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Is Food Aid Drying Up Bayer Opens Jobs for Island’s Deaf for More Puerto Rico & Partially Deaf Community Residents?

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November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

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November 27-29, 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.

Retailers Assn. advises small & midsize business to sell online

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t will be a sad Black Friday and holiday season for Puerto Rico’s small and midsize businesses.

United Retailers Association (CUD by its Spanish acronym) President Jesús Vázquez said Wednesday that given the global pandemic, the organization has advised its members to sell their items online on Black Friday to be able to compete amid the capacity restrictions imposed on island businesses to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

“We have told them to sell online in order to compete,” Vázquez said. “On Black Friday the real loser is small business because the big store chains get preferential rates. It is truly unfair competition.”

He said Cyber Monday, which comes after Black Friday, is no longer a one-day sale as the entire retail business has changed with more people opting to buy items online to avoid the crowds. CUD has created a platform for its members so they can promote their products free of charge.

Vázquez said that due to the global pandemic and the restrictions imposed on businesses, he expects 12 percent of Puerto Rico’s small retailers and businesses to shut down by the end of December.

There are some 60,000 small and midsize businesses on the island.

“The impact of the pandemic has been very negative,” Vázquez said when asked about Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced’s executive order restricting the number of people inside a store at any given time.

He said the island government stopped talking to businesses in September and does not consult with them about the executive order.

“I want to see the studies that show that businesses are the ones spreading COVID-19,” the CUD president said, adding that so far governor-elect Pedro Pierluisi is not talking to them either.

Another organization, Empresarios por Puerto Rico, promoted Orange Wednesday, which will be extended to Jan. 7. The businesses that participate in the initiative will dress in orange, including warehouse stores, pharmacies and supermarkets.

The businesses participating in Orange Wednesday stressed the need to prevent the collapse of small businesses.

Meanwhile, Economic Development and Commerce Secretary Manuel Laboy on Wednesday revealed the August 2020 numbers for retail sales in Puerto Rico, which he said show that sales are strong. He said retail sales reached $3 billion, an 11.5 percent hike compared to August 2019.

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The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

Small businesses push to thrive safely on Black Friday amid pandemic Local entrepreneurs call on citizens to ‘shop locally’ to invest in future economy

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

W

ith the island facing the COVID-19 pandemic and a sharp rise in positive cases, small businesses in Puerto Rico are looking to thrive safely on Black Friday weekend.

Entrepreneurs are also calling for shoppers to support more local businesses during the islandwide public health emergency.

Closet Sustentable owner Francheska Nazario García said her shop in Bayamón’s Urbanización Santa Rosa will be offering “on Friday and Saturday up to 50% discount on both new and secondhand merchandise” so people can get their holiday outfits or make a wardrobe change at an accessible price and break the fast fashion cycle.

“With your purchase, you’re helping the environment and fighting against the impact of producing waste. Even if it’s a small purchase, supporting this niche means supporting the planet,” Nazario García said.

“With Closet Sustentable, I’m giving an opportunity to people to bring garments and give them credit so clients feel like they’re getting something good in return; what I’m letting my clients do is to get into a reuse process.”

Meanwhile, the entrepreneur said supporting local thrift and consignment stores not only saves money by helping fashionforward people find “a garment for every season that starts from just two dollars,” but it can also lead to a healthier lifestyle.

She expressed hope that “things will be different than last year” during this Black Friday weekend sale, as she expects “Puerto Ricans to shop more locally and not go straight to a mall.”

“My clientele is telling me that they’re going out less, they’re scared of going out, and I’m feeling an impact already,” said Nazario García, who earlier this year faced the challenge of moving her consignment store into a larger venue on March 15, the day the COVID-19 lockdown in Puerto Rico took effect.

Therefore, she told the Star, she opened her online store, www.closersustentablepr. com, while her Instagram account, @closetsustentablepr is also open for business.

In order for clients to stay safe, Nazario García said “delivery and curbside pick-up options are available.”

In October, she also began her Pop-Up Closet Collab project to “provide thriving entrepreneurs an accessible rental space to initiate their businesses.”

Projects such as Picaflor (@pica_flor_ on Instagram), which designs and sells handmade accessories made with paper beads, and The Jewelry Bar (@TheJewelryBar on Instagram), which sells materials for costume jewelry design, are some of the emerging businesses that share space with Nazario García’s three-year old project.

Meanwhile, Camille Serrano, owner of Solid Hair Care, which is focused on producing minimal-waste haircare products, told the Star that her enterprise will have an online bundle sale where “clients will get the chance to purchase our products with a 50% discount.”

“I will have five solid shampoos for $25, four solid conditioners for $26 and bottled products will be three for $24,” Serrano said. “Technically, every purchase will be half price.”

As for her business, which she started on Instagram (@solidhaircare) after her mother advised her to sell the products she made for herself after losing her entertainment gigs due to the coronavirus pandemic, Serrano said “the ship has been sailing.”

In fact, she said that due to a surprising number of orders, she had to open an online boutique, www.solidhaircare.org, “to keep proper track of every order.”

“We’ve been getting great feedback.

Thankfully, we’ve received plenty of support; now my sister and three friends of mine are working with me,” Serrano said. “People have received our project with love and patience.

I’m noticing that Puerto Ricans are becoming more conscious, are up for changes and for accepting proposals that are different.”

As for shopping at small local enterprises, Serrano said that especially by supporting them this year, “you’re moving the island’s economy and providing jobs for our citizens.”

“By supporting local businesses, you’re

Entrepreneurs are calling for shoppers to support more local businesses during the islandwide public health emergency. (Photo: Closet Sustentable)

providing a chance for a Puerto Rican to reach their dreams,” she said. “If God allows me, if I accomplish making more income with my enterprise, I want to invest in the local arts scene; I want to see people grow and not feel limited in becoming dancers or actors. I want to break the barrier where you feel the need to study, study, study, and because you don’t belong in an elite group, you feel like you can’t become successful.”

Meanwhile, the Star gathered more Black Friday offers that other small businesses will have available.

For goth and alternative makeup enthusiasts, local makeup brand Necromancy Cosmetica (@necromancycosmetica) said via a written statement that “all lip products will have a 25% discount from Friday to Monday.”

For the more colorful makeup lovers, local makeup brand BYMELOLOPS (@ bymelolops) said it “will be offering many things that will be posted later on our [Instagram] page.” At press time, the brand had released a 10 percent discount on their pre-order of the Cutcreaser Comic Book kit, which includes eight mini ink eyeliners and a liner brush set.

For vintage fashion lovers, thrift store Electroshock (@electroshockpr), located on Loíza Street in Santurce, told the Star that “all garments will have a 15% discount. It will not apply to local artist designs or store credit purchases.”

Likewise, Vintage Rack Thrift Shop, located at Jesús T. Piñero Ave. in San Juan, announced on its Instagram account (@ vintagerackthethriftshop) that “all regularpriced vintage and modern garments will be 50% off.”

For artisanal soap lovers, local enterprise Barras (www.shopbarras.com) will offer discounts of up to 50 percent on select products in their Black Friday sale via “VIP Access,” which netizens can log onto for free at www. ofertasbarras.com to get their offers.

For vinyl record and art collectors, art and record store Ojo de Tigre (www.ojodetigrepr. com), located on Hipódromo Street in San Juan, will be “releasing new records, quirks and artwork” during Black Friday weekend.

For local design enthusiasts, Chroma: Local Design Shop (www.chromalocal.com) at the Mall of San Juan will be ready for their “Blue Friday,” where buyers can “get 20% off on selected brands.”

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

5

Food aid drying up for more Puerto Rico residents

By JOHN McPHAUL jpmcphaul@gmail.com

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Washington-based public interest assistance group, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), is calling for increased food assistance to Puerto Rico, saying Puerto Rico residents are going hungry due to longstanding inequality with stateside food assistance programs and recent budget cuts.

Emergency assistance to the island in response to the multiple disasters that have befallen the island has run out, leaving a drop in food assistance from about $323 million in July to about $188 million in October, said the center’s senior research analyst, Brynne Keith-Jennings.

The problem has been exacerbated by the fact that 200,000 island residents have been added to the Nutritional Assistance Program (PAN by its Spanish acronym),which provides food assistance to Puerto Rico.

The PAN program is part of a Community Block Grant capped at $1.9 billion a year for more than 1.3 million Puerto Rico residents.

Unlike its stateside counterpart, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which fluctuates according to the price of food, the PAN allocation is fixed.

PAN beneficiaries receive close to 50 percent less benefits than their SNAP counterparts.

Additionally, they do not have access to disaster nutrition assistance, such as Disaster-SNAP, which allows beneficiaries the maximum allotment of benefits per household in the aftermath of a disaster.

“It’s really a longstanding problem,” KeithJennings said. “Puerto Rico receives a fixed amount of funding, [and] though they received funding due to natural disasters, they still don’t receive the funding on a par with the SNAP program, which fluctuates with the price of food.”

Congress should provide some relief in the short term, but in the long term it should put Puerto Rico on a par with the stateside jurisdictions under the SNAP program, KeithJennings added.

The commonwealth receives a fixed amount of federal funding each year so it must set benefit and eligibility levels that ensure pro-

gram costs stay within this rigid funding level, rather than basing them on need. Meanwhile, SNAP bases benefits on an estimate of the cost of food and provides benefits to all eligible people who apply.

The CBPP made the following observation about the food disparity: Because of PAN’s limited funding, most PAN participants receive lower benefits than they likely would under SNAP, often far lower, despite very low incomes among participants and evidence suggesting higher food prices in general. PAN can’t

expand participation without congressional action when more people need help buying food such as following a natural disaster or during an economic crisis — at least, not without lowering benefits. SNAP’s growth in recent months is in part because its funding lets the program expand when need increases.

The public interest group said the federal Agriculture Department should quickly work with Puerto Rico to get much-needed nutrition assistance to children, as many across the commonwealth continue to experience hardship.

“With millions of Americans struggling to meet their basic food needs in light of COVID-19, states are using new options to support households through SNAP (food stamps) and school meal replacement programs. But Puerto Rico — which was already at a relative disadvantage when the pandemic began — can’t use the same new tools and options,” Keith-Jennings said. “More federal funding for nutrition assistance and access to the same options would help the commonwealth respond to rising need due to COVID-19 and the deep economic downturn.”

Energy justice nonprofit: PREB interim wheeling to hinder wheeling sector development

By THE STAR STAFF

T

he Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (PREB) recently proposed an interim wheeling rate that would result in the hindering of the development of the wheeling sector, according to the Institute for Competitiveness and Economic Sustainability (ICSE by its Spanish initials).

Wheeling entails the transfer of energy from a supplier to a customer, which on the island would mean using the power lines of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA).

ICSE -- which describes itself on its website as “an action-oriented non-profit educational organization under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code” that “plan[s], educate[s] and coordinate[s] the execution of key economic reforms for the sustainable socio-economic well-being of Puerto Rico” -- had advised the PREB prior to its decision that the regulator needed to ensure that all customers pay their share of transition and stranded costs so third parties compete against PREPA’s cost of supply.

In an order titled “Procedures for the Development of an Interim Unbundling Rate and Full Unbundling,” the PREB announced that it was going to bifurcate the wheeling process into two proceedings as it had authority under the law to do so.

The first proceeding “will be the establishment of an interim wheeling rate so that the wheeling process may begin for wheeling customers who are eager to finalize power purchase agreements for the development of sources of generation to serve their load,” the order said.

The second process entails the full unbundling of rates by function and customer class as well as stranded costs.

The proposed interim unbundled rate that a wheeling customer would pay PREPA, however, “would be the full retail rate minus the fuel and purchase costs,” according to PREB in an order issued Oct. 14.

The interim wheeling rate would make the costs of wheeling too expensive, ICSE maintains, and repeal any incentive for customers to leave PREPA for other suppliers.

Wheeling customers will end up paying between 22 cents to 23 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is the same amount they will pay if they get their energy from PREPA. To illustrate wheeling costs using PREB’s formula, a customer that receives a bill for $130 would have to subtract fuel and purchase costs, for a resulting amount of $80. Then the resulting dollar amount is divided by the residential customer’s monthly consumption, which in the example was 710 kWh, to obtain the resulting wheeling charge, which is 8.8 cents. If the customer, for example,

gets its energy from Company X, which charges 15 cents per kWh, the 8.8 cents would have to be added to the rate. That means the customer will end up paying 23.8 cents per kWh for service.

“This would result in excessive wheeling charges at the transmission level for commercial and industrial consumers of up to 10 cents per kWh,” Tomás Torres, PREPA’s consumer representative, said, adding that such charges are generally much smaller.

The PREB said it imposed the temporary rate to allow certain power purchase operating agreements with wheeling customers to move forward, but John Jordan, managing director for bond insurer National Public Finance Guarantee Corp., commented in written remarks that he did not see the need for a rush.

“Moreover, National notes that the proposal to implement wheeling on an accelerated schedule does not appear to account for the significant changes that will need to occur to billing systems, load management, communication systems, and more,” Jordan wrote. “If these changes cannot occur prior to the completion of full unbundling, then any value of an Interim Unbundled Rate is diminished. National is also concerned about the multitude of regulatory cases that remain pending and, like this case, intermittently move forward (or not) after long periods of inactivity. It suggests these proceedings may not be optimally sequenced for timely and efficient resolution. Many objectives have been set forth for the future electrical system. It will take planning, deliberation, and persistence to achieve those objectives.”

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The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

Company opens jobs for deaf & partially deaf community

By JOHN McPHAUL jpmcphaul@gmail.com

B

ayer Crop Science Puerto Rico announced Wednesday that it is recruiting talent within the island’s deaf and partially deaf community to fill several field worker and soy pollinator positions.

The initiative seeks to provide job opportunities for the deaf and partially deaf community, in particular while providing candidates with training for the job.

“The initiative came about after identifying the needs of the deaf and partially deaf community, in addition to the company’s wish to take advantage of the planting season to fill those needs,” said Darin Rodríguez-Wells Torres, human resources lead for Bayer in Puerto Rico. “In addition to filling a company need we are providing an opportunity to a population in our community so they can improve their quality of life.”

Rodríguez-Wells said the job positions that are currently available are for soy pollinators, but the company expects to expand the job offerings to other areas throughout the season.

She added that the pollinator position does not require previous experience but

interested candidates must present a high school diploma as proof that they completed high school. The position also requires skills managing iPhone, iPad, and iPod technology, in addition to availability to work overtime, weekends and holidays should it be necessary.

Rodríguez-Wells noted that special accommodation will be available for interviews, in addition to the entire recruitment and onboarding process.

Sign language interpreters and video relay services will also be available.

Interested candidates must send an email to Ivonne Rodríguez Rohena at ivonne. rodriguezrohena@bayer.com along with an updated resume and high school diploma.

For more information, candidates can contact the Bayer Crop Science station in Juana Díaz at (787) 260-2916 or through Facebook® at www.facebook.com/bayer4cropspr.

Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care, nutrition and agriculture. According to the company, its products and services are designed to benefit people by supporting efforts to overcome the major challenges presented by a growing and ag-

ing global population. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development, and the Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability, and qual-

ity throughout the world. In fiscal 2019, the Group employed around 104,000 people and had sales of 43.5 billion euros. Capital expenditures amounted to 2.9 billion euros, R&D expenses to 5.3 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.

Industrial Assn. Women’s Chapter to hold summit Dec. 3

By JOHN McPHAUL jpmcphaul@gmail.com

T

he Women’s Chapter of the Puerto Rico Industrial Association (AIPR by its Spanish initials) will hold its 4th Summit, now virtual, Dec. 3 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. under the theme “Building Our Future Together

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… Today!” announced Georyanne Ríos, president of the Women’s Chapter of the AIPR. “Every day more women reach leadership positions both in industry and in government, on the island and abroad,” said AIPR President Carlos M. Rodríguez. “And their work and commitment to excellence has made a difference in corporate results and in meeting challenges.”

The keynote speaker at the Summit will be María Cuba, a Puerto Rican who is a leader on the issues of diversity and belonging at Airbnb offices in California.

She will speak about “Growth Mindset.”

Also, two panels of women leaders in the manufacturing and services sectors will be held, said Yandia Pérez, executive vice president of the AIPR. The participants in the panels are, in the Service and Product Leaders Panel: Viviana Mercado, Walmart; Elba Rivera Molina, Fundación MCS; Bárbara Serrano, B Real & Mortgage; and Aysha Issa, First Bank. The moderator will be Yaneza Bravo of Ranger American. In the Manufacturing Panel: Wendy Perry, Merck; Iliette Frontera, Boston Scientific; Jackeline Colón. The moderator will be Katherine González of Ferraiuoli.

The event will feature a series of motivational talks and will close with the long-awaited recognition of Industrial Women 2020 and several additional awards in various categories.

For information and reservations, go to www.industrialespr.org or contact José Torres at (787) 638-0034.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

7

Trump stress-tested the election system, and the cracks showed

By ALEXANDER BURNS

A

s President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election have steadily disintegrated, the country appears to have escaped a doomsday scenario in the campaign’s epilogue: Since Nov. 3, there have been no tanks in the streets or widespread civil unrest, no brazen intervention by the judiciary or a partisan state legislature. Joe Biden’s obvious victory has withstood Trump’s peddling of conspiracy theories and his campaign of groundless lawsuits.

In the end — and the postelection standoff instigated by Trump and his party is truly nearing its end — the president’s attack on the election wheezed to an anticlimax. It was marked not by dangerous new political convulsions but by a letter from an obscure Trump-appointed bureaucrat, Emily Murphy of the General Services Administration, authorizing the process of formally handing over the government to Biden.

For now, the country appears to have avoided a ruinous breakdown of its electoral system.

Next time, Americans might not be so lucky.

While Trump’s mission to subvert the election has so far failed at every turn, it has nevertheless exposed deep cracks in the edifice of American democracy and opened the way for future disruption and perhaps disaster. With the most amateurish of efforts, Trump managed to freeze the passage of power for most of a month, commanding submissive indulgence from Republicans and stirring fear and frustration among Democrats as he explored a range of wild options for thwarting Biden.

He never came close to achieving his goal: Key state officials resisted his entreaties to disenfranchise huge numbers of voters, and judges all but laughed his legal team out of court.

Ben Ginsberg, the most prominent Republican election lawyer of his generation, said he doubted any future candidates would attempt to replicate Trump’s precise approach, because it has been so unsuccessful. Few candidates and election lawyers, Ginsberg suggested, would regard Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell — the public faces of Trump’s litigation — as the authors of an ingenious new playbook.

“If in a few months, we look back and see that this Trump strategy was just an utter

failure, then it’s not likely to be copied,” said Ginsberg, who represented former President George W. Bush in the 2000 election standoff.

“But the system was stress-tested as never before.”

That test, he said, revealed enough vague provisions and holes in American election law to make a crisis all too plausible. He pointed in particular to the lack of uniform standards for the timely certification of elections by state authorities, and the uncertainty about whether state legislatures had the power to appoint their own electors in defiance of the popular vote. The 2020 election, he said, “should be a call for some consideration of those issues.”

Yet even without precipitating a fullblown constitutional crisis, Trump has already shattered the long-standing norm that a defeated candidate should concede quickly and gracefully and avoid contesting the results for no good reason. He and his allies also rejected the long-standing convention that the news media should declare a winner, and instead exploited the fragmentation of the media and the rise of platforms like Twitter and Facebook to encourage an alternative-reality experience for his supporters.

The next Republican candidate to lose a close election may find some voters expecting him or her to mimic Trump’s conduct, and if a Democrat were to adopt the same tactics, the GOP would have no standing to complain.

Still more important, legal and political experts said, is the way Trump identified perilous pressure points within the system.

Those vulnerabilities, they said, could be manipulated to destabilizing effect by someone else, in a closer election — perhaps one that featured real evidence of tampering, or foreign interference, or an outcome that delivers a winner who was beaten handily in the popular vote but scored a razor-thin win in the Electoral College.

In those scenarios, it might not be such a long-shot gambit for a losing candidate to attempt to halt certification of results through low-profile state and county boards, or to bestir state legislators to appoint a slate of electors or to pressure political appointees in the federal government to block a presidential transition.

Indeed, Trump managed to intrude on normal election procedures in several states.

He summoned Michigan Republican leaders to the Oval Office as his allies floated the idea of appointing pro-Trump electors from the state, which Biden carried by more than 150,000

Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, addresses a news conference at Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, Nov. 19, 2020. votes. And he inspired an onslaught from the right against Georgia’s Republican secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, who declined to affirm Trump’s false claims of ballot tampering.

Though Raffensperger oversaw a fair election, both of Georgia’s Republican senators, channeling the president, called for his resignation.

It remains to be seen whether Trump will wind up as a singularly sore loser or as the herald of a new Wild West era in American electioneering. There have been far closer elections this century — including the 2000 vote that plunged the country into a weekslong review of Florida’s rickety vote-counting procedures, and the 2016 election that made Trump president through a historically wide split between the popular vote and the Electoral College. But no one else has entertained the corrosive tactics Trump has sought to employ.

Like numerous other presidential schemes over the last four years, Trump’s plot against the election unraveled in part because of external circumstances — the large number of swing states Biden carried, for instance — and in part because of his own clumsiness. His lawyers and political advisers never devised an actual strategy for reversing the popular vote in multiple big states, relying on a combination of televised chest-thumping and wild claims of big-city election fraud for which there was no evidence.

Barbara Pariente, the former chief justice

of the Florida Supreme Court who oversaw the state-level battle over the 2000 vote, said it was essential for Congress to clarify the process by which elections are conducted and resolved or risk greater calamity in the coming years.

Trump’s team, she said, had already breached fundamental standards of legal conduct by filing cases seeking to throw out huge numbers of votes “without any evidence of impropriety, and then asking a court to look further into it.”

“As I look at what is happening now, I think it’s a real attack on our American system of democracy, and it is causing tens of millions of Americans to doubt the outcome,” Pariente said. “It has grave implications, in my view, for the future of this country.”

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The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

Over 30 Trump campaign lawsuits have failed. Some rulings are scathing.

By ALAN FEUER and ZACH MONTAGUE

J

udges, a generally sober lot, are not as a rule given to snark, sarcasm or outbursts of emotion in their orders.

But in the nearly three dozen lawsuits challenging the 2020 election that the Trump campaign and its proxies have either lost or withdrawn in recent weeks, a number of judges have lost patience.

Here are some scathing excerpts from their rulings: Pennsylvania Oct. 10 “Perhaps Plaintiffs are right that guards should be placed near drop boxes, signature-analysis experts should examine every mail-in ballot, poll watchers should be able to man any poll regardless of location, and other security improvements should be made. But the job of an unelected federal

President Trump at the White House last week. judge isn’t to suggest election improvements, especially when those improvements contradict the reasoned judgment

of democratically elected officials.”

“Put differently, federal judges can have a lot of power — especially when issuing injunctions. And sometimes we may even have a good idea or two. But the Constitution sets out our sphere of decision-making, and that sphere does not extend to second-guessing and interfering with a state’s reasonable, nondiscriminatory election rules.” — Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, dismissing the Trump campaign’s attempt to stop Pennsylvania counties from using ballot drop boxes and from tallying absentee ballots that were not in a “secrecy” envelope.

Nov. 21 “This claim, like Frankenstein’s Monster, has been haphazardly stitched together… This Court has been presented with strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations, unpled in the operative complaint and unsupported by evidence. In the United States of America, this cannot justify the disenfranchisement of a single voter, let alone all the voters of its sixth most populated state. Our people, laws, and institutions demand more.” — Judge Matthew W. Brann of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, dismissing the Trump campaign’s attempt to block certification of Pennsylvania’s election result. (The state certified its results Tuesday.)

Texas Nov. 2 “Here, the court finds the plaintiffs did not act with alacrity. There has been an increasing amount of conversation and action around the subject of implementing drivethrough voting since earlier this summer…”

“At virtually any point, but certainly

by October 12, 2020, plaintiffs could have filed this action. Instead, they waited until October 28, 2020 at 9:08 p.m. to file their complaint and did not file their actual motion for temporary relief until midday on October 30, 2020 — the last day of early voting.” — Judge Andrew S. Hanen of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, dismissing a Republican-led lawsuit seeking to end drive-through voting in heavily Democratic Harris County, Texas.

Michigan Nov. 6 “This ‘supplemental evidence’ is inadmissible as hearsay. The assertion that

Connarn was informed by an unknown individual what ‘other hired poll workers at her table’ had been told is inadmissible hearsay within hearsay, and plaintiffs have provided no hearsay exception for either level of hearsay that would warrant consideration of the evidence.” — Judge Cynthia Stephens of the Michigan Court of Claims, dismissing a Republican-led lawsuit attempting to stop the count of absentee ballots in the state.

Nov. 13 “Perhaps if plaintiffs’ election challenger affiants had attended the Oct. 29, 2020, walk-through of the TCF Center ballotcounting location, questions and concerns could have been answered in advance of Election Day. Regrettably, they did not and, therefore, plaintiffs’ affiants did not have a full understanding” of the absentee ballot tabulation process.” — Judge Timothy M. Kenny of the 3rd Judicial Circuit Court of Michigan, dismissing a Republican-led suit seeking to stop the certification of the vote in Wayne County. (Michigan certified its results Monday.)

Georgia Nov. 19 “To halt the certification at literally the 11th hour would breed confusion and disenfranchisement that I find have no basis in fact and law.” — Judge Steven D. Grimberg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, in a ruling from the bench, turning down an emergency request from a Trump supporter, L. Lin Wood, to halt certification of the vote in Georgia. (Georgia certified its results Friday.)

Nov. 20 “Although Wood generally claims fundamental unfairness, and the declarations and testimony submitted in support of his motion speculate as to widespread impropriety, the actual harm alleged by Wood concerns merely a “garden variety” election dispute. Wood does not allege unfairness in counting the ballots; instead, he alleges that select non-party, partisan monitors were not permitted to observe the Audit in an ideal manner. Wood presents no authority, and the Court finds none, providing for a right to unrestrained observation or monitoring of vote counting, recounting, or auditing. — Grimberg, once again turning down Wood’s emergency request to halt certification of the vote in Georgia.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

9

Biden’s National Security team offers a sharp turn. But in which direction?

By ANNIE KARNI and DAVID E. SANGER

P

resident-elect Joe Biden formally introduced a national security team on Tuesday custom-designed to repudiate President Donald Trump’s nationalistic isolationism.

His nominee for secretary of state said in his remarks that Americans needed the “humility and confidence” to depend on allies. His choice to execute the nation’s immigration policy is a Cuban American whose parents were refugees from Fidel Castro. And his new intelligence chief warned Biden when she spoke that she would bring him news that would be politically “inconvenient or difficult.”

They were joined by a career Foreign Service officer who will serve as ambassador to the United Nations and John Kerry, who ran for president unsuccessfully 16 years ago and then became President Barack Obama’s secretary of state. Biden appointed him to a new role inside the National Security Council to put “climate change on the agenda in the Situation Room,” after four years in which the Trump administration tried to have the words struck from summit communiqués and international agreements.

But it was in Avril Haines’ paean to the intelligence community — which Trump often regarded as a group of “deep state” renegades who wrongly tied him to Russia — that the contrast with the outgoing administration became clear. “To our intelligence professionals, the work you do — oftentimes under the most austere conditions imaginable — is just indispensable,” said Haines, who would be the first woman to serve as director of national intelligence, overseeing 16 separate agencies.

Biden has hardly created a team of rivals. Many of his nominees have worked together for years and as the “deputies” in the Obama administration who ran the gears of government at the White House, the State Department and the CIA. That also includes the Department of Homeland Security, where Alejandro Mayorkas, who will oversee immigration policy, had served as deputy secretary before Biden named him to lead the department.

Several are close friends. And most would be considered “liberal interventionists” who led the charge against Trump’s dismissal of America’s traditional role as the keystone in both Atlantic and Pacific alliances.

It all gave the Tuesday announcement at Biden’s headquarters in Wilmington the air

of a restoration, or at least a class reunion.

Yet in his comments, Biden also seemed to acknowledge that the dangers his team would confront were starkly different from the ones they dealt with during the Obama presidency. “While this team has unmatched experience and accomplishments, they also reflect the idea that we cannot meet these challenges with old thinking and unchanged habits,” he said.

Biden talked about the need for “fresh thinking.” But achieving that balance will be his biggest challenge, both his own aides and outside experts have noted.

“His presidency may be the establishment’s last, best chance to demonstrate that liberal internationalism is a superior strategy to populist nationalism,” Thomas Wright, the Brookings Institution foreign policy scholar, wrote in The Atlantic recently.

That means resolving a subtle but clear debate within the Democratic establishment, one on which Biden has not yet chosen sides.

It boils down to whether Biden should pursue the kind of foreign policy one might have expected in an Obama “third term” — one marked by caution, repairing alliances and an avoidance of talk of new Cold Wars — or one that pursues new, more confrontational paths in recognition of how much global competition has changed over the past four years, starting with China.

Biden tried to dispel the idea that he was restoring Obama’s policies in an interview with Lester Holt of NBC News on Tuesday.

“This is not a third Obama term,” he said, because “we face a totally different world than we faced in the Obama-Biden administration.” He added: “President Trump has changed the landscape. It’s become America first, it’s been America alone.”

Jake Sullivan, 43, Biden’s choice for national security adviser, whom Biden also introduced, has come to embody the new thinking the president-elect referred to. “He is a once-in-a-generation intellect with the experience and temperament for one of the toughest jobs in the world,” he said, noting that when he was in his 30s Sullivan conducted the talks that led to a cease-fire in Gaza in 2012 and the secret opening of negotiations with Iran that led to the 2015 nuclear deal.

It is Sullivan who has argued most vociferously for new approaches to China that recognize the changed nature of the challenge. And some of the appointees who shared the stage in Delaware with Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have made

President-elect Joe Biden speaks at an event to introduce his nominations and appointments to foreign policy and national security positions, at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Del., Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020. clear in recent times that they have regrets from the Obama years.

Those regrets include underreacting to the plight of Syrians being attacked by their own government, not recognizing the scope of Russia’s interference in the 2016 election until it was too late and moving too slowly in responding to the China challenge.

“Any of us, and I start with myself, who had any responsibility for our Syria policy in the last administration has to acknowledge that we failed,” Antony Blinken, the nominee for secretary of state, said in May, in one of the starkest of those admissions. “We failed to prevent a horrific loss of life,” he said. “It is something I will take with me for the rest of my days.” He went on to criticize Trump for pulling U.S. troops out of Syria, and making the problem “arguably even worse.”

Conspicuously missing from the stage in Wilmington was one major player who is likely to have the biggest voice in the next Syria debate: Biden’s choice for defense secretary.

He has not named one yet, though the leading candidate is believed to be Michèle Flournoy, who served as the undersecretary of defense for policy under Obama and, in the Trump years, created a foreign policy advisory firm with Blinken, WestExec Advisors.

Flournoy, who has served in many senior roles in the Pentagon and was a co-founder of the Center for a New American Security, could be named next week, alongside Janet

Yellen, the former chair of the Federal Reserve, who is widely reported to be Biden’s choice for Treasury secretary. If selected and confirmed, Flournoy and Yellen would be the first woman in either role.

Preparing for what may be some brutal confirmation fights in two months, Biden’s nominees avoided any discussion of policy Tuesday and focused on their personal stories.

Perhaps the most powerful story came from Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the Black woman who is Biden’s choice for U.N. ambassador. She was one of the senior diplomats who left the State Department in the era of Rex Tillerson and Mike Pompeo, two secretaries of state who incited near rebellion among the diplomatic corps.

“Her dad couldn’t read or write, but she says he was the smartest person she knew,” Biden said, describing how Thomas-Greenfield, who served across Africa and in Pakistan, Switzerland and Jamaica, was the first in her family to go to high school or college.

It is the kind of story Biden likes to tell, and to compare to his own working-class roots. Thomas-Greenfield ended the tale with a description of how Southern cooking is a source of American soft power: At her diplomatic posts, she said, “I would invite people of different backgrounds and beliefs” to her kitchen to make the signature dish of her native Louisiana. “I called it gumbo diplomacy.”

10

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

Purdue Pharma pleads guilty to role in opioid crisis

By KATIE BENNER

P

urdue Pharma pleaded guilty Tuesday to criminal charges that it misled the federal government about sales of its blockbuster painkiller OxyContin, the prescription opioid that helped fuel a national addiction crisis. The admission brought a formal end to an extensive federal investigation that led to a multibilliondollar settlement between the company and the Justice Department.

“The abuse and diversion of prescription opioids has contributed to a national tragedy of addiction and deaths,” Jeffrey Rosen, deputy attorney general, said in a statement. “Today’s convictions underscore the department’s commitment to its multipronged strategy for defeating the opioid crisis.”

Purdue’s chairman, Steve Miller, acknowledged in a remotely conducted hearing in federal court in New Jersey that in order to meet sales goals, the company falsely told the Drug Enforcement Administration that it had created a

The headquarters of Purdue Pharma in Stamford, Conn. The company also pleaded guilty to paying illegal kickbacks to doctors and an electronic health records company that prescribed OxyContin.

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program to prevent OxyContin from being sold on the black market, even though it was marketing the drug to more than 100 doctors suspected of illegally prescribing OxyContin.

Purdue also pleaded guilty to paying illegal kickbacks to doctors who prescribed OxyContin and to an electronic health records company, Practice Fusion, for targeting physicians with alerts that were intended to increase opioid prescriptions. Practice Fusion has paid $145 million in fines for taking those kickbacks.

Doctors overprescribing OxyContin, along with illicit distribution of the drug, have contributed to the deaths of more than 450,000 Americans since 1999.

The plea brought to a close the federal government’s case against Purdue, which has filed for bankruptcy protection to handle the wave of litigation it faces.

The company agreed last month to plead guilty to criminal charges and face criminal and civil penalties of about $8.3 billion as part of the settlement with the Justice Department. A federal bankruptcy judge in New York approved the deal last week.

The settlement included $3.54 billion in criminal fines and $2 billion in criminal forfeiture of profits. The department said they were the largest financial penalties levied against a pharmaceutical manufacturer.

But the federal government is unlikely to receive a majority of the penalties, given that under its bankruptcy restructuring agreement, Purdue will pay other creditors first. In a bankruptcy

proceeding, creditors typically collect only pennies on the dollar for what they are owed.

The company’s owners, members of the wealthy Sackler family, agreed to pay $225 million in civil penalties as part of the settlement but did not immediately face criminal charges.

The sales of OxyContin helped the Sacklers build a fortune estimated to be at least $13 billion, an amount that dwarfs the fine.

But the settlement agreement does not preclude the federal government from investigating criminal charges against Purdue executives or Sackler family members who are involved with the company.

While the settlement gave the Trump administration a high-profile win in the war against opioid addiction, Purdue also pushed to settle its federal legal issues while President Donald Trump was still in office, anticipating that his officials would cut a more generous deal than a new administration.

Attorneys general in Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina and other states have said that the federal settlement failed to do enough to hold the Sackler family to account.

Purdue did “everything they can to get this deal done in this administration,” Joe Rice, a negotiator for local governments that are suing Purdue, said when the settlement was announced.

“It’s advantageous to both sides.”

While the company’s board said last month that it regretted its actions and accepted responsibility “for the misconduct detailed by the Department of Justice,” members of the Sackler family who had served on the company’s board, who could still face legal action, said that they had “acted ethically and lawfully.”

The statement added that those family members “relied on repeated and consistent assurances from Purdue’s management team that the company was meeting all legal requirements.”

OxyContin was introduced to the market in the mid-1990s as a miraculous, nonaddictive painkiller. That was inaccurate, and as more doctors prescribed it, people across the country became addicted to the drug. The increase in demand created a booming market for unlawful prescriptions and pharmacies that were no more than fronts for OxyContin sales, which also helped to fuel a larger scourge of addictions to illegal opioids like heroin and illicitly obtained fentanyl.

The federal settlement does not end all of the litigation that Purdue faces, nor will it end the continuing investigations and lawsuits related to other drugmakers and distributors accused of fueling the opioid addiction crisis.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

11

Yellen would assume vast policy portfolio as Treasury secretary

By ALAN RAPPEPORT, ANA SWANSON, JIM TANKERSLEY and JEANNA SMIALEK

J

anet Yellen’s expected nomination as Treasury secretary will place the former Federal Reserve chair into a critical role overseeing President-elect Joe Biden’s economic and national security agenda at an agency that has increasingly become a center of power.

While Yellen’s views on monetary policy are well known from her time leading the central bank, her perspective on a range of issues that are part of the Treasury Department’s portfolio are less known.

As Treasury secretary, Yellen will be the Biden administration’s chief economic diplomat and will face the challenge of reengaging with U.S. allies that have been put off by President Donald Trump’s “America first” economic policies, including his use of tariffs. She will most likely be the point person in negotiations with China and will have substantial input on trade policy, along with the use of U.S. sanctions on countries such as Iran and North Korea.

Domestically, Yellen will be the driving force behind the Biden administration’s tax policy — a significant role given that Biden made raising taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations a central part of his campaign. Yellen will also have the chance to tweak regulations stemming from Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, which left a great deal up to the Treasury in terms of putting a new taxing regime in place for multinational corporations. Under a Biden administration, the department could revise those regulations to raise taxes on some companies that operate abroad.

And she will also be at the center of the government’s borrowing spree, which is financed by issuing Treasury securities and has pushed the U.S. budget deficit to levels not seen since World War II. Here is what we know, so far, about Yellen’s views in several areas where she will have a role to play.

— A monetary ‘dove’ but a (somewhat) fiscal ‘hawk’ While Yellen is known for being dovish on monetary policy — meaning she supports lower interest rates — she has on many occasions expressed concern about the fiscal path of the United States and the amount of money it is borrowing.

Yellen’s fiscal worries came before the coronavirus pandemic and the current downturn, a moment when most economists have encouraged the United States to not worry about the deficit and to spend as much as necessary to help households and businesses weather the slump.

Still, Yellen’s previous comments suggest that she could be reluctant to push for big spending programs without raising taxes to offset the budgetary hit. The federal budget deficit soared to a record $3.1 trillion in the 2020 fiscal year and Republicans, who are expected to control the Senate, have once again started expressing concerns about how much the country is borrowing.

In a 2018 interview at the Charles Schwab Impact conference in Washington, Yellen said the United States’ debt

Then Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen testifies before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee in Washington on July 16, 2015. Yellen, President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Treasury secretary will face the tricky politics of generating a strong recovery out of the coronavirus pandemic. path was “unsustainable” and offered a remedy: “If I had a magic wand, I would raise taxes and cut retirement spending.”

Last year, Yellen touched on the third rail of Democratic politics when she suggested more directly that cuts to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security could be in order.

“I think it will not be solved without some additional revenues on the table, but I also find it hard to believe that it won’t be solved without some changes to those programs,” Yellen said at the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care Fall Conference.

— A free trader at heart As Treasury secretary, Yellen would inherit a battered global trading system destabilized by Trump’s aggressive approach to U.S. trade policy. She will have to confront a variety of decisions, including whether to continue Trump’s escalating sanctions on Chinese firms and officials, or his restrictions on the presence of Chinese companies on U.S. stock markets and in retirement portfolios.

Yellen is known for her strong support of open trade and the international trading system, though she has not hesitated to criticize China’s trade practices.

Like many on Biden’s team, Yellen appears to agree that many of the problems often ascribed to trade policy actually stem from the reluctance of U.S. officials to use domestic policies to support workers experiencing the worst effects of globalization.

Like many economists, Yellen criticized Trump’s focus on bilateral trade deficits, described his tariffs on China as a tax on American consumers and warned that his trade wars posed a recession risk for the U.S. economy.

She also expressed skepticism about Trump’s eventual trade deal with China, saying it left hefty tariffs in place that did little to help American manufacturers and did not resolve a “troublesome” clash with China over

technologies like 5G and artificial intelligence.

“We have very difficult issues that lie ahead,” Yellen said in a speech in Hong Kong in January, in which she urged countries to remain open to the “synergies” from sharing and exchanging technology around the world.

But Yellen has also acknowledged that the United States has “real issues” and “many valid concerns” in its trade relations with China, in particular China’s infringement of American intellectual property, its subsidization of stateowned enterprises and its walling off of crucial technology markets to foreign competition.

As with many moderates in Biden’s administration, any policy recommendations Yellen makes on China are likely to be constrained by Beijing’s increasingly aggressive and authoritarian behavior, as well as harsh China sentiments among both Democrats and Republicans in Washington.

— Swinging the pendulum toward more, not less, financial regulation From her perch at the Brookings Institution, Yellen has voiced concern over the Trump administration’s regulatory rollbacks, including those being done at the Fed. Yellen said this spring that the 2008 crisis showed that the Fed should be proactive in suspending bank payouts.

“We learned that we let way too much money out the door in that crisis,” she said in an April interview. “We don’t know where this is going. This is really a tail event and a great threat to the country.”

In the months since, Fed officials have stopped banks from buying back their own shares but only curbed dividends.

But it is not just the banks she has worried about. She has also singled out money market mutual funds as a source of financial system instability. And, speaking on a Brookings panel in June, Yellen said the coronavirus exposed lingering vulnerabilities in the financial system, which choked up in March before the Fed stepped in to soothe it.

As Treasury secretary, Yellen would lead the Financial Stability Oversight Council, a group set up after the 2008 crisis to monitor and respond to financial stability risks. That would give her significant leeway to train regulatory focus on the areas of concern she has been flagging.

— Putting a price on carbon In her post-Fed years, Yellen has also focused on climate change risks. She served as a chair of the Group of 30 Working Group on Climate Change and Finance, which released a report this year urging governments, regulators and financial companies to make moves that would sharply curb carbon emissions.

“Carbon prices should gradually increase over time to incentivize firms and speed the shift to net zero,” Yellen said when the report was released.

Her place at the head of the oversight council will give her an important podium from which to talk about green finance. A report sponsored by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission this year urged the council to begin focusing on climate risk more concretely.

12

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

Fox News reaches settlement with parents of Seth Rich

By KATIE ROBERTSON

T

he parents of Seth Rich, a Democratic aide whose unsolved murder became fodder for right-wing conspiracy theories about the 2016 election, reached a settlement Tuesday with Fox News, whose coverage linked Rich to email hacks that aided President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential run.

Joel and Mary Rich, the parents of the murdered aide, had filed a lawsuit against Fox News in 2018, accusing the news organization of “extreme and outrageous” conduct in its coverage of their son’s death, claiming that it had fueled damaging rumors about him.

The couple said in a statement Tuesday that they could now move on. “The settlement with Fox News closes another chapter in our efforts to mourn the murder of our beloved Seth, whom we miss every single day,” they said. “We are pleased with the settlement of this matter and sincerely hope that the media will take genuine caution in the future.”

The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Seth Rich, a Democratic National Commit-

Mary and Joel Rich display a photo of their son Seth at home in Omaha, Neb., in 2017. tee staff member, was shot in the back and killed July 10, 2016, near his home in Washington. The case is unsolved, and authorities have said they believed it was a failed robbery.

In May 2017, Fox News published an article on its website by reporter Malia Zimmerman

that suggested, citing unnamed sources, that Rich was killed in retaliation for leaking damaging DNC emails to WikiLeaks in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election. Fox News host Sean Hannity repeatedly promoted the false theory on his prime time program.

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The coverage played into a baseless narrative that had been pushed by conspiracy theorists and conservative pundits looking to blame the WikiLeaks email dump on anything but Russian political interference in the election. (U.S. intelligence officials determined that Russia was responsible for the hack of the DNC networks.)

Fox News retracted the article a week after it was published, saying in a statement at the time that the article had not been subjected to editorial scrutiny and did not meet its standards.

Hannity was defiant, even after the retraction. “All you in the liberal media,” he said on his show, “I am not Fox.com or FoxNews.com. I retracted nothing.” But he later backed off the story.

Joel and Mary Rich sued Fox News over the retracted article and TV coverage. The lawsuit also named the reporter, Zimmermann, and Ed Butowsky, then a frequent Fox News guest, as co-defendants, claiming that they used “lies, misrepresentations, and half-truths” to paint “Joel and Mary’s son as a criminal and a traitor to the United States.”

On Tuesday, Fox News said in a statement: “We are pleased with the resolution of the claims and hope this enables Mr. and Mrs. Rich to find a small degree of peace and solace moving forward.”

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The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

13 Stocks

S&P 500, Dow dip from record highs as labor market recovery slows

T

he S&P 500 and the Dow retreated from record highs on Wednesday as a surprise rise in weekly jobless claims added to signs the recovery of the labor market was stalling amid a surge in COVID-19 infections.

The Labor Department’s report showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits last week increased to 778,000 from 748,000 in the prior week. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 730,000 applications.

With the next fiscal stimulus package now expected only after President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in on Jan. 20, momentum in the labor market is expected to remain slow.

“The question is who wins the battle - the vaccines or the rising cases in the short term,” said Christopher Grisanti, chief equity strategist at MAI Capital Management in Ohio.

“For the last several weeks, the market has been looking through bad news, but then you get the statistic about the unemployment claim and the market focuses again on the short-term difficulties we are having.”

Data also showed U.S. consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of domestic economic activity, increased solidly in October, but personal income fell.

At 11:45 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.71% at 29,832.01. The S&P 500 was down 0.41%, while the Nasdaq Composite was up just 0.03%.

Nine of the 11 S&P indexes were lower, with the energy and financial sectors leading declines, while technology mega-caps including Amazon.com Inc and Apple Inc were among the biggest gainers in early trading.

“Tech is here to stay,” said Kenny Polcari, managing partner at Kace Capital Advisors in Florida.

“What we are seeing is some shift within tech and that money is moving out of some of those highfliers and workfrom-home stocks as the idea of the vaccine and the world coming back to normal settles in.”

Trading volumes were expected to be thin ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday on Thursday.

Major U.S. banks JPMorgan Chase & Co and Goldman Sachs Group, among the most economically-sensitive, were down more than 1%.

Hopes of a COVID-19 vaccine following promising trial data from three major drugmakers as well as a smooth White House transition have lifted Wall Street’s main indexes to record highs and set the benchmark S&P 500 on course for its best November ever.

Market participants said they expected U.S. stocks to climb even higher, with a recent Reuters poll showing the S&P 500 is poised to rise 9% between now and the end of 2021. The index has surged about 66% since the coronavirus-led crash in March and is up about 12% so far this year.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers 1.59-to-1 on the NYSE and 1.31-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P index recorded 12 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 81 new highs and five new lows.

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14

November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

Amid Thailand’s protests, a feared tool to protect the monarchy returns

By HANNAH BEECH and MUKTITA SUHARTONO

T

he number 112 strikes fear in Thailand.

It refers to Section 112 of the country’s criminal code, which makes insulting or defaming the king and his close kin an offense punishable by three to 15 years in prison.

On Tuesday night, a leader of the protest movement that is calling for changes to Thailand’s monarchy and political system received a summons to face multiple charges of lèse-majesté, as the crime is known. It was the first time that Section 112 had been applied during the protests, which have brought thousands of people onto the streets since July.

The protest leader, Parit Chiwarak, commonly known as Penguin, must report to a police station by Tuesday to face the charges, which stem from speeches he gave in September and this month. In those speeches, Parit and others called for the monarchy to come under the Thai Constitution and for the public to be allowed to scrutinize its considerable wealth.

Eleven other protest leaders have also received summonses for lèse-majesté charges, according to the International Federation for Human Rights, which works with human rights lawyers in Thailand. Section 112 has not been used to prosecute individuals for the past two years, according to legal scholars.

The revival of 112 came hours before a rally in Bangkok on Wednesday during which protesters urged King Maha Vajiralongkorn

Demonstrators in Bangkok on Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. The protest took place outside the headquarters of the Siam Commercial Bank, in which King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun is the biggest shareholder Bodindradebayavarangkun to return his fortune to the people. Tax revenues, they said, were being used to fund his lavish lifestyle and fill the coffers of one of the world’s richest monarchies.

The protest took place at the headquarters of the Siam Commercial Bank, in which the king is the biggest shareholder. It was the first rally to focus almost exclusively on overhauling the monarchy’s powers, as opposed to bundling the issue together with calls for

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, the leader of a 2014 coup, to resign.

“I am not scared,” Parit said Tuesday night, after receiving his summons. “I am more worried about the country if they are still using this 112 in politics like this. This will cause the monarchy to deteriorate further.”

Parit appeared at Wednesday’s protests dressed in a yellow duck suit, evoking the rubber duckies that have become a protest symbol. Others at the rally held up signs with the number 112 crossed out. A large portrait of the king went untouched.

In just a few months, Thailand has transformed from a country where criticism of the monarchy was only whispered to a place where protesters have spray-painted “the king is dead” on Bangkok streets.

The robust criticism, particularly from Thailand’s youth, has appalled royalists and left Prayuth, a retired general who tried to justify the 2014 coup as necessary to protect the monarchy, contending with a rapidly shifting landscape.

“Any defamation law depends on what society thinks is OK and not OK, but in Thailand, we’ve had this oceanic change and what was lèse-majesté and defamation yesterday might not be what it is today,” said David Streckfuss, an independent scholar who has studied the application of Section 112 over the years.

“When we look back 10 years from now at the decline of the monarchy, we might say that this moment, of using 112, was a big misstep, a self-inflicted wound, which is what often happens with fading institutions,” he added.

Even before Section 112 was invoked late Tuesday, other laws had been used against the student-led protesters, who began with a campaign against conservative school rules and later widened their movement to include calls for an overhaul of Thailand’s leadership structure.

Parit and others have been charged with various crimes like sedition, which carries a punishment of up to seven years’ imprisonment.

Last month, several protesters were charged with the arcane crime, punishable by possible life imprisonment, of committing “an act of violence against the queen’s liberty,” after they raised their hands in defiance and shouted slogans at a passing limousine containing the queen and the heir apparent.

Lawyers in Thailand said that this section of the criminal code was so obscure that it did not appear in a database of cases that had appeared before the Supreme Court.

On Nov. 17, dozens of people were injured when police directed water cannons and tear gas at protesters. A handful of people also suffered gunshot wounds, although police said they had not used any bullets.

A day later, protesters converged at the national police headquarters in Bangkok, spray-painting sexual insults of the king on the walls and on the pavement. Prayuth soon warned that authorities would be “enforcing all the pertaining laws against protesters who violate the law.”

In June, Prayuth noted that lèse-majesté prosecutions had stopped in late 2017.

“You know why?” he said. “It was because the king was kind enough to instruct that it should not be used.”

Opposition politicians called for the lèse-majesté law to be abolished. It is not clear why it is now being used again.

“A number of questions arise,” Streckfuss said. “What authority does the king have to say that lèse-majesté shouldn’t be used?

And is he now telling the government to use it? In either case, it puts the whole question of 112 in even stronger relief as a problematic law, and it won’t stop the protesters.”

“If anything,” he added, “it will egg them on.”

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

15

Pope calls Uighurs ‘persecuted,’ prompting pushback from China

By GAIA PIANIGIANI

A

comment from Pope Francis in an upcoming book — in which he called ethnic Uighurs in western China a “persecuted” people for the first time — has set the Chinese government on the defense.

The reference to abuses against Uighurs, which Beijing has long denied despite mounting evidence of a brutal crackdown, could tarnish the recent warming of relations between the Vatican and China.

Writing in his new book “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” Francis listed “the poor Uighurs” among the people of the world he kept in his mind and prayers.

“I think often of persecuted peoples,” Francis said in one passage. “The Rohingya, the poor Uighurs, the Yazidi — what ISIS did to them was truly cruel — or Christians in Egypt and Pakistan killed by bombs that went off while they prayed in church.”

Zhao Lijian, the spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said during a Tuesday news briefing that the pope’s words had “no factual basis,” according to The Associated Press.

“The Chinese government has always protected the legal rights of ethnic minorities equally,” he said, according to Reuters. “The remarks by Pope Francis are groundless.”

The Vatican has worked cautiously and persistently over the years toward establishing an agreement with the Chinese government on church operations in China. An agreement on the appointment of Roman Catholic bishops, first reached in 2018, was renewed last month despite the opposition of the U.S. government.

The deal ended a decadeslong power struggle over the right to appoint bishops in China. Beijing agreed to formally recognize the pope’s authority within the church and gave him the final say on bishops, while the Vatican agreed to recognize the legitimacy of

A mosque in the Xinjiang region of China on Aug. 5, 2019.A comment from Pope Francis in an upcoming book - in which he called ethnic Uighurs in western China a “persecuted” people for the first time - has set the Chinese government on the defense. bishops previously appointed by the Chinese government. But other details of the agreement have not been disclosed.

The Vatican said in a statement Tuesday that it had appointed a third bishop in China under the agreement with Chinese authorities, and that “a number of processes for new episcopal ordinations are ongoing.”

Many analysts see the continuation of the agreement as a critical step toward restoring diplomatic relations that broke down decades ago after the Communist Party took power in Beijing. But the comments from the pope’s new book could cause trouble. Human rights groups and governments around the world have denounced the Chinese government’s persecution of the group after evidence emerged of the internment of more than 1 million Uighurs

and other Muslim minorities in so-called reeducation camps in far western China, as well as for mass surveillance and travel restrictions.

Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, the archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar, and the president of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, has also raised the issue of the treatment of Uighurs, reprimanding the international community for inaction.

“In China, the Uighur Muslims are facing what amounts to some of the contemporary world’s worst mass atrocities,” Bo said in a statement released in July. “And I urge the international community to investigate.”

But before the comments emerged this week, the pontiff had remained silent on the abuses against the Uighurs, a tactic experts saw as an effort to avoid alienating Chinese officials

at a time when the two states were negotiating.

Francis has similarly faced controversy before over his comments, or lack thereof, about a persecuted minority group. In a 2017 trip to Myanmar and Bangladesh, the pontiff at first avoided using the word “Rohingya” when referring to the Muslim minority group that has suffered a systematic campaign of murder and rape by Myanmar’s military. The pope’s uncharacteristic silence was harshly criticized, casting a shadow over his visit.

But after meeting with some Rohingya refugees in neighboring Bangladesh, he asked forgiveness, and he has since defended the group, calling them “brothers and sisters” in this book.

In the 150-page, far-reaching text — a relaying of conversation with his English-language biographer, Austen Ivereigh — Francis reiterated one of the most fervent messages of his sevenyear pontificate: The church needs to go to the margins to see life as it really is.

“I’ve always thought that the world looks clearer from the periphery,” he said in the book.

“When God wanted to regenerate creation, He chose to go to the margins — to places of sin and misery, of exclusion and suffering, of illness and solitude.”

The pontiff also discussed social behaviors that he deemed shortsighted and dangerous, like demonstrations against measures intended to stem the spread of the coronavirus — like wearing masks — and questioned the protesters’ moral values.

“It is all too easy for some to take an idea — in this case, for example, personal freedom — and turn it into an ideology,” he said, adding that you would “never find such people” engaged in social justice demonstrations.

“They are incapable of moving outside of their own little world of interests,” the pope said.

Francis himself has been criticized for not wearing a mask during his public appearances.

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November 27-29, 2020

Donors pledge less aid to Afghanistan during a violent chapter

An Afghan security officer at the site of two blasts at a market on Tuesday in the city of Bamiyan.

By THOMAS GIBBONS-NEFF and NICK CUMMINGBRUCE

I

n one city, a gilded hall filled with suited Afghan and Western officials served as a forum to discuss the need for a lasting peace in Afghanistan, even as donors there lowered aid targets for the country out of concern about corruption and uncertainty.

In another, a bazaar crowded with poor farmers and shopkeepers turned into a stage for carnage when twinned bombs exploded at dusk, killing at least 14 people and shattering the sense that any place in Afghanistan could be a haven from violence.

The two scenes on Tuesday — playing out between an international donors’ conference in Geneva, Switzerland, and the deadliest bombing in more than a decade in Bamiyan, one of the last relatively safe places in Afghanistan — cut to the heart of the wrenching crisis facing Afghans in a particularly hazardous moment.

U.S. troops are leaving more quickly than expected, despite intensified fighting that has seen the Taliban strengthening its hold on the countryside. Peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban have been stalled for weeks, with Afghan officials accusing the insurgency of seeming little interested in progress.

And Afghan civilians are being killed in attack after at-

tack, in the meantime.

The Taliban denied carrying out the attack in Bamiyan. The province is home to mostly Shiite Hazaras, a religious and ethnic minority group that has been repeatedly targeted by Islamic State loyalists in the country. The terrorist group is seen by many as a spoiler group for any lasting peace settlement between the Taliban and the Afghan government.

Just a 30-minute flight from Kabul, Bamiyan is a tourist destination for Afghans and international visitors alike, who often travel there to see what remains of the ancient Buddha statues that were destroyed by the Taliban before the U.S. invasion in 2001. The province is one of the few places left in the country where people can walk about without constant fear of being killed, and it has served as a refuge from violence for people who are unable to leave the country.

But fighting in the province has intensified in recent years, and the roads into Bamiyan are frequently patrolled by the Taliban, who often pull people out of their vehicles for questioning, or worse.

November has been a bloody month for civilians in Afghanistan, with at least 164 killed so far, according to data compiled by The New York Times.

But as the one public hospital in Bamiyan city quickly filled with wounded from Tuesday’s blast, Afghan officials in Kabul and Geneva braced themselves for news that they would receive less international aid than in years past.

The last two pledging conferences — in Tokyo in 2012, and in Brussels in 2016 — promised more than $16 billion and more than $15 billion in aid, respectively. More than 50% of the Afghan government’s national budget is made of international funds.

On Tuesday, ministers and diplomats from more than 60 countries promised around $12 billion over the next four years — a reduced pledge, with harder conditions attached, including tangible progress toward a peace deal.

“The choices made in peace negotiations will affect the size and scope of future international support and assistance,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, addressing the Geneva conference by video.

With the U.S. troop force in Afghanistan expected to come down to around 2,500 by the end of January, international aid is one of the most powerful potential checks on the Taliban’s aggression on the battlefield.

Some of the delegates in Geneva directed their comments directly to that point.

The peace process “requires more signs of trust and commitment to peace by the Taliban. Violence must stop, not tomorrow, but right now,” Josep Borrell Fontelles, the European Union’s foreign affairs and security chief. In a message aimed at Taliban leaders, he added that “any attempt to restore an Islamic emirate would have an impact on our future engagement.”

Afghanistan’s foreign minister, Mohammed Hanif Atmar, welcomed these announcements, along with donor insistence that the Taliban respect the need for a peace that preserves gains in education, and protects the rights of women and minorities whom the insurgency oppressed while in power. The insurgency “must listen to the demands made by the entire world today,” he told reporters.

The Taliban, pointing to the Afghan government’s endemic corruption, said the funds from the Geneva conference should be given directly to the people or to the Taliban for the sake of transparency. The insurgent group has long used the government’s shortcomings for propaganda purposes, especially its inability to secure the capital, Kabul.

Aside from the Taliban insurgency wreaking havoc in almost every corner of the country and killing dozens almost daily, the coronavirus has set back Afghanistan’s economic growth by years, according to a recent United Nations report.

International diplomats, whose countries’ economies are also suffering from the pandemic, have grown openly weary of the 19-year-old war, and frustrated by the Afghan government’s repeated promises to combat corruption without fully following through.

“There has always been shortsightedness on the part of the international community,” said Sayed Ikram Afzali, the executive director of Integrity Watch Afghanistan. “And that has been exploited by the government to the maximum extent.”

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

U.N. gets OK to aid crippled Yemen tanker after months of waiting

By RICK GLADSTONE

A

fter four months of waiting, the United Nations said Tuesday that it had been granted permission

by Yemen’s Houthi rebels to inspect and repair a rickety, rusting tanker moored near the coast that is threatening to leak four times the oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez in 1989.

Even with the permission — which U.N. officials had originally hoped would take only weeks to secure — the emergency rescue of the vessel, the FSO Safer, is still saddled with uncertainties that may delay repairs until January.

Environmental experts have likened the Safer to a floating bomb, holding 34 storage tanks of oil that could befoul Yemen’s coast, poison coral reefs and paralyze Red Sea shipping lanes that are vital to supplying aid to the war-ravaged country’s 28 million people.

The 1,188-foot vessel, which requires extensive upkeep, had not been properly maintained since war broke out more than five years ago between the Houthis and a Saudi-led military coalition that has been trying to crush them.

It lies just a few miles from Hodeida, a contested Red Sea port, raising the risk

that a stray shell or bomb could puncture the hull.

The Yemeni oil company that owns the Safer has said it does not have the resources to service the vessel, which historically has functioned as a floating storage facility.

The spokesman for the United Nations, Stéphane Dujarric, has been asked about rescue efforts almost daily since July, when U.N. officials said the Houthis were considering their request to dispatch a team of experts. Previous negotiations with the group had failed.

On Tuesday, Dujarric told reporters that the Houthi leaders had finally sent a letter “indicating their approval for the U.N. proposal for the planned expert mission to the tanker.” He called it “an important step forward in this critical work.”

Asked why it could still take more than a month for the experts to finally get aboard, given the urgency, Dujarric expressed some impatience, saying the details on assembling and paying for the rescue team could not begin until the Houthis had consented.

Moreover, he said, “the kind of equipment you need is not stuff you can pick up at Home Depot or your local DIY store.”

n an undated image provided by Maxar Technologies, the FSO Safer, moored off Yemen’s coast, in a satellite image taken in June, 2020.

Vendeta

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18

November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL

Trump contrives his stab-in-the-back myth

By BRET STEPHENS

T

he word Dolchstosslegende is hard to pronounce but important to understand. It translates as “stab-in-the-back myth” and was a key element in the revival of German militarism in the Weimar years. Even modestly educated Germans know exactly what it denotes and the evil it entails.

Donald Trump and his legal team are now contriving their own Dolchstosslegende.

That’s true even as Trump’s effort to overturn the results of the election seems to descend from fantasy to farce. The main point of the exercise is no longer (if it ever seriously was) to find a judge, governor or other pliable instrument to deny Joe Biden the presidency. It is to deny the legitimacy of the Biden presidency, of the electoral system that gave him the office and of the federal and judicial systems that turned Trump’s legal challenges aside.

The point of the farce is farce. It is to make an obscene joke of the Biden administration and our constitutional system of government.

This was also the point of the Dolchstosslegende, which claimed that the German army, though in retreat in the fall of 1918, could have kept up the fight had it not been betrayed by defeatist and sche-

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President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on Friday, Nov. 13, 2020. ming politicians who agreed to an armistice that November.

This was, of course, a self-serving lie: Germany’s armies were being routed, its strategic situation was hopeless, its sailors were mutinying, its people were approaching starvation and only the armistice (which the kaiser’s generals asked for) spared it from a much more painful defeat.

But the nature of the myth wasn’t that it should be believable. It’s that it should be believed.

There’s a difference. The success of the first rests on a plausible interpretation of facts. The success of the second requires a psychologically astute understanding of the people to whom the lie is peddled. The Dolchstosslegende may have been a transparent falsehood, but it had the double advantage of bucking up a humiliated nation’s pride and playing to its gut prejudices. Translated into the bigoted vernacular, “defeatist” and “scheming” almost always meant socialists, communists and Jews.

In this sense, it doesn’t matter that Rudy Giuliani’s legal case is being laughed out of court.

What matters is that the district judge who did so is an Obama appointee (despite being a conservative Republican), and therefore can be dismissed as part of the deep-state conspiracy seeking to bring Trump down.

Nor does it matter that lawyer Sidney Powell painted an anti-Trump conspiracy so vast that it

seems to have embarrassed Giuliani and would have made the ghost of Joe McCarthy proud. What matters is that Powell’s list of enemies — from the director of the CIA to former Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez — hit all the right notes for the president’s die-hards.

And there are a lot of them: 52% of Republicans think the president “rightfully won” reelection, at least according to a Reuters Ipsos poll from last week. In other words, a majority of Republicans will believe literally anything Trump says.

Here again the comparison to Germany rings loud. In a famous passage of “The Origins of Totalitarianism,” Hannah Arendt noted how “Mass Propaganda discovered that its audience was ready at all times to believe the worst, no matter how absurd, and did not particularly object to being deceived because it held every statement to be a lie anyhow.”

The Dolchstosslegende worked because so many Germans were happy to believe what, at some level, they also knew wasn’t true. But it also worked because it had a clear aim that a growing number of Germans shared, which was to overthrow the struggling Weimar Republic by claiming that it was founded on treason. In other words, it wasn’t just a conspiracy theory. It was a political weapon with the revolutionary aim of destroying democracy itself.

What Trump and his minions are now attempting is of a piece. It is rich that many of the same people who spent years claiming that Robert Mueller’s lawful and constrained investigation was a deep-state coup are now happy to entertain a sitting president’s preposterous claims of electoral fraud.

But the aim is clear: to treat the Biden presidency as a product of treachery by a political order that is so comprehensively corrupt that it will require far tougher means than the ones Trump employed to root out.

In case certain readers think I’m making a comparison between Trump supporters and Nazis, let me emphasize that I am not. What I am saying is that this modern-day Dolchstosslegende, like surf pounding against a bluff, abets future demagogues by eroding public confidence in democratic institutions, until, unprotected, they collapse.

No comparison with the Weimar years is complete without noting that the republic wasn’t just done in. It did a lot to do itself in, too, mostly through economic mismanagement. All the more reason to wish the Biden administration well as it navigates crises that now include some of the most disreputable opponents our own republic has ever known.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

19

Aúnan esfuerzos para campaña sobre importancia de donación de órganos Por THE STAR

L

a Universidad Adventista de las Antillas (UAA) y LifeLink de Puerto Rico (LLPR), firmaron un acuerdo de colaboración para desarrollar una campaña de educación sobre la donación de órganos y tejidos, con el fin de motivar a la comunidad académica y la ciudadanía a convertirse en donantes.

Edúcate, Decídete y Regístrate es el nombre de la campaña que consistirá de varios esfuerzos en medios tradicionales, orientaciones virtuales y redes sociales. Además, LifeLink de Puerto Rico ofrecerá un taller virtual con expertos sobre el manejo de un potencial donante y la recuperación de órganos a estudiantes senior de enfermería y la facultad, quienes recibirán una certificación.

“En la Universidad Adventista de

las Antillas reconocemos la extraordinaria labor que realiza LifeLink de Puerto Rico y que redunda en salvar vidas. Esa misión va alineada con nuestros principios y valores institucionales, por lo que vemos en esta alianza una valiosa oportunidad para reafirmar nuestro compromiso

social, a la vez que viabilizamos una experiencia de solidaridad y desprendimiento a nuestros estudiantes y equipo de trabajo”, expresó el Obed Jiménez, presidente de la UAA. Por su parte, Guillermina Sánchez, directora ejecutiva de LifeLink de Puerto Rico dijo que “el acuerdo colaborativo con la Universidad Adventista de las Antillas es otra oportunidad para continuar desarrollando alianzas con organizaciones educativas claves en la formación de nuestros jóvenes y sobre la importancia de concienciar sobre el legado que todos podemos dejar a través de la donación de órganos y tejidos”.

Según se informó, durante este mes de noviembre la Universidad Adventista de las Antillas colaborará, además, con los esfuerzos de la campaña Díselo a tu Familia, que

promueve el que las personas se registren como donantes.

Se estima que un donante de órganos y tejidos puede salvar 8 vidas y mejorar calidad de vida de más de 70 personas mediante la donación de tejidos.

Cada año más de 33,000 hombres, mujeres y niños reciben el obsequio de un trasplante de órganos que les salva la vida. La mayoría de ellas regresan a su vida normal y activa. Por otra parte, cientos de miles de personas se benefician anualmente del trasplante de tejidos, que puede brindar a los pacientes la oportunidad de experimentar eventos que de otro modo serían imposibles.

Para información sobre la donación de órganos y tejidos y cómo registrarse como donante, puede acceder a www.donevidapuertorico.org o llamar al 1-800-558-0977.

Expertos brindan propuesta para impulsar la adopción de menores Por THE STAR

Q

ue el Departamento de la Familia establezca una agresiva y masiva campaña de orientación, la recertificación automática de los padres en el Registro Estatal Voluntario de Adopción (REVA), la incorporación de talleres y cursos en las escuelas públicas y la creación de salas especializadas para la adopción en los tribunales son algunas de las propuestas realizadas por un panel de expertos para impulsar la adopción de menores en la isla.

Los expertos también solicitaron a la gobernadora Wanda Vázquez incluir en la próxima sesión extraordinaria de la Legislatura el Proyecto de la Cámara 2430, el cual busca enmendar el Artículo 12 de la Ley 61-2018 con el propósito de involucrar a las organizaciones sin fines de lucro en el proceso de adopción.

Las sugerencias surgieron durante un simposio virtual, denominado ‘Adopción: Regalo de Amor’, celebrado esta mañana y en donde participaron un grupo de reconocidos peritos en el tema incluyendo a la doctora Caly Rodríguez de Rivera-Dueño, exsecretaria

del Departamento de la Familia bajo la administración de Pedro Rosselló González, la licenciada María Ortiz, destacada litigante en casos de adopción y familia, la licenciada Diana Cordero, quien es madre adoptante y la presidenta de la Comisión Especial para la evaluación del Proceso de Adopción y el trato de las Personas de Edad Avanzada en Puerto Rico, la representante Jackeline ‘Jackie’ Rodríguez Hernández.

El foro fue auspiciado por el presidente de la Cámara de Representantes, Carlos ‘Johnny’ Méndez Núñez, quien recalcó la importancia de continuar fortaleciendo la Ley 61-2018, mejor conocida como la Nueva Ley de Adopción de Puerto Rico.

“Por mucho tiempo hemos trabajado para lograr los avances alcanzados por la Ley 61-2018 la cual facilitó la adopción de menores en Puerto Rico, abriendo las oportunidades para las personas interesadas en brindar ese regalo de amor, así como reduciendo dramáticamente la burocracia y asegurándonos que los derechos de todos sean protegidos. Ahora necesitamos hacer más. El Departamento de la Familia tiene que comenzar una campaña agre-

siva para impulsar la adopción, dar a conocer los procesos y ayudar aquellos que tengan interés en adoptar”, señaló el líder legislativo en comunicación escrita.

Según los datos oficiales más recientes del Departamento de la Familia (mediados de octubre 2020), en lo que va de este año solo se habían completado la adopción de apenas 76 menores de edad.

“La realidad es que durante los años 2012 al 2017 en Puerto Rico se promediaba unas 109 adopciones de menores por año. En el 2019, primer año de la Ley 61-2018 se realizaron un récord para este siglo de 241 adopciones de menores. Nuestra meta es que eso llegue a 350 a 400 menores por año. Para eso tenemos que actuar ahora”, añadió el presidente de la Cámara.

“Entre otras cosas, es importante que se hagan cambios que vuelvan aumentar los niveles de adopción de menores en Puerto Rico. Entre esos entendemos que la Oficina de la Administración de Tribunales (OAT) debe crear una serie de salas especializadas para atender casos de adopción. Además, exhortamos a la Gobernadora a incluir en la convoca-

toria de la sesión extraordinaria el Proyecto de la Cámara 2430, el cual ayuda mucho al proceso de adopción”, dijo Rodríguez Hernández, quien adelantó que estará enviando una carta a la OAT para plasmar su propuesta de las salas especializadas.

“Es importante hacer una evaluación sobre la efectividad de la Ley 61.

Hay muchas áreas que deben medirse para determinar dónde quedan lagunas que se convierten en barreras. Debe ser una evaluación a largo plazo. Nombrar un grupo con representación del Honorable ‘Johnny’ Méndez, el Departamento de la Familia, Tribunales, una agencia privada de adopción y una persona especializada en evaluación. Si se deja a qué Familia sea quien someta informes a la Legislatura, esa evaluación está viciada”, comentó Rodríguez, quien sirvió como titular de la Familia bajo la administración de Pedro Rosselló González.

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November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa dominate 2021 Grammy nominations

Taylor Swift, Beyoncé and Dua Lipa lead the nominees for the 63rd annual Grammy Awards, which will be held in January.

By BEN SISARIO

B

eyoncé, Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa dominate the nominations for the 63rd annual Grammy Awards, leading a diverse if somewhat scattershot collection of artists for January’s edition of music’s top awards show.

Beyoncé, with the most nods overall, received nine nominations in eight categories, including both record and song of the year for “Black Parade,” a track released during the height of the Black Lives Matter protests this summer with lyrics like “Put your fists up in the air, show Black love.” In the best record category, Beyoncé will compete against herself as the featured guest on Megan Thee Stallion’s hit “Savage.”

Swift, whose last two LPs received minimal attention from the Grammys — and did not win any prizes — got six nominations, including five for “Folklore,” the blockbuster album she recorded during the coronavirus pandemic. “Folklore” is up for album of the year and best pop vocal album, and her song “Cardigan” got two nods, including song of the year. She even got a nomination for “Beautiful Ghosts,” a song she wrote with Andrew Lloyd Webber for the much-maligned film version of “Cats.”

Lipa, the British dance-pop star who won best new artist in 2019, is up for album

of the year for “Future Nostalgia,” while her disco-tinged “Don’t Start Now” was nominated for both record and song of the year.

(The record category recognizes the performer and producers of a single track, while best song is for songwriters.)

Other top nominees for next year’s show, which is scheduled for Jan. 31, include rapper Roddy Ricch, with six in four categories, and Brittany Howard, the frontwoman and guitarist of the band Alabama Shakes, with five for her solo debut. Billie Eilish, the 18-year-old auteur who swept the most recent awards, and rappers Megan Thee Stallion and DaBaby each got four.

But while the Grammys in recent years have made significant progress in reflecting the tides of current pop music, the latest crop of nominations includes some puzzling choices and snubs.

The Weeknd, the Canadian pop star whose “After Hours” is one of the biggest albums of the year — and who will perform at the Super Bowl halftime show in February — was spurned entirely, as was Luke Combs, perhaps the most successful young hitmaker in Nashville, Tennessee.

BTS, the K-pop phenomenon, received its first nomination down the ballot in the best pop duo/group category, a placement sure to be noticed by the group’s huge and protective fan base. A posthumous album by rap star

Pop Smoke that has been one of the year’s biggest chart hits also received just one notice: best rap performance for his song “Dior.”

The major categories are dotted with artists who are far from household names.

Black Pumas, a rock band with a retro soul sound — but little public profile — is up for record of the year (“Colors”) and best album, for a deluxe version of its self-titled debut LP. (The original version, released in June 2019, fell outside the awards’ eligibility window, which covers music that came out from September 2019 to August 2020.)

The makeup of live awards shows has been changing throughout the pandemic, with little apparent consensus among producers about how to put an event together.

The Billboard Music Awards in October, for example, had no live audience, but the American Music Awards this week had a limited crowd (as well as cardboard cutouts of Beyoncé and Jay-Z).

How the Grammys, music’s biggest awards show, will handle its broadcast is unclear. In an interview, Harvey Mason Jr., a producer and songwriter who is the chairman and interim chief executive of the Recording Academy, the nonprofit behind the Grammys, said that the organization intended to hold a live event in Los Angeles with a small audience, and that artists would be present to perform and accept awards. Many details are still being worked out; Trevor Noah, from “The Daily Show,” will be the host.

The nominations reflect a challenging year for the music industry, in which live performances were ground to a halt by the pandemic and artists have wrestled with social upheaval and a bitterly divisive election.

There has also been tumult behind the scenes at the academy, which has come under fire for its poor record in recognizing Black artists and women in the major awards.

The academy also had an explosive conflict with its former chief executive, Deborah Dugan, who accused the organization of tolerating sexual harassment and of violating the integrity of its nominations process.

The academy has denied those accusations, and has made a number of efforts over the last year to diversify its ranks, including inviting more than 2,300 new members; 74% accepted the invitation to join. Mason said an expanded membership is key to mak-

ing the awards reflect the true state of music.

“This is a peer-to-peer award,” he said.

“Whoever gets the votes wins. So we have to make sure that the people who are voting are knowledgeable and representative of the music, and are voting with the intent of recognizing and honoring quality music.”

For the latest Grammy Awards, the crop of nominees includes many women and artists of color. But that has also been the case for several years now, and the true test of change at the Grammys may be who ultimately wins.

Reaction to the news was mixed. BTS fans celebrated the group’s first nomination but griped that the boy band was shut out of the major categories.

And in an Instagram post, Justin Bieber, who received four nods, including best pop vocal album for “Changes,” complained that he was not nominated in an R&B category. “I am very meticulous & intentional about my music,” Bieber wrote. “With that being said I set out to make an R&B album. Changes is an R&B album. It is not being acknowledged as an R&B album which is very strange to me.”

(He added, “Please don’t mistake this as me being ungrateful.”)

Several categories were adjusted over the last year, in ways that intersected with the social justice debates that have been bubbling through the industry.

The world music category was named best global music album to avoid what the academy considered “connotations of colonialism, folk and ‘non-American.’” Nominees include Bebel Gilberto, Anoushka Shankar, Antibalas, Burna Boy and Tinariwen.

Over the summer, as the music industry wrestled with issues of race, the academy announced that it had renamed urban contemporary as progressive R&B. That change predated the industry’s most recent discussions, but the connotations of “urban” have long been debated, including at the Grammys.

Nominees for best progressive R&B album — which, according to the academy’s peculiar musicology, “may include samples and elements of hip-hop, rap, dance and electronic music” as well as “production elements found in pop, euro-pop, country, rock, folk and alternative” — are Aiko, Chloe x Halle, Free Nationals, Robert Glasper and Thundercat.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

21

For the African women who love Diana, ‘The Crown’ feels personal

By TARIRO MZEZEWA

T

he latest season of “The Crown” took Aulbright Nyih on an emotional roller coaster. Initially thrilled to see Princess Diana on screen, by the third episode she was reduced to tears by the portrayal of Diana’s bulimia. Soon Nyih was cursing Prince Charles, as he and his staff tried to keep Diana away from her son. And when the prince became jealous of Diana’s popularity, Nyih was ready to throw something at the television.

“I cried so many times watching this season,” Nyih, a dental student in Dublin, said. Although Nyih was born after Diana’s death in 1997, her Cameroonian mother talked about the princess as if she knew her personally. A running joke among millennial and Gen Z women with African mothers is that Diana was their mothers’ best friend.

“It’s just known that African mothers love Diana,” said Wangechi Waweru, a Kenyan rapper, whose mother was also a Diana fan. “She was their Beyoncé.”

Diana’s poise, care for her children, charity work and devotion to the African continent, which she visited several times, all appeal to women — and their daughters — who still feel a strong connection to the princess. Some African women even bear her name. A search for African mothers and Diana on social media yields hundreds of posts.

Many of the women who adored Diana come from countries that were colonized by the British, and grew up during or soon after a time of oppressive colonial rule — which might make positive associations with the royal family hard to understand. But all the women interviewed for this story said they and their mothers viewed Diana as an individual, not tainted with the colonial past.

My own mother, who spent most of her life in Zambia and Zimbabwe and has been a loyal Diana fan since the 1980s, said the new season confirmed much of what she believed about the royal family — particularly that their coldness toward Diana left her depressed. She paused watching halfway through the season because she found Emma Corrin’s performance as the princess all too real.

After her marriage to Prince Charles, Diana is portrayed in “The Crown” as young, shy and isolated in Buckingham Palace while her husband spends time with his lover, Camilla Parker Bowles. As the season progresses and Diana becomes more famous around the world, in her personal life she is increasingly lonely and lost, either criticized or ignored by both Charles (Josh O’Connor) and the rest of the royal family. The season has sparked much reaction from both fans and critics of the royals.

But for the African women from various countries and the daughters to whom they passed their love for the former Princess of Wales, the re-creation of her lonely life as a member of the royal family feels personal.

Sarah Nsibirwa, a pharmacist in Pennsylvania who is originally from Uganda, said she watched the first half of the season with her 29-year-old daughter and the second half with her 26-year-old daughter in four days.

“For any woman who has gone through finding out her husband isn’t loyal or who knows a woman who has been through that, watching Diana feels personal,” Nsibirwa said.

“We all understand what it’s like to have to put on a smile while

Seeing the marriage of Prince Charles (Josh O’Connor) and Diana (Emma Corrin) unravel on “The Crown” has been an emotional experience for many African — and Black — women who love the princess. you’re burning on the inside.”

Even with the knowledge that the show’s creators took some creative liberties, for the princess’ female fans in Africa and the diaspora, watching the show has felt like watching the abuse and trauma of a close friend.

“You could feel the emotional neglect she went through,” said Diana Umana, a first-generation American songwriter, whose parents are from Nigeria. “The amount of times she would call Charles and he wouldn’t answer. How adamant they were about her being separated from her child. Everything she was feeling was completely normal, but she was being gaslighted by everyone from Charles and Camilla to the advisers and the queen.”

Umana, 28, said that she was named, in part, after Diana and partly because her parents wanted her to have a name that would be easy for everyone to pronounce.

Several women said Corrin’s portrayal of Diana as an enigmatic young woman thrown into a marriage she wasn’t ready for reminded them of their own mothers, aunts and other African women in their lives.

“I think African women of a certain generation see themselves when they were pushed into marriage and thought it was going to be a fairy tale, but they ended up sharing their husbands with in-laws, maybe with other women or maybe with substances,” said Rudo Manyere, a Zimbabwean blogger who lives in Oxford, England. (Manyere’s middle name is also Diana, after the princess).

“Diana was different from the rest of the royal family because she had that rebel spirit,” said Stephanie Kalulu, who was

born in Zambia and now lives in San Diego. “Watching the show was so upsetting because it really felt like they set her up. They knowingly let her marry this man who was in love with someone else. She was doomed from the start.”

“The Crown” has also reignited a strong dislike for Parker Bowles that was born decades ago by the British tabloids’ alltoo-simple narrative about her being a home-wrecking mistress.

“As a kid, I didn’t know why exactly, but I understood that we, as a collective of women in my family, did not like Camilla,” said Aida Sykes, a Tanzanian business specialist focused on gender and inclusivity, based in Dar es Salaam. “I remember walking around saying her name in full like you’d do for a villain of some sort.”

But watching the show’s fourth season, Sykes and others said, made them realize just how complicated the relationship between Charles, Camilla and Diana really was, and how long a history the prince and Parker Bowles had by the time Diana entered the picture. With each episode it becomes clearer that the real villain, most women said, was the family that encouraged Diana and Charles to marry.

“You feel like the royal family is to blame for the fallout and like maybe they should have let Camilla and Charles be, because the ramifications of that relationship on Diana were devastating,” said Sue Nyathi, a Zimbabwean author who lives in South Africa.

Nyathi’s new novel, “A Family Affair,” tells the story of 22-year-old Zandile, who marries an older man and becomes disillusioned with her marriage. Nyathi saw Diana in her protagonist.

22

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

It’s time to put the noble grapes in their place

By ERIC ASIMOV

T

he way people talk about wine often reflects their other beliefs about the world.

When gender attributes were more rigidly defined than they are now, for example, it was common to hear wines described as masculine or feminine. This has diminished, though, as people have come to see that gender does not predestine character and personality.

Similarly, in socially stratified societies, wines were commonly discussed in terms of their class or breeding. This tendency, too, has ebbed, as social orders in many places have become more fluid.

Wine grapes, however, still seem to be in the grip of an inflexible caste system that establishes the limits of a grape’s potential. Some people, like writer Robert Joseph, defend this hierarchical view of grapes. But to me, it’s a narrowminded, obstinate and sadly condescending way to look at a world of wine that has become far more egalitarian than it has ever been before.

Until fairly recently, generations of wine authorities habitually referred to the “noble” grapes, classically a group of six considered to have aristocratic potential: cabernet sauvignon, merlot, pinot noir, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and riesling. The constituency differed slightly, depending on who was doing the ordaining, but this was the core group.

Notice something about them? Five are French, and one, riesling, is German, though it’s grown in Alsace as well.

It’s not surprising. The phrase originated in France (cépages nobles), and was popularized in Britain, a prime market for French wines and, before World War I, for German wines as well.

Even as societies have become more socially mobile, the popular idea of nobility among grapes has hung on stubbornly, though it has expanded somewhat. One recent grouping put the number at 18.

But while that was a laudable effort to democratize the upper class of grapes, it was still a class system, too rigid and limiting to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of wine and how to drink it.

Grapes themselves offer only faint clues to the wines they will ultimately produce. The mere fact of producing wine with merlot, a grape in the pantheon, means nothing.

Pomerols, made largely with merlot, are among the world’s great wines. The lakes of merlot made elsewhere? Occasionally I find a pretty good bottle. But ultimately, Pomerols and other merlots have little in common.

Chardonnay has played a role in great wines made year after year. But I’ve had far more bad chardonnays than good ones.

I’ve also had far more mediocre than inspiring bottles of aligoté, which is not surprising. Aligoté would make most lists of roundly despised grapes, often producing thin, acidic wines that were historically spiked with a glug of crème de cassis, rendering the wine palatable as kir.

In Burgundy, few would debate the relative status of chardonnay and aligoté, the two leading white grapes in the region. That’s why chardonnay is planted in the best sites, and aligoté gets whatever is left over. With grapes, site is often destiny.

Nonetheless, these days, some Burgundy vignerons, like Sylvain Pataille in Marsannay and Pierre de Benoist, would argue that if aligoté were given the same love and care as chardonnay, people would be astonished at how good the wines could be.

Wine is so much more than simply the grapes that form its basis. What is poured from the bottle is ultimately a combination of the grapes, the site in which the grapes were grown, the farming, the winemaking, the vintage character, and the intent and skill of the people who oversaw production.

In the same way, selecting a wine requires considering far more than the social standing of grapes. What’s the occasion? What are we eating? What’s the mood and the ambience?

Forty years ago, did anybody recognize the potential of mencía, the main red grape of Ribeira Sacra and Bierzo in northwestern Spain? What about nerello mascalese, the major red grape of the Mount Etna region of Sicily, or carricante, its white counterpart? Or assyrtiko, the white grape of Santorini?

All of these grapes have demonstrated in recent decades that they have the capacity to yield exceptional wines that can age and evolve. They can be beautiful. They may not have the glorious histories of pinot noir or riesling, but their legacies are still being recorded.

I have had wonderful wines made of cinsault. But in her 1986 book, “Vines, Grapes and Wines: A Wine Drinker’s Guide to Grape Varieties,” no less an authority than Jancis Robinson wrote that cinsault had “a rather meaty, chunky sort of flavor, uncomfortably suggestive of dog food to some.”

Decades later, in her 2012 book, “Wine Grapes,” written with Julia Harding and José Vouillamoz, cinsault was instead described as an “underrated Mediterranean-loving variety making characterful rosés and flirtatious reds.”

Opinions evolve, at least with open-minded people. I would wager that we still don’t know the potential of dozens of grapes like cinsault. They may be waiting for sympathetic producers like Stefan Vetter, who has demonstrated in the Franken region of Germany that silvaner, often an afterthought among white grapes, can make wines that rival any other for depth and complexity.

I haven’t even mentioned hybrid grapes, varieties created by breeding one species, Vitis vinifera, which comprises all the historic European wine grapes, with another, like Vitis labrusca, a native grape of America.

Hybrids have long been considered lesser grapes, rarely capable of producing compelling wines. Yet cold-climate producers like Deirdre Heekin of La Garagista in Vermont have proven otherwise, making some of the most interesting U.S. wines out of hybrid grapes.

I’m not saying that all grapes have the capacity to make great wines. I have yet to find a Müller-Thurgau worth championing, for example. But I would not want to rule out the possibility.

If the recent history of wine has shown us anything, it is how little we know about the potential of any grapes to make great wines. A caste system for grapes is a backwardlooking approach to a world with wonderful possibilities ahead of it.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

23

How archaeologists are using deep learning to dig deeper

By ZACH ZORICH

F

inding the tomb of an ancient king full of golden artifacts, weapons and elaborate clothing seems like any archaeologist’s fantasy. But searching for them, Gino Caspari can tell you, is incredibly tedious.

Caspari, a research archaeologist with the Swiss National Science Foundation, studies the ancient Scythians, a nomadic culture whose horse-riding warriors terrorized the plains of Asia 3,000 years ago. The tombs of Scythian royalty contained much of the fabulous wealth they had looted from their neighbors. From the moment the bodies were interred, these tombs were popular targets for robbers; Caspari estimates that more than 90% of them have been destroyed.

He suspects that thousands of tombs are spread across the Eurasian steppes, which extend for millions of square miles. He had spent hours mapping burials using Google Earth images of territory in what is now Russia, Mongolia and Western China’s Xinjiang province. “It’s essentially a stupid task,” Caspari said. “And that’s not what a well-educated scholar should be doing.”

As it turned out, a neighbor of Caspari’s in the International House, in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, had a solution. The neighbor, Pablo Crespo, at the time a graduate student in economics at City University of New York who was working with artificial intelligence to estimate volatility in commodity prices, told Caspari that what he needed was a convolutional neural network to search his satellite images for him.

The two bonded over a shared academic philosophy, of making their work openly available for the benefit of the greater scholarly community, and a love of heavy metal music.

Over beers in the International House bar, they began a collaboration that put them at the forefront of a new type of archaeological analysis.

A convolutional neural network, or CNN, is a type of artificial intelligence that is designed to analyze information that can be processed as a grid; it is especially well suited to analyzing photographs and other images.

The network sees an image as a grid of pixels. The CNN that Crespo designed starts by giving each pixel a rating based on how red it is, then another for green and for blue. After rating each pixel according to a variety of additional parameters, the network begins

to analyze small groups of pixels, then successively larger ones, looking for matches or near-matches to the data it has been trained to spot.

Working in their spare time, the two researchers ran 1,212 satellite images through the network for months, asking it to look for circular stone tombs and to overlook other circular, tomblike things such as piles of construction debris and irrigation ponds.

At first they worked with images that spanned roughly 2,000 square miles. They used three-quarters of the imagery to train the network to understand what a Scythian tomb looks like, correcting the system when it missed a known tomb or highlighted a nonexistent one. They used the rest of the imagery to test the system. The network correctly identified known tombs 98% of the time.

Creating the network was simple, Crespo said. He wrote it in less than a month using the programming language Python and at no cost, not including the price of the beers.

Caspari hopes that their creation will give archaeologists a way to find new tombs and to identify important sites so that they can be protected from looters.

Other convolutional neural networks are beginning to automate a variety of repetitive tasks that are usually foisted on to graduate students. And they are opening new windows on to the past. Some of the jobs that these networks are inheriting include classifying pottery fragments, locating shipwrecks in sonar images and finding human bones that are for sale, illegally, on the internet.

“Netflix is using this kind of technique to show you recommendations,” Crespo, now a senior data scientist for Etsy, said. “Why shouldn’t we use it for something like saving human history?”

Gabriele Gattiglia and Francesca Anichini, both archaeologists at the University of Pisa in Italy, excavate Roman Empire-era sites, which entails analyzing thousands of broken bits of pottery. In Roman culture nearly every type of container, including cooking vessels and the amphoras used for shipping goods around the Mediterranean, was made of clay, so pottery analysis is essential for understanding Roman life.

The task involves comparing pottery sherds to pictures in printed catalogs. Gattiglia and Anichini estimate that only 20% of their time is spent excavating sites; the rest is spent analyzing pottery, a job for which they

In an undated photo from Harvey Mudd College, a 3-D reconstruction of a World War II plane wreckage off the coast of Malta. are not paid. “We started dreaming about some magic tool to recognize pottery on an excavation,” Gattiglia said.

That dream became the ArchAIDE project, a digital tool that will allow archaeologists to photograph a piece of pottery in the field and have it identified by convolutional neural networks. The project, which received financing from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, now involves researchers from across Europe, as well as a team of computer scientists from Tel Aviv University in Israel who designed the CNNs. The project involved digitizing many of the paper catalogs and using them to train a neural network to recognize different types of pottery vessels. A second network was trained to recognize the profiles of pottery sherds. So far, ArchAIDE can identify only a few specific pottery types, but as more researchers add their collections to the database the number of types is expected to grow.

“I dream of a catalog of all types of ceramics,” Anichini said. “I don’t know if it is possible to complete in this lifetime.”

Shawn Graham, a professor of digital humanities at Carleton University in Ottawa, uses a convolutional neural network called Inception 3.0, designed by Google, to search the internet for images related to the buying and selling of human bones. The United States and many other countries have laws requiring that human bones held in museum

collections be returned to their descendants.

But there are also bones being held by people who have skirted these laws. Graham said he had even seen online videos of people digging up graves to feed this market.

“These folks who are being bought and sold never consented to this,” Graham said.

“This does continued violence to the communities from which these ancestors have been removed. As archaeologists, we should be trying to stop this.”

He made some alterations to Inception 3.0 so that it could recognize photographs of human bones. The system had already been trained to recognize objects in millions of photographs, but none of those objects were bones; he has since trained his version on more than 80,000 images of human bones.

He is now working with a group called Countering Crime Online, which is using neural networks to track down images related to the illegal ivory trade and sex trafficking.

Crespo and Caspari said that the social sciences and humanities could benefit by incorporating the tools of information technology into their work. Their convolutional neural network was easy to use and freely available for anyone to modify to suit their own research needs. In the end, they said, scientific advances come down to two things.

“Innovation really happens at the intersections of established fields,” Caspari said.

Crespo added: “Have a beer with your neighbor every once in a while.”

24 to Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de PriEstado Libre Asociado de Puer- mera Instancia Sala Superior to Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL de SAN JUAN. DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de PriJAIME I FIGUEROA mera Instancia Sala Superior ALMODOVAR de BAYAMON. Demandante v.

LEGAL NOTICE

FELIX ALBERTO ROMAN DIAZ Demandante v.

H.F. INC. JUAN DEL PUEBLO Y JUANA DEL PUEBLO Y CUALQUIER PERSONA DESCONOCIDA CON POSIBLE INTERES EN LA OBLIGACION CUYA CANCELACION POR DECRETO JUDICIAL SE SOLICITA

Demandado(a) Civil: Núm. BY2020CV00239.

SALA 402. Sobre: CANCELACION DE PAGARE EXTRAVIADO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: H.F. INC., JUAN DEL PUEBLO Y JUANA DEL PUEBLO Y CUALQUIER PERSONA DESCONOCIDA CON POSIBLE INTERES EN LA OBLIGACION CUYA CANCELACION 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 24 de agosto 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 23 de noviembre de 2020. En BAYAMON, Puerto Rico el 23 de noviembre de 2020. LCDA. LAURA I SANTA SANCHEZ, Secretaria. LUREIMY ALICEA GONZALEZ, Sec Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE Estado Libre Asociado de Puer-

@

CRISTINA MEDINA FELIZ

Demandado(a) Civil: SJ2020RF00651. Sobre: DIVORCIO. NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR EDICTO.

A: SRA CRISTINA MEDINA FELIZ

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que 18 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. Copiad e esta notificación ha sido archivada en los autos de este caso, con fecha de 23 de noviembre de 2020. En SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, el 23 de noviembre de 2020. GRISELDA RODRÍGUEZ COLLADO, Secretaria. Isabel Ortiz Cruz, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOT ICE Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de Primera Instancia Sala Superior de FAJARDO.

CATENA ARDIRI OLAVARRIA, JOSEPH JR. ARDIRI OLAVARIA, LYDIA ARDIRI OLAVARRIA Y JOSEPH ARDIRI CAMPANA Demandante v.

HOUSING INVESTMENT CORPORATION, JOHN DOE Y RICHARD ROE

DOE Y RICARD ROE - TENEDORES DEL PAGARE EXTRAVIADO - DIRECCION DESCONOCIDA

(Nombre de las partes a las que se le notifican la sentencia por edicto) EL SECRETARIO(A) que suscribe le notifica a usted que 21 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 24 de noviembre de 2020 . En FAJARDO , Puerto Rico , el 24 de noviembre de 2020 . WANDA SEGUI REYES, Secretaria. f/ KATHERINE ROBLES TORRES, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico TRIBUNAL GENERAL DE JUSTICIA Tribunal de Primera Instancia Sala Superior de CIALES.

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

COOPERATIVA DE AHORO Y CREDITO DE CIALES (HOY), antes COOPERATIVA DE AHORRO Y CREDITO HOGAR CRISTIANO, JOHN DOE, RICHARD ROE

Demandado(a) Civil: Cl2020CV00047. Sobre: Demandado(a) CANCELACION DE PAGARE Civil: LU2020CV00079. Sobre: HIPOTECARIO EXTRAVIADO. CANCELACION DE PAGARE NOTIFICACIÓN DE SENTENEXTRAVIADO. NOTIFICA- CIA POR EDICTO. CIÓN DE SENTENCIA POR A: JOHN DOE, EDICTO.

A: HOUSING INVESTMENT CORPORATION, JOHN

cribe 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 18 de noviembre de 2020. En CIALES , Puerto Rico, el 18 de noviembre de 2020. VIVIAN FRESSE GONZALEZ, Secretario(a).

MADELINE GARCIA PEREZ, Secretario(a) Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA REGUIN JUDICIAL DE CAROLINA SALA SUPERIOR DE CAROLINA.

COOPERATIVA DE AHORRO Y CREDITO SAULO D. RODRIGUEZ (GURACCOP) Demandante V.

ESELYN ROSA ROMAN

Friday, November 27, 2020 LCDA. ERIKA MORALES MARENGO P0 Box 195337 San Juan, Puerto Rico 00919 Tel. (787) 302-0014 / (787) 239-5661 / Email: emarengo16@yahoo.com 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 presente por derecho propio. Se le apercibe que de no hacerlo, el tribunal podrá dictar Sentencia en rebeldía concediendo el remedio solicitado en Ia demanda, sin citarle ni oírle.

Expedido bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, hoy dia 12 de noviembre de 2020. Lcda. Marilyn Aponte Rodriguez, Sec Regional. Solmarie Montero Castro, Sec Auxiliar.

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

PR RECOVERY AND DEVELOPMENT JV, LLC DEMANDANTE VS.

PANOPTICA CORPORATION, JOSÉ E. GONZALEZ PÉREZ, FULANA DE TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANANCIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS

DEMANDADOS CIVIL NÚM.: PO2020CV01147.

SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO ORDINARIO - INCUMPLIMIENTO DE CONTRATO. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO.

A: PANOPTICA CORPORATION POR CONDUCTO DE SU AGENTE O REPRESENTANTE AUTORIZADO - LA RAMBLA CALLE EXTREMADURA 2009, PONCE, PUERTO RICO, A: ESELYN ROSA ROMAN 00730 / PO BOX 330203, DIRECCION: Lomas de PONCE, PUERTO RICO, Trujillo, F-b Calle 4 00733 Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico A: JOSÉ E. GONZALEZ 00976-4909 PÉREZ POR SI Y EN POR LA PRESENTE, se le REPRESENTACIÓN DE emplaza y se le notifica que LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL una Demanda sobre Cobro DE GANANCIALES de Dinero ha sido presentada en su contra y se le requiere LA RAMBLA CALLE para que conteste la misma EXTREMADURA 2009, dentro de los treinta (30) días PONCE, PUERTO RICO, siguientes a la publicación del 00730/ PO BOX 330203, edicto, radicando el original de su contestación en el Tribunal PONCE, PUERTO RICO, correspondiente y notificando 00733

Demandado(a) CIVIL NUM. TJ2020CV00306.

SALA: 407. SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO (ORDINARIO).

EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS, EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO. SS.

con copia de Ia misma a la par- POR LA PRESENTE se le RICHARD ROE (Nombre de las partes a las que se te demandante a la siguiente emplaza y requiere para que le notifican la sentencia por edicto) dirección: conteste la demanda dentro de EL SECRETARIO(A) que susBUFETE APONTE & CORTES

staredictos@thesanjuandailystar.com

(787) 743-3346

los treinta (30) días siguientes a la publicación de este Edicto.

Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), la cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar su alegación responsiva en la secretaria 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 sin más citarle ni oírle, si el tribunal en el ejercicio de su sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. El sistema SUMAC notificará copia al abogado de la parte demandante, el Lcdo. José F. Aguilar Vélez cuya dirección es: P.O. Box 71418 San Juan, Puerto Rico 00936-8518, teléfono (787) 993-3731 ala dirección jose. agui1arorf-1aw.com ya la dirección notificaciones@orf-law. corn. EXTENDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA y el sello del Tribunal, en Ponce, Puerto Rico, hoy dia 16 de noviembre de 2020. En Ponce, Puerto Rico, el 16 de noviembre de 2020. LUZ MAYRA CARABALLO GARCIA, Sec Regional. MADELINE RIVERA MERCADO, Sec Aux del Tribunal I.

LEGAL NOTICE

The San Juan Daily Star PR 00725. Teléfonos conocidos (787) 653-6071; (787) 778-5757; 407-5770246.

Por la presente se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva dentro de los 30 días de haber sido notificado este emplazamiento.

Usted deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Manejo y Administración de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la dirección electrónica https://unired.ramajudicial. pr, 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 termino, 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. Representa a la parte demandante el Lcda.

Raquel Deseda Belaval, Delgado & Fernández, LLC, PO Box 11750, Fernández Juncos Station, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00910-1750. Tel. [787] 274-1414. DADA en CAGUAS, Puerto Rico, a 13 de noviembre de 2020. CARMEN ANA PEREIRA ORTIZ, Secretaria Regional. MARTA E. DONATE RESTO, Secretaria Auxiliar.

LEGAL NOTICE

ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUDE PUERTO RICO TRIBUNAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA SALA SUPERIOR DE SAN SALA DE CAGUAS. JUAN.

ORIENTAL BANK

Parte Demandante V.

SUCESION DE EMILIO RAMOS GUZMÁN compuesta por FULANO y FULANA DE TAL, AILEEN WILLIAMS PIMENTEL y la COMUNIDAD DE BIENES GANANCIALES

Parte Demandada CIVIL NÚM.: CG2020CV02099.

Sobre: Ejecución de Hipoteca In Rem. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA, EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

A: AILEEN WILLIAMS PIMENTEL. 13636 W Pointe Drive, Orlando, Florida 32826; PMB 392 PO Box 4956 Caguas PR 00726-495 6 Lot 162 Barrio La Barra, Caguas PR 00725; Barrio La Barra Carretera #1, Ranal 795, Caguas

CONDADO 3, LLC. Demandante, v.

CARLOS CORNIER LÓPEZ, ET AL

Demandados CIVIL NÚM.: KCD2014-2291 (503). SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA POR LA VÍA ORDINARIA. 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 6 de mayo de 2015, notificada el 8 de mayo de 2015 y de un Mandamiento de Ejecución emitido el día 10 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 10:00 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: Solar marcado con el #26, en el bloque C del plano de inscripción de la Urbanización San Gerardo, radicada en el barrio Cupey, sitio denominado Río Piedras, del término municipal del Gobierno de la Capital de Puerto Rico, con un área superficial de 653.35 metros cuadrados. En lindes por el Norte, en 27.28 metros cuadrados con el solar 25 del bloque C del mencionado plano; por el Sur, en 40.14 metros cuadrados con la propiedad del solar Luis Mogil; por el Este, en 21.47 metros cuadrados con la carretera de Cupey y por el Oeste, en 20.76 metros cuadrados con el solar 18 del bloque C del mencionado plano. Finca número ciento catorce (114), inscrita al folio veinticinco (25) del tomo cinco (5) de Río Piedras Sur (Sección IV de San Juan). Dirección Física: 26-C San Gerardo Santa Agueda, San Juan PR 00986.

El siguiente pagaré consta inscrito en la propiedad antes mencionada y es el que se pretende ejecutar: HIPOTECA: Por $55,600.00, con intereses al 7.95% anual, en garantía de un pagaré a favor de Doral Bank, o a su orden, que vence el 1ro de julio de 2035. Según escritura #368, otorgada en San Juan, el 9 de junio de 2005, ante Eric Hernández Batalla, inscrita al folio 5 del tomo 710 de Río Piedras Sur (ágora), inscripción 9na. 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: HIPOTECA: Por $222,400.00, con intereses al 6.95% anual, en garantía de un pagaré a favor de Doral Bank, o a su orden, que vence el 1ro de julio de 2020.

Según escritura #367, otorgada en San Juan, el 9 de junio de 2005, ante Eric Hernández Batalla, inscrita al folio 5 del tomo 710 de Río Piedras Sur (ágora), inscripción 10ma. AVISO DE DEMANDA: Dado en el Caso Civil #KCD2009-4351, Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan, mediante la cual se solicita el pago de la deuda garantizada con hipoteca de la inscripción 9na, reducida a $53,781.76 de principal adeudado y otras sumas que se detallan en la demanda, o la venta de esta finca en pública

The San Juan Daily Star subasta. Anotado al folio 5 del tomo 710 de Río Piedras Sur, Anotación A, con fecha de 28 de enero de 2010. AVISO DE DEMANDA: Dictado en el Caso Civil KCD2014-2291(503), en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de San Juan, seguido por Banco Popular de Puerto Rico (demandante) vs.

Los esposos Carlos Cornier López y Evelyn Oquendo, también conocida como Evelyn Oquendo Albarrán y la sociedad legal de gananciales compuesta por ambos (demandados). Se solicita el pago de la deuda garantizada con la hipoteca de la inscripción 9na. reducida a $50,278.51, más intereses y otras sumas, o la venta de esta finca en pública subasta. Anotado al folio 67 del tomo 857 de Río Piedras Sur (ágora), Anotación B, con fecha de 25 de marzo de 2015. EMBARGO JUDICIAL: Por $5,156.52, a favor de la Asociación de Residentes San Gerardo, Inc. (demandante) vs. Los esposos Carlos Cornier y Evelyn Oquendo, por si y en representación de la sociedad legal de gananciales compuesta por ambos (demandados), sobre cobro de dinero. Anotado al folio 67 del tomo 857 de Río Piedras Sur (ágora), Anotación C y última, con fecha de 25 de marzo de 2015. La subasta se llevará a cabo para con su producto satisfacer al demandante, total o parcialmente según sea el caso, las siguientes sumas actualizadas: $38,621.32 de principal, intereses acumulados al 4 de octubre de 2019 son de $2,530.95, más los intereses que se continúen acumulando a razón de $8.53 diarios, más una suma equivalente al diez por ciento (10%) del principal del pagaré, correspondiente a los gastos de honorarios de abogado, según pactados. 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 CINCUENTA Y CINCO MIL

Friday, November 27, 2020

SEISCIENTOS DOLARES ($55,600.00) 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 10:00 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 TREINTA Y SIETE MIL SESENTA Y SEIS DOLARES CON SESENTA Y SIETE CENTAVOS ($37,066.67) 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 10:00 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 VEINTISIETE MIL OCHOCIENTOS DOLARES ($27,800.00) para la finca antes descrita. En testimonio de lo cual, expido el presente aviso, el cual firmo y sello, hoy 10 de noviembre de 2020, en San Juan, Puerto Rico. EDWIN E. LOPEZ MULERO, ALGUACIL.

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

BANCO POPULAR DE PUERTO RICO

PARTE DEMANDANTE VS.

DORAL FINANCIAL CORPORATION CONDUCTO DE SU AGENTE RESIDENTE, FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION (FDIC) COMO SÍNDICO DE DORAL BANK, DORAL MORTGAGE CORPORATION T/C/C DORAL MORTGAGE, LLC., POR CONDUCTO DE SU AGENTE RESIDENTE CT CORPORATION SYSTEM, THE MORTGAGE HOUSE, INC. LA SUCESIÓN DE AIDA LÓPEZ LÓPEZ COMPUESTA POR SUTANO Y PERENCEJO DE TAL, POSIBLES HEREDEROS DESCONOCIDOS, FULANO Y MENGANO DE TAL, POSIBLES TENEDORES DESCONOCIDOS DEL

PAGARÉ

de la Propiedad de Fajardo, inscripción séptima. La parte demandada deberá presentar su alegación responsiva a través del Sistema Unificado de Administración y Manejo de Casos (SUMAC), al cual puede acceder utilizando la siguiente dirección electrónica: https://unired. ramajudicial.pr, salvo que se represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar A: THE MORTGAGE su alegación responsiva en la HOUSE, INC a las secretaría del Tribunal Se le siguientes direcciones: advierte que, si no contesta la COUNTRY CLUB, 915 demanda, radicando el original ROBERTO SANCHEZ de la contestación en este Triy enviando copia de la VILELLA, SAN JUAN, bunal contestación a la abogada de la PR, 00924, 915 AVE. parte demandante, Lcda. BelCAMPO RICO, SAN ma Alonso García, cuya direcJUAN, PR, 00924, 954 ción es: PO Box 3922, GuayPONCE DE LEON AVE., nabo PR 00970-3922, Teléfono y Fax: (787) 789-1826, correo SUITE 400, SAN JUAN, electrónico: oficinabelmaaPR, 00917 y PO BOX lonso@gmail.com, dentro del 363823, SAN JUAN, PR, término de treinta (30) días de 00936-3823. FULANO la publicación de este edicto, el día de la publiy MENGANO DE TAL, excluyéndose cación, se le anotará la rebeldía POSIBLES TENEDORES y se le dictará Sentencia en su DESCONOCIDOS DEL contra, concediendo el remedio PAGARÉ. SUTANO Y solicitado sin más citarle ni oírPERENCEJO DE TAL, le. EXPEDIDO bajo mi firma y sello del Tribunal, hoy 17 de POSIBLES HEREDEROS el noviembre de 2020, en Fajardo, DESCONOCIDOS DE Puerto Rico. Wanda I. Segui AIDA LÓPEZ LÓPEZ. Reyes, SECRETARIA REGIOQueda usted notificado que en NAL. Ivelisse Serrano García, este Tribunal se ha radicado SECRETARIA AUXILIAR DEL Demanda sobre Cancelación TRIBUNAL. de Pagaré Extraviado por la vía LEGAL NOTICE judicial. El 7 de septiembre de 1995, Aida López López, solte- ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO ra por divorcio, constituyó una DE PUERTO RICO TRIBUhipoteca en Fajardo, Puerto NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA Rico, conforme a la Escritura SALA SUPERIOR DE TOA núm. 280, autorizada por el no- ALTA. tario Bernardo Colón Barbosa IRVING en garantía de un pagaré (no RIVERA RODRÍGUEZ expresa número de testimonio) Demandante, v. por la suma de $47,250.00 a favor de Doral Mortgage Corpora- JUAN ÁNGEL SANTIAGO H/N/C GAME BOAT tion, o a su orden, con intereses al 8¼% anual y vencedero el YACHT BROKERAGE, 1ro de octubre de 2010, sobre FULANA DE TAL Y LA la siguiente propiedad: URBASOCIEDAD LEGAL NA: Solar marcado con el núDE GANACIALES mero 77 de la Manzana “O” del COMPUESTA POR plano preparado por la Corporación de Renovación Urbana y AMBOS; D&A FINE CARS Vivienda de Puerto Rico, para INC. su proyecto de solares denomiDemandados nado Valle Verde, radicado en CIVIL NÚM. TB2020CV00301 el Barrio Quebrada de Fajardo (202). SOBRE: COBRO DE del termino municipal Fajardo, DINERO REGLA 60-CONVERPuerto Rico, con una cabida TIDO A PROCEDIMIENTO superficial de 300.00 metros ORDINARIO. EMPLAZAMIENcuadrados. Colindando por el: TO POR EDICTO. ESTADOS NORTE, con la calle numero 6, UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA EL en distancia de 12.00 metros; PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU. por el SUR, con los solares núDE AMERICA EL ESTADO LImeros 82, 83 y 84, en distancia BRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO de 12.00 metros, por el ESTE, RICO. con el solar numero 78, en disA: D&A FINE CARS INC. tancia de 25.00 metros y por el Quedan emplazados y notificaOESTE, con el solar número dos que en este Tribunal se ha 76, en 25.00 metros del menradicado Demanda en Regla 60 cionado proyecto U.S.T, en disde Procedimiento Civil – Procetancia de 25.00 metros. La prodimiento Sumario de Cobro de piedad consta inscrita al folio Dinero-convertido a Procedi220 del tomo 215 de Fajardo, miento Ordinario, en la que se Finca 7988. Registro de la Prosolicita que a la parte demandapiedad de Fajardo. La escritura da JUAN ÁNGEL SANTIAGO de hipoteca consta inscrita al H/N/C GAME BOAT YACHT folio 224 vuelto del tomo 215 de BROKERAGE, FULANA DE Fajardo, Finca 7988. Registro PARTE DEMANDADA CIVIL NÚM. FA2020CV00656.

SOBRE: CANCELACIÓN DE PAGARÉ EXTRAVIADO POR LA VÍA JUDICIAL. EDICTO. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMÉRICA EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS E.E.U.U. EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO.

TAL Y LA SOCIEDAD LEGAL DE GANACIALES COMPUESTA POR AMBOS; D&A FINE CARS INC., se le condene al pago de $5,745.00, más intereses, honorarios no menos de $15,000.00, más gastos.

Se les advierte que este edicto se publicará en un periódico de circulación general una sola vez y que, si no comparecen a contestar dicha Demanda dentro del término de treinta (30) días a partir de la publicación del Edicto, 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, se le anotará la rebeldía y se dictará Sentencia concediendo el remedio así solicitado sin más citarles ni oírles. La abogada de la parte demandante es la Lcda. Ana M. Deseda Belaval, cuya dirección física y postal es: Cond. El Centro I, Suite 801, 500 Muñoz Rivera Ave., San Juan, Puerto Rico 00918; cuyo número de teléfono es (787) 946-5268, y su correo electrónico es: anadeseda@bellverlaw. com. Expedido bajo mi firma y sello de este Tribunal, en Toa Alta, Puerto Rico, hoy día 10 de noviembre de 2020. Lcda.

Laura I. Santa Sanchez, Secretaria. Liriam Hernandez Otero, Subsecretaria.

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

CITIMORTGAGE, INC. Demandante V.

MILITZA MARTINEZ MORALES

Demandados CIVIL NUM. JU2018CV00251.

SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCION DE HIPOTECA POR LA VIA ORDINARIA. EDICTO DE SUBASTA. ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE PUERTO RICO. SS.

A: La Parte Demandada, al (a la) Secretario(a) de Hacienda de Puerto Rico y al Público General:

Certifico y Hago Constar: Que en cumplimiento con el Mandamiento de Ejecución de Sentencia que me ha sido dirigido por el (la) Secretario(a) del Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala Superior de Caguas , en el caso de epígrafe, venderé en pública subasta y al mejor postor, por separado, de contado y por moneda de curso legal de los Estados Unidos de América y/o Giro Postal y Cheque Certificado , en mi oficina ubicada

25

en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Caguas, el 13 de enero de 2021 a las 9:15 de la mañana, todo derecho título, participación o interés que le corresponda a la parte demandada o cualquiera de ellos en el inmueble hipotecado objeto de ejecución que se describe a continuación: URBANA: Solar 12 del bloque “K”, Virginia Valley, localizada en el Barrio Ceiba Sur del Municipio de Juncos, tiene una cabida de 300. 6800 metros cuadrados.

En lindes por el NORTE , en una distancia de 24.26 metros lineales con el solar marcado número 13 del bloque K de dicha urbanización ; por el SUR, en una distancia de 23.85 metros lineales con el solar marcado número 11 del bloque K; por el ESTE, en una distancia de 12.50 metros lineales con la Calle Número 2; y por el OESTE, en una distancia de 12.50 metros lineales con la carretera municipal. En la parte Oeste colindando con la carretera municipal existe un talud que ocupa un área aproximada de 9. 31 metros cuadrados . Consta inscrita al folio 111 del tomo 314 de Juncos , finca número 11839, Registro de la Propiedad de Puerto Rico, Sección JI de Caguas. Propiedad localizada en: K-12 Calle Valle del Rio, Urb. Virginia, Juncos, PR 00777 Según figuran en la certificación registral, la propiedad objeto de ejecución está gravada por las siguientes cargas anteriores o preferentes: Nombre del Titular: N/A Suma de la Carga: NI A Fecha de Vencimiento: N/A Según figuran en la certificación registral, la propiedad objeto de ejecución está gravada por las siguientes cargas posteriores a la inscripción del crédito ejecutante: l. Al asiento 2018-11831!CA02 se presentó el 27 de noviembre de 2018 Copia certificada de Demanda radicada el 31 de octubre de 2018 en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Caguas en el caso civil número JU2018-CV00251 sobre cobro de dinero y ejecución de hipoteca; Citimortgage Inc., demandante v. Militza Martínez Morales, demandados. Por la misma se reclama el pago del préstamo Hipotecario garantizado con la Hipoteca por $100,000.00, de la inscripción 6ª antes relacionada, reducida a $79,703.51, más otras sumas, al momento de radicar la demanda.

Se entenderá que todo licitador acepta como bastante la titularidad de la propiedad y que todas las cargas y gravámenes anteriores y los preferentes al crédito ejecutante antes descritos, si los hubiere, continuarán subsistentes.

El rematante acepta dichas cargas y gravámenes anteriores, y queda subrogado en la responsabilidad de los mismos, sin destinarse a su extinción el precio del remate. Se establece como tipo mínimo de subasta la suma de $100,000.00, según

acordado entre las partes en el precio pactado en la escritura de hipoteca. De ser necesaria una segunda subasta por declararse desierta la primera, la misma se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Caguas, el 20 de enero de 2021 a las 9:15 de la mañana, y se establece como mínima para dicha segunda subasta la suma de $66,666.67, dos tercera (2/3) partes del tipo mínimo establecido originalmente. Si tampoco se produce remate ni adjudicación en la segunda subasta, se establece como mínima para la tercera subasta, la suma de $50,000.00, la mitad (1/2) del precio pactado y dicha subasta se celebrará en mi oficina, ubicada en el Tribunal de Primera Instancia, Sala de Caguas, el 27 de enero de 2021 a las 9:15 de la mañana. Dicha subasta se llevará a cabo para, con su producto satisfacer a la parte demandante, el importe de la Sentencia dictada a su favor ascendente a la suma de $79,703.51 de principal, intereses al tipo del 7.00000% anual según ajustado desde el día 1 de septiembre de 2017 hasta el pago de la deuda en su totalidad, más la suma de $10,000.00 por concepto de honorarios de abogado y costas autorizadas por el Tribunal, más las cantidades que se adeudan mensualmente por concepto de seguro hipotecario, cargos por demora, y otros adeudados que se hagan en virtud de la escritura de hipoteca. La venta en pública subasta de la referida propiedad se verificará libre de toda carga o gravamen posterior que afecte la mencionada finca, a cuyo efecto se notifica y se hace saber la fecha, hora y sitio de la PRIMERA, SEGUNDA Y TERCERA SUBASTA, si esto fuera necesario, a los efectos de que cualquier persona o personas con algún interés puedan comparecer a la celebración de dicha subasta. Se notifica a todos los interesados que las actas y demás constancias del expediente de este caso están disponibles en la Secretaría del Tribunal durante horas laborables para ser examinadas por los (las) interesados (as).

Y para su publicación en el periódico The San Juan Daily Star, que es un diario de circulación general en la isla de Puerto Rico, por espacio de dos semanas consecutivas con un intervalo de por lo menos siete (7) días entre ambas publicaciones, así como para su publicación en los sitios públicos de Puerto Rico. Expedido en Caguas, Puerto Rico, hoy día 17 de noviembre de 2020.

CARLOS DELGADO CRUZ, Alguacil Regional, Placa 593.

SALA SUPERIOR DE BAYAMON.

CONDADO 3, LLC DEMANDANTE v.

MARÍA DE LOS ÁNGELES MÉNDEZ COTTO

DEMANDADOS. CIVIL NÚM. TB2020CV00387.

SOBRE: COBRO DE DINERO Y EJECUCIÓN DE HIPOTECA. EMPLAZAMIENTO POR EDICTO. LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DE AMERICA EL PRESIDENTE DE LOS EE.UU. EL ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO DE P.R. ss.

A: MARÍA DE LOS ÁNGELES MÉNDEZ COTTO

Queda emplazada y notificada que en este Tribunal ha radicado Demanda sobre Cobro de Dinero y Ejecución de Prenda por la vía ordinaria en su contra. Se le notifica para que comparezca ante el Tribunal dentro del término de treinta (30) días a partir de la publicación de este edicto y exponer lo que a sus derechos convenga, en el presente caso. POR LA PRESENTE, se le emplaza para que presente al tribunal su alegación responsiva a la demanda dentro de los TREINTA (30) días de haber sido diligenciando 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.ramajuclicial.pr /sumac/, salvo que represente por derecho propio, en cuyo caso deberá presentar alegación responsiva en la secretaria del tribunal. Si usted deja de presentar su alegación responsiva dentro del referido termino, 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 sana discreción, lo entiende procedente. Se le advierte que si no contesta la demanda radicando en su contra, radicando el original de la misma y enviando copia de su contestación a la parte demandante, Lcda.

Ana J. Bobonis Zequeira a su dirección PO Box 9749 San Juan, PR 00908, Tel. (787) 7223040, Fax (787) 722-3317, dentro del término de treinta (30) días de su publicación de este edicto, se le anotara la rebeldía en su contra y se le dictara sentencia en su contra, conforme se solicita en la Demanda, sin más citarle ni oírle. EXPEDIDO BAJO MI FIRMA Y SELLO DE ESTE TRIBUNAL. En Bayamón, Puerto Rico, hoy día 18 de noviembre de 2020. LCDA. LAURA I. SANTA SANCHEZ, LEGAL NOTICE Secretarla Regional. YARILIZ ESTADO LIBRE ASOCIADO CINTRON COLON, Secretaria DE PUERTO RICO TRIBU- de Servicios.

NAL DE PRIMERA INSTANCIA

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November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star

Black goalkeepers, big clubs and Europe’s uneven playing field

By RORY SMITH

O

n the surface, Chelsea’s victory against Rennes in the Champions League a few weeks ago was just another of those disposable, check-box exercises that litter the group stages of the competition. Chelsea, the heavy favorite — the team with superior financial firepower, a deeper squad and broader ambitions — cruised to a win.

Beyond the score, there seemed little to remember it by.

And yet that game, like Tuesday’s return match in France, was a rarity not only in the Champions League, but in elite European soccer as a whole.

Startlingly, troublingly, these may be the only two games in the Champions League this season in which both teams played a Black goalkeeper: Édouard Mendy, the 28-year-old acquired by Chelsea in September, and Alfred Gomis, the man who replaced him at Rennes.

Few sports are quite the level playing fields they believe themselves to be. Black quarterbacks were once as rare in the NFL as Black entrants were at tennis championships and golf majors. Soccer, like so many other sports, still struggles for Black representation in leadership roles: There are few Black managers, and even fewer Black executives.

And, certainly, there is abundant anecdotal evidence that the game — in Europe, if not in the United States or Africa — harbors a deep-rooted skepticism toward Black goalkeepers, one that has been allowed to fester through lack of analysis, lack of opportunity and even lack of acknowledgment.

André Onana, the Ajax goalkeeper, has a story about the time an Italian club informed him that its fans simply would not accept a move to sign a Black goalkeeper. There is another one about a former Premier League manager who, when presented with two potential new recruits, outright dismissed the one who was not white. He did not need to see him play, he said.

For most of his career in England, former goalkeeper Shaka Hislop was aware of the unspoken stereotype that shadowed him, and he still remembers those occasions when it was given voice. Like the day he and his teammates for Trinidad and Tobago were waiting in a New York airport and an immigration officer — not quite realizing who he was — explained to him, at length, why Black players did not make good goalkeepers.

Quite how deep-rooted the problem remains, though, is borne out by the figures. Of Europe’s five major leagues, France’s 20-team Ligue 1 — where nine Black goalkeepers featured last season, and eight have already received playing time this year — is very much an outlier. The numbers elsewhere are stark.

Before last week’s international break, 77 goalkeepers had appeared for at least a minute across the Bundesliga, Serie A and La Liga. None of them were Black. Last year, appearances by Black goalkeepers were similarly rare: only two of the 92 men who played goal in Italy and Spain, and only two of the 36 who featured in Germany.

The figures in England are almost as striking. While Mendy has quickly established himself at Chelsea, the five other Black goalkeepers currently registered to Premier League squads, in-

Édouard Mendy, 28, is the first-choice goalkeeper for Chelsea and Senegal. cluding the United States international Zack Steffen at Manchester City, have yet to play in the league.

The contrast between the paltry amount of Black goalkeepers and the number of Black outfield players across all of Europe’s elite leagues is such that it is hard to write it off as coincidence or the illusion of a momentary snapshot. Black goalkeepers are chronically underrepresented in European soccer. African ones are even more uncommon.

Every year, for example, the traditional powerhouse nations of West Africa have dozens of players on rosters in Europe’s major leagues. But the first-choice goalkeepers of Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Ghana all still play in Africa. And while no African country has produced quite so many elite goalkeepers as Cameroon, which once sent Jacques Songo’o and Thomas N’Kono to play in Spain and Joseph-Antoine Bell off to a long career in France, that nation’s current No. 1 goalkeeper, Fabrice Ondoa, has not yet left Belgium’s top division for one of Europe’s marquee leagues.

Ondoa’s cousin — and national teammate — Onana does, at least, play in the Champions League for Ajax. But only Senegal, with two goalkeepers — Mendy and Gomis — playing in the world’s biggest club competition, can say with confidence it has two goalkeepers competing at professional soccer’s highest level.

Mendy does not have a ready explanation for why that might be. Perhaps, he said at his introduction as a Chelsea player, it was something to do with the ill-defined “profile” of players that coaches wanted. Others have different, more deep-rooted explanations.

“There used to be a stigma attached to the idea of a Black quarterback in the NFL,” said Tim Howard, the former Everton and United States goalkeeper. “There was this idea that they were not as cerebral.”

Howard sees an echo of that in the dearth of Black goalkeepers. Soccer has long considered itself a meritocracy — at least on the field — that has moved beyond old, damaging stereotypes. Dig a little deeper, though, and their pernicious influence remains. Black players are still statistically less likely to play in central or attacking midfield, for example, and are far more likely to be praised by commentators for physical attributes like pace and power than about more intangible qualities like “intelligence” and “leadership.” And very rarely, it seems, are they given a chance at the elite European level to play in goal.

Mendy accepts that it falls to him to help overturn the stereotype. All he can do, he said, is “show I can really perform at this level, and perhaps change people’s mentalities on these things.” To those who have had to endure the same prejudices, though, who spent their careers hoping to be an agent of change, that is part of the problem.

Hislop, now a commentator for ESPN, zooms in on the case of Jordan Pickford, the current first-choice goalkeeper for both Everton and England’s national team. Pickford has come under scrutiny in the last few years both for perceived technical flaws in his game and for a tendency toward rashness. “Everyone comes under the spotlight once in a while,” Hislop said.

The difference is that, whenever Pickford makes a mistake, “nobody uses his performances to proclaim that white players don’t make good goalkeepers,” Hislop said. If Pickford errs, the only reputation that suffers is his own.

Black goalkeepers, Hislop argues, are not afforded the same privilege. It felt to him during his career, he said, as if every individual error was used as conclusive proof that all “Black goalkeepers make mistakes.” And it did not apply just to him: He believed that when David James, a goalkeeper with Liverpool, Manchester City and England, made mistakes, those errors were held up as supporting evidence for the stereotype.

Carlos Kameni, a former Cameroon international who spent the bulk of his career at Espanyol in Spain, said he was confident that the dearth of Black goalkeepers was not “a form of racism.”

If a goalkeeper is good enough, Kameni said, one of Europe’s major clubs will sign him, and he uses Mendy’s arrival at Chelsea as supporting evidence. To Kameni, the problem is much simpler. “There are not enough Black goalkeepers who are good enough,” he said over a series of WhatsApp messages.

Those two things, though, are not unconnected. The problem, Hislop said, is not only that coaches are less likely to give aspiring Black goalkeepers a chance to showcase their talents, but that Black players have fewer role models offering proof that they can succeed. “They do not have an example to follow,” he said.

He is, at least, hopeful. He sees a raft of promising Black goalkeepers in the United States, a country and a soccer culture where Howard, Bill Hamid, Sean Johnson and now Steffen have effectively killed off the stereotype, and where Philadelphia’s Andre Blake — a Jamaica international — was just named Major League Soccer’s goalkeeper of the year.

More pertinently, Hislop cites Brazil as proof that stereotypes can disappear. For a long time — and despite compelling evidence to the contrary — it was held as gospel truth that Brazil did not produce high-quality goalkeepers.

“Everyone in Trinidad and Tobago also kind of considers themselves a Brazil fan,” Hislop said. “And they would always say that Brazil didn’t make goalkeepers. But now you have Alisson and Ederson, who are two of the best in the world. Nobody will ever say that again.”

Prejudices, unspoken or not, can be exposed. Vicious cycles can be stopped in their tracks, or even reversed. Mendy, Gomis, Onana and the rest can help that process. The shame, of course, is that they have to do so.

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

27

You get one forward pass per play. Unless you’re Tom Brady.

By VICTOR MATHER

I

t is one of the first rules you learn when you get taken into the backyard and taught how to play football: You can throw only one forward pass each play.

On Monday night, Tom Brady tried to get away with breaking that rule. And in a way, it worked.

Early in the fourth quarter of Tampa Bay’s game against the Los Angeles Rams, Brady’s Buccaneers had a third-and-10 at their 34-yard line. Brady threw over the middle, but the ball was blocked at the line of scrimmage by linebacker Terrell Lewis.

A lot of good things have happened to Tom Brady in his life, and here came another. The deflected ball, which could have gone in almost any direction, caromed directly back to him. Brady reacted with lightning speed, snatched the carom out of the air and … passed the ball again?

Yes, perhaps because of a brain freeze, or maybe because he thought no one would notice, Brady tried his second pass of the play. That’s a violation of the rules of

the NFL, the Canadian Football League and just about every type of organized football down to your cousin’s youth league.

Brady’s second pass was completed to Mike Evans, but the officials were less than impressed. Flags flew, and Brady was called for a penalty.

But wait. Evans was brought down 2 yards short of a first down. So with the Buccaneers now facing fourthand-2, the Rams declined the penalty. The play, and the double completed pass, stood.

NFL drive charts rarely make for interesting reading, but this one will forever. Tucked near the start of the fourth quarter, it dryly notes exactly what happened: “T.Brady pass short middle to T.Brady to TB 25 for -9 yards. T.Brady pass short middle to M.Evans to TB 42 for 8 yards.”

It goes on to note that “statistically, no completion for first pass as a result of the declined penalty.” So Brady, at least, will be spared the negative yards on the catch, which would have only reduced his own passing total.

It was not the first time since joining Tampa Bay this

year that Brady, 43, seemed to struggle with a bedrock football rule. In October, he appeared to lose track of the one about being allowed four downs each series. After failing to convert a fourth down against the Bears, he remained on the field and held up four fingers as if he thought he had another play.

The Buccaneers lost that game, and they lost Monday night as well, 27-24. But at 7-4, they are still in the driver’s seat for a playoff berth.

If Tampa Bay makes the postseason, Brady will need to remember that the rules of football apply there, too.

Eric Hall, extravagant British soccer agent, dies at 73

By ELIAN PELTIER

E

ric Hall, Britain’s most extravagant soccer agent in the 1980s and ’90s, often confessed that he knew little about the sport.

Many said that was his greatest strength, even if it also led to the occasional mishap: He once negotiated a bonus for a player on the condition of scoring 10 goals, only to learn afterward that the player was a goalkeeper.

To negotiate more lucrative deals for his players, Hall would watch British soap operas on Saturdays while games were aired, but would still write down how many goals his players had scored. It was the sort of strategy that propelled his role in the explosion of large-sum transfers in the early years of the Premier League, England’s top-tier competition.

Hall died on Monday in London. Michael Hall McPherson, his nephew, who is also an agent, said the cause was the coronavirus.

Known for his catchphrase, “Monster, monster,” his love of cigars and his dazzling outfits, Hall had honed his negotiating skills in the music industry by promoting the likes of Queen and the Sex Pistols, and later applied similar codes to the rapidly changing world of British soccer.

“He took showbiz into football and looked at players as stars, which they weren’t really yet in the mid- and late 1980s,” Hall McPherson said.

“And in the negotiation room, he was a lion.”

Hall was born on Nov. 11, 1947, in East London.

He quit school as a teenager and went to work at a store on London’s Denmark Street, known for its recording studios and music shops. There, he befriended and packed parcels with Reg Dwight, who would go on to become Elton John.

Hall later worked as a publicist for the British record label EMI, promoting rock bands like T. Rex and Queen. In 1976, he arranged a television appearance for the Sex Pistols that gained lasting notoriety when the band’s guitarist used an expletive against the show’s host, a rare action at the time.

The agent long claimed that Freddie Mercury had written the song “Killer Queen” about him, even though Mercury himself had said the tune was about a call girl.

“The truth is, I’ve been telling that story for so long that I’m not really sure myself, but Freddie would’ve loved it either way,” Hall McPherson recalled his uncle saying.

His uncle had always been attracted to showbiz, Hall McPherson said. “He became famous from creating celebrities, but he preferred to be the celebrity himself.”

In the mid-1980s, Hall left the music industry and, in a career that spanned over a decade, represented dozens of soccer professionals, including Chelsea midfielder Dennis Wise; Neil Ruddock, who played for Tottenham and Liverpool; and Terry Venables, who managed England’s national team.

Hall also negotiated large salary increases for players and helped pioneer the creation of appearance fees, branding rights and other bonuses.

In 1997, he fell into a coma for three months and was given a diagnosis of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, a rare blood disease. His list of players dwindled, and a new generation of influential agents like Jorge Mendes and Mino Raiola rose to prominence.

Hall never really recovered in the soccer world. But he remained a fixture of Britain’s entertainment scene and since 2013 had hosted a weekly show on an independent radio station in East London.

Hall is survived by a brother and a sister.

“He lived for showbiz,” said Hall McPherson, his nephew. “And his life was a bit of a show.”

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The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

David Dinkins kept loving tennis, no matter who mocked him

By VICTOR MATHER

D

avid N. Dinkins, who died earlier this week at 93, was once the mayor of New York. But he was also the unofficial mayor of the tennis world.

Dinkins was an avid, even obsessive player, a friend of tennis stars — in 1990, Jennifer Capriati said, “The mayor is one cool dude” — a U.S. Tennis Association board member, and an advocate for African Americans and youth in the sport.

Among the signature achievements of his tenure was the deal announced in 1991 for a new stadium that helped keep the U.S. Open in Queens. The plan had its detractors, including Dinkins’ successor, Rudy Giuliani, who declined to attend the U.S. Open while in office.

But another mayor, Michael Bloomberg, later said it was “the only good athletic sports stadium deal, not just in New York, but in the country.”

A love of tennis — and a resolve to diversify it — quickly became a key part of Dinkins’ public persona as he moved from assemblyman to borough president to mayor.

As he geared up to run for mayor in 1990, he was playing every Saturday and Sunday at the New York Tennis Club in the Bronx. “In terms of things I like to do, I am perfectly happy on a vacation if there is sun and sand and water, and a tennis court,” he said. Asked about his interests beyond tennis and politics, he answered, “What else is there?”

Early in his single term as mayor, a surprising issue soon began to hit the headlines: the incessant noise of jet planes taking off from LaGuardia Airport and intruding on the tranquility of the U.S. Open. Dinkins soon persuaded the Federal Aviation Administration to use special takeoff procedures during the 14-day tournament, keeping the planes farther away.

But a larger issue with what is now known as the Billie Jean King Tennis Center was still to come. Organizers were eager for bigger, better facilities, and hints were made about finding a new home for the event, perhaps outside New York City. Dinkins brokered a deal for a $150 million expansion, crucially to be paid for by the USTA, not the city.

But the plan still had its critics. Outdoors lovers and civic groups bemoaned the loss of parkland that would be required. Eventually the plan was scaled back, to develop fewer acres and build only one new arena — which would become Arthur Ashe Stadium — instead of three.

Giuliani, who defeated Dinkins in the 1993 election but could not reverse the deal, faulted a provision that would penalize the city up to $325,000 if there were too many jet flyovers, and also knocked Dinkins’ love of tennis in general. (Giuliani is a baseball fan.)

Like golf-playing by presidents past and present, Dinkins’ tennis play was used by some as a weapon to criticize him. An article in The Daily News in 1991 claimed that Dinkins spent just three hours a day on city business and accused him of neglecting his duties to play tennis.

Dinkins rebuffed those accusations, and added that the article would not lead him to cut back his time on the court. “If anything, it’ll make me play more,” he said.

After losing to Giuliani in his re-election bid, Dinkins could play without complication. Checking in on Dinkins in 1995, The New York Times reported that he enjoyed “discussions of politics and government, family, social gatherings and tennis — though not necessarily in that order.” He began playing as much as five times a week.

In contrast, Giuliani continued to have little good to say about the sport or the U.S. Open, dismissing it as elitist. He said he would not attend the Open, because of his unhappiness with the contract to rebuild. He also declined to speak at the opening of the new stadium in 1997 and never attended the event as mayor. But with little public notice he did agree to approve the tennis center’s expansion after a review concluded that he had no basis for a challenge.

Dinkins continued to be a ubiquitous presence at the Open. He would stay at the grounds until midnight and then wake up at 5:30 a.m. to play in Central Park.

“I’ve been on the court with Chris Evert, Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe, Arthur Ashe, Billie Jean King, Virginia Wade,” he said. “And let me tell you, tennis players are the nicest people.”

Dinkins also became involved with organizations that aimed to expand tennis’s reach beyond its stereotypical country-club image, notably the National Junior Tennis League, founded by Ashe, which introduces tennis to children and teens from low-income families.

“These programs teach our young people more than just tennis,” Dinkins wrote in The Times in 1990. “They reinforce values such as discipline, courteousness, good sportsmanship, team spirit and responsibility. And they provide our young people with an alternative to the streets and allow them to release creative energy in a positive way.”

He also made an impact when he served on the board of the USTA. “He was a loud voice in the room when it came to diversity and inclusion,” said Katrina Adams, a former Tour player and USTA president. “He helped us to understand that we represented everybody.”

“My greatest interest and concern was that people playing tennis look like this country,” Dinkins told Tennis. com. “It has been my experience that having a seat at the table alters things.”

The tennis world honored Dinkins by naming an entrance to the tennis center after him, and he is also the namesake of some Harlem tennis courts.

David Dinkins, shown in 1989, enjoyed playing with tennis greats and still hit the court into his late 80s.

But for tennis nuts, what ultimately matters is your game. So what was Dinkins like on the court?

Doug Henderson, a lawyer from the Inwood section of Manhattan and a longtime friend of Dinkins, who played with him in the ’70s and ’80s said: “He had a good game; he had strong legs. Today, the players use more of the upper body; he used his legs. He was ultracompetitive. He played until he just couldn’t play anymore.

“He was immaculate in his suits and ties, and also in his tennis outfits and his manners.”

As he aged, Dinkins continued to seek challenging opposition. “He enjoyed playing with good players his age and much younger,” said Peter Knobler, who helped write the mayor’s autobiography, “A Mayor’s Life: Governing New York’s Gorgeous Mosaic.” “He played with Monica Seles and other pros. When players met him and found he had the same passion as they did, they responded.”

Dinkins, who died on Monday night, continued to play doubles until he was 88. Adams, who played with him in those years on Roosevelt Island, said: “He would always have a diverse group with him: men, women, Black, white, Asian, Hispanic. He always loved bringing people together. He was strategic on the court, but also professionally.”

“When you reach your 80s, doubles is better for you,” Adams said. “He wasn’t very powerful and not very quick then. The passion and the intensity was there, but the changeovers got longer and longer. But he loved his forehand, especially passing down the line. I remember, because I got passed quite a few times.”

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 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

The San Juan Daily Star

November 27-29, 2020

(Mar 21-April 20)

Sticks and stones may break your bones, but names will never hurt you, Aries. The problem with the energy today is that there may be some sticks and stones tossed in your direction. Be on the lookout for such objects. There are powerful forces operating that are charged with emotional aggression. War may break out if you aren’t careful. Try to maintain the peace.

Libra

(Sep 24-Oct 23)

Your sensitive heart may be sparked by anger today, Libra. Don’t be afraid of hurting other people’s feelings. You’d be doing yourself and others a disservice by not revealing the true scope of your emotions. The other parties involved may not have all the facts necessary to make the most educated decision. Aid in this process by revealing your perspective.

Taurus

(April 21-May 21)

Scorpio

Gemini

(May 22-June 21)

Sagittarius

(Nov 23-Dec 21)

Capricorn

(Dec 22-Jan 20)

Emotionally, things might get rather tense for you as others tend to demonstrate a selfish attitude, Taurus.

Selfishness doesn’t always have to be considered a negative. Sometimes it’s healthy and necessary to take a more self-centered stance. You need to take care of yourself at all times. So, don’t try to pick a fight when other people also demonstrate this behavior.

You might be stirred by the energy present in the air today, Gemini. Put on your armor and get ready to do battle. Others may cower when they look out their window and see what’s going on outside, but you want to jump into the fray. Strong, aggressive emotions are the weapons of the day, and everybody knows that you have quite an arsenal in this department.

Cancer

(June 22-July 23)

Move in for the touchdown today, Cancer, and don’t stop until you succeed. Don’t let other people’s insecurities become yours. Have confidence in yourself and the way you behave around others. Just because someone else feels sad doesn’t mean you have to, just to make them feel better. The best thing you can do in this situation is turn it around by exhibiting sheer happiness.

Leo

(July 24-Aug 23)

(Oct 24-Nov 22)

You might feel a great deal of physical power on a day like today, Scorpio. If someone asks you to come help move a couch, you’re likely to be able to pick up the whole thing by yourself. Don’t sell yourself short. You have more internal strength than you reveal to others. There’s no need to hide it any longer. Feel free to make use of this great power you possess.

The ship is headed out, so you’d better hop on board, Sagittarius. People aren’t apt to be too sympathetic to your emotional sob story today, so keep it under wraps. Whining will get you kicked off the boat altogether. Today’s energy is teaching you to toughen up. Don’t take it personally. Realize that there are important lessons we all need to learn.

One of them is to know when to be silent.

You’ll want to jump into action today, Capricorn. Feel free to order others around for a change and delegate.

An aggressive approach is exactly what’s called for, and you have the ability to deliver the goods. Trying to do everything yourself may seem like a great idea at first, but you’re better off enlisting help so others can feel involved and you can concentrate on doing a better job on fewer tasks.

Aquarius

(Jan 21-Feb 19)

Now is the perfect time to say something to someone that you’ve been meaning to say for quite some time, Leo. Get it out in the open. Keeping it inside will only eat away at you. Stop worrying about the consequences and make the move. Today is the time to be bold and aggressive. Other people might respond in a similar fashion, so if you dish it out, be prepared to take it.

You’ll want to jump into action today, Capricorn. Feel free to order others around for a change and delegate.

An aggressive approach is exactly what’s called for, and you have the ability to deliver the goods. Trying to do everything yourself may seem like a great idea at first, but you’re better off enlisting help so others can feel involved and you can concentrate on doing a better job on fewer tasks.

Virgo

Pisces

(Aug 24-Sep 23)

Your opinions might be the topic of conversation all day, Virgo. You have a very strong will and you aren’t afraid to express it. Today you will get that chance.

Feel free to enlighten others with your tremendous wealth of knowledge. Take control of the conversation and accept the mental challenge of trying to win other people over to your side. Whether you’re successful or not, you will have fun trying.

(Feb 20-Mar 20)

Your opinions might be the topic of conversation all day, Virgo. You have a very strong will and you aren’t afraid to express it. Today you will get that chance.

Feel free to enlighten others with your tremendous wealth of knowledge. Take control of the conversation and accept the mental challenge of trying to win other people over to your side. Whether you’re successful or not, you will have fun trying.

Answers to the Sudoku and Crossword on page 29

November 27-29, 2020

31

CARTOONS

Herman

Speed Bump

Frank & Ernest

BC

Scary Gary

Wizard of Id

For Better or for Worse

The San Juan Daily Star

Ziggy

32

BLACK FRIDAY November 27-29, 2020

The San Juan Daily Star