The European Union eliminated sanctions against the Raul Castro regime, but with strong conditions with regards to human rights.

However, the exiled Cuban opposition groups consider the European Union’s decision to eliminate diplomatic sanctions imposed on the Castro regime in 2003 does not correspond to the repressive reality that Cubans live and is actually in response to the Spanish government’s diplomatic work in favor of the oldest totalitarian dictatorship in the American Continent.

The opposition groups consider it embarrassing for the Rodriguez Zapatero government to lend services of this nature to the dictatorial regime of the Castro brothers, while thousand of people are assaulted, arrested and incarcerated in subhuman conditions daily and arbitrarily for expressing their ideas and demanding universally recognized rights. A government that utilizes torture and intimidation as a systematic means of maintaining its power can not be legitimized by the world’s democratic governments.

What would the Spanish Socialists, who are in power today, have thought of a democratic government in the 70’s, just before Franco’s death, when repression in Spain was intensifying, is said government had dedicated its diplomacy to diminishing diplomatic and political pressure against the Franco dictatorship?

NO CHANGE

The exiled opposition agree with the internal opposition forces that affirm that Cuba under the Raul Castro regime has made no real changes which could lead to urgent transformation political, economic and social realms which the Cuban nation needs and awaits.

The exiled opposition is thankful for the solidarity expressed by the Swedish and Czech Republic governments and others that defended the right of the Cuban people to live freely and democratically. The were able to include a series of conditions directed at the Castro regime which call for the unconditional release of political prisoners and respect to human rights on the island, as well as calling for the regime to abide by two international conventions recently signed regarding civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

COSTA RICA

Notwithstanding, Costa Rica seems to be on its way to establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba. There is no official information, only versions supplied by functionaries who are tied to foreign affairs. At TicosLand we ask ourselves, does it go against our democratic and pacifist principles to establish diplomatic relations with a totalitarian dictatorship? Well, Costa Rica broke off relations with Taiwan in order to establish relations with China. It would not be the first time our government has acted contrary to what it preaches.

Ticosland previously announced that the airlines were going to cut flights to the Caribbean.

In what now seems to be a pattern that threatens Costa Rica, three airlines announced that they will suspend flights to Central America at the beginning of the second semester this year due to increases in jet fuel and operating costs.

Where Costa Rica is concerned, TicosLand learned that Carlos Ricardo Benavides, the minister of tourism, announced that there are no official reports about flight cancellations or reductions.

United Airlines reported the suspension of flights to Guatemala beginning September 2.  Jesus Rodriguez, the sales manager for Central America and the Caribbean said that the increase in crude oil prices provoked an increase in operating costs, which in turn made it impossible to continue flights to Guatemala.  United Airlines has been operating in Guatemala for the past 17 years and offered a daily flight from Los Angeles and vice versa.

Spirit Airlines, another Unites States airline, postponed the announcement of its passenger flights from Miami to San Salvador, which it had planned to begin in August due to rising fuel costs.  Salvadorean tourism minister, Ruben Rochi, stated:  “We have received information from Spirit Airlines giving us notice that it has made a decision to suspend its flights to El Salvador while jet fuel costs are unstable.”

In addition, Mexican low cost carrier, Interjet, which made the run from Guatemala City to Merida in Mexico has also made a decision to suspend its flights.

Costa Rica without changes

Martha Pantin, Director of Communications for American Airlines, indicated that there are no forseen changes for flights to Costa Rica.  However, the airline is decreasing flights to Argentina and internally.  As was previously announced in our TicosLand blog, American Airlines will be eliminating flights from Puerto Rico to the United States, and flights to several Caribbean Islands.

TACA has stated that it is in the process of reviewing its operating plan for the second semester.  It is natural for the industry to adapt flight frequencies to market demand, as is done in the high and low tourist seasons.

Continental and United Airlines announced a plan yesterday for cooperation around the world in an effort by the big US air carriers to consider fusions and alliances in order to face high jet fuel prices.

If there is any decrease in the demand for seats to Costa Rica due to the increase in prices, TicosLand expects for the airlines to cut flights to our country.  We urge our tourism ministry to look for other potential travelers before a cut in flights from the United States affects our economy to the point where we might begin to face a recession due to a drop in tourist dollars

The high cost of jet fuel and weakening of the US economy are threatening to sink the Caribbean tourism industry, according to a story published by the AP.

Prices for airline tickets have gone up markedly and reduced the number of flights to the islands, which in turn reduced the number of tourists who are a vital source of income for Caribbean Island Nations.

Tourism is a cornerstone of the Caribbean economy, which received 15 million visitors, attracted by the beaches and other island charms. There are billions of dollars in investments and thousands of jobs at stake, said Allen Chastanet, president of the Caribbean Tourism Association.

The airlines are reducing their services globally because passengers are not willing to pay the new ticket prices, which went up in order to compensate for the high cost of jet fuel. The Caribbean is particularly vulnerable because American, which controls a good part of the Caribbean market, is going through some truly turbulent times. For example, American transported 60% of the passengers traveling to Puerto Rico last year. However, it is proposing a reduction from 93 to 51 flights to the island. It is suspending its services to Santo Domingo, Antigua, Saint Martin and Aruba among others.

The reduction of flights could also affect the cruise ship industry since it will be more difficult to get to Puerto Rico to board the ships. Ten cruise ships initiated their voyage from Puerto Rico last year.

Instead of raising ticket prices to prohibitive levels, US airlines have chosen to limit the number of flights and reduce their capacity. Airline flights would be totally inaccessible if airline tickets went up with oil prices.

At TicosLand, we ask ourselves: How long will it be before Costa Rica’s tourism industry is affected? It’s time to switch our focus to Europe where the Euro continues to strengthen. Therefore, it is a market with an enormous potential.

Wall Street, New York – The dollar lost ground against the Euro and Yen again yesterday after the market perceived a price rebound at the producer level an new unfavorable signs in the US housing and industrial sectors of the economy.

After the closing of the stock market, the Euro was at $1.5515 compared to 1.5478 from Monday’s session. In order to acquire a dollar, you needed .6445 Euros against the .6461 from the previous day.

With respect to the Yen, the dollar closed at 107.97 against the 107.97 from the previous day’s closing. The US currency weakened for the second consecutive day after some disappointing signs in the economy lowered expectations that interest rates would be maintained or raised in the short term from the current 2%.

In other news, US based airlines reported that they could lose 10 billion dollars in 2008 due to the high price of jet fuel, a sum which could equal or surpass the worst loss in the airline industry’s history which occurred in 2002. In a Senate hearing regarding speculative operations in the oil market, James May, from the Airline Transport Association stated that up to 200 communities could lose airline services due to cutbacks in the airlines’ capacity to save money. Analysts on Wall Street are also predicting multi-million dollars losses for the largest airlines, which are spending 50% more on jet fuel than a year ago. It is expected that the total spent by the airlines on jet fuel will surpass 61 billion dollars, the largest expenditure for the airlines.

How does this affect TicosLand and Costa Rica? Costa Rica is largely dependent on the tourism industry. A cutback on flights to Costa Rica would mean less tourists and less earnings from the tourism industry. It is a domino effect which could be felt even by small farmers who produce for the farmer’s market and don’t even know that their fortunes are tied to the tourism industry.

Stay informed and read the Ticosland Blog. While you are at it, visit our directory and fill out a profile. It could mean more traffic for your website and higher sales. It could be a way to avoid the collateral effect that is being posed by the downturn in the US economy.

The price of gasoline is not only unfathomable, it is also unconscionable.

Who would have thought it possible we’d be paying over 700 colones per liter of gasoline, with talk of even higher prices every two weeks down the road? That’s exactly what RECOPE recommended this morning in La Nacion. We have seen the price of gasoline more than double in the last four years, while salaries have remained stagnant and even lag behind the inflation rate. We have had inflation average over 10% the last four years, gasoline prices have doubled, food prices have skyrocketed, and there is no end in sight. Many wonder when this will end because these price increases without a real increase in salaries are unsustainable. Some people get angry while others just suck it up and pay the price, figuring that if you close your eyes, it will go away. It won’t! But what can you do about the high price of gasoline?

After dismissing the thought of looking for lower gas prices from the competition (thanks to another monopoly, there is none), or boycotting your local gas stations – a pleasant thought even though we know that the white elephant of RECOPE will not go away, but a move that won’t get you to work or get you to the beach on the weekend– you’re faced with thinking over some real options. We think of these, too … and here are some that come to mind. None of these involve dumping your car and getting a new one.  Of course, if you have the money to buy a new one, then you would not be so worried about skyrocketing gas prices anyway.  But we know that’s not always possible, especially if you’re in the middle of a car payment with nowhere to go. Plus, if your vehicle is a larger model like an SUV that gets low fuel mileage, its present sale or trade-in value probably leaves a lot to be desired. So, if you need to keep driving your everyday ride but just have to do something about the high gas costs that are completely obliterating your budget, then give these tips recommended by AAA in the USA a shot:

1. Start by driving less. Most Costa Ricans are doing it anyway. Really, this isn’t as painful as it sounds. We’ve grown accustomed to our cars providing mobility on demand, which is a good thing when it isn’t hurting our wallets or contributing to growing oil dependency. It’s not so good when the reverse is true, which is the situation today. So plan ahead. Consolidating your day’s errands into sequential trips one after another is a great strategy that will save gas. It will also cut exhaust emissions by eliminating unnecessary cold-starts when your car’s emissions control system is least effective.

2. Ease off on the pedal, Speed Racer. Okay, maybe you’re not really “hot rodding” your way down the street, but chances are pretty good you’re not thinking about taking it easy from one traffic light to the next. Light accelerator pressure and a conscious effort to avoid quick starts and stops do make a difference in fuel economy, sometimes a pretty big one. Give it a try. While you’re at it, smooth out your pedal pressure at highway speeds as well by using your cruise control, if your automobile has it, whenever appropriate. It’s hard to do in Costa Rica, we know, but it is a good fuel economy practice anyway.

3. Feeling the need for speed? Let it go, watch NASCAR and daydream. It’s easy to creep past posted speed limits without thinking about it, especially on urban highways where traffic often tends to move well beyond the posted speed limits. The problem is that fuel efficiency diminishes rapidly above 90 kph. In fact, the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) in the USA says that each 8 kph driven above that speed has the net effect of costing you about 20 cents more per gallon of gas, which with the colon being where it is in relation to the dollar would save you over 100 colones per gallon of gasoline.  That’s something to think about next time you feel the need to imitate Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

4. If you’re filling up on mid-grade or premium fuel, check to see if you really need to do this. Some high-compression engines do require higher octane fuel to run properly and, in fact, serious engine damage could result from using a lower grade fuel than is specified in your owner’s manual.  But if you don’t need premium fuel you shouldn’t be filling up with it. If you visit the gas station regularly, you know that premium fuel costs more per liter but doesn’t provide better performance in engines designed to run on regular … so you’re essentially pumping cash out your tailpipe, which is not a pleasant thought, is it?

5. Check your tire pressure weekly and keep your tires aired up to the recommended psi. This is so simple you’d assume everyone does this regularly. Not so. And that’s too bad since tires with low pressure create greater rolling resistance that can cost you up to 3 percent in fuel efficiency. Tires heat up while you drive and checking them while hot will give an artificially high reading. Make a habit of checking tire pressure before driving when your tires are cold. You might also consider buying low rolling resistance tires the next time your car is ready for new treads.

Those are the five essential tips recommended by AAA. Since most automobiles in Costa Rica have manual transmissions, TicosLand also recommends going downhill in 5^th gear. If you coast in neutral, you are actually using more fuel than if you use the correct gear. So try to keep these things in mind if gas prices have squeezed your pocket to the point where you just can’t squeeze out another “centimo.”

Latin America was finally a theme for discussion in the US Presidential campaign when Obama and McCain both visited Miami recently.  As was expected, Cuba was the main point of discussion with both candidates renewing the traditional call to fight for the island’s liberty, if only their offerings weren’t more of the same tired rhetoric. 

McCain declared that hw would not wait around passively until Cubans came to enjoy liberty and democracy, but his was exactly that:  wait around until the Castro regime suddenly allows free elections and the existence of an opposing party.  McCain promised to maintain the currently policies toward Cuba, as if the almost 50 years of US embargo have shed any result whatsoever.

Obama’s proposal with respect to Cuba is a little bolder, but doesn’t change the status quo.  The democratic candidate would allow Cuban Americans to travel and send money to Cuba without any restrictions.  However, he also promised to maintain the embargo and prohibition against the population at large traveling to Cuba.

Free Trade Agreements

The embargo and travel prohibitions fit perfectly in the Castro regime’s demonizing of America, in keeping American people and products away from the Cuban coastline.  Unfortunately, neither a McCain nor an Obama government would change this course.

However, McCain’s general view toward Latin America is much better than Obama’s.  The Republican candidate stressed the importance of free trade agreements once again as a cornerstone of relations between Washington and the region.

He also underlined the role these agreements play in fortifying Latin American democracies and generating prosperity, renewing in this manner his call to approve the Free Trade Agreement with Colombia as soon as possible.

While Obama spoke about not treating the region as a secondary partner, he offered a series of condescending policies which strengthen the very arrogant US image which he says he wants to eradicate.  In proposing a new alliance with the Americas (Was there another alliance?), Obama offered to save Latin America from itself.  According to the candidate, Latin American populism and authoritarianism are a direct result of the US’s not involving itself enough with the region.  Obama’s thinking is that only Washington can rescue us from our own travails.

He spoke of perfecting the US while considering himself capable of attacking any fountain of fear in the Americas and declaring the liberty of necessity in the region, which is why he promised to considerably increase the aid the US provides to Latin America, in spite of the that foreign aid has a mediocre record of getting people out of poverty around the world.

So, which of the two candidates is better for Costa Rica?  At TicsoLand.com, we wish to keep our readers informed of the issues surrounding us.  We will leave it up to you to decide who is better for Costa Rica, TicosLand.com and your business.

Potential Democratic Nominee Barack Obama said Friday he would apply the Social Security payroll tax to all annual incomes above $250,000, which would affect the wealthiest 3 percent of Americans.

The presidential candidate told senior citizens in Ohio that it is unfair for middle-class earners to pay the Social Security tax “on every dime they make,” while millionaires and billionaires pay it on only “a very small percentage of their income.”

The 6.2 percent payroll tax is now applied to all income up to $102,000 a year, which covers the entire amount for most Americans. Under Obama’s plan, the tax would not apply to incomes between that amount and $250,000. But all annual income above the quarter-million-dollar amount would be taxed under his plan.

Obama has talked before of establishing such a “doughnut hole” in the amount of income subject to the Social Security tax. Friday marked the first time he named a restart level: $250,000 and above.

Obama made the remarks at a retirement facility in Columbus, capital of a state he lost badly to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in the Democratic primary on March 4. Republican John McCain is hoping to carry Ohio this fall, as President Bush did four years ago in his narrow win over Democrat John Kerry.

Obama said his plan “allows us to extend the life of Social Security” without raising the retirement age or cutting benefits. He said McCain “a few years ago” stated that he might consider a higher cap on incomes subject to the tax, “but today he’s attacking me for holding the very same position.”

Obama also criticized McCain for being open to letting taxpayers invest part of their Social Security payments in private investment accounts.

“Imagine if your security now was tied up with the Dow Jones,” he said, alluding to the recent slide in stock prices. “You wouldn’t feel very confident about the security of your nest egg.”

Obama said he would “limit circumstances when retirement benefits can be cut,” and increase the wages and benefits workers could protect in bankruptcy court. Companies would have to disclose more about their pension fund investments, he said. He vowed to end “the outrage of executives getting bonuses while workers watch pensions disappear.”

While we are keeping you apprised of the latest news, take some time out and visit Ticosland.com, the leading web directory in Costa Rica.

Once again the US Supreme Court has ruled that foreign suspects held in Guantanamo Bay have the right to challenge their detention in US civilian courts.

In a major legal setback for the Bush administration, the court overturned by five to four a ruling upholding a 2006 law which removed such rights.

It is not clear if the ruling will lead to prompt hearings for the detainees.

Some 270 men are held at the US naval base, on suspicion of terrorism or links to al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

US President George W Bush said he would abide by the court’s ruling even if he did not agree with it.

Human rights groups have welcomed the move, Amnesty International saying it was an “essential step forward towards the restoration of the rule of law”.

Thursday’s ruling potentially resurrects several cases which had been put on hold in recent months.

Federal judges, law clerks and court administrators are scrambling to read the 70-page opinion and work out how to proceed.

And a military lawyer for Osama Bin Laden’s former driver, Guantanamo detainee Salim Ahmed Hamdan, is requesting that charges against his client be dismissed.

The military judge in the case had postponed Mr Hamdan’s trial, which had been scheduled to start earlier this month, pending the outcome of the Supreme Court case.

‘Extraordinary times’

Brushing aside arguments that the suspects were enemy combatants being held at a time of war, the court said the detainees had “the constitutional privilege of habeas corpus”.

This is the right of detainees under the US constitution to be heard by an independent judge.

Justice Anthony Kennedy said: “The laws and constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times.”

This is the Bush administration’s third setback at the highest US court since 2004 over its treatment of prisoners who are being held indefinitely and without charge at the base in Cuba.

The court has ruled twice previously that Guantanamo inmates could go into civilian courts to ask that the government justify their continued detention.

But each time, the Bush administration and Congress, then controlled by Republicans, changed the law to keep the detainees out of civilian courts.

The two previous Supreme Court rulings have not done much to clarify the inmates’ situation, says the BBC’s Jamie Coomarasamy in Washington.

Last week, five detainees, including key suspect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, appeared before a military tribunal in Guantanamo Bay.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed dismissed the trial as an “inquisition”.

‘Restoring credibility’

“We’ll abide by the court’s decision,” President Bush told reporters on a visit to Rome.

That doesn’t mean I have to agree with it.”

Amnesty International said the time had come for the US government to “finally bring its detention policies and practices in the ‘war on terror’ in line with international standards”.

For the American Bar Association, the ruling helped “restore the credibility of the United States as a leading advocate and model for the rule of law across the globe”.

“Habeas corpus is the cornerstone of the rule of law in the United States,” it added.

We always look to keep our readers informed.

At TicosLand.com, we are always looking to keep our readers informed.  We want our readers to have breaking international news which is relevant in their day to day lives.  Costa Rica is always at the vanguard of human rights and wants to see people treated fairly and humanely. 

One of the stalwart names in beer is up for sale.  

Accoring to CHRISTOPHER LEONARD, AP Business Writer, the maker of Budweiser beer disclosed late Wednesday that InBev SA, whose brands include Beck’s and Stella Artois, delivered an unsolicited all-cash bid of $65 a share. It’s unclear whether senior Anheuser-Busch executives think the deal makes sense, but shareholders may be drawn to the offer that represents a sizable premium over the company’s closing price of $58.35 Wednesday.

“Anheuser-Busch said that its board of directors will evaluate the proposal carefully and in the context of all relevant factors, including Anheuser-Busch’s long-term strategic plan,” the company said in a statement. “The board will pursue the course of action that is in the best interests of Anheuser-Busch’s stockholders.”

A spokeswoman said the company would not comment beyond the statement.

Speculation has been rife in past weeks that a takeover bid was coming. The beer industry has been consolidating in recent years amid rising ingredient costs and stale demand in the United States.

Shares of the U.S. brewer surged almost 8 percent to $62.84 after hours, when the announcement was made. They had risen 2 percent in regular trading earlier in the day, when rumors of the deal were reported on CNBC.

Opposition to a potential takeover has already been fierce in Anheuser-Busch’s hometown of St. Louis, and elsewhere in the U.S. The brewer employs 6,000 people in St. Louis, and many workers are worried InBev will cut jobs as the companies consolidate.

Web sites have sprung up opposing the deal on patriotic grounds, arguing that such an iconic U.S. firm shouldn’t be handed over to foreign ownership. Republican Gov. Matt Blunt said Wednesday he opposes the deal, and directed the Missouri Department of Economic Development to see if there was a way to stop it.

“I am strongly opposed to the sale of Anheuser-Busch, and today’s offer to purchase the company is deeply troubling to me,” Blunt said in a statement.

InBev was formed in 2004 when Belgium’s Interbrew merged with South America’s biggest brewer, AmBev. Since then, the company has cut jobs in several European countries even as its sales were boosted by strong demand in Latin American countries.

Worries about job cuts at Anheuser-Busch could be justified. InBev has a reputation for squeezing costs out of the companies it acquires, said Benj Steinman, editor of the Beer Marketer’s Insights trade publication. Because of its size — and control of nearly half the U.S. beer market — Anheuser-Busch could be a ripe target for cost-cutting.

“One theory is that their own cost reductions are winding down in Europe and Asia and around the world, and they need somewhere to sort of implement what they’re best at,” Steinman said.

Anheuser-Busch executives have made cost-cutting a goal over the last two years. Sales in the United States have been stagnant as consumers turn toward wine and cocktails, and the rising costs of ingredients have bitten into profit margins.

Last year, Anheuser-Busch turned a profit of $2.12 billion, up nearly 8 percent from $1.97 billion in 2006. But its core brands of Budweiser and Bud Light continued to lag as sales of craft beers and imports rose.

While the InBev deal looks sweet on paper, it’s far from a sure thing. Anheuser-Busch did not release details of how InBev planned to finance the deal, and raising so much capital could be tough as banks tighten their standards during a global credit crunch.

“Like baseball, apple pie and ice cold beer (wrapped in a red, white and blue label), Anheuser-Busch is an American original,” an anti-sale website says.  We say that in a global economy, everything goes, including Budweiser becoming Belgian. 

At Ticosland.com, we like to keep our readers informed about world events that might impact them directly and indirectly.  We are the leading web directory in Costa Rica TicosLand.com

Trying Times Ahead.

We have had doom and gloom in the financial reports dominating the news and the presidential candidates are trading barbs over economic policy in recent appearances.  As usual, they are offering sharply contrasting remedies for the country’s ailing economy.

The likely Republican nominee, Johm McCain, attacked his likely opponent during an appearance in Washington on Tuesday, telling an organization of small businesses meeting here that Senator Barack Obama would undo trade agreements that had benefited the United States and raise taxes for “Americans of every background.”

Mr. Obama has called for a more active government role in improving the economy and in providing more direct assistance to embattled Americans, while Mr. McCain has emphasized lower taxes and cutting government waste. Mr. Obama also has sought to tie Mr. McCain to the country’s current economic woes, charging that the Bush administration has been “the most fiscally irresponsible administration in history.”

What are the facts?  Unemployment is up, and so are fuel, energy and food prices.  It goes without saying that the housing market is in a shambles.  These things we know.  Who has the best economic plan?  If you have a mortgage, kids to feed and commute to work, it doesn’t matter what anyone is going to do in six months to a year.   You need answers now.  We don’t pretend to have the answers that some of the best economic minds don’t have.

What we do offer if you are a website or business owner is a way for you to increase your business or website traffic.  Our TicosLand.com web directory has over One Million Monthly visitors and more than 18,000 registered users.  If you increase your website or business traffic, you are likely to increase your sales.  It just might help you get through these trying times.