring the safety and quality of food sold on the street, and reformulating the composition of certain products to ensure their nutritional contribution.

According to the Panorama report, the most significant increase in adult obesity in the region was observed in the Caribbean, where the percentage quadrupled, rising from 6 percent in 1975 to 25 percent, an increase in absolute terms from 760,000 to 6.6 million people.

The explosive increase in obesity which affects 24 percent of the regional population, about 105 million people, almost double the global level of 13.2 percent not only has huge economic costs, but also threatens the lives of hundreds of thousands, explained the FAOs Regional Representative, Julio Berdegu.

According to the Panorama, every year 600,000 people die in Latin America and the Caribbean due to diseases related to poor diets, such as diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. Inadequate diets are associated with more deaths than any other risk factor, something that threatens our future generations, since the rates of both childhood and adolescent obesity have tripled between 1990 and 2016.

We must act now to reverse this trend and prevent children from suffering the consequences of poor diets on their health and their future quality of life, said PAHO/WHO Director Carissa F. Etienne. To achieve this, we need the commitment of the whole society and public policies that regulate unhealthy food products, create environments conducive to physical activity and promote healthy eating at school and at the family table, he added.

The publication highlights that the region is worse than the rest of the world in the majority of malnutrition indicators related to excessive calorie intake: overweight has doubled since the 1970s, and today affects 59.5 percent of adults in the region, 262 million people, while globally the rate is 20 percentage points lower: 39.1 percent

In contrast, the region has lower undernourishment rates than the world (6.5 percent for the region versus 10.8 worldwide), stunting (9 percent versus 21.9), and much lower rates of wasting (1.3 percent, versus 7.3for the world). However, the agencies warn of the worrying increase in hunger, which has grown again by 4.5 million people since 2014 an increase of 11 percent reaching 42.5 million in 2018, its highest point of the last decade.

Changes in the food environment

The Panorama makes a detailed analysis of how the food environment of the region has changed, understood as the space of interaction between people and the physical, economic, political and socio-cultural conditions that influence the way they acquire, prepare and consume food.

Sales of ultra-processed food products are the fastest growing in Latin America and they increase the population's exposure to excessive amounts of sugar, sodium and fat. Between 2000 and 2013, the consumption of ultra-processed products grew by more than 25 percent, and fast food consumption grew almost 40 percent.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, too many children eat too little healthy food and too much processed food, said Bernt Aasen, UNICEF Regional Director (a.i.) for Latin America and the Caribbean. Almost 1 in 5 children under 5 are malnourished or overweight, which prevents them from growing well. It is everyone's task to ensure healthy food is available and affordable for all families, especially the most vulnerable.

The expansion of supermarket chains and the preponderance of large food processing industries is another major change in the regional food environment, one which has made ultra-processed products available everywhere, and at lower prices than nutritious food. Poor people have been hardest hit by these changes, since for this population group it is often easier and cheaper to access unhealthy rather than healthy food.

Regional responses to promote healthier food environments

The region has reacted to the rise in malnutrition through a series of public policies. Countries such as Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay have implemented food labeling laws, which allow consumers to make better decisions.

Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Panama and Uruguay have improved regulation on food advertising, and at least 13 countries in the region have adopted fiscal and social measures that seek to favor adequate food. The Panorama report stresses that social protection and school feeding programs, public food supply and marketing systems and policies that promote food safety and quality are essential to improve nutrition.

"If we expand social protection programs in our region, we would better face the double burden that hunger and obesity represent for communities and families," said WFP Regional Director Miguel Barreto. "These are the two faces of malnutrition." Social protection programs today cover more than 200 million people in Latin America and the Caribbean, including 85 million schoolchildren who receive breakfast, snacks or lunch.

Contact

FAOBenjamn Labatut+56 229 232 174benjamin.labatut@fao.org

PAHO / WHOSebastin OlielT. +1 202 974 3459M. +1 (202) 316 5679oliels@paho.org

UNICEFMara Alejandra BerroternT. +507 62972099M. +507 3017482maberroteran@unicef.org

WFPElio RujanoT. +507 317 3900M. +507 6677 0608elio.rujano@wfp.org

Continue reading here:

Panorama of Food and Nutritional Security in Latin America and the Caribbean - World - ReliefWeb

Unearthing slavery in the Caribbean, and the Catholic Church’s influence on modern psychology – Science Magazine

Posted on by

Meagan Cantwell

Most historical accounts of slavery were written by colonists and planters. Researchers are now using the tools of archaeology to learn more about the day-to-day lives of enslaved Africanshow they survived the conditions of slavery, how they participated in local economies, and how they maintained their own agency. Host Sarah Crespi talks with Contributing Correspondent Lizzie Wade about a Caribbean archaeology project based on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands and launched by the founders of the Society for Black Archaeologists that aims to unearth these details. Watch a related video here.

Sarah also talks with Jonathan Schulz, a professor in the Department of Economics at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, about a role for the medieval Roman Catholic Church in so-called WEIRD psychologywestern, educated, industrialized, rich, democratic. The bulk of psychology experiments have used participants that could be described as WEIRD, and according to many psychological measures, WEIRD subjects tend to have some extreme traits, like a stronger tendency toward individuality and more friendliness with strangers. Schulz and colleagues used historical maps and measures of kinship structure to tie these traits to strict marriage rules enforced by the medieval Catholic Church in Western Europe. Readrelated commentary.

This weeks episode was edited by Podigy.

Ads on this weeks show: Bayer; KiwiCo

Download a transcript (PDF)

Listen to previous podcasts.

About the Science Podcast

Continue reading here:

Unearthing slavery in the Caribbean, and the Catholic Church's influence on modern psychology - Science Magazine

Opinion: Is Venezuela becoming the Libya of the Caribbean? | In English – EL PAIS

Posted on by

In 2011 Libya cracked into a thousand pieces. With United Nations authorization, a broad coalition attacked Libya, a mob murdered Muammar Gaddafi, his bloodthirsty regime collapsed, and the country fragmented. Eventually, two governments were formed, one based in Tripoli and another in Tobruk. Each has its own leader, armed forces, government bureaucracy and even a Central Bank that prints its own money. Whats more, each government has powerful nations backing it. The one in Tripoli has the recognition of the UN, while the one in Tobruk is supported by Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Russia, among others.

Control over Libyas rich oil fields has set off fierce fighting but, so far, neither government has been able to defeat the other. To top it all off, an unknowable number of militias, tribes, and terrorist groups including Al Qaeda and the Islamic State (ISIS) operate freely within Libya, as well as criminal syndicates that traffic drugs, people, and, most dangerously, arms, freely available to the highest bidder.

As in Libya, Venezuela has two centers of power, neither of which seems quite able to do away with the other

The prolonged collapse of the country has become a problem for Europe. Tripoli is only 186 miles from Lampedusa, the tiny Italian island that has become an epicenter of the Mediterraneans migration crisis. Tens of thousands of African refugees from all over the continent fully aware of the chaos and corruption gripping in Libya are passing through the country on their way to Europe, creating a lucrative market in human cargo that the local authorities are unable, or unwilling, to stop.

None of this was anticipated by the foreign powers that intervened in 2011. Their priority was to end the Gaddafi regime and prevent the lunatic leader from perpetrating a genocide. The plan was that once Gaddafi was overthrown, a transitional government would call for elections and begin Libyas transition to democracy. The nations huge oil reserves would finance Libyas rebirth. Eight years on, this day after scenario seems entirely illusory.

Today, Venezuela is in danger of becoming the Libya of the Caribbean. Of course, the two are very different countries and their circumstances differ in all sorts of ways. But the similarities are surprising.

As in Libya, Venezuela has two centers of power, neither of which seems quite able to do away with the other. Juan Guaid is one president and his constitutional legitimacy is recognized by more than 60 countries, including the main democracies around the world. Nicols Maduro came to power via a fraudulent election and has usurped power with the support of the armed forces and paramilitary groups. He is backed by Cuba, Russia, China, Iran, Turkey, and Syria, among others.

In Libya there are large criminal syndicates that traffic people. In Venezuela there are powerful syndicates that traffic drugs and minerals such as gold and coltan

Both Libya and Venezuela are failed states whose governments are unable to perform basic governing functions. Neither government controls the entire national territory, and that void has been filled by a plethora of bad actors. Al Qaeda and ISIS operate in Libya, while the ELN and the FARC, Colombias leftist guerillas who are heavily involved in drug trafficking, operate in Venezuela. Regional strong men, militias, and criminal gangs also control large territories and cities, or pieces of them.

In Libya there are large criminal syndicates that traffic people. In Venezuela there are powerful syndicates that traffic drugs and minerals such as gold and coltan. Libya is a great arms bazaar. Venezuela too. Anarchy and criminality reign in both countries. And both have become the focus of serious regional crises. African immigrants arriving from Libya have destabilized Europes politics, while millions of Venezuelan refugees are destabilizing politics in Colombia and other countries. Another similarity is that both are major oil producers that are increasingly unable to produce, export and benefit from their vast oil reserves. Both nations are currently subject to international sanctions, and both are under the watchful eye of the Kremlin. Putin cleverly turned Russia into a major player in the Syrian conflict. Now he is trying to do the same with Libya and Venezuela.

International mediators have promoted dialogues and negotiations between the two governments. In both countries all these attempts have failed

International mediators have promoted dialogues and negotiations between the two governments. In both countries all these attempts have failed.

Another common feature of the crises in Libya and Venezuela is that compassion fatigue is increasingly evident. A long drawn-out crisis with few prospects for a simple solution ceases to be a priority for an international community that is already overwhelmed by other conflicts and humanitarian emergencies. Kurds, the Rohingya, and refugees from Yemen, Syria, Turkey, and Central America all compete for the attention and resources of the international community.

Unfortunately, governments, international organizations, and the news media are already tiring of the Venezuela crisis. If there are no changes in the status quo in the coming months, the inertia and the more-of-the-same mentality will prevail. This must be avoided at all costs.

Twitter @moisesnaim

Continue reading here:

Opinion: Is Venezuela becoming the Libya of the Caribbean? | In English - EL PAIS

Former Middletown fire truck finishes its long journey to serve Caribbean island – Hamilton Journal News

Posted on by

MIDDLETOWN

A retired Middletown fire engine has arrived and is back in service in a new community in the Caribbean.

The retired 1997 Luverne fire engine could have been sold for scrap, but the Middletown Division of Fire worked with Cincinnati firefighter Walter Cook, who facilitates donations of retired fire apparatus and equipment to nations in the Caribbean and in South America.

Cook said the Middletown fire engine was placed on a flatbed truck, arrived in New Jersey on Sept. 18 and was shipped to St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The fire engine arrived in Kingstown, that nations capital city and chief port, on Oct. 17 and cleared customs.

MORE: This retired Middletown fire engine will again help fight fires, but this time in the Caribbean

Howie Prince, consulate general of St. Vincent and The Grenadines to the U.S., accepted the Middletown fire engine during a formal transfer ceremony in August.

Prince told the Journal-News that the fire engine has been properly received and will be properly used.

Its our policy to put these vehicles into service as soon as possible after arrival, he said.

In August, Prince said the donated fire engine, which has a 1,000-gallon water tank, would be used in the rural areas to improve the current firefighting equipment.

In some places in the rural areas of that nation, a fire truck is actually a small water tank with a small hose in the back of a pickup truck bed, according to Middletown Fire Chief Paul Lolli.

MORE: Retired Middletown fire engine being transferred to the Caribbean

At the transfer ceremony, Prince said if the fire engine can be used on the island for another five years, there is no telling how many lives it would have saved and one life that is saved is enough for it to be in existence.

City officials said Middletowns fire department also donated old hand tools and that fire departments in Russellville, Ohio, and Shelby County, Ky., gave other fire gear as part of this donation. Middletown was also donating self-contained breathing apparatus that is out of date for use in the U.S.

MORE: Middletown donating retired fire engine to Caribbean nation to replace pickup truck

The Division of Fire has made other donations of old firefighting gear and breathing equipment on several occasions in the past to the Dominican Republic and other nations firefighting and police services. The equipment and gear no longer met National Fire Protection Association standards and, therefore, could not be used in the United States, officials said.

The 1997 Luverne fire engine, which was housed at the Dixie Highway fire station, was taken out of front line service in 2009 and out of reserve status in July when the city received two new fire engines.

Thank you for reading the Journal-News and for supporting local journalism. Subscribers: log in for access to your daily ePaper and premium newsletters.

Thank you for supporting in-depth local journalism with your subscription to the Journal-News. Get more news when you want it with email newsletters just for subscribers. Sign up here.

View original post here:

Former Middletown fire truck finishes its long journey to serve Caribbean island - Hamilton Journal News

8 Must-Visit Caribbean Dive Resorts – Caribbean Journal

Posted on by

Many of the worlds best dive resorts are far longer on experiences than they are on amenities. It makes sense for hard-core divers who are mostly looking for a place to lay their head between dives. Three hundred thread count sheets and gourmet dining are secondary to multiple daily dive trips, day and night.

Not every luxury resort is limited to vanilla resort dives, however, and these Caribbean resorts offer a world-class dive experience alongside the kind of upscale rooms, activities, and service that will make your time out of the water (nearly) as great as the few precious hours you spend below:

St James Club, Antigua

Antigua is the world-class dive destination you may not have thought about. Long a best-kept secret for diving in the Caribbean, the country is filled with terrific dive sites, from Sunken Rock to Tarpon Alley to the famous Pillars of Hercules. While destinations like Bonaire, Cozumel and the Cayman Islands are rightly popular, Antigua is the regions next great diving hotspot. And the epicenter is the islands all-inclusive St Jamess Club and its wonderful Mamora Bay Divers diving center, with programs for everyone from novices to experienced divers and a full PADI instruction program.

Read more:

8 Must-Visit Caribbean Dive Resorts - Caribbean Journal

Latin America and Caribbean on the Brink of … – BNamericas English

Posted on by

IRENA release

Lima, Peru, 12 November 2019 -Latin America and the Caribbean could grow their installed solar capacity by a factor of 40 by 2050, a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows. Annual investmens exceeding seven billion would see the region's solar PV capacity rise from 7 gigawatts (GW) today, to more than 280 GW by mid-century. While solar energy remains the highest in Asia, North America and Europe, market growth is set to shift to other regions in the world.

By that time, solar PV would represent the second-largest power source behind wind, generating a quarter of the worlds power, Future of Solar Photovoltaic launched today at Sun World 2019 in Lima finds. In total, global solar power capacity would rise from 480 GW in 2018 to over 8000 GW by 2050, growing by nearly 9 per cent every year.

Solar PV and other renewables sources represent the most effective and ready solution for addressing growing energy demand and limiting carbon emission at the same time, said IRENAs Director-General Francesco La Camera. Renewables are practical, affordable and climate-safe. They are key to sustainable development, enabling energy access, spurring economic growth, creating employment and improving health. Particularly solar energy is set to become one of the most prominent power sources in 2050. Projected growth rates in markets like Latin America showcase that we can extend the energy transition to all countries. Its possible.

If accompanied by sound policies, the transformation driven by renewables such as solar can bring substantial socioeconomic benefits, IRENAs new report finds. The global solar industry has the potential to employ over 18 million people by 2050, four times more than the 4.4 million jobs today.

Similarly, the deployment of rooftop solar PV systems has increased extensively, which today makes solar PV in some markets more attractive than buying electricity from the grid. The competitiveness of distributed solar power is clearly raising deployment in large markets, including Brazil, China, Germany and Mexico.

Statistical highlights:

Read the full report Future of Solar Photovoltaic. Deployment, investment, technology, grid integration and socio-economic aspects.

Excerpt from:

Latin America and Caribbean on the Brink of ... - BNamericas English

Fulfil the Rights of Afro-descendants in Latin America and the Caribbean – IDN InDepthNews | Analysis That Matters

Posted on by

Viewpoint by Natalia Kanem

Following are extensive extracts from the Statement by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem at the High-level Meeting on "Accelerating global action for the fulfilment of rights for Afro-descendant people in Latin America and the Caribbean", San Jos, Costa Rica, in October 2019.

NEW YORK (IDN-INPS) Leave no one behind that is the global communitys ambitious pledge. And the Sustainable Development Goals call on us to reach those furthest behind first.

How do we accelerate global action to fulfil the rights of Afro-descendants, who are often among those furthest behind in Latin America and the Caribbean?

How do we combat discrimination, inequalities and the root causes of exclusion?

It is true that we have made important progress. Weve seen gains in poverty reduction. There is greater recognition of the challenges to be overcome. We hear more and stronger voices calling for change. Yet, we still see structural barriers preventing full social and economic inclusion. Its clear much more needs to be done.

One in four Latin Americans identifies as an Afro-descendant. Thats more than 130 million people.

In Latin America and around the world, Afro-descendants have made outstanding contributions throughout history. Even in the face of tremendous adversity, people of African descent are leaders in all walks of life, from art to business, politics to philanthropy, sport to statesmanship, music and literature to the sciences. This is something to be celebrated.

Yet the recognition and appreciation of our heritage and cultures has been very limited.

The International Decade for People of Africa Descent is a chance to redress this. Indeed, the theme for the year is Recognition, Justice and Development.

The international community has recognised that people of African descent represent a distinct group whose human rights must be promoted and protected.

For centuries, Afro-descendants have faced inequalities, discrimination and segregation deeply rooted in colonialism and slavery. And this legacy continues. Despite all we have experienced and learned over the years, racism, structural discrimination, marginalisation, hate speech, and hate crimes remain virulent and widespread.

Migrants and refugees from Africa are among todays most vulnerable people. They face intersecting discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin, social and economic status, and citizenship.

Women and girls of African descent also face multiple, intersecting forms of discrimination and exclusion. Inequalities in access to health, invisibility in data collection, and a disproportionate incidence of violence against them these are just some of the challenges that continue to hamper their empowerment, participation and the full realisation and exercise of their rights.

Today, we stand at the midpoint of the International Decade. Let us use the solid framework it provides to join together and take action in the spirit of recognition, justice and development.

Together, let us seize this opportunity for focused, concerted, accelerated action to fight racism and racial discrimination, and to work towards the full enjoyment of human rights by all.

The statistics illustrate why upholding the rights of Afro-descendants is so important.

In Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and Uruguay combined, Afro-descendants account for 38% of the total population but represent almost half of those living in extreme poverty. Indeed, they are 2.5 times more likely to live in chronic poverty than people of non-African descent.

Historically, people of African descent have been segregated geographically, relegated to those areas with the lowest levels of development and the least access to public services. They are more likely to live in overcrowded conditions with limited access to education and employment and greater exposure to pollution, crime, violence and natural disasters.

Hardest hit: girls and women.

To accelerate progress, we need to prioritise meeting their needs and upholding their rights.

At UNFPA, we believe that the success of the Sustainable Development Goals depends on the investments we make in todays adolescent girls as they begin their journey to adulthood.

By 2030, todays girls will be young women. How do we change their destiny, particularly the destiny of our Afro-descendant girls? That has to be our goal.

Imagine a 10-year-old girl, on the cusp of adolescence, standing at a fork in the road.

If she is able to stay in school, shes on a path of health and wellbeing throughout her life. Her children will have better health outcomes too. Education, particularly for girls, can break the cycle of poverty.

If, on the other hand, she becomes pregnant while still a child herselfif she is forced to marry and drop out of school she faces a cascade of challenges throughout her life, jeopardising her health and well-being and that of the next generation.

As I speak, somewhere along the coast of this beautiful isthmus bridging South and North, perhaps in Limn or Bluefields or anywhere, really, since it will happen 20,000 times around the world today, a girl sits terrified and alone. For weeks, she has felt tired and mildly nauseous. Now, her cycle is late. Her much older boyfriend a man actually had told her not to worry. That he loved her. Why let a condom get in the way?

Today, she learns why. Shes pregnant . . . shes 15.

In a few months shell likely be tossed out of school. Her prospects of resuming her education, dim. No one will ask questions of the boy. He wont be ejected from school. On the other hand, her opportunities to find decent work and fulfil her potential, diminished. Her future, uncertain. Her boyfriend, nowhere to be found.

Latin America and the Caribbean has the second highest adolescent pregnancy rate in the world, after Africa. The poorest girls and girls from Afro-descendant communities are disproportionately affected.

They get pregnant earlier in almost all countries in the region with available data and face much higher risk of death in pregnancy and childbirth. They also have less access to modern contraceptives.

Being born to parents of African descent significantly increases the likelihood of a child being poor, giving these girls and boys an unfair start in life. Many never overcome it.

In Brazil, Afro-descendant girls experience a level of poverty around two times higher than their non-Afro-descendant peers. In Ecuador and Peru, its approximately 50 percent higher.

And the legacy of poverty and social exclusion is transmitted from generation to generation, with opportunities for social mobility elusive.

The regions unparalleled levels of inequality are rooted in deep gender disparities, which are especially serious when it comes to adolescent girls, for whom race, gender and poverty conspire to exacerbate their disadvantages.

Yet in spite of these tremendous challenges, Afro-descendant women have led the way in the quest for recognition, justice and equality.

UNFPA has stood and continues to stand with them, working to strengthen networks of Afro-descendant women and young people and supporting their participation in regional and global forums.

We meet at a historic time. Not only is this the midpoint of the International Decade for People of African Descent. 2019 is also the 50th anniversary of UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, and the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo. It was there, in 1994, that world governments declared the right to sexual and reproductive health.

Yet, despite States commitment to universal sexual and reproductive health and the realisation of reproductive rights, as stated in the Sustainable Development Goals, women and girls continue to lack access to services, and their rights continue to be violated. This is particularly true for women and girls of African descent.

We need an ambitious plan to move this agenda forward.

Under the auspices of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, with significant support of UNFPA, the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development, adopted in 2014, calls for actions to address pressing population issues. These include sexual and reproductive health, the equal inclusion of indigenous peoples and Afro-descendants, and the fight against racism and racial discrimination.

The review of implementation last year showed uneven progress in the recognition and protection of the rights of Afro-descendants.

So, too, do the UN Secretary-Generals annual progress reports to the General Assembly on the implementation of the Decades programme of activities.

The 2017 report focused in particular on Afro-descendant women and girls. It documented the stereotyping and inequalities they face from inequalities in access to health, to the disproportionate incidence of violence against them, to their invisibility in data collection.

The experiences of Afro-descendant women often get subsumed under data on women in general. This hides patterns of inequality and may seem to indicate that the situation of all women has improved, when often this is not the case.

UNFPA is passionate about addressing these issues, especially providing support to governments to produce disaggregated data and develop inclusive policies that target the needs of Afro-descendant communities, particularly women and girls.

We are partnering with leading global advocates, including H.E. Epsy Campbell Barr, [Vice President of the Republic of Costa Rica, a prominent Afro-Costan leader and human rights activist on issues related to women and indigenous and Afro-descent people, among others], and with academics, civil society networks, communities, faith-based organisations, and governments to advocate for social justice, equity and the rights of Afro-descendant women and girls, especially their right to sexual and reproductive health.

In this historic year, we are working with our partners to reignite the movement that began in Cairo 25 years ago. The Nairobi Summit on ICPD25 being convened in November by UNFPA, together with the Governments of Kenya and Denmark, is an opportunity to renew the call for rights and choices for all.

It is an opportunity to share lessons learned, forge new partnerships and signal new commitments to bring the promise of Cairo and Montevideo to everyone, leaving no one behind.

I urge all of us to think about the girls growing up in Limn, Costa Rica; in Esmeraldas, Ecuador; in El Carmen, Peru; in Bilwi or Bluefields in Nicaragua; in Salvador Bahia, in the Caribbean, but also in San Jos, in Lima, and in many of the large capitals of the region.

Together with them, lets make this region a more dignified and fairer place to live. Recognition, justice and development for all. Nothing less will do. [IDN-InDepthNews 11 November 2019]

Photo: Afro-Latinos. Source: World Bank.

IDN is flagship agency of theInternational Press Syndicate.

facebook.com/IDN.GoingDeeper - twitter.com/InDepthNews

Read more here:

Fulfil the Rights of Afro-descendants in Latin America and the Caribbean - IDN InDepthNews | Analysis That Matters

New Multi-Million Cruise Pier Opens in the Caribbean – Cruise Hive

Posted on by

The cruise pier at the Port Zante in the eastern Caribbean island nation ofSt Kitts and Nevis has been completed.

Get ready even more cruise ships at St. Kitts and even larger ones as the second cruise pier at Port Zante has now been completed. This now means the port can cater for up to three of the largest cruise ships in the world.

We already posted about the pier being almost complete in October, you can read more about it right here.

The island nation welcomed 1 million cruise visitors in the cruising season and that number is expected to rise now that the new pier has been completed.

The 45 million dollar project was financed via four local sources, of whichUS$5 millioncame from the countrys Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme. The Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association (FCCA) visited the twin islands this week to discuss the further development of the cruise sector inSt Kittsand Nevis.

St Kitts and NevisTourism Minister,Lindsey Grant, commented during FCCAs visit:

Our meetings ensure that we understand the needs of the cruise lines and their passengers, receive feedback on our service standards and guest experience and provide insight into cruise industry trends such as new ships and itineraries for upcoming seasons, all of which will help us to remain competitive as a premier cruise destination moving forward.

We can look forward to much larger ships starting to include calls to St. Kitts including the new and future Oasis-class vessel from Royal Caribbean and even the new LNG generation ships from the Carnival Corporation.

Also Read: 20 Things to Do in St. Kitts While on a Cruise

The Caribbean nation has a population of 55,000 and Port Zante is located in the capital Basseterre in the southern part of the St. Kitts island.

Read more from the original source:

New Multi-Million Cruise Pier Opens in the Caribbean - Cruise Hive

‘You couldn’t do it on your own’: meet the Caribbean soldiers campaigning for their own war memorial – Telegraph.co.uk

Posted on by

When Albert Jarrett moved to Britain in 1943, he was not prepared for the weather. Volunteering for the Royal Air Force at the age of 18, he moved from his native Jamaica to an airbase near Sutton Coldfield, and struggled at first with the biting winter mornings.

There was quite a bit of frost when I looked out in the morning. The ground was white. My first thought was, I wish I could go back home, Jarrett recalls.

76 years later, Jarrett does not struggle to remember any details of his story as he sits with his wife, Shirley, in an Italian cafe in central London. But he is worried thatother British people have forgotten his contribution to the Second World War, as well as that of the hundreds of thousands of other foreign troops who fought for Britain between 1939 and 1945.

And he is not alone in his concern: this year, in the run-up to Remembrance Sunday, the Royal British Legion is campaigning to highlight the contribution of soldiers from all over the world, irrespective of nationality, creed, colour, or race.

During the Battle of Britain, as many as one in five of the RAFs pilots came from abroad, and campaigners worry that many non-British troops have been written out of the national story. Indeed, watch a Sixties cinema classic like The Battle of Britain or Where Eagles Dare, and most of the characters are white, public-school types with cut-glass Queens accents. In more recent years, directors have tried to present more diversity: in 2017, Christopher Nolan was praised for having Churchills We will fight them on the beaches speech read by a working-class Tommy in a northern accent, in his Oscar-winning masterpiece Dunkirk. But some groups, like Caribbeans and east Europeans, still struggle to get a look-in.

Excerpt from:

'You couldn't do it on your own': meet the Caribbean soldiers campaigning for their own war memorial - Telegraph.co.uk

The Winners of the Caribbean Rum Awards in St Barth – Caribbean Journal

Posted on by

GUSTAVIA It came down to a rum-off.

For the first time, the most exclusive rums in the Caribbean went head-to-head in a blind tasting competition at Caribbean Journals Caribbean Rum Awards in St Barth, and a team of seven international rum judges finally decided on a winner.

It was a superstar rum field: Ron Del Barrilito Five-Star; Don Q Reserva de la Familia Serralles; Havana Club Maximo; Brugal Papa Andres; El Dorado 25.

And after a round of voting, Puerto Ricos Ron del Barrilito and the Don Q were neck-and neck, with the Don Q Reserva de la Familia Serralles finally emerging victorious in the second round.

It was the culmination of a week of rum celebration: arrival in style via Tradewind Aviation; a rum expo in Gustavia, a Peoples Choice jury; a dinner at Pearl Beach sponsored by WIMCO Villas; a Ti Punch seminar and cocktail afternoon; and a seven-course cocktail-and-food pairing VIP dinner at the Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab on Saturday (helmed by top chef Andrew Zarzosa of Yuzu Miami fame).

2019 marked the arrival of the Caribbean Rum Awards in St Barth, set at the Rhum Room, proprietor Christopher Davis rum Mecca that has more fine rums on its menu than any bar in the Western Hemisphere, including the largest selection of rhum agricole of any bar on earth.

We are so pleased with the reception of the Caribbean Rum Awards in St Barth, said Alexander Britell, editor and publisher of Caribbean Journal. St Barth is one of the most remarkable markets for rum, and our partnership with Christopher Davis and the St Barth Rum Festival is a natural fit. This years competition was filled with outstanding rums from across the Caribbean, and a reminder of the wonderful diversity of Caribbean rum.

In a field marked by broad excellence, rums from Martinique to Guadeloupe to Puerto Rico took home the double golds in seven different categories.

The Don Q Reserva de la Familia Serralles took home the Double Gold in the Ultra-Premium Category, while Ron del Barrilitos Four-Star Rum won Double Gold in the Premium Rum category.

On the Rhum Agricole side, Double Gold medalists included Rhum A1710 for its Renaissance rum in the Rhum Blanc Martinique category, while Rhum Bolognes La Coulisse took home the Double Gold in the Rhum Blanc Guadeloupe category.

Martiniques Rhum HSE won top honors in the XO category, while the Guadeloupe-made R St Barth Authentique won for the Hors dage category.

The partnership of the Saint Barth Rum Festival and the Caribbean Rum Awards inaugural event in Gustavia this year was incredible, Christopher Davis said. The judges, both professional and amateur, experienced some of the finest rhums/rums/rones from the Caribbean, culminating in a seven-course Japanese-inspired tasting menu with rum cocktails during the awards program. As it was our first year, we kept everything intimate, so we could make sure the quality of our event was top notch. We are already having distilleries and other potential partners on island as well as our peoples choice panel enquiring about the second edition next year, which for all of us at the Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab and Rhum Room is the best reward.

The festival also bestowed a special jury prize on Martiniques Gregory Vernant of Rhum Neisson, choosing him as the Caribbean Rum Maker of the Year.

Judges included Martinique chef and restaurateur Guy Ferdinand; Caribbean Journal editor and publisher Alexander Britell; Caribbean Journal EVP and managing editor Guy Britton; New York-based vintner and spirits importer Steven Shaw; Peter Berntsen, operating partner of Casa de Montecristo by Prime Cigar in Miami; Cuba Journal editor-in-chief Simons Chase; and the aforementioned Rhum Room and Quarter Kitchen and Cocktail Lab proprietor Christopher Davis.

Judges on the Peoples Choice panel included Steven Miller, Eddy Maddox; Benoit Lavigne and Ted Houseknect.

St Barth is the natural home for an event that celebrates rum, one of the worlds greatest artisanal, luxury products, Britton said. And we are excited about what the future has in store.

See the full results of the Caribbean Rum Awards 2019 below:

Caribbean Rum Awards Results

Rhum Blanc Agricole (Martinique)

Double Gold: A1710 Renaissance

Gold: La Favorite Riviere Riviere Belair

Silver: Rhum HSE Parcellaire

Bronze: Rhum Neisson LEsprit Bio

Rhum Blanc Agricole (Guadeloupe)

Double Gold: Rhum Bologne La Coulisse

Gold: Rhum Saint Barth Blanc

Silver: Pere Labat 50

Bronze: Karukera LIntense

VSOP Rhum Agricole

Double Gold: Rhum Karukera Black Alligator

Gold: HSE VSOP

Silver: Rhum Bologne VSOP

Bronze: Rhum Clement VSOP

XO Rhum Agricole

Double Gold: Rhum HSE XO

Gold: Rhum Damoiseau XO

Silver: Rhum Depaz XO

Bronze: Rhum Bologne XO

Hors dAge Rhum Agricole

Double Gold: R St Barth Authentique

Gold: Rhum HSE 2003

Silver: La Favorite Privilege Pour Lulu

Bronze: Rhum Depaz 2002

Premium Rum ($450 and under)

Double Gold: Ron del Barrilito Four Star

Gold: Foursquare Zinfandel Cask Blend

Silver: Appleton 21

Bronze: Facundo Paraiso

Ultra-Premium Rum ($450 and above)

Double Gold: Don Q Reserva de la Familia Serralles

Gold: Ron del Barrilito Five-Star

Silver: Havana Club Maximo

Bronze: El Dorado 25

Special Jury Prize: Caribbean Rum Maker of the Year 2019

Gregory Vernant, Rhum Neisson

Caribbean Rum Awards Peoples Choice Results

Best Molasses Rum: Don Q Reserva de la Familia Serralles

Best Rhum Agricole: R St Barth Authentique

Judge accommodations were provided for by Wimco Villas, Les Ilets de la Plage and St Barth Properties.

See original here:

The Winners of the Caribbean Rum Awards in St Barth - Caribbean Journal

Energy and infrastructure boost Latin American & Caribbean M&A – JD Supra

Posted on by

Updated: May 25, 2018:

JD Supra is a legal publishing service that connects experts and their content with broader audiences of professionals, journalists and associations.

This Privacy Policy describes how JD Supra, LLC ("JD Supra" or "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses and shares personal data collected from visitors to our website (located at http://www.jdsupra.com) (our "Website") who view only publicly-available content as well as subscribers to our services (such as our email digests or author tools)(our "Services"). By using our Website and registering for one of our Services, you are agreeing to the terms of this Privacy Policy.

Please note that if you subscribe to one of our Services, you can make choices about how we collect, use and share your information through our Privacy Center under the "My Account" dashboard (available if you are logged into your JD Supra account).

Registration Information. When you register with JD Supra for our Website and Services, either as an author or as a subscriber, you will be asked to provide identifying information to create your JD Supra account ("Registration Data"), such as your:

Other Information: We also collect other information you may voluntarily provide. This may include content you provide for publication. We may also receive your communications with others through our Website and Services (such as contacting an author through our Website) or communications directly with us (such as through email, feedback or other forms or social media). If you are a subscribed user, we will also collect your user preferences, such as the types of articles you would like to read.

Information from third parties (such as, from your employer or LinkedIn): We may also receive information about you from third party sources. For example, your employer may provide your information to us, such as in connection with an article submitted by your employer for publication. If you choose to use LinkedIn to subscribe to our Website and Services, we also collect information related to your LinkedIn account and profile.

Your interactions with our Website and Services: As is true of most websites, we gather certain information automatically. This information includes IP addresses, browser type, Internet service provider (ISP), referring/exit pages, operating system, date/time stamp and clickstream data. We use this information to analyze trends, to administer the Website and our Services, to improve the content and performance of our Website and Services, and to track users' movements around the site. We may also link this automatically-collected data to personal information, for example, to inform authors about who has read their articles. Some of this data is collected through information sent by your web browser. We also use cookies and other tracking technologies to collect this information. To learn more about cookies and other tracking technologies that JD Supra may use on our Website and Services please see our "Cookies Guide" page.

We use the information and data we collect principally in order to provide our Website and Services. More specifically, we may use your personal information to:

JD Supra takes reasonable and appropriate precautions to insure that user information is protected from loss, misuse and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration and destruction. We restrict access to user information to those individuals who reasonably need access to perform their job functions, such as our third party email service, customer service personnel and technical staff. You should keep in mind that no Internet transmission is ever 100% secure or error-free. Where you use log-in credentials (usernames, passwords) on our Website, please remember that it is your responsibility to safeguard them. If you believe that your log-in credentials have been compromised, please contact us at privacy@jdsupra.com.

Our Website and Services are not directed at children under the age of 16 and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 16 through our Website and/or Services. If you have reason to believe that a child under the age of 16 has provided personal information to us, please contact us, and we will endeavor to delete that information from our databases.

Our Website and Services may contain links to other websites. The operators of such other websites may collect information about you, including through cookies or other technologies. If you are using our Website or Services and click a link to another site, you will leave our Website and this Policy will not apply to your use of and activity on those other sites. We encourage you to read the legal notices posted on those sites, including their privacy policies. We are not responsible for the data collection and use practices of such other sites. This Policy applies solely to the information collected in connection with your use of our Website and Services and does not apply to any practices conducted offline or in connection with any other websites.

JD Supra's principal place of business is in the United States. By subscribing to our website, you expressly consent to your information being processed in the United States.

You can make a request to exercise any of these rights by emailing us at privacy@jdsupra.com or by writing to us at:

You can also manage your profile and subscriptions through our Privacy Center under the "My Account" dashboard.

We will make all practical efforts to respect your wishes. There may be times, however, where we are not able to fulfill your request, for example, if applicable law prohibits our compliance. Please note that JD Supra does not use "automatic decision making" or "profiling" as those terms are defined in the GDPR.

Pursuant to Section 1798.83 of the California Civil Code, our customers who are California residents have the right to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes.

You can make a request for this information by emailing us at privacy@jdsupra.com or by writing to us at:

Some browsers have incorporated a Do Not Track (DNT) feature. These features, when turned on, send a signal that you prefer that the website you are visiting not collect and use data regarding your online searching and browsing activities. As there is not yet a common understanding on how to interpret the DNT signal, we currently do not respond to DNT signals on our site.

For non-EU/Swiss residents, if you would like to know what personal information we have about you, you can send an e-mail to privacy@jdsupra.com. We will be in contact with you (by mail or otherwise) to verify your identity and provide you the information you request. We will respond within 30 days to your request for access to your personal information. In some cases, we may not be able to remove your personal information, in which case we will let you know if we are unable to do so and why. If you would like to correct or update your personal information, you can manage your profile and subscriptions through our Privacy Center under the "My Account" dashboard. If you would like to delete your account or remove your information from our Website and Services, send an e-mail to privacy@jdsupra.com.

We reserve the right to change this Privacy Policy at any time. Please refer to the date at the top of this page to determine when this Policy was last revised. Any changes to our Privacy Policy will become effective upon posting of the revised policy on the Website. By continuing to use our Website and Services following such changes, you will be deemed to have agreed to such changes.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this site, your dealings with our Website or Services, or if you would like to change any of the information you have provided to us, please contact us at: privacy@jdsupra.com.

As with many websites, JD Supra's website (located at http://www.jdsupra.com) (our "Website") and our services (such as our email article digests)(our "Services") use a standard technology called a "cookie" and other similar technologies (such as, pixels and web beacons), which are small data files that are transferred to your computer when you use our Website and Services. These technologies automatically identify your browser whenever you interact with our Website and Services.

We use cookies and other tracking technologies to:

There are different types of cookies and other technologies used our Website, notably:

JD Supra Cookies. We place our own cookies on your computer to track certain information about you while you are using our Website and Services. For example, we place a session cookie on your computer each time you visit our Website. We use these cookies to allow you to log-in to your subscriber account. In addition, through these cookies we are able to collect information about how you use the Website, including what browser you may be using, your IP address, and the URL address you came from upon visiting our Website and the URL you next visit (even if those URLs are not on our Website). We also utilize email web beacons to monitor whether our emails are being delivered and read. We also use these tools to help deliver reader analytics to our authors to give them insight into their readership and help them to improve their content, so that it is most useful for our users.

Analytics/Performance Cookies. JD Supra also uses the following analytic tools to help us analyze the performance of our Website and Services as well as how visitors use our Website and Services:

Facebook, Twitter and other Social Network Cookies. Our content pages allow you to share content appearing on our Website and Services to your social media accounts through the "Like," "Tweet," or similar buttons displayed on such pages. To accomplish this Service, we embed code that such third party social networks provide and that we do not control. These buttons know that you are logged in to your social network account and therefore such social networks could also know that you are viewing the JD Supra Website.

If you would like to change how a browser uses cookies, including blocking or deleting cookies from the JD Supra Website and Services you can do so by changing the settings in your web browser. To control cookies, most browsers allow you to either accept or reject all cookies, only accept certain types of cookies, or prompt you every time a site wishes to save a cookie. It's also easy to delete cookies that are already saved on your device by a browser.

The processes for controlling and deleting cookies vary depending on which browser you use. To find out how to do so with a particular browser, you can use your browser's "Help" function or alternatively, you can visit http://www.aboutcookies.org which explains, step-by-step, how to control and delete cookies in most browsers.

We may update this cookie policy and our Privacy Policy from time-to-time, particularly as technology changes. You can always check this page for the latest version. We may also notify you of changes to our privacy policy by email.

If you have any questions about how we use cookies and other tracking technologies, please contact us at: privacy@jdsupra.com.

See the rest here:

Energy and infrastructure boost Latin American & Caribbean M&A - JD Supra

Misery, not hedonism, appears to be driving increased drug use among Gen Xers and Boomers – Illicit Trade

Posted on by

Over the past few years, numerous surveys have revealed that Millennials and members of Generation Z are less keen on the consumption of illegal drugs and alcohol than their immediate forebears. In fact, the US Centers for Disease Control and Preventions most recent Youth Risk Behaviour Survey showed that alcohol, drug and cigarette consumption have been falling consistently among American teens for at least the past decade. The study also showed that young people in the US are having less sex. Until recently, similar trends were being observed in the UK, where alcohol and drug consumption among young people have also been following a general downward trend for several years now.

Yet despite this, the number of drug-related deaths in both countries is on the rise. Back in August, data from the UKs Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that drug poisoning deaths rose by 16% in 2018. Last August,the CDC saidthat drug overdoses were estimated to have killed just over 72,280 people in the US in 2017, which represented an increase of some 10% on the previous year. All of this suggests that members of Generation X and Boomers are accounting for a growing proportion of both nations problem drug use and drug-related overdose deaths; a trend that appears to be being borne out both statistically and anecdotally.

Back in 2017, the UKs ONS revealed that people aged between 40 to 49 had the highest rate of drug misuse deaths across England and Wales for the first time ever in 2016. This led to people of that age group being dubbed the Trainspotting generation after the Irvine Welsh novel that was popular during their youth. According to ONS researchers, the emerging trend of older people suffering a higher a number of drug overdose deaths was down to the fact that many addicts in the 40 to 49 age group were beginning to lose lengthy battles with substance abuse habits that might have been begun decades ago due to poor physical and mental health.

In a more recent assessment released this August, the ONS said that people born in the 1960s and 1970s [were] dying from suicide or drug poisoning in greater numbers than any other generation. The ONS said that while the reasons for rising drug and suicide deaths in this age group were complex, a high number of those who lost their lives lived in some of the most deprived parts of England.

While it might be easy to conflate drug problems among Boomers and Generation Xers with the hedonistic times in which they came of age, other studies have also suggested that this might be too simplistic a view. In a paper published in April, researchers at Vanderbilt University in the US state of Tennessee noted that high levels of depression, suicidal ideation, drug use and alcohol abuse identified among middle-aged white Boomers was beginning to impact the youngest members of Generation X. Lauren Gaydosh, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Health and Society and Public Policy Studies at Vanderbilt, forecast that midlife mortality may begin to increase across a range of demographic groups, adding: Public health efforts to reduce these indicators of despair should not be targeted toward just rural whites, for example, because were finding that these patterns are generalised across the population.

Earlier this month, new figures published by the UKs National Health Service (NHS) revealed that the number of English pensioners aged over 90 being admitted to hospital after suffering from psychological and behavioural disorders following cocaine use had risen ten-fold over the past decade. This came almost a year after similar data revealed that the number of over-45s in the UK seeking medical attention after suffering serious mental health problems as a result of drug use had risen by 85% over the previous decade. Speaking with the Guardian at the time, Ian Hamilton, Associate Professor of Addiction at the University of York, said: [Older people] are more likely to have had longer drug-using careers, so they will need longer in specialist drug treatment. However, unfortunately treatment services are being directed to offer abstinence-based services rather than maintaining this group on substitute drugs like methadone.

Both ONS studies and the Vanderbilt paper suggest that rising problem drug use and overdose deaths among older people in both the UK and the US have little to do with them being children of the second summer of love or having grown up believing heroin chic was the epitome of cool. Instead, evidence indicates that the growing number of people experiencing problems with drugs in later life appear to be among the most vulnerable in society, suggesting that labelling them with nicknames such as the Trainspotting generation might at the very least be treating the problems they face with undue flippancy.

While it may be the case that some Boomer or Gen X drug users might have been living with a habit for decades, it would seem that many are pushed to use illicit substances as a result of the undesirable life situations in which they have found themselves, and not as part of ill-advised efforts to relive the hedonism of their youth.

Excerpt from:

Misery, not hedonism, appears to be driving increased drug use among Gen Xers and Boomers - Illicit Trade

Your Weekly Horoscopes Are Here! November 15th – November 22nd – InStyle

Posted on by

If you celebrate your birthday this week:

Your Year Ahead

Fate is fickle, my friend. She can give with one hand and then take just that much more with the other. But heres a year when Lady Luck lays down some new ground rules. Theres still hard work ahead but for good rewards. If wondering where to focus your attentions, love seems the obvious answer. Socially, youre vivacious. Youre also finally blessed with finances and fun. Dont question where the extra cash comes from. Its how you spend it that counts. Retraining would also be of benefit. Expand your skills, and you could even be courting fame - or at the very least, a skyrocketing lifestyle.

Aries (March 21 - April 20)

Best Day: Saturday 16th

This week tests your sense of stability. Financial uncertainty features, so avoid get-rich-quick schemes. The same goes for former lovers who might stray back within reach. It would be wise to remember why you broke up in the first place. If youre trying to lose weight, boredom is your worst enemy - so avoid snack attacks by keeping on the go.

Taurus (April 21 - May 20)

Best Day: Sunday 17th

If I say theres change on the way, promise not to run? While things may be flowing a tad too swiftly for your liking, youll soon get the hang of it. Perhaps youre being asked to retrain, or take an unexpected detour? Whatever happens, know that the heavens are steering you in the right direction. Follow your dreams, Taurus. The time is right.

Gemini (May 21 - June 21)

Best Day: Wednesday 20th

Like it or not, sometimes the best things happen when theyre least expected. Sure, there may be issues to deal with, but youre likely to find that each one is relatively minor. Be patient, too, in matters of the heart; theres no hurry for a decision. A change of living arrangements could also either frustrate, or delight you.

Cancer (June 22 - July 22)

Best Day: Friday 15th

Recently, work has seemed like a war zone and youre tired of petty politics. Whats more, youre angry. This week, however, encourages restraint. That doesnt mean allowing others to take you for granted - just dont let them to hijack your hard work by losing your temper. Stay calm, and youll be the one reaping the rewards.

Leo (July 23 - August 23)

Best Day: Thursday 21st

Time for some lateral thought, Leo. Instead of hurriedly grappling for difficult or, perhaps, unattainable aims - stop rushing and take the time to look at things from a different viewpoint. Theres still much to learn, and living by a new set of rules or being open to new experiences could be just what you need.

Virgo (August 24 - September 22)

Best Day: Friday 15th

Theres tension in the air, which you cant help but sense. While your level head usually keeps you out of trouble, less sensible minds seem determined to stay on a collision course. Dont buy into trouble just because others are deliberately egging you on. Youre stronger than that. And others know it.

Libra (September 23 - October 23)

Best Day: Monday 18th

Some of that old magics back, Libra. If dreams can come true, theyll do so now. And dont expect it to be a solo journey. Youre ready and able to contact every friend youve ever made on this beautiful planet. This is what happens when youre left unsupervised - pleasure takes priority. Simply, enjoy.

Scorpio (October 24 - November 22)

Best Day: Tuesday 19th

This week has an important feel about it, where most Scorpios get to move in a new direction. Others may want to intrude on your plans, but if a situation is no longer working for you - dont ignore this chance to discard overly-heavy burdens. By lightening the load, life becomes easier. Love wins a generous time slot too.

Sagittarius (November 23 - December 21)

Best Day: Sunday 17th

Sweep the more boring issues of life to the side for the time being. Youre overcome by a spirit of adventure. But if youre considering romantic escapades, you could be a tad disappointed. Your best ventures this week come via travel or study. So spread your wings, and fly off in a new direction.

Capricorn (December 22 - January 20)

Best Day: Friday 15th

Capricorns work hard, but maybe its time to pass the baton to someone else for a while. This is a week for catching up on things that arent all that important and for paying attention to more pleasurable desires. Basically, a slow moving Mercury suggests a touch of hedonism, if thats what it takes to balance you out.

Aquarius (January 21 - February 18)

Best Day: Thursday 21st

It is said that in life, timing is everything. Just the right words at the right time can heal, open doors - even open hearts. Being in the right place, at the right time is often how we are blessed with incredible opportunities in our lives. And when time is on our side, we can be powerful. So, go ahead Aquarius - be powerful.

Pisces (February 19 - March 20)

Best Day: Saturday 16th

Traditional interpretations say that yours is the sign of the mystic. Pisceans absorb energies that less intuitive signs miss, though this can make you particularly vulnerable to stress. Not this week. For now, the cosmos keeps you constantly on the move, and trailblazing along that road to success. Even so, youre also granted chances to play.

More here:

Your Weekly Horoscopes Are Here! November 15th - November 22nd - InStyle

Dialogue with Tom Wright about History and Eschatology Part Two – Patheos

Posted on by

BEN: One of the real strengths of this book is that you are able to chronicle the intellectual history from ancient Epicureanism to the present and show how the dominant world view today is not much different from ancient Epicureanism in the way it brackets out God and the supernatural from history and natural causation. Since most of our audience will associate Epicureanism with hedonism, the pleasures of the palate and the flesh, explain what you mean by Epicureanism, and how it still informs modern presuppositions about the nature of the world.

TOM: Ancient Epicureanism was indeed known by its opponents at least! as hedonism. This, however, was at least in part a slur, since the serious Epicureans (represented by Lucretius) knew that over-indulgence in fleshly pleasures was counter-productive. They recommended a cooler, more detached pursuit of pleasure. But Epicureanism was far more than a charter for pleasure, whether licentious or restrained. It was a worldview, competing with Stoicism and the various forms of Platonism as it still does. Stoicism saw the gods and the world as bundled up together in various kinds of pantheistic mix; Epicureanism saw the gods as completely detached from our world (though made ultimately of the same stuff), so that the gods dont interfere in our world and nothing we can do will affect them. Since there is no divine action in the world, the world makes itself through the random movement of atoms, which sometimes swerve and, bumping into one another, produce different forms of life. This is the direct ancestor of modern evolutionism (not the biological theory of evolution, but the worldview which preceded it by a century or more on the a priori assumption that, with God or the gods absent from the world, the world must proceed under its own steam). Epicureanism is therefore at the root a theory about how the world works; a theory which allows for the existence of the gods but which insists that they are not involved in our world, nor we in theirs.

Read the original post:

Dialogue with Tom Wright about History and Eschatology Part Two - Patheos

Rocket ships, sex cults, and South African connections – Peter Mark Kendall tells us all about his thrilling role in the true-life TV show that’s…

Posted on by

Cape Town - Sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction, and in the case of Strange Angel the truth couldn't get any stranger.

Based on the true-life story of Jack Parsons, played by Jack Reynor, the gripping show explores how Parsons would build rocket ships by day and perform magic sex rituals by night in 1940s Los Angeles.

According to Vice, Parsons was a literal rocket scientist who invented the first castable solid-state rocket fuel in 1942. But he has mostly been written out of history due to his involvement in the occult movement, Thelema, which is a complicated set of magical, mystical, and religious beliefs formed by Aleister Crowley.

Ati reports that Crowley was popularly known as "the wickedest man in the world" and encouraged his followers to "Do What Thou Wilt". This meant mostly fulfilling individual desires, particularly sexual ones. Parsons reportedly used his rocketry business to buy a mansion in Pasadena which became a den of hedonism that allowed him to explore sexual adventures.

In Strange Angel rocket science and sex come together in the most explosive manner.

'CAPE TOWN IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE I'VE EVER BEEN TO'

It's a Friday night in the office and I'm waiting on the line to speak to Peter Mark Kendall, who plays the role of Richard Onsted in the mystery drama. Onsted, a much more conservative and careful character, is the perfect sidekick to madman Parsons in the TV show which is currently available for streaming on Showmax in South Africa.

Peter - known for his role in shows like The Americans, Girls, and Chicago Med - is no stranger to South Africa at all. In fact, his whole family have their roots firmly planted in Mzansi's soil. "My family is from South Africa," he confirms over the phone from New York City where it's early morning. He adds: "They came to the United States in '85. I'm the youngest of four kids and I was the only one born in the States."

The 33-year-old star recently visited SA's shores with his family: "It was a wonderful trip we had this past summer and it was actually my first time to South Africa. Most of our family are still over there so we went to my cousin's wedding and I got to go with my mom, and my dad, and my wife. It was kind of their first trip back in a significant way since they left in '85 so it was really a wonderful and meaningful trip for my family."

I ask if he'd be keen on filming in South Africa, to which Peter immediately responds: "OMG, you know when we were in Cape Town and I could see some of the productions happening. I was just like gosh that's such ait's the most beautiful place I've ever been to and I'd love nothing more than to work there, so if you could do anything to make that happen that would be great," he jokes before adding: "I think it's the most special place I've ever been to so I'm dying to go back."

'LIKE SOMETHING YOU WOULD READ IN A NOVEL'

We then turn the conversation back to the show and his character. "When I first got the script, I didnt really realise that this was based on a true story. It was only after I had considered doing it that I found out it was very much based on the true story of Jack Parsons and the people that was kind of orbiting him in at that time in Los Angeles and it just seemed kind of stranger than fiction.

He adds: "It was like something you would read about in a novel. So, the thing about my character particularly was that I was struck and drawn to his brilliance in maths, and science, and aeronomics and all of that but then his inability to connect with people in the day-to-day real-life. It's a great kind of exercise as an actor to be so adept at one thing and then struggle in something that we all do every day."

Playing a rocket scientist is no easy feat and Peter had to rely heavily on his theatrical background and studies. According to IMDb, Peter attended McDaniel College, where he received a BA in Theatre and Jazz Studies. He then received his MFA in Acting from the Brown University/Trinity Rep Program.

"I think as actors we do our best, especially when we're working on characters who have a very extensive knowledge of one thing or one niche area, to understand the subject but when it's literally rocket science that can be quite daunting. Especially if you're trying to sound and portray it so comfortably and authentic.

"Sometimes you feel like a fraud because you have to say all these jargon mathematical and scientific language. The tough part for me was trying to make it seem like I know what I'm talking about. I did as much research as I can to have some kind of idea of what's going on to help the story go forward.

"Really, it's just repetition and getting your mouth around those words and those terms just well enough that you can say it with confidence. If you believe what youre saying, then hopefully the audience would believe in what you're saying."

'LIKE A SNOWBALL GAINING SPEED AND GOING OUT OF CONTROL'

Strange Angel takes its time to unfold and goes from slow-paced to thrilling as the series picks up speed. Peter agrees, saying: "The first season is kind of a slow burn. It unfolds at a slower pace and sets up the exposition and who these people are and then there's a great tone shift from season 1 to season 2 where it feels kind of like a snowball gaining speed and going out of control.

"I think of that as great storytelling. I really appreciate shows that take their time and are a bit ambiguous in their storytelling and kind of makes you lean in. When the audience kind of has to do a little work too and try to figure out what's going on."

He adds: "It has a kind of film noir feel to it and there's like a danger in that there's so much at cost for all of these people not just in the personal world but in the natural kind of zoomed out world too.

"What these people are doing is going to affect the entire world and that's really significant."

Strange Angel is undoubtedly worth the watch if you're looking for something with a lot more meat around the bones. Stream it now on Showmax!

(Photos: Frank W. Ockenfels/CBS/Showmax)

READ NEXT:British star Ed Stoppard on filming in South Africa, working with Rolanda Marais, and preparing for his thrilling TV role in Trackers

Go here to read the rest:

Rocket ships, sex cults, and South African connections - Peter Mark Kendall tells us all about his thrilling role in the true-life TV show that's...

Toro Y Moi reinforces his own creative progression at the House of Blues – Vanyaland

Posted on by

Watching singer, songwriter, and producer Chaz Bundick better known as Toro y Moi gracefully mature as both a performer and frontman has been utterly gratifying. His debut album, 2010s Causers of This, introduced us to a not only crooner who executed lyrics with a crushed velvet delivery, but also someone who retreated into their craft.

Subsequent records like Anything In Return, What For? and Boo Boo slowly broke the mold and served as bold markers of his evolution. His discography overflows with experiments; Toros brand of electro-pop psychedelia fuses effortlessly into his appreciation of funk and disco. His show this past Wednesday (November 6) at Bostons House of Blues reinforced his creative progression.

His most recent projects, last months Soul Trash and Januarys Outer Peace, find Toro at the intersection of hypnotic R&B seduction and electronic desolation. His ability to play up both simultaneously has become his specialty, and Wednesday night revealed that he earnestly embraces this juxtaposition. He was still the hyper-focused musician determined to get every detail correct, but he also showed off his more playful and fun side with confidence.

The steely burn and severity of New House was complimented by the hedonism of Ordinary Pleasure. The urgent pleading of Girl Like You was cheerfully balanced with the precocious Freelance. The smooth sensuality of Monte Carlo was followed up by the infectious and pulsating Rose Quartz. His catalogue is multifaceted and vast and it also stays true to the complex nature of art-making.

As Toro stood as the epicenter of the rollercoaster ride, he demonstrated a controlled calm that comes with years of perfectionism. His output has been admirably consistent for the last few years, and with each and every project, its as if he dives into a new and more authentic version of himself. Whatever Toro y Moi does next is bound to be unpredictable but innovative and the world cant wait for it.

Read more here:

Toro Y Moi reinforces his own creative progression at the House of Blues - Vanyaland

Why Eden Sank to Grief | Cole S. Aronson – First Things

Posted on by

A biweekly column about Jewish things.

The first sin is the most interpreted event in history. Why did they eatand what should we learn? The wily serpent elicits from Eve the Lords injunction against eating from the tree of knowledge, and then:

St. Thomas writes at S.T.II-2-163: The first inordinateness of the human appetite resulted from his coveting inordinately some spiritual good. . . . Now he would not have coveted it inordinately, by desiring it according to his measure as established by the Divine rule. Hence it follows thatman'sfirstsinconsisted in his coveting somespiritualgoodabove his measure: and this pertains topride. Im afraid that St. Thomas has not helped us much in understanding the first sin, as all sins of commission traduce Gods prescribed measure. Surely knowledge is a spiritual good, and surely man desired it inordinately. But substitute anything for knowledge and you can still explain the sin in question. St. Thomas has defined sin, but said little about its first particular instance.

Rashi, the medieval Ashkenazi exegete, writes that Eve was seduced by the serpent into wanting to be a god (St. Thomas, in fairness, also writes that man wanted to be like God, but only in the sense, true of all sinners, that by his own natural power he might decide what was good.) The serpents offer is that the fruit of the tree of knowledge will admit Eve into the heavenly ranks. Eves goal, according to Rashi, was a kind of theological revisionism.

The medieval Jewish commentators, broadly speaking, do not think that Edenic man wanted to join the angels. Nachmanidess reading is typical: Eve sensed the pleasure to be derived from eating. This, I think, is the straightforward reading of the text. Eve does not want to join God. She has appetites that God enjoins her from satisfying, but the Bibles description of her mind indicates she wants less and not more to do with divinity. Eve was a voluptuary, maybe, but not a devil.

Lets follow Nachmanides and investigate Eves hedonism. The Bible relates Eves thoughts moving from lower to higher pleasures. First: The fruit can sate Eves hunger. By muting the distinguishing feature of the tree of knowledge, Eve evinces her animal nature. Shell consume this fruit as she would any other fruit.

Eves second thought is that the tree is beautiful. Her gluttony is now refined by aesthetic sensibility. Eating will satisfy her, but the tree pleases Eve already. The first two moments of Eve's deliberation have nothing to do with the knowledge of good and evil, or for that matter with the prospect of divinity. Her mind is far from the serpents enticement and therefore from overt hostility toward God.

Eves final thought is that the tree is delightful for wisdom. Some commentators have assimilated this last moment into the Hedonism Thesis. Its true that the Hebrew adjective nechmad, which Ive rendered as delightful, adverts the reader to the trees effect on Eve, rather than the trees intrinsic qualities. But the adjective modifies the tree, not Eve. Furthermore: I have followed many translations in rendering above the Hebrew lhaskil as for wisdom. But that is not exact. Lhaskil is not a noun, but a causal verb. Sacrificing flow for precision, we should say that the tree was delightful to bestow wisdom. The least forced reading is that the tree, as sources of knowledge go, is a delightfully fruitful one. The emphasis is on the quality of the trove, not the sensations of the discoverer.

Eves sin is to ignore God in favor of a lesser source of meaning. Subtler than an outright rebel,Eve considers herself neutral with respect to Gods injunction. She wants to replace God not with herself, but with wisdom. I suggest that Eve was the first philosopher, but not just any sort of philosopher. She does not wonder after the stars. She wants to know what truly matters.

I do not think the Bible is suggesting an opposition between wisdom and obedience, or, if you like, between Athens and Jerusalem. There is almost nothing the Bible praises more highly and frequently than knowledge of the sort Eve is after. And indeed, God justifies expelling Adam and Eve on the view that they are now like us, knowing good and bad, earthly only because mortal. But the true servant of God consecrates to his creator not only the things human beings find most instinctively pleasurablefood, sexbut also the elevated things. Knowledge of the good ranks among the highest of these things, because God is defined by perfect wisdom and perfect goodness. If God wanted to know the extent of his finest creatures devotion, he devised the perfect test: to see whether man would forego the highest activity of the Divine image in favor of concord with the Divine will.

The teaching of the Garden of Eden is that the twin imperatives of religious love, to imitate God and to obey God, are really not twins at all; rather, the latter rules over the former. There is a radical irreconcilability between God and man. Your ways are not my ways, says Isaiah in the name of the Lord. Which means that whoever loves God from other than a fearful distance does not truly love him.

Cole S. Aronson studies at Yeshivat Har Etzion in the Judean hills.

Become a fan ofFirst ThingsonFacebook,subscribe toFirst ThingsviaRSS, and followFirst ThingsonTwitter.

See original here:

Why Eden Sank to Grief | Cole S. Aronson - First Things

Review: Friendly Fires at O2 Institute, Birmingham – a carnival of colour as band enter new dimension – Birmingham Live

Posted on by

Winter? What winter? On a cold, bleak Birmingham Friday evening, the O2 Institute in Digbeth is in no mood to think about the dank weather and impending gloom of a General Election as Friendly Fires roll into the Second City with their infectious brand of indie-dance.

It has been some eight years since the outfit were here in Brum, but their lengthy hiatus hasn't in any way negatively impacted their popularity. The band's recent third record - Inflorescent - may only be two months old, but it is celebrated in style tonight, with bombastic lighting, infectious energy and a unrelenting vibrancy impossible to escape from minute one.

The band may have been gone a while, but they don't show any rustiness. Lead singer Ed Macfarlane is all gyrating dance moves, 1980s-inspired movements and a pulsating, romping bullishness which makes your child's hyperactivity after a packet of Tangfastics look positively docile.

The crowd, as ever here are the O2 Institute, are brilliant - paying avid attention to every beat, snare and strum as Friendly Fires career through a breezy, colourful supernova of a 16-song strong setlist.

Macfarlane is impossible to keep your eyes off. The frontman - a last of a dying breed - doesn't so much capture your attention as demands it, like a burning campfire in the middle of a pitch black country field. He's also massively in favour of the crowd's restlessness, telling his Brummie faithful: "The vibe is brilliant tonight, thats what we love!"

With elation in the air, the 16-song setlist never threatens to be dull, with the effervescent Can't Wait Forever seeping expertly into Heaven Let Me In, before Running Away and Skeleton Boy offer a dose of the band's self-titled debut album and critically-acclaimed sophomore record Pala.

Hawaiian Air is simply breathtaking, all thumping crescendo, carnivalesque decadence and an addictive hedonism which leaves you increasingly thankful the band have decided to return with aplomb in 2019.

Video Unavailable

Click to playTap to play

Play now

There is no letting up from fifth gear for Friendly Fires tonight, with the samba-inspired Jump In The Pool greeted like an old friend you haven't seen for a couple of Christmases, and synth-heavy Run the Wild Flowers, a sensational later track which showcases soaring vocals and tight musicianship.

The back catalogue of Friendly Fires is clearly indebted to disco, samba and club dancing, and it is these themes which melt together so exquisitely to create a cacophony of glittering divertissement on a night where Birmingham is in desperate need of covering its dampness in glitter.

Friendly Fires provide an arresting, joyous experience which will leave you utterly, completely beguiled - and as the crowd-pleasing Paris gives way to a two-song encore of Lovesick and Kiss of Live - it's impossible to shake the feeling you've just experienced a band bursting into a new dimension.

Winter? What winter?

Read more:

Review: Friendly Fires at O2 Institute, Birmingham - a carnival of colour as band enter new dimension - Birmingham Live

Meow Meow lays the shtick on thick, but the songs are worth it – Sydney Morning Herald

Posted on by

The fallen diva makes quite an entrance, stumbling through the aisles burdened with a heavy gold lam womb, desperately seeking a venue and finding no room at the inn.

Her parodic stab at the nativity achieves supreme silliness: no messiah pops out, just inflatable animals to crowd around a Pret A Manger sign.

It is worth the price of admission just to hear her sing.

Everything goes wrong, but the show must go on. When her illustrious special guests all cancel, Meow Meow grabs some pesky orphans carolling outside (Annie Jones, Dusty Bursill, Charlotte Barnard, Riya Mandrawa) to fill in, only to have them upstage her.

The singer is backed by a versatile three-piece band.Credit:Pia Johnson

Yuletide cliches lurk offstage: flurries of fake snow, a nightmare visitation from Santa Claus, the sound of children. In the spotlight, Meow Meows seat-of-the-pants shtick devolves, as disaster continues to strike, into pill-popping hedonism and an encounter with a doppelganger (Michaela Burger) that works in a Scrooge-like revelation.

Finally, a poignant reveal dismantles artifice, reminds us of the reverent joy in traditional Christmas carols, and touches the soul with a rendition of Patty Griffins Kite Song, sung with a fragile optimism that lingers in the air as you depart.

Meow Meows voice has always possessed a commanding quality.Credit:Pia Johnson

You might wish there were more songs, though, and less shtick. The comedy eventually scrabbles its way towards the sublime but can sometimes feel like filler, while Meow Meows dark and honeyed voice has always possessed a commanding quality capable of instantly bewitching an auditorium. As chanteuse, she performs in at least four languages, backed (and sometimes comically rivalled) by a versatile three-piece band. It is worth the price of admission just to hear her sing.

Go here to see the original:

Meow Meow lays the shtick on thick, but the songs are worth it - Sydney Morning Herald