IN JAMAICA: 10 Questions For Portia....With public disquiet growing increasingly about the failure of Prime Minister...What question would you ask the PM?

With public disquiet growing increasingly about the failure of Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller to make herself available for media interviews, The Sunday Gleaner invited select persons to send the questions they would like answered by the head of the Government.
Portia Simpson Miller
Portia Simpson-Miller
We have taken 10 from the loads of questions which were submitted and invite the prime minister to respond to these pressing areas of concern.
1) Did you hold Richard Azan, state minister in the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing, accountable for any breach of established government procedures in his handling of the Spaldings market issue?
2) Did you consider the outcry from civil society when making your decision to restore Mr Azan to his role of a junior minister?
3) In light of the sacrifices being demanded of all Jamaicans, do you think it is time for you to reduce the number of Cabinet ministers, ministers without portfolio and ministers of state?
4) Are you satisfied with the performance of Peter Bunting as minister of national security? remaining 6

Human rights group calls for resignation of Jamaica's top cop

Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), called for the resignation of the Police Commissioner Owen Ellingto
imageKINGSTON, Jamaica, Friday November 22, 2013, CMC – The human rights group, Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), Friday called for the resignation of the Police Commissioner Owen Ellington, saying he has failed to keep the murder rate in the country under control.

“He has failed to keep the murder rate under control; he has failed to improve the police clear-up rate for murder; he has presided over the highest cumulative rate of police fatal shootings ever seen in Jamaica," the JFJ said in a statement. More than 1,000 people have been murdered here so far this year. Read more: 

FOOTBALL: 2013 Manning Cup Final - JC Triumph In Thriller over Wolmers at Stadium in a grueling FINALS.

Jamaica College carved a 25th lien on one of the most coveted schoolboy football trophies at the National Stadium yesterday.
Jamaica's College's captain Junior Flemming (centre) lifts the ISSA/LIME Manning Cup trophy following his school's 3-2 extra-time victory over Wolmer's Boys in the final at the National Stadium yesterday. -Gladstone Taylor/Photgrapher
Jamaica's College's captain Junior Flemming (centre)
 lifts the ISSA/LIME Manning Cup trophy following
 his school's 3-2 extra-time victory over Wolmer's Boys
in the final at the National Stadium yesterday
. -Gladstone Taylor/Photgrapher
It took a gruelling, energy-sapping 120 minutes - 90 minutes regulation time and 30 minutes extra time - to decide the winners. And at the end, surrounded by his teammates and students of the Old Hope Road-based school, captain Junior Flemming lifted the coveted trophy after a hard-fought 3-2 victory.
The teams were locked at 2-2 at the end of normal time and it took another nine minutes for substitute Ronald Brown to crash home the winner after being sent clear by Raffique Bryan. read more

More Than 1,000 J'cans Denied Entry Into T&T In 3 Years

Officials in Trinidad and Tobago have revealed that just over 1,000 Jamaican nationals have been denied entry into that country in the last three years. 

The disclosure comes amid the current row between the two countries over reports this week that immigration officials in the twin island republic denied entry to 13 Jamaicans who were later deported. In a statement released yesterday, Trinidad and Tobago’s National Security Ministry the impression is being given that its immigration officers acted in an arbitrary and inappropriate manner. read more

IN JAMAICA: FOREIGN Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister AJ Nicholson rejects calls to ban imports from Trinidad and Tobago

FOREIGN Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister AJ Nicholson has rejected suggestions that Jamaica ban imports from Trinidad and Tobago as a retaliatory strike against the summary denial of entry to Jamaicans into that country.
NICHOLSON… it would be a breach of
 Jamaica’s obligations under the Revised
Treaty of Chaguaramas to block
 the entry of goods from Trinidad and Tobago


 
On Tuesday, 13 Jamaicans, including an 11-year-old girl and a man who is married to a Trinidadian woman, were denied entry upon arrival at the Piarco International Airport in Port of Spain and were sent back to Jamaica the following morning.

Immigration officials at the airport seized the Jamaicans’ passports and ordered them to sit on a hard bench all night before shipping them out of the country, despite the fact that the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME) allows for free travel between countries by Caribbean Community nationals. Read more: 

RULA BROWN - Lips of Wine (Download for 79 cents).


https://app.box.com/s/l4auq4vw
 

Jamaica Sets Eyes On Digital Future......Newly named I Believe Initiative Ambassador Roxanne Wanliss is taking the lead.

Jamaica is primed to be another hub, this one of the digital variety.
Representatives from various sponsors, supporters and information and communication technology stakeholders gathered at King's House yesterday to launch Digital Jam 3.0 - Caribbean Edition. The initiative is the follow-up to the highly successful Digital Jam 2.0 mobile-app creation competition, the finals of which were held earlier this year.
Newly named I Believe Initiative Ambassador Roxanne Wanliss shares a moment with Governor General Sir Patrick Allen at King's House, St Andrew, yesterday. - Rudolph Brown/Photographer
Newly named I Believe Initiative Ambassador
 Roxanne Wanliss shares a moment with
Governor General Sir Patrick Allen at
 King's House, St Andrew, yesterday.
 - Rudolph Brown/Photographer
Industry Minister Anthony Hylton, a key figure as Jamaica positions itself to be the next global logistics hub, said digital infrastructure was at the heart of developing both hubs, noting the 3.0 theme: 'The Future of Work is Digital'. He added that Jamaica had the ability, leadership and human capital to succeed on both fronts.
"[Digital Jam 2.0] has unearthed tremendous talent," he said. "Digital Jam 3.0 will give us another platform to identify that talent." read more

The drug called "Molly" isn't what most of its users think it is. Instead of "pure" MDMA, it's become a toxic mixture of chemicals made overseas. FULL STORY

IN JAMAICA: Eleven-year-old Michaela Stephens gave the world's number one female tennis star, Serena Williams, strong competition.

Serena Williams
Eleven-year-old Michaela Stephens of Liberty Academy in Kingston gave the world's number one female tennis star, Serena Williams, strong competition when the two met on the court at the Tryall Club in Hanover, Thursday afternoon.
Young tennis player Michaela Stephens. - Photo by Janet Silvera
Young tennis player Michaela Stephens.
 - Photo by Janet Silvera
Stephens was among 50 youngsters given the privilege to hit balls with the top-seeded player and her sister Venus, at a tennis clinic sponsored by the National Commercial Bank (NCB) and Tryall Club.
"We love Jamaica, so if we are going to come, we want to grow the sport here," Venus Williams told The Gleaner, as she paid a handsome compliment to young Michaela who she said, "seem to play better than me". read more

Manning Cup Showdown - Wolmer's, JC Hunt 2013 Title At National Stadium



A tense showdown is expected today when Wolmer's Boys 
and Jamaica College (JC), two of the oldest high schools in Jamaica, 
square off in the final of the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports
 Association (ISSA)/Digicel Manning Cup at the National Stadium, starting at 4 p.m.

Caribbean Culture Hits TV - Reality Series About The Region's Women Launched.

United States-based company Tulloch Media Communications, Inc (TMC) recently premiered the first episode of a new reality show, which exposes various aspects of Caribbean family life to the world.
The series, Caribbean Wives of South Florida, features wives in the role of family matriarchs, balancing marriage, career/business, living the American dream (cultural differences and all) and trying to fit in.
The goal of the series seems to be to show the diversity of the Caribbean community and the way that community reacts to different situations based on these cultural differences.
According to Maxine J. Tulloch, executive producer, Caribbean Wives of South Florida is expected to explicitly reveal the Caribbean's cultural wealth. read more

Astro quits BRITISH reggae band UB40

BRITISH reggae band UB40 has lost another of its founding members. Percussionist/trumpeter Astro revealed his departure just days after they announced a 2014 tour.

The birminghammail.com website reports that Astro (real name Terence Wilson) called the band a "rudderless ship" with a lack of direction. He is also quoted as saying UB40 lost focus after lead singer Ali Campbell and Mickey Virtue left.
Astro
"We've merely muddled our way through on a wing and a prayer. There has been a serious lack of communication between the band and management," said Astro. Along with Brian Travers, James Brown, Ali Campbell, Robin Campbell, Earl Falconer, Norman Hassan and Virtue, Astro formed UB40 in 1978. Read more: 

Too fat to fly? Stranded Frenchman’s long ordeal......Chenais, who weighs 500 pounds (230 kilograms), says he has been repeatedly refused transport over the past two weeks

LONDON, England (AP) — He's been turned down by planes, trains and even a cruise ship in his quest to return home -- and his family says it's because he has been deemed too fat to travel.
LONDON, England — Kevin Chenais sits
 in his mobility scooter in front of
 an ambulance at St Pancras in
London on Wednesday, November 20, 2013.
 Chenais, who suffers from a medical
 condition, travelled by ambulance
 and ferry back to France


 
Now Frenchman Kevin Chenais' long and fitful journey has come to an end.  Chenais, who weighs 500 pounds (230 kilograms), says he has been repeatedly refused transport over the past two weeks as he sought to get home to France from the United States. P&O Ferries finally offered to take him in an ambulance across the English Channel on Wednesday, the final hurdle keeping him from his home near the Swiss border.
"It's terrible. It's discrimination. It was very hard, tiring and a big waste of money for my parents," the 22-year-old told RTL Radio on Wednesday. Slumped over in his mobility scooter, he said he was exhausted just before being loaded into the ambulance. Read more:

A Killer In Your Fridge ~ Sweet Poison…A MUST READ.........Could Diet sodas be killing you slowly?

In October of 2001, my sister started getting very sick She had stomach spasms and she was having a hard time getting around. Walking was a major chore. It took everything she had just to get out of bed; she was in so much pain.
Rhonda Gessner

Rhonda Gessner

Helping People Become

ALL God Created Them To Be..

By March 2002, she had undergone several tissue and muscle biopsies and was on 24 various prescription medications. The doctors could not determine what was wrong with her. She was in so much pain, and so sick she just knew she was dying.
She put her house, bank accounts, life insurance, etc., in her oldest daughter’s name, and made sure that her younger children were to be taken care of.
She also wanted her last hooray, so she planned a trip to Florida (basically in a wheelchair) for March 22nd. On March 19, I called her to ask how her most recent tests went, and she said they didn’t find anything on the test, but they believe she had MS. read more

Jamaica's Ackee and Saltfish #2 among world's best National Dishes. How 'bout dat?

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Did you know that Jamaica's ackee and saltfish was ranked by the National Geographic as second among the world's best national dishes?
(Photo: jamaicamyway.com)
Albeit citing its origins as slave food, the popular National Geographic says ackee and saltfish is out-ranked only by the United States' hamburgers. According to the Top 10 National Dishes list, which was taken from the National Geographic book Food Journeys of a Lifetime, ackee is a "nutritious fruit with a buttery-nutty" flavour and "resembles scrambled egg when boiled".
NG also said that "Jamaicans sauté the boiled ackee with saltfish (salt-cured cod), onions, and tomatoes" adding that it is sometimes served "atop bammy (deep-fried cassava cakes) with fried plantains". Read more: 

Top 10 JAMAICAN deejays. Do you agree with this list?




Beenieman, Ninjama, Kartel
(1) Shabba Ranks
Lyrically, the most dynamic deejay and first to make a serious mark internationally. The two- time Grammy winner lay the foundation for Shaggy and Sean Paul.
(2) Bounty Killer

Despite his controversial personality, without doubt one of the greatest. With his vast catalogue of hardcore hits, 'Killer' is still an explosive live act after 20- odd years in the business.
(3) Buju Banton

His ability to fuse reggae, dancehall and ska produced outstanding albums. Dancehall's renaissance man.
(4) Ninjaman

The 'clash king', hands down the most lethal deejay on stage. His sneer and wit has endeared him to dancehall fans.
(5) Beenie Man
 The quintessential showman, his ability to create easy-on-the ear hits have made him one of the genre's most successful acts. Read more:

In Latvia, Supermarket Collapse Leaves At Least 45 Dead

RIGA, Latvia (AP) — Latvian police say the number of dead from a supermarket roof collapse has risen to 45.
latvia supermarket collapseSpokesman Toms Sadovskisk says officials expect the death toll at the sprawling Maxima supermarket in Riga to rise further.
He said Friday the number of injured remains at 35 and that nine of the dead are still unidentified.
Rescue workers were keeping up their round-the-clock search for possible survivors Friday. They were periodically turning off all equipment and asking relatives of missing people to call so they could hear ringing cellphones in the rubble. read more

IN JAMAICA: Journalist Shoved As PM, Portia Simpson-Miller Refuses To Answer Questions On Azan's Reinstatement


TVJ reporter Vashan Brown was today shoved by members of the Prime Minister's security detail as he asked her about the reinstatement of Richard Azan as junior transport and works minister. 

The Prime Minister had just delivered the keynote address at the dedication of a water and sewer project in Rose Town, Kingston, when she was approached by the reporter. 

TVJ\'s reporter Vashan Brown being shoved away by security personnel from Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller after she refused to answer question from him about Richard Azan and her trips to Japan. – Jermaine Barnaby photo
The Prime Minister initially told the reporter that Azan was not guilty of any crime before saying she would not address the matter because that was not the place for it. 

She then walked off prompting the intervention of the security detail who shoved the reporter who was continuing to press the Prime Minister for answers. read more

Cops accused of leaking info on Vybz Kartel arrest

DEFENCE lawyers were scathing in their cross-examination of two senior police officers who gave evidence during the trial of Vybz Kartel and four other men in the Supreme Court in downtown, Kingston yesterday.
Vybz Kartel (in shades) arrives
 at the Supreme Court in
downtown Kingston on Wednesday.


 
Attorney Tom Tavares-Finson, who along with his son Christian is representing Vybz Kartel, accused the police of leaking information to the media when the police had arrested Vybz Kartel and were taking him to his three properties in St Andrew and St Catherine to search for guns and unlawful property.

Vybz Kartel, Shawn 'Shawn Storm' Campbell; Kahira Jones; André St John; and Shane Williams are being tried for the August 16, 2011 murder of Clive 'Lizard' Williams/
During his cross-examination of head of Senior Superintendent Cornwall 'Bigga' Ford — who heads the Flying Squad — Tavares-Finson suggested that the police had intentionally informed the media of the operation in order to prejudice the case against his client. Read more:

JAMAICAN RHODES SCHOLAR: 2013 Rhodes Scholar described as ‘a brilliant young man’........scholar says he could have easily given up

TIMAR Jackson's Facebook page blew up with likes and comments yesterday when, at about 3:30, he posted: Timar Jackson 2014 Rhodes Scholar.
Winner of the Rhodes scholarship
 for 2014 Timar Jackson and the other
finalists with Governor General
 Sir Patrick Allen at King’s House.


 
He was announcing to his friends what the Rhodes Scholarship committee had, only minutes earlier, disclosed at King's House: that he had topped a field of nine accomplished young people and would be heading to Oxford next year. "I knew you'd become one some day." read one of the comments. "Bwoy, u never let me down," said another. Others included: "Well deserved", "I'm soooooo proud", "Always focused" and tons of "congratulations".
For Jackson, 24, the win is a lesson in perseverance, given that he made it to the finals two years ago but lost out in the end. "Once you have your goal you should never lose sight of it," he told the Jamaica Observer.
Read more: 

Jamaica issues travel warning against Trinidad and Tobago

Photo: 13 Jamaicans turned away from Trinidad Action violates Caricom treaty..... asked to Stay out! Read more http://rulabrownnetwork.blogspot.com/2013/11/13-jamaicans-turned-away-from-trinidad.htmlKINGSTON, Jamaica, Thursday November 21, 2013, CMC – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a warning to persons traveling to Trinidad and Tobago in the wake of recent reports of several Jamaicans having been denied entry into that Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country recent weeks.

"The ministry is concerned at this development and continues to interface with the relevant authorities in Trinidad and Tobago on the matter, including in the light of the Shanique Myrie ruling by the Caribbean Court of Justice," said a release issued by the Ministry.

Read more: 

Senate Passes New Filibuster Rules...Relief For Dispirited Dems... A History Of The Filibuster

WASHINGTON -- When Harry Reid came in through a side door to the Mansfield Room Thursday afternoon, the majority leader was met with a raucous standing ovation from a crowd of activists, mere steps from the Senate floor where he had just successfully led a change of Senate rules to reform the filibuster.
When he took the podium, the crowd rose again, giving a reception that would have been unthinkable a decade ago, when Reid was considered by many progressives to be a weak-kneed centrist. His journey to filibuster reform has been just as long.
 A longtime, strident defender of Senate tradition, Reid worked in the last Congress against the efforts of Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.) to change the rules and reform the filibuster. It earned him his fair share of unfavorable coverage in the pages of this outlet and elsewhere.  read more

BBC: Women held as slaves for 30 years were kept in "horrific conditions".....'Slave' women rescued

 
LONDON (AP) — Three women have been freed after spending 30 years held captive in a south London home, including one woman believed to have spent her entire life in domestic slavery, police announced Thursday.
London's Metropolitan Police spoke about the rescues after two people — a man and a woman, both 67 — were arrested early Thursday as part of an investigation into domestic servitude.

The investigation was launched after one of the captive women contacted a charity to say she was being held against her will and the charity then went to the police. Those freed "some weeks ago" are a 69-year-old Malaysian woman, a 57-year-old Irish woman and a 30-year-old British woman, police said.

Read more:

Dow Closes Above 16,000 Points For First Time Ever

Call 770-715-0224 to place your adsNEW YORK, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The Dow industrials closed above 16,000 on Thursday for the first time and other major indexes also ended higher after economic data pointed to a slowly improving labor market and subdued inflation.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 109.17 points, or 0.69 percent, at 16,009.99, according to the latest figures available. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 14.49 points, or 0.81 percent, at 1,795.86. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 47.89 points, or 1.22 percent, at 3,969.16. read more

BBC News: US remembers Kennedy 50 years after assassination

The US is marking 50 years since President John F Kennedy was killed by an assassin's bullet in Dallas, Texas.The city, which has long struggled with the legacy of the murder, hosts a series of official events on Friday. Kennedy has been ranked among the nation's most revered presidents, though he served less than three years.

 He is commemorated for his youthful vigour, his leadership through the Cuban missile crisis, and his challenge to America to put a man on the Moon.But he is also remembered for ordering one of the most disastrous episodes of the Cold War, the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of communist Cuba by a CIA-trained paramilitary force of Cuban exiles. read more

Professor Says She Could Go To Jail For Pointing Out Her Rapist 18 Years Ago.

A psychology professor says she could go to jail for life because 18 years ago, her boyfriend killed her rapist.
Cbs
Esparaza
Norma Patricia Esparza, 39, says she was forced her to point out her rapist, Gonzalo Ramirez, before he was killed, CBS reports in the video above. Now, Esparza, a professor who lives with her husband and 4-year-old daughter in France, is scheduled to appear before a judge Thursday in Santa Ana, Calif. Prosecutors are expected to ask the judge to revoke her bail before she goes to trial for first-degree special circumstances murder..
Prosecutors say that in 1995, as a sophomore at Pomona College, Esparza went to a bar in Santa Ana, Calif. bar with a group and identified a man she said had raped herin her college dorm, the Los Angeles Times reports. Hours later, the man was found dead, beaten and hacked with a meat cleaver. read more
ENTER CHAT, LISTEN & WATCH BROADCAST LIVE 24/7
               FOR AUDIO ONLY (No Commercials) - CLICK PLAYER ABOVE on RIGHT
                                                                              OR
                  FOR USTREAM VIEWING & RBN CHATROOM CLICK ON PLAYER BELOW    



To listen, click PLAY icon above then unmute speaker icon at bottom left on player after a brief commercial. Enjoy the sweet music.To chat below, please sign in with your RBN account. Scheduled shows are PALVS & SSSJamz w/ RULA BROWN, Sir ROCKWELL w/ Golden Sundays, Foundation Radio Networkw/ CLINTON LINDSAY is broadcast daily. WINSOME BENJAMIN w/ Winsome Benjamin Showcase every Mon-Fri. Pleasesupport the scholarship program by considering to donate at least $10.00 at www.PALAS1.org. Thank you very much.

IN JAMAICA: RBC Loves School....Elgin Town Basic School students show off books donated by Royal Bank of Canada

Elgin Town Basic School, the largest school to be built so far by Food For The Poor in its 'Jamaica 50 Campaign', in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and HEART Trust/NTA received a much-needed boost from the RBC Royal Bank of Canada. The campaign involves building and rehabilitating 50 basic schools in 50 months, in addition to providing 500 teachers islandwide with scholarships.
Elgin Town Basic School students show off books donated by Royal Bank of Canada. - Contributed Photos
Elgin Town Basic School students show
 off books donated by
Royal Bank of Canada. - Contributed Photos
The bank's donation will see Food For The Poor building an Early Childhood Commission-certified school for the students of the Elgin Town Basic.
"Providing a safe and imaginative learning environment, which is critical for children at this age, is an important area of focus for us," said Roger Cogle, managing director, RBC Royal Bank. read more