http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/puertorico/ en-us Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:17:52 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282323/posts If you didn't before, you sure do now. That's why he's got that grin on his face. It's not rum in the Captain's barrel, you see. It's your booty. According to Bloomberg.com, Diageo Plc, the maker of Captain Morgan rum, was essentially given... wait for it... $2.7 billion in tax incentives to move its production from Puerto Rico to the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI). That's a lot of other people's money to be rearranging like barstools on our Titanic of an economy. WHAT'S A PIRATE'S FAVORITE LAW? TAaaRrrP. The article notes that USVI Governor John deJongh, Jr. had no idea... Examiner http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2282323/posts#comment Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:17:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2260058/posts A tsunami? The apocalypse? No, it's just the moon... SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – It's only the moon, emergency officials in Puerto Rico are telling nervous islanders who have feared that recent extreme tides portend a tsunami or biblical catastrophe. Waters receded up to 50 feet (15 meters) this week during low tide on Puerto Rico's southern coast, sparking a flurry of calls to seismology and geological agencies from people worried about natural disasters or supernatural events. Tsunamis are sometimes preceded by a dramatic drop in sea level. "There are people who have said it's a biblical sign," said Pedro... Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2260058/posts#comment Thu, 28 May 2009 20:03:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2240366/posts WASHINGTON - Estados Unidos deberá responder en dos meses la querella presentada por un abogado puertorriqueño ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH) en reclamo del voto presidencial. Santiago Cantón, director ejecutivo de la CIDH -que responde a la Organización de Estados Americanos (OEA)-, notificó al abogado Gregorio Igartúa que a partir del 22 de abril el gobierno de Estados Unidos tendrá dos meses para exponer sus puntos de vista. Igartúa denunció en 2006 ante la CIDH el hecho de que los residentes de Puerto Rico no tienen derecho a votar por el presidente de Estados Unidos. Cantón le... El Nuevo Día http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2240366/posts#comment Wed, 29 Apr 2009 14:25:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2235461/posts It's been said that conservatism has different meanings for different people. It may not be textbook, but without a whole lot of navel gazing, here's what it means to me and what Free Republic is all about: In a word, Freedom! In two words, Preserving Freedom. In a handful of words as stated by our Founding Fathers, to secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity! America was founded on the proposition that all men are created equal by God and that our unalienable rights to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness are granted directly by God... Click here to support your favorite conservative website! http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2235461/posts#comment Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:10:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2235605/posts Note: The following text is a quote: ICE nabs man at LMMIA with 172 fraudulent credit cards SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A 28–year–old man was arrested Monday at the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (LMMIA) for credit card fraud following a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Secret Service investigation. Alexis De Jesus, a United States citizen residing in New York, arrived at the LMMIA from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and was referred to a secondary inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspectors. The search of De Jesus and his luggage revealed 172 fraudulent credit... ICE.gov http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2235605/posts#comment Wed, 22 Apr 2009 23:22:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233573/posts Do not believe the nattering nabobs of negativity. The Nationwide Tax Day TEA Party/Tax Revolt was a huge success!! What we need now is MORE and LOUDER!! Obama has no clue. Being confronted by millions of fed-up citizens is new to him. He never expected the otherwise docile American people to rise up against his wannabe Marxist/fascist totalitarian regime. He's now lashing out at us through the Dept of Homeland Security as if We the People are his enemy. Well, we are! And he now knows it. And he's scared witless!! And the media has been reduced to the speechless,... Click here to support your favorite revolting website http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2233573/posts#comment Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:16:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2211177/posts SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A jury found Puerto Rico's former governor not guilty Friday on all nine counts of conspiracy, money laundering and lying to the FBI, concluding his monthlong corruption trial. Anibal Acevedo Vila, who could have faced 20 years in prison if convicted, was the first governor to be charged with a crime since the island became a semiautonomous U.S. commonwealth in 1952. His former adviser Luisa Inclan was also cleared of similar charges. Authorities last year accused Acevedo and 12 associates of participating in an illegal scheme to pay off more than $500,000 in campaign... AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2211177/posts#comment Sat, 21 Mar 2009 00:48:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2201509/posts As residents of Washington D.C. anxiously await the fate of their representational seat in the House, several lawmakers see it as fuel for Puerto Rico gaining a more instrumental voice on Capitol Hill. “The D.C. Voting Rights bill sends the right message to all members of Congress and in that sense it is also good for Puerto Rico,” said Rep. Pedro Pierluisi (D-P.R.), who supports the bill that would add a representational vote in the House for D.C. residents. “To me it is amazing that in the 21st century the U.S. Congress keeps ignoring the wishes of the people of... thehill.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2201509/posts#comment Sat, 7 Mar 2009 19:46:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2194498/posts ‘Misguided’ criticism of corporate travel increasing tourism-industry woes Puerto Rico has lost about $20 million in cancelled group business this season, according to tourism-industry estimates. While the driving force behind the lost business has been the instability of the economy, industry officials say recent “misguided” criticism of corporate travel is worsening the situation. The Puerto Rico Convention Bureau alone has lost about 10 large groups that would have pumped about $5 million into the island economy, said its President & CEO Ana María Viscasillas. Since the bureau controls about 25% of the corporate meeting and events market, it’s likely lost... Caribbean Business http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2194498/posts#comment Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:25:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2184277/posts Just three months ago, the state's second-largest bank joined scores of other troubled lenders when it cashed a check for $525 million from the federal government to prop up its bottom line. Today, Associated is preparing to drop tens of thousands of dollars - and maybe more - to send about 100 employees to a posh Puerto Rican resort as a reward for a job well done. Making the trip will be everyone from backroom workers to the CEO, Paul Beideman. On Wednesday, Beideman stood by his decision to send scores of employees on a midwinter junket, despite the bad... JSOnline http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2184277/posts#comment Thu, 12 Feb 2009 20:28:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2183439/posts Michael Steele owes his dramatic victory in the race for Republican National Committee chairman to votes from island territories outside the 50 United States. Now, the question is what else he owes them. The residents of the five territories, from Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Sea to the tiny Northern Marianas in the Pacific Ocean, provided Steele with a bloc of 15 votes - one more than his margin of victory - when they swung into his camp late in the balloting last week. Now, a leading committee member from the Virgin Islands, former shadow Senator Holland Redfield, said they... Politoco.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2183439/posts#comment Wed, 11 Feb 2009 20:16:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2178925/posts SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A pregnant American tourist was killed Wednesday after she was abducted during a morning jog. Stuffed into the trunk of a car, she made a desperate call for help. About an hour later, she was found dead with her throat slashed. Based on Sara Kuszak's description of her kidnapper's car, police arrested a local man whose clothing was covered with blood. He was not immediately charged. "He saw the woman and kidnapped her," said Lt. Angel Ocasio. "He didn't take anything. He stole her life." The man was located because the FBI picked up a... Fox http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2178925/posts#comment Thu, 5 Feb 2009 15:45:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2177688/posts Projects in Puerto RicoThe total of cost of all the projects submitted by Puerto Rico is $22,093,054,016.00 Here is some slick wording on the part of the group. StimulusWatch.org was built to to help the new administration keep its pledge to invest stimulus money smartly, and to hold public officials to account for the taxpayer money they spend. We do this by allowing you, citizens around the country with local knowledge about the proposed "shovel-ready" projects in your city, to find, discuss and rate those projects. These projects are not part of the stimulus bill. They are candidates for... It's a Kwazy Life http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2177688/posts#comment Tue, 3 Feb 2009 21:53:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2177303/posts A 16-year-old Saline High School student apparently destroyed her computer and left the note - "I am not kidnapped" - before heading to the airport to board a plane for Puerto Rico, police said. Jasmine Rieberger's family is now frantically searching for her and they fear she might have been lured out of the country by someone she met over the Internet. Rieberger's parents said she told them Saturday she was headed to the mall to search for jobs and planned to spend the night at a friend's home on Saturday night. They reported her missing early Sunday morning after... Ann Arbor News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2177303/posts#comment Tue, 3 Feb 2009 12:50:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2170249/posts SAN JUAN (AP)-Three co-defendants in the case against former Puerto Rico Gov. Aníbal Acevedo Vilá pleaded guilty Thursday while a fourth co-defendant requested his trial be moved to Philadelphia, where he is expected to plead guilty as well. Defense attorneys forJorge Velasco Mella, Ramón Velasco Escardille and Edwin Colón Rodríguez informed the court that they will plead guilty, which prompted federal Judge Paul Barbadoro to schedule three hearings on the matter consecutively at 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and 11 a.m.Friday at the Hato Rey federal court. Judge Bruce McGiverin will preside over the Friday hearings Meanwhile, Candido Negrón Mella asked... Caribbean Business http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2170249/posts#comment Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:46:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2164841/posts Obama pick faces questions over bombers' clemencyBy PETE YOST Associated Press Writer Originally published Wednesday, January 14, 2009 at 2:05 PM WASHINGTON — New York police detective Anthony S. Senft's life changed forever when a bomb set by Puerto Rican separatists exploded, blowing him 15 feet in the air and blinding him in one eye. Now, he's angry that Eric Holder, who played a key role in awarding clemency to the bombers, is in line to be attorney general. Holder, as President Bill Clinton's deputy attorney general, worked closely with the Justice Department's pardon attorney to raise the possibility of... Seattle Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2164841/posts#comment Thu, 15 Jan 2009 05:20:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2164481/posts (English-language translation) In an attempt to begin reducing spending to balance the current budget, Governor Luis Fortuño met yesterday with the Economic Development Council, which is composed of members of his own cabinet, to emphasize the need to reduce spending in all public agencies by 10%. This reduction will have to be implemented immediately as the Governor ordered last week in an Executive Order, as well as the recommendation to not fill 30% of the vacant positions of trust. Office of Management & Budget (OGP) Director María Sánchez Bras indicated that the measures will be temporary because there are only... El Vocero de Puerto Rico (Spanish-language article) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2164481/posts#comment Wed, 14 Jan 2009 18:05:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2163732/posts (English-language translation) Displaying flags appealing for peace, Israelis in Puerto Rico yesterday defended Israel's military offensive in Gaza, a conflict that has left more than 800 Palestinians dead. The Amisrael organization held a demonstration yesterday outside the Capitol to call for peace in the Middle East. However, several statements were in support of the military attack against Gaza in the defense of the State of Israel. Shaul Jadash, a Jew from Mayagüez, said that, for them, the attacks against the Gaza Strip were a divine manifestation. "We see it as another way the Almighty is showing His goodness towards us.... El Vocero de Puerto Rico (Spanish-language article) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2163732/posts#comment Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:40:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2162527/posts President Hugo Chavez said Saturday he may expel a top U.S. Embassy official for allegedly plotting against his government from Puerto Rico. Venezuela's socialist leader said he has information that leaders of the political opposition were meeting with U.S. advisers in Puerto Rico to discuss how to prevent a referendum on term limits from passing. "I'm investigating the possible presence of a U.S. Embassy official in Caracas at this meeting," said Chavez, without naming the official. "If I confirm it, I will throw him out of the country. AP via Google News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2162527/posts#comment Sun, 11 Jan 2009 06:03:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2161501/posts Attorney General nominee Eric H. Holder Jr. repeatedly pushed some of his subordinates at the Clinton Justice Department to drop their opposition to a controversial 1999 grant of clemency to 16 members of two violent Puerto Rican nationalist organizations, according to interviews and documents. Details of the role played by Holder, who was deputy attorney general at the time, have not been publicly known until now. However the new disclosures are of particular interest because Republican senators vow to revisit Holder's role during his confirmation hearings next week. Morning Call http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2161501/posts#comment Fri, 9 Jan 2009 13:03:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2160236/posts Former Governor Aníbal Acevedo Vilá and former Governor's Office Secretary Aníbal José Torres are two of the targets of an investigation federal authorities are conducting related to alleged payments made by developer and PFZ [Properties, Inc.] owner Joel Katz involving the Costa Serena project, sources told EL VOCERO. According to the sources, the case is before a grand jury. Katz is said to have paid "thousands of dollars" in installments during the negotiation process for the buying and selling of the land. The sources maintain that Katz and other witnesses have appeared before the grand jury. Katz was the person... El Vocero de Puerto Rico (Spanish-language article) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2160236/posts#comment Wed, 7 Jan 2009 15:17:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2160139/posts Republicans' focus on recovering after sharp blows in the past two elections has put a spotlight on an unlikely star: Puerto Rico's new governor, Luis Fortuño. As he was sworn in Friday, the Republican Governors Association was effusive. "Luis Fortuño proves that principled Republicans can appeal to voters everywhere," said the group's chairman, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. "He is the type of leader the party needs to revive its base and expand its appeal." Party leaders view Mr. Fortuño, 48 years old, as an example for Republicans as well as someone who can reach out to Hispanics and other... The Wall Street Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2160139/posts#comment Wed, 7 Jan 2009 12:09:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2159557/posts (English-language translation) The sight of three sumptuously-dressed potentates giving the first Christmas gifts has been portrayed in innumerable ways: in classical paintings, in greeting cards, and even in some billboard on a public square. We know their names: Melchior, Caspar, and Balthazar. Standing on one side of the stable, in the company of animals, shepherds, and a few angels fluttering around the beams. They sing John Henry Hopkins' immortal Christmas carol "We Three Kings of Orient Are", and each one describes the meaning behind the gift he carries. There is only one problem. The Bible never mentions only three kings... Los Reyes Magos de Juana Díaz (Spanish-language article) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2159557/posts#comment Tue, 6 Jan 2009 14:32:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2156170/posts Once again we have a politician who is indicted on corruption charges and once again we have a news organization who "conveniently" neglects to mention his party label. You will look in vain for the party name of Puerto Rico Governor Anibal Acevedo Vila in this United Press International report: SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Dec 29, 2008 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Puerto Rico's governor, indicted on corruption charges, posted a video on the popular social networking site Facebook admitting to making mistakes. NewsBusters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2156170/posts#comment Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:00:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2156104/posts SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Dec 29, 2008 (UPI via COMTEX) -- Puerto Rico's governor, indicted on corruption charges, posted a video on the popular social networking site Facebook admitting to making mistakes. During the four-minute video, Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila apologized to Puerto Ricans saying he "committed errors." However, he did not address specific charges against him or admit to any criminal wrongdoing, according to the video posted Sunday. A federal indictment handed down earlier this year accused the Puerto Rican governor... Market Watch http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2156104/posts#comment Tue, 30 Dec 2008 14:03:01 GMT