KING BARROW, THE FIRST MAYAN KING OF BELIZE IN 1100 YEARS

Lord Dean Barrow, King of Belize for 5 years.

KING BARROW, THE FIRST MAYAN KING OF BELIZE IN THE PAST 1100 YEARS
by Ray Auxillou ( Feb. 2010 )

Belize has it´s first MAYAN KING in about 1100 years. Back then, around 900 A.D., the Mayan feudal monarchies of the time, started to break up, for still unexplained reasons. Lord Barrow is a mixture today, he says of both indigenous MAYAN genes and immigrant African CREOLE genes. The only thing notable about him that is Maya, is his nose. The geographical area of Belize that Lord Barrow, the King of Belize governs is much bigger than the majority of the Mayan Kingdoms of ancient times.
This area today of Belize, which became an INDEPENDENT COUNTRY through a United Nations vote back in 1982, has a population of 300,000. Back 1100 years ago, when the Mayan Feudal Kingdoms were the norm, the area ecompassed around 26 major FEUDAL CITY STATES, each with their own KING. These city states were Chan Chich, Xmak, Noh Mul, Koholunich, Cuello, Posito, Colha, Lamanai, Altun Ha, Xmakaba, Mun Diego, Yalback, Xununtanich, Cahel Pech, Sacul, Lubaantun, Naj Lunich, Pusilha, Nim Li Punit, Cerros, Yo Creek, San Antonio, Los Milpas, San Estevan, Tximin Xunich, Xnaheh and El Pilar. Some of these names were taken from ancient stellae, others have been guessed at. There were in addition to these main Mayan Feudal state centers with pyramids and ceremonial centers, a lot more smaller groupings that owed allegience to the nearest more powerful Feudal monarchy and city state. City states were usually located about 26 miles from each other. If you take a pyramid of ancient times and draw a circle around it, you will find nearby ruins of other city states, about 26 miles away. This is because without the horse,or the wheel, the Maya were limited in allegience, to a polity, to the distance you could walk in a day and return. This was about 13 miles.
Today Belize is an independent country. With a population today of 300,000, we are just starting to get to the point in population growth, were the transition from Imperialist, Colonial sponsored, exploitive, primary agriculture commodity production is turning to industrial technological production. It is not here yet, but getting there. The ancient MAYAN population of 1100 years ago, of the Belize area was about 800,000 people, or just under a million people. Population today is centered in a corridor, running from the port on the coast in the center of the country to the Western border at Melchor de Menchos. The exciting developments are occuring in a population corridor running North and South from the cross country Western highway, to the Mexican border. The leading innovators, inventors and builders of the nation of Belize are Mennonites, who came to Belize about 50 years ago, from Northern Mexican Mennonite colonies. They have introduced modern farming techniques and most of the technical industry developments. They speak Spanish, English and their quaint folk Deutsch German and are white, blond often with blue eyes. They have splintered into many cult Christ named churchs, but continue to work together as powerful supportive groups.
King Barrow our new Mayan overlord, and in our inherited political system from the age of world Imperialist conquest, during a 200 year period, that ended about 60 years ago, in which major kingdoms like England, France, Dutch, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, USA, Russia, and Japan, divided the indigenous peoples of the world into Imperialist colonies. Barrow has the task during his elected five year reign as our first Mayan King in 1100 years ( we call him a Prime Minister under the old colonial system we inherited ) to build our infra-structure, expand schools, education, roads, land distribution, social services. The biggest problem facing our new Mayan King is the size of our geographical area ( encompassing 26 feudal kingdoms of ancient times ) accompanied by limited resources and insufficient population to make the changes necessary. Our debt load is over 85% Debt to GDP in modern parlance. The same as that of the USA which also in 2010 has a Debt to GDP ratio of 85%. The USA fortunately has 300 million people, larger resources and about 36,000 Universities to educated the young in modern ever changing technological methods. We in Belize so far, only have 2 Universities and neither is doing that great a job in adjusting education to the needs of the country. Lord Barrow our Mayan king though, does have ITVET´s, a sort of district community college, that teaches trade skills on demand. A pay as you go education.
Theoretically as an INDEPENDENT country we are in charge of our destiny. Generally speaking we are muddling along quite well, considering the limitations. Immigrants continue to flow into Belize bringing both capial and technological skills to the betterment of our nation as a whole. Belize is becoming well known as an Entrepreneurs Paradise. The MAYA are still here and compose probably, a quarter of the Belize population, and MESTIZO´s that mix of Maya and other incoming ethnic races are now the majority population of Belize. There are two major Mayan languages that are dying out in Belize. YUCATEC and MOPAN. Today MOPAN MAYA as a linguistic group is probably the most consistant down in the Toledo district. Overall, in the wider 5 country area with a Mayan population, there are 22 different linguistic Mayan languages. The Mayan population of this wider area is roughly 17 million.
Geographically, Belize is on the East of the Central Mayan kingdoms of the lower lands found to the East of the Cordillera, or high mountain spines closer to the Pacific side of Central America. Most famous are the central highlands of the lowland area ( 400 feet to 3000 ft ) and Mayan Kingdoms of the Classical Mayan period. Those in the high mountains suffered devastation over the centuries from Earthquakes and volcanoe damages. The best living in the tropics is found between 400 feet and 6000 feet for humans.

NET METERING IN BELIZE - are you listening Belize UDP Cabinet?

NET METERING IN BELIZE FOR THE FUTURE!

In the U.S.A., as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, under Sec. 1251, all public electric utilities are now required to make available upon request net metering to their customers.[2]:

‘‘(11) NET METERING.—Each electric utility shall make available upon request net metering service to any electric consumer that the electric utility serves. For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘net metering service’ means service to an electric consumer under which electric energy generated by that electric consumer from an eligible on-site generating facility and delivered to the local distribution facilities may be used to offset electric energy provided by the electric utility to the electric consumer during the applicable billing period.

_________________________


SMALL CLIMATE CHANGE CYCLES


We are seeing the advent of a small climate change cycle in the American continent and Caribbean.

Last year we had no hurricanes at all in the Western Caribbean. This winter, North America are having the deepest and most severe snow falls in a hundred years. This past winter, we have had below average rainfall in Belize.

While it is interesting to know why? More important is the ability to forecast the mini weather cycles and the effects on government policy to deal with it. Rather than the customary finger pointing, blame game, knee jerk reactions our government normally does.

The below average rainfall in Belize this past winter rainy season, forecasts an electricity shortage from our hydro electric dams. We will have to wait and see over the next four months, from now to June, to see if this forecast bears out TRUE or not. Belize is short of electric production anyway. We buy a lot from Mexico and now it is at ever increasing rates as the Mexicans renege on the price contracts for electricity delivery.

Over the foreseeable future, say the next 15 years, electrical problems if not tackled in a prompt and policy making manner are going to be compounded. Good political leadership would endeavor to prepare ourselves for this eventuality. Most of our problems will occur from population explosion. Everything is expected to double, from population, to the need for roads, schools, parks, bridges, and of course water, garbage and electricity.

It is probable that; net metering will never offset more than 10% of our electrical energy needs. It will however mitigate the effects of disasters which we experience frequently on a national scale. Those that provide some, or all of their electrical consumption and send the excess to the national grid will be blessed in the next three political terms. Already over the past ten years, we have succeeded in changing the political climate and have broken the BEL monopoly, to supply electricity, via the new BAGASSE fed waste at our one and only sugar mill to a new contributing 9 mgwatt generator system. One investor claiming to need an electrical generator to break the BEL monopoly for his shrimp farm operations is now contributing needed electricity to our National Grid as a commercial enterprise. Both of these systems were instigated by the RESEARCH and recommendation of far sighted Peter Singfield, an engineer of Xaibe village in the Corozal District and survivor of a Canadian economic depression in which he learned to be prepared for eventualities.

While net metering will never make up the expected shortfalls of electricity. We as a nation will need over the next fifteen years more electricity, and this can alleviate about 10% of the problem, if legislation is passed to favor this method of electrical production. It should be done and it should be done by this UDP government during their term of office, before they finish. Unlike the article printed on the Belize Development Trust reports ( report #40 of 2001 ) things have improved in the USA, as an example of states that have included net metering as a government legal policy. A lot of new knowledge and new modernized solid state transferable equipment, makes it very convenient to implement net metering in Belize today. It is time our government did something positive for the future electrical shortages we are expecting. Starting with increasing brownouts and blackouts expected during the next four months.


When Sir Francis Chichester at age 65 sailed around the world non-stop, he was asked by reporters when he arrived back at his starting point in England, if he had any disasters, emergencies, or adventures. He replied in annoyance to the crowd of media people "No!" When the clamoring media said it was not possible to sail around the world single handed at his age and not have something go wrong in a voyage taking over a year. His reply was; " disasters and emergencies only happen to people who do not plan properly!" Are you listening UDP CABINET?

TRADING OEX OPTIONS FROM THE FRONTIER OF BELIZE!

SMART ( local telecommunications company) have apparently signed up a lot of new internet modem people. I'm getting trouble from 11 a.m. in the morning until around 8 p.m. in the evening entering the internet. I get TIME OUT MESSAGES. Wish I could figure out if this is my computer, or SMART to reset the TIME OUT message. This also states I have a NETWORK CONNECTION problem on my local AREA NETWORK.
I need to be on the internet, from 8 a.m. in the mornings until 4 p.m. in the afternoons, with continuous internet based streaming data. Five days a week.
I'm guessing this is a BANDWIDTH problem with SMART, but it is playing HELL with my new business. I have a line direct through my broker into the CHICAGO PITS of the CHICAGO OPTIONS EXCHANGE. I watch data on a minute by minute basis. I wish BTL ( another telecommunications company) or somebody would put DSL out here in Hillview with enough BANDWIDTH. SMART is unfortunately the only game in town, enabling me to do business. I have battery operated computers so I do not lose signal, when BEL ( electric company) has electricity problems, but the new problems with SMART are inconvenient to say the least. Only on the frontier can you have these kinds of challenges.
** This photo was taken in January. A cold day here in the tropics, in the foothills of the Belize Alps. There were blizzards up in Canada and the USA and here the temperature dropped to 56 F. I had to wear a T shirt, a regular thick shirt and a sweater to stay warm. Normally our temperatures run between 75 and 85 F nearly all year round.
--------------------------------

From the heart of the Mayan Kingdoms, still going strong after 13,000 years. Despite the European World Conquest Imperialist centuries, that invaded our continent.
There are 22 Mayan linguist groups dividing our Mayan Kingdoms, recognized by the populace, though not recognized by the artificial political lines on current world maps, designed by Europeans.
*** This is LORD BARROW, the first elected MAYAN KING OF BELIZE for about 600 years. The last Mayan King of Belize worthy of note was LORD WATERS of CARACOL, who conquered the interior central Mayan Kingdoms at the second Battle of TIKAL. King Barrow rules by election for 5 years. Under European Imperialist jargon, he is called PRIME MINISTER of Belize in the new world order of describing political kingdoms. Barrow is actually a MESTIZO, a mixed Maya and Creole. Most of the Mayan population of Belize are of mixed ethnicity and the majority population of the modern nation of Belize, which has Yucatec and Mopan as the major two Mayan languages. We are a smorgasbord of races and languages in this coastal country today.
It's 6:30 a.m. and the daylight is coming out, and the different medley of bird songs and chatter in the surrounding trees is music to my ears. Temperature about 75 F here in Hillview, Belize, Central America. The Mayan land of ETERNAL SPRING.
________________________________________

BELIZE NEW POVERTY RATING!

** A local TOUCAN, the National Bird of Belize.
** Workers coming to Hillview, to work in construction, from Bullet Tree Falls in Western Belize, Cayo District.
** Local parrot in Hillview, Green Parrot Valley in Western Belize



NEW ROUGH POVERTY STANDARD USED BY GOVERNMENT OF BELIZE

It has been announced in the newspapers that anybody below $10 Bz ( $5 usa ) per day, is regarded by the government as being in poverty in Belize.
That puts 80% of my two suburbs here in Hillview on the slope of Green Parrot Valley and Santa Cruz nearby, another suburb of SANTA ELENA TOWN, in Western Belize, in the poverty level.
The normal level of income around here is around $80 Bz, or $40 usa per week for a family of five persons. A husband who works, wife and three children. Many don't make that much. For those, the diet is mostly tortillas and beans. Many cannot afford electricity ( use kerosen lamps), running water ( use rain vats to catch water), or cooking gas and still cook on open firewood campfires. I wouldn't actually call us POOR though! We have pet dogs, raise chickens, grow food, and we have SPRING WEATHER between 75 F and 85 F most of the year. To have any cash flow at all is middle class. We are a relatively wealthy middle class, local family and our spending living costs available are around $200 Bz ( $100 usa ) a week for a family of three. I certainly think my life is better here than the majority of people I've met, living in Canada or the USA, or even Europe. I've traveled in all of these places and even tried living there. Not for me though, I like it better here.

POSSUM POINT SCHOLARSHIP FUND OF VERMONT AIDS SITTEE RIVER, BELIZE PRIMARY SCHOOL

** Sittee River school student.
THE POSSUM POINT SCHOLARSHIP FUND

Sittee River Methodist PRIMARY SCHOOL, a religious school ( most schools in Belize are religious types ) The scholarship fund has contributed money each year since 1987 to this school. So far they have contributed $70,000 usa since 1987. This past week they submitted a $4600 usa cheque to Mary Shaver for more scholarships, for High School . About 45 children from the remote, coastal picturesque, rural SITTEE RIVER have benefited from scholarships.
The money is raised by a GOLF TOURNAMENT from Hawthorne, VERMONT in the USA.

PRIME MINISTER OF BELIZE WILL NOT CHANGE OIL REVENUE SHARING AGREEMENT.

*** Prime Minister of Belize, mixed ethnicity. Partly Maya and part coastal Creole.




PRIME MINISTER BARROW OF BELIZE, ANSWERS CRITICS OF BNE OIL SHARING AGREEMENT

Prime Minister of Belize, in answers to investigative reporters and articles, on the unequal sharing agreement over oil revenues enjoyed by BNE, said that he will NOT change the agreement.
BNE has exported around $600 million Bz of oil gross revenues from their first commercial find. Investigative reporters say that the nation of Belize is only getting 17% of the gross oil exports and arguments have been put forward that we should get at least 35% of the gross of export oil revenues, as a fair share of a perishable unsustainable resource.
BNE has a second confirmed commercial oil lake, not yet exploited, which will double their available oil export resources.
P.M. Barrow says he is honoring the sanctity of the oil contract signed by the previous government of Belize, under a different political party. He is convinced, he said; that there are a lot more oil lakes under Belize. He wants to encourage more drilling by other exploration companies. Oil revenues have the potential of rescuing Belize from a massive National Debt problem, created by the previous PUP government.
So big is this debt in comparison to the miniscule available possible tax revenues, that babies of today, will be having babies in 15 to 20 years from now and THEIR babies will still be paying off the NATIONAL DEBT. Debt payment expenditures are consuming half the revenues of the govenment, even with a recent decade of increasing government taxation.

** This baby, will grow up and her baby will grow up and still be paying off in taxes as an adult, the debts caused by the last government and being compounded by the new government.

*** This baby will grow up and have a baby and still tax revenues will be going to pay the PUP created National Debt of Belize.



Politicians are not very good at governing. The reason being; they ran for office for self enrichment and in their viewpoint and practices, they go for the party elite enrichment schemes, with relatives and party hacks enjoying jobs off the public treasury. Short term goals are political party aims, not longer term constructive nation building. A problem of human nature at work.

*** Prime Minister of Belize, a Mayan Mestizo, a newer polity of the Central MAYAN KINGDOMS, composed of 22 Mayan different linguistic groups. The MAYAN KINGDOMS COVER SOUTHERN MEXICO, THE YUCATAN PENINSULAR, BELIZE, GUATEMALA, SALVADOR AND NORTHERN BORDER OF HONDURAS.
They were divided up on blank maps by colonial European Empire builders, who invaded over the past 500 years. The Feudal Kingdoms still exist and most notable by the divisions of language groups. Some of the languages are very remote from each other, like comparing Rumanian, with English over in Europe.

*** COMMENT BY ARNT KARLSEN FROM NORWAY ---
..not wanting to even try fix a this bad deal, would have him
lynched here in Norway, but maybe we Norwegians are a wee bit
spoiled collecting well over 85% on our petroleum. ;o)

PACZ TOURS IN WESTERN BELIZE IS THE ONLY TOUR OPERATION WE RECOMMEND.

PACZ TOURS is the ONLY tour operation, outside of private resort operations we recommend in Western Belize! When we were running Falconview Hostel, we used them for most major trips with satisfied customers EVERY TIME! There are some newer small tour operations, we have not tried yet. Most of the older small operations have closed for poor business flows.
TRIP ADVISOR on the internet is currently complaining on behalf of a tourist couple that got ripped off by MAYA WALK TOURS. The story copied below is posted here. Our own experience and that of many other tourists and many other people in Cayo West area, is that this MAYA WALK operation think they are MAFIA and also get the support of local police officers, due to ( the gossip says ) giving them a free beer once in a while. There have been MANY local complaints against MAYA WALK TOURS, it is not only tourists. Tales of alleged slashed tires of competition vehicle tires. Threats and intimidation, physical assaults, unwarranted police collusion. Numerous court cases. The complaints go on, year after year.
Unfortunately our low quality of police makes them susceptible to bribes. The justice system corrupt. The police come very cheap if the gossip is true, on the offshore barrier reef tourist islands, the police are noted for shaking down and extorting tourists? The government has since hired tourist police to watch and control the national police. Who watches the TOURIST POLICE?

At any rate, local TOURIST PLACES should warn their guests about MAYA WALK TOURS and if at all possible use the best service in Western Belize that many small lodges, and hotels use - PACZ TOURS! It is located across the street facing Maya Walk Tours.
-------------------------------------------


----- Forwarded Message -----
From: marcus@shc.edu.bz
To: "Alberto August"
Sent: Monday, February 1, 2010 6:37:55 PM GMT -06:00 Central America
Subject: Problems with Mayawalk

This is a condensed paraphrased version of what happened, but am waiting for e-mails from the complaining tourists to get a more complete version. The complaints against Mr. Juan of Maya Walk Tours are so many, over many years, you could write a book about them. Both from locals and foreign visitors. Seems everybody in business has a loony story of threats, intimidation and attacks? Locals wonder the man is still alive and has not been assassinated yet?

Mr. August:
Good day. I was wondering if I could give out your email, or email you some letters pertaining to a couple of incidents that have happened between Mayawalk Tours and some tourists. I'm a teacher here at SHJC, but at the same time maintain the Best of Cayo site, and am a destination expert for Cayo on Tripadvisor.com. I've quoted your issue #148 quite a few times on the web, and just did again due to a very unfortunate circumstance.

A couple that stayed at the Parrot Nest last week asked us to pick them up from their hotel in town extra early, and they were very distressed when we did. Apparently, they had been double charged on their credit card, and had given Mayawalk all of their cash for 2 tours. They didn't get one of the tours that they really wanted, and instead got a lesser tour. When they got back from the tour, they asked for one of the charges to be charged back, and they also wanted their money back since they needed it to pay for their hotel. After getting the runaround for 4 or so hours, and seeing that Mayawalk was about to close, they called the police. When the policeman got there, they claimed that it was obvious that he was a good friend of Mr. Juan.

After stating their case, and Mr. Juan trying to take their cash voucher away from them, and them not letting him get it, the officer said he was going to arrest them! Needless to say, the female tourist burst into tears, and the male was highly distressed. It ended with them finally getting a charge back, but they weren't given there money back. The officer also hassled them more, and got all of their personal information. They also claim that Mr. Juan threatened them. They were actually too scared to walk back along the street to their hotel, and instead went through Eva's to get there. I've corroborated the story with at least a dozen people that were at either Eva's or close by.

This is about the worst publicity that Cayo could ever get. They are planning on sending letters to the BTB, the BTIA national, the BTIA Cayo, the BNTOA, the Tour Guide Association, and the U.S. Embassy. I've also had another tourist ask for some of the same emails in order to file a complaint against Mayawalk. Not that I want to be a part of this, but between TA and the fact that they stayed with us, I guess I'm kind of damned if I do, damned if I don't, so. If you don't mind, please let me know.

Have a great February,
-Marcus Horton