Archive for February, 2008
Liberated FARC Hostages Thank Chavez, Pray for Betancourt
4:51 pm By Maegan La Mala · Colombia| Controversia| Justice| Latin America| Politics · Comments Off
29 Feb 20086 hostages held by the FARC for over 5 years have been released, and they are thanking Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez for “giving them back their lives”. However, the hostages report that Ingrid Betancourt, the FARC’s “prized” hostage is in grave health, and that she may only have months to live if she isn’t taken to a hospital. Spain’s Europa Press has footage (below) of the hostages’ first moments of freedom, as well Hugo Chávez’s personal plea to the FARC to, at the very least, move Betancourt to a location “closer to him”:
The FARC says they won’t liberate any other hostages unless President Álvaro Uribe demilitarizes an area in southwest Colombia, a petition which Uribe rejected today.
Via / Europa Press and Prensa
Great Caesar’s Ghost : It’s Leap Day
11:49 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · history · Comments Off
29 Feb 2008
It’s February 29th, a date that comes only once every four years and just who can we thank for that? According to a Wired article today, none other than Roman Emperor Julius Caesar.
Caesar was reforming a calendar based on 364 days, with an occasional extra leap month. But the Roman religious officials in charge of minding the calendar had been asleep at the switch, chronologically speaking. Caesar consulted with Egypt’s top astronomers, who told him the year was 365¼ days long. While he was making the fix, Julius also decided to give his name to the month of July.
Although Caesar decreed the new calendar in 46 B.C., that year had 15 months to make up for the accumulated discrepancy. The first add-a-day leap year was 45 B.C.
Via / Wired
Man Wrongfully Deported Sues U.S.
10:32 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Immigration| Justice| mexico · Comments Off
29 Feb 200830-year-old Pedro Guzman was deported to Mexico in May after he was arrested and jailed on a misdemeanor trespassing charge. Nothing surprising there except for one thing. Pedro is a U.S. citizen.
Guzman, who is mentally disabled, was missing for nearly three months as his family looked for him in the shelters, jails and morgues of towns in Tijuana and neighboring cities. During that time, he rummaged for food in garbage cans, washed himself in rivers and walked as far south as Ensenada — more than 60 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border, according to the lawsuit.
Guzman tried to return to the United States several times but was turned away. He was found near the Calexico border crossing in August and reunited with his family.
Ricky Martin is People en Español’s Most Influential Cover Boy
9:28 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Magazines| Music · Comments Off
29 Feb 2008
People en Español has declared Ricky Martin one of the most influential people on the cover of their latest edition. In making their selection, the magazine cites the success of Martin’s acclaimed
MTV Unplugged Album, his “Sold-Out” Black & White Tour, induction into The Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the legendary singer’s ongoing charitable work on behalf of children through the Ricky Martin Foundation.
We couldn’t agree more.
Machetero Arraigned In Connecticut
8:06 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Connecticut| Justice| Politics| Puerto Rico · Comments Off
29 Feb 2008
Avelino Gonzalez Claudio
plead not guilty yesterday to federal charges related to a $7 million robbery of the Wells Fargo armored car depot in 1983. The charges were robbery by force of a federally insured bank, conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, the interstate or foreign transport of stolen goods, and conspiracy against the United States.
Gonzalez Claudio was held without bond pending a hearing Tuesday.
Via / AP
Virtual Border Fence Delayed
11:27 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Immigration · Comments Off
28 Feb 2008
Can’t say I’m sorry about this news. The virtual fence on the U.S./Mexico border is being delayed by at least three years! All of us people who work with technology on a small level know that there are often glitches when rolling out a project.
Technical problems discovered in a 28-mile pilot project south of Tucson prompted the change in plans.Those problems included Boeing’s use of inappropriate commercial software, designed for use by police dispatchers, to integrate data related to illicit border-crossings. Boeing has already been paid $20.6 million for the pilot project, and in December, the DHS gave the firm another $65 million to replace the software with military-style, battle management software.
Ok so I’m upset that so much money is being paid out to this huge company, especially since that’s taxpayer money. Just goes to show you how a border fence is just a bad move all around.
Via / The Washington Post
Teens Deported for Skipping School
10:18 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Controversia| Education| Immigration| Texas| children · 6 Comments
28 Feb 2008
When I was a teenager, skipping school meant detention, cleaning lockers, and a beat down from my mom. 17 year old twin hermanas Brisa and Lluvia Amante (yes, Breeze and Rain Lover) skipped school once and went to truancy court. They were fined and sent on their way. But when the sisters skipped school again they ended up being deported to El Salvador.
Yellow Fever Strikes the Capital of Paraguay
8:59 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Health| Paraguay · Comments Off
28 Feb 2008
For the first time in 60 years, yellow fever, a mosquito born illness, has hit an urban Latin American city. There are nine confirmed cases in the suburbs of Paraguay’s capital, Asuncion. The death toll from the illness, that spreads quickly, is somewhere between three and eight, depending on the source. Residents are being urged to get vaccinated. I’m not a pro-vaccine person but the symptoms of yellow fever are nasty enough to warrant some prevention. Symptoms can include fevers, vomiting, jaundice and bleeding from the mouth, nose, eyes and stomach.
Via / CNN
Prince William County : Racism Against Latinos
7:15 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Immigration| Virginia| race · Comments Off
28 Feb 2008I’ve done a few post on that followed the development of the plan in Prince William County, Virgina to make it legal to discriminate against undocumented people, which in reality is a license to harass and racially profile Latinos. Don’t believe me you say? Just watch this video via ProInmigrant, that shows children berated by a man, demanding if they are citizens and speak English, not to mention the curses and lewd images the young people are exposed to. Check the video after the jump.
Ugly Betty Vs. George Lopez
10:48 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Politics| Texas| US Presidential Race 2008 · Comments Off
27 Feb 2008
George Lopez apparently got over feeling dissed by the Democratic front-runners and has decided to throw his weight behind Barack Obama.
Comedian and television star George Lopez will be appearing today in El Paso on behalf of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.
Hillary has Ugly Betty in her camp (how many times can you spot her in this video?).
Via / El Paso Times
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