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Monthly Archives: February 2017
HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean – Wikipedia
Posted: February 7, 2017 at 8:40 am
The Caribbean is the second-most affected region in the world in terms of HIV prevalence rates.[1] Based on 2009 data, about 1.0 percent of the adult population (240,000 people) is living with the disease, which is higher than any other region except Sub-Saharan Africa.[2] Several factors influence this epidemic, including poverty, gender, sex tourism, and stigma. HIV incidence in the Caribbean declined 49% between 2001 and 2012.[3] Different countries have employed a variety of responses to the disease, with a range of challenges and successes.
Although the exact origin of the disease is unknown, the HIV epidemic in the Caribbean most likely began in the 1970s. The first reported AIDS case occurred in Jamaica in 1982, followed by eight cases among gay and bisexual men in Trinidad and Tobago. In the early days of the epidemic, more men were affected than women.[4]:page: 196 By 1985, however, HIV/AIDS clearly was becoming a general population issue and was no longer a disease solely of gay or bisexual men.[5] Contrary to popular belief, the primary mode of HIV transmission in the region is heterosexual sex.[1] The number of new HIV infections among women became and continues to be higher than those among men.[1] Currently, the Caribbean is the only area outside of Sub-Saharan Africa where women and girls outnumber men and boys living with HIV.[2]
Among adults aged 1544, AIDS is the leading cause of death.[1] Between 2001 and 2009, new infections slightly declined.[2] There is a large degree of variation of HIV prevalence between the 21 Caribbean countries. Currently, there are two countries where the national prevalence is over 2 percent, those being the Bahamas, and Belize.[6] In Jamaica and Haiti, the HIV rate is estimated to be about 1.8 percent, while in Trinidad and Tobago the rate is 1.5 percent. In the region, the rate in Guyana and Suriname is between 1 and 1.1%. In the Barbados and the Dominican Republic, the rate is 0.9% and 0.7% respectively. Cuba has the lowest rate, which is under 0.2 percent.[4]:page: 106 The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Caribbean appears to have been overshadowed by the seemingly more severe problems in Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and the countries with more active and highly visible activism.[7]
A variety of social factors have perpetuated the spread and worsened the severity of HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean. Many persons are at increased risk of HIV infection because of their social vulnerability, arising from poverty, illiteracy or limited education, unemployment, gender inequity, and sexual orientation.[4]:page: 199 HIV/AIDS can weaken the national education system, perpetuating the spread of the disease by hindering efforts to educate the public about the disease. Furthermore, a weak political response by the government can result in ineffective programs.[8]Public policies in some countries openly discriminate against HIV-positive people, placing the burden of responsibility on the family of the infected individual. Discrimination also takes place in housing, employment, and public accommodations, and currently little is able to be done.[9] Because of these factors, many have less knowledge, skills, and motivation to practice safe-sex and avoid the disease.
Gender plays an important role in the spread of HIV. Young women are more likely than men to contract HIV in the Caribbean, and most of these women are between 2444 years old.[5] In developing countries in general, women are at an extreme disadvantage in terms of the prevention and treatment of HIV. The gender hierarchies found within many societies contributes to the correlation of women and HIV.[10] One of the factors that put women most at risk is sexual violence. The first sexual experience of a girl is often forced, and during unprotected vaginal intercourse, women are more likely than men to contract HIV, because HIV-infected semen has a higher viral concentration than vaginal secretions.[11] The Capability Approach, outlined by Nussbaum's Central Capabilities, lists bodily health and bodily integrity as crucial components of human dignity, and both of these are violated in the case of HIV transmission through rape.[12] Furthermore, sexual relations between older men and younger women during transactional sex possibly explain why more teenage girls than boys are HIV-positive in the Caribbean.[4]:page: 199
Sexuality has also had a significant impact on HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean. The prevalence of HIV among men who have sex with men (MSM) seems to be high, though reliable, current data is lacking. The HIV prevalence rate across the Caribbean between MSM varies, ranging from 11.7 percent in the Dominican Republic (1996) to 18 percent in Suriname (1998) to 33.6 percent in Jamaica (1996).[4] While unprotected sex between men is undoubtedly a major contributing factor to the epidemic, it remains largely hidden in the data. In many Caribbean countries, gay sexual relations remain illegal. This has led to a heavy stigma associated with same-sex relationships.[2] This stigma and widespread discrimination are definite factors in the spread of HIV.[13] In Trinidad and Tobago, one in five MSM were HIV positive, and out of those, one in four said they also have sex with women.[2] Because of the stigma and discrimination, these men hide their same sex behavior and become involved with women who do not know about their sexuality.[4]:page: 199 This has created a bridge for HIV to pass from the gay community to the general population.[4]:page: 199
Several factors within Caribbean cultures play a role in HIV transmission. Firstly, sexual patterns exist in several countries that foster the spread of the disease. There is a high level of sexual activity among the youth, as evidenced by the 22 to 32 percent of persons in six eastern Caribbean states reporting having sex before age 15.[4]:page: 199 Furthermore, having multiple sexual partners within the past year is relatively common throughout the Caribbean.[4]:page: 199
The commercial sex industry, transactional sex, and sex tourism in the Caribbean are likewise important factors. HIV infection rates for commercial sex workers are high, ranging from 4.5-12.4 percent in the Dominican Republic (2000) to 9 percent in Jamaica (2005) to 30.6 percent in Guyana (2000).[4]:page: 197 One possible explanation is that the use of condoms in transactional sex is less likely.[4]:page: 199 In addition to the specific industry of sex tourism, studies have shown that the general tourism industry is positively correlated with the HIV epidemic.[14] The perceived connection exists in that there are aspects of the environment of a tourist area that foster higher risks for HIV infection. These include riskier behaviors on the part of locals and tourists, as well as employees of the tourism industry engaging in relations with the tourists.[14]
Intravenous drug use also plays a small role in perpetuating the spread of the disease, though it is not very common in many countries. However, two notable exceptions are Bermuda and Puerto Rico. In Bermuda, the prevalence rate is around 43 percent, while in Puerto Rico almost 80 percent of HIV infections arise from drug injection.[1]
The economies of the Caribbean influence the spread of HIV/AIDS as well. Firstly, the cost of HIV on many facets of life, outside of simply human well-being, was underestimated in the past.[15] The disease hindered both the growth and the development of the island nations that make up the region. Because of rising mortality and falling productivity due to illness, the labor force in several industries has been negatively affected.[15] Several aspects on individual economies will also experience negative impacts of HIV, from agriculture to tourism to finance.[13] There have also been observed correlations between condom use and economic security, with those in more impoverished situations being less likely to practice safe sex.[16]
Studies have tried to identify a relationship between poverty and susceptibility to HIV.[17] Many have indicated that HIV/AIDS can have a negative impact on socioeconomic status, as well as the level of overall employment in a given country. In Trinidad and Tobago specifically, being poor leaves one at a higher risk to contract the disease, but having the disease likewise leaves one more vulnerable to becoming poor and unemployed.[17]
Haiti, a nation that shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic, has been greatly affected by HIV. As of 2014, the adult prevalence rate of HIV is estimated to be 1.93%.[18] For some time, Haiti had highest rate in the Americas and the highest outside of Sub-Saharan Africa.[1] Like many other countries, the disease began as being associated with men who have sex with men, specifically men in Haiti who engaged in commercial sex with male tourists. Later, the disease crossed over into the heterosexual community, with the main areas of risk being sex with female sex workers, casual sex with partners infected with AIDS, and blood transfusions.[1] The course of the disease in Haiti has been rapid and aggressive, compounded by high rates of tuberculosis and other diseases of poverty. Furthermore, a large number of children were born to HIV-positive mothers before proper treatment was available, leading to a spike in infant mortality. Negative affects have been observed in the country, one being the impact on the economy due to a shrinking tourism industry. The response of the healthcare in Haiti has been fairly effective. Due to swift identification of the disease, a coordinated response was undertaken relatively quickly. Several measures were taken, such as giving the Haitian Red Cross complete control of the blood bank, launching a national awareness campaign, and setting up local health units that provide HIV treatment with antiretroviral drugs. Although Haiti has undergone civil unrest for several years, a priority was placed on the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and strong relationships were formed with the private health sector. Through both prevention and care, Haiti continues to manage the spread of the disease.[1]
Currently, the adult prevalence rate of HIV in Barbados is estimated to be 1.5 percent.[4]:page: 196 When HIV first struck Barbados, the island nation was completely underprepared to handle such a significant and detrimental disease.[1] The first case was recognized in 1984, after which those infected with AIDS were heavily stigmatized. In contrast to system in Haiti, much of the healthcare response in Barbados was carried out by the public sector. Several successes of Barbados in its fight against HIV include universal screening, confidentiality, an AIDS information center and hotline, and special attention focused on at-risk groups. Overall, the achievements should undoubtedly be praised, especially considering the fact that these responses were carried out during an economic depression in the 1990s, as well as during a period of severe stigmatization of HIV-positive people.[1]
Jamaica is another island nation that has been hit hard by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, with an adult prevalence rate of around 1.5 percent.[1] Currently, AIDS is the leading cause of death among two at-risk groups, young children aged 14 and young women aged 2029. Both the public and private health sectors have played important roles in the response to the epidemic. From providing healthcare to seeking international funds, instituting educational programs to providing condoms, the Jamaican government has done much in prioritizing the HIV crisis. Notably, as part of their strategic plan. Jamaica has set of goal of normalizing HIV as part of normal societal discourse. This would undoubtedly help to reduce stigma towards HIV-positive individuals. The relative successes of the Jamaican program are also notable, as the country has managed to secure its blood supply, expand STI treatment centers, introduce proper surveillance of HIV, and make condoms widely available. The country still seeks to strengthen its response, especially in terms of reducing discrimination and expanding prevention and intervention programs.[1]
The current HIV adult prevalence rate in Cuba is estimated to be about 0.07 percent, one of the lowest in the world and certainly the lowest in the region.[1] Three of the major modes of transmissions in other nations, mother-to-child transmission, transmission through blood transfusion, and through intravenous drug use, are virtually non-existent in Cuba. Instead, sexual contact accounts for approximately 99 percent of all cases. In terms of sexuality, Cuba has followed a trajectory nearly opposite of the norm. Most of the first cases diagnosed were heterosexual men, but the disease then crossed over into the gay community as male-to-male sexual contact began to spread the disease. Today, men who have sex with men (MSM) are one of the most at-risk groups, making up for around 86 percent of men infected with HIV in Cuba.
With the establishment of the Working Group for Confronting and Fighting AIDS, the government and nongovernmental organizations created comprehensive measures to fight the disease. Firstly, Cuba banned the importation of all human blood products and destroyed potentially infected supplies, effectively eliminating transmission of HIV through blood transfusions. Next, the country provided wide-scale HIV testing for Cubans who had travelled abroad and potentially brought the disease back into the country. The most important measures served to prevent sexual transmission, namely through education programs, medical examinations, and admittance of HIV-positive individuals into specialized health centers called sanatoria. These sanatoria were somewhat controversial, especially in terms of possible human rights violations. Although severely isolated in the late 1980s, the program has since improved significantly, providing outlets for social integration and multiple levels of care.[1]
The responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Caribbean have varied over time and across countries. In the 2001 Nassau Declaration on Health, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) declared the HIV/AIDS crisis to be a priority for the region. As part of their response, the Pan-Caribbean Partnership Against AIDS (PANCAP) was formed. Today, this partnership is made up of over 80 members, including Caribbean countries, AIDS organizations, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Sources of funding include the World Bank, UNAIDS, and the Global Fund for AIDS, TB, and Malaria.[4]:page: 198 Three principles that are crucial to the effective control of HIV are the inclusion of HIV positive persons, prevention and treatment programs that are carried out simultaneously, and the reduction of stigma.[19]
Broadly, increased political will, affordable and accessible antiretroviral drugs, stronger NGOs, and the generous aid of donors have combined to improve access to treatment.[7] Testing pregnant women for HIV and providing antiretroviral drugs has significantly reduced the rates of mother-to-child transmission.[4]:page: 197 Improving awareness of safe sex practices through HIV education and prevention programs, as well as increasing contraceptive distribution, can reduce the rates of sexual transmission.[4]:page: 200 Specifically, childhood sex education is important in helping kids to develop lifelong safe-sex practices like consistent condom usage and reducing risk by delaying sexual activity.[19] Although it does play a minor role in the Caribbean, IV drug use still contributes to the spread of the disease. There is evidence that the harm reduction model, including needle and syringe exchange, is effective at preventing HIV with no other harmful effects.[19] Other responses include screening blood banks to reduce transmission through blood transfusion, increasing HIV screening and testing, and advocacy to establish responsive governmental policies.
Several challenges have hindered the response to the HIV crisis. First, many countries have weak national capacities in terms of their ability to manage, control, and address the epidemic.[4]:page: 199 This management also presents technical challenges for developing countries with varying levels of technological advancement. Because of the many regional governments and international aid agencies, the response to the spread of the disease is often uncoordinated and less effective than it could be.[4]:page: 200 Political factors that affect the response include inattention to or a lack of concern about HIV and incomplete or slow information flow.[9] The stigma associated with both HIV-positive people and the perceived connection to the gay community is often crippling, resulting in discrimination, low use of testing facilities, and increased transmission of the disease.[5] While this is certainly improving, there is still also a lack of information regarding how HIV/AIDS affected specific groups, like commercial sex workers, men who have sex with men, and IV drug users.[5] Without substantive and concrete information, it remains difficult to completely address the needs of the groups. Lastly, it remains difficult to fully implement HIV interventions in several areas, and in-depth research is needed to truly understand how these interventions function to help HIV-positive individuals.[1]
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Orlando Bloom Returns as Will Turner in Pirates of the Caribbean 5 First Look – MovieWeb
Posted: at 8:40 am
Last night, Disney aired a Super Bowl trailer for their highly-anticipated Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, which is set to hit theaters on May 26, 2017. Many eagle-eyed fans noticed that this new footage offered our first look at Orlando Bloom's Will Turner, who has changed quite a bit since we last saw him in 2007's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. The actor and his beloved character didn't appear in the last swashbuckling adventure, 2011's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, and while he is returning in this movie, it remains to be seen how large or small a role he may have.
A number of Twitter users captured screen grabs from the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales trailer last night to show us our first look at Will Turner. Way back in September 2014, Orlando Bloom hinted that he may return, after taking over as the new "Davy Jones" in At World's End. Brenton Thwaites has also hinted in the past that the story will center on the son of Davy Jones, which could be the character he's playing, but that hasn't been confirmed. When Disney announced the full cast list, Orlando Bloom's Will Turner/Davy Jones was nowhere to be found, but now we finally have confirmation that he is returning.
At the end of At World's End, Will Turner committed himself to a 10-year tour of duty as the captain of the Flying Dutchman. There was also a post-credits scene where he returned ashore to meet the son he had with Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) for the first time. It's worth noting that it's possible Will's tour as Davy Jones may be coming to an end, since At World's End was released on May 24, 2007, and Dead Men Tell No Tales arrives in theaters May 26, 2017, exactly 10 years and two days apart from each other. That hasn't been confirmed by Disney yet, but hopefully we'll find out more about how large or small Will Turner's role is in this big screen adventure.
Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil's Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea, notably Jack. Jack's only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Brenton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy.
At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifully small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales also stars Kevin R. McNally as Joshamee Gibbs, Golshifteh Farahani as the sea-witch Shansa, David Wenham as Scarfield, Stephen Graham as Scrum, and Geoffrey Rush as Captain Hector Barbossa. Take a look at this new image of Orlando Bloom from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, as we get closer to the May 26, 2017 release date. We also have more new photos which arrived shortly after the Super Bowl trailer, and you can take a look at the trailer itself below.
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Orlando Bloom Returns as Will Turner in Pirates of the Caribbean 5 First Look - MovieWeb
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Link-Caribbean Awards US$125000 To Five Caribbean Firms – Caribbean360.com (subscription)
Posted: at 8:40 am
Barbadian recipient Shannon Clarke from Carepoint was one of the five.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Monday February 6, 2017 Five Caribbean businesses are at a stage closer to securing private investment having each received US$25,000 through the LINK-Caribbean Investment Readiness Grant programme.
The five firms are Carepoint and Caribbean Transit Solutions from Barbados; Bluedot Media and Innovative Menu Solutions Ltd from Jamaica and SystemIz Incorporated from Trinidad and Tobago.
According to Chris McNair, Manager for Competitiveness and Innovation at Caribbean Export, the grants will be used to assist firms in making the necessary improvements to their businesses with the aim of attracting greater investment from private investors, such as Business Angels within the next six months.
The firms were selected from a slate of 134 applicants from across the region, 7 of which were afforded the opportunity to pitch their businesses to a panel of judges in the hope of securing an investment readiness grant. LINK-Caribbean, a programme of the Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) supports the development of an early stage Investor eco-system within the region. Launched last September, it is funded by the World Bank and sponsored by Canada.
For many years Caribbean entrepreneurs were disadvantaged because of a lack of funding opportunities in comparison to our first world counterparts, with the LINK Caribbean grant we now have an opportunity to show the world that great, disruptive companies can be borne from here, expressed Larren Peart of Bluedot Media.
Larren Peart of Bluedot Media
Barbadian recipient Shannon Clarke from Carepoint expressed his humility for his selection and spoke of looking forward to the guidance from Business Angels and importantly their assistance to help push the adoption of ICT in the delivery of healthcare throughout the Caribbean.
Khalil Bryan of Caribbean Transport Solutions, also from Barbados, highlighted some of the key initiatives hosted by World Bank and Caribbean Export.
Starting from 2015, their team hosted entrepreneur sessions to sensitize us to key items that would prepare us to raise capital to providing support as we deploy capital from the IR grant. They have truly been a catalyst to improve the investment climate in the region from building angel groups to disbursing grant funding to prepare us for investment. We appreciate the role that they have played and would encourage them to continue in this vein as entrepreneurship will truly be a catalyst to impact the economies of our region, he said.
Khalil Bryan of Caribbean Transport Solutions
Aun Rahman, Financial Sector Specialist for the World Bank who also has responsibility for EPICs Access to Finance programme, stated that the Bank is encouraged with the initial response to LINK-Caribbeans first grant cycle.
We are looking forward to building a stronger pipeline of more applicants who will be eligible to become beneficiaries under the programme in future grant cycles, Rahman said.
In addition to these grants, LINK-Caribbean provides other support activities to stimulate early stage investing in the region. It facilitates the development of deal-flow for early-stage investors through the Regional Angel Investor Network (RAIN).
We strongly encourage entrepreneurs and investors to join RAIN to uncover new investment opportunities throughout the Caribbean, added McNair.
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Link-Caribbean Awards US$125000 To Five Caribbean Firms - Caribbean360.com (subscription)
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New Kokomo bar has Caribbean theme – Kokomo Tribune
Posted: at 8:40 am
KOKOMO Jerry and Alice Hatfield like to travel. They especially enjoy the Caribbean, and with their new bar and restaurant, The Great Escape, they hope to capture the mood of a laid back Caribbean vacation.
Located at 2411 N. Washington St., in what used to be the bar Kathys Place, the Hatfields want their establishment to bring something new to the Kokomo bar scene.
Theres no other place in town like it, said Jerry. Its just a cool atmosphere.
The Caribbean theme hits you instantly when you step foot into the Great Escape. A large mural depicting tropical wildlife wraps around the circumference of the ceiling. The actual bar is similarly decorated with decals from Clifford Signs Inc. in Kokomo.
We wanted something different, Alice said. Not where most bars are dark and gloomy; we wanted something that made you feel relaxed and cheerful.
Thats where they got the motivation for the name they really do want customers to feel like theyve made a great escape to somewhere warm and sunny.
The Hatfields did the designing on their own along with Jerrys father, Milburn Hatfield, who has owned The Hoosier Bar on West Morgan Street for 37 years.
Each table is uniquely decorated. One has beer bottle caps that form a design beneath a pane of glass. Another is brightly painted with a tropical pattern.
Another is decorated in honor of the military, and another to union workers.
Their first day open was on Jan. 26. They did very little advertising, but were still able to draw a crowd. The next day, a Friday, Alice said they had the place full, with a lot of repeat customers. Theres going to be a grand opening coming up, but they want the place to be a bit more up and rolling before then.
As for the menu, they spoke highly of the kahuna burger, which sports ham, pineapple and kahuna sauce as toppings. They also have fish, including Cajun fish nuggets, and gyros that have been pretty popular.
Of course, they also offer a full line up of bar food. Sometime soon, theyll be equipped to serve frozen margaritas.
On Thursdays they sell domestic beer for $2 and have free games of pool.
There are a few additions they hope to offer in the future, including a karaoke night, and have live bands and DJs perform. This summer, Jerry said he hopes to have a beer garden outside.
The Great Escape is open seven days a week from 10:30 a.m. to 3 a.m.
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Michael Perry: Caribbean work day | Recent columns by Michael … – Madison.com
Posted: at 8:40 am
We had the opportunity to visit relatives in a sunny place and did so. In 48 hours we went from shoveling snow to digging sand from our shorts. At the moment it seems anything I write especially describing experiences of extreme privilege such as this, and I acknowledge it as such must be filtered through a scrim of humility in the face of current events. But I am also trying to live beyond my generation and continue to hope, that by drawing my children into environs where people different than us have their own ways of being neighborly, the kids will grow up less willing to navigate based on misallocations of fear. Lest you think this is some sort of self-congratulatory after-school special, we also spent time during this getaway arguing about screen time, chores, bedtime and general scheduling. There was some huffing and grumping and retreating to rooms, and thats just speaking for myself.
Within hours of our arrival we spent some time in and on the Caribbean, and there is no better way for a well-larded cheesehead fresh out of the slush to realize he is such than to stand shin-deep in the surf as the sun converts his scalp into a crepe skillet. The effect is heightened by the addition of a neon pink snorkel mask and flippers. To see me hit the surf is to observe an albino walrus with balance issues trying to exit the tavern only to belly-flop into the stock tank. When I finally wind up floating face down, I am amazed to see fish that have clearly escaped from someones aquarium. When you are raised on walleye and northern, you go ga-ga over the simplest tropical minnow.
Another benefit of unseasonable (to me) sun (lets also call it cheaters sun) is that when you spend half the day lurching around in foot fins and sweating like youre baling hay when youre really just sitting there, your brain rewires itself so that eating feels like an essential and hard-earned ritual necessary to keep up with all the calories that evaporate simply through nonstop sun exposure. The writer Jim Harrison once wrote that Only in the Midwest is overeating considered an act of heroism, and he was right, but the sad subtopic is that when we overeat during the cramped dark days of winter, the post-Calvinist guilt kicks in. Empty calories are a self-defeating bulwark against the encroaching ice banks in your brain, whereas down here with your head addled by the scent of 50 SPF sunblock, you rediscover food as a form of celebration compatible with the environs.
At one point during the vacation we took a day to help our relatives do some projects: painting, cleaning and fixing windows, general maintenance. Considering the free room and board we were receiving, this little break from the sunburn schedule seemed the least we could do. There was grumbling from junior quarters, to which I responded, Hey, how bout you go out and drag the tarp off the woodpile and haul in about three loads? at which point washing the screens suddenly seemed like a form of celebration compatible with the environs.
An original Roughneck Grace column exclusive to the Wisconsin State Journal. Audio versions may air on Tent Show Radio(tentshowradio.com). Read more from Michael Perry at http://www.sneezingcow.com.
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Brenton Thwaites to Star in Thriller ‘Ghosts of War’ | Variety – Variety
Posted: at 8:40 am
Variety | Brenton Thwaites to Star in Thriller 'Ghosts of War' | Variety Variety Brenton Thwaites, who will star in "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales," has boarded the thriller "Ghosts of War." |
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CHTA Donates $25000 for Bahamas hurricane relief – Yahoo Finance
Posted: at 8:40 am
NASSAU, Bahamas, Feb. 2, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) presented The Bahamas with a $25,000 check to aid in restoration efforts following Hurricane Matthew.
Hotels throughout the Caribbean united for a joint fundraising initiative to bring relief to those countries in the region that were seriously impacted by the storm.
Hurricane Matthew blasted through parts of The Bahamas in October damaging several major hotel properties, thousands of schools, businesses and homes. Grand Bahama and Andros were the hardest hit islands. New Providence also suffered extensive damage.
CHTA President, Karolin Troubetzkoy, presented the check to The Bahamas Hotel Tourism Association's (BHTA) President Carlton Russell on Tuesday night during the opening ceremony for Caribbean Travel Marketplace at the Atlantis Paradise Island Resort.
"When Hurricane Matthew wreaked havoc on parts of Haiti and The Bahamas, our Caribbean countries and the industry responded," Troubetzkoy said. "I wish to thank those who answered our personal appeal in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew. The hotels donated hotel stays, which were auctioned online... I am pleased to announce that we were able to raise close to $70,000 for The Bahamas and Haiti."
The Bahamas was given $25,000. The remaining money will go towards Haiti relief efforts.
The CHTA was the latest in a long line of tourism partners that donated to The Bahamas for relief and recovery efforts.
The Miami HEAT, the Miami Dolphins, the Washington Redskins and shipping company The Bonnier Marine Group, among many other organizations, provided relief in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Matthew.
Director General of The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Joy Jibrilu, said the outpouring of love has been amazing.
"Our partners have risen to the occasion," Jibrilu said. "The people of The Bahamas thank them for their kindness and support. Their donations will be put to good use. We are blessed to have such amazing friends in the region and around the world."
The Islands Of The Bahamas have a place in the sun for everyone. Each island has its own personality and attractions for a variety of vacation styles with some of the world's best golfing, scuba diving, fishing, sailing, boating, as well as, shopping and dining. The destination offers an easily accessible tropical getaway and provides convenience for travelers with preclearance through U.S. customs and immigration, and the Bahamian dollar is on par with the U.S. dollar. Do everything or do nothing, just remember It's Better in The Bahamas. For travel packages, activities and accommodations information, call 1-800-Bahamas or visit http://www.Bahamas.com. Look for The Bahamas on the web on Facebook Twitter and YouTube
A photo accompanying this release is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=42129
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CHTA Donates $25000 for Bahamas hurricane relief - Yahoo Finance
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Offshore Wind Moves Into Energy’s Mainstream – New York Times
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New York Times | Offshore Wind Moves Into Energy's Mainstream New York Times LIVERPOOL, England When engineers faced resistance from residents in Denmark over plans to build wind turbines on the Nordic country's flat farmland, they found a better locale: the sea. The offshore wind farm, the world's first, had just 11 ... |
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Offshore Wind Moves Into Energy's Mainstream - New York Times
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Offshore Drillers Are Still Seeking Recovery Enjoyed by Shale – Bloomberg
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February 6, 2017, 4:16 PM EST February 7, 2017, 12:01 AM EST
While oil drillers in U.S. shale basins are starting to see business come back, their offshore brethren will have to wait for prices to surge well above $60 a barrel.
U.S. offshore operators like Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. and Atwood Oceanics Inc. are down more than 15 percent in the last month, as companies focus on onshore oil that reaps better returns. With oil trading near $53 a barrel, firms are looking toward booming plays like the Permian Basin in West Texas and the Scoop and Stack formations in Oklahoma, according to Marc Edwards, Diamond Offshores chief executive officer.
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Members in the Bloomberg Intelligence Global Offshore Drilling Competitive Peers Index sank 5 percent Monday.As demand continues to fall and the number of idle rigs rises, the offshore drilling industry remains a few years away from a rebound, Atwood Oceanics management said on a call with investors and analysts.
The idea of $60 oil pushing producers to go offshore might be optimistic, David Anderson, an analyst at Barclays Plc, said by phone. Even though the costs and the time to market have come down, offshore is nowhere near as enticing as onshore drilling.
While offshore drillers are using the same number of rigs as a year ago, onshore focused companies are continuing to add rigs and expand production. U.S. drillers are continuing to boost production, adding 267 rigs in the last eight months, according to Baker Hughes Inc. data reported on Friday.
The Permian Basin has seen production double and a jump in merger activity as companies that are operating in the region are taking advantage of breakeven levels that are much lower than their deepwater competitors.
What were seeing, especially today, is a recognition that onshore and offshore drilling are in two separate cycles that are moving at very different paces, said Anderson.
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Offshore Drillers Are Still Seeking Recovery Enjoyed by Shale - Bloomberg
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Offshore Profits and US Exports – Council on Foreign Relations (blog)
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8064 3
by Brad Setser February 6, 2017
One important result of my theory about the sources of dark matter in the U.S. balance of payments is a concern that border adjustment might not generate the expected revenues. American multinationals would have a strong incentive to shift their offshore income on intellectual property rights that are now located in subsidiaries offshore back to the U.S..
A lot depends on the details of any proposed tax reform, but I think a firm with U.S. expenses and export revenues would generate a tax loss on its exports (export revenues are excluded from calculation of revenues for the purpose of the tax, and domestic expenses can be deducted). If that tax loss is refundable, exporters essentially get a check back from the government for a sum equal to their domestic labor costs (see Chad Bown on the subsidy component of a border tax adjustment).* Profits that now show up in subsidiaries in Ireland, Puerto Rico, Singapore, and the like** based on intellectual property that is held in the Caribbean, thanks to the low price headquarters charges for the global rights on their intellectual property, might show up back in the U.S.and I suspect the royalties their offshore subsidiaries pay headquarters for research and design and engineering (e.g. exports) would soar.
I havent started to figure out how European companies that now report very little income on their direct investment in the U.S. might try to game the system. I suspect that they have an incentive to try to lower their reported intra-firm importse.g. reduce the transfer prices they charge their U.S. subsidiaries to lower their border adjustment. Auerbach, Devereux, Keen and Vella have emphasized that introducing a destination based cash flow tax in one country would have quite different effects than introducing a destination based cash flow tax in all countries.
But I also wanted to draw out the implications of the rapid growth in the offshore profits of American companies for the broader debate on globalization.
Consider the following chart: normalized versus GDP, the reinvested (tax-deferred, or less politely, largely untaxed as of now) profits of U.S. multinationals have more than doubled over the past twenty years, while U.S. exports of capital goods, consumer goods, and autos (my measure for core manufacturing exports) have stayed constant as a share of GDP. Imports of that set of goods have increased by roughly 25 percent on this measure.
Obviously, setting the initial level at 100 exaggerates a bit to make a pointnamely, that U.S. export and income growth from globalization shows up offshore, not in onshore export jobs.
As a share of GDP, reinvested earnings (a proxy for tax-deferred offshore earnings) have gone from 0.5 percent of GDP to around 1.6 percent of GDP over the past twenty years (they reached a peak of 2 percent of GDP when the dollar was weak).***
Core manufactured goods (autos, capital goods, and consumer goodsI am leaving out manufactured industrial supplies such as chemicalslargely for simplicity) exports have stayed constant at about 5 percent of GDP.
They were a bit higher for a while, but, well, something happened in the last couple of years. I tend to think that something was mostly the impact of the dollars rise but the global fall in demand for oil and mining equipment also played a role.
With rising productivity, a constant (and low) level of exports to GDP meant the export sector was shedding jobs.
And with imports rising relative to GDPcore imports have gone from about 6.5 percent of GDP in 1995 to about 8.5 percent of GDP in 2015 (they will fall a bit in 2016)of course import-competing sectors were shedding jobs.
I suspect the politics around trade would be a bit different in the U.S. if the goods-exporting sector had grown in parallel with imports.
That is one key difference between the U.S. and Germany. Manufacturing jobs fell during reunificationand Germany went through a difficult adjustment in the early 2000s. But over the last ten years the number of jobs in Germanys export sector grew, keeping the number of people employed in manufacturing roughly constant over the last ten years even with rising productivity. Part of the trade adjustment was a shift from import-competing to exporting sectors, not just a shift out of the goods producing tradables sector. Of course, not everyone can run a German sized surplus in manufacturesbut it seems likely the low U.S. share of manufacturing employment (relative to Germany and Japan) is in part a function of the size and persistence of the U.S. trade deficit in manufactures. (It is also in part a function of the fact that the U.S. no longer needs to trade manufactures for imported energy on any significant scale; the U.S. has more jobs in oil and gas production, for example, than Germany or Japan).
Of course, the sectors that have seen their offshore income grow rapidly are growing, and they do employ more peoplethough successful tech companies employ comparatively few people relative to their profits.
But the shift from an economy that pays for its imports by exporting goods to one that increasingly relies on the income its multinationals generate in offshore tax centers likely has had some significant distributional consequences.
And as I have argued before, I suspect that one of the problems the U.S. faces is that a significant share of the gains from globalization arent actually taxed, and thus arent directly available to fund the kind of programs that my colleague Ted Alden has suggested are needed to allow the workforce to adopt to various shocks more effectively. And I am not convinced a border adjustmentwhich I think solves the transfer price problem by exempting export revenue from any calculation of taxsolves this particular problem. I suspect effectively untaxed (permanently tax-deferred) profits offshore become untaxed export profits onshore.
* If the border adjustment leads to an adjustment in the exchange rate, such a rebate is needed to offset the exchange rate drag. ** Puerto Rico is outside the United States for corporate tax purposes, thanks to its unique status. For details on Microsofts tax structure, see the Senate Investigative Committee report. *** Foreign multinationals do not have big cash hoards in the U.S., so their reinvested U.S. profits have stayed roughly constant as a share of GDP, pushing the U.S. surplus on reinvested earnings up.
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