|
 |
|
Para ver esta página en español, oprima aquí. Going To Puerto Rico Is Expos' Hot Topic, Guerrero Thrilled: ’Like Playing At Home’, Others Speechless…U.S. Assigns $2M To Labor Department… Oberstar: Gov’t Should Promote Cycling Tourism…Reacting To MADD "C" Rating, Governor Promises Strict Alcohol Sales Enforcement…Senator Seeks To Jump Start Cuba Trade
Going To Puerto Rico Is Expos' Hot Topic Lisa Dillman November 24, 2002 Sending the Montreal Expos to P.R. will amount to nothing more than bad PR if early reviews of the Expos' upcoming 22-game experiment in Puerto Rico are any indication. Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post and ESPN posed a few questions for Bud Selig about the unprecedented arrangement: "Who did Puerto Rico beat out, Malta? Where you gonna send the Expos next year, Yemen? "Nobody goes to Puerto Rico in the summer, Bud. Does the phrase 'en fuego' mean anything to you? Vladimir Guerrero will be frying eggs on his forehead in the outfield. That homestand in September, that's right in the middle of hurricane season. "You going to have a Nail Yourself to Your Seat Night? Whatever else is wrong with Montreal, it certainly isn't its climate in the summer."
Guerrero Thrilled To Play In P.R.:’Like Playing At Home’ November 23, 2002 SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) -- Montreal outfielder Vladimir Guerrero loves baseball's plan to have the Expos play 22 home games in Puerto Rico next year. ``I felt so happy when I read in the newspapers that it's a fact.'' Guerrero, who is Dominican, said Thursday. ``My teammates Jose Vidro and Javier Vasquez are Puerto Rican. Also, Puerto Rico is filled with Dominicans. It will be like playing at home.'' Subject to approval by the players' association, Montreal would play 10 games in April at San Juan's Hiram Bithorn Stadium against the Mets (April 11-14), Atlanta (April 15-17) and Cincinnati (April 18-20). They would play Texas and Anaheim in San Juan in June, and Florida and the Chicago Cubs in September. Guerrero hit .336 last year with 39 homers, 40 steals and 111 RBIs, just missing the 40-40 club ``I still have many years left in the majors to achieve it. I'm not frustrated for not reaching 40-40,'' Guerrero said.
Expo Players Not Pining For Puerto Rico: 'I'm Speechless' Stephanie Myles November 23, 2002 If it were up to him, Expos outfielder Brad Wilkerson would say no to 22 "home" games in Puerto Rico. "That's ridiculous," said Wilkerson. "It's going to be difficult to get into a different venue there and be able to adjust. It'll be like a road game for us, pretty much. I don't think it's in our best interests right now." Wilkerson said it wasn't fair to the fans in Montreal, and he didn't even think the large contingent of Spanish-speaking players would be thrilled about it. "It's going to be great for them to play at home, or near home," Wilkerson said. "But the Latin guys love Montreal. I bet if you asked them, especially after the season, they'd say they prefer to spend all of it in Montreal. That's just my take on it. I'm speechless about the situation." The proposed schedule will include an eight-hour flight from San Juan to Seattle in the middle of a 22-game road trip
U.S. Government Assigns $2 Million To Labor Department November 23, 2002 SAN JUAN (AP) – Gov. Sila Calderon announced Saturday in a press release that the U.S. Labor Department assigned over $2 million to the Unemployment Insurance Program Administration, assigned to the Labor and Human Resources Department. According to the press release, this program only had an allocation of $481,000 during the present fiscal year. Meanwhile, the Trade Benefits Program will receive an increase of double the allocation of last year, which will increase its budget to over $42,000.
Congressman Recommends Developing Cycling Industry November 22, 2002 SAN JUAN (AP) – After traveling 45 miles in a trip from Old San Juan to Rio Grande and back, Democratic Congressman James Oberstar recommended that the Legislative Assembly and the government support cycling tourism. According to Oberstar, who has been visiting Puerto Rico since Monday, the island’s natural beauty and its culture are ideal to develop that sector of the tourism industry. "For what I have seen, cycling tourism can be developed on a large scale. This island has so much beauty to see along its coast and in its communities. Cycling is the only way to really feel Puerto Rican culture," the congressman said in a press conference. Dressed in cycling gear, including a protective helmet, Oberstar also urged the Legislative Assembly to approve the bill that creates the new Transit Law, which includes the Cyclist Rights Code. The congressman is considered the grandfather of cycling in the United States, and in Washington, he travels routes of 100 miles. The Cycling Rights Code would categorize as a crime throwing objects at people who are traveling on a bicycle and establishes specific zones for bicycle riding. The bill was approved by the Senate, but was not considered by the House of Representatives. However, Popular Democratic Party (PDP) Sen. Roberto Prats, the bill’s author who accompanied Oberstar, hoped that his peers’ good sense would prevail and the legislation would be approved without many changes. The PDP senator urged the governor to include the legislation in the list of measures to be considered in the extraordinary session, which begins next week.
Governor To Be Strict Regarding Drunk Driving Measures November 22, 2002 SAN JUAN (AP) – Gov. Sila Calderon promised Friday to enforce strict and rigorous public policy regarding the selling of alcoholic beverages to minors. Calderon said she was confident that the public order codes, promoted by her administration in municipalities, will help control the alcohol problem on our roads. "My administration has a strict public policy regarding alcohol consumption, especially by minors. Public order codes’ main pillar is high fines for selling alcoholic beverages to minors," the governor said in a press conference. Calderon reacted to a report revealed in Washington by the group Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), which granted the island a "C" qualification on the measures adopted to prevent drunk driving. However, Calderon said the report corresponds to the past administration’s period. According to the report, along with Guam, Puerto Rico is the only federal jurisdiction to have refused to comply with increasing the legal age for alcohol consumption to 21. The report, which included Puerto Rico for the first time, is published every three years and evaluates the government’s efforts to prevent drunk driving and alcohol consumption by minors. The "C" granted to the island is similar to the qualification granted to the United States as a whole. No federal jurisdiction obtained an "A." Montana is the only state that obtained an "F."
MADD Grants "C" To Puerto Rico In Roads Security November 22, 2002 SAN JUAN (AP) – A report revealed in Washington by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) granted the island a "C" qualification on the measures adopted to prevent drunk driving. According to the report, along with Guam, Puerto Rico is the only federal jurisdiction to have refused to comply with increasing the legal age for alcohol consumption to 21. The report, which included Puerto Rico for the first time, is published every three years and evaluates the government’s efforts to prevent drunk driving and alcohol consumption by minors. According to published reports, the "C" granted to the island is similar to the qualification granted to the United States as a whole. No federal jurisdiction obtained an "A." Montana is the only state that obtained an "F.
Senator Seeks To Open Trade Links With Cuba November 22, 2002 SAN JUAN (AP) - With U.S. restrictions on Cuba loosening, Popular Democratic Party Sen. Jose Ortiz Daliot said Thursday that he wants to establish trade links between Puerto Rico and the communist island. Ortiz Daliot proposed having three Senate commissions investigate what steps Puerto Rico must take to jump-start trade ties with Cuba. As a U.S. Caribbean territory, Puerto Rico falls under federal jurisdiction when it comes to international affairs. "We need to determine how Puerto Rico can benefit to the maximum from the restoration of trade links with Cuba, because our active participation in the Cuban market would be positive for our economy," said Ortiz Daliot, chairman of the Senate Federal and International Affairs Committee. The other two Senate committees to investigate possible links with Cuba are the Infrastructure, Technology and Commerce Committee and the Tourism, Recreation and Sports Committee, Ortiz Daliot said. Cuba has been under a U.S. trade embargo since Fidel Castro defeated the CIA-backed assault at the Bay of Pigs in 1961. Creating a small opening in the trade embargo, the U.S. Congress in 2000 legalized sales of food to Cuba for the first time since 1961. Pressure from American farmers and agricultural companies have allowed U.S. exporters to sell products to Cuba this year for the first time in more than four decades, officials say. In September, Castro signed a $10 million contract to buy U.S. rice, cooking oil and soy.
|