Wednesday Nov 25, 2020

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Pierluisi Reveals His Agenda

Pending Official Certification as Governor-Elect, Plans to ‘Wrap Up’ Commonwealth Debt Restructuring His Priority: Fight COVID-19 Pandemic on the Island P4

Despite 889 Pages of the Infamous Chat, Special Independent Prosecutors Didn’t Find Sufficient Evidence to Prosecute Rosselló P6

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Health Professionals Favor Greater Lockdown P3

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Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

GOOD MORNING

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November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star, the only paper with News Service in English in Puerto Rico, publishes 7 days a week, with a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday edition, along with a Weekend Edition to cover Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Pierluisi, head of Nurses Assn. favor greater lockdown if infection, hospitalization trends continue

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overnor-elect Pedro Pierluisi said in a radio interview Tuesday that he would support a greater closure of activities in Puerto Rico if there is a danger of the island’s hospital system collapsing.

“What I am watching out for are the intensive care units and the ventilators,” Pierluisi said in an interview on “Pegaos en la Mañana” on Radio Isla 1320 AM. “With ventilators there does not appear to be a problem. In intensive care units,” he said available space appears to be “not so much.”

Meanwhile, Dr. Ana Cristina García, president of the Puerto Rico Association of Nursing Professionals, recommended that a greater shutdown of activities be established on the island to stop the rise in cases of COVID-19 and avoid a collapse of hospital operations.

“If we continue as we are, there will be a collapse due to lack of personnel in the work areas,” García said in a separate radio interview. “I would like to recommend to the governor [Wanda Vázquez Garced] that since we are at such worrying levels, that the most correct thing is that before Christmas begins, and we already have Thanksgiving here this Thursday, that they do a lockdown to avoid infections and prevent a level of collapse of the health systems from being reached.”

Pierluisi accepted as possible a “total closure” of public activities in Puerto Rico if the number of cases and hospitalizations due to COVID-19 continues to increase.

He said that if it is concluded that there is going to be a collapse of the hospital system, a full closure should be put into effect.

“Unless this conclusion is reached, a total closure should not occur,” Pierluisi stressed.

On Monday, Vázquez said on her Twitter account that “at this time, malicious information that has circulated about an alleged lockdown is totally false.”

“Future decisions about the pandemic will be made as we have done today, in front of the people, responsibly and with professional medical staff. Protect yourself!” the governor said in her Twitter account @ wandavazquezg.

In addition to the need to hospitalize hundreds of people with COVID-19, it is also the time of the highest incidence of flu (influenza). There are also many cases of dengue and mycoplasma, the latter being a disease of the respiratory system caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which is a microscopic organism related to bacteria.

The island Health Department on Tuesday reported six deaths from COVID-19, while 293 confirmed cases, 61 probable cases and 129 additional suspected cases were registered.

In total, 1,038 people have died from COVID-19 in Puerto Rico, six more than in Monday’s report, while 626 people are hospitalized, 19 more than the previous day. In intensive care there are 111 patients, 11 more than in Monday’s report. One of them is a pediatric case. There are 105 people on ventilators, six more than the day before.

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The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

Pierluisi prioritizes tackling COVID-19 pandemic Governor-elect urges ‘striking the right balance’ once he assumes office

By PEDRO CORREA HENRY Twitter: @PCorreaHenry Special to The Star

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etter scientific data gathering to improve executive decisions and a better contract tracing system to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.

Those are some of the main priorities that governor-elect Pedro Pierluisi mentioned during an interview with the Star, while assuring that he is monitoring all the developments during the national emergency.

In order to take action against the novel coronavirus, Pierluisi, who hasn’t been officially certified as governor yet, appointed health adviser and incoming transition committee member Carlos Mellado and Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust board member Daniel Colón Ramos to chair his Scientific Coalition to, advise, gather and provide “the necessary scientific data to make balanced and reasonable decisions in dealing with the pandemic.”

“I consistently criticized the lack of data in the past, and all of the scientists and doctors that I have recruited have impeccable credentials and I know they will go out of their way, on a voluntary basis, to obtain the data, to gather the data, to analyze the data and, in little ways, we will improve the way we’re dealing with the virus,” the governorelect said.

When the Star asked the governorelect if he would include educators and science writers in the coalition to communicate its efforts to the general population, Pierluisi said the coalition will have committees in which members and representatives “from a wide spectrum of our society” will be able to contribute, such as the manufacturing industry, the construction and retail sectors, restaurants, and others.

“We’re making sure that once we start reopening, both the economy and the education system, we do it in a way that is justified based on the available scientific data,” Pierluisi said. “That, to me, is critical. That’s exactly the way that president-elect Joe Biden is operating.

They’re in touch with the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], they’re in touch with all the scientific players.”

The New Progressive Party president said his intentions with the coalition are also to determine if the executive orders to be issued once he assumes office will take a regional approach in dealing with the virus.

“At the same, my judgment is that the measures that you should be taking, or imposing, or requiring at indoor facilities, should be different than the ones that you should require outdoors, and this is based on my judgment, needless to say,” Pierluisi said. “I’ll be consulting experts to make sure that my vision is on target.”

The Star asked if he would deal with the pandemic differently from Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced. The governor-elect answered by saying her decision to implement stricter capacity limitations was the right move.

“I believe it was a good move on the part of governor Wanda Vázquez to activate the [Puerto Rico] National Guard to support our police forces and enforce the existing executive order,” Pierluisi said.

In addition, he said he did not “want to start second-guessing,” preferring to see where the island stands on Dec. 11, which would be the current executive order’s end date.

“We should strike the right balance.

This is not health versus economy, this is not health versus education, they go in tandem, they’re intertwined; if you destine the majority of the people to poverty, you’re affecting their health, your impact would be causing their death,” Pierluisi said. “We’ve been hit quite strongly by this pandemic and it is having a very negative effect on our economy and the people’s well-being, and every one of those fatalities is really unfortunate, and I hope that we start doing better.”

Expects to wrap up island debt restructuring process Regarding the Financial Oversight and Management Board, and Puerto Rico’s debt restructuring process and negotiating with the commonwealth’s creditors, the governor-elect said he has no objection to trying to reach an acceptable deal, “the sooner the better.”

Pierluisi also told the Star he has “no objection to using mediation to try to reach that deal.”

“If those efforts fail, I will be the first one who will be encouraging the Board to submit a revised plan of adjustment to the court, having at least one of the classes of impaired creditors supporting it,” he said. “The PROMESA [Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act] law allows for that.”

Meanwhile, Pierluisi said a priority for him is “that whatever debt the

board proposes on behalf of the commonwealth, whatever adjustment to the debt the board proposes to the government, is something that the government can afford.”

“I’ll be looking for sustainability, I’ll be looking for affordability in this process; it is unquestionable that at least half of the debt that the government of Puerto Rico accumulated and owes was intended to finance capital improvement projects,” he said. “I’m summarizing here, but to expect to be paying no debt is not realistic. We will end up having to pay some of the debt that the government incurred.”

The governor-elect told the Star that although the precise number should be negotiated with both the oversight board and creditors, “it’s in the interest of all to have a number that the government can live with because we don’t want to face another restructuring scenario, another default at any point in the future.”

“We want to make sure to close this chapter and that we never have to go through it again. PROMESA doesn’t envision having a second shot at restructuring our debt; it’s simply a one-time process,” he said. “You restructure the debt, you balance your budget on an ongoing basis for four years, and then regain adequate access to the markets and the Board is gone. That’s the way PROMESA was written.”

Something that doesn’t please him, Pierluisi said, is that, after four years, the island is still in the process of “trying to restructure the debt.”

“We should wrap this up,” he said.

“We should do it, the sooner the better, so we don’t spend as much time as we have spent in the past on lawyers and consultants, just for the heck of trying to reach a deal. Let’s do it, let’s get our act together, let’s act with a sense of urgency.”

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

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Outdated Agriculture Dept. computer system contributing to delays in subsidies for farmers

By THE STAR STAFF

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uerto Rico Agriculture Secretary Carlos Flores Ortega said his agency is short-staffed and has an outdated computer system that contributes to the delays in providing subsidies and payments to farmers.

“We have not completed the agency’s mechanization system. That is why sometimes we fall behind in payments to farmers and that is resented by the farmer,” Flores Ortega said. “We are short on human resources. The Department of Agriculture has a 20-year retribution and compensation plan that makes it difficult for us to hire engineers, accountants, agronomists. The staff is poorly paid at agencies.”

The Agriculture secretary provided an overview of the achievements of his agency, stressing the need to bring to their maximum competitive capacity agricultural activities that have good economic viability, the ones with the greatest demand and potential for local and export marketing, in addition to providing high-quality food, job creation and respect for and protection of non-renewable natural resources.

The department has been constantly reviewing administrative and expense processes with the intention of generating operational savings such as elimination of rent payments, professional services contracts, reduction of 20 percent in expenses of trust positions, consolidation of offices, purchasing adjustments and relocation of personnel, Flores Ortega said.

In the same way, it has added activities that generate their own income such as inspection and licensing in the hemp industry and coffee quality certifications.

Agriculture Secretary Carlos Flores He affirmed that the strengthening and effective coordination with the agencies of the federal Department of Agriculture (USDA) has put Puerto Rican farmers in a very favorable position, with over $450 million in USDA funds received in the past four years, one and a half times more than what is awarded in the budget for regular incentive and grant programs in the island Agriculture Department annually.

The secretary noted that a total of 96 farming businesses have benefited from January 2017 to date, through the marketing program of the Innovation Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which subsidized their participation in 20 promotional events; 17 local events with 84 participants and 3 international events with 12 participants promoting inno-

vation, production and added value of agricultural products.

These events included the “Del País Puerto Rico” brand and the “Eat Well, Eat Healthy” campaign as a proportional reason.

The total investment amounts to $140,309 ($114,839 in local events and $25,470 in international events) of which $129,309 comes from federal funds and $11,000 from IFAD funds. In collaboration with Supermercados Selectos to promote local products, the products were identified under the label “Del País, Puerto Rico.”

Also under the current administration the Office for the Licensing and Inspection of Hemp was created and after gaining USDA approval, Puerto Rico has 65 cultivation licenses and 13 manufacturing licenses and is on track to cultivate and sow over 9,712 acres (10,000 cuerdas).

Meanwhile, Flores Ortega stressed that despite being impacted by hurricanes Irma and Maria, agricultural activity experienced rapid recovery and growth during 2018-2019, reaching a value of $770.8 million. This represented an increase of $38.2 million compared to the prior year, which was $732.5 million.

Currently, the balance between imports and local food production for the past eight years has been 85 percent to 15 percent.

The use of soil resources for agricultural activities is essential in the production of food. The Puerto Rico Land Authority has increased the amount of land for agricultural activities over the past three years, reaching some 16,746 acres in new leases and the recovery of 3,446 acres that were leased but were not for agricultural use.

Rivera Cruz: DNER lacks employees to deal with growing trash crisis

By THE STAR STAFF

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overnment Transition Committee Chairman Ramón Luis Rivera Cruz said Tuesday that the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) has very few employees to deal with the island’s next big crisis: the lack of landfills to deal with the growing volume of trash.

If Law 80 for early retirement were implemented, it would leave the DNER without 474 employees. The government decided early this week not to enforce it following opposition by the federal Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico.

Rivera Cruz said DNER Secretary Rafael Machargo Maldonado has been with the agency for only a short time.

“It must be recognized that the secretary started at the agency in March; that is, he has practically had perhaps two or three months only to be able to follow up on all the initiatives of the department because he has practically been operating with half of the employees,” Rivera Cruz said. “Within that context, he communicated to us the challenges that lie ahead, such as, once and for all, having a landfill management plan because that is going to be, perhaps, the next great health crisis that Puerto Rico may have.”

He noted that from the testimony of the DNER secretary, some five or six landfills are in compliance.

Machargo Maldonado said in an interview meanwhile that he was still working on the cost estimates from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in order to reopen the

Mayagüez Zoo and could not provide more details on the facility.

On Tuesday, he gave an overview of the achievements of his agency: The approval in the Bipartisan Budget Act of $2.5 billion for the construction of flood control projects in various municipalities such as the Puerto Nuevo River canalization project ($1.585 billion), and the Yagüez River, in a collaborative agreement with the Puerto Rico National Guard; and the contracting of portable pumps and electrical generators, while permanent pumps are designed and built in the flood control houses.

Machargo Maldonado affirmed that his first task as secretary was to work with the improvements to the pump houses, which until his arrival in March were detained, putting at risk a FEMA contribution of over $23 million. He said that thanks to the proactive actions taken, floods were avoided during the recent named storms Isaias and Laura in the various areas that receive service from the pump houses, such as Ocean Park, Santurce, Condado, Cataño and coastal parts of Guaynabo.

During Machargo Maldonado’s tenure, multiple agreements have been reached that have been for the benefit of the well-being of the citizenry, including that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will award the saline intrusion control project for the Antón Ruiz River in Humacao at a cost of $3.6 million; the commencement of work for the protection of the entrance bridge to the town of Dorado as part of the Río La Plata Flood Control Project at a cost of $9.5 million; the allocation of $7 million

by FEMA for risk mitigation in the Cerrillo and Portugués dams and an additional $2 million for the Ajíes and Dagüey dams.

In addition, under the current administration it was possible to obtain 100 percent federal funds (without any state matching) for the Puerto Nuevo River canalization project. The project includes the canalization of the Puerto Nuevo River from the De Diego Expressway (PR-22) to the University of Puerto Rico Botanical Garden (PR-1) and will serve to protect more than 7,500 residences and more than 700 public and commercial properties valued at over $ 3 billion. At the same time, it will stimulate the economy of the Municipality of San Juan during the construction work and afterward, through the establishment of new industries and businesses, Machargo Maldonado said.

Likewise, he said the DNER worked with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to clean up 360 bodies of water throughout Puerto Rico. More than 200 river and stream cleaning projects were carried out in which the DNER was a sponsor.

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Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

SIPs say they lack sufficient evidence to prosecute Telegram chat case

By JOHN McPHAUL jpmcphaul@gmail.com

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pecial Independent Prosecutors (SIPs) Miguel Colón Ortiz and Leticia Pabón said Tuesday that they do not have sufficient evidence to prosecute the participants in the Telegram chat, which brought down the government of former Gov. Ricardo Rosselló Nevares.

“Even with all the outrage that the known content of the Chat has generated, this is not enough to allow criminal charges to be filed,” said Office of the Special Independent Prosecutor Panel (OPFEI by its Spanish initials) Chairwoman Nydia Cotto Vives in a written statement. “Elements constituting a crime are required in light of the provisions of the Penal Code. We don’t have that proof.”

Cotto Vives said that “after an extensive investigative process that included interviews with 24 witnesses, the Special Independent Prosecutors could not find the quantum of evidence, or the criminal intent or negligence required to sustain criminal charges against the members of the Telegram chat.”

The determination was forwarded to the Government Ethics Office.

The SIPs also decided to refer Elías Sánchez Sifonte to the Attorney General’s Office, “due to the possible violation of Canons 28 and 38 of the Code of Ethics of the Lawyers Profession, for his intervention in a government matter.”

“The extensive and meticulous investigation downloaded by the SIPs went to the extreme of visualizing even if, in the absence of evidence to configure indictable crimes, there were legal bases for any type of attempt,” Cotto Vives said.

“This did not happen either. In fact, the file received from the Department of Justice identified serious investigative limitations that, from the beginning, marked the course of the

formal SIP investigation. Among them, the absence of sworn statements that involved several of the people referred to in the commission of a crime. Also, deficiencies in the preliminary analysis of the cell phone data -- of which no logical or physical analyses were made -- as well as a lack of uniform instructions from the [Department of Justice] prosecutors to the agents who intervened in the process.”

Cotto Vives said that in addition to the five police officers and the Department of Justice, the other witnesses interviewed were: Wanda Said, auditor for the commonwealth comptroller; Col. Michelle Fraley, former Police commissioner; José Enrique “Quiquito” Meléndez Ortiz, legislator; Col. Arnaldo Claudio, former Police monitor; Griselle Morales, director of the Legal Division of the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions; Fernando Gil Enseñat, former Housing secretary; Yennifer Álvarez, former press secretary at La Fortaleza; Rossy Santiago, former director of the governor’s special Central Communications Office; Cecille Blondet, from the organization Espacios Abiertos (Open Spaces); Raúl “Raulie” Maldonado Nieves, a government contractor; Denisse Longo Quiñones, former secretary of Justice; Teresita Fuentes, former secretary of the Treasury; Carmen Yulín Cruz

Soto, mayor of San Juan; Raúl Maldonado, former secretary of the Treasury; and Ricardo Llerandi, former La Fortaleza chief of staff; and Sandra Rodríguez Cotto, spokesperson.

Other witnesses were Julia Hernández, laboratory director of the Institute of Forensic Sciences; and Sonymar Torres and José Candelas, both specialists in forensic data analysis for the commonwealth comptroller.

As part of their investigation, the SIPs turned to the Institute of Forensic Sciences to see if there was a possibility that more in-depth analyses could be carried out in their laboratory. They also had the collaboration of the Comptroller’s specialists in forensic data analysis.

As a result, it was not possible to obtain communications content from the Telegram chat. Likewise, the SIPs analyzed the investigations and conclusions contained in the Report of the House of Representatives for a possible residency process, as well as the Report of the Bar Association. With the interviews carried out, the SIPs tried to obtain independent evidence from the chat, thereby demonstrating the commission of a crime that would lead to the filing of criminal charges.

Despite all the efforts made, this did not happen. The only direct evidence on improper actions of a person are those related to the statement of Gil Enseñat, on the intervention of the lawyer Elías Sánchez Sifonte in a government auction process, which had no consequences due to the grounds stated in the SIP report.

However, they could constitute ethical violations in light of the Code of Ethics of the Lawyers Profession, for which reason it was referred to the Attorney General’s Office.

In the specific case of ex-governor Rosselló, the SIP concluded that the criminal elements were not present in the possible crimes mentioned, due to lack of evidence to prove them.

Mayors Federation presents new leadership

By JOHN McPHAUL jpmcphaul@gmail.com

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he Puerto Rico Mayors Federation presented its new leadership after holding a vote Tuesday with a quorum of 34 leaders of the New Progressive Party (NPP), in which Guaynabo Mayor Ángel Pérez was elected president.

“This is going to be a difficult four-year period for the municipalities,” Pérez said. “We mayors are the first responders to the people in times of crisis and we have to go together to fight before the fiscal oversight board, the Legislature and the executive [branch] to ensure that they do not continue [reducing] the income of the municipalities and [so that we] are able to serve the people as they deserve.”

As part of the vote in which Pérez won the presidency with 24 votes, Vega Alta Mayor María Vega, Camuy Mayor Gabriel Hernández and Las Piedras Mayor Miguel López Rivera were also elected as vice presidents of the federation, which groups NPP mayors.

“It was an immense honor to preside over this historic body of mayors and it is an experience that I will carry with me forever,” said the now former president of the federation, Arecibo Mayor Carlos Molina Rodríguez. “To this new leadership I say that the more united they are, the higher and stronger the message they will carry.”

It was confirmed that during the secret voting event, the group of vice presidents voluntarily ran for the positions with the rest of the membership in favor.

Meanwhile, Mayors Association President José “Joe” Román Abreu sent a message of congratulations to Pérez.

The Mayors Association groups Popular Democratic Party mayors.

“My congratulations to my fellow mayor of Guaynabo, Ángel Pérez, for his election this afternoon as president of the Mayors Federation of Puerto Rico. I am trusting that we will work together for the welfare of our municipalities, which is the welfare of the people,” Román Abreu said. “I share his words, in the sense that this next four-year period will not

be easy, but through dialogue, alliances and solidarity we are going to build a good future for Puerto Rico.”

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The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

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What we know about AstraZeneca’s head-scratching vaccine results

By CARL ZIMMER and REBECCA ROBINS

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his month has seen a torrent of news about experimental vaccines to prevent COVID-19, with the latest development from AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford.

On Monday they announced that a preliminary analysis showed their vaccine was effective — especially when the first dose was mistakenly cut in half.

The announcement came on the heels of stunning reports from Moderna, as well as Pfizer and BioNTech. But AstraZeneca’s news was murkier, leaving many experts wanting to see more data before passing final judgment on how effective the vaccine may turn out to be.

What is the AstraZeneca vaccine?

Researchers at the University of Oxford built the vaccine using a kind of virus, called an adenovirus, that typically causes colds in chimpanzees. They genetically altered the virus so that it carried a gene for a coronavirus protein, which would theoretically train a person’s immune system to recognize the real coronavirus.

Adenovirus-based vaccines are also being tested by Johnson & Johnson, as well as by labs in China, Italy and elsewhere. An adenovirusbased vaccine called Sputnik V is already being distributed in Russia on an emergency basis, although researchers have yet to release detailed results from their late-stage trial.

Scientists have been testing adenovirusbased vaccines for decades, but it wasn’t until July of this year that the first one was licensed, when Johnson & Johnson got approval from European regulators for an Ebola vaccine.

What have the AstraZeneca trials found?

In the spring, AstraZeneca and Oxford started running clinical trials, first in Britain and then in other countries including the United States. The first round of trials showed that the vaccine prompted volunteers to produce antibodies against the coronavirus — a good sign.

On Monday, AstraZeneca and Oxford released details about the first 131 volunteers to get COVID-19 in late-stage trials in the United Kingdom and Brazil. All of the volunteers got two doses about a month apart, but in some cases the first dose was only at half strength.

Surprisingly, the vaccine combination in which the first dose was only at half strength was 90% effective at preventing COVID-19 in the trial. In contrast, the combination of two, full-dose shots led to just 62% efficacy.

Why would that be?

No one knows. The researchers speculated that the lower first dose did a better job of mimicking the experience of an infection, promoting a stronger immune response. But other factors, like the size and makeup of the groups that got different doses, may also be at play.

Why did the researchers test two different doses?

It was a lucky mistake. Researchers in Britain had been meaning to give volunteers the initial dose at full strength, but they made a miscalculation and accidentally gave it at half strength, Reuters reported. After discovering the error, the researchers gave each affected participant the full strength booster shot as planned about a month later.

Fewer than 2,800 volunteers got the half-strength initial dose, out of the more than 23,000 participants whose results were reported Monday. That’s a pretty small number of participants on which to base the spectacular efficacy results — far fewer than in Pfizer’s and Moderna’s trials.

Is the AstraZeneca vaccine safe?

For years, Oxford researchers have been testing their chimpanzee adenovirus vaccine, ChAdOx1, on a number of other diseases including Ebola and Zika. Although none of those studies have reached the final, Phase 3 trials, they have allowed researchers to examine the safety of the vaccine platform. The researchers have not found any serious side effects.

When the researchers adapted ChAdOx1 for COVID-19, their early clinical trials also did not turn up any adverse reactions. In Phase 3 trials, however, the testing had to be paused twice when volunteers experienced neurological problems. The Food and Drug Administration did not directly tie the vaccine to the problems, but when the agency allowed the trial to resume in the United States, it advised the company to be vigilant for any signs of similar problems.

In their announcement on Monday, AstraZeneca and Oxford said that no serious safety issues were confirmed related to the vaccine.

How much does the vaccine cost?

AstraZeneca’s vaccine has a number of advantages over other leading vaccine candidates: It’s easier to mass produce and store, and it’s also cheaper, at $3 to $4 per dose. That reflects the prices paid by governments like the United States that have placed orders for tens or even hundreds of millions of doses of the vaccine. U.S. health officials have promised that COVID-19 vaccines will be available free

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President-elect Kamala Harrris met with a group of mayors from around the United States on Monday. of charge to any American who wants one.

Does this mean it will soon be available in the United States?

There’s still a long way to go.

It is not yet clear whether the results announced Monday are enough for AstraZeneca to take the first formal step of the regulatory process: submitting an application to the FDA to get emergency authorization to distribute its vaccine. AstraZeneca plans to start testing the half-strength initial dose in its continuing United States trial and to ask the agency for guidance on how to proceed. The agency is likely to advise the company to collect more data on its promising dosing plan before submitting a formal application to authorization, several vaccine experts said.

Collecting more data might mean waiting for more results from participants in Britain who got the half dose. It might also mean waiting for the first results from the American study, which aren’t expected until next year.

How does the AstraZeneca vaccine stack up to the other candidates?

Outside experts have plenty of unanswered questions.

“The only thing that you can really say right now is that the vaccine seems to work,” Florian Krammer, a virologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.

“It’s just hard to say how well it works compared to others.”

Experts have had a hard time parsing the results because of the way they were announced. Like the results from Pfizer and Moderna, the data on AstraZeneca’s vaccine was summarized in a news release.

Although the announcement gave efficacy rates, it left out details that would have helped outside researchers independently assess the data: It did not say how many cases of COVID-19 were found in the group that got the half-strength initial dose, or in the group that got the regular-strength initial dose, or in the group that got a placebo. It also did not say how many severe cases were found in the placebo group.

The results were pooled from across the two studies in Britain and Brazil, which have slightly different designs. To complicate matters further, details weren’t available on exactly how those trials were designed, because AstraZeneca and Oxford haven’t publicly released the protocol documents that serve as a road map for how those trials are evaluating the vaccine.

(AstraZeneca has, however, released the protocol for its continuing trial in the United States.)

That means we don’t know, for example, how many COVID-19 cases will need to turn up in order to prompt the end of the British and Brazilian studies.

Some of these questions may be answered when the results are published in a peerreviewed journal, which is expected soon.

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Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

Trump administration approves start of formal transition to Biden

By MICHAEL D. SHEAR, MAGGIE HABERMAN, NICK CORASANITI andJIM RUTENBERG

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resident Donald Trump’s government on Monday authorized President-elect Joe Biden to begin a formal transition process after Michigan certified Biden as its winner, a strong sign that the president’s last-ditch bid to overturn the results of the election was coming to an end.

Trump did not concede, and vowed to persist with efforts to change the vote, which have so far proved fruitless. But the president said on Twitter on Monday night that he accepted the decision by Emily Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration, to allow a transition to proceed.

In his tweet, Trump said that he had told his officials to begin “initial protocols” involving the handoff to Biden “in the best interest of our country,” even though he had spent weeks of trying to subvert a free and fair election with false claims of fraud. Hours later, he tried to play down the significance of Murphy’s action, tweeting that it was simply “preliminarily work with the Dems” that would not stop efforts to change the election results.

Still, Murphy’s designation of Biden as the apparent victor provides the incoming administration with federal funds and resources and clears the way for the president-elect’s advisers to coordinate with Trump administration officials.

The decision from Murphy came after several additional senior Republican lawmakers, as well as leading figures from business and world affairs, denounced the delay in allowing the peaceful transfer of power to begin, a holdup that Biden and his top aides said was threatening national security and the ability of the incoming administration to effectively plan for combating the coronavirus pandemic.

And it followed a key court decision in Pennsylvania, where the state’s Supreme Court on Monday ruled against the Trump campaign and the president’s Republican allies, stating that roughly 8,000 ballots with signature or date irregularities must be counted.

In Michigan, the statewide canvassing board, with two Republicans and two Democrats, voted, 3-0, to approve the results, with one Republican abstaining. It officially delivered to Biden a key battleground that Trump had wrested away from Democrats four years ago, and rebuffed the president’s legal and political efforts to overturn the results.

By Monday evening, as Biden moved ahead with plans to fill out his Cabinet, broad sectors of the nation had delivered a blunt message to a defeated president: His campaign to stay in the White House and subvert the election, unrealistic from the start, was nearing the end.

Murphy said she made her decision Monday because of “recent developments involving legal challenges and certifications of election results,” most likely referring to the certification of votes by election officials in Michigan and a nearly unbroken string of court decisions that have rejected Trump’s challenges in several states.

In a statement, Yohannes Abraham, the executive director of Biden’s transition, said that Murphy’s decision was “a needed step to begin tackling the challenges facing our nation.”

He added that aides to Biden would soon begin meeting with Trump administration officials “to discuss the pandemic response, have a full accounting of our national security interests, and gain complete understanding of the Trump administration’s efforts to hollow out government agencies.”

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) speaks to reporters in the Capitol subway in Washington on Oct. 21, 2020.

Trump had been resisting any move toward a transition. But in conversations in recent days that intensified Monday morning, top aides — including Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff; Pat Cipollone, the White House counsel; and Jay Sekulow, the president’s personal lawyer — told the president the transition needed to begin. He did not need to say the word “concede,” they told him, according to multiple people briefed on the discussions.

Trump continued to solicit opinions from associates, including Rudy Giuliani, who told him there were still legal avenues to pursue, the people said.

Some of the advisers drafted a statement for the president to issue. In the end, Trump did not put one out, but aides said the tone was similar to his tweets in the evening, in which he appeared to take credit for Murphy’s decision to allow the transition to begin.

“Our case STRONGLY continues, we will keep up the good fight, and I believe we will prevail!” he wrote. “Nevertheless, in the best interest of our Country, I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same.”

In a letter to Biden, which was first reported by CNN, Murphy rebutted Trump’s assertion that he had directed her to make the decision, saying that “I came to my decision independently, based on the law and available facts.” She said she was “never directly or indirectly pressured by any executive branch official — including those who work at the White House or the GSA.” “I do not think that an agency charged with improving federal procurement and property management should place itself above the constitutionally-based election process,” she wrote, defending her delay by saying that she did not want to get ahead of the constitutional process of counting votes and picking a president.

Her letter appeared designed not to antagonize Trump and his supporters. In it, she did not describe Biden as the “president-elect” even as she said the transition could begin.

One associate with knowledge of Murphy’s thinking said that she always anticipated signing off on the transition but that she needed a defensible rationale to do so in the absence of a concession from Trump; the pro-Biden developments in Michigan and Pennsylvania, as well as in Georgia, which certified Biden’s win there Friday, provided a clear justification for moving ahead.

That decision was part of a cascade of events over the last

several days that appeared to signal the end of Trump’s attempts to resist the will of the voters.

Large counties in Pennsylvania were formalizing Biden’s victory in the state. And in a major break with the president, General Motors announced it would no longer back the administration’s efforts to nullify California’s fuel economy rules.

On Capitol Hill, most of Trump’s Republican allies had stood by his side for the past two weeks as he tried to overturn Biden’s victory. But on Monday, some of the Senate’s most senior Republicans sharply urged Murphy to allow the transition to proceed.

Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, who is retiring, issued his second call in recent days for a prompt transition.

“Since it seems apparent that Joe Biden will be the presidentelect, my hope is that President Trump will take pride in his considerable accomplishments, put the country first and have a prompt and orderly transition to help the new administration succeed,” said Alexander, a close friend of Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the Senate majority leader. “When you are in public life, people remember the last thing you do.”

But the most dramatic evidence thatTrump’s efforts to challenge the election were fading Monday came in Michigan, where days of speculation about the certification of the state’s vote ended with the 3-0 vote by the canvassing board. It came after several hours of comments from local clerks, elected officials and the public, most of whom said that the board’s only legal role was to certify the results of the election, not to audit them.

Jocelyn Benson, the Democratic secretary of state in Michigan, said in a statement that “democracy has prevailed” against “an unprecedented attack on its integrity.” She said the state would now begin procedures, including a risk-limiting audit, to further affirm the integrity of the election.

Another crucial swing state, Pennsylvania, was also moving toward cementing results on Monday, with multiple counties certifying the vote counts, despite some scattered efforts by local Republicans to halt the process. Biden won Pennsylvania by about 80,000 votes.

In Allegheny County, the state’s second-largest county and home to Pittsburgh, the county board voted 2-1 to certify the results.

And in Philadelphia, the largest county, the city commissioners certified the results Monday night after the state’s Supreme Court rejected a Republican request to disqualify the 8,000 absentee ballots.

Pennsylvania law dictates that counties must certify their votes by the third Monday after the election, but there is no real penalty for missing the deadline.

Statewide results will not be officially certified until all counties report, after which the process will move to Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar and then to Gov. Tom Wolf for the final signature and awarding of electors. Both officials are Democrats.

Despite the counties’ certifications Monday, the Trump campaign filed an emergency appeal to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, seeking to halt statewide certification.

Still, the Trump campaign’s legal challenges, led by Giuliani, have been so unsuccessful and widely mocked that the president acknowledged to advisers that the former New York City mayor’s appearances had become a debacle.

By late Monday, Biden’s team had already taken its first steps toward a more formal transition, moving its website, buildbackbetter.com, to its new home on government servers made possible by Murphy’s decision: Buildbackbetter.gov

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

9

A timeline of the Presidential certification process that Trump is trying to disrupt

By MAGGIE ASTOR

A

s President Donald Trump and his Republican allies continue trying to undermine the election, the certification of the vote totals in each state is the next major step in formalizing President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.

A key part of the Republican strategy has been to delay certification processes in battleground states that Biden won, in the hopes that, if state officials miss their deadlines, legislators will subvert the popular vote and appoint pro-Trump slates to the Electoral College. But that’s extremely unlikely to happen.

Here’s a breakdown of the certification deadlines and other key dates in battleground states, and what will happen between now and Inauguration Day. Monday, Nov. 23: Michigan, Pennsylvania Biden won these two states.

In Michigan, the Board of State Canvassers on Monday officially certified the results previously certified by canvassing boards in each county. Three of the four board members — two Democrats and one Republican — voted in favor, while the fourth, a Republican, abstained.

Among the decisive swing states Biden won, Michigan was the second to certify its results. It followed Georgia, where Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, signed off Friday; a machine recount requested by the Trump campaign will begin this week, but Biden’s lead is much too large to expect a recount to overcome.

Trump’s campaign had tried to block the certification process in Michigan in the hopes of getting Republican state legislators to overrule millions of voters and appoint a proTrump slate to the Electoral College. The canvassing board’s vote Monday torpedoed that effort. (Republicans could still sue, but such a lawsuit would be very unlikely to succeed.)

Monday is also the deadline for counties in Pennsylvania to certify their totals and send them to Kathy Boockvar, the secretary of the commonwealth, who will certify the state results. Pennsylvania doesn’t have a hard deadline for when Boockvar must sign off, but she is likely to do so by Monday.

Last week, a court rejected a last-ditch effort by the Trump campaign to block certification in Pennsylvania. The campaign then filed an extremely narrow appeal that, even if accepted, would not delay the certification process, and that could be moot after certification. It is possible that, postcertification, the campaign could file a new lawsuit, but that, too, would be unlikely to succeed.

No current lawsuit that could change the results of the election, in Pennsylvania or elsewhere, is likely to make it to the Supreme Court at this point.

Tuesday: Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina In Nevada, which Biden won, the state Supreme Court will meet Tuesday to certify the results. Ultimately, the governor will need to confirm the outcome. The Trump campaign has filed a lawsuit baselessly claiming that Trump actually won Nevada, and conservative groups are trying to nullify the results, but these claims are highly unlikely to lead anywhere.

This is also the certification deadline for Minnesota

and North Carolina, neither of which is expected to be contentious. Biden won Minnesota; Trump won North Carolina.

Saturday: Ohio This is the deadline for Ohio, which Trump won, to certify its results. No challenges are expected.

Monday, Nov. 30: Arizona, Iowa, Nebraska Arizona has to certify its results by this date, as do Iowa and Nebraska. Biden won Arizona, Trump won Iowa, and in Nebraska, Trump won statewide but Biden won one electoral vote in the state’s 2nd Congressional District.

The Arizona Republican Party asked a court to postpone certification in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, but a judge rejected the request Thursday.

Given this, counties are expected to certify on time and Katie Hobbs, the secretary of state and a Democrat, is expected to sign off on the final, statewide certification.

No disputes are expected in Iowa or Nebraska that could delay certification.

Tuesday, Dec. 1: Wisconsin This is the deadline for Wisconsin, which Biden won, to certify its results.

Wisconsin has already completed county-level certification, but the Trump campaign is seeking a partial recount, which, if it proceeds, should be complete by the deadline and is not expected to alter the results significantly. Once the recount is completed, the Wisconsin Elections Commission will meet to certify the results statewide.

Tuesday, Dec. 8 This is a key date in the democratic process: If states resolve all disputes and certify their results by Dec. 8, the results should

be insulated from further legal challenges, ensuring that states won by Biden will send Biden delegates to the Electoral College.

The certification processes leading up to this date vary from state to state, but the final step is the same everywhere under federal law: The governor of each state must compile the certified results and send them to Congress, along with the names of the state’s Electoral College delegates.

Monday, Dec. 14 Electors will meet on Dec. 14 in their respective states and cast their votes. This vote is, constitutionally, what determines the next president.

Biden has 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232. Many states formally require their electors to vote for the candidate they pledged to vote for, generally the winner of the state’s popular vote. Historically, rogue electors have been few and far between, and have never altered the outcome.

Wednesday, Jan. 6 Congress is ultimately responsible for counting and certifying the votes cast by the Electoral College, and it is scheduled to do so on Jan. 6.

If there are still disputes at this point — if Republican legislators in a state were to appoint a pro-Trump Electoral College slate in opposition to voters’ will, for instance, and the Democratic governor of the state were to appoint a pro-Biden slate — it would be Congress’ job to resolve them. Election law experts say that under federal statute, the governor’s slate should be favored.

Wednesday, Jan. 20 Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.

Election workers recounted ballots in Atlanta last week. The deadline for Georgia to certify its election results is Friday at 5 p.m.

10

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

Virginia Democrats, thrilled with Biden victory, aren’t looking for carbon copy two Black women — Jennifer McClellan, a 15-year state legislator; and Jennifer Carroll Foy, a member of the House of Delegates first elected in 2017 — and Justin Fairfax, Virginia’s lieutenant governor, who is also Black.

Terry McAuliffe, the former governor, has been planning his political comeback for years and is expected to formally enter the race as soon as next week. Also likely to seek the nomination is Lee Carter, the lone democratic socialist in the House of Delegates, who said last week that he was “strongly considering” a bid and would make an announcement before the end of December. McAuliffe and Carter are both white.

Virginia law forbids governors from seeking consecutive terms. The outgoing governor, Democrat Ralph Northam, serVolunteers supporting the Biden-Harris campaign pass out campaign materials ved as McAuliffe’s lieutenant governor and snacks in Alexandria, Va., in October. and in February 2019 was ensnared in a cascading scandal when he apologized are not interested in waiting much longer. for, then later denied, posing in blackface

By REID EPSTEIN “We’re beyond what the nation was in a photograph that appeared in his meatherine White spent countless looking for when they elected Biden, I dical school yearbook. At the same time, hours this year organizing voters to think Virginia is beyond that,” said Whi- Fairfax was accused by two women of sete, 56, whose organization, Network xual assault years earlier. He denied the back Joe Biden for president.

One of millions of suburban women NoVA, serves as a collective for dozens allegations. who became politically active for the first of liberal groups in the Washington suInterviews last week with more than time after Donald Trump’s election in burbs. “That’s where we have to lead; a dozen Democratic activists in Northern 2016, White is among the coterie of Biden that we don’t need a white man to take Virginia found a group of voters thrilled voters processing his victory by thinking us back to get us elected. We can do this with Biden’s success and yearning for him in Virginia.” about what comes next. to follow through on campaign promises She will not have to wait long — Fairfax County, which includes to stop the spread of the coronavirus, adVirginia’s 2021 governor’s contest is al- White’s hometown, Annandale, has in dress income inequality and racial justice ready underway, with three major De- one generation transformed from a place disparities and reverse Trump administramocratic candidates declared and two that George W. Bush carried in the 2000 tion policies on the environment. more planning to enter the race as soon presidential election to one of the nation’s But it also found an electorate hunas next week. The big question White and most reliable Democratic strongholds. gry to go beyond Biden’s heal-the-soulother Democrats in the Northern Virginia Fairfax gave 70% of its vote to Biden, a of-America politics and set a marker for suburbs of Washington are asking them- larger percentage than the party’s tradi- progressive politics in a Virginia that Biselves now is whether the Biden political tional battleground state strongholds in den carried by more than 10 percentage template — a steady, experienced white Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, or Wayne points. That result gave every Democrat man — is what they want from Demo- County, Michigan, which includes Detroit. interviewed confidence that whoever crats in the post-Trump era.

In nearby Arlington and Alexandria, wins the primary will win the general Biden’s victory was powered by more than 80% of voters picked Biden. election next November. suburban voters, especially women like Loudoun County, a battleground as reThe two announced Republican White, who were motivated during the cently as 2016, gave Biden 61% of its vote candidates in the race are Kirk Cox, a forprimary and the general election by what and Biden carried exurban Stafford Coun- mer speaker of the House of Delegates, they perceived as the existential threat of ty, the first time a Democratic presidential and Amanda Chase, a state senator in the a second term for the president. Without nominee won there since 1976. mold of Trump.

Trump on the ballot, White and other liNorthern Virginia is expected to “I never had any doubt that there beral suburban women are looking to see provide about half the vote in the June would be a problem getting Joe Biden the Democratic Party put forward more Democratic primary for Virginia gover- elected in Virginia,” said Joanne Collins candidates that look like them — and they nor, a race that for months has included of Reston, Virginia, who is a leader of a

K

local chapter of Indivisible, the progressive grassroots organization that began after the 2016 election. “That didn’t even cross my mind. And I think the governor’s race is going to be similar.”

Monique Alcala, a former president of the Democratic Party of Virginia’s Latino Caucus, was a supporter of Sen. Elizabeth Warren during the 2020 presidential primaries before taking a job as Biden’s coalitions director for Virginia. Now she said McAuliffe was the best choice because he knows how to manage Virginia’s government.

“As we’re dealing with unprecedented challengers with COVID, as we’re dealing with economic uncertainty, people are going to look at his experiences as governor,” said Alcala, who lives in Alexandria. “They are going to want somebody with experience leading during times of crisis, and I think Terry is the one to do that.”

Yet among the crowd of Northern Virginia Democratic activists who were women, Alcala’s valuing of experience is outweighed by the prospect of electing the commonwealth’s first female governor.

“It would send a real message to Virginia and maybe the country that Virginia is on a different path,” said Heidi Zollo, who started an Indivisible chapter in Herndon, Virginia, after the 2016 election.

Zollo supported Biden in the 2020 primary because she saw him as having the best chance of beating Trump. Now she wants Virginia Democrats to put forward either McClellan or Carroll Foy, she said, to “show that we take women and women of color seriously and we would be confident and comfortable in their leadership.”

And Lisa Sales, who is the chairwoman of the Fairfax County Commission for Women, said she “loves and adores” McAuliffe but that the time had come for Virginia to elect a woman as governor.

“The only way we get our issues addressed is by having more women in office,” she said. “This idea that a white man being the most electable, it’s a false premise. Electing a woman governor is long overdue. White guys need to get behind women, and men need to get behind women, especially women of color.”

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

11

After chaotic 4 years, Wall St. is itching to unfollow @realDonaldTrump

By MATT PHILLIPS

I

n the closing weeks of the presidential campaign, President Donald Trump began telling his supporters that if former Vice President Joe Biden was elected, market mayhem would follow.

“If Biden wins,” he told a cheering crowd at an airport near Reading, Pennsylvania, on Halloween, “you’re going to have a stock market collapse the likes of which you never had.”

That didn’t happen. Instead, the stock market has notched record highs since Biden emerged as the winner, as investors celebrated both the prospect of an end to election-year political uncertainty as well as progress on COVID-19 vaccines. And as Inauguration Day approaches, Trump’s grip on the collective psyche of investors appears to be receding, too.

Investors of all political persuasions say they are ready to turn the page on what was a profitable but extraordinarily politicized and stressful period for the financial markets, where they had to contend with an unpredictable force whose pronouncements frequently moved stock prices. For the most part, investors supported Trump administration policies; it was the president’s unpredictable tweeting they found hard to stomach. In the past four years, Trump used his bully pulpit to praise and berate companies, escalate a trade war with China and signal the economy’s strengths before official announcements. In the process, his Twitter account became a singular source of market volatility.

“I just want my life to go back to normal,” said Barry Ritholtz, a money manager in New York who did not vote for Trump.

“And I don’t mean pre-pandemic normal. I mean pre-golden-escalator-to-hell normal,” he said — a reference to Trump’s famous 2015 ride down the escalator in Trump Tower, at the end of which he announced his candidacy. “I just want the noise level to quiet down.”

The weekend Biden became president-elect, Ritholtz went to Twitter with one goal in mind: unfollow as many accounts in the Trump orbit as possible. In recent years, Ritholtz’s Twitter timeline had grown crowded with accounts — such as those of Trump’s children or press officers — that he felt he had no choice but to follow as he ma-

naged roughly $1.7 billion in client assets.

Like no other President U.S. presidents and political leaders don’t often train their focus on individual companies — at least in public. In 1962, concerned about rising inflation, President John F. Kennedy publicly excoriated steel executives for planned price increases.

At a news conference in which he singled out U.S. Steel by name, Kennedy said those executives showed “utter contempt” for the American public. The episode, which was followed by threats of antitrust investigations of the industry, spooked investors and helped set off a significant market slump.

But in recent decades, even as stock ownership became much more widespread, presidents such as Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton — who both presided over booming stock markets — shied away from direct commentary on companies or markets. Traders on the New York Stock Exchange floor this month. Stock market investors Probably, they calculated that the political have done well during Mr. Trump’s four-year term, but the volatility has been high. reward of closely associating themselves with a bull market wasn’t worth the risk of bankers, analysts, investment advisers and out of negotiations for a fiscal stimulus with being blamed for a bust that could — and in other professionals — who usually rank congressional Democrats, stocks swung to day-to-day political developments low on a loss. both cases did — come.

Where do markets go now?

Not Trump. Almost from the moment the ladder of market-moving concerns — to Overall, stock investors have done well he was elected, he adopted the stock mar- follow the president’s missives on Twitter, during Trump’s four-year term, even though either by joining the platform or getting brieket as a kind of real-time, multitrillion-dollar there’s significant debate about whether the barometer of his own performance. Since fed on it regularly.

“There was just so much more ma- market’s strong performance has come betaking office, he has sent tweets or retweets with stock market references more than 200 terial in this administration,” said Kristina cause of or despite his presence. Including times, and made scores of statements spot- Hooper, chief global market strategist at dividend payments, investors that own the lighting the market’s rise under his adminis- investment management firm Invesco, who S&P 500 stock index are up more than 70% has been watching financial markets since between Election Day in 2016 and Nov. 3, tration.

“Broke all time Stock Market Record 1995. “We just didn’t hear as much from when Trump was defeated.

The answer is likely both. The unceragain today,” he wrote on Twitter last De- past presidents.”

On several occasions, Twitter messa- tainty and market shocks that came from cember. “135 times since my 2016 Election ges from the president tipped a previously his freewheeling approach to making and Win. Thank you!”

When stocks have slumped, the pre- positive market into significant declines. On announcing policies may have been a headsident publicly framed falling prices as the Dec. 4, 2018, stocks tumbled more than 3% wind for stocks, but his steep tax cuts almost work of those he considers political oppo- after Trump declared himself a “Tariff man” certainly were a boon to markets.

But now, as the country prepares for nents, including the Federal Reserve, con- — just two days after U.S. and Chinese offigressional Democrats and the news media. cials negotiated a truce in the trade war bet- the transition to a Biden administration, investors almost certainly won’t have to woHe has publicly threatened and castigated ween the two countries.

Throughout 2019, sporadic Twitter rry about an out-of-the-blue tweet from the major American companies, facing off with Amazon.com over its tax payments and messages from Trump about the trade war president toppling the markets. Although deals with the U.S. Postal Service; with Ge- continued to rattle investors, even though some worry that Trump could have more neral Motors, Ford and Carrier — then a the market gained 29% over the year as the market-moving surprises up his sleeve besubsidiary of United Technologies — over Federal Reserve abandoned plans to raise fore he leaves town, others expect that the markets will feel very different come Jan. 20. plans to shutter plants; and with Lockheed interest rates.

Even in the middle of the coronavirus “I think investors, market watchers Martin and Boeing over the costs of fighter pandemic this year, the president’s messages might get a little bored,” Hooper, of Invesco, jets and replacements for Air Force One. on Twitter continued to unsettle investors. said of a Biden presidency. “I don’t know if Trump tweets, Wall Street weeps Trump’s focus on the stock market For instance, on Oct. 6, when he abruptly they’ll complain. But they might get a little prompted Wall Street’s money managers, announced on Twitter that he was pulling bored.”

12

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

As customers move online, so does the Holiday shopping season

Inside the Amazon fulfillment center on Staten Island, New York, May 15, 2019. Empty stores are turning into fulfillment centers and the market for warehouse space is booming, as the pandemic rockets the retail industry into its e-commerce future.

By MICHAEL CORKERY and SAPNA MAHESHWARI

T

he holidays will look different at Macy’s this year. The Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City will proceed without spectators, and Santa Claus will not be reviewing Christmas wish lists from his usual perch on 34th Street.

But while many of those traditions are likely to return once the threat of the coronavirus passes, other changes at Macy’s this holiday shopping season — which traditionally begins with Thanksgiving — signal how the company’s business, and that of the entire retail industry, may be altered forever by the pandemic.

Early last month, two Macy’s stores, in Delaware and Colorado, went “dark,” meaning employees are primarily using the spaces as fulfillment centers where they process online orders and returns rather than a place for customers to browse and shop.

Jeff Gennette, Macy’s chief executive, said the dark stores are part of an experiment as the company responds to customers buying more online and demanding ever-faster shipping for free. But the conversion of a department store into a fulfillment center, even temporarily, reflects how retailers are succumbing to the dominance of e-commerce and scrambling to salvage increasingly irrelevant physical shopping space.

The forces propelling online shopping were set in motion long before the pandemic. But charting the decline of many brick-and-mortar stores and the simultaneous growth of e-commerce in the past seven months is like watching the industry’s evolution, and its impact on the broader economy, on fast forward. In the future, 2020 will be seen as a major inflection point for retail.

“COVID has pulled forward five years of fallout into an 18-month period,” said Vince Tibone, a senior analyst covering retail for Green Street.

Last week, Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, reported that e-commerce sales increased 79% in the third quarter, while its rival Target said its e-commerce business was up 155%. Amazon’s sales increased 37% and its profit was up nearly 200% in the most recent quarter.

Retail executives said that staggering growth was not a fluke of the pandemic lock downs, but the result of a permanent shift in how people shop.

“We think these new customer behaviors will largely persist,” Walmart’s chief executive, Doug McMillon, said in a statement last week as the company released its most recent sales and profit numbers.

Across the industry, online sales are expected to increase at their fastest rate in 12 years, accounting for 20% of all retail purchases this year. That’s up from 16% in 2019, according to Forrester Research.

While a portion of those sales are store pickups, many are not and the impact on brick-and-mortar is undeniable.

Earlier this month, the number of stores announced for closure in 2020 climbed to a high of 10,991, according to the CoStar Group, a data provider for the real estate industry.

Many malls are teetering as tenants reduce the number of stores, fail to pay rent or exit through bankruptcies. Retailers that filed for bankruptcy this year include J.C. Penney, J.Crew, Brooks Brothers and Neiman Marcus.

“Retail has changed; it just has,” said Daniel Horrigan, the mayor of Akron, Ohio, where Amazon opened a fulfillment center this month, creating 1,500 jobs. “You can’t stand in front of that wave.”

“The mall used to be teeming with so much life, with kids and popcorn and concerts,” said Horrigan, who has spent most of his life in Akron. “Every Christmas it would be full of people. But we have to be realistic.”

That realism is settling over other cities, too. Even before the pandemic, some of New York’s most famous retail corridors were emptying. Long stretches of storefront along Madison Avenue and in Soho have struggled with vacant storefronts, taking some of the shine off those luxury neighborhoods. Macy’s, which has posted sales declines of more than 20% in the past three quarters, has been hit especially hard at its iconic flagship store and at Bloomingdale’s with the temporary loss of tourists and office workers.

Workers say that since the retailer reopened in June, there have been more employees than customers in the stores on some days. At Bloomingdale’s, some workers are filling the time by packing online orders to ship from the store.

“There are people in the stores, but they don’t have the numbers,” in terms of sales, said Brenda Moses, who started working at Bloomingdale’s during the Christmas season more than 30 years ago.

Across Manhattan, the number of retail leases signed or renewed dropped 31% in the third quarter from a year ago and rents fell 13% in the major shopping corridors, according to CBRE, a real estate services company. It was the 12th consecutive quarter of rent declines. At Hudson Yards, the long-touted development on the west side of Manhattan, Neiman Marcus said it would exit its 188,000-square-foot space a little more than a year after opening.

“Some retailers will return when the prices come down,” said Santiago Gallino, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, who has studied retail.

“But their stores are not going to come back in the same format. They will have to be more integrated with their online business.”

Inevitably, though, retailers will need less physical space. And it’s not clear what type of business will fill the increasing void, raising the prospect that Manhattan storefronts could stay vacant for the foreseeable future.

“For the economy and for the retail industry, this transition is exciting and good,” Gallino said. “But it is also true, it is not going to come without pain.”

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

13 Stocks

Dow cracks 30,000, a psychological boost during a pandemic

T

he Dow Jones Industrial Average clocked its fastest 10,000 point run up to cross 30,000 for the first time on Tuesday, giving the stock market a psychological boost at a time when the coronavirus pandemic has damaged the economy and left millions unemployed.

Investor sentiment has been lifted by encouraging news about coming coronavirus vaccines and improving prospects for a smooth White House transition. But the milestone is less significant to professional investors.

At 30,000 points the Dow could lure in small investors still on the sidelines who are now eager to share in the market exuberance. But market watchers say they are less impressed than they were with the 20,000 mark reached in January 2017, and technically speaking it means little beyond making a headline that can turn heads.

The DJIA on Tuesday surged 1.45%, or 429 points, to trade at a record high 30,015 points, not quite four years after reaching the 20,000 mark on Jan 25, 2017. Catalysts included recent signs that a working COVID-19 vaccine could be available before the end of the year, based on promising trial results released by Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca.

The index eclipsed last Monday’s high just under the threshold reached after Moderna said its COVID-19 vaccine had a 94.5% effective rate.

Graphic: Dow Jones Industrial Average hits 30,000 points, The rally was lubricated by news that President Donald Trump had given the go ahead to start helping the transition of President-elect Joe Biden started to alleviate the political uncertainty hanging over markets since the Nov 3 election.

The U.S. federal agency that must sign off on the presidential transition told Biden on Monday that he can formally begin the hand-over process.

As the 124-year old DJIA advances, each 10,000 milestone represents a smaller proportional gain. The index, which dates to 1896, first touched 10,000 in March 1999.

“Percentage wise, 20 to 30 is only 50%. It’s a nice number to look at, and certainly will attract some retail folks, to say ‘hey, the market’s moving’,” said Joe Saluzzi, co-manager of trading at Themis Trading in Chatham, New Jersey.

“With that said I think this rally should be exhausting itself.”

U.S. economic activity is reeling from the damage inflicted by lockdowns, although it has recovered some in recent months, and employment is at levels last seen in 2015.

Trillions of dollars of U.S. central bank and government stimulus has helped power Wall Street’s main indexes back to record highs.

Two weeks ago the Dow spiked 1,600 points, ending up more than 800, when Pfizer first revealed the high effectiveness and near readiness of its vaccine, which launched the benchmark S&P 500 and Russell 2000 small cap index to their own records last week. The Russell hit another record on Tuesday.

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3.50% 000 4.00% 0.00 3.75% 2.00 3.75% 2.00 5.50% 0.00 3.75% 5.50

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BPPR --.-- 17.95 4.95 Scotia 4.99 14.99 4.99 CooPACA

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First Mort 7.99 --.-- --.-Oriental 4.99 11.95 4.99

14

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

In Canada, a push to keep schools open in second lockdown

Students arriving to class in Scarborough, outside of Toronto, in September. Despite Toronto’s new coronavirus restrictions, classes will remain open.

By CATHERINE PORTER

M

ost stores were shut. Barber shops and salons shuttered. Restaurants and bars — including the outdoor seating where hardy souls had braved meals under heat lamps — were banned. Gyms, pools, even the beloved hockey arenas were closed in the strictest shutdown Toronto has confronted since the pandemic’s first wave last spring.

Except for the schools.

Facing a resurgence of coronavirus infections in Toronto, the fourth largest city in North America retreated back into lockdown on Monday, along with two booming suburbs. But in contrast to New York and other big American cities, officials are finding it more beneficial to keep schools open.

“We cannot put in class learning at risk,” Ontario’s premier, Doug Ford, who is ordinarily an advocate for business, said last Friday when announcing the closures. Along with trying to avoid overwhelming the hospitals and to protect the elderly in long-term care homes, Ford said, schools were “what matters most.”

Ford’s announcement illustrated how Canada has followed the lead of much of Europe, prioritizing the opening or reopening of schools, while just across the border many U.S. states have focused on keeping businesses such as bars,

restaurants and gyms at least partially open.

Since schools resumed classes in September across Canada after, in some cases, many months of remote learning, there has been strong enthusiasm to keep them open, In most places there are no official thresholds for shutting schools down and there is little appetite to do so, according to Ahmed Al-Jaishi, a public health researcher who is part of an academic team compiling school outbreaks across the country. And, despite fears among parents that students would bring the disease home and among teachers that they would get infected in large numbers, such outcomes have been rare.

“The good news is that we’re not seeing much evidence of transmission within the schools,” said Dr. Barbara Yaffe, Ontario’s associate medical officer of health.

Even so, a significant minority of parents in Toronto, at least, have been reluctant to allow their children to return to in-class learning, particularly now, as the city is seeing the greatest surge of the virus since it arrived. Last week the city reported a 6.2% positive test rate — meaning that for every 1,000 people tested, 62 are infected. That is more than double the 3% positive test rate in New York that triggered school shutdowns last week.

“We expect staff and students to be contagious, and come to school with infections. But the measures we have in

schools have so far been effective at preventing the additional spread,” said Dr. Vinita Dubey, Toronto’s associate medical officer of health.

Most schools across the country shut in March, when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Canadians to stay home and closed the border. In many cases, the schools didn’t reopen until September, after months of parental complaints, children falling behind in schoolwork and rising concerns about the effects of social isolation.

By then, the chorus of concern was met by growing scientific evidence that time outside of school was more dangerous to children than the risk of going back into classrooms.

A report by Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children released this summer called for a full return to school, stating that while children under 10 were less susceptible to the virus and less likely to pass it onto others, they were already reporting increased rates of depression and anxiety. Experts said they believed that substance abuse and suicidal behavior went up as well.

That was followed by a study in August, published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health, detailing a sobering list of long-term effects on young children who miss school, from less-developed cognitive skills and higher incidences of teen pregnancy to lower employment rates and higher arrest rates.

“You can close restaurants and bars and give financial handouts so they can reopen at a later date,” said Dr. Michael Silverman, the chair of Infectious Diseases at Western University’s School of Medicine & Dentistry in London, Ontario, who co-authored that report.

“What kind of financial handout can you give to a kid for the long-term cognitive development impacts, to make up for it?”

He added, “Schools should be the very last thing to close.”

As a vast country with strong regional governments, back-to-school plans in September varied nationwide. For instance, in Quebec all elementary and high school students were required to attend classes in person, with masks required for grade 5 and up. In Alberta, children could return to school physically, or continue to attend online.

However, when schools opened in Toronto in September, about 30% of elementary students and 22% of secondary students in the public school system decided to attend virtually. Since then, those numbers have substantially risen, indicating persistent parental fears despite the expert assurances.

“There’s a reason why a very large percentage of parents and guardians chose not to have their kids in schools,” said Charles Pascale, a professor of applied psychology and human development at the University of Toronto and a former deputy minister of Education in Ontario. “That’s the best evidence the school reopening in Ontario was a disaster — mainly because their parents were concerned the safety precautions were not enough.”

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

15

Johnson basks in a rare burst of good U.K. news

By MARK LANDLER and STEPHEN CASTLE

B

“This is an incredibly exciting moment for human health,” said Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group. He expressed particular excitement at data from a subgroup of the clinical trials that showed the vaccine was 90% effective when injected with a half dose, followed by a full dose.

Despite his inclination to bask in good news, Johnson was relatively restrained about the vaccine, noting that it would be several months before it was widely available. He spoke more about plans to introduce rapid-response tests, which he said would give people the confidence to move around the country.

Britain reported 15,450 new coronavirus cases Monday, a decline of 27.7% from last Monday, which suggests that the three-week lockdown had succeeded in curbing the spread of the virus somewhat. The rate of people admitted to hospitals has also begun to moderate. But the death rate continued to rise, with 206 deaths reported Monday, bringing the total to 55,230.

Much of the debate in Britain has turned on the question of whether restrictions would be lifted in time for people to celebrate Christmas with their extended families. The government has held out hope for a temporary easing of the restrictions, followed by more rigorous restrictions early in 2021. But public health experts warned that a holiday exemption would sow problems later.

“It’s a bad idea to ease measures too much before Christmas,” said Devi Sridhar, head of the global public health program at the University of Edinburgh. “We will pay for Christmas gatherings with January hospitalizations and February deaths.”

Sridhar described the Oxford vaccine as a “major advan-

ce and strong tool that puts a nail in the coffin of the ‘Just let everybody get it now’ people.” But she warned that it was not a “silver bullet” and should not be used as an excuse to ease restrictions now. If anything, she said, it should fortify people to stick with the rules a little longer.

Johnson could use a shot of good news. His personal ratings have plunged after a succession of policy reversals, though those of his party have remained relatively healthy, giving him hope for a political recovery.

The prime minister’s allies are worried about the sense of chaos that has descended on the government in recent weeks.

He was rocked by the abrupt departure of his most influential aide, Dominic Cummings.

And Johnson’s efforts to set a new course were buffeted last week by the findings of an inquiry into allegations of bullying behavior by the home secretary, Priti Patel. Patel remains on the job despite the report’s conclusion that she broke the official code under which ministers serve.

“The possibility of rolling out the vaccine soon is good news politically, as it presents a path out of the repeated cycles of lockdown,” said Roger Awan-Scully, a professor of political science and chair of the Political Studies Association of the U.K. “But it is unambiguously clear that Johnson’s personal ratings have taken a big dive in the last few months.”

“If the sense of drift and shambles from No. 10 Downing St. continues,” Awan-Scully added, “there will be a section of the party that is fairly willing to stab him in the back.”

uoyed by promising results for a British-led coronavirus vaccine and signs of a slowdown in the infection rate, Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday laid out a plan to lift England’s nationwide lockdown next week. But he warned of strict regional restrictions that would last until next spring.

Johnson’s “winter plan” is designed to give his exhausted country hope for better times ahead while preparing it for several more months of mostly shuttered pubs and restaurants, and limitations on social gatherings.

“We have turned a corner, and the escape route is in sight,” Johnson declared to the House of Commons via video from No. 10 Downing St., where he was still isolating after being exposed to a Conservative lawmaker who tested positive for the virus. But he added, “the hard truth is we’re not there yet.”

Under the new plans, England will return to a system under which the country is divided into three tiers of restrictions, though the government has yet to announce which regions will be under the different sets of curbs.

When the current lockdown expires Dec. 2, gyms, stores and hairdressers nationwide will be allowed reopen and worship services, weddings and outdoor sports can resume. But in the worst affected areas of the country, pubs and restaurants will stay closed except for takeout service.

Even in some of the less badly afflicted areas, people will be able to drink in pubs only if they are also eating a meal. And while the pubs that remain open will be allowed to do so until 11 p.m. — an hour later than was the case before the recent lockdown began — last orders for alcohol will be taken at 10 p.m.

For Johnson, whose popularity has suffered because of his government’s erratic handling of the pandemic, the announcement was yet another chance to regain his footing. The package balanced his need to prevent another upsurge in the virus with a desire to avoid antagonizing 70 of his Conservative backbench lawmakers who have threatened to rebel over lockdown measures.

Johnson clearly hopes that his critics will be mollified by the prospect of an effective vaccine. But some lawmakers fear that the continuing curbs could devastate the hospitality industry, and on Monday expressed reservations.

“We have to be convinced that these government interventions — which will have such a huge impact on people’s lives, their health and their businesses — are going to save more lives than they cost,” said Mark Harper, who heads a group of Conservative lawmakers who have questioned the need for stringent lockdown measures.

Johnson expressed optimism about the vaccine, developed

by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, noting that it “has the makings of a wonderful British scientific achievement.” He said the government had ordered 100 million doses and 350 million vaccine doses overall, including two American-led vaccines.

The Oxford vaccine’s developers said Monday that data from late-stage clinical trials showed that it was 70.4% effective in preventing COVID-19, with the rate going up to 90%, depending on the dosage regimen. The vaccine is also far less costly than Oxford Vaccine Group’s laboratories in Oxford, England, Nov. 20, 2020. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on the American varieties and, unlike them, does not require special Nov. 23, 2020 laid out a plan to lift England’s nationwide lockdown next week but warned of strict regional handling, making it well suited for use in less developed countries. restrictions that would last until next spring.

16

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

China says it remains open to the world, but wants to dictate terms

By STEPHEN LEE and KEITH BRADSHER

A

fter Australia dared last spring to call for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus, China began quietly blocking one import after another from Australia — coal, wine, barley and cotton — in violation of free trade norms. Then this month, with no clear explanation, China left $3 million worth of Australian rock lobsters dying in Shanghai customs.

Australia nonetheless joined 14 Asian nations and just signed a new regional free trade deal brokered by China. The agreement covers nearly a third of the world’s population and output, reinforcing China’s position as the dominant economic and diplomatic power in Asia.

It’s globalization with communist characteristics: The Chinese government promotes the country’s openness to the world, even as it adopts increasingly aggressive and at times punitive policies that force countries to play by its rules.

With the United States and others wary

of its growing dominance in areas like technology, China wants to become less dependent on the world for its own needs, while making the world as dependent as possible on China.

“China wants what other great powers do,” Yun Jiang, a researcher and editor of the China Story at the Australian National University. “It wants to follow international rules and norms when it is in its interest, and disregard rules and norms when the circumstances suit it.”

China’s strategy is born out of strength.

The coronavirus has practically disappeared within its borders. The country’s economy is growing strongly. And China’s manufacturing sector has become the world’s largest by a wide margin, leaving other nations heavily dependent on it for everything from medical gear to advanced electronics.

China’s government is also pushing back against President Donald Trump and his administration, taking advantage of the political disarray that has followed his electoral defeat.

A coal terminal in Hay Point, Australia, on Oct. 2, 2019. China started blocking Australian imports like coal after the Australian government asked for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus.

Beijing’s confidence on the global stage now compounds the challenge China will pose for the incoming administration of Joe Biden.

In a flurry of speeches over the last week, Xi Jinping, China’s ambitious, authoritarian leader, laid out his vision for this new world order, while making clear his terms for global engagement.

He reiterated at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, an important regional forum, that the country had no intention of going it alone and “decoupling” its economy from the world. Appearing by videoconference, he said China remained committed to opening up and would “play its part” to make the global economy “fairer and more equitable.”

“Openness is a prerequisite for national progress, and closure will inevitably lead to backwardness,” Xi said in remarks that seemed to take a swipe at Trump’s America-first agenda.

At the same time, Xi is aggressively pushing for greater economic self-reliance at home — in other words, at least a partial decoupling.

Xi has called for protectionist policies that would “comprehensively increase technological innovation and import substitution.”

During a meeting with leaders of the Group of 20 nations this past weekend, he defended his new strategy to build greater selfsufficiency as a benefit to the global economy.

“While making the Chinese economy more resilient and competitive, it also aims to build a new system of open economy with higher standards,” he said. “This will create more opportunities for the world to benefit from China’s high-quality development.”

Xi wants to tether other countries ever more tightly into China’s economic and thus geopolitical orbit. In a speech to other Chinese leaders, recently published by a Communist Party journal, he called for Beijing to make sure that other countries remained dependent on China for key goods, as a way to ensure that they would not try to halt their own shipments to China.

Xi’s own economic and political policies

this year have been the mirror opposite. China’s plan, Xi has said, is to lessen dependence on imports, insulating the country from rising external risks, including the threat of a long, pandemic-induced global economic downturn and the severing of Chinese access to American hightech know-how.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said recently that countries now faced a choice between “barbarism on one side and freedom on the other.”

“We’ve woken them up to the threat posed by this Marxist-Leninist monster,” he said.

In the Asia-Pacific region, few governments view the choice so starkly. With many of them more dependent on trade with China now than with the U.S., they cannot easily turn away. China, by far, is the largest market for Australia’s goods, buying nearly 38% of its exports; the U.S. accounts for 4%.

“The world as it exists today cannot be reduced to the rivalry of superpowers,” Laurent Bili, the French ambassador to China, said at a conference organized last week by the Center for China and Globalization, a Beijing research group.

Trump’s go-it-alone approach has given China an opening to portray itself as the champion of globalization. In Beijing’s argument, it is the U.S. that has now retreated by trying to restrict Chinese investments.

China is not only trying to capitalize on American political disarray but also to repair the damage that the pandemic has caused to China’s image, especially in Europe.

“The United States is still in electoral chaos, while China is forming the world’s largest trade agreement,” the Ministry of Commerce in Beijing wrote on its official website recently.

State media has struck a similar chord, trumpeting China as the defender of the global order. An opinion article by state broadcaster CGTN was blunt, warning that those who would cut off links with China “are likely to end up on the outside of the world’s economic gravity.”

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

17

‘I forget about the world:’ Afghan youth find escape in a video game

By THOMAS GIBBONS-NEFF and FATIMA FAIZI

R

ifle fire, hurried footsteps and distant explosions. The rat-a-tat of a firefight. Cars mangled from grenades.

The young man was transfixed.

It could have been any day in Kabul, where targeted assassinations, terrorist attacks and wanton violence have become routine, and the city often feels as if it is under siege. But for Safiullah Sharifi, his behind firmly planted on a dusty stoop in the Qala-e Fatullah neighborhood, the death and destruction unfurled on his phone, held landscape-style in his hands.

“On Friday I play from early morning to around 4 p.m.,” said Sharifi, 20, with a sly grin, as if he knew he was detailing the outline of an addiction to a passerby. His left hand is tattooed with a skull in a jester’s hat, a grim image offset by his lanky and not-quite-old-enough demeanor. “Almost every night, it’s 8 p.m. to 3 a.m.”

The game is called PlayerUnknown Battlegrounds, but to its millions of players worldwide, no matter the language, it’s referred to as PUBG (pronounced pub-gee). It’s violent.

And it’s becoming widely played across Afghanistan, almost as an escape from reality as the 19-year-old war grinds on.

In the game, the player drops onto a large piece of terrain, finds weapons and equipment and kills everyone, all of whom are other people playing the game against each other.

Victory translates to being the last person or team standing.

Which makes its growing popularity in Afghanistan peculiar since that can eerily almost describe the state of the war — despite ongoing peace negotiations in Qatar.

Even as ending that war seems ever more elusive, Afghan lawmakers are trying to ban PUBG, arguing that it promotes violence and distracts the young from their schoolwork.

But Sharifi laughed at the mention of the proposed ban, knowing he could circumvent it easily with software on his phone.

He said he uses the game to communicate with friends and sometimes talks to girls who also play it. That is a remarkable feat on its own since only in the last several years have Afghanistan’s cell networks become capable of delivering the kind of data needed to play a game like PUBG, let alone communicate with people concurrently.

Gaming centers became popular in Kabul in the years after the 2001 U.S. invasion, which reversed the Taliban’s ban on entertainment including video games and music. But PUBG and other mobile games are usurping these staples because they are downloadable on a smartphone, and free, in a country where 90% of the population lives below the poverty line.

Sometimes, players pay a local vendor to download the game, a workaround to avoid taxing limited and sometimes expensive data plans for phones. That costs as little as 60 cents.

Abdul Habib, 27, runs a video gaming den in West Kabul that features mostly soccer games. It’s a closet-size room on the lower floor of a shopping center, with TVs, couches and Playstations.

There are other gaming dens in the shopping center,

Abdullah Popalzai’s game center in Kabul, Afghanistan on Nov. 11, 2020. Afghan youth find escape in a video game and the game’s cult-like following in Afghanistan inhabits a real-life version of its violent virtual reality. separated by doorways and different owners, but connected by neon lights and a dimly lit atrium where youths scurry back and forth looking for couch space and controllers. A snack stand sells sausage sandwiches.

“If you can’t fight in the real war, you can do it virtually,” Habib said of violent video games, including PUBG. Habib has rented his den for four years; usually about 100 people a day come through. The mix of children, teenagers, parents and assorted adults pay around 65 cents to play for an hour. But his business was hit hard in the first months of the coronavirus pandemic when he — and dozens of other Kabul gaming dens — shut down for two months.

That’s when the fixation on PUBG took off.

Now its popularity is cutting into Habib’s business and that of others in the industry.

Abdullah Popalzai, 20, has his own game center across the street from Sharifi’s house. It’s a little shop, with garageroller doors, a generator, four TVs, four Playstations and an aging foosball table.

“I used to earn 800 afs a day,” Popalzai said. That is about $10. “Now I barely have enough to get bread and food for the family.”

Mohammad Ali sees PUBG as an escape. Leaning outside Habib’s den, Ali, 23, pointed to the headphones around his neck, bought specifically to play PUBG so he can disappear in the game with his friends.

“I get so busy with the game I forget about the world,”

he said. “It distracts me from the city, the attacks, the robberies, the thieves and the crime.”

For Mohammad Akbar Sultanzada, chair of the Afghan Parliament’s Transportation and Telecommunications Commission, the problem with PUBG is not just its violence.

He said it has also invaded the country’s already strained, frequently threatened and understaffed classrooms. PUBG was banned in Iraq last year for similar reasons.

“It can be really negative for children’s mental health,” said Freshta Karim, director of Charmaghz, a Kabul nonprofit, and a local education activist. “I feel like it encourages and normalizes violence and makes them a part of it.”

Outside influences, including in education, are often disparaged among Afghans but high levels of illiteracy have left the population vulnerable to just that. In the 1980s, the U.S. distributed millions of textbooks to Afghan children that promoted violence through text and images that featured talks of jihad and weapons of war as ways to help learn the alphabet and basic math.

But PUBG is not handed out in classrooms; it’s played under desks and in courtyards and, when some children skip school, on street corners. If the game is banned, many people say, they will just turn to virtual private networks and keep playing.

“If they don’t want people to be violent,” said Habib, the owner of the video gaming den, “they should stop the war on the battlefield.”

18

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL

Guess whose votes Trump doesn’t want counted

By JAMELLE BOUIE

D

onald Trump is exiting political life much the same way he entered it, pushing conspiracy theories for personal gain. Now, as then, these aren’t just any old conspiracy theories, but ones that hinge on the fundamental illegitimacy of a whole class of Americans.

Trump made his first serious foray into national politics with “birtherism,” the conspiracy theory that Barack Obama was born outside the United States, making him an illegal president. It was a public expression of Trump’s belief that citizenship is tied to blood and ethnicity — that some Americans are Americans, some are less so and some just aren’t.

The voter fraud conspiracy to which Trump hitched his attempt to hold onto power falls under the same umbrella, an attempt to write millions of Americans out of the electorate on the basis of race and heritage, instead of just one person out of the office of the presidency.

The essence of the campaign’s legal and political argument, after all, is that Trump won the election, or

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would have, if not for mass electoral fraud, all in swing states and only then in those cities with sizable Black populations, specifically Atlanta, Detroit, Milwaukee and Philadelphia. To right the ship, his campaign asked various courts to toss out votes in these cities, invalidating hundreds of thousands of Black votes to hand the president a second term.

Rudy Giuliani said exactly that without shame or embarrassment at a news conference last week.

The margin in Michigan is 146,121 and these ballots were all cast basically in Detroit that Biden won 80-20. So you see it changes the result of the election in Michigan if you take out Wayne County. So it’s a very significant case.

The Trump movement has never been about “populism” or “nationalism” or the interests of working Americans. It has always and only been about the contours of our national community: who belongs and who doesn’t; who counts and who shouldn’t; who can wield power and who must be subject to it.

And the answers, no matter how much the president’s defenders and apologists pretend otherwise, have race at their core. Yes, Trump will take support from anyone who wants to give it to him, but the Americans that matter — whose votes must be counted, whose wishes must be heard, respected and fulfilled — are the white ones, and of them, only a subset.

I call this “Trumpism,” but none of this began with the president. Trump did not force the Republican Party in Michigan and Wisconsin to create districts so slanted as to make a mockery of representative government in their states; he did not tell the North Carolina Republi-

can Party to devise and pass a voter identification bill targeting the state’s Black voters for disenfranchisement with “surgical precision”; he didn’t push Republican election officials in Georgia to indiscriminately purge their voter rolls or pressure Florida Republicans into practically nullifying a state constitutional amendment — passed by ballot measure — to give voting rights to former felons.

The Republican Party’s contempt for democracy and embrace of minoritarian rules and institutions predate Trump and will continue after he leaves the scene. It does not seem to matter that Republicans can clearly compete and win in high turnout elections since hostility to democratic participation has become as much a part of the party’s identity as its commitment to low taxes and so-called small government.

What does this mean for the future of our politics?

In the near-term, the president’s haphazard attempt to nullify the election is probably the start of a new normal, in which it is standard procedure for Republican politicians to allege fraud and challenge the results, tying the outcome up in federal court until it’s either untenable — or somehow successful. And even if it doesn’t work, the attempt still stands as a ritual affirming the belief that some Americans count more than others, and that our democracy is legitimate only insofar as it empowers the people, narrowly defined, over the mere majority.

In “Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship Since Brown v. Board of Education,” political theorist Danielle S. Allen observes that, “An honest account of collective democratic action must begin by acknowledging that communal decisions inevitably benefit some citizens at the expense of others, even when the whole community generally benefits.”

She continues: “The hard truth of democracy is that some citizens are always giving things up for others. Only vigorous forms of citizenship can give a polity the resources to deal with the inevitable problem of sacrifice.”

What if the thing we need some citizens to give up is a sense of superiority, a sense that they are — or ought to be — first among equals? And what if they refuse?

What do we do about our democracy when one group of citizens, or at least its chosen representatives, rejects the egalitarian ideal at the heart of democratic practice?

These aren’t new questions in American history.

But unless we plan to recapitulate the worst parts of our past, we will have to come up with new answers.

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

19

PFEI tampoco investigará al secretario de Hacienda Por THE STAR

E

l Panel sobre el Fiscal Especial Independiente (PFEI) informó el martes, que acogió la recomendación del Departamento de Justicia (DJPR) de no designar un FEI en un caso relacionado con Francisco Parés Alicea, secretario del Departamento de Hacienda.

El Departamento de Justicia refirió al PFEI el informe de una investigación preliminar realizada, luego de recibir una querella del licenciado Orlando José Aponte Rosario, en la que imputó al titular de Hacienda participar en una actividad política.

Tal intervención, según expuso el querellante, se llevó a cabo a través de un programa de radio pagado con fondos de campaba política para la reelección del representante Urayoán Hernandez Alvarado.

La Investigación Preliminar del DJPR indica que el licenciado Aponte Rosario fundamento su alegación en la Ley 178-2001, que establece que ciertos funcionarios del gobierno no participen en actividades político-partidistas, entre otros, el secretario de Hacienda.

En el informe de referencia, se concluye que, si bien es cierto, que ci programa radial “Urayoán 2020” era uno de naturaleza político-partidista, “no es menos cierto, que las expresiones realizadas por el Secretario de Hacienda en esa entrevista, estuvieron dirigidas únicamente a informar al pueblo en torno a los incentivos económicos aprobados para atender la situación

de emergencia con motivo del COVID-19. Y que dicha implementación era de la injerencia absoluta del Departamento de Hacienda”.

Agrega el Informe Preliminar que se consideran justificadas y razonables las acciones del Secretario de Hacienda, sobre todo en el momento de emergencia que vivía Puerto Rico en abril de 2020 debido al COVID-19.

Por ello, se descartó que al Secretario pudiera vincularse con las prohibiciones de la citada Ley 178. La Resolución del Panel expresa que la Secretaria de Justicia Interina del Departamento de Justicia, licenciada Inés del C. Carrau Martinez considera que el Secretario de Hacienda no incurrió en conducta criminal bajo nuestro ordenamiento jurídico y ante ello no recomendó la designación de un Fiscal Especial Independiente.

“Evaluada en su totalidad la información recopilada y la amplia investigación realizada por el Departamento de Justicia, acogemos la recomendación de la Secretaria Carrau Martinez y ordenamos el archivo definitivo de este asunto, sin trámite ulterior”, concluyó el Panel en su Resolución.

CIAPR: El resultado de inspecciones a escuelas y recomendaciones siempre estuvieron disponibles para el secretario de Educación Por THE STAR

E

l presidente del Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico (CIAPR), Juan Alicea Flores, dijo el martes que el Departamento de Educación siempre ha tenido acceso a los resultados de las inspecciones, informes y recomendaciones hechas por el Colegio sobre las escuelas post terremotos y estuvieron a su disposición durante este periodo de cierre que se pudo usar para reparar muchas escuelas.

La reacción surgió tras expresiones del secretario de Educación en las vistas de transición donde negó tener la información.

“El Departamento de Educación siempre tuvo acceso a los informes del CIAPR a través del Negociado de Manejo de Emergencias, Task Force o la misma oficina de gobernadora. Pero para haber ejecutado un plan exitoso de reconstrucción o reparación de escuelas se requiere una organización interagencial entre todas las que son custodias de estructuras de escuelas, cosa que no existe al día de hoy”, dijo Alicea Flores en comunicación escrita.

Según el ingeniero Félix Rivera, presidente de la Comisión de Terremotos del CIAPR, el DE necesita un plan coherente de reconstrucción durante el cierre de escuelas que reúna los esfuerzos de AFI, AEP, y el mismo Dpto de Educación. “Este es el primer paso

que debe tomar el próximo secretario o secretaria de Educación y crear una base de datos con la totalidad de la información de las estructuras de cada escuela y su historial. Nuestras recomendaciones son públicas y están a su disposición”, dijo Rivera.

Todo los reportes que realizaron se tramitaron a través del Negociado de Manejo de Emergencias, según las instrucciones que recibimos. Todo lo que el Negociado nos asignaba, lo inspeccionamos, desde escuelas, bibliotecas, hospitales y alcaldías. Los reportes se entregaban una vez se realizaba la inspección.

El CIAPR también realizó un informe a la gobernadora en el que se establecieron las guías para las prioridades de apertura de las escuelas. En relación a columna corta, el CIAPR recomendó que la región suroeste no se abriera ninguna escuela que tuviese el diseño de columna corta independientemente de cuando se hubiesen construido.

“El gobernador entrante. licenciado Pedro Pierluisi, debe tener un sentido de urgencia con este asunto, y crear un plan de reconstrucción bien pensado y ágil con la colaboración de los 78 alcaldes y alcaldesas, que deben trabajar sin consideraciones políticas y buscando únicamente aliviar la necesidad de nuestro pueblo. Se ha perdido un tiempo valioso que hay que recuperar”, añadió Alicea Flores.

El presidente de los ingenieros y agrimensores subrayó que en vista de la gran cantidad de fondos CBDG que llegarán para infraestructura, es importante que reconstruyamos según los códigos de construcción en Puerto Rico, y dejemos atrás las construcciones informales, que son la razón por la que tenemos desastres en infraestructura cuando ocurren fenómenos naturales.

El efecto de la columna corta se conoce hace más de 20 años, inclusive del 2002 al 2010 se repararon más de 600 escuelas. Hay distintos métodos para asegurar que estas escuelas con columnas cortas se pueden reparar de forma segura.

20

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

AC/DC debuts at No. 1, powered by CD sales

By BEN SISARIO

O

ne truism of the music business in the 21st century: AC/DC will sell a ton of albums, no matter the prevailing digital format.

“Power Up,” the Australian hard-rock heroes’ first LP in six years, has proved that correct once again, opening at No. 1 on the Billboard chart ahead of a new streaming hit by rappers Future and Lil Uzi Vert.

“Power Up” had the equivalent of 117,000 sales in the United States, according to Nielsen Music, almost all of that number attributed to copies sold as a complete package — otherwise known as albums, a format that AC/DC has plenty of experience with, selling some 200 million around the world over the past 45 years, according to the band’s label, Columbia.

Selling old-fashioned LPs has indeed become more difficult in the digital age.

That has been the conventional wisdom for years now, and AC/DC has happily done its own thing, collecting plenty of platinum along the way. The band refused to sell its albums on download stores like iTunes until 2012, and eschewed streaming until three years after that.

“Power Up” sold 111,000 full albums in its opening week. According to Billboard, 71,000 of those were CDs, while 23,000 were digital downloads and 16,000 were vinyl. For the $49 deluxe version of the CD, AC/DC took a page from Tool, the prog-metal band that made a surprise return to No. 1 last year: The album comes in a collectible box that displays AC/DC’s classic band logo in flashing neon, and plays the opening riff to its new song “Shot in the Dark” on a built-in speaker.

“Power Up” is the band’s 17th studio album, and the first since the death of its founding rhythm guitarist, Malcolm Young, in 2017 — though he and his brother Angus Young, the lead guitarist, are credited with writing all the songs. It is widely available on streaming services, but the album drew just 7.8 million clicks in its opening week, the lowest streaming number for a No. 1 title since Celine Dion’s “Courage,” which opened with 3.8 million a year ago.

Still, “Power Up” is only AC/DC’s third No. 1 album, after “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)” from 1981 and “Black Ice” from 2008. Amazingly, the band’s 1980 megahit “Back in Black” — which has sold 25 million copies in the

“Power Up,” AC/DC’s first LP in six years, opened at No. 1 on the Billboard chart with the equivalent of 117,000 sales in the United States.

United States alone, according to the Recording Industry Association of America — peaked at No. 4 in the United States.

Also this week, Future and Lil Uzi Vert’s “Pluto x Baby Pluto” started at No. 2 with the equivalent of 105,000 sales, almost all from streaming (136 million clicks), with just

5,500 copies sold as a complete package.

Country singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton opened at No. 3 with “Starting Over,” while Ariana Grande’s “Positions,” the top seller for the past two weeks, fell to fourth place. Pop Smoke’s “Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon” is No. 5.

Ken Jennings will temporarily succeed Alex Trebek on ‘Jeopardy!’

By JULIA JACOBS

T

Ken Jennings will be the first in a series of short-term hosts of “Jeopardy!”

wo weeks after the death of beloved “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek, the game show announced Monday that it was not ready to commit to a new quizmaster just yet.

The show said that “Jeopardy!” would start taping new episodes later this month but would employ a series of short-term hosts, starting with Ken Jennings, the record-breaking contestant who won the show’s “Greatest of All Time” tournament earlier this year.

Jennings wrote on Twitter that “there will only ever be one Alex Trebek” but that he was honored to be helping out the program.

Trebek, who had hosted the show since 1984, died Nov. 8 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He had been in the studio just 10 days before his death, and the show said at the time that episodes with him as host would air through Dec.

25. Because of expected television preemptions during Christmas and New Year’s, the show has shifted Trebek’s final episodes to the week of Jan. 4.

During the last two weeks of December, “Jeopardy!” plans to broadcast 10 of Trebek’s “best episodes.” Then, on Jan. 11, they will air the first batch of new episodes featuring guest hosts.

For months there has been speculation among fans that Jennings could be the choice to replace Trebek. That speculation was bolstered by the announcement that he would be a consulting producer on the most recent season, but the show has not commented on any of its internal deliberations.

There is no question that Trebek — who had hosted more than 8,200 episodes — will be a difficult host to replace. For “Jeopardy!” fans of a certain age, they never witnessed any other host, and Trebek had become a game show legend because of his calm, dependable style.

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

21

‘The Queen’s Gambit’ sends chess set sales soaring

By MARIE FAZIO

P

oela Keta started binge-watching “The Queen’s Gambit” as a break from studying for her final exams at Rhodes University.

“I think I’ve always respected chess,” Keta, 21, who lives in South Africa, said on Saturday. “I just thought I wasn’t smart enough nor patient enough for it.”

That is, until she saw Beth Harmon, the main character in the Netflix show, masterfully school her opponents as a woman in the male-dominated world of chess.

“Beth’s can-do attitude, the way the board presented itself to her on the ceiling in a drug-induced haze, her mastery, her ego, made me add my own set to my shopping cart and get playing,” Keta said.

When the chess set she ordered arrived, her 11-yearold sister, who is part of the chess club at her school, helped her position the pieces. Keta said she planned to dive deeper into the game “the minute I’m done with exams.”

“The Queen’s Gambit” follows Beth, a chess prodigy who rises through the ranks of the chess world as she struggles with addiction.

At Goliath Games, a toy company that sells several varieties of chess sets, set sales are up more than 1,000% compared with this time last year, the company’s director of marketing told NPR. A spokeswoman for eBay, Kara Gibson, said the company had recorded a 215% increase in sales of chess sets and accessories since the debut of the show in October. Of the different types of chess sets, wooden are the most popular and sell nine times more than plastic, electronic or glass on eBay, she said.

Vintage set sales have increased seven times, as have sales for equipment, including chess clocks and timers, which are up 45 times since last month.

Before “The Queen’s Gambit,” Gibson said, chess sets at eBay were already selling 60% more than last year, which the company attributes to people spending more time at home during the pandemic.

The sales division of the U.S. Chess Federation reported an increase in sales of wooden sets, which can cost several thousand dollars, since the show began.

“More and more people are playing more and more games than ever before in history,” said David Llada, a spokesman for the International Chess Federation, known as FIDE. At the beginning of the year, as many as 11 million chess games were played online every day, Llada said.

When the pandemic hit, the numbers grew to an estimated 16 million to 17 million games per day. Sites that required users to be registered reported an increase in new membership of around 40%, he said.

Llada said it was too soon to measure the full impact of “The Queen’s Gambit” on chess, but said it was already comparable to the buzz usually generated around world championships, held every two years. Some matches, like

A chess game at Vesuvio playground on Thompson Street in Manhattan, Oct. 27, 2020. The Netflix show “The Queen’s Gambit” about a chess prodigy has reignited interest in the game and fueled demand for sets, accessories and timers. the championship match between Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky played during the Cold War, “gave birth to a whole new generation of millions of chess fans,” Llada said.

“The chess community fell in love with the series because it successfully portrays different aspects of chess in all its richness: It’s easy enough to be fun to play, but also complex enough to pose a challenge,” he said. “It is nerdy, but also cool and fashionable. It is intensively competitive, but full of interesting, creative and colorful characters.”

Streaming platforms like Twitch have also had skyrocketing viewership of chess games.

From March through August, people watched 41.2 million hours of chess on Twitch, four times as many hours as in the previous six months, according to the analytics website SullyGnome. Last month, people watched 4.2 million hours of chess, compared with 2.4 million the same month last year.

In June, an amateur chess tournament called PogChamps was briefly the top-viewed stream on Twitch, with 63,000 people watching at once, SullyGnome said.

And membership in chess organizations, such as the U.S. Chess Federation, the governing body for chess competition in the U.S., is also on the rise.

“This month, we’ve had our first bump in membership since the pandemic hit, and we are hearing from our members that many of them are renewing or rejoining spe-

cifically because of the series,” said Daniel Lucas, a senior official at the federation.

General interest in the game is “always there under the surface,” Lucas said, but membership has fluctuated over the years. It boomed after Fischer won the 1972 world championship, but by the 1980s interest had waned, Lucas said.

Since then, there has been a steady increase in part because of school chess clubs, Lucas said. The federation reached a high of 97,000 members this year.

White men still make up the largest demographic of members, he said, but efforts have been made to recruit players from underrepresented communities, especially through scholastic programs. Female membership has increased to 14% from 1% in the early 2000s, he said.

Lucas, whose father taught him to play chess when he was 6, watched “The Queen’s Gambit” over a weekend with his wife and daughter. He said it showed “some of the best chess ever put on screen.”

Time will tell whether chess is merely the latest pandemic fad, fated to go the way of banana bread baking and binge-watching “Tiger King,” but Lucas believes the heightened interest in the game is here to stay.

“I’m fond of the axiom that ‘the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior,’” he said. “And people have been playing chess for 1,500 years.”

FASHION The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, March 4, 2020 25, 2020 Wednesday, November 20 22

The SanThe JuanSan Daily JuanStar Daily Star

Why do we care so much about Diana’s dresses?

The frumpy, Laura Ashley puff-sleeve smocks and midi-skirts. The novelty knitwear. The Easter egg overalls and gingham.

The saccharine mash-up of romance and posh schlubbiness teetering delicately between pastoral and kitsch before blossoming into pure Disney fantasy: taffeta, velvet, iridescent blues — the frumpy duckling turning into a polka-dot-and-silkswathed swan.

Right now, understandably, we can’t get enough of such vicarious fashion exposition, given our loungewear-limned reality. The hazy, sentimental lens of nostalgia can make even the pretty bad delicious, in an ironic, self-aware way. Rowing Blaz-

Emma Corrin as Diana, Princess of Wales, in Season 4 of “The Crown,” out now on Netflix.

By VANESSA FRIEDMAN

A

nd so, once again, to Princess Diana. Like Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, she has become a sort of cultural Rosetta Stone we return to over and over, seeking to discover answers to our own choices in her limpid blue stare and cacophonous, attention-grabbing wardrobe.

This time around the re-examination comes courtesy of “The Crown,” Season 4, aka the Diana Season. The scrutiny has been building since the 20th anniversary of the princess’s death in 2017, when Virgil Abloh declared Diana his Off-White muse and Kensington Palace held an exhibition devoted to her outfits.

And though it got a boost last year with a new musical (with costumes by William Ivey Long and a featured song titled “The Dress”) that was supposed to be headed to Broadway, the chatter reached a fresh apogee this weekend with the release of the Netflix show.

The one where the princess, in the form of actress Emma Corrin, catches the Windsor eye, makes her public debut, gets married and miserable, develops an eating disorder and becomes a Fashion Icon nonetheless.

The one that inspired British Vogue to put Corrin on the cover of its October issue in a sapphire blue Oscar de la Renta taffeta ballgown with the headline “Queen of Hearts.” The one that has been the subject of a 3D virtual show at the Brooklyn Museum, “The Queen and the Crown,” featuring assorted items from the series’ costume department, including a raspberry floral two-piece dress made for the princess’s Australian tour and the remake of that famous merengue of an overblown wedding dress.

The one that has spawned Twitter thread after Twitter thread comparing true outfit to fictional outfit, and paean after paean to Diana’s Greatest Fashion Moments in pretty much every single glossy magazine.

Why do they matter? It’s not really about the dresses, people. It’s about how they got us to now.

After all, if there’s one thing “The Crown” does with its fealty to the clothes that were, it is to show how cringe-worthy some of those fashion moments actually were. (Amy Roberts, the costume designer, has said that she didn’t recreate them exactly but rather tried to capture their essence, just as Peter Morgan, the show’s creator, talks about his allegiance to historical truth over accuracy.) The pie-crust collars and sailor bibs and pussy bows.

Ms. Corrin in full pie-crust-collar-and-string-bow glory.

Diana at the Met gala in 1996, with the gala chairperson, Liz Tilberis.

Prince Charles and Diana Spencer announce their engagement in 1981.

ers has already rereleased Diana’s famous black sheep sweater — the one she wore to a couple of her husband’s polo matches — to so much hoo-ha that even at $295 it is available for order only and will not arrive until January at the earliest. And this is only Diana, Episode 1.

The famous shirred black “revenge dress” the princess wore to a gala in 1994, the same evening her husband confessed his affair to the BBC, and the more body-con designer outfits of her divorce years are still to come, perhaps in Season 5. As are the John Galliano-designed Dior slip dress worn to the Met gala in 1996 and the Versace column worn on a tour of Australia the same year.

Ditto the simpler button-ups and chinos that became the uniform of her humanitarian work. And the tragedy that froze her in time.

Plus, there’s yet another Diana project, the feature film

“Spencer,” starring Kristin Stewart, waiting in the wings.

Despite all this, Alexandra Shulman, the editor of British Vogue during Diana’s heyday and current contrarian columnist for The Daily Mail, wrote in a recent piece, “Princess Diana was dazzling, but it’s nonsense to claim she was a fashion inspiration.”

It sounds like sacrilege. But she’s right. Diana didn’t send designers or fans spinning out in new directions because she put her clothes together in an especially creative inventive way, or because she gravitated toward the outré and imaginative, which she then wore with such élan that she left a trail of ideas in her wake. (Indeed, she was introduced to fashion by Anna Harvey, then the deputy editor of British Vogue and Diana’s designer conduit, who does not appear to be part of “The Crown” cast of characters.) Diana wasn’t one of those public figures with an identifiable and consistent personal style, though she clearly loved to get dressed.

Rather, the greatest trend she ever set — bigger than the fad for engagement rings with oval sapphires surrounded by diamonds, or the biggest of her big shoulders — was as the original fashion reality TV star: a public figure who used her clothes as a personal weather vane, not to advance the agenda of state but for direct communication to the outside world, even when she was simply smiling and standing by. She wore her emotions not just on, but as, her sleeves. And because we could all see them, we could all relate.

As Joe DiPietro, who wrote the book for the Diana musical (due next spring on Netflix, of course, since theater is on hold during the pandemic), told Elizabeth Holmes in her prescient new book, “HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style,” which traces the dress histories and strategies of the women of Windsor from the queen through Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle: “She really was the first great social media influencer, manipulator.”

It’s part of what made her mesmerizing, and it’s what makes her seem so relevant. It is, arguably, why every garment Melania Trump wears is parsed for what it says about her marriage, why Kim Kardashian’s clothing evolution since she became a West has been so closely tracked. Diana primed the stage, and now we are all living in it.

She didn’t move the art of dress forward; she kept it spinning right where it was. But in doing so, as DiPietro said, she helped make the art of Instagram possible.

Charles, Prince of Wales, with Princess Diana on the altar of St Paul’s Cathedral during their marriage ceremony.

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

23

Wearing a mask during workouts really isn’t so bad

By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS

E

xercising during the pandemic has been challenging for many of us. Gyms have closed or limited occupancy, as have parks, pools, pathways and other recreational facilities. If trails are open, they often are jammed, making it difficult to socially distance while we hike, stroll, ride, jog or otherwise work out.

Mask recommendations and requirements have created additional complications. Few people who exercise, including me, don masks with enthusiasm when it comes to vigorous workouts, convinced that they will make our faces sweaty, breathing labored and workouts more draining. We rejigger the timing and locales so we can exercise when not many people are about and leave our faces uncovered. Or we skip workouts altogether.

But for those of us convinced that wearing a mask will make exercise harder or more unpleasant, two new studies offer a bracing counterpoint. Both find that masks do not negatively affect vigorous workouts, whether the mask is cloth, surgical or an N95 respirator model. The findings may surprise but also encourage anyone hoping to remain safe and active in the coming weeks and months, as coronavirus cases surge nationwide.

Most of our expectations about masks and exercise are based on anecdotes and preconceptions. Little past science has examined whether and how masks affect serious workouts. The few relevant earlier experiments focused primarily on masked health care workers while they walked, to see if being active while masked affected their thinking or other capabilities. (It did not, the studies show.)

But gentle strolling is not running, cycling or other more vigorous routines, and we have not had scientific evidence about how wearing a mask might alter those workouts. So, recently, two helpful groups of scientists separately decided to look into the issue.

The first of the groups to release their findings, which were published in September in The Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, concentrated on surgical and N95 respiratory masks during exercise. The researchers, most of them affiliated with the Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, Israel, invited 16 healthy, active men to come into the lab, where they checked heart rates, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, respiratory rates and current carbon dioxide levels. Then they fitted the men with thin, nasal tubes that would collect their expired breaths for testing and, on three separate visits to the lab, asked them to ride a stationary bicycle.

At each visit, the men, in fact, completed a pedal-to-exhaustion test, during which the researchers gradually increased the resistance on the stationary bike, as if on a long, relentless hill climb, until the men could barely turn the pedals. Throughout, the researchers monitored the riders’ heart rates, breathing and other physiological measures and asked them repeatedly how hard the riding felt.

During one ride, the men’s faces were uncovered. But for

Runners in Central Park in New York, Nov. 1, 2020. Two new studies found little downside to donning masks during vigorous exercise. the two other sessions, they donned either a disposable paper surgical mask or an N95 respirator mask.

Afterward, the scientists compared the riders’ physiological and subjective responses during each ride and found few variations. Masking had not made the cycling feel or be more draining and had not tired riders sooner. The only substantial effect was from N95 masks, which slightly increased levels of carbon dioxide in riders’ breaths, probably because the masks fit so tightly. But none of the riders complained of chest tightness, headaches or other breathing issues.

Most expressed some surprise, instead, that the masks had not bothered them, said Dr. Danny Epstein, an attending physician in the internal medicine department at Rambam Health Care Campus, who led the new study. They “had believed that their performances would be decreased by masking,” he said.

Similarly, the researchers in the second masking study, which was published this month in The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, hypothesized that masking would make exercisers uncomfortable and tired. For confirmation, they ran a group of 14 healthy, active men and women through the same ride-to-exhaustion sessions as in the Israeli study, while the volunteers alternately wore no mask or a three-layer cloth or a surgical face covering. The researchers monitored oxygen levels in the riders’ blood and muscles, heart rates, other physiological measures and the riders’ sense of how hard the exercise felt.

Afterward, contrary to their hypothesis, they found no

differences in the riders’ experience whether they had worn a mask or not.

“From the results of our study, I don’t think masks are likely to make workouts feel worse,” said Philip Chilibeck, a professor of kinesiology at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, who oversaw the study.

Of course, both of the new studies recruited healthy, active adults. We do not know if the results would be the same in people who are older, younger, in worse shape or have existing breathing problems. The studies also involved cycling. The outcomes probably would be similar in running, weight training and other vigorous activities, both Epstein and Chilibeck say, but that idea, for now, remains a presumption. And, obviously, the studies looked at how masks affect the wearer, not whether and to what extent different facial coverings prevent the spread of respiratory droplets during exercise.

Still, the findings suggest that anyone who hesitates to wear a mask during exercise should try one — although not an N95 mask, Epstein said, since they slightly up riders’ carbon dioxide levels and, anyway, should be reserved for health care workers.

“COVID-19 changes almost every aspect of our lives and makes simple things more complicated,” Epstein said. “But we can learn how to keep doing the essential things, such as exercise. I learned to spend long hours with PPE” — meaning full face masking and other protective clothing — “at the hospital.

So, I believe we can get used to going to the gym,” and paths and sidewalks and busy trails, “with a mask.”

24 uso publico, distancia de veinte metros (20.00), por el Este, con ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO el solar numero quince (15), DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU- distancia de treinta y ocho meNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA tros (38.00) y por el Oeste, con SALA DE SAN JUAN. el solar numero diecisiete (17), distancia de treinta y ocho meLIME HOMES, LTD. tros (38.00). Enclava una casa.

Parte Demandante Vs. CORPORACION SUVIAL Inscrita al folio ciento setenta Y ESTADOS UNIDOS DE (170) del tomo cuatrocientos setenta y dos (472) de Rio PieAMERICA POR CODUCTO dras Sur, finca numero quince DEL FISCAL FEDERAL DE mil doscientos sesenta y ocho LA CORTE DE DISTRITO (15268), Registro de San Juan DE ESTADOS UNIDOS IV. Dirección Física: C-16, Ca8, Urb. Paseo Mayor, San PARA EL DISTRITO DE lle Juan, PR 00926. La primera PUERTO RICO subasta se llevará a cabo el día Parte Demandada 16 de diciembre de 2020, a las CIVIL NUM. KCD 2015-1515 10:30 de la mañana, y servirá (803). SOBRE: EJECUCION de tipo mínimo para la misma la DE HIPOTECA POR LA VIA suma de $935,000.00 sin admiORDINARIA. ANUNCIO DE tirse oferta inferior. En el caso SUBASTA. El suscribiente, Al- de que el inmueble a ser subasguacil del Tribunal de Primera tado no fuera adjudicado en la Instancia de Puerto Rico, Sala primera subasta, se celebrará de San Juan, a los demanda- una segunda subasta el día 13 dos de epígrafe y al público en de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 general hace saber que los au- de la mañana y el precio mínitos y documentos del caso de mo para esta segunda subasta epígrafe estarán de manifiesto será el de dos terceras partes en la Secretaría del Tribunal del precio mínimo establecido durante horas laborables y que para la primera subasta, o a venderá en pública subasta sea la suma de $623,333.33. al mejor postor, en moneda Si tampoco hubiera remate ni de curso legal de los Estados adjudicación en la segunda suUnidos de América en efectivo, basta, se celebrará una tercera cheque certificado, o giro pos- subasta el día 20 de enero de tal a nombre del Alguacil del 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañaTribunal de Primera Instancia, na, y el tipo mínimo para esta en mi oficina en este Tribunal tercera subasta será la mitad el derecho que tenga la parte del precio establecido para demandada en el inmueble la primera subasta, o sea, la que se relaciona más adelan- suma de $467,500.00. El mejor te para pagar la SENTENCIA postor deberá pagar el importe por $897,411.70, de balance de su oferta en efecto, cheque principal, los intereses venci- certificado o giro postal a nomdos sobre el principal compu- bre del Alguacil del Tribunal. Si tados al 7.25% anual desde se declarase desierta la tercera el día primero septiembre de subasta, se dará por terminado 2011, hasta su total pago; más el procedimiento, pudiendo adel 5% computado sobre cada judicarse el inmueble al acreemensualidad de principal e in- dor hipotecario dentro de los terés por concepto de cargos diez días siguientes a la fecha por demora; más la suma de de la última subasta, si así lo $93,500.00 garantizada de la estimase conveniente, por la tohipoteca para costas, gastos talidad de la cantidad adeudada y honorarios de abogado del conforme a la sentencia, si ésta acreedor demandante, más fuera igual o menor que el moncualesquiera otras sumas que to del tipo de la tercera subasta por cualesquier concepto legal y abonándose dicho monto a se devenguen hasta el total y la cantidad adeudada si ésta completo pago de esta senten- fuera mayor. Se avisa a cualcia hasta el día de la subasta. quier licitador que la propiedad La propiedad a venderse en queda sujeta al gravamen del pública subasta se describe Estado Libre Asociado y CRIM como sigue: URBANA: Solar sobre la propiedad inmueble radicado en la Urbanización por contribuciones adeudadas “Paseo Mayor II” en el Barrio y que el pago de dichas contriCupey Alto del Municipio de buciones es la responsabilidad San Juan, Puerto Rico, que se del licitador. Que se entenderá describe en el plano de inscrip- por todo licitador acepte como ción de la urbanización, con el suficiente la titulación y que los número, área y colindancias cargos y gravámenes anterioque se relacionan a continua- res y los preferentes al crédición: Solar numero dieciseis to del ejecutante continuarán (16) del bloque C,con un área subsistentes en entendiéndose de setecientos sesenta metros que el rematador los acepta y cuadrados (760.00). En lindes queda subrogado en la respor el Norte, con la calle nume- ponsabilidad de los mismos, ro ocho (8), distancia de veinte sin destinarse su extinción al metros (20.00), por el Sur, con precio rematante. Todos los

LEGAL NOTICE

@

nombres de los acreedores que tengan inscritos o anotados sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante, o de los acreedores de cargas o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a la hipoteca ejecutada y las personas interesadas en, o con derecho a exigir el cumplimiento de instrumentos negociables garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito ejecutado, siempre que surgen de la certificación registral, para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les convenga o satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, costas y honorarios de abogados asegurados, quedando entonces subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. Y para conocimiento de licitadores, del público en general y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria en Puerto Rico y en los sitios públicos de acuerdo a las disposiciones de la Regla 51.7 de las de Procedimiento Civil, así como para la publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria y en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas con antelación a la fecha de la primera subasta y por lo menos una vez por semana. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento indicado estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante las horas laborables.

(Art. 102 (1) de la Ley núm.

210-2015). Expedido el presente en San Juan, Puerto Rico a 16 de noviembre de 2020.

PEDRO HIEYE GONZALEZ, ALGUACIL DEL TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA DE SAN JUAN.

LEGAL NOTICE ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

LIME HOMES, LTD

Parte Demandante Vs.

JOSE SANCHEZ ACOSTA, MARIA DE LOURDES NIEVES CRESPO Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE BIENES GANANCIALES ENTRE AMBOS COMPUESTA; JUAN ALBERTO MARTINEZ SANTANA; PEDRO JOSE ENCARNACION PEREZ

Parte Demandada CIVIL NUM. KCD2013-1515 (902). SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE

staredictos@thesanjuandailystar.com

HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. ANUNCIO DE SUBASTA. El suscribiente, Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia de Puerto Rico, Sala de San Juan, a los demandados de epígrafe y al público en general hace saber que los autos y documentos del caso de epígrafe estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables y que venderá en pública subasta al mejor postor, en moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América en efectivo, cheque certificado, o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, en mi oficina en este Tribunal el derecho que tenga la parte demandada en el inmueble que se relaciona más adelante para pagar la SENTENCIA por $88,000.00, de balance principal, los intereses vencidos sobre el principal computados al 7.50% anual desde el día primero enero de 2012, hasta su total pago; más el 5% computado sobre cada mensualidad de principal e interés por concepto de cargos por demora; más la suma de $8,800.00 garantizada de la hipoteca para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado del acreedor demandante, más cualesquiera otras sumas que por cualesquier concepto legal se devenguen hasta el total y completo pago de esta sentencia hasta el día de la subasta.

La propiedad a venderse en pública subasta se describe como sigue: URBANA: Solar marcado con el numero noventa y cuatro (94) en el plano final de inscripción de la finca principal radicada en el Barrio Sabana Llana de Rio Piedras del término municipal de San Juan, con una cabida de dos mil seiscientos veintiocho punto cero cero (2,628.00) metros cuadrados.

Colindante por el Norte, en sesenta y uno punto noventa y siete (61.97) metros, con el solar número ochenta y dos (82) de la San Martin Development Corporation; por el Sur, en treinta y uno punto treinta y dos (31.22) metros, con el solar numero noventa y cinco (95) de la misma Corporación; por el Este en un arco que mide treinta y cinco punto cero cero (35.00) metros, con la Calle Olga Esperanza de dicho Plano de Urbanización conocida como esta por Urbanización Extensión San Martin y por el Oeste, en un a distancia de sesenta y seis punto cincuenta y tres (66.53) metros, con Colegio de Hermanas Las Carmelitas y en una distancia de veintiuno punto cinco (21.05) metros, con una faja de terreno de libre por donde pasa una quebrada debidamente canalizada y una colectora de hormigón. Inscrita al folio doscientos once (211) del

(787) 743-3346

Wednesday, November 25, 2020 tomo ciento cincuenta y nueve (159) de Sabana Llana, finca número nueve mil seiscientos treinta y ocho (9,638). Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección Quinta de San Juan. Dirección Física: Sabana Llana, 94 Calle Olga, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00926. La primera subasta se llevará a cabo el día 16 de diciembre de 2020, a las 10:00 de la mañana, y servirá de tipo mínimo para la misma la suma de $88,000.00 sin admitirse oferta inferior. En el caso de que el inmueble a ser subastado no fuera adjudicado en la primera subasta, se celebrará una segunda subasta el día 13 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana y el precio mínimo para esta segunda subasta será el de dos terceras partes del precio mínimo establecido para la primera subasta, o a sea la suma de $58,666.67.

Si tampoco hubiera remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se celebrará una tercera subasta el día 21 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana y el tipo mínimo para esta tercera subasta será la mitad del precio establecido para la primera subasta, o sea, la suma de $44,000.00. El mejor postor deberá pagar el importe de su oferta en efecto, cheque certificado o giro postal a nombre del Alguacil del Tribunal. Si se declarase desierta la tercera subasta, se dará por terminado el procedimiento, pudiendo adjudicarse el inmueble al acreedor hipotecario dentro de los diez días siguientes a la fecha de la última subasta, si así lo estimase conveniente, por la totalidad de la cantidad adeudada conforme a la sentencia, si ésta fuera igual o menor que el monto del tipo de la tercera subasta y abonándose dicho monto a la cantidad adeudada si ésta fuera mayor. Se avisa a cualquier licitador que la propiedad queda sujeta al gravamen del Estado Libre Asociado y CRIM sobre la propiedad inmueble por contribuciones adeudadas y que el pago de dichas contribuciones es la responsabilidad del licitador. Que se entenderá por todo licitador acepte como suficiente la titulación y que los cargos y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes en entendiéndose que el rematador los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse su extinción al precio rematante. Todos los nombres de los acreedores que tengan inscritos o anotados sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante, o de los acreedores de cargas o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a

la hipoteca ejecutada y las personas interesadas en, o con derecho a exigir el cumplimiento de instrumentos negociables garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito ejecutado, siempre que surgen de la certificación registral, para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les convenga o satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, costas y honorarios de abogados asegurados, quedando entonces subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante. La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. Y para conocimiento de licitadores, del público en general y para su publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria en Puerto Rico y en los sitios públicos de acuerdo a las disposiciones de la Regla 51.7 de las de Procedimiento Civil, así como para la publicación en un periódico de circulación general diaria y en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas con antelación a la fecha de la primera subasta y por lo menos una vez por semana. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento indicado estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante las horas laborables.

(Art. 102 (1) de la Ley núm.

210-2015). Expedido el presente en San Juan, Puerto Rico a 16 de noviembre de 2020.

PEDRO HIEYE GONZALEZ, ALGUACIL DEL TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA DE SAN JUAN. ****

The San Juan Daily Star tenedores y cualquier persona desconocida con posible interés en la obligación cuya cancelación por decreto judicial se solicita.

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que el 16 de noviembre de 2020, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 17 de noviembre de 2020. En BAYAMON, Puerto Rico, el 17 de noviembre de 2020. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SANCHEZ, Secretario(a). LUREIMY ALICEA GONZALEZ, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE

DIRECCION POSTAL: HC 01 BOX 6935 MOCA PR 00676; DIRECCION FISICA: CALLE BLANCA E CHICO 134, BO PUEBLO MOCA PR 00676 P/C LIC Gerardo M. Ortiz Torre, Cond. El Centro I, Suite 801, 500 Muñoz Rivera Ave., San Juan, PR 00918

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que 16 de noviembre de 2020, este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 16 de noviembre de 2020. En AGUADILLA , Puerto Rico, el 17 de noviembre de 2020. SARAHI REYES PEREZ, Secretaria.

ZUHEILY GONZALEZ AVILES, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico TRIBUNAL GENELEGAL NOTICE RAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de Estado Libre Asociado de PuerPrimera Instancia Sala Superior to Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL de AGUADILLA. DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de PriLEGAL NOTICE AMERICAS LEADING mera Instancia Sala Superior ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO FINANCE, LLC de BAYAMON. DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUDemandante V. CAPITAL TITLE NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA LUIS LORENZO SERVICES INC. CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN LÓPEZ, SU ESPOSA Demandante v.

JUAN SALA SUPERIOR.

LAS AMERICAS TRUST COMPANY; JUAN DEL PUEBLO Y JUANA DEL PUEBLO Y CUALQUIER PERSONA DESCONOCIDA CON POSIBLE INTERÉS EN LA OBLIGACIÓN CUYA CANCELACIÓN POR DECRETO JUDICIAL SE SOLICITA.

Demandado(a) Civil: Núm. BY2020CV02012.

SALA 402. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: LAS AMERICAS TRUST COMPANY; JUAN DEL PUEBLO Y JUANA DEL PUEBLO como posibles

FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

Demandado(a) Civil: AG2020CV00424. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO POR LA VIA ORDINARIA Y EJECUCION DE GRAVAMEN MOBILIARIO (REPOSESIÓN DE VEHÍCULO). NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: LUIS LORENZO LÓPEZ, SU ESPOSA FULANA DE TAL, Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

E.M.I. EQUITY MORTGAGE, INC DEMANDANTE VS.

FILOMENA DEL CARMEN SAURA FABIÁN T/C/C FILOMENA SAURA FABIÁN

DEMANDADOS CIVIL NUM.: SJ2019CV11842.

SOBRE: EJECUCION DE HIPOTECA “IN REM” (VÍA ORDINARIA). EDICTO DE SUBASTA. El Alguacil que suscribe por la presente CERTIFICA, ANUNCIA y hace CONSTAR: Que en cumplimiento de un Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia que le ha sido dirigido al Alguacil que suscribe por la Secretaría del TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CEN-

The San Juan Daily Star TRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN, SALA SUPERIOR, en el caso de epígrafe procederá a vender en pública subasta al mejor postor en efectivo, cheque certificado en moneda legal de los Estados Unidos de América el 12 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana, en su oficina sita en el local que ocupa en el edificio del TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN, SALA SUPERIOR, todo derecho, título e interés que tenga la parte demandada de epígrafe en el inmueble de su propiedad que ubica en: CONDOMINIO PUERTA DEL SOL, APARTAMENTO 302, SAN JUAN, PR 00926 y que se describe a continuación: URBANA: PROPIEDAD HORIZONTAL: Apartamento número 302 Apartamento residencial número 302 de forma rectangular localizado en el piso número 3 del Condominio Puerta del Sol, que ubica en la Carretera Estatal número 181 del Barrio Sabana Llana de Rio Piedras, Municipio de San Juan, Puerto Rico, con una cabida superficial de 666.14 pies cuadrados, siendo sus medidas lineales 32 pies 10 pulgadas, por 22 pies 8 pulgadas de ancho; en lindes por el NORTE, en una distancia de 18 pies 4 pulgadas, con el apartamento número 303; por el SUR, en una distancia de 22 pies 8 pulgadas, con terrenos donde enclava el edificio; por el ESTE, en una distancia de 32 pies 10 pulgadas, con la escalera y pasillo; y por el OESTE, en una distancia de 32 pies 10 pulgadas, con terrenos donde enclava el edificio. La puerta principal del apartamento tiene acceso al pasillo central del piso. Esta unidad residencial consta de lo siguiente: sala-comedor, baño, pasillo con closet, cocina y tres cuartos dormitorios con su closet cada uno. El apartamento tiene un por ciento de participación en los elementos comunes generales de .0042873%. A este apartamento le corresponde como elemento común limitado el estacionamiento número 43. La propiedad antes relacionada consta inscrita al Tomo Karibe de Sabana Llana, finca número 32,112-A, Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta. El tipo mínimo para la primera subasta del inmueble antes relacionado, será el dispuesto en la Escritura de Hipoteca, es decir la suma de $78,600.00. Si no hubiere remate ni adjudicación en la primera subasta del inmueble mencionado, se celebrará una segunda subasta en las oficinas del Alguacil que suscribe el día 20 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana. En la segunda subasta que se celebre servirá de tipo mínimo las dos terceras partes (2/3) del precio pactado en la primera subasta, o sea la suma de $52,400.00.

Si tampoco hubiere remate ni

adjudicación en la segunda subasta se celebrará una tercera subasta en las oficinas del Alguacil que suscribe el día 27 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana. Para la tercera subasta servirá de tipo mínimo la mitad (1/2) del precio pactado para el caso de ejecución, o sea, la suma de $39,300.00.

Las hipoteca a ejecutarse en el caso de epígrafe fue constituida mediante la escritura de hipoteca número 90 otorgada en Carolina, Puerto Rico, el día 1ro de mayo de 2009 ante el Notario Pedro Juan Caride Cruz y consta inscrita al Tomo Karibe de Sabana Llana, finca número 32,112-A, en el Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta, inscripción Décimo Segunda (12da) y última. Dicha subasta se llevará a cabo para con su producto satisfacer al Demandante total o parcialmente según sea el caso el importe de la Sentencia que ha obtenido ascendente a la suma de $ $68,825.12 por concepto de principal, desde el 1ro de marzo de 2016, más intereses al tipo pactado de 4.50% anual que continúan acumulándose hasta el pago total de la obligación. Además, la parte demandada adeuda a la parte demandante los cargos por demora equivalentes a 4.00% de la suma de aquellos pagos con atrasos en exceso de 15 días calendarios de la fecha de vencimiento; los créditos accesorios y adelantos hechos en virtud de la escritura de hipoteca; y las costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado equivalentes a $7,860.00. Además, la parte demandada se comprometió a pagar una suma equivalente a $7,860.00 para cubrir cualquier otro adelanto que se haga en virtud de la escritura de hipoteca y una suma equivalente a $7,860.00 para cubrir intereses en adición a los garantizados por ley. Por razón de dicho incumplimiento, y al amparo del derecho que le confiere el Pagaré, el demandante ha declarado tales sumas vencidas, líquidas y exigibles en su totalidad. Por razón de dicho incumplimiento, y al amparo del derecho que le confiere el Pagaré, el demandante ha declarado tales sumas vencidas, líquidas y exigibles en su totalidad. Que los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al Procedimiento incoado estarán de manifiesto en la SECRETARIA DEL TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN, SALA SUPERIOR durante las horas laborables. Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titulación del inmueble y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes, si los hubiere, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin desti-

Wednesday, November 25, 2020 narse a su extinción el precio de remate. La propiedad está sujeta a los siguientes gravámenes anteriores y/o preferentes según las constancias del Registro de la Propiedad. Condiciones Restrictivas sobre esta y otras fincas mediante la escritura número 54, otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el día 23 de septiembre de 1992, ante el notario Alfredo Castro Mesa, inscrita al tomo móvil 975 de Sabana Llana, finca número 32,112-A, inscripción 3ra. Hipoteca en garantía de un pagaré a favor de la Autoridad para el Financiamiento de la Vivienda de Puerto Rico, o a su orden, por la suma principal de $5,000.00, sin intereses, vencedero el día 23 de julio de 2010, constituida mediante la escritura número 68, otorgada en San Juan, Puerto Rico, el día 23 de julio de 2004, ante el notario Luis Felipe Matos Pacheco, e inscrita al tomo Karibe de Sabana Llana, finca número 32,112-A, inscripción 10ma. Sujeta a Condiciones de Subsidio bajo el Programa “Mi Nuevo Hogar”, por el término de 6 años. Por la presente se notifica a los acreedores desconocidos, no inscritos o presentados que sus derechos sobre los bienes hipotecados con posterioridad a la inscripción del crédito del ejecutante o acreedores de cargos o derechos reales que los hubiesen pospuesto a la hipoteca del actor y a los dueños, poseedores, tenedores de o interesados en títulos transmisibles por endoso o al portador garantizados hipotecariamente con posterioridad al crédito del actor que se celebrarán las subastas en las fechas, horas y sitios señalados para que puedan concurrir a la subasta si les conviniere o se les invita a satisfacer antes del remate el importe del crédito, de sus intereses, otros cargos y las costas y honorarios de abogado asegurados quedando subrogados en los derechos del acreedor ejecutante. La propiedad objeto de ejecución y descrita anteriormente se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores una vez el Honorable Tribunal expida la correspondiente Orden de Confirmación de Venta Judicial. Y para conocimiento de licitadores del público en general se publicará este Edicto de acuerdo con la ley por espacio de dos semanas en tres sitios públicos del municipio en que ha de celebrarse la venta, tales como la Alcaldía, el Tribunal y la Colecturía. Este Edicto será publicado dos veces en un diario de circulación general en el Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas consecutivas. Expido el presente Edicto de subasta bajo mi firma y sello de este Tribunal en San Juan, Puerto Rico, hoy día 18 de noviembre de 2020. EDWIN E. LOPEZ MULERO, ALGUACIL DE SUBASTAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRI-

MERA INSTANCIA, CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN, SALA SUPERIOR.

LEGAL NOTICE ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA CENTRO JUDICIAL DE SAN JUAN.

MINERVA SILFA BAEZ DEMANDANTE VS.

KELVIN APONTE SANTANA

GONZALEZ - Defendant in the above entitiled action.

TAKE NOTICE that a pleading seeking relief against you has been filed in the above-entitled action. The nature of the relief being sought is an absolute divorce. You are required to make defense to such pleading not later than January 15, 2021, and upon your failure to do so the party seeking service against you will apply to the court for the relief sought. This the 25th day of November, 2020. Debra J. Radtke, HEDAHL & RADTKE, Attorney at Law, 1015 Arsenal Avenue Fayetteville, NC 28305.

DEMANDADA CIVIL NUM. SJ2020RF01124 (701). SOBRE: DIVORCIO (RUPTURA IRREPARABLE).

EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE LEGAL NOTICE AMERICA EL PRESIDENTE Estado Libre Asociado de PuerDE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO to Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de PriDE PUERTO RICO. SS. mera Instancia Sala Superior A: KELVIN de HUMACAO.

APONTE SANTANA Demandado

POR LA PRESENTE se le notifica que se ha presentado una demanda en su contra donde se solicita se declare roto y disuelto el vinculo matrimonial habido entre usted y la Sra. Minerva Silfa Báez. Se solicita la disolución de matrimonio celebrado entre las partes de epígrafe el día 1 de septiembre de 2016 en San Juan, Puerto Rico. Por el presente Edicto, se les emplaza y requiere que conteste la demanda dentro de un termino de treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este Edicto y presente el original de dicha contestación ante este Tribunal y notifique copia de la misma dentro del mismo termino a la Lcda. Ana Marin Castro, P.O. Box 366026, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00936-6026 numero de teléfono: 787-4628498, abogada de la parte demandante. Por la presente se les apercibe que de no comparecer a formular alegaciones dentro de treinta (30) días contados a partir de la fecha de la publicación de este Edicto, se le anotara la rebeldía y se dictara Sentencia de acuerdo con lo solicitado en la demanda, sin mas citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y el sello de este Tribunal, en SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, a 28 de octubre de 2020.

F/GRISELDA RODRIGUEZ COLLADO, SECRETARIA. F/ MARIA A. RAMOS VIERA, SUB-SECRETARIA.

LEGAL NOTICE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF CUMBERLAND.

HECTOR MONREAL, Plaintiff, vs.

NEYDA L. ACEVEDO GONZALEZ

Defendant In the General Court of Justice District Court Division; File Number: 20 CVD 3227. NOTICE OF SERVICE OF PROCESS BY PUBLICATION.

TO: NEYDA L. ACEVEDO

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO Demandante v.

SASHA JAHZEEL RAPALE ROMÁN Y POR PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO VÍCTOR ELÍAS RIVERA LABOY; DORAL MORTGAGE CORPORATION; FULANO DE TAL Y SUTANO DE TAL POR POSIBLES TENEDORES DEL PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO

25

notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 16 de noviembre de 2020. En HUMACAO, Puerto Rico, el 16 de noviembre de 2020. DOMINGA GOMEZ FUSTER, Secretaria. F/ILEANETTE RIVAS SERRANO, Secretaria Auxiliar.

RAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de Primera Instancia Sala Superior de CAGUAS.

ELECTROCABLES DEL CARIBE, CORP Demandante V.

CONDADO ELECTRICAL & PLUMBING SUPPLIES, lNC; et als

Demandado(a) Civil: CG2020CV00287. Sobre: COBRO DE DINERO POR LA VIA ORDINARIA E INCUMPLILEGAL NOTICE MIENTO DE CONTRATO. NOEstado Libre Asociado de TIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA Puerto Rico TRIBUNAL GENE- POR EDICTO. RAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de MARÍA DOLORES Primera Instancia Sala Superior CAMACHO por si y en de CIALES.

MARISOL RIVERA PAGAN, JESUS FERNANDO SINGH, Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANACIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS Demandante V.

NORTHSTAR MORTGAGE CORPORATION, JOHN DOE, RICHARD ROE

Demandado(a) Civil: CI2020CV00035. Sobre: CANCELACION DE PAGARE HIPOTECARIO EXTRAVIADO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: NORTHSTAR MORTGAGE CORPORATION. JOHN DOE. RICHARD ROE

Demandado(a) (Nombre de las partes a las que se Civil: Núm. HU2019CV01409. le notifican la sentencia por edicto) Sobre: CANCELACION DE PAEL SECRETARIO(A) que susGARE EXTRAVIADO. NOTIFIcribe le notifica a usted que 12 CACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR de noviembre - de 2020 , este EDICTO ENMENDADA. Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, A: FULANO DE TAL Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debiY SUTANO DE TAL damente registrada y archivada POR POSIBLES en autos donde podrá usted TENEDORES DEL enterarse detalladamente de PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO; los términos de la misma. Esta DIRECCION notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de DESCONOCIDA; circulación general en la Isla SE DESCONOCE Puerto Rico, dentro de los DIRECCION; P/C LIC. de 10 días siguientes a su notificaJUAN C. FORTUÑO FAS ción. Y, siendo o representando (Nombre de las partes a las que se usted una parte en el procedile notifican la sentencia por edicto) miento sujeta a los términos EL SECRETARIO(A) que susde la Sentencia, Sentencia cribe le notifica a usted que Parcial o Resolución, de la cual el 11 de marzo de 2020, este puede establecerse recurso de Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, revisión o apelación dentro del Sentencia Parcial o Resolución término de 30 días contados a en este caso, que ha sido debipartir de la publicación por edicdamente registrada y archivada to de esta notificación, dirijo a en autos donde podrá usted enusted esta notificación que se terarse detalladamente de los considerará hecha en la fecha términos de la misma. Esta node la publicación de este edictificación se publicará una sola to. Copia de esta notificación ha vez en un periódico de circulasido archivada en los autos de ción general en la Isla de Puereste caso, con fecha de 18 de to Rico, dentro de los 10 días noviembre de 2020. En CIALES siguientes a su notificación. Y, , Puerto Rico, el 18 de noviemsiendo o representando usted bre de 2020. VIVIAN FRESSE una parte en el procedimiento GONZALEZ, Secretario(a). sujeta a los términos de la SenMADELINE GARCIA PEREZ, tencia, Sentencia Parcial o ReSecretario(a) Auxiliar. solución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o LEGAL NOTICE apelación dentro del término de Estado Libre Asociado de 30 días contados a partir de la Puerto Rico TRIBUNAL GENEpublicación por edicto de esta

representación legal de la Sociedad Legal de Bienes Gananciales compuesta con Rafael Fardas Rosario

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que 13 de noviembre de 2020 , este Tribunal ha dictado Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución en este caso, que ha sido debidamente registrada y archivada en autos donde podrá usted enterarse detalladamente de los términos de la misma. Esta notificación se publicará una sola vez en un periódico de circulación general en la Isla de Puerto Rico, dentro de los 10 días siguientes a su notificación. Y, siendo o representando usted una parte en el procedimiento sujeta a los términos de la Sentencia, Sentencia Parcial o Resolución, de la cual puede establecerse recurso de revisión o apelación dentro del término de 30 días contados a partir de la publicación por edicto de esta notificación, dirijo a usted esta notificación que se considerará hecha en la fecha de la publicación de este edicto. Copia de esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 17 de noviembre de 2020. En CAGUAS , Puerto Rico, el 17 de noviembre de 2020. CARMEN ANA PEREIRA ORTIZ, Secretaria. LILI RODRIGUEZ RODRIGUEZ, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

BOSCO IX OVERSEAS, LLC BY FRANKLIN CREDIT MANAGMENT CORPORATION AS SERVICER Demandante, v.

ASTRID IVONNE RODRÍGUEZ GARCÍA

Demandado CIVIL NÚM. SJ2018CV00328.

SOBRE: EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA Y COBRO DE DINERO. AVISO DE PÚBLICA SUBASTA.

A: LOS CODEMANDADOS DE EPIGRAFE Y AL PÚBLICO EN GENERAL:

El Alguacil que suscribe por la presente anuncia y hace constar que en cumplimiento de una Sentencia dictada en el caso de epígrafe el día 22 de abril de 2020 y de un Mandamiento de Ejecución emitido el día 24 de agosto de 2020, que le ha sido dirigido por la Secretaria del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de San Juan, procederá a vender en subasta, por separado, y al mejor postor con dinero en efectivo, cheque de gerente o letra bancaria con similar garantía, todo título, derecho o interés de los demandados de epígrafe sobre el inmueble que adelante se describe. Se anuncia por la presente que la primera subasta habrá de celebrarse el día 11 de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañana, en mi oficina localizada en el edificio que ocupa la Sala del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan, sobre el inmueble que se describe a continuación: URBANA: Condominio Miraflores de Venus de Sabana Llana. Apartamento: 2202. Cabida: 1172.84 pies cuadrados, equivalentes a ciento ocho metros cuadrados con noventa y seis centésimas partes de otro (108.96 metros cuadrados). En lindes por el Norte, en veintidós pies con cuatro pulgadas (22’4”), equivalentes a seis metros con ochenta centésimas partes de otro (6.80m), con espacio exterior; por el Sur, en dieciocho pies ocho pulgadas (18’8”), equivalentes a cinco metros con sesenta y nueve centésimas partes de otro (5.69 m), con espacio exterior; por el Este, en sesenta pies con nueve pulgadas (60’9”), equivalentes a dieciocho metros con cincuenta y dos centésimas partes de otro (18.52 m), con el apartamento número dieciséis (2201) y espacio exterior que da al área de pasillo del Condominio que lleva al área de las escaleras que brindan acceso al apartamento; y por el Oeste, en sesenta pies con nueve pulgadas (60’9”), equivalentes a dieciocho metros con cincuenta y dos centésimas partes de otro (18.52m), con el apartamento número diez (2203). Tiene su puerta de entrada y salida por su lado Este. Consta de tres (3) habitaciones, dos (2) baños, lavandería, cocina, comedor, sala y balcón. Le corresponde a este apartamento un (1) espacio de estacionamiento identificado con el número diecisiete (17). A este apartamento le corresponde una participación en los elementos comunes del Condominio de unto cero cinco cinco cinco cero porciento (.05550%). Inscrito en la Finca número 33,459 de Sabana Llana del Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección V. Dirección Física: 2202 Apto. Cond.

Miradores de Venus San Juan

26 PR 00986. El siguiente pagaré consta inscrito en la propiedad antes mencionada y es el que se pretende ejecutar: HIPOTECA: Por $106,650.00, con intereses al 6.25% anual, en garantía de un pagaré a favor de RM Actual Mortgage, Inc., o a su orden, que vence el 1ro de abril de 2038. Según escritura #77, otorgada en San Juan, el 31 de marzo de 2008, ante Rey Javier De León Colón, inscrita al folio 107 del tomo 987 de Sabana Llana, inscripción 7ma. La referida hipoteca grava el bien inmueble antes descrito. Que según surge del estudio de título, la propiedad se encuentra afecta a los siguientes gravámenes posteriores: AVISO DE DEMANDA: De fecha 23 de enero de 2018, dada en el Caso Civil #SJ2018CV00328 (902), Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan; seguido por Scotiabank de Puerto Rico (demandante) versus Astrid Ivonne Rodríguez García (demandada). Se reclama el pago de la deuda garantizada con hipoteca de la inscripción 7ma., por $106,650.00, reducida a $92,167.26, más intereses y otras sumas, o la venta de esta f inca en pública subasta. Anotada en el tomo Karibe de la Sección V de San Juan, finca #33459 de Sabana Llana, anotación A y última, con fecha de 26 de mayo de 2020.

La subasta se llevará a cabo para con su producto satisfacer al demandante, total o parcialmente según sea el caso, de la referida sentencia que fue dictada por las siguientes sumas: $92,167.26 de principal, más los intereses sobre dicha suma al 6.25% anual, más 5% de todo pago en atraso, más $10,665.00 como cantidad estipulada para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogados, así como cualquier otra suma que contenga el contrato de préstamo. Y PARA CONOCIMIENTO DE LAS PARTES INTERESADAS y del público en general, se advierte que los autos de este caso y demás instancias están disponibles para ser inspeccionadas en la Secretaría del Tribunal de Primera Instancia Sala Superior de San Juan, durante las horas laborables.

Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad del inmueble y que las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito del ejecutante, incluyendo el gravamen por las contribuciones sobre la propiedad inmueble adeudadas, si los hubiere, continuarán subsistentes, entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda responsable de los mismos sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate.

La propiedad a ser ejecutada se adquirirá Libre de Cargas y Gravámenes posteriores. Los tipos mínimos a utilizarse para la subasta son los siguientes: El inmueble antes descrito ha sido tasado en la suma de

CIENTO SEIS MIL SEISCIENTOS CINCUENTA DOLARES ($106,650.00) para que dicha suma sirva de tipo mínimo en la primera subasta a celebrarse. De no producirse remate ni adjudicación en la primera subasta del antedicho inmueble, se celebrará una segunda subasta en el mismo lugar antes mencionado, el día 19 de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañana, sirviendo como tipo mínimo para dicha segunda subasta, una suma equivalente a las dos terceras (2/3) partes del tipo mínimo pactado para la primera subasta, o sea, la suma de SETENTA Y UN MIL CIEN DOLARES ($71,100.00) para la finca antes descrita. De no producirse remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta del antedicho inmueble, se celebrará una tercera subasta en el mismo lugar antes mencionado, el día 26 de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañana, sirviendo como tipo mínimo para dicha tercera subasta, una suma equivalente a la mitad (1/2) del tipo mínimo fijado para la primera subasta, o sea, la suma de CINCUENTA Y TRES MIL TRESCIENTOS VEINTICINCO DOLARES ($53,325.00) para la finca antes descrita. En testimonio de lo cual, expido el presente aviso, el cual firmo y sello, hoy 12 de noviembre de 2021, en San Juan, Puerto Rico. PEDRO HIEYE GONZALEZ, ALGUACIL.

LEGAL NOTICE ÉSTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

BOSCO CREDIT X, LLC, representado por su Agente de Servicios FRANKLIN CREDIT MANAGEMENT CORPORATION Demandante vs.

ALEXIS PAUL VELAZQUEZ SIERRA; GRETCHEN O’MAHONEY BATISTA

Demandados CIVIL NÚM. SJ2019CV02492 (604). SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO (Ejecución de Hipoteca por la Vía Ordinaria). EDICTO DE SUBASTA.

Al: Público en General A: ALEXIS PAUL VELAZQUEZ SIERRA; GRETCHEN O’MAHONEY BATISTA

Yo, EDWIN E. LOPEZ MULERO, Alguacil de este Tribunal, a la parte demandada y a los acreedores y personas con interés sobre la propiedad que más adelante se describe, y al público en general, HAGO SABER: Que el día 17 de diciembre de 2020, a las 10:00 de la mañana, en mi oficina, sita en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan,

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

San Juan, Puerto Rico, venderé en Pública Subasta la propiedad inmueble que más adelante se describe y cuya venta en pública subasta se ordenó por la vía ordinaria al mejor postor quien hará el pago en dinero en efectivo, giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del o la Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado, estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal de San Juan durante horas laborables. Que en caso de no producir remate ni adjudicación en la primera subasta a celebrarse, se celebrará una segunda subasta para la venta de la susodicha propiedad, el día 14 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana, y en caso de no producir remate ni adjudicación, se celebrará una tercera subasta el día 25 de enero de 2021, a las 10:00 de la mañana, en mi oficina sita en el lugar antes indicado. La propiedad a venderse en pública subasta se describe como sigue: URBANA: PROPIEDAD HORIZONTAL: Apartamento identificado con el número Cinco Mil Quinientos Cuatro (5504), ubicado en el Módulo (Unidad) número Cincuenta y Cinco (55) del Edificio número Siete (7), en el cuarto piso del CONDOMINIO ALTURAS DEL BOSQUE, a su vez localizado en el Barrio Cupey del término municipal de San Juan, Puerto Rico. Tiene una cabida superficial total de MIL QUINIENTOS NOVENTA Y SIETE PUNTO QUINIENTOS (1,597.500) PIES CUADRADOS, equivalentes a CIENTO CUARENTA Y OCHO PUNTO CUATROCIENTOS DIECISIETE (148.417) METROS CUADRADOS. Colinda por el NORTE, en una distancia de once punto veintisiete (11.27) metros lineales, con elementos exteriores y con área común; por el SUR , en una distancia de diez punto cincuenta y uno (10.51) metros lineales, con elementos exteriores ; por el ESTE, en una distancia de catorce punto veintisiete (14.27) metros lineales, con el apartamento número Cinco Mil Seiscientos Cuatro (5604) y con área común; y por el OESTE, en una distancia de trece punto cero nueve (13.09) metros lineales, con ·elementos exteriores. Contiene: sala, comedor, cocina , “family room”, dos baños, tres dormitorios, dos closets, un “walk-inclosef’, “vanity”, “linen closet’, “laundry”, terraza y un “porch”. Su puerta principal de acceso se encuenta en su colindancia Este. Le corresponde en su participación en los elementos comunes generales el Cero punto Cinco Cero Dos Uno Uno por ciento (0.50211 %).

Le pertenecen además el uso y disfrute de dos áreas para estacionamientos como anejos identificados con los números Ochenta y Cinco (85) y Ochen-

ta y Seis (86) localizados en la Calle Eucalipto. La escritura de hipoteca se encuentra inscrita al folio 21 del tomo 755 de Río Piedras Sur, Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Cuarta, finca número 21,271, inscripción segunda . La dirección física de la propiedad antes descrita es: Condominio Alturas del Bosque, Apartamento 5504, Módulo 55, Edificio Número 7, Cuarto Piso, San Juan, Puerto Rico. La Subasta se llevará a efecto para satisfacer a la parte demandante la suma de $194,773.23 de principal, intereses al 6 7/8% anual, desde el 1ro. de diciembre de 2017, hasta su completo pago, más la cantidad de $22,900 .00 estipulada para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado más recargos acumulados, todas cuyas sumas están líquidas y exigibles . Que la cantidad mínima de licitación en la primera subasta para el inmueble será de $229,000.00 y de ser necesaria una segunda subasta, la cantidad mínima será equivalente a 2/3 partes de aquella , o sea, la suma de $152,666.66 y de ser necesaria una tercera subasta , la cantidad mínima será la mitad del precio pactado , es decir, la suma de $114,500 .00. La propiedad se adjudicará al mejor postor, quien deberá satisfacer el importe de su oferta en moneda legal y corriente de los Estados Unidos de América en el momento de la adjudicación y que las cargas y gravámenes preferentes, si los hubiese, continuarán subsistentes , entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos , sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. La propiedad a ser vendida en pública subasta se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. EN TESTIMONIO DE LO CUAL, expido el presente Edicto para conocimiento y comparecencia de los licitadores, bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, en San Juan, Puerto Rico, a 18 de noviembre de 2020. EDWIN E. LOPEZ MULERO, ALGUACIL, DIVISIÓN DE EJECUCION DE SENTENCIAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

LEGAL NOT ICE ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, as certificate trustee on behalf of Bosco Credit II Trust Series 2017- 1 Demandante vs.

ANTONIO SUAREZ BORELLI; ANTONIO SUAREZ GARCIA y su esposa ZAIDA RITA

BORELLI LOPEZ y la Sociedad Legal de Bienes Gananciales compuesta por ambos

Demandados CIVIL NÚM: KCD2015-1136 (803). SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO (Ejecución de Hipoteca por la Vía Ordinaria). EDICTO DE SUBASTA.

Al : Público en General A: ANTONIO SUAREZ BORELLI; ANTONIO SUAREZ GARCIA y su esposa ZAIDA RITA BORELLI LOPEZ y la Sociedad Legal de Bienes Gananciales compuesta por ambos; ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA, por tener embargos anotados a su favor por las sumas de $29,215.77; $26,360.55 y $5,199.45

Yo, PEDRO HIEYE G0NZÁLEZ, Alguacil de este Tribunal, a la parte demandada y a los acreedores y personas con interés sobre la propiedad que más adelante se describe, y al público en general, HAGO SABER: Que el día 17 de diciembre de 2020, a las 10:30 de la mañana en mi oficina, sita en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan, San Juan, Puerto Rico, venderé en Pública Subasta la propiedad inmueble que más adelante se describe y cuya venta en pública subasta se ordenó por la vía ordinaria al mejor postor quien hará el pago en dinero en efectivo, giro postal o cheque certificado a nombre del o la Alguacil del Tribunal de Primera Instancia. Los autos y todos los documentos correspondientes al procedimiento incoado, estarán de manifiesto en la Secretaría del Tribunal de San Juan durante horas laborables. Que en caso de no producir remate ni adjudicación en la primera subasta a celebrarse, se celebrará una segunda subasta para la venta de la susodicha propiedad , el día 14 de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañana; y en caso de no producir remate ni adjudicación, se celebrará una tercera subasta el día 25 de enero de 2021, a las 10:30 de la mañana en mi oficina sita en el lugar antes indicado. La propiedad a venderse en pública subasta se describe como sigue: PROPIEDAD HORIZONTAL: URBANA: Apartamento número Doscientos Tres (203) . Apartamento residencial de forma irregular localizado en la tercera planta del Edifico Condómino Paradise Court I y consta de Dos (2) niveles , situado en la Calle Paraná Mil Quinientos Setenta y Tres (1573) Urbanización El Paraíso, del término municipal de San Juan, Puerto Rico. Área neta del apartamento: MIL DOSCIENTOS TREINTA Y CUATRO (1,234) PIES

CUADRADOS aproximadamente equivalentes a CIENTO CATORCE PUNTO SESENTA Y OCHO (114.68) METROS CUADRADOS aproximadamente en dos (2) niveles. En lindes: colinda por el NORTE con el apartamento Doscientos Cuatro (204) a lo largo de TREINTA Y OCHO PIES TRES PULGADAS (38’3”) LINEALES aproximadamente y área de acceso a lo largo de CUATRO PIES (4’) LINEALES aproximadamente separados por pared medianera; por el SUR aéreamente separado de pared irregular divisora de colindancia a una distancia de DIEZ PIES (10’) LINEALES aproximadamente, a través de CUARENTA Y DOS PIES TRES PULGADAS ( 42’3”) LINEALES aproximadamente, por el ESTE colinda con apartamento DOSCIENTOS DOS (202) a lo largo de una distancia de VEINTIÚN PIES Y TRES PULGADAS (21’3”) LINEALES aproximadamente separados por pared divisora. Por el OESTE aéreamente separado de acera y Calle Municipal a una distancia de DIECIOCHO PIES SEIS PULGADAS (18’6”) LINEALES aproximadamente a través de VEINTIÚN PIES Y TRES PULGADAS (21’3”) LINEALES aproximadamente.

El apartamento consta de Dos (2) niveles y está divido · en los siguientes elementos: Sala-comedor, Cocina, Dos (2) Cuartos Dormitorios con sus Closets, unidos por un pasillo central, Un (1) Baño con acceso al pasillo central, área de estar y una escalera interna que conduce al segundo nivel del apartamento el cual contiene Un (1) Cuarto familiar, Un (1) Baño y la terraza abierta. La puerta de entrada con acceso al vestíbulo del edificio. Le corresponde a esta unidad el uso exclusivo de dos estacionamientos marcados con el número Doce (12) y Trece (13) los cuales son elementos comunes limitados. Le corresponde a este apartamento en los elementos comunes generales del condominio QUINCE PUNTO UNO NUEVE SIETE POR CIENTO (15.197%). La escritura de hipoteca se encuentra inscrita al folio 59 del tomo 302 de Monacillos Este y El Cinco, Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta, finca número 7,830, inscripción tercera. La dirección física de la propiedad antes descrita es: Condominio Paradise Court I, Apt. PH-203, San Juan, Puerto Rico. La subasta se llevará a efecto para satisfacer a la parte demandante la suma de $168,713.39 de principal, intereses 6 3/4% anual desde el día lro. de febrero de 2015 hasta su completo pago, más la cantidad de $18,500.00 estipulada para costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado y recargos acumulados, todas cuyas sumas están líquidas y exigibles. Que la cantidad mínima de licitación

en la primera subasta para el inmueble será la suma de $185,000.00 y de ser necesaria una segunda subasta, la cantidad mínima será equivalente a 2/3 partes de aquella, o sea, la suma de $123,333.33 y de ser necesaria una tercera subasta, la cantidad mínima será la mitad del precio pactado, es decir, la suma de $92,500.00.

La propiedad se adjudicará al mejor postor, quien deberá satisfacer el importe de su oferta en moneda legal y corriente de los Estados Unidos de América en el momento de la adjudicación y que las cargas y gravámenes preferentes, si los hubiese, al crédito del ejecutante continuarán subsistentes, entendiéndose que el rematante los acepta y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate.

La propiedad hipótecada a ser vendida en pública subasta se encuentra afecta a los siguientes gravámenes posteriores: -----Embargo Federal contra A. Suárez Borelli y A. Orbay Cerrato, Seguro Social número xxx-xx-2508, por la suma de $29,215.77, notificación número 198266 916, de fecha 9 de febrero de 2016, anotado el día 29 de febrero de 2016, al Asiento 2016 -002038-FED del Sistema Karibe. Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta. ---- - Embargo Federal contra A. Suárez Borelli y A. Orbay Cerrato, Seguro Social número xxx-xx-2508, por la suma de $26,360.55, notificación número 198266716, de fecha 9 de febrero de 2016, anotado el día 2 de marzo de 2016, al Asiento 2016 -002035-FED del Sistema Karibe. Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta. -----Embargo Federal contra A. Suárez Borelli y A. Orbay Cerrato, Seguro Social número xxx-xx-2508, por la suma de $5,199.45, notificación número 271305217, de fecha 20 de julio de 2017, anotado el día 30 de agosto de 2017, al Asiento 2017-008623 - FED del Sistema Karibe. Registro de la Propiedad de San Juan, Sección Quinta. La propiedad a ser vendida en pública subasta se adquirirá libre de cargas y gravámenes posteriores. EN TESTIMONIO DE LO CUAL, expido el presente Edicto para conocimiento y comparecencia de los licitadores, bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, en San Juan, Puerto Rico, a 18 de noviembre de 2020. PEDRO HIEYE GONZALEZ, ALGUACIL, DIVISIÓN DE EJECUCION DE SENTENCIAS, TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA, SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN JUAN.

Demandante, v.

LEIDY YALEZKA VARGAS TORO

Demandada CIVIL NUM.: AG2020CV00116.

SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU. EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO. SS.

A: LEIDY YALEZKA VARGAS TORO

POR MEDIO del presente edicto se le notifica de la radicación de una demanda en cobro de dinero por la vía ordinaria en la que se alega que usted adeuda a la parte demandante, Oriental Bank, ciertas sumas de dinero, y las costas, gastos y honorarios de abogado de este litigio.

El demandante, Oriental Bank, ha solicitado que se dicte sentencia en contra suya y que se le ordene pagar las cantidades reclamadas en la demanda.

POR EL PRESENTE EDICTO se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva a la demanda dentro de los treinta (30) días de haber sido diligenciado este emplazamiento, excluyéndose el día del diligenciamiento. Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired.ramajudicial. pr/sumac/, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la Secretaría del Tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido término, el tribunal podrá dictar sentencia en rebeldía en su contra, y conceder el remedio solicitado en la Demanda, o cualquier otro, si el tribunal, en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente.

El abogado de la parte demandante es: Jaime Ruiz Saldaña, RUA número 11673; Dirección: PMB 450, 400 Calle Calaf, San Juan, PR 00918- 1314; Teléfono: (787) 759-6897; Correo electrónico: legal@jrslawpr. com. Se le advierte que dentro de los diez (10) días siguientes a la publicación del presente edicto, se le estará enviando a usted por correo certificado con acuse de recibo, una copia del emplazamiento y de la demanda presentada al lugar de su última dirección conocida: Camaceyes Industrial Park 107, Aguadilla, PR 00605; PO Box 5103 PMB 21, Cabo Rojo, PR 00623-5103. EXPEDIDO bajo LEGAL NOTICE mi firma y el sello del Tribunal ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO en Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, hoy DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU- dia 16 de agosto de 2020. SaNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA rahi Reyes Perez, Secretaria.

SALA DE AGUADILLA. Zuheily Gonzalez Aviles, SubORIENTAL BANK Secretaria.

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

27

Is the Mets’ new owner funny? An investigation

By DAVID WALDSTEIN

F

or a decade, Carlo Cerilli had been telling every New York Mets employee he encountered that the team ought to mark the spot in the parking lot where Cleon Jones caught the final out of the 1969 World Series at Shea Stadium. He had all but given up hope that anyone was listening.

That was, until he had an encounter on Twitter with Steven Cohen, the new owner of the team.

“I like that one,” Cohen wrote in a reply to Cerilli on Cohen’s newly verified Twitter account. After recovering from the shock that Cohen had actually replied to him, Cerilli thought to himself, “Finally, someone gets it.”

A chef from Dover, N.J. and a Mets season-ticket holder since 1993, Cerilli is not the only one to receive a personal response from Cohen. The new owner, whose purchase of the team was completed earlier this month, has engaged with dozens of fans in the past week or so.

It all stems from a post Cohen left Nov. 1, when he wrote, “I would love to hear your ideas to make YOUR Mets experience better.”

Cohen addressed many of the topics that Mets fans have argued about for years. One fan wanted Cohen to pay off the millions of dollars the team owes Bobby Bonilla, a former player, in deferred payments that are due every July 1. The fan, Pete Dembroski, said it was too embarrassing for Mets fans to have to endure every year.

Cohen’s response: “Can I make it July 2?”

An account labeled #FireAdamGase congratulated Cohen on receiving account verification from Twitter.

“I guess I’m really me,” Cohen wrote.

Last Thursday, Cohen responded to a fan with the screen name Patrick D who identified himself as an attendant at the O Lot at Citi Field and claimed he would be waving Cohen into the lot on game days.

“Patrick, I hope you let me in,” Cohen replied.

These exchanges are a drastic departure from the previous ownership group led by Fred Wilpon, his son Jeff Wilpon and Saul Katz, each of whom shied from engaging with fans in public, probably to avoid being bom-

barded with laundry lists of grievances over perceived mismanagement of the team.

Cohen, on the other hand, is seen as a knight in shining armor, galloping in to save the franchise from oblivion with an arsenal of cash, a reputation as a savvy business manager and now as a likable new figurehead.

Almost overnight, a man who seemed to operate best underneath the radar is poised to emerge as the most communicative owner in baseball, competing with the likes of Mark Cuban of the Dallas Mavericks for the title as the most approachable owner in sports. Cohen has a new toy, and, in a refreshing way, he seems to love playing with it.

Because of Twitter, we now know that Cohen’s favorite movie is “The Godfather,” he takes his hot dogs with mustard and sauerkraut and Tom Seaver was his favorite Met. Bold choices.

In an era of social media managers, it is fair to wonder if it is actually Cohen

behind the keyboard. But the responses feel genuine and are littered with just enough typos to lend credence to the idea that they were hammered out by a person between meetings, rather than an employee who would be risking their job by making the boss look bad.

Either way, the account marks a departure from Cohen’s previous reputation as a cryptic billionaire hedge fund owner. For years, he vigorously guarded his privacy and rarely did interviews unless they were off the record. He hated to be photographed, often buying the rights to images of himself to limit their distribution. It was hard for the general public to get the measure of his personality.

That changed Nov. 10. During a live video conference call with reporters, Cohen projected a relaxed, engaging and knowledgeable demeanor as the new leader of the Mets. It was the polar opposite of the Wilpons, whose news conferences often felt awkward and scripted.

But Cohen’s best comedic chops, and most playful side, have emerged on Twitter.

Returning to the Bonilla issue, Cohen wrote Friday: “Let’s take a vote.

How about we have a Bobby Bonilla day every year. Hand him an oversized check and drive a lap around the stadium. Could be fun.”

One fan asked if Cohen, a renowned art collector, would rip a Picasso painting in half for a World Series ring. It was a big ask, but make no mistake: Virtually all Mets fans would be there on Cohen’s front lawn, cheering him on if he would give it a shot.

Cohen’s playful response: “Can it be an inexpensive one?”

That answer seemed to clear up any question about the authenticity of the account. Only a billionaire of Cohen’s stature could consider a Picasso — any Picasso — inexpensive.

“He’s got a great sense of humor,” Cerillo, the chef, said. “Of course, he’s got a lot of money, so obviously people are going to laugh along. But I think it’s been great.”

Some of his gags deserve a drum roll and cymbal crash — if not an eyeroll — like when a fan with the screen name Swole Nate wrote, “Can I be the new GM?” “How about being a Ford?” Cohen answered.

Admittedly, it took one particularly thick reporter a few moments to get that one.

Following the same line of questioning, a fan named Ryan Novak declared he would be the general manager of the Mets in 15 years and asked if Cohen approved.

“I need to talk to myself 15 years from now,” Cohen wrote. “I’ll be right back.”

A query about the account was placed to the Mets, but the team said Cohen was not doing interviews for the moment. The team representative offered that anyone could dive in with a question on the account. So we asked, “Are you having as much fun with this as the fans are?” while sneaking in a plug for an official Fake Mustache Day. No reply yet. Perhaps it would have been better to suggest he give Bonilla half of the torn Picasso.

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The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

African soccer chief banned for five years over ethics violations

By TARIQ PANJA

F

IFA earlier this week barred the top official in African soccer from the sport for five years, upending the leadership of one of its six regional confederations only months before a presidential election and offering a new reminder that corruption continues to plague global soccer even at its most senior levels.

The punishment of the official, Ahmad Ahmad, who had been the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and a FIFA vice president since 2017, was related to his conduct from 2017 to 2019, according to a statement released Monday by FIFA’s ethics body. Ahmad was found guilty of breaching four separate articles of the organization’s ethics code, its statement said, including abuse of office, misappropriation of funds and rules concerning the offering and acceptance of gifts.

His ban will disqualify him from standing for a new term early next year, but Ahmad escaped with a shorter ban than another African official who was deemed to have violated one of the same rules.

The decision was announced more than a year after FIFA received complaints of wrongdoing by Ahmad, and 17 months after he was arrested and questioned by French investigators about corruption allegations related to an apparel contract. In its statement, FIFA said part of its investigation into Ahmad’s conduct in office was linked to that deal. Ethics investigators also looked into the financing of a pilgrimage trip for a number of African officials to the Saudi Arabian holy city of Mecca.

Ahmad’s ban means five of FIFA’s six global confederations have had to replace leaders accused of ethical violations since 2015, when a U.S. Department of Justice indictment revealed widespread corruption in the Americas and the Caribbean. FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, swept to power a year later, pledging to rid the organization of the culture of corruption that had stained its image and brought down his predecessor.

Ahmad had been one of the new breed of leaders that arrived in the wake of the scandals. With the backing of Infantino, who spent significant political

Ahmad Ahmad was facing investigations into his management of CAF’s finances and his behavior with female employees and consultants. capital lobbying on behalf of the thenlittle-known politician from a soccer backwater, Madagascar, Ahmad ousted Issa Hayatou, a towering figure in African soccer who had ruled the sport on the continent — and wielded great influence as a top FIFA executive — for more than two decades.

But under Ahmad’s leadership, CAF soon plunged into regular bouts of chaos and infighting. The problems peaked in 2019, when Ahmad fired the organization’s most senior administrator, the secretary-general Amr Fahmy, and other top executives. Fahmy, who died of cancer earlier this year, was among the officials who had provided FIFA with evidence against Ahmad; the accusations included not only financial misdeeds but also claims of sexual harassment made by female staff members and consultants.

Ahmad called the allegations an effort to smear his reputation and later denied wrongdoing in the French corruption investigation.

Ahmad did not respond to a request for a comment about his ban, which he can appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He is currently on medical leave after contracting COVID-19.

Ahmad’s departure leaves four candidates to replace him when CAF holds its presidential elections March 12. Until

then, the organization will be run by its senior vice president, Constant Omari of Congo, who faces his own ethics investigation over a television deal that he and Ahmad revised in a way that appeared to have benefited CAF’s broadcast partners at a cost of millions of dollars to African soccer.

Ahmad is also implicated in that investigation and could face further penalties as a result. In addition to his fiveyear ban, FIFA also fined Ahmad about $220,000.

FIFA ethics investigators are also looking into the conduct of other African officials. Leaked emails and documents have shown how some regional soccer leaders sought to receive payments from CAF to be routed into their private bank accounts instead of through their federations, and an audit completed earlier this year could not account for millions of dollars in development funds.

The 55-page report, completed by consultants from PWC, said “potential elements of mismanagement and possible abuse of power were found in key areas of finance and operations.” It provided yet another reminder of the challenges of reforming the governance of world soccer, which was rocked in 2015 when the United States filed a sweeping indictment that laid out in vivid de-

tail accusations of decades of corruption and wrongdoing by some of the sport’s most senior administrators.

As the leadership crisis in Africa worsened last year, FIFA took the extraordinary step of effectively taking temporary charge of CAF’s management.

It sent Fatma Samoura, its secretary general and Infantino’s top deputy, to supervise the organization’s operations at its headquarters in Cairo. That relationship ended abruptly in February, when CAF’s leadership opted against extending FIFA’s presence.

For Infantino, the ban of Ahmad, his one-time ally, is embarrassing, but it also presents an opportunity to find a new and reliable partner in Africa, a region that he has aggressively tried to cultivate.

As well as dispatching Samoura to CAF, he also sent Mario Gallavotti, one of his most trusted advisers, to help restructure operations and plot a path for further development. In December, Infantino floated the idea of a new 20-team Pan-African club tournament that he said could generate as much as $200 million in annual revenue, a sum that he argued might allow some of Africa’s top clubs to keep top talent in the region. Those plans have appeared to have stalled since CAF told FIFA’s emissaries to leave and the coronavirus crippled global sports.

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

29

Sudoku How to Play: Fill in the empty fields with the numbers from 1 through 9.

Sudoku Rules: Every row must contain the numbers from 1 through 9 Every column must contain the numbers from 1 through 9 Every 3x3 square must contain the numbers from 1 through 9

Crossword

Answers on page 30

Wordsearch

GAMES

HOROSCOPE Aries

30

(Mar 21-April 20)

With the Moon angling towards key planets in realistic Capricorn, dreams and reality combine to bring a creative sparkle to your plans, helping you stand out from the crowd. With livewire Mercury in Scorpio aligning with Neptune, you may be keen to get to the bottom of a mystery, and won’t rest until you have solved it. The information you uncover can be invaluable though.

Taurus

(April 21-May 21)

Friends can seem to know what’s on your mind without you saying anything, which may be disconcerting. Even so, you too will have the ability to connect with others, and sense what is going on with them. The Sun in a therapeutic zone makes this a time for sharing and caring, so that discussing something uncomfortable could be freeing, leaving you in a better space, Taurus.

Gemini

(May 22-June 21)

Feeling inspired? A positive Mercury/Neptune tie brings an imaginative touch to any plans you have on the go. It might be your suggestions that give a fresh perspective on an issue that seems to be going nowhere. Co-operation is key though, and if you can get others on board with your plans, you could go far. Need to lighten up, whether online or off, friends will certainly assist.

Cancer

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

(June 22-July 23)

Libra

(Sep 24-Oct 23)

Money makes the world go round, but with a nebulous aspect on the go, you may be tempted by something and then find it wasn’t what you thought.

Before you click the buy now’ button or open your purse, read some reviews and ask others who have something similar. No matter how amazing it looks, it could have hidden faults, so do some research and you won’t get caught out.

Scorpio

(Oct 24-Nov 22)

Discernment is key under the current elusive sky, when things might not be as they seem. At the same time, you may not want to look too closely at something that you are enjoying, even if you know there will be a price to pay. You could also use this influence to channel a creative or artistic skill that needs an outlet. So, if you feel like indulging, this is a golden opportunity.

Sagittarius

(Nov 23-Dec 21)

Capricorn

(Dec 22-Jan 20)

It’s not your usual style to keep secrets, but this time it might seem the most appropriate way to navigate through an issue. You may be your emboldened self in all other respects though, and with the Sun in your sign and Mars in impatient Aries, you likely have things to do and places to go, Archer. Don’t put off getting started on something important, make a move now.

A budding romance might seem to shimmer with a dreamy light, and if things have been building up, then you may be convinced you’ve met someone very special. What can persuade you is that you seem so in tune with each other, and perhaps able to finish each other’s sentences. Plus, with luscious venus now in magnetic scorpio, things could soon go from strength to strength.

As the Sun moves further into a private and spiritual sector, you may find yourself reflecting on matters you have been too busy to look at. The coming weeks bring opportunities to tie up loose ends, or find closure on situations that now need to be resolved. If you’re willing to slow down, it could help you to relax mentally and physically, which can be just what you need at this time.

Leo

Aquarius

(July 24-Aug 23)

Should you discuss how you feel, or not? With articulate Mercury aligning with Neptune, you may be in two minds, especially if you feel rather vulnerable at this time. But if you trust someone enough to share with them, it could be very healing. You might feel such relief that your energy levels pick up. A restless urge to uncover new opportunities can keep you busy though.

Virgo

(Aug 24-Sep 23)

With the Moon angling towards Pluto, it’s possible that your first meeting with someone could be intense. Other aspects suggest that you might have more in common than you think, and this can keep you busy talking for some time. Eager to form a creative collaboration? An imaginative Mercury/Neptune link may encourage you to make something beautiful together.

(Jan 21-Feb 19)

There may be so many reasons to want to socialize, particularly with charming Venus urging you to network with others who share your goals, or who might be able to help you with your career or business.

There’s so much you can accomplish by extending the hand of friendship and showing interest in what others are doing. Keen to commit to a deal? It’s wise to do a little research first.

Pisces

(Feb 20-Mar 20)

Want to increase your income? If so, it may be time to toot your horn and let others know about your triumphs, skills and readiness to take on new challenges. As Mercury aligns with Neptune though, you could get caught up in other matters that involve someone from faraway. If you have a yearning to talk to them, then do go ahead, as it can enhance your relationship no end Pisces.

Answers to the Sudoku and Crossword on page 29

The San Juan Daily Star

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

31

CARTOONS

Speed Bump

Frank & Ernest

BC

Scary Gary

Wizard of Id

For Better or for Worse

Herman

Ziggy

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Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star