Saturday, February 27, 2010

Belize Telecommunications company authorizes 40% dividend payout of net income.

BTL ISSUES DIVIDEND OF .19 CENTS A SHARE

The Belize Telecommunications Company nationalized late last year in a fight with Lord Ashcroft, has issued a dividend of 40% of the NET INCOME to shareholders. The government is not explaining how the SUNSHINE HOLDINGS BTL employees shareholders will get their dividends though.
At the current dividend rate, this puts a value on the BTL shares to be sold in May 2010, the government is quoted in the media, to Belizeans of; between .85 cents and $1.00 Bz a share.
There are oodles of debts and law suits connected with the telecommunications company.

BNE, oil company of Belize says government gets 58% of NET INCOME FROM OIL EXPORTS





Belize Natural Energy, the only successful oil company in Belize with two lakes of oil to exploit and export, claims in a color printout included in the weekly newspapers; that our GOVERNMENT in the past four years has received 58% of ALL NET INCOME from the OIL COMPANY.

UDP REPORT CARD GETS BOOST OF 4 POINTS TO 43 % FROM ACTIONS OF AGRICULTURE MINISTER.

Agriculture Minister, Rene Montero representing Cayo Central voters.



UDP REPORT CARD GETS BOOST OF 4 POINTS - scorecard now is 43%

Rene Montero the Agriculture Minister scored the extra 4 points on the approval rating for the UDP government in office.
He saw delivered 4000 lbs of cassava seedlings, four thousand of cacoa yams and 300 Chaya cuttings to farmer of the Maya Green Growers Association of San Antonio village in the Cayo district here. This is an effort by the Ministry of Agriculture to increase the quality and quantity of root crops production for the Western Belize growing populations. Some vegetable seedlings were included. We still do not produce our own vegetable seeds in Belize and indeed research is still ongoing trying to find the two temperature types of seeds best suited to year round vegetable greenhouse production. We do have native tropical vegetables, but the research is into temperate zone varieties.
Included were 100 Rhode Island Red roosters to the villagers, intended to be a genetic boost with local birds, aimed at increasing egg production.
The effort is about FOOD SECURITY and INDEPENDENCE of food, as in a nation of self reliance when needed in world emergencies.

The RESULT of the G -32 SUMMIT in MEXICO. ( Feb. 2010 )

THE RESULT OF THE G -32 SUMMIT ( Feb. 2010 )

The G -32 Summit was the Group of 32 Latin and Caribbean nations that met in Mexico to discuss forming a new grouping mimicking the European Union Group of 20, or something like that.
It seems the new grouping was to the liking of everybody and one of the main things was the skipping of ideology found in the RIO GROUP, that currently meets in South America. The conflict between communist, tyrannical dictatorships and democracies was voted out of discussion at this new grouping of the G -32. If it can be kept so, it will be a good start. Other than that and a resolution to help Haiti with less than $6 million usa in pledge assistance, nothing more came out of the summit. The leaders will meet next year. In the meantime, our Foreign Minister in Belize and Attorney General, Mr. Elrington, said that; there are ongoing discussions among the G -32 on a monthly basis on a wide range of issues.
The biggest issue facing the G - 32 is that attacks by the G -20 of Europe and the OECD on our FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS and the threats of SANCTIONS by the OECD, G- 20, are violating the sovereignty and the right for countries to make their own laws in their own countries. The ALBA Federation of G -7 Communist dictatorship wanna-be countries and the Presidents for Life movement, does not attract the democracies, or other 25 countries of the G – 32. Rather in getting into sociological and political arguments about ideologies, the agreement was to ban that part and work on economic trade and agreements that could be accomplished.
First and foremost is International Banking capabilities OUTSIDE of the G -20, OECD countries. We need a banking system to facilitate interchange of money. We need the common currency among us itself. Because there are so many countries this can get sticky and take a long time to organize. The warlike attacks on sovereignty by the OECD, cannot wait for such long term solutions.
I thought to start something small. Both Guatemala and Belize are being threatened by SANCTIONS by the OECD, or Europeans, who seem to seek WORLD DOMINATION again. We need a common International tradable currency in a hurry.
I thought of paper money, but our paper money is printed in England. That is OECD territory, so that solution of paper money as a common exchange medium between Guatemalan QUETZALS and BELIZE DOLLARS is a non-starter. Paper money for the short term moment is out then? Until we can print our own. Both Guatemala and Belize use USA dollars as a common currency in normal times. Against using the US dollar is that some parts of the future G – 32 countries, use the EURO currency as their foreign exchange component. Neither the QUETZAL, or the BELIZE DOLLAR have any value, outside of each of our borders.
We need some change in banking regulations and currency controls, to enable the exchange of our Guatemalan Quetzals and Belizean Dollars to establish a new currency. I was thinking of something short term and fast. How about GOLD COINS made by the PRIVATE SECTOR. The value fluctuates according to world demand. It is tradable for USA dollars, Euros, or Quetzals, or Belize Currency, IF both countries would pass the legislation enabling the fabrication of gold coins by the private sector and for the private sector to legally hold such transferable FOREIGN EXCHANGE. We need also both US DOLLAR ACCOUNTS and EUROS in Belize and GUATEMALA by citizens FREELY through our banking system, without government controls over our populations. The money situation would have to OPEN UP and let in some maneuvering room.
Given such a system, investment would also pick up and our slavery to the printing presses of England, or the rule of the NEW COLONIALISM coming out of the OECD, G- 20 of Europe would make us more independent. While they control these money things, we are stuck in a losing position.
There are of course more things to consider in the financial field, but exchangeable money out of the control of the OECD countries would be a first step, that is needed right now, if their SANCTIONS of slavery imposed on us are to fail.
Something to think about anyway. Do nothing and you end up being exploited as new colonies of the OLD WORLD in a new form.
Lets start with something simple and manageable. A common currency capable of being exchanged between the Quetzal, the Belize Dollar and the alternatives of the USA dollar and the Euro dollar. Something of our own preferably.

CARICOM SLAVE COUNTRIES SURRENDER SOVEREIGN INDEPENDENCE TO EUROPEANS G -20

CARICOM LEADERS ARE SURRENDERING TO THE OECD – back to slavery again. The black leaders of CARICOM are going to give in, to the European OECD and surrender their right to be SOVEREIGN NATIONS. G – 20 THREATS, through the OECD SANCTIONS are going to do this, unless we change our various internal laws to suit them under the coercement of SANCTIONS as in WAR of an economic nature. This wiping out the CARICOM Financial Services island Industries. The thing is; that making a police state of the world is not a good idea of the G -20, no matter how they gloss it over with semantics and honeyed words. There should always be room for the individual, the person or business that marches to a different drummer. A G -20 Police State cannot be a good thing, no matter how it benefits them and not us other countries.
It is definitely WAR now and loss of SOVEREIGNTY. According to the CARICOM speaker, the war is over already, the CARICOM countries are surrendering without a murmur. Every time I wrote and re-wrote and tried to re-write this piece for the Belize Culture Listserve, online, some unknown person ( hacker ), wiped out my e-mail, half way through writing it. So I am being monitored I guess? Had to unplug my modem and disconnect from the internet and will have to save to FLASH and go to an internet CAFÉ over in Guatemala to publish it I guess? Somebody sure has my computer monitored?
BLACK CARICOM LEADERS bleat a lot like SHEEP about UNITY, STRENGTH in numbers, but when it came down to it, they announced tonight on TV that they would give up their SOVEREIGN RIGHTS to make their own laws and become SLAVE COLONIES once again under the EUROPEANS. The G 7, or G 20, OECD institute THREATENED them with SANCTIONS unless they sign away their sovereign rights, and they have caved in like cowards, or slave material. Back to being slave COLONIES of EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, without even a whimper.
Switzerland it had been announced a month or so back, they had to surrender to the OECD and change their sovereign laws, but I read recently were they have reneged on that again and gone back to their sovereign rights. Don't know the truth of the matter?
The new meeting in CANCUN this past week, between all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean was intended to found an opposing group to the Imperialist colonialism G - 20 of Europe and North Amerida. This is called the new GROUP OF 32. G -32 of the Americas. Excluding the USA and Canada. I'm not at all sure of Mexico here, as they are signed on as quislings of the G -20 OECD?
Prime Minister Dean Barrow of Belize claims he is half Maya and half Creole. I wonder which genes are the stronger? He is supposed to meet with the Foreign Minister of Guatemala soon. Guatemala is under the same threat of SANCTIONS by the Europeans. DIVIDE AND CONQUER STILL WORKS. What we need since CARICOM has failed, is UNITY in the MAYAN KINGDOMS. Excluding MEXICO, which has joined the OECD and European new world colonialist Empire builders.
What we need is our own MAYAN KINGDOMS money, for Belize, Guatemala, Salvador and Honduras and go independent of the rest of the world, more or less. Our own joint financial system, our own money, and own Central Bank. Can we join the Mayan Kingdoms in their new borders together as one, since CARICOM has failed?
World domination and the new colonialism by the G-20 Europeans mostly, is different than the past era, prior to 1949, when all the different countries of Europe had their own world wide colonial empires competing against each other. They are still out to DOMINATE the world, but doing it jointly, which is WORLD RULE still, just that the former European enemies have joined forces to do this through; dictates, sanctions and treaty signings. Where the protection ( so-called ) of the United Nations in all this exists I don't know. Sure don't see anything happening?
ALBA FEDERATION is trying to do something about what they call the NEW IMPERIALISM. ( G - 7 group of wanna be Communist Dictator types of Presidents for Life club. ) Unfortunately while the idea is a good one, and independence and self reliance good, who would bank with a Communist regime? Back in the Spanish Civil War, when the Russian Communists were in Spain to fight the Germans testing their new war machine, prior to World War 2, STALIN offered to secure the Spanish Treasury, free of charge and the Spanish government of that time, shipped ALL THEIR NATIONAL treasury ( GOLD BULLION in those days, when paper money was backed by gold ) in ships to RUSSIA for safekeeping. They didn’t want to lose it to the FACISTS. Which was General FRANCO! Franco won the Spanish civil war, with the aid of HITLER, but STALIN was an old bank robber and later after FRANCO died, the RUSSIANS never ever returned to Spain, their National Treasury and foreign reserves ( in GOLD BULLION.) I read where old communists still laugh about the biggest bank robbery of all time, by STALIN. So no, I could not see the countries of modern Central American borders today, putting their money in a bank run by Chavez out of Venezuela, for safe keeping, IF the MAYAN KINGDOMS decided to not submit to the OECD, G -20.
There is a PRINCIPAL here. You never back down to a bully. Take a licking if you have to, but fight back. You go self reliant, even if it is a painful process. SOVEREIGNTY IS EVERYTHING for your local population, or else you are just food for the sharks of the world, to be exploited.
Obviously the announcement out of CARICOM this evening of accepting new slavery colonialism, under the Europeans makes their whole attempt at a West Indies Federation a joke! Once a slave, always a slave I guess?
Who can respect such people, who claim they are LEADERS of their Caricom countries? They can't balance their governments finances, constantly in DEBT to the international FINANCIAL SYSTEM controlled by the G -20 and OECD. Paah! If this is leadership, bravery and patriotism, then we have had different lessons in life, I guess?
( this is an OPINION PIECE! )

Thursday, February 25, 2010

THE FUTURE OF BELIZE ?

THE FUTURE OF BELIZE?

Business wise, Belize is starting to separate itself from Europe. The new citrus factory is now selling all the produce in juices to CARICOM and Central American countries. We still have a long way to go in value added sugar retail selling and different sugar product lines. Like sugar cubes and packaging. In the papaya and habenero pepper industries in agriculture things are looking up with exports to the USA market. Corn and red kidney beans are now exported to Central America as raw commodities and have some way to go, in the processed added value field, where the money really is. Mexico wants our meats and new changes in the way we process meat and the international health standards are being met, presumably increasing exports over time. Finished value added end products in meat products still have a long way to go though locally. Though commercial local varieties of sausages are being marketed and the chicken industry processing has the capability in finished product to export now, but so far have not done any close by marketing. Seems like most of our newer food processed marketing products will be sold either to CARICOM and the MAYAN KINGDOMS of our neighboring Central American countries. We are moving away from Europe.
Money and financial services are meeting obstacles with the new WORLD WAR by the G -7 and G-20 countries out to change and rule the world in their plans for economic colonialism. We are being attacked in Belize and other countries around here and around the world by their new attack mechanicism the OECD institute. People locally are complaining that nowadays money transfers using the banking wire transfer system no longer works and wire transfers are going missing. Particularly in larger amounts and no kind of time and energy spent trying to track down where wire transfer money disappears to seems successful. International cheques still sort of work, though they take an inordinate amount of time, and cost too much to process, tying up the money for long dormant periods. Carrying money in a bag, or suitcase, on airlines, even when you declare it, also disappears, and the newer x-ray machines are robbing suitcases that have cash in them. The fastest way to change money these days and pay bills is to have bank accounts in different countries and different currencies. The PRIVATE SECTOR money changing operations are doing well and act promptly. Places like Western Union and Money Gram. It costs a bit to use them though. Tourists are using ATM’s which seem the quickest way to get money when traveling. I’ve watched tourists do that, but never tried it myself and just wonder what it costs in fees and international rates and commissions? It works for small amounts but not in big amounts. Having bank accounts in different countries and currencies seem to me the best way to go to exchange money these days. Then a deal with somebody wishing to swap currencies at the private level. Most big corporations dealing out of Belize and politicians are transferring money by contraband couriers, using the USA dollar countries and the dollar as the International currency still. ALBA is working on a money system with their new Banco del Sur. I’m not sure anybody would trust a Communist run system of banking for transferring money though on the private level? The new grouping of Latin American and Caribbean countries are talking about setting up a common financial system to transfer money here on this continent. They like to talk a lot though and never seem to do anything? Politicians are like that I suppose?
While we need an airline hub in both Central America and Caribbean excluding North America, a recent revelation that the high price of a Belize airplane ticket, over one bought in the USA is based on an enormous local fuel surcharge. Even on planes that do not refuel in Belize. The fuel surcharge being a larger component of the ticket price locally than the actual fare. This is some kind of government tax maybe? Needs looking into, if we are going to build commercial business and tourism.
Cheaper ways of air transportation need to be found. ( Seems to be jet fuel access problem and local government taxation? ) Better ways to exchange large amounts of business money, involving different currencies, outside of the OECD control plan of World Domination and economic colonialism. We need an internal American Continent system of bank transfers, wire transfers, cash settlement systems devised and established here in the Americas, outside of the USA, Canada and Europe. That is what the new grouping now going on in CANCUN is supposed to be about, and more satellites for our own inter-american business telecommunications have to be built and invested in, by Caribbean and Latin countries. We have to grow up, unless we accept that the G-20 European and USA countries are going to continue to control us and our economies by our apathy.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

BELIZE CITRUS GROWER SHAKEOUT AHEAD!

CITRUS ORCHARD GROWERS TO GO THROUGH SHAKEOUT OVER NEXT FEW YEARS!
by Ray Auxillou

While the new citrus factory improvements are good news for international exports of citrus products from Belize, the new factory is going to have an effect on people who are small players with citrus trees.
Consolidation is the end result of a fixed reliable market for citrus fruit. With the new factory and a value added end product, the industry will no longer be a slave to WORLD fluctuating prices. There is going to be a steady income and dividends in the future and citrus as a business in Belize is going to go from being a lackadaisical enterprise that does not pay 6 years out of 7 years, to one that pays a steady income pay cheque stream, every year.
Small growers who only dabbled with citrus trees as a sideline hobby, and not their main income in life are probably going to sell out. Those that mortgaged their small orchids will undoubtedly get foreclosed and sold off at auction. Consolidation will be the rule as the citrus product business steadies down to a regular business and cash flow. Reliability will change everything.
As fast as land can be found to purchase, new citrus orchids are bound to be invested in. A much longer 8 year process. The business is going to grow and to support the factory, the business and production of fresh fruit has to grow.
One idea is to use CITRUS which is now a very good investment for the future, to solve other international and Belize government problems. I refer to the border with Guatemala.
It would be a logical idea for the government to authorize a half mile wide strip to go to leasing, to investors in citrus along the border line, all along the Toledo, Chiquibul and Vaca plateau area, all the way up to the TWIN TOWNS.
Not to take away anything from the notion of National Parks and forest reserves and protection of wildlife. But the strip along our Western Border is already heavily agriculture in illegal milpas by Guatemalans. A strip of land a half mile along the frontier, including the adjacency zone, sold off in leases, for citrus orchids would provide the needed fencing at private sector expense, to keep bandit and illegal immigrant incursions at a minimum. The private sector would do what the government could not afford to do. With accurate GPS for surveys, the border line could be surveyed and half mile wide 150 acre land plots leased out to investors in citrus along the frontier. Lease convertible to Land Title upon successful bearing citrus trees. You are probably looking at a 20 to 50 year program here in investment in further citrus production. The citrus belt would automatically fence the frontier border on the West. Private Sector investors, would have their own horseback patrols protecting their citrus groves and incursions into the nature reserves of our parks and forests would be stopped.
Thanks to the new factory, citrus is now a good investment and probably 15 years from now, another new citrus factory would be needed somewhere around the Vaca Plateau, CARACOL area?
Lets use some common sense and protect our Natural Forest Reserves, by utilizing the frontier swath of land with investment to pay for border protection. Whats a half mile wide strip of land in the greater picture here?

NEW LATIN AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN GROUPING TO RIVAL THE OAS AND BATTLE THE OECD G -20 new colonialism.

NEW LATIN AND CARIBBEAN GROUPING FORMED IN CANCUN TO FIGHT EUROPEAN AND USA, OECD Group of 20 new colonialism.

A new grouping of Latin America and the Caribbean countries of the continent has been formed in CANCUN, excluding the industrial European orientated countries of the North, the USA and Canada. The intent announced, is to deal with American Continent problems. This will rival the USA controlled OAS. No political ideology to be allowed.
They are trying to solve inter-american country problems. Both CANADA and the USA are regarded as friends when they want to be. Though Canada is more European orientated than American Continent, 34 country orientated. Both Canada and the USA are regarded as to be more personal greedy ( BIG OVERBEARING EXPLOITIVE BROTHERS) as countries.
Chavez and the ALBA BLOCK are a problem with their rusty antique, Communist BLOC discredited failed rhetoric, like ' bourgoise' and that sort of lingo. If they would go SOCIALIST like the modern proved SCANDINAVIAN socialist type countries, we all would join them here in the Americas. But this tyrannical/dictator/ego mania type, police state they want to install, repulses most of the other American countries.
The new grouping need some things we can only do for ourselves. We need a couple of Central American and Caribbean AIRLINE HUBS and services for intercontinental airplanes. We need our own satellite systems for telecommunications and Venezuela now has their own satellite and Bolivia is going to be putting up another one. Done by the Chinese. In the FINANCIAL arena we need a new money system and banking clearances system, wire transfer system, to get the new Empire building Europeans with their new OECD COLONIALISM off our backs. They were talking in CANCUN about fighting the OECD of the G 7 and G 20 Empire building dictatorship coming out of Europe.
The next meeting next year is to be in Venezuela. This first one was in CANCUN.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Felix Cal a Maya from San Miguel village does not agree with being declared POOR because of his lifestyle.

** Typical Maya thatch house made from jungle materials.



THE NEW WAY FOR GOVERNMENT BUREAUCRATS IN BELIZE TO JUDGE POVERTY IS BASED ON CASH INCOME! THE NEW RULE SAYS IF YOU DO NOT HAVE AN INCOME OF $10 BZ PER PERSON PER DAY ( $5 USA ) YOU ARE CLASSED AS POVERTY, OR POOR!
In the Maya World of living in the remote jungle clad slopes of the Southern Mayan Mountains of the Belize Alps, they live almost a cashless society. Except for kerosene, candles, matches, machetes, files and rubber boots and the occasional pots and pans, the MAYA feed themselves. The staple is corn and red kidney beans. They grow other things as well. They usually sell excess corn for cash and sometimes cacao. Some even try growing rice. $600 Bz or $300 usa a year would be good enough cash flow income. They also live in supportive clan groupings and each home is a three generational home compound either on the farms, or in small villages. In the USA you would call the MAYA survivalists. How to live off nature without money for the most part. This life style of subsistance farming is usually by choice.



San Miguel Village
Toledo District
February 7, 2010

Dear Editor:

Please allow me to share my personal views relating to the article: “Over 50,000 more poor — Belize City Southside, Toledo poverty rates, highest in Belize”, appearing on the front page of the Amandala dated, Sunday, January 31, 2010.

I write in regards to the Poverty Assessment that was released to determine our poverty rate in this country. I am concerned as absolutely no one has ever approached to question me pertaining to such a survey, so that my status can be determined as poor.

I am a Kekchi Maya, and it has become the norm that anyone who sees us, they have a set perception of us being deemed to be labeled as poor. What a shame and disgrace! Is it because we are being taken for granted that we are silent?

As I kept reading the article, it states and I quote, “Throughout the study,” says the report,” Belize City’s Southside and Toledo kept emerging as being concentrations of poverty and other social issues, particularly violent crime; and Toledo because of the very high incidence of poverty, its isolated location in the south of the country, and its population dominated by the indigenous Maya”.

The last statement in bold has struck me to the heart, and has disgusted and frustrated me, and that is my reason for sharing my personal view on this matter. Clearly, I can see that this statement is a real attack on us because of our indigenous status. And I daresay that it is misleading and mischievous at its highest level.

We, the Maya (Kekchi & Mopan) in Toledo, have been labeled for centuries as poor people. It now worries me that every time a poverty assessment is being carried out, the outcome is poor, and I am afraid that the generation to come might have this mentality, “Maya = poor,” because this is the sensational tune in Belize.

We, the Maya, perceive ourselves as the richest people in this country, even though we may not have three- four-storey buildings, own cars, hold full time jobs, etc. But yet we are living humbly with other ethnic groups, sharing resources with each other, and we govern ourselves accordingly, (probably unknown to some) and because of this, crime is down among us.

Agricultural subsistence farming is done to ensure that every day meals are being put on the table and as you heard, recession has popped out its big ugly head but guess what, the hard working Maya farmer is not and will not be affected. The education system has taken root and many of our Maya children are excelling at the primary school level, high school level and even at the tertiary Institutions.

Every year, thousands of tourists from around the world come to vacation in our midst, and our old and retired teachers from other ethnic groups who have taught in our villages have been ringing the bell and sharing the same sentiments that “WE THE MAYA ARE NOT POOR.”

I have the same perception as well, because the family structure is rich and very well attached. We have the evergreen rainforest to boast about, which in turn sustains our livelihood; we have our traditional healers who help us when someone gets bitten by snakes. (Rarely do you hear a Maya going to the hospital due to a snake bite.)

How many times have you heard of a lost Maya child? How many murders are happening among the Maya? How many of our children are not enjoying meals three times a day? How many Maya are homeless, or sleeping on the street sides? How many of my people are seen on the streets with their long arms stretched out asking for a dollar? How many times have you heard the Maya committing burglary? And the list can go on. I will leave you to do math, and I can guarantee you that you share the same perception as mine, but yet, the Maya is tagged as being poor.

How much longer will we as a people continue to accept whatever they perceive us to be, knowing that it is truly the opposite? I encourage others to share their views to let them stop calling us the Maya people poor.

Is that the reason why they want to plunder and rape our rainforest so as to take advantage of us? I believe not, as that will never happen again in this time and age. If you perceive us to be (POOR), then do something about it and stop singing the same old tune over and over.

(Signed) Felix Cal
University student






In the world of Belize Civil Service Bureaucrats and politicians, the system of declaring the Maya poor is so GRANTS can be solicited from foreign institutions in industrialized societies, which are totally CASH societies. They do not understand lifestyle subsistance survivalist choices. The incoming MONEY is then able to be spent on CIVIL SERVANTS as salaries to help the poor. Only NGO's truly help the poor, NEVER the bureaucrats and politicians. ( opinion! )

TOURIST MARKET GIFTS FAIL TEST IN BELIZE!

** Cheap Ocarina whistle made in clay.
** Ocarina whistles are best sellers. Made nearby by Magana Pottery Works, San Jose Succotz


TOURIST MARKET TEST FAILS BUSINESS INCUBATOR TEST IN BELIZE

A test of the Cruise Ship tourist market two years ago, done at the tourist souvenir stalls at Xununtanich Mayan temple, by the FERRY crossing the river, showed that Tourists rarely spent $10 Bz ( $5 usa ) for a tourist souvenir and most sales were $4 Bz, or $2 usa.
The idea promoted by many on the local scene that tourist souvenir makers in Belize could make money off the tourist market, thus seems flawed, as a training model of vocational education. Cruise ship tourists are too cheap!
What can you make to sell for $4 bz, or $2 usa and cover any labor, transportation, distributing and other associated costs?

Sunday, February 21, 2010

TOURIST SEASON REPORTED SLIGHTLY BETTER THAN LAST YEAR in Western Belize

** Tikal pyramids stick up above the jungle.
** President of Chile
** Cave in Western Belize lower Mountain Pine Ridge of the Belize Alps



Western Belize tourist season reported by tour operators to be slightly better than last year.



Tour operators in the TWIN TOWNS are reporting slightly better earnings this tourist season, so far from January through February.

The President of Chile flew into the TIKAL ruins yesterday, to visit the temples in the jungle, nearby from the Mayan Kingdoms of Belize. She had her plane fly directly into the TIKAL airstrip. Out of Western Belize, TIKAL is a day tour.

Day Tours to the TIKAL RUINS are done by PACZ TOURS of San Ignacio Town and the only tour operator we recommend for reliable service and honesty.

Belize- RUTA MAYA cross country canoe race approaching fast.



THE ANNUAL RUTA MAYA CROSS COUNTRY CANOE RACE IS COMING FAST AND DUE IN MARCH.

Already participants have been practicing with the early in the season, short race from Boom to the port of Belize City.

The BEEG race starts in Santa Elena Town in Western Belize in early March. The race is a stage race of around 200 miles and take four days and 3 nights, with participants, spectators and family camping out along the banks of the meandering Belize River that flows to the coast. There are many shallow places in this river and some deep water parts.
Contestants mostly come from Belize. There are the OLD FARTS, the women entries, and the British Army enter one or two canoes and usually get beat. They stand ready to compete against the US Marines though, or the US Navy Seals if they should dare to show up. There are some entries from different countries of the world.

Belize and the Mayan Kingdoms beauty contest of Coatepeque, Chichicastenango.

** Senorita of the greater Mayan Kingdoms of which the nation of Belize is a part. The Mayan Kingdoms cover the Yucatan of Mexico, the country of Belize, the country of Guatemala and Salvador and Northern mountain area of Honduras.
** Mayan Beauty Queen of the greater Mayan Kingdoms area. This one from a beauty contest in Coatepeque, Chichicastenango.

** Beauty Queens of Coatepeque, of the Department of Chichicastenango, across the border from the 26 Classical Mayan Kingdoms, former Mayan City States, now called Belize, ruled by our first Mayan King in 1100 years, Prime Minister Dean Barrow. Coatepeque is up in the Cordillera, or high mountains at 8000 feet, compared to the lowland Mayan Kingdoms of Belize. Or the Mayan Kingdoms of the highlands immediately over the modern political border in the Department of Peten at 700 ft to 3000 feet.

Participan las jovenes Alejandra Virginia Becerra Moreeno, de 17 anos. Venessa Elizabeth Angel Martinez, 18; Jami Sttefanie Vides Ochoa 16; Shirly Dulce Maria Avila Rodas 18, Barbara Alejandraq Medina Grajeda 19, 7 Mariam Fernanda de Leon Cetino 17.
Las senoritas recorrieron la pasarela del Club Coatepeque la noche del 13 de Febrero, durante un baile para recaudar fondos que seran destinados a la clinica de especialidades del Club de Leones y otra pafrte para apoyar a las victimas del terremoto en Haiti.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

BELIZE UDP GOVERNING REPORT CARD LOSES 5 POINTS - New score is 39%.

GUATEMALAN TRANS CENTRAL AMERICA HIGHWAY SYSTEM APPROACHING BELIZE AT THE WESTERN BORDER TOWN OF MELCHOR DE MENCHOS. ( Feb. 2010.)

BELIZE UDP GOVERNMENT report card drops from 44% to 39% rating

We just traveled to Santa Elena Town, the capital of the Guatemalan Department of the Peten and found the asphalted highway short of the border town, of Melchor de Menchos out on the Western border with Belize, nearly finished. The road subsurface is fast traveling though, and all the gravel has been laid, to the border and Melchor de Menchos border town, the shoulders are finished and it only awaits now for the last 22 miles to be covered with six inches of asphalt. We expect this to be done by the end of the dry season, in June.

The UDP GOVERNMENT of BELIZE sees their approval rating of their REPORT CARD, reduced by 5 points. The Cabinet Minister of Tourism in Belize and the Cabinet Minister of TRANSPORTATION have still failed to supply the infra-structure of public bus transportation to the Western Border Immigration crossing. We saw the 2 1/2 mile stretch of double lane boulevard, from Benque to the border, lined with tourist backpackers and locals from both sides of the border, walking the shoulders of this good Belizean highway.
The new BELIZE GOVERNMENT RATING is 39%. the score approval rating for the government of the UDP has dropped from 44 to 39 %.

Belize observes Guatemalan tomato crop destroyed by cold plague in February.




GUATEMALA TOMATO CROP WIPED OUT BY COLD WEATHER PLAGUE - Feb. 2010




Dead plants dominate the photos of the Guatemalan newspapers as the tomato crop suffers from excessive cold weather. and the plague of paratriuza Over 200,000 manzanas ( about 2 1/2 acres to a manzana ) Guatemala has most of the MAYAN KINGDOMS under their modern political boundaries. About 20 different languages exist still today, under such ancient Mayan Kingdoms. Belize has two Mayan language groupings and our first Mayan King in 1100 years ( Prime Minister, Dean Barrow ) now governs 26 Feudal Mayan City States of former ancient times, during the second known thousand year civilization ending around 750 to 900 A.D., believe to be from a three hundred year drought, in the modern country of Belize, on the Eastern border with the 22 Mayan language groupings of Guatemala. There are around 17 million Maya in the Mayan Kingdoms today and millions of mestizos.
In Belize we do not yet grow enough tomatoes to export to Guatemala, to assist them with their tomato shortfalls, but with donations from the United Nations FAO and the EU with GRANTS to assist in vegetable research in greenhouse growing in the lower tropical lands of Belize on the Caribbean Sea, located to the East of Guatemala, North of Honduras and South of Mexico, such research experiments are now ongoing and sure to make a difference in the next dozen years.
The worst zones hit in our neighbor Mayan Kingdoms were Jutiapa, Jalapa, Chiquimula and San Antonio la Paz, El Progreso.

Caja de tomate en el montana

BELIZE LOOKS TO ALBA FEDERATION TO FIGHT THE OECD WORLD PLAN OF DOMINATION.

BELIZE LOOKS TO ALBA FEDERATION OF THE AMERICAS TO SAVE CARIBBEAN 'FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY FROM THE WAR BY THE EUROPEAN AND USA COUNTRIES ON THEIR SOVEREIGNTY AND LAWS

CARICOM countries of the Caribbean are looking to the ALBA FEDERATION to save their FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY SECTORS of economic activity.
Belize is particularly looking to the ALBA Federation and their NEW BANCO del SUR, to save the CARICOM countries FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY. They are under ATTACK by a rapacious European Union, intent on a new world conquest, with an institute called OECD, that intends to dominate the world economy. Threats of SANCTIONS have been made to both Guatemala and Belize, that if they do not sign agreements to the liking of the OECD representing the European countries and the USA, by the end of this month; that they will apply SANCTIONS to make these small countries, change their INTERNAL SOVEREIGN laws, in violation of any rights they may have to sovereignty and independence.
All money currently goes through the BANKING SYSTEM of the OECD members, plus they control the telecommunications satellites and wire transfer systems and banking cash settlement systems. It is thought that the threat of SANCTIONS by the OECD will include freezing of all ability to use money for international purposes for the countries of the Caribbean and Latin America, in violation of internal laws of these sovereign countries. Local banks will not be able to use the financial systems and will have their assets frozen by the OECD countries in this new WAR by the Northern Temperate Zone industrial countries. Russia has expressed an interest in helping Latin America and the Caribbean.
The ALBA FEDERATION led by Hugo Chavez of Venezuela is being created to solve this problem. Venezuela already has installed with the assistance of the CHINESE, a telecomunications satellite in orbit and now President Evo Morales has announced that Bolivia of the ALBA FEDERATION will also have the CHINESE fabricate and launch their own Bolivian telecommunications satellite. Between the ALBA FEDERATION money transfer system of BANCO DEL SUR and the two new satellites of Venezuela and Bolivia, it is hoped this will enable sovereign countries of Latin America and the Caribbean continent to achieve a measure of INDEPENDENCE from the Northern Temperate zone, would be world conquerers.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Belize update on latest developments on Citrus Growers Board control fight.

BANKS HOLDINGS COMPANY CAUGHT IN A LIE BY THE CITRUS GROWERS ASSOCIATION?
by Ray Auxillou

Banks Holdings directors had stated in television interviews that the only return on investment they were getting would be the dividends and that was the reason to build a successful operation on a sound financial footing in the Pomona Valley. ( postponing dividends until 2013 ) The CGA ( local citrus growers group ) said differently. They said that Banks Holdings investors were marketing and distributing their product, and were in fact getting cash flow from selling their product.
There was certainly a lot of confusion in local circles here in Belize. I myself thought they were some sort of Investment Bank, or a Commercial Bank. Channel 7 television news today explained the misconceptions among the Belizean public. The investors in the Citrus Factory in Belize are in fact a beverage factory company, selling juices and soft drinks out of Barbados, as middlemen around the CARICOM market. Similar to our Bowen and Bowen local company that manufactures Belikin Beer and Coca Cola.
To some extent this changes perceptions in Belize. Not a whole lot, because Banks Holdings brought valuable technical expertise in processing, packaging, value adding, brand name identification and distribution to the Belizean establishment with their $60 million dollar investment in the local citrus factory. Something we have needed for a long time. As a young pioneer primitive society we are gradually changing from a raw commodities supplying country to be exploited, to something more.
The way forward is to copy the Banks Holding successful distribution, marketing system for many products in Belize. Not only for citrus juices. In that sense a Jamaican company is doing something similar in Belize. We have them on the BLOG here someplace. Forget the name? ( just looked it up - Grace Kennedy Ltd. of Jamaica - they also are looking to get local producers to use their brand name and market their products )
The next 15 years should be spent by the CGA, by SAVING ( not borrowing ), then reinvesting in their own product of juices. There is nothing stopping the CGA with a new company, from going to the next step in the self education process. Which is to buy your own rolls of packaging foil materials. Register a company and a brand name ( in Spanish ) and start a fledgling pilot project to market juices like this into Central America, which is a much bigger market than CARICOM. The CGA could in fact form a company to distribute and market raw citrus products from other Central American countries and duplicate what Banks Holdings are doing with them in Belize, throughout the Central American region. This is a learning process and you have to go in incremental steps. The biggest difficulty with a distribution marketing brand name business, is collecting your money on time, from wholesalers and retailers selling your product throughout the Central American countries.
Even the new off shoot of this squabble, the new citrus association should be aiming at this same goal. The Mennonites have both the money and expertise to do the processing manufacturing part, but a larger Central American distribution, marketing sytem is currently beyond their areas of expertise they have acquired over the past 50 years. Processing, the value added product, and the establishment of a brand name, with an associated company, to spread out in other products throughout Central America is a BIG OPPORTUNITY. Copy the successful Banks Holdings model. To do this the Citrus Growers would have to form another couple of companies and acquire a whole lot more sophistication and expertise than they are now showing. The way forward is clear. It is a long 15 year process of SAVING, STRUGGLING and RE-INVESTING for citrus growers. Dr. Henry Canton is currently the acknowledged local expert in this field in the local arena. The CGA are claiming he is already doing something on the side in this line. More power to him! He does however need finance and product to be successful. It is in group action and the formation of new investment vehicles to do this that the CGA members can transform themselves from just growers, to middlemen, distributors and marketing, where the real money is made. Borrowing loan money is not the way to do it, despite the blandishments of politicians and bureaucrats from Belize City (gimmee dollar crowd ) Selling shares in a joint venture is the way to go. ( You don't have to pay interest, or pay back share investment money) Eventually you get listed on an International Stock Exchange. In the meantime, use the BANKS HOLDINGS operation in Belize and around CARICOM as an example of where you want to grow to, here in Belize. You now have your foot in the door, can the CGA growers evolve to the next step, as middlemen?

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Belize Citrus Industry in a war over control of the Board of Directors!

** photo in top right hand corner of Dr. Henry Canton the controversial figure. He is also running the BNE oil company operations I believe? ( photo from Google Images - attributed to Amandala.com )


CITRUS FACTORY BROUHA!
by Ray Auxillou

Banks Holdings two representatives have come and gone from Barbados to Belize. The two men represented their arguments over control of the Board of Directors of teh Citrus Industry, to the media in a television question and answer session. They saw the Prime Minister, Dean Barrow of Belize and they met with the leaders of the Citrus Growers Association.
Both sides at war with each other, over control of the Board of Directors of the Citrus Factory, the CGA and the Barbados Investment Bank had their say.
What did we the public get out of this as an understanding?
The Prime Minister has withdrawn from the controversy. His only stipulation, is that he will support the CITRUS Growers in their ONE MAN - ONE VOTE as stockholders.
The CGA own 51% of the shares of the company. The Investment Bank from Barbados holds 49% of the shares. In order to invest in the citrus factory, the Investment Bank insisted on control of the Board of Directors of the FACTORY. In return for this in a legal agreement, they put up $60 million to take care of the big pile of millions of dollars in debts the previous management of the CGA had run up, and was on the verge of BANKRUPTING the citrus industry and then existing factory. This factory back then, only shipped raw commodities and if the INVESTMENT BANK were to come in, they were going to make the industry profitable again. An agreement was signed giving the Investment Bank control of the Board of Directors and their choice of a CEO, which was Dr. Henry Canton.
Since that time, the new CEO Dr. Henry Canton, ( Investment Bank and at the time the CGA 400 growers choice ) has invested in diversification of the end product, in value added juices of different kinds of fruits. The citrus industry was modernized with a lot of new machinery and no longer sells raw citrus commodities, for another country to process and gain the profits from a value added juice product. The new juices are selling in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados and Guyana. The new improved modernized citrus factory cannot keep up with market demand. The citrus industry can now sell all the product they can produce. This has just happened, but the bookkeeping, past debts, and such financials, have not yet had enough time to catch up.
The 400 or so small Citrus Growers Association want more money from the factory. The factory bookkeeping currently has RETAINED EARNINGS, an amount which is used to operate, maintain and re-invest in the factory. The bookkeeping shows the new factory is short of some $11 million in profits so far this year, to enable the issuing of a DIVIDEND to share holders. Indeed the Board of Directors controlled by the Investment Bank want to postpone the dividend payout until 2013 in order to put the new factory business on a solid financial footing. The CGA members want to dip into the RETAINED EARNINGS and pay the money out as a dividend NOW. Failing that, the CGA want the Board of Directors to BORROW a foreign loan from banks and issue a DIVIDEND now.
This is the same problem the CGA had when they owned the previous simple factory. The sucked out all the money in back payments to small growers and pretty much had bankrupted the citrus industry, saddling the previous factory with huge debts. The Investment Bank want to do this properly, slowly and build up reserves and make the citrus industry a long term profitable enterprise. Standing in the way is the INVESTMENT BANK choice of CEO, Dr. Henry Canton, who fully appreciates the money angle. He is the target the small 400 Citrus Growers are going after, because he will not give them the RETAINED EARNINGS, or BORROW a FOREIGN LOAN against future earnings for a DIVIDEND payout this year.
As a parallel example we have the same stupid management practice of the government of Belize by our two political parties. Consequently the nation of Belize is now over 90% DEBT TO GDP ratio. We are bankrupt, but neither political party will organize the country finances and operations on a solid financial basis. Instant gratification is the rule here in Belize. No common sense professionalism.
The two representatives of the Investment Bank returned to Barbados yesterday evening and a Board of Directors and annual shareholders meeting has been called for April this year. The only contentious point is that the CGA shareholders want to get rid of Dr. Henry Canton who is blocking them from sucking the new factory investment dry of money, before it can walk. Right now the Citrus Industry is still crawling. Dr. Henry Canton is not representing the small 400 shareholders they claim. The INVESTMENT BANK says he is doing his job which is building a solid factory and citrus industry and they are well satisfied with the business plan and performance, despite any fluctuations in the citrus market on the world price stage. Dr. Henry Canton has been charged with protecting ALL shareholders investment, both the CGA 400 shareholders, 51% holding and the Investment Bank 49% holding. His contract of employment is legal and binding and could fracture the factory and industry if he were fired and he sued. The Investment Bank refuse to do anything like this. In Belize, governments tend to break contracts, both verbal and written with impunity. This culture of disrespect for the law and investment has apparently filtered down to the 400 small shareholders of CGA.
The Investment Bank say they cannot replace Dr. Henry Canton with an equally capable person easily and that he is a KEY CEO, that has been instrumental in making the factory over into a modern and future profitable enterprise. It is obvious the CGA 400 growers want to ruin the factory before it is on a solid financial footing for the long term future. They want to suck out and spend money now, before there is availability. Personal greed and immediate gratification are their viewpoint and to hell with the future. That is my opinion as an outside observer.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

New USA Immigrant to Belize investigates tropical hydroponics

Hello Chuck,
You are ahead of my on the immigration. I've lost an entire month due to snow in the DC area - biblical. We beat the old record by 14 inches so far with 53 inches and counting. Please keep me abreast of your progress. We all have similar affinities for wood.
Doug

From: Ray Auxillou
Sent: Wednesday, February 17, 2010 3:27 AM
To: Chuck Rogers
Cc: bz-culture@psg.com ; douglasbmorris@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: Hydroponics and tropical agriculture.

I have shade cloth. I believe they sell two grades here. Not sure of the technical term anymore. Good luck on your retirement here. The sawmill is a good idea. I am trying to get some lignum vitae for shafts, bushings and bearings in a prototype windmill experiment. We used to export it once, but not sure who now can produce it. It is an iron wood type lumber that is self greasing, used in shafts of submarines and cargo ships for bearings. Lasts thirty years they say at sea. Make sure you bring a sawmill blade that can cut tropical hardwoods, they are like steel. I chipped a D 9 cat blade trying to knock down an iron wood tree once.

News on Western Belize with photos:
http://westernbelizehappenings.blogspot.com

--- On Wed, 2/17/10, Chuck Rogers wrote:


From: Chuck Rogers
Subject: Re: Hydroponics
To: "Ray Auxillou"
Date: Wednesday, February 17, 2010, 12:39 AM

Thank you so much for writing back so promptly. I'll be turning in my passport papers tomorrow and as soon as I get that back I'll be buying a ticket. My plans are to come look at the area and get the feel of your country, then possibly move down. If I make the decision to come back and live, I'll be looking for a piece of land. I have a portable sawmill that would be coming with me so I can cut lumber for a small cabin and also cut lumber for locals as I can. It wouldn't be for a business. My body just can't take that kind of work anymore. This is good though, because I've been planning on looking in your area.
I know heat and too intense of light can be bad on many vegetables, but I bet that with a little bit of ingenuity it can be done well. I know a few people in the agricultural world that may be of help, one guy in Oklahoma, who is a micro biologist and farmer. The heat in Oklahoma is worse than there. I thought they were out of their minds when they began putting old bedsheats over the tomato patch so they wouldn't scorch. Shade cloth is going to be valuable there, so if I move down, I think I'd be bringing some rolls of that. What percent shade cloth have you tried? Thanks again, Chuck


----- Original Message -----
From: Ray Auxillou
To: Chuck Rogers
Cc: bz-culture@psg.com
Sent: Tuesday, February 16, 2010 5:20 PM
Subject: Re: Hydroponics

Hmmmmnnnn! This is the tropics and diseases and insects are unremitting all year around. We have no dormant seasons like up North. Nobody was growing vegetables of the temperate zone varieties, it was impossible on the ground with clay as the main soil.
I chose hydroponics as a research method to find out what would enable us to grow vegetables here in Belize. Then we had to find the problems.
It turned out to be varieties, for the two main weather seasons. Very hot, and cooler. Not many vegetables grow well over 90 F for months at a time. There isn't any night time differential to turn off the clock inside the plant. We finally figured out we needed humus. So we grew vegetables in pots. This eliminated a lot of ground problems by putting them up on trestles. They are now experimenting at our Research Station at Central Farm with greenhouse netting types. Just started this past FALL.. We are also using worm farms to create fertilizer for vegetables and commercial soil growers are using a long black hose for drip feeding. It has worked well.
You must remember this is the tropics and lowland tropics, not even high mountain tropics. This is not temperate zone growing.
We had tropical vegetables growing naturally, but they worked via two seasons for rainy seasons. Water is a big factor. We finally proved you could grow vegetables all year around, week after week, after week. Water, soil, varieties depending on the temperature season, and fertilizer sources were discovered and identified.

--- On Tue, 2/16/10, Chuck Rogers wrote:


From: Chuck Rogers
Subject: Hydroponics
To: "Hill View Hacienda"
Date: Tuesday, February 16, 2010, 5:48 PM

I'm trying to figure out why you were using hydroponics vs. conventional. It is so labor intensive and is subject to failure unless everything is gravity fed and such. Just curious, because I'm planning on a visit. I'm also a certified horticulturalist. Thanks, Chuck

The Battle over control of the Board of Directors of the Citrus Products Factory in Belize.

** The citrus growers life in rural tropical Belize
** processing of citrus juices
** Citrus orchids in the tropics of Belize
** Citrus being processed at the Pomona, Stann Creek Valley factory.





The struggle for control of the Board of Directors of the Citrus Products Factory goes on with a March this morning.
The CGA, or Citrus Growers Association under the leadership of Denkins, Bowman and Zabeneh continues the struggle to wrest the control of the Board of Directors of the Citrus Factory, a separate owned company.
It is the only citrus factory in Belize. The major orchard owners and producers of citrus orchids in the country have pulled out of the older CGA and formed a new association. They are still delivering to the Citrus Factory.
There was an interesting discussion about the situation on different media television channels this morning about what is at stake.
As I understand it, the CGA had run the citrus industry into the ground through mismanagment and the taking on of huge loans, which were distributed to member growers. Enter a new group of leaders and they put the business on a new footing by getting investment of $60 million dollars and assuming the old loans, around $30 million or so, the old management of the CGA had run up. With the investment from Banks in Barbados, they bought a whole lot of new machinery and installed a newer value added component to the citrus production at the factory. This is in the form of packaged juices sold to Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Guyana. They probably could sell all of it in Central America which is closer also? Part of the agreement for the new capital investment, was that the BANKS assuming the risks, wanted control of the BOARD OF DIRECTORS of the Citrus Factory company. The contract was written up in such a way that the CGA owned 51% of the Factory shares, but did not have majority seats on the Board of Directors, which was controlled by the new investment group, to protect their investment. The struggle since; is all about control of the Board of Directors. The CGA under rabble rousing leadership is now marching today they say, to protest, that the signing they agreed too, with the investment contract over who controlled the Board of Directors needs to be annulled and the old guard CGA group who nearly wrecked the citrus industry before, want to control the FACTORY again. The citrus industry is finally making money most years. Nor do they have debts, since investment in shares is different than by loans. You don't have to meet any payments on share investments, on loans you get crippled by interest and principal repayments and have nothing left to upgrade and re-invest in production, but the BANKS in Barbados that put up the $60 million, do want a profitable Factory and a dividend. This is their only source of financial return.

OECD AND THEIR GOALS OF WORLD CONQUEST

** OECD tax revenues at the expense of the other 170 countries of the world.
** OECD meeting. The white Europeans introduce race control of the world again by their new conquest philosophy's. A la Hitler in a new version.
** The face of the new world conquest group, the OECD headquarters.


THE OECD: WHO AND WHAT IS THIS GROUP, THAT HAVE DECLARED WAR ON BELIZE AND THREATENED, INTIMIDATED AND BULLYED US IN BELIZE, WITH THREATS OF SANCTIONS!

Our Prime Minister of Belize, Dean Barrow was angry and irate the other day, when the news broke that the OECD was threatening us with ECONOMIC SANCTIONS. He called them in response to local media investigative many insulting names. Basically he said they were immoral.
What we know is they wish to destroy our small FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY through compulsory signing of some kind of treaty they have drawn up in their favor. The threat of SANCTIONS is an ACT OF WAR by this group. So checking the internet I researched to see who and what this group is?
The Title for the OECD is “For the Economic Recovery and Progress of Europe”
This is to be done through “Expansion of World Trade for member countries.”
The OECD works for 30 member countries. These are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, U.K., and USA.
I don’t know how Mexico got into a European Industrialized country Organization, intent on ruling the world?
There are approximately another 170 or more countries in the world, with SOVEREIGNTY AND INDEPENDENCE. Apparently these 30 countries of the OECD are out to divvy up the economic benefits, of capturing the other countries of the world, as suppliers of raw materials and becoming economic colonial slave state markets, for their benefit?
The OECD employs 2500 bureaucrats. They can call on the military power of all 30 member nations to enforce their will, on the rest of the 170 countries of the world. That they are doing this, is born out by the threat of SANCTIONS against tiny Belize, to get us to sign some tax sharing treaty obligations we do not want to sign. An infringement of our SOVEREIGNTY and INDEPENDENCE. The treaty will destroy our FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY.
This is comparable to when our Belize National Police pick up some unsuspecting victim off the streets and beat and kick him near to death, or put a metal bucket over his head and hit it with batons, until the victim suspect signs a confession to some burglary, or robbery the police do not know who did it. We have many arguments in Belize against this warlike, bullying practice, but it still goes on and such signed confessions are most often thrown out of court, defeating the purpose of the signed confession in the first place.
The OECD have done the same to us: the OECD are threatening SANCTIONS on Belize if we do not comply and sign away our sovereign rights to make our own laws. They are doing it to many small countries around the world. Obviously this is a pack of scoundrels, criminals and a pack of wolves bent on subjugating the rest of the world to their benefit. World conquest like Hitler.
I would agree with our Prime Minister complying voluntarily to supplying the information they want, but I would not agree to him signing a TREATY with the OECD as a client slave state under intimidation, threats of sanctions. This is not a way to treat partners and friends. Nor is it right for them to treat us like a colonial nothing and country of slaves and indigenous peoples to be exploited. It is good to know who your enemies and friends are, and now we know? I think if the Prime Minister, Dean Barrow signs this treaty now, even under protest, he will lose the next election. It would be viewed as Appeasement like Chamberlain prior to World War 2. You cannot appease bully’s, intent on world conquest. I’d rather fight and get our lickings, than knuckle under as a SLAVE STATE. I’d rather we got the SANCTIONS and Prime Minister Barrow, acted like Winston Churchill. We must find a way to be self sufficient, and if it means war with these European countries intent on a new style of world conquest, then so be it. Nothing is EVER gained by appeasement, things will only then get worse for us as a nation otherwise. That is the lesson of experience and history.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

BELIZE UDP REPORT CARD JUMPS 2 POINTS TO 44 %

BELIZE UDP GOVERNMENT REPORT CARD JUMPS 2 POINTS TO 44% FROM 42%.

The increase of two percentage points in the UDP report card, is because of an article in the San Pedro Sun, re-posted on the Belize Culture Listserve that said something like; a $30 million foreign loan has been received by the Government of Belize, to upgrade infra-structure. Among the list of recipients of this money were numerous municipalites throughout the nation of Belize. With the notable exception of the Port City, called Belize City. Under past governments ALL incoming monies were spent on the port of Belize City in an amount that exceeded 80% most of the time, to the detriment of building the nation of Belize and the other six districts. This new money coming in is intended for municipalities. There are nine towns in Belize of any size. All need funds and government strengthening. The UDP government under Prime Minister Barrow is making sure all this new loan money is going to build up the strength of the other cities and larger towns in the nation of Belize. There are not many of them, but the rationale has been expressed, that they must get the port town population to migrate to the district larger towns, where the opportunities for further development and growth exist.
The port of Belize City has become an embarrassing problem from congestion and ghettos of poverty and crime.
Needless to say this is the FIRST GOVERNMENT that has considered that the rest of the six districts and nation of Belize are worthy of development. We thusly award the UDP government 2 % percentage points on their REPORT CARD. These 2 percentage points are for allocation and intent. The UDP haven't done it yet and we note that our local Hillview slope has streets that require culverts in 5 or 6 places that were never finished, from when the UDP built the place to begin with, about 17 years ago. Further points will be issued on observations of improvements completed.

The plot by the BILDEBERG group and G 7 countries, to take over the world!

MANIPULATION OF GREECE FOR THE NEW WORLD ORDER

A Greek citizen writes on the internet that the fiasco in GREECE was manipulated by the banks on behalf of the G 7, now expanded to the G 20. The guy said he hated to do it, but he was leaving his homeland of GREECE. He believed that the G 7 is basically a NEW IMPERIALISM to dominate and control the world. The first thing is through the money system. From what I understand they are not going to allow Europeans to have more than 1500 Euros, taken out of banks at any one time. They are starting with GREECE as a test case, he said. All transactions over 1500 Euros will only be able to be done using credit cards. In a computerized world, those that control the money flows control the world.
Jesse Ventura had a long show of all his tv series CONSPIRACY THEORIES re-run last weekend. The show that had the most audience attention was the SECRET BILDEBERG MEETINGS each year to establish a NEW WORLD ORDER. The BILDEBURG Group are policy makers of different governments and Jesse Ventura said there were a smaller group behind the Bildeburg Group. About a 120 people with a vision of a World that they controlled. Back prior to World War 1 most of the World was control by MONARCHIES and Russia and all the European monarchies of that time, had controlled THEIR known world through competition and inter-marriage. A small group of families. All the Monarchies of Russia and Europe were cousins. Between World War 1 and 2, most Monarchies did not survive. Yet it is the same players that are dividing up the world again to control it as subject peoples. The Bildeburg SECRET Meetings are making the plans. The OECD which is a product of the G 7 and now the G 20 is threatening countries like BELIZE with SANCTIONS, the new weapon of attack and subjegation. They are out to wipe out all the new Financial Services Industries that were able to compete with Belgium the UK and New York, established because of rapid internet telecommunications. Belize is currently under a state of WAR with the OECD a subsidiary organization, like an attack company of military might using standard warlike weapons.
According to Jesse Ventura investigative reporter and star of the Conspiracy Theories TV series, there is a group behind the SECRET BILDEBURG MEETINGS to divide up the world into spheres of economic control and new style of so called independent countries. Who indeed sets the agendas, hires the lecturers and professors to feed the world leaders their brand of theories at the Bildeburg Conference. He even speculated that behind them was another smaller group, believed to be the behind the scenes BANKERS, or major traditional money people, that have controlled Kings for centuries, via finance and money.
We know this for a fact in Belize, as the OECD is currently attacking all Financial Centers around the world, particularly the smaller ones, insisting that EACH country SIGN on the dotted line, to obey the rules they have established in Belgium for control of the money flows in the world. So much for independent nation states. They will no longer exist if your laws internally can be controlled by the OECD, or any other G 7, or G20 group out to master and control the world for their own benefit. Sovereignty and Independence are now a joke. As we found out with the banana negotiations last year. The idea we can be self sufficient and control our lives as an Independent country of BELIZE is no longer valid, if PM BARROW is forced by threats of SANCTIONS to obey the OECD, the product of the G 7 and G20 world domination scheme.
The Belize currency ( $1 Bz ) is now worth $1.10 USA. Based on DEBT TO GDP ratios. We are not sure of the exact fraction, because PM BARROW is keeping GDP ratios SECRET for fear of embarassing his political party. Even though our money is now worth more than the US dollar, it is still exchanged at an official exchange rate of $2 bz to $1 usa. Since the USA is our major trading partner.

Monday, February 15, 2010

The problem of entrepreneurship in BELIZE!

BELIZE FAILS AT ENTREPRENEURIAL RISK TAKING ENCOURAGEMENT
( QUOTE from the Belize Culture Listserve )

Dan Senor and Saul Singer's new book "Start-Up Nation: The Story of
Israel's Economic Miracle," rattles off some interesting statistics
that deserve consideration by policy makers in other countries.
Per-capita venture-capital investment in Israel runs 2.5 times that in
the U.S. and 30 times that in Europe. Tiny Israel—population 7.1
million— attracts as much venture capital as Britain (population 61
million), and France and Germany combined (combined population 145
million). Israel has more companies listed on Nasdaq than any other
country save the U.S. and has grown faster than the average for
developed economies in most years since 1995. Between 1980 and 2000
7,652 patents were registered in the U.S. from Israel. That compares
with 77 from Egypt.

Messrs. Netanyahu, Doron and Fischer were operating within a culture
that is "skeptical of conventional explanations about what is
possible" and characterized by "insatiable questioning of authority"
according to Messrs Senor and Singer. And a willingness to accept
failure is a necessary part of any economy heavily reliant on
start-ups for its economic growth, a feature also characteristic of
the U.S., where entrepreneurs say that if an entrepreneur has not gone
bankrupt by the age of 35, he has not taken enough risks. A Harvard
University study puts it more scientifically: entrepreneurs who fail
in their first venture have a higher success rate in their next
venture than first-time entrepreneurs. Credit Peter (now Lord)
Mandelson for long ago recognizing that and leading an effort to
reform U.K. bankruptcy laws to make second chances more possible for
the country's risk-takers.

Throw in a superb university system and the obligation of all Israelis
to serve in the military, the elite units of which have spawned many
of the most successful high-tech entrepreneurs, and you have a recipe
for world-class start-ups. These are firms that either end up selling
shares in IPOs, or selling to Intel, e-Bay, Microsoft, or Google,
among others. One unnamed e-Bay executive told Senor and Singer, "The
best-kept secret is that we all live and die by the work of our
Israeli teams…. What we do in Israel is unlike what we do anywhere
else in the world."
------------------------------

BOTH MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES ARE ON THE WRONG TRACK WHEN DEALING WITH ENTREPRENEURIAL EDUCATION

This is just my opinion from a life time of entrepreneurial living, and as shining examples I put forward my four daughters of Caye Caulker who are each highly successful.

The trouble with the government and those people in the bureaucracy, particularly those from the port town of Belize City, the "'gimme dollar crowd' is that they do not know what it takes to encourage entrepreneurs. They are of the mind set that you can BORROW by LOANS to entrepreneurial success. On occasion this is true, but most of the time it is not. Both political parties in Belize keep harping on micro-finance, loan borrowing institutions, as the solution to starting new businesses in Belize. Nothing could be further from the truth. What Belize needs is an INVESTMENT BANK The Development Finance Corporation could be used for this, but it would take a change in attitude. Instead of crippling entrepreneurship with loans, paybacks and interest payments, the DFC should be buying shares in start ups. The payoff is not immediate but in the future through the route of dividends, taxes and economic growth, including the by-product of jobs.
It is very true that a person has to fail several times, before intuitively learning how to succeed. The lessons do not come out of a school book. They are only learned from the school of hard knocks. I've seen at least TWO former Belizean Bank Managers, who retired and tried entrepreneurship and watched them fail. They didn't even understand why they failed. Running a loan business to start up businesses, like done by a bank, is not the same as entrepreneurship. The only way you can let a young entrepreneur learn, is NOT by giving him/her loans, which have to be paid back, but by putting in capital for shares of the enterprise. A whole host of business lessons are learned by the entrepreneur like this. The Development Finance Corporation should be buying shares in new business enterprises, not even GRANTS are necessary.
Lending money to entrepreneurs is almost a 100% recipe of wiping them out and losing your human resources in Belize. You buy shares and if they fail, the DFC can just turn the money into a GRANT. The entrepreneur can try something else again. Entrepreneurs do not grow on trees, they are not common. Indeed, they are few and far between. On the other hand, the lessons of success can be learned by almost anybody with the right encouragement. It is trial and error learning.
Far as I know from the newspapers, and television, there are no programs really for teaching entrepreneurship in Belize. I've seen some programs advertised for entrepreneurial courses in Belize, to teach the making of business plans ( to borrow money? ). Programs to do your bookkeeping, which is fairly irrelevant in a new small start up of any complexity. Real bookkeeping is one of those lessons you learn as you go along and find you are successful. Necessity then becomes your teacher. Otherwise it is putting the cart before the horse. First you must sacrifice and starve.
What would be more useful are lessons academically, on how to form a company and sell shares and retain voting control of the Board of Directors, every time you seek more investment capital. Otherwise the major investors will let you build a successful business and then steal it from you, through controlling the Board of Directors.
It is with some queasiness that I have asked a local college to let me try an entrepreneurial start up as a school project. It is hard to describe the lessons that will be learned. None of which are academically worth anything. They are all HARD KNOCKS education, you learn through trial and error. The academic mind can neither measure, or comprehend the art of teaching entrepreneurship. If you are not prepared to try and fail, then you are not an entrepreneur. Such education is only learned by hands on education.

HYDROPONIC VEGETABLES, FINANCIAL FUTURES TRADING, WINDMILL CHARGERS all from Belize.

The second nursery, also converted to growing in pots, that are re-potted and fertilized using chicken manure, ashes and worm farm manure.
** This previous hydroponic nursery experiment was eventually changed to pre-potted and chicken and worm manure fertilized, pot growing, without liquid feeding via the hydroponics method. Less labor intensive.

From: Julie Thomson
Subject: hydroponic gardening
To: hillviewhacienda@yahoo.com
Date: Monday, February 15, 2010, 9:15 AM

Hello from Canada
I was recently visiting in Hopkins, Belize. A group was speaking to the local citizens about hydroponic gardening. I wonder if you are associated with that group as I would like to learn more with the possible aim of assisting in projects which would assist locals in growing their own vegetables.
Hoping to hear from you soon.
Julie

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HYDROPONIC VEGETABLE GROWING IN BELIZE!

You should find our stuff on the internet Julie. You might also look through over 650 short news items on vegetable research experiments in Belize at: http://westernbelizehappenings.blogspot.com

We ran hydroponic research for 3 years here for our NGO called the Belize Development Trust. No! We have no relationship with any other group. We printed about 4 books on our discoveries and the last one was the culmination of everything we had learned. Books were only printed in small quantities, like twenty or so, and mostly given out to interested parties. Which was the Research Unit of Central Farm, The Prime Minister's of two consecutive party governments and also to the United Nations FAO. Since we closed up that project as successful, the FAO and the European Union has given GRANTS to the government to cover further experiments in water systems, soil systems, worm farms, and greenhouse vegetable production. I'm not keeping up with it anymore.
We still have two nurseries ( very small ) and they are going to the weeds, though I do have a couple of nice crops of two types of Mustard Spinach growing for home consumption. You would be welcome to come down and use them for further experimental work. Presuming you are financially self sustaining. We grow in bags, or old chlorax pots. I am on to other development projects right now and too busy to really even water the plants. Though they seem to be growing well without my attentions. One small nursery is producing food for the table. Few tomatoes, leeks, mint, spinach lettuce, and that sort of thing. The three and a half years we ran the experiments, of which two and a half years were in pure hydroponics, ( hand fed and food mixed by ourselves here ) were successful. The only real problem were finding varieties for the climate and the research showed we had basically too seasons and you needed different varieties for year round production. We had always wanted to go to an ebb and flow system experiment, but never got to it and you cannot buy any kind of irrigation tubing and root feeders in this remote area. So hand labor in hydroponics was a big thing. The only plants having trouble with bugs and diseases were the tomatoes.

INTRODUCING FINANCIAL FUTURES WORLD WIDE TRADING TO BELIZE
Last month we just finished establishing our new project for introducing FINANCIAL TRADING of FUTURES in the country of Belize, and are now in the late stages of practical performance testing. The trading room and equipment is finished and operating now. ( use GOOGLE for information try: AMATEUR OEX OPTIONS TRADING )

Wind Charger manufacture!
We are are also working on the start up theory of an experimental, proof of concept, wind charger, designed from scratch. Not quite ready to move into the building stage, as it would require about $1500 of labor probably? At the moment we cannot afford to budget the money to start it. Most of the technical aspects have been figured out. It is only needed now to build the experimental prototype to fine tune reality with the theoretical data.
We are looking at using the low rpm windmill explained on Report #40 of the Belize Development Issues website, from 2001, and designing the generator from scratch, to satisfy the direct drive, low 30 rpm requirements. This is envisioned as one of those entrepreneurial, start up, incubator experiments. Windmill chargers for sale on the world market for export from Belize.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

BELIZE REPORT CARD IMPROVES FROM 37% TO 42% APPROVAL RATING FOR THE UDP GOVERNMENT

REPORT CARD IMPROVES FROM 37% TO 42% APPROVAL RATING FOR THE UDP GOVERNMENT
BELIZE UDP GOVERNMENT UPGRADED 5% ON PERFORMANCE REPORT CARD
New rating jumps from 37% to 42%

The rating is based on practical management applications of incoming monies and distribution thereof, to infra-structure maintenance and development issues the country needs.
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There is in the Guardian Newspaper the political party UDP information rag for the current government, an article on the past year, delivered it says, as a STATE OF THE UNION address.
We were disappointed! It was more like a political bombast and rhetoric disinformation exercise. It certainly was not an ECONOMIC STATE OF THE UNION article. Pure hyperbole and lacking in statistical references to verify the claims. The inflation claim was so ludicrous as to be embarrassing. Ask the leader of the UNIONS. The government is claiming an inflation rate of negative 1.1% while the Unions are claiming 10% per year. Myself I judge the inflation rate at 8%.
If you cut out the party propaganda statistics. What you had left, to factually judge Government performance was ZERO. There were no factual GDP statistics offered. Indeed, it has been mentioned the Prime Minister does not like GDP ratios. Too embarrassing to his political party I suppose? We would certainly like to see the Debt to GDP ratio, as that is the only valid judgment of the quality of the UDP party management policies.
We were sorry we could not give more points on the performance report card. We would have given ten points, but the problem with the UDP government performance is that the results are based on GRANTS and FOREIGN LOAN BORROWING for our already bankrupt country. For management and distribution of monies in actual work, they got the 5%. Not for anything else. The GRANTS were worthy of merit and accolades. The Foreign Loan borrowing are not acceptable criteria for awarding of points on a report card. Any ORANGUTAN can borrow money and spend it.
The disinformation inflation rate immediately made all the numbers quoted as suspect. Especially as they were not qualified by GDP ratios as in empirical science statistical analysis.
We the BELIZEAN PRIVATE SECTOR still need the GDP ratios to properly judge ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE and make plans accordingly for re-investments and expansions of the private sector. This STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS did not answer our needs, or do more than suspect the UDP of falsifying the real economic picture.
We ask the Prime Minister, Dean Barrow to authorize the release of the GDP ratios. We understand his reluctance to do so, as he is doing a difficult job in difficult times, not of his own making. Blowing smoke in our faces to cover up, makes you ( PM BARROW) look like a WHIMP! Even Said Musa had more courage than this, despite his shortcomings.

Friday, February 12, 2010

OECD countries declare WAR on BELIZE and other small countries with financial services businesses.

OLD IMPERIALIST COUNTRIES OF THE OECD DECLARE WAR ON BELIZE IN THE NEW IMPERIALISM.


SANCTIONS! SANCTIONS! SANCTIONS! Our Prime Minister Barrow said some gutter language nicely, but more or less saying that the OECD countries were IMMORAL.!
We must sign against our SELF business INTEREST, a set of agreements with the OECD on tax sharing that will ruin our tax haven business and offshore financial sector. Which is the intent of course by the OECD.
Like many small countries we are a client state of the USA and the UK, who are mostly partners when it comes to economic foreign affairs. Or militarily for that matter.
This is more than bullying. It is not about diplomacy, reason and logic as Socrates would use to settle differences. It is pure FORCE! The weapon is SANCTIONS in the new Imperialism and the OECD is dominated by the old IMPERIALIST COUNTRIES. So much for our so called SOVEREIGNTY AND INDEPENDENCE in Belize guaranteed once by the United Nations. If we cannot make our own laws for our own economic business self interest, then the OLD IMPERIALISTS, using the NEW IMPERIALISM as Chavez of Veneuzela calls it, makes our sovereignty a mockery. We are nothing more than a colony once again. Guatemala too, say the OECD IMPERIALISTS.
As Chavez would say, this is THE NEW IMPERIALISM and sanctions are akin to a town in feudal times being surrounded by an army and starved into submission and surrender. Belize is surrounded. We have no choice, as the OECD war on tiny Belize is unremitting. The rape of our women and young girls will commmence.
Vulnerable, if we defy the OECD, are our banks and ability to complete transactions worldwide, through the established wire transfer and bank settlement protocols. The OECD have us by the short hairs and intend to starve us into submission to their overlordship.
Alba Federation of the Americas just launched their own money and banking initiative to counter the NEW IMPERIALISM as Chavez calls it. Chavez is not so crazy after all, as we are finding out. Unfortunately the new BANCO DEL SUR has no track record. Plus the ALBA FEDERATION is an imperialist federation of it's own. The requirements to join are not FREE. You must surrender your foreign policy to the collectivo. Between a rock and a hard place in Belize, we must surrender our Financial Industry to the OECD country war mongers and pay tribute. The OECD countries are going to rape our women basically. They would have us go back to the primitive dark ages.

BELIZE HARPY EAGLE RE-INTRODUCTION PROGRAM SUCCESSFUL

The Harpy Eagle re-introduction into Belize is successful. From what I gather there are about 4 or 5 new HARPY EAGLES now introduced into Belize. They are being tracked by the satellite system.
More are in the little BELIZE ZOO in a training program of adjustment.

BELIZE TEN YEAR CENSUS TO START MAY 12TH., 2010

Ten Year Census is due this year.
The TEN YEAR CENSUS is to start this year on May 12th., 2010. A thousand census takers will be employeed and will go to every corner of our land of Belize. Even if the census takers have to ride a mule, or horse.
Statistically, the government and private sector rely on census figures to make plans for the future. Guesses as to the actual number of citizens in Belize are anywhere from 300,000 to 370,000.

Belize Civil Service Unions threatening to strike!

BELIZE CIVIL SERVICE UNIONS THREATENING TO STRIKE!

The Belize government announced there is so far, a $60 million shortage of money for the 2010 budget due April 1st. The PM is looking for ways to plug the gap. This is roughly 10% of revenues expected for the year. The new budget comes effective April 1st.
In the meantime, teachers, civil servants and all those government workers are pressuring for salary increases, as this is the year of running out on their Umberella Union Collective bargaining agreement. The PM Barrow has said the money isn't there and he does not see how he can do it. The Unions are threatening industrial action ( strikes ) At the moment the UNIONS are trying to get government to the negotiating table.
We have suggested from the private sector that the government agree to the salary increases and whatever is more than we can afford as a country, that employees of the government then be RETRENCHED in the amount needed, to give the remaining government paid employees their salary increases.
Inflation over the past three years, the UNIONS are claiming has averaged 10% a year. The official inflation figure is less and some private sector people say it is more. The unions claim since three years ago, the cost of living has risen 30%.
The private sector would like to see the Government go to a ZERO BALANCE departmental budget model. Not keep running deficits through foreign loan borrowing.

A further cutting could be done among teachers. Much of the primary school and high school system in Belize, is joint Religious/private sector schools. Of which government traditionally contributes about 80% of teachers salaries and also something to school maintainance out of general funds. There is a wide gamut of contributions among religious schools. The Mennonite schools for instance are 100% supported and paid for out of their religious church membership in the form of fees and taxes self imposed. At the other extreme you have many religious schools, who are really private sector businesses, which provide teaching jobs for their owners. Some religious schools are financially supported, partially from foreign missions.
The suggestion is; that a percentage of the government contribution to religious owned schools, be cut, until whatever portion of the contribution of the problem with the 2010 budget shortfall needed by schools, be met by religious schools themselves, which have the moral responsibility like the Mennonites, to provide for their schools financially. Whether this is 10% or 20% cut of the government contribution to religious schools remains to be seen. It is time the private schools step up to the plate and help our country grow, by financing there own schools. 90% of the primary schools in the country are believed to be religious schools.

The goal is a more stable financial environment for our government managing capacity and a ZERO balance budget system of operations.