Costa Rica bans Uranium Weapons
This week Costa Rica got a lot of world-wide attention with three hot news stories.
A Costa Rican court sentenced former president Miguel Angel Rodriguez to five years in prison Wednesday after finding him guilty of taking bribes from French telecoms giant Alcatel. Alcatel is no stranger to kickbacks, in Dec, 2010, US Securities and Exchange Commission nailed them with 137 million U.S. dollars in fines and penalties for bribes.
And Costa Rica continues to be the hub for drug traffickers when another drug sub was nailed off Costa Rica by a US Coast Guard cutter with 6.4 tons of Cocaine.
However, the one we consider the most important; on April 27ths, the government of Costa Rica passed a law prohibiting Uranium Weapons in its borders, which makes Costa Rica the second country to pass a national ban. Belgium was the first.
Uranium weapons, often called ‘depleted’ uranium (DU) weapons, are manufactured from radioactive waste materials produced during the nuclear fuel chain and the production of nuclear weapons. They cause widespread and long lasting contamination of the environment. These weapon systems are radiologically and chemically toxic. Read more... (497 words, 4 images, estimated 1:59 mins reading time)
Guanacaste has posted some great numbers in 2011 however things still seem to be slow in talking with many hoteliers, restaurateurs and retailers. Our real estate friends in Guanacaste are positive and things seem to be picking up a bit, but our friends in Atenas are talking about a slump. Their situations were completely reversed a year ago. Many other factors on the table are very positive for Guanacaste and we are predicting big things here in the next ten years instead of the up and down market in the last few years.
One very notable positive is that Costa Rica has returned to the top ten places to invest in Real Estate in the world, this by the highly respected International Living Magazine after an eleven year hiatus. The reason given for being taken off the list originally were exorbitant real estate prices. This has changed, and is great news for those people that were careful or lucky with their finances and are looking to invest in a way of life that is often not affordable in the United States or Canada anymore. Read more... (882 words, 3 images, estimated 3:32 mins reading time)
This is what users saw when trying to view PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and Absolute Poker last Friday. According to Alexa.com, traffic stats, hits to the website tripled.
Last Friday (at around 1:30 pm), I got a call from a private investigator in Costa Rica, who said the U.S. Government’s FBI just killed Costa Rica today! This is huge news!
My friend continued with the outraged about how the FBI put over 4,000 Costa Ricans (we heard reports that this may be up to 20,000) out of work when the online poker world was shaken as the owners of the three largest online poker sites were seized and websites shut down.
PokerStars (who started in Costa Rica and now operates in the Isle of Man, a British Crown dependency), Full Tilt Poker (registered in Alderney) and Absolute Poker (who operates out of Costa Rica) — were charged with violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act – operation of illegal gambling business, conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy.
Wow, those are some heavy charges!
The Feds seized 5 domain names, and are seeking recovery of $3 billion from the companies and issued an order restraining approximately 76 bank accounts in 14 countries containing the proceeds. Read more... (982 words, 2 images, estimated 3:56 mins reading time)
FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. USA. – Costa Rican government officials released information to The Billfish Foundation (TBF) of the seizure from a seafood exporter, of over 7,000 kilos of sailfish meat bound for Peru. Sailfish are protected species in the popular Costa Rican fishery.
Tico Times Editor Note: Costa Rica’s ban of exporting billfish meat was established in Jan 2009.
Investigators from two agencies — SENASA (National Animal Health Service) and INCOPESCA (Costa Rican Fisheries and Aquaculture Institute) — seized 7012 kilos of whole sailfish carcasses. The company had falsified documents declaring the shipment as striped marlin which is presently a legal billfish for exporting.
The Billfish Foundation’s (TBF) Chief Scientist Dr. Russell Nelson and TBF Central American Conservation Director Herbert Nanne received word of the seizure from Dr. Rolando Ramirez of INCOPESCA.
Tropical Seafood Export SA - Producto Marlin Rosado Congelado
Costa Rica Sport Fishing Federation (FECOPT) Executive Director Enrique Ramirez said in newspaper reports that illegal commercial fishing and the exporting of sailfish meat had been reported for months as FECOPT tried to get the authorities to take action. FECOPT was formed to represent the interests of its anglers and the sport fishing tourism industry. Read more... (521 words, 3 images, estimated 2:05 mins reading time)
Costa Rica offers some of the most stunning imagery for photographers. On the Osa Peninsula, I’ve swam with sailfish, cavorted with crocodiles, and photographed monkeys, butterflies, and rare birds in the span of a single day! To capture all the incredible things you’ll see on camera, you should follow a careful game plan. Here are some essential elements to consider.
PLANNING
Bring the best photographic gear you can afford. When the toucan you traveled 2000 miles to see perches on a branch 30 feet from you, I can guarantee you that you’ll wish you brought something more than a 300 dollar camera. If you can, get a digital SLR with a lens that has wide angle and zoom capabilities. The lens is the most important part of the equation.
I travel with many cameras, but if your budget doesn’t permit this, try to bring a zoom lens that will go from at least 18-200mm. One option that I often use is to rent pro gear. There are many camera and lens rental services that you can utilize, and they are relatively cheap. You can end up with top-flight gear that would cost you over 10,000, insure it for loss or damages, and end up with incredible images, all for a tiny fraction of the cost of buying. It’s a great option because you probably won’t need the gear when you get home. Read more... (1018 words, 5 images, estimated 4:04 mins reading time)
Loading ...