The Huffington Post - Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) has come out in support of the military coup in Honduras, chastising President Obama in a statement for what he calls "a slap in the face to the people" of that country. From his statement: "The people of Honduras have struggled too long to have their hard-won democracy stolen from them by a Chavez-style dictator. The Honduran Congress, the Honduran Supreme Court, and the Honduran military have acted in accordance to the Honduran constitution and the rule of law. [...] "I am hopeful that as President Obama grows in office, he will eventually turn away from despots like Ahmadinejad, Chavez, Castro, and Zelaya, and give the United States' full-throated support to the people of any country who are fighting for the same values we cherish and defend in America. The people fighting for freedom around the world, in Iran and Honduras, should never have to wonder which side America will choose between freedom and tyranny. "President Obama's call for the reinstatement of Zelaya is a slap in the face to the people of Honduras. And the resolution written by the Organization of American States tramples over the hopes and dreams of a free and democratic people.(more)

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Somebody buy Mitch a beer. And then, fly him and his friends to Washington DC to talk to the State Department. I received this today via email, and it includes a further definition and description of how and why Manuel Zelaya was property and legally removed from the position of President of Honduras. This is good stuff and should not be missed. Understanding what happened in Honduras is difficult for foreigners, and this is the best I've seen yet to make it simple to understand, even for those who are suffering from severe "knee-jerk-itus." The body of the email follows, but it's not really clear what was written by "Mitch" and where the comments from the Honduran lawyer and Constitutional scholar start, but you get the idea... "The following was written by Octavio Sanchez. He is a Honduran lawyer (J.D. Universidad Nacional Universidad Nacional Autonóma de Honduras; LL.M. Harvard Law School). He also was a presidential advisor from 2002 – 2005. He served as the Honduran Minister of Culture from 2005 – 2006. Octavio is tremendously more qualified that I am to discuss the constitution and what happened this past weekend. I’d like to publicly thank Octavio for taking the time to write this powerful piece describing the reality of what happened according to the Honduran constitution." (more)

Published in La Prensa of Honduras - The main road of the city was not large enough to hold the thousands of demonstrators who shouted slogans, sang, and showed their support for what's being called the "transition government" of Honduras. Thousands of people arrived and the concentration completely filled the Avenue of the Los Andes neighborhood in the industrial capital of Honduras. The Hondurans want to be heard in the world, so that people don't only focus on the claims of the former president Manuel Zelaya, but rather investigate the reasons why he was removed from power. "OAS and UN, You Have Already Listened To Zelaya - Now Listen To The People" read several placards while unanimously the people shouted "Mel, Get Out!" The demonstrators also completely rejected the intervention of the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez. Among prayers calling for peace in Honduras, the participants waved white handkerchiefs and shouted "Viva Honduras!" Representatives from different social sectors said they support the transition government and asked the world to accept what has happened in the country, and they simply say the constitution has been respected in order to continue as a democracy. (End of Article)

It's Becoming More Clear To Me Every Day: About the only people who don't support this action are "Mel" Zelaya, Hugo Chavez, and Fidel Castro. Sooner or later the leaders of the world will wake up and realize they completely and totally missed the boat on this one when they "condemned" the supposed "coup" in Honduras. Apparently, there was no coup. And, apparently the transition government in Honduras will remain in place until they can hold another election, which should happen relatively soon. Both the Supreme Court and the Legislative Branch in Honduras voted to remove Manuel Zelaya from power - so what the hell else do you want? The wacko left-wingers are going nuts (as expected) but screw those guys. Again, this was a patriotic action to defend democracy in Honduras. Period. I just wish the people of Venezuela had the same will to throw out Hugo Chavez. Unfortunately, that guy will most remain in power until he dies - he'll never give it up in an orderly and democratic fashion. No way.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

Yachting Monthly - Sailing schoolboy Mike Perham, 17, who hopes to become the youngest solo yachtsman to sail around the world is just 650 miles from Panama. His latest log reads: 'After a fantastic day's run, the wind began to drop off slightly this evening and I've now slowed down to 9knots. I'm still chuffed with my progress though as usually in this area by the doldrums the conditions are pretty variable. 'At the moment, it looks like I could be In Panama for Monday morning, which would be a great result. I'm only 650miles off from Panama as the crow flies, but I think I'll be sailing around 750miles to get in there. Sailing straight isn't the quickest way. I'm staying south for as long as I can before peeling off north, almost straight up to Panama. This way I stay in the good winds for longer and will be able to make the most of the current. 'The sheer amount of random gear floating out on the ocean I've come across has been crazy. Today, as I came on deck this morning, I looked out to sea and 10ft away was a large fishing buoy with a flagpole attached. This is a typical marker for something like a lobster pot which would have been a short way offshore. It had obviously come away from whatever was tethering it before and had drifted all the way out here. 'The moment I saw it I immediately thought that one of its trailing lines would wrap around Totallymoney.com's, keel which is nothing less than a perfect hook - especially as we were sailing on the leeward side but, thank goodness, as we sailed straight past at 11knots, nothing got caught and it continued to bob away into the distance and out of sight. The ocean really is full of junk in places. Apart from several mooring buoys I've also had a close encounter with a huge 10inch towing rope stretching further than I could see, in the middle of the Southern Ocean, thousands of miles from anywhere. I've seen countless random plastic bottles and small bits of rubbish just floating about in all sorts of places around the world. 'It's the end of a food week today, so the choice is pretty poor for dinner - oh well, at least I'm going to have a fantastic selection tomorrow!' More at www.sailmike.com

mongabay.com - The World Bank's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) has approved REDD readiness plans (R-Plans) for Panama and Guyana, and rejected a plan for Indonesia, reports the U.N. and the Bank Information Center, an advocacy group. Readiness plans are the first step toward a country qualifying for payments under the proposed Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) mechanism, a climate change mitigation scheme that would pay tropical countries for conserving their forests. The details of REDD are expected to be hammered out this December at the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change meeting in Copenhagen. Rainforest in Panama Readiness plans involve developing a baseline reference scenario for a country's historical and projected deforestation rates, as well as a adopting strategies to reduce forest clearing and designing systems to monitor, report and verify reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from avoided deforestation. (more)

PANAMA, July 1.— Ricardo Martinelli, the president-elect of Panama, today received Cuban Vice President Esteban Lazo, who is leading a delegation from the island to the swearing-in ceremony. Spokespersons from the new government indicated that the two leaders discussed bilateral relations, as well as other aspects of interest for the two nations. Likewise, the incoming Panamanian administration expressed its interest in bilateral cooperation, including the possibility of extending its reach. Lazo’s agenda also included a tribute to General Omar Torrijos during a visit to the San Pablo Apóstol Church in the capital, which contains the ashes of the late revolutionary, safeguarded by the religious congregation of this institution. On behalf of the Cuban government, the Cuban vice president placed a floral wreath at the urn containing Torrijos’ ashes. Lazo conversed with several of the members of the congregation and stated that leaders “disappear physically, but their ideas live on”. For us, he added, “it is source of satisfaction to come and recall a figure who worked alongside the people and for the people”. The Cuban delegation is also made up of José Arbesú, deputy head of the International Relations Department of the Central Committee of the Party, and Alejandro González, deputy foreign minister. (PL)

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - For about the last six months I've been getting sporadic email from readers telling me the McAfee Site Advisor service was saying there was some kind of a problem or exploit on Panama-Guide.com. I started writing to these guys, complaining, asking for more information, asking them what the problem was so I could correct it, etc. I wrote several times and they never got back to me. Over the last two days I "ratcheted up" my noise level, threatening them with legal action if they continued to ignore me, etc. Today they finally heard me and I just received an email saying "Dear Don Winner, Thank you for taking the time to inquire about the SiteAdvisor web safety analysis of your website. We apologize any inconvenience this has caused. SiteAdvisor senior engineers have cleared this domain for a green Web safety rating switch. Thanks again for your interest. Sincerely, Patricia McAfee SiteAdvisor." Well, golly, thanks folks. You painted my site "red" for no apparent reason, ignored my repeated requests for information or assistance, and didn't respond until I started going ballistic. Gee, thanks for removing the (bogus) warning that never should have been there in the friggin' first place. Awful nice of ya'...

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - I continue to be amazed and appalled by the knee-jerk calls from the International community to try to force Honduras to reinstate "Mel" Zelaya to power as the President of that country. I continue to read and learn more about this situation every day, and the more I hear the more I am convinced the people of Honduras did the right thing, at the right time. Apparently there is no clearly established method to impeach a sitting president in Honduras as there is in the United States and many other countries. If the President of Honduras commits a crime then it falls to the Supreme Court to remove him from power. That was done. Did you hear me? In Honduras former President Manuel Zelaya was removed from power in a legal and proper fashion by the Supreme Court in accordance with their constitution. There are all kinds of things going on inside of Honduras the international news media is basically choosing to ignore. Everyone seems happy with the simple (but woefully inadequate) 2-step - "There was a coup" and "Zelaya should be returned to power." In fact, there was no coup. And, Manuel Zelaya should not be returned to power. It makes me wonder who is advising the Presidents of the region - where are they getting their information from, and how is it possible I am more clearly informed on the situation in Honduras than they are? I mean, come on... I can understand how it might be politically impossible to make a statement in support of the new government of Honduras, and in effect most of the sitting Presidents of Latin America are probably worried about being tossed out one day themselves. But at the very least they need to get up to speed on the facts on the ground in Hondo. I stand by the decision taken to throw that bastard Manuel Zelaya out on his ass as a patriotic action on the part of brave Hondurans, and I call for the leaders of Latin America (and the world for that matter) to grow a pair of balls.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Obviously, the one feather Martin Torrijos was never able to stick in his cap was the ratification of the bilateral free trade agreement between the United States and Panama. Yesterday, among all of the pomp and circumstance surrounding the inauguration of Ricardo Martinelli, I heard a few interesting comments. For example, according to the new Minister of Commerce and Industry (MICI), Roberto Henríquez, the ball is firmly in the court of the US congress to pass the agreement as signed. "Here in Panama we have already signed and ratified the agreement, it's now up to the US congress to vote on and ratify the agreement as signed." That's a pretty clear message. In other words, you can forget about any kind of a renegotiation or tweaking of the agreement, either pass it as it is or forget it. There might be some token tinkering, but I don't see Panama caving in on any of the really significant issues regarding offshore accounts, bearer share companies, or banking secrecy.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - If you peer out into the Bay of Panama and scan the horizon on Monday, you might just spot Mike Perham aboard his 50' sailboat as he approaches Panama. Mike is only 17 years old, and he's vying to be the youngest person to ever have sailed around the world, alone and unassisted. Mike is currently about 400 miles to the West of Panama in the Pacific Ocean and he expects to reach Panama hopefully by Monday. You can read his daily blog and track his progress via his website at SailMike.com with a more complete and comprehensive website available through one of his sponsor's at http://www.totallymoney.com/sailmike/. I'm currently coordinating with Mike's support team, and hopefully I'll be able to interview him when he reaches Panama. (more)

PANAMA CITY, Panama (CNN) -- Ricardo Martinelli, the multimillionaire owner of a supermarket chain, was inaugurated as president of Panama on Wednesday. Ricardo Martinelli is a pro-business conservative who defeated a candidate from the ruling center-left party. National Assembly President Jose Luis Varela performed the swearing-in and placed the presidential sash on Martinelli, a pro-business conservative who defeated a candidate from the ruling center-left party in May. The citizens of Panama "want things to be done differently," Varela said at the inauguration. "An attitude of change starts today." In his first speech as president, Martinelli promised a smaller government budget but raises for public workers. Public safety, an issue that the outgoing administration of Martin Torrijos struggled to maintain, will be a priority, Martinelli said. "Our prisons will be rehabilitation centers, not schools for criminals," he said. Panama will also work with Mexico and Colombia to combat drug trafficking in the region, Martinelli said. (more)

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Businessman Ricardo Martinelli was sworn in as Panama's new president on Wednesday, promising to start the biggest job-creation push ever in the country. Martinelli said he wants to make the nation of 3.3 million inhabitants the best place to do business in Latin America. "The people have given us a clear mandate to bring change to the government, from top to bottom, and that is what we will do," Martinelli said at the ceremony attended by various foreign leaders, including Honduras' ousted president, Manuel Zelaya. Martinelli, 57, a conservative supermarket magnate, also expressed a desire to become "an active partner" with Colombia and Mexico in the fight against drug trafficking during his five-year term. One of the new government's proposals is a billion-dollar plan to build a train system for the capital's metropolitan area. Martinelli's predecessor, Martin Torrijos, launched a $5.25 billion project to increase the Panama Canal's capacity and allow it to accommodate larger ships. The canal is Panama's economic motor and Martinelli supported its expansion, but the world's economic woes have generated uncertainty over the project, which is receiving $2.3 billion in international financing. And the country's real-estate boom, another driving force of the economy, has also been affected by the international financial crisis and economic downturn. Martinelli acknowledged "our administration will not have the resources the previous administration had."

By Rustin Dodd / MLB.com KANSAS CITY -- Bruce Chen wasn't sure the day would come. The day when he could walk into a Major League clubhouse, walk to his locker and see a jersey with the last name "Chen." It finally came last Saturday. After missing nearly two years of baseball -- two years spent battling ineffectiveness and an arm that required Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery -- Chen took the mound for the Royals in Pittsburgh. He lasted 6 1/3 innings and allowed four earned runs in the loss -- a small bump perhaps, but one that didn't change the fact that Chen was back in the Majors. "It's very special for me," Chen said. "In doing my rehab and trying to work towards coming back -- and I also have my family and my kids -- it's hard. I didn't know if I was going to make it back. I didn't know if I was going to be completely healthy." Chen will make his second start for the Royals on Thursday as they begin a four-game series against the White Sox at Kauffman Stadium It marks another opportunity for Chen to pitch and for others to curiously ask about his name. They've always asked about that last name. Maybe it just seemed a little odd. Why does the left-handed starting pitcher from Panama have the last name Chen? (more)

PANAMA CITY, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Ricardo Martinelli took office as new president of Panama on Wednesday, for a term that runs from July 1, 2009 to 2014 May 31 of 2014. Martinelli, born on March 11, 1952 in Panama City, is the owner of the Super 99 supermarket chain, which is the largest in the country. He graduated in Business Administration, specializing in Marketing from the University of Arkansas, U.S.. He also holds a master's degree in Business Administration specializing in Finance at INCAE, Costa Rica. He served as director of the Chamber Commerce of Panama from 1985 to 1987, and director of Social Security from 1994 to 1996. From 1999 to 2003, he worked as chairman of the Board of Directors of the Panama Canal Authority and Minister of Canal Affairs. In 2004, he was the candidate of Cambio Democratico (CD), a party of which he served as the president. Martinelli finished last out of four candidates with 5.3 percent of the vote in the 2004 election. In May 2009, he was elected as president, when Martinelli said he would review Panama's ties with China. He also served as Director of companies such as Golds Mills of Panama, Global Bank, Panasal S.A, National Television Channel-2 (TVN), Direct-TV, Desarrollo Norte SA, Molino de Oro, AVIPAC and Calox Panamena, among others. He is married to Marta Linares, who is an insurance agent, and has three children.

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya met senior US officials on the sidelines of an Organization of American States meeting, on the eve of his departure Wednesday for Panama, US officials said. The White House and the State Department said that the deposed leader met late Tuesday with Tom Shannon, US assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs and Dan Restrepo, the top Latin America advisor on the national security council. "Shannon reiterated the US commitment to seeing a return to the constitutional order in Honduras," a US official said, of the meeting on the fringes of the OAS in Washington. At the White House, spokesman Robert Gibbs noted the 72-hour deadline imposed by the OAS for Zelaya's reinstatement following a coup on Sunday. "We continue to monitor the situation and we will respond accordingly as events transpire. We are watching closely what is going in." The OAS in a communique Wednesday said Honduras faced suspension from the organization if it did not return Zelaya to power, in one of several moves by foreign governments and organizations ratcheting up pressure on the country. The Pentagon on Wednesday suspended all military activities with Tegucigalpa until further notice. Zelaya on Wednesday arrived in Panama for the inauguration of conservative millionaire Ricardo Martinelli as the country's new president.

President Ma Ying-jeou attended the inauguration of Panama’s new president, Ricardo Martinelli, on Wednesday. It was part of Ma's diplomatic tour of Taiwan's allies in Central America. Ma sat next to the recently ousted president of Honduras -- Manuel Zelaya. Ma was originally scheduled to meet Zelaya not in Panama, but in Honduras in a later stop of his tour. Those plans changed after the military unseated Zaleya on Sunday. Presidential Spokesman Wang Yu-chi describes Ma and Zelaya's interaction at the inauguration."In short, the president exchanged greetings with President Zaleya. Zaleya said that he's optimistic about the future. It was a brief but pleasant interaction," said Wang. Zaleya made a statement to the media before the ceremony. He said that the Organization of American States has been putting pressure on Honduras’ temporary government to restore Zaleya as president within 72 hours. For now, Zaleya is in Panama, but he is planning to return to Honduras in three days, accompanied by Argentine President Cristina Kirchner. Taiwan's President Ma, on the other hand, is scheduled to visit Nicaragua on Friday. But Foreign Minister Francisco Ou said there will be changes to the president's itinerary following the death of Alexis Arguello, the mayor of Nicaragua's capital city, Managua.

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - I just got back from checking out the large house in Cerro Azul that's being offered at $195,000. What I didn't know is this house was on the market for about six months at $250K and the highly motivated owners recently dropped the price in order to make it an absolutely irresistible great deal. In fact, at this price, this property is almost certainly being offered at below market value. This house sits on two large lots and in fact it's actually two buildings connected by a carport, with a very large pavilion/bohio out back. They have even installed a back-up electrical generator that runs the whole house in case the power goes out. The owner is a gardener, and the property is literally covered with all kinds of fruit trees, berries, herbs, vegetables, flowers, and all kinds of other stuff. Wildlife abounds in the area, and the entire Cerro Azul borders on a national park and wildlife preserve. The house just keeps going and it's huge, with lots of space, storage areas, extra bedrooms, workshops, etc. And if the two lots are not big enough for you, there's yet another lot available directly behind this property (perfectly placed for the installation of a pool, right behind the bohio) that could be purchased from Melo. It became clear to me whoever buys this property is going to be getting an early Christmas present. It's also very attractive as an investment for someone who simply might want to invest some capital and flip it later for a nice profit if you have the time to sell in at a leisurely pace, which the current owners simply cannot afford to do - they have to sell, right now. If you're interested, contact me via email at don@panama-guide.com or via cell at 6614-0451. See the other article for photos.

Copyright 2009 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Received this morning via email: "For those of you interested in what actually happened in Honduras, this is a well written, non-political, logical explanation supplied by someone we've known for nearly eight years. We used to live in Honduras on the island of Roatan so keep up with several chat lines. We've lived in Panama for 2.5 years now but remember clearly when the president was elected and what the people were saying subsequently ... and I'm talking about Hondurans, not just ex-pats. Sadly the media seems unable to present a balanced assessment so perhaps this will help. Catherine."

(What follows was written by Mitch, who has been living in Honduras since 2002. This is the best, blow-by-blow description I've seen to date of what happened in Honduras, and the events leading up to the removal of Zelaya as the president there.)

"I don’t profess to be an expert at Honduran politics or constitution, but I have been here a while and stay pretty involved with what’s going on in Honduras and especially Roatan. For those that don’t know me, I’m an American investor that has lived in Honduras full time since 2002. I’m very active on several commissions and have met with minister level executives of the Honduran government many times in the past few years. (more)

PANAMA CITY (AP) -- President-elect Ricardo Martinelli plans to raise police pay, implement monthly aid payments to the elderly and begin work on a plan to build a subway system in Panama's capital within hours of taking office Wednesday, an aide said. Frank de Lima, appointed by Martinelli as economy vice minister, said Tuesday that the new president will detail the programs Thursday during his first Cabinet meeting. The country's 20,000 police officers will get a $100 increase in monthly pay as a way to boost moral, de Lima said. Police officers now earn an average of $420 a month. Between 40,000 and 50,000 elders will begin receiving monthly aid payments of $100, de Lima said. He said the new program will help lessen the impact of the global economic crisis on Panama. A commission that will work on the plan to build a subway in Panama City will be formally established Thursday, de Lima said. The U.S.-educated, pro-business Martinelli, 57, who owns Panama's largest supermarket chain, has said building the subway will be the second biggest source of new jobs in the Central American country, after the Panama Canal's expansion. The canal is Panama's economic motor and Martinelli supports its expansion, but the world's financial crunch has raised uncertainty over the project, which is getting $2.3 billion in international financing. Approved in a 2006 referendum, the project is expected to create about 5,000 direct jobs in 2010-11, when construction is at its peak, authorities say.

By Dan MacLeod - BDN Staff - BANGOR, Maine — A local teenager will leave this afternoon for the San Blas Islands in Panama, where she will help deliver 1,500 shoe boxes stuffed with presents for needy children. Michelle Nosworthy, 17, a student at the Calvary Chapel School in Orrington, has been working on shoe box gift packages since she was in elementary school as part of the Samaritan’s Purse project, a Christian international relief program. Nosworthy said she was glad to finally see the human impact of her work. “I’m really excited,” she said Tuesday afternoon. “I’ve been making the shoe boxes for so long.” The packages contain such things as toothbrushes, flashlights, batteries, soap, toys and candy. “Every day we’ll be loading up on canoes and visiting the local islands to deliver gifts,” she said. While in the San Blas Islands, the group of 18 students will also help paint and repair a community center. They also plan to go to Panama City to work with Amigos de Metro, a children’s home, where they will be handing out boxes and helping to renovate one of the administrative buildings.

Hydroworld.com - Panama's utility regulator predicts the nation will add 31 hydroelectric projects totaling 1,047 MW through 2013. Autoridad Nacional de los Servicios Publicos (Asep) said 15 of the projects are under construction “with a healthy rate of progress,” while the other 16 are in final design. The agency said the projects represent investment of US$2 billion, giving a strong boost to the Panama economy. “This gives peace of mind that the market is growing because they can meet demand in coming years,” Asep said. Panama’s current installed capacity is 1,663 MW, compared to peak demand of 1,120 MW, Asep said. Demand is expected to total 1,373 MW by 2013. Barring unforeseen setbacks, Asep predicted June 22, 2009, that three projects of 15 MW would come on line in 2009, seven of 97 MW in 2010, eight of 364 MW in 2011, 11 of 538 MW in 2012, and two of 33 MW in 2013. Among Panama’s recent hydropower activity, the European Investment Bank said it is considering proposals to fund construction of the 29-MW Barro Blanco hydroelectric project on the Tabasara River (HydroWorld 5/29/09) and the three-plant, 115-MW Los Mares hydroelectric complex on the Chiriqui River. (HydroWorld 2/3/09) Russian equipment supplier Energomashexport Corp. LLC announced a contract in February to supply electro-mechanical equipment for the 85-MW Baitun hydroelectric project on the Chiriqui Viejo River (HydroWorld 2/13/09), while Generadora Pedregalito S.A. signed a contract to construct the 20-MW Pedregalito hydroelectric project on the Chico River. (HydroWorld 1/16/09) Istmus Hydro Power Corp. commissioned its 10-MW Concepcion hydropower project in January on the Piedra River in Panama’s Chiriqui Province. (HydroWorld 1/15/09) Meanwhile, Suez Energy Central America is building the 26-MW Gualaca, 34.8-MW Lorena, and 57.4-MW Prudencia projects on the Chiriqui River. (HydroWorld 9/30/08)