South Africa 361-5 (42 overs) vs West Indies – 5th ODI

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 1:05 PM    

CENTURION, South Africa (AFP) – Hashim Amla and Rilee Rossouw both hit centuries for the second time in the series as South Africa punished a lacklustre West Indian bowling attack in the fifth and final one-day international at SuperSport Park on Wednesday.

Amla made 133 and Rossouw powered his way to 132 in a South African total of 361 for five in an innings reduced to 42 overs because of rain.

The pair equalled their South African record for any wicket by putting on 247 for the third wicket.

They set the mark with a first wicket stand in the second match in Johannesburg when both also hit hundreds and provided a platform for AB de Villiers to hit the fastest century in one-day international history.

De Villiers was rested for Wednesday’s game, along with all four of South Africa’s first-choice specialist bowlers.

West Indies captain Jason Holder sent South Africa in to bat and initially it seemed a good move as the batsmen struggled to time the ball on a pitch which had spent most of the day under the covers as steady drizzle delayed the start by two-and-a-half hours.

Amla took his total for the series to 412 for twice out, scoring his 133 runs off 105 balls with 11 fours and six sixes.

The left-handed Rossouw took 60 balls to reach his fifty but then cut loose, needing only another 23 balls to post his second international century and only 15 more before he was caught on the boundary off Andre Russell after an innings which included nine fours and eight sixes.

Russell took three wickets but conceded 85 runs in eight overs, including 28 in one over during the batting power play.

Russell sent down three no-balls and five wides, two of which were out of reach of wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin and went to the boundary.

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South Africa 361-5 (42 overs) vs West Indies – 5th ODI

South Africa beat Windies by 131 runs in 5th ODI

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 4:26 PM    

CENTURION, South Africa (CMC) – South Africa defeated West Indies by 131 runs, in the rain-hit fifth One-Day International at SuperSport Park here Wednesday.

Scores:

SOUTH AFRICA 361 for five off 42 overs (Hashim Amla 133, Rilee Rossouw 132, David Miller 23 not out; Andre Russell 3-85, Jason Holder 2-77)

WEST INDIES 230 off 37.4 overs (Marlon Samuels 50, Narsingh Deonarine 43, Denesh Ramdin 40, Dwayne Smith 31, Darren Sammy 27, Andre Russell 24; Wayne Parnell 4-42, Kyle Abbott 2-59)

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South Africa beat Windies by 131 runs in 5th ODI

Several men held in police/military operation

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 1:51 PM    

KINGTSON, Jamaica – Several men from the downtown Kingston area were Wednesday morning taken into custody during a joint police/military operation.

Reports are that from as early as 9:00 am, a team of police and soldiers visited sections of Charles Street and surrounding areas and carried out a number of searches.

More information later.

Kimmo Matthews

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Several men held in police/military operation

Warrior Love still smarting

BY SIMONE MORGAN Observer Staff Reporter morgans@jamaicaobserver.com

Monday, January 26, 2015    

BASSIST and leader of the Warrior Love Band, Joseph Graham, said he and his colleagues are disappointed with the behaviour of singer Leroy Smart at the recent Rebel Salute show.

He told the Jamaica Observer that it was the first time they had been abused by an artiste on stage.

“Leroy ‘Don’ Smart was booed at Rebel Salute because, to put it mildly, his performance was lacking and he repeatedly disrespected the band throughout this performance,” Graham said.

He disclosed that the veteran singer was slated to rehearse with the band but did not show up.

“After we left the rehearsal studio, Leroy called me to say he is no longer performing at Rebel Salute so we should not rehearse his songs. At that point we had not received his material (set list) for the rehearsal,” Graham disclosed.

The musician said as the band prepared to leave for the venue, Smart contacted him, requesting a rehearsal to which they agreed, although it was last-minute.

“Within less than 10 minutes after collecting his material, [and] heading to the rehearsal studio, Leroy called me again to say ‘no rehearsal for me because I am not doing Rebel Salute’. And he repeatedly said ‘do not rehearse my material’,” Graham explained.

Regardless, Graham said the band went to the rehearsal room and

selected 10 songs from the Leroy Smart 20 classic hits album in the event he showed up.

Graham said it was minutes before Smart’s scheduled slot that the band was made aware that he would be on the show.

What resulted was a fiasco.

Smart openly criticised the band during his performance, and was roundly booed by a frustrated and impatient crowd.

Warrior Love backed over 30 acts at the two-day festival. Graham noted that Smart was not the only artiste who failed to show for rehearsals.

“(Singer) Leroy Gibbons did not turn up for his rehearsal, and we did not get a set list from him, either. Yet, he was as professional and talented an artiste to deliver a well-received performance based on an old set list that we had for him. That’s a professional artiste,” Graham said.

The seven-piece Warrior Love (which also includes Oniel Walters, Dwight James, Jeffery Graham, Ian Williams, Miguel Edwards, and Andrew Branch) has backed a number of dancehall/reggae acts in the last five years.

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Warrior Love still smarting

Unchained spirit

BY BRIAN BONITTO Associate Editor – Auto & Entertainment bonittob@jamaicaobserver.com

Sunday, January 25, 2015    

DESPITE Wednesday’s unsuccessful bid, Professor Charles Ogletree — part of reggae singer Buju Bantonâs legal team — is vowing to continue the fight to have his client’s conviction reversed.

“We will be fighting for Buju Banton’s freedom,” said Olgetree, a professor at Harvard Law School, in a written response to the Jamaica Observer’s queries.

On Wednesday, a United States Appeal Court dismissed the request to have the reggae artiste’s conviction overturned to secure a new trial. But Ogletree, who, along with Max Stern comprise Buju Banton’s legal team, is undaunted.

“We have not lost the appeal. The 11th Circuit made it clear that the entire Appellate Court should hear his case. We will present our arguments for a reversal of his conviction to the entire Court in an En Banc hearing later this spring,” he said.

Buju Banton, whose given name is Mark Myrie, is currently serving a mandatory 10-year prison sentence for a charge of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. The 41-year-old is scheduled to be released in 2019. He has filed a motion requesting an early release under new federal drug sentencing guidelines.

He was convicted in February 2011, days after winning a Grammy award for his album, Before the Dawn. His other albums include ‘Til Shiloh (1995), Inna Heights (1997) and Unchained Spirit (2000).

“We are grateful to the people of Jamaica and around the world who have been steadfast in fighting for justice for Buju Banton!,” Ogletree concluded.

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Unchained spirit

Watson film premieres Sunday

THIS Sunday, February 1 will see the world premiere of They Call Me Barrington — of a film on the life and work Jamaican master painter Barrington Watson.

The film, a project of local filmmaker Lennie Little-White, will examine the life and art of the 83-year-old artist, and form the second in a trilogy of films on Jamaican icons in the arts, which started with Rex Nettleford (December 2013) and is to be concluded with poet/cultural ambassador, Louise Bennett-Coverley — Miss Lou.

Sunday’s premiere is set for the iconic Carib cinema in the Corporate Area.

Little-White told the Jamaica Observer that Watson is the most outstanding painter in Jamaica.

“He broke many grounds, in that art wasn’t a hobby, you could earn a living from it. Today, he’s an inspiration to young artists. He’s in his 80s and still doing work,” he said.

The filmmaker added that the project, which is being funded “out-of-pocket”, will feature Watson “in his own words”. He has also used footage of the painter shot over a decade-and-a-half ago.

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Watson film
premieres Sunday

Water Woes

Claudienne Edwards

Sunday, January 25, 2015    

Dear Claudienne

Congratulations on the good job you’ve been doing to assist the public who are being overwhelmed by these utility companies (especially the monopolistic ones).

I have been trying for months to get the National Water Commission (NWC) to resolve some problems with a small block of apartments, comprising 4 units, at Horizon Park, St. Catherine. But I am too frustrated to continue the fight alone.

It started with the NWC personnel, who installed the water meters, assigning the wrong water meter serial numbers to some of the apartment units. This has led to a mix-up and has resulted in the occupants of the units receiving the wrong bills.

This has caused the occupants of the units to experience unnecessary stress in trying to identify their correct water bills each month.

There are also over-billing issues as the bills are unusually high despite the complex experiencing daily water lock-offs and weak water pressure because of the long drought.

One of the apartments was locked up as the tenant was off the island from February 2014 and returned in mid-October 2014. However, her water bill continued to climb each month in her absence. We checked for leaks and there are absolutely none and the whole plumbing apparatus is brand new.

With regard to the meter for the common area, which only supplies a garden pipe, in one month we were billed for $24,000, even though the plants were not watered and dried up during the period of the drought.

I have made numerous phone calls, and visited the NWC’s offices at Marescaux Road, Portmore and Spanish Town. I have also written letters seeking the utility’s help in fixing the myriad of problems.

I was recently notified by the Spanish Town office that the meter numbering error had been rectified, but the apartments are still getting the wrong bills as the postal address errors have not been corrected.

I am seeking your help in getting the NWC to normalise the situation at the complex.

PT

Dear PT

We asked the NWC to investigate your complaint. On Thursday January 22, the NWC informed Tell Claudienne that all the issues you complained about have now been rectified. The NWC told us that in a letter they sent you last week, you were given a breakdown of the meter readings for each apartment. The letter also detailed the credit or debit to be applied by the NWC to each apartment.

Good luck.

Dear Claudienne

My dad is a pensioner and he has been ill for the past three years. He has a heart condition and is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

Two years ago I accompanied my dad to the N.I.S office in Spanish Town as he had asked them to have my name replace his name on the pension book cheques as he is unable to go to the bank or post office in person. They did an interview and had us fill out a form. We were told that someone would vist our place of residence to verify that my dad and I were both living at the given address.

The NIS visited our home but to this day, over two years later, my name has not replaced my dad’s name in the pension book. For my father to have his pension cheque cashed is very stressful, as we have to charter a car and have a family member accompany him to the post office to encash it. On some days he cannot even get out of the car, so a postal clerk has to come to the car to prove his identity.

In January of 2015 he went to the post office and was about to faint. The postmistress had to ask my teenage son to take him back to the taxi. After a while when he was revived, he was able to sign the voucher. It is not only stressful but costly to charter a taxi every time he needs to go to the post office. Kindly investigate for me as it is becoming unbearable. Thanks much for your help.

MW

Dear MW

Tell Claudienne spoke to the manager of the Spanish Town NIS office, and when we explained your plight he immediately set up an appointment for you to see him.

We note that when you went to see him he gave you a letter to facilitate your being able to change your father’s pension cheques for the next six months. The manager explained that you were given the letter, because your father recently received a new pension book on which the cheques were made payable to him. He told you that when the NIS was preparing your father’s next pension book in six months’ time, your name would replace his name on the pension cheques.

Good luck.

Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 936-9436 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail: edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number

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Water
Woes

The Banking Services Act and the anticipated impact on the financial services sector (Part 2)

THE Banking Services Act specifically allows deposit-taking institutions (banks, merchant banks and building societies), with the prior approval of the Supervisory Committee, to appoint a person to act as agent to offer banking services such as deposits and withdrawals, bill and loan payments/ repayments, account balance enquiries and collection of KYC and due diligence information. The intention here seems to be to encourage efficiency through authorised agency relationships.

Supervision of financial groups and financial holding companies

The Act reinforces the existing requirements for consolidated supervision. It also introduces provisions expanding the supervisory realm to incorporate conglomerate supervision.

The Act defines “consolidated supervision” in relation to a financial group as meaning: (a) the supervision of the financial group on a consolidated basis; (b) the effective supervision of every licensee within a financial group, and (c) where the financial group is a part of a mixed conglomerate, the comprehensive review of the activities within the financial group.

Under the Act, a financial holding company shall be established and consolidated supervision shall apply where:

a) two or more financial institutions operating in Jamaica are members of the financial group and one of them is a deposit-taking institution; and

b) a deposit-taking institution operating in Jamaica is a member of a financial group and has branches or subsidiaries or control of companies outside of Jamaica.

The Act then outlines structures that will afford the supervisor the ability to better regulate and supervise financial groups. It will also allow the supervisor to obtain a perspective of the financial condition of the wider group within which the deposit-taking institution exists, in order to assess the risk that may be present to the deposit-taking institution.

The Act also prohibits ownership structures of and within a financial group which, in the opinion of the supervisory committee, may impede consolidated supervision or effective supervision of a licensee. Notably, these ownership structures include structures that are established in jurisdictions with laws that hinder consolidated or effective supervision.

We have already begun to see entities within the financial services sector taking steps to restructure so as to facilitate effective supervision.

New offences

The Act creates and incorporates new offences making the legislation more relevant to the current market and international trends. These offences include fraudulently misrepresenting that an entity is licensed under the Act, undertaking dealings with shell banks and breaches of the financial holding company provisions.

Enhanced enforcement framework

The Act also provides for an enhanced enforcement framework under Part XXII, such as written warnings and mandatory measures where, for instance, there is a breach of the Proceeds of Crime Act or a licensee’s capital falls below the minimum prescribed level. The functions and investigative powers of the supervisor have also been enhanced under Part XIII.

There are many benefits to be gained from streamlining the laws governing our deposit-taking institutions. It is also clear that the Act contains provisions that more adequately address issues facing the financial services sector. However, time will tell whether the Act proves to be a thorn or a rose for the licensees under the Act.

Simone Bowie Jones is an associate at Myers, Fletcher & Gordon Attorneys-at-Law

and is a member of the firm’s Commercial Department. Simone may be contacted at simone.bowie@mfg.com.jm or www.myersfletcher.com. This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal aid.

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The Banking Services Act and the anticipated
impact on the financial services sector (Part 2)

Sterling Investment to seek funding via rights issue

BY STEVEN JACKSON Business reporter jacksons@jamaicaobserver.com

Wednesday, January 28, 2015    

Sterling Investment Limited (SIL) plans to hold a rights issue by March in order to raise capital.

It would represent the first public round of funding since the company went public last October.

“We haven’t determined the size yet, but it would be a non-renounceable rights issue of ordinary shares,” stated an SIL manager knowledgeable on the matter but who opted to speak on condition of anonymity because of company protocol.

Sterling listed by introduction its 4.01 million ordinary shares on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) at a price of $134 per share.

“It was a listing by introduction… and now we are doing the rights issue to raise capital for the first time since the public offer,” added the manager.

SIL previously raised cash in December 2012 with a private placement. It offered investors a $10-million minimum to buy-in the private placement.

SIL indicated that its investments in 2014 “outpaced the performance of local Jamaican dollar investment products”, yielding returns of 11.56 per cent up to September 2014. Other high-profile funds have yielded from 5.35 per cent to 8.2 per cent over the same period, it added in a release.

Sterling Asset Management Ltd (SAM) holds over $20 billion in assets under management. SAM manages SIL funds for a fee of some two per cent. The investment strategy primarily focuses on overseas financial instruments, primarily fixed-income securities that are traded on global capital markets.

Turning to opportunities in 2015, SAM chief executive Charles Ross noted that a ‘strong rally’ in US treasuries suggests that US interest rates may rise later than initially expected and that European economic weakness would persist, while commodity price declines could dampen inflation expectations.

“Attractively priced bonds provide good investment opportunities, and European Central Bank Quantitative Easing should bolster the market,” Ross commented while speaking at the company’s annual customer appreciation function last Thursday. “Our focus will be on bonds that offer the best risk-adjusted returns in the global marketplace.”

CAPTION

CHARLES ROSS, chief executive of Sterling Asset Management

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Sterling Investment to seek funding via rights issue

Sterling Investment to seek funding via rights issue

BY STEVEN JACKSON Business reporter jacksons@jamaicaobserver.com

Wednesday, January 28, 2015    

Sterling Investment Limited (SIL) plans to hold a rights issue by March in order to raise capital.

It would represent the first public round of funding since the company went public last October.

“We haven’t determined the size yet, but it would be a non-renounceable rights issue of ordinary shares,” stated an SIL manager knowledgeable on the matter but who opted to speak on condition of anonymity because of company protocol.

Sterling listed by introduction its 4.01 million ordinary shares on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) at a price of $134 per share.

“It was a listing by introduction… and now we are doing the rights issue to raise capital for the first time since the public offer,” added the manager.

SIL previously raised cash in December 2012 with a private placement. It offered investors a $10-million minimum to buy-in the private placement.

SIL indicated that its investments in 2014 “outpaced the performance of local Jamaican dollar investment products”, yielding returns of 11.56 per cent up to September 2014. Other high-profile funds have yielded from 5.35 per cent to 8.2 per cent over the same period, it added in a release.

Sterling Asset Management Ltd (SAM) holds over $20 billion in assets under management. SAM manages SIL funds for a fee of some two per cent. The investment strategy primarily focuses on overseas financial instruments, primarily fixed-income securities that are traded on global capital markets.

Turning to opportunities in 2015, SAM chief executive Charles Ross noted that a ‘strong rally’ in US treasuries suggests that US interest rates may rise later than initially expected and that European economic weakness would persist, while commodity price declines could dampen inflation expectations.

“Attractively priced bonds provide good investment opportunities, and European Central Bank Quantitative Easing should bolster the market,” Ross commented while speaking at the company’s annual customer appreciation function last Thursday. “Our focus will be on bonds that offer the best risk-adjusted returns in the global marketplace.”

CAPTION

CHARLES ROSS, chief executive of Sterling Asset Management

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Sterling Investment to seek funding via rights issue

American Express to launch services in Cuba

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 4:15 PM    

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – American Express said Wednesday that it plans to launch services for its credit card users in Cuba, after Washington and Havana agreed to establish relations following a half-century freeze.

Moving in the steps of rival MasterCard, an American Express spokeswoman said the company had plans to begin business activities in Cuba, “consistent with the president’s announced policy change,” though no specific date for a launch is set.

US President Barack Obama’s historic move in December to open the doors to better political, social and business ties with the Caribbean island nation is expected to, at first, give a boost to travel to the country long under a US embargo.

Obama said US banks would be able to offer various services including use of their credit cards in Cuba.

MasterCard said last week that it would begin processing customer transactions from Cuba in March.

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American Express to launch services in Cuba

Judges need protection, says Opposition

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 2:35 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Opposition spokesman on justice and justice reform, Senator Alexander Williams has expressed shock and amazement at the minister of national security’s announcement of plans to review the assignment of close protection police personnel for the protection of judges.

“There can be no argument that our judges should retain police protection. In deciding on cases, whether civil or criminal, their will oftentimes be disgruntled parties who will harbour resentment that can lead to criminal conduct, and that might well be targeted at the judge”.

“The rhetoric coming from the Government is that they are on a path to improve the administration of justice and to strengthen the justice system. How can that not include protection of the judiciary?

“We, the Opposition, are entirely opposed to any review of close protection for the judges, which is a totally unnecessary exercise. They must have protection,” he said.

He warned the minister of national security that he was travelling down a dangerous road, and said any attempt to weaken the justice system would be met with stiff opposition.

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Judges need protection, says Opposition

PNP councillor, businessman granted bail

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 4:37 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – People’s National Party councillor Rohan Bryan and businessman Ludlow McWhinney were on Wednesday offered bail in the sum of J$600,000, after they appeared before the Morant Bay Resident Magistrate’s Court for attempting to pervert the course of justice.

The bail was offered with surety and the men instructed to surrender their travel documents.

Reports are that McWhinney allegedly contacted a relative of a complainant in a case of sexual misconduct involving a minister of religion, in an attempt to influence their decision to proceed with the matter in November last year.

Further allegations are that in January, Bryan tried to influence both the complainant and the relative in an effort to affect the outcome of the case. Reports were made and an investigation launched by the Morant Bay police, after which a file was prepared and submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for a ruling.

The DPP ruled on the matter and both men were this morning arrested and charged.

They are scheduled to reappear in court on March 11, 2015.

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PNP councillor, businessman granted bail

District constable faces court on sexual offence charges

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 | 4:07 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DDP) on Wednesday ruled that a district constable be arrested and charged with breaches of the Sexual Offences Act.

He is 24-year-old Phillip Thomas who was assigned to the Morant Bay Police Station.

Thomas appeared before the Morant Bay Resident Magistrate’s Court Wednesday, where he was granted bail and ordered to surrender his travel documents and a stop order issued.

His next appearance in court will be March 11.

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District constable faces court on sexual offence charges

"CRITICAL JUNCTURE" Ariz. monitors 1,000 as measles outbreak spreads

Jan. 22, 2015: Mickey Mouse performing during a parade at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif. (AP)

Arizona health officials are keeping tabs on 1,000 people, including 200 children, who could have been exposed to measles at a Phoenix-area medical center.

The outbreak originated in California’s Disney parks has now spread to the state. Those who have been exposed to the disease who have not been vaccinated are being asked to stay from for 21 days or wear masks if they have to go out in public.

“To stay in your house for 21 days is hard,” State Health Services director Will Humble said. “But we need people to follow those recommendations, because all it takes is a quick trip to the Costco before you’re ill and, ‘bam,’ you’ve just exposed a few hundred people. We’re at a real critical juncture with the outbreak.”

Health officials do not know the number of how many children were vaccinated for measles or their age ranges. Children under a year cannot receive the vaccination for measles, mumps or rubella, but can get an immunity booster.

Arizona is second in the number of cases traced to Disney parks last month, next to California. Measles has been confirmed in Utah, Washington, Colorado, Oregon and Nebraska as well.

The Arizona woman whose case was confirmed Tuesday in Maricopa County came into contact with a Pinal County family that traveled to Disneyland, but did not have telltale signs of measles like a rash when she visited the Phoenix Children’s East Valley Center. Maricopa County health director Bob England declined to say whether she’d had the measles vaccine, which isn’t 100 percent effective in stemming the spread of the disease.

“Unfortunately, she came down with the disease and by the time it was recognized had already exposed a large number of children at the facility,” he said.

Masks are being placed outside health care facilities and signs went up outside placed in Kearny warning customers and employees that they could have been exposed to measles.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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"CRITICAL JUNCTURE" Ariz. monitors 1,000 as measles outbreak spreads

DR. ABLOW: Do our digital devices own us? - VIDEO: Why we should unplug

Last Tuesday, a ninth-grader at John F. Kennedy High School in Paterson, N.J., was caught on video throwing his 62-year-old teacher to the ground and wrestling with him in order to retrieve his cellphone, which the teacher had confiscated. Teachers at the school allow cellphones to be used for educational purposes in the classroom, but they may take them and hold them until the end of class if a student appears to be using his phone for any other purpose.

Granted, the boy may have demonstrated problems controlling his impulses in other settings, too, but the video of his attack has resulted in national attention. And that’s because it isn’t the first dramatic example of how attached to our phones we have become. 

Last year, a Houston woman was shot by a mugger when she refused to hand over her cellphone. She survived, and she later asserted that she had done the right thing. 

We have already crossed the Rubicon, almost irrevocably incorporating technology into our psyches in a way that makes us part flesh and blood, part hardware.

In 2013, a 22-year-old man was killed by a train when he tried to retrieve the cellphone he had dropped on the tracks.

Without giving a great deal of thought to the psychological implications, our species has deployed mobile technology very quickly, in a very widespread manner. One reason is that the marketplace embraced smartphones in an astounding way — as if our phones and their apps are a lock-and-key fit with our psyches.  According to one source, there are 7 billion mobile devices on earth, one for almost each person.

What is “in” our cellphones that would lead people to attack others or risk death to keep them? I would argue that the phones absorb and record our thoughts and intentions so dramatically that we become unconsciously convinced they are “parts of us.” Why else would so many people hesitate even to leave a room without taking their cellphones with them? Why would they interrupt meetings and family time to check them? Why would young people be opting to spend their money on newer, faster ones, instead of on clothing?

Why would there be so much interest in personalizing the sounds they make, the apps they hold and the cases that hold them?

I contend we have already crossed the Rubicon, almost irrevocably incorporating technology into our psyches in a way that makes us part flesh and blood, part hardware. The fact that the hardware is outside our bodies (for now) does not mean the integration has not occurred. We are psychologically magnetized to our devices. That’s why some people will fight for them, and even die for them.

The selfie has become so ubiquitous that it no longer seems bizarre to see someone smiling into a cellphone or sticking out her tongue or making a sad face — acting — and then snapping a photo. And these images are then sent not only to her supposed “friends,” who may number in the hundreds, but also to her unconscious mind — reinforcing the idea that she is what her cellphone records her to be. Take away the cellphone and, in some measure, she believes she disappears. She feels she dies a little bit, or more than a little bit, psychologically. 

The business of selling “selfie sticks” — telescoping rods that hold a cellphone far enough away to facilitate a really good shot — is robust enough to make many retailers place large kiosks of them near the checkout register. Cellphones, you might say, are growing arms. Ours apparently aren’t long enough.

This is just the beginning. Cellphones will soon be able to determine whether you are looking at the content on their screens, rather than looking away. They will demand attention. The extent to which we own them versus them owning us will be increasingly in doubt.

Make no mistake: While technology can be good when harnessed for the good (raising money for charity occurs to me), there will be hell to pay for giving so little thought to the downside. That downside likely includes an epidemic of narcissism in young people, increased rates of anxiety and dramatically decreased feelings of autonomy. Because to the extent that one’s self-image is outsourced to a mobile device, it is no more deeply rooted than that. 

Bill Hemmer and Martha MacCallum bring you the news that matters to you!

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DR. ABLOW: Do our digital devices own us? - VIDEO: Why we should unplug

California declares electronic cigarettes a health threat

California health officials on Wednesday declared electronic cigarettes a health threat that should be strictly regulated like tobacco products, joining other states and health advocates across the U.S. in pushing back against the fast-growing device.

The California Department of Public Health report says e-cigarettes emit cancer-causing chemicals and get users hooked on nicotine, although there is still more research to be done on the immediate and long-term health effects.

New generations of young people will become nicotine addicts if the products remain largely unregulated, California Health Officer Ron Chapman said.

“Without action, it is likely that California’s more than two decades of progress to prevent and reduce traditional tobacco use will erode as e-cigarettes re-normalize smoking behavior,” the report says.

E-cigarettes heat liquid nicotine from cartridges into inhalable vapor without tar and other chemicals found in traditional cigarettes. E-cigarette makers say using their products, known as “vaping,” is far safer than tobacco.

“Despite the health officer’s false claims, there is ample evidence that vaping helps smokers quit and is far less hazardous than smoking,” Gregory Conley, president of the e-cigarette advocacy group American Vaping Association, said in an email. “Smokers deserve truthful and accurate information about the relative risks of different nicotine products, not hype and conjecture based on cherry-picked reports.”

The California report called for restrictions on the marketing and sale of e-cigarettes, protections against accidental ingestion of liquid nitrogen and an education campaign on the dangers of using e-cigarettes. California has already banned the sale of e-cigarettes to minors in 2010.

A state senator introduced legislation this week that would regulate e-cigarettes as tobacco products and ban their use in public places such as hospitals, bars and schools. A similar bill was defeated last year over opposition from tobacco companies.

Other states, including Oklahoma, Tennessee and Arkansas, already have issued advisories cautioning the use of e-cigarettes.

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California declares electronic cigarettes a health threat

Colorado to California: Hands off our water supply - VIDEO: Concern over decision to keep river water

Colorado is moving to keep tighter control over its own water supply, rankling drought-stricken western states like California.

In the process, Colorado is learning a valuable lesson in interstate diplomacy.

James Eklund, director of the Colorado Water Conservation Board, initially gave some tough remarks in explaining his state’s intentions in an interview with The Associated Press. “If anybody thought we were going to roll over and say, ‘OK, California, you’re in a really bad drought, you get to use the water that we were going to use,’ they’re mistaken,” he said.

Some of Eklund’s fellow water authorities were taken aback. Eklund is in charge of the state’s water policy and planning and as senior deputy legal counsel to Gov. John Hickenlooper, his word carries a lot of weight.

“There was a lot of surprise with that remark,” said Bill Hasencamp, Colorado River Program manager at the Metropolitan Water District in Los Angeles, which serves 19 million people.

Eklund later tried to downplay his comments. “Unfortunately my comment, the quote that was attributed to me, suggested that we were flexing our muscle,” he said. “And that’s just not the case.”

But Colorado is still moving forward on its new water plan.

To understand what’s at stake here, a brief overview of the critical nature of the Colorado River and those who depend on it is in order:

The river provides water to 40 million people in the states of Arizona, Wyoming, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, California and Colorado. These seven states also make up one of the driest regions in the nation, dependent on a water flow that is miniscule in comparison to rivers in other parts of the United States.

Making matters worse, recent droughts throughout the region have reduced the Colorado’s already limited flow and left massive reservoirs like Lake Mead, which sits in Nevada and just over the Arizona border, at record lows.

Every state gets a predetermined share of the resource, a quantity divided up in 1922 under a federal compact. And while the 1922 Colorado River Compact governs the system, scientists now know the 93-year-old agreement was reached at a time when the region was going through an unusually wet period. States get their allowance regardless of whether they need more or less.

“There’s a long-term deficit beyond just a short-term drought that we have to come to grips with,” Hasencamp said. “There’s just not enough water in the Colorado River to meet the demands that were designed in the 1922 Compact.”

Unlike California, Colorado has had more than it needs. In years past, Colorado has allowed Southern California to dip into its surplus, to help stretch its supply. That is about to change.

Under Eklund, Colorado is drawing up a water plan for the state. The draft, which has been presented to Hickenlooper, calls for Colorado to save for the future. It would keep its legal share of the 1922 Compact allotment, rather than spread the wealth.

“States depend on water that originates here,” Eklund said. “And as a result, everybody watches us. If we twitch on water, everybody notices.”

Douglas Kenney, a western water expert at the University of Colorado Law School, said it’s never been a secret upstream states like Colorado are going to consume more water. “I mean, that’s predictable,” he said. “And states like California have certainly known this is coming. What can they do? Well, they can look to the other sources of supply, they can conserve water, they can look for creative deals … it’s not something that sneaks up on anyone.”

In fact, Southern California has been making plans. According to Hasencamp, it’s invested more than $1 billion over the last decade to reduce its dependence on the Colorado.

Kenney said the issue is bigger than the region itself. “Once you broaden a little further it is a problem with national economic implications, and of course that translates to the global economies.”

More than 16 million people in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Southern California, Utah and Wyoming are employed as a result of working directly or indirectly with this water.Researchers at Arizona State University estimate the total economic impact of the Colorado River is $1.4 trillion.

“The seven states have to work together,” Hasencamp said.

Eklund said he was not trying to send a tough message to other states. “The state of Colorado is working … to make sure that we have collaborative approaches to the situation on the Colorado River, which is in the midst of the worst 15 years of drought that we’ve ever measured.”

In his State of the State address, Hickenlooper pointed out, “Even when our snow pack is substantial and the state has what looks like a water surplus, a drought always looms. Water in Colorado is always in finite supply.”

Hickenlooper went on to say the new water plan “goes a long way to ensure we strategically allocate this precious resource to maximize our entire state’s ability to grow and flourish.”

Hasencamp said downstream states are making hard choices and doing what they can to lessen demand on the scarce resource. “We know that we can’t have one state fight against another,” Hasencamp said. “We all have to work together.”

Alicia Acuna joined Fox News Channel (FNC) in 1997 and currently serves as a general assignment reporter based in the network’s Denver bureau.

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Colorado to California: Hands off our water supply - VIDEO: Concern over decision to keep river water

Christmas tree fueled deadly electrical fire at Maryland mansion, authorities say

Jan. 19, 2015: Firefighters battle a four-alarm fire at a home on Childs Point Road, in Annapolis, Md. (AP Photo/Capital Gazette, Glenn A. Miller)

MILLERSVILLE, Md. –  An electrical fire that spread to a 15-foot Christmas tree prompted a blaze that reduced a 16,000-square-foot riverfront mansion near Maryland’s capital to ruins, killing a couple and four of their young grandchildren, investigators said Wednesday.

The fire ignited combustible material, probably a tree skirt, and tore through the massive, castle-like structure in the early morning hours of Jan. 19.

Anne Arundel County Fire Chief Allan Graves said the tree had been cut more than 60 days before the blaze and was in a “great room” of the house with 19-foot ceilings.

“The involvement of the Christmas tree explains the heavy fire conditions found by the first arriving fire crews,” Graves said.

Investigators on Wednesday identified the victims as Don and Sandra Pyle and their grandchildren: Charlotte Boone, 8; Wes Boone, 6; Lexi Boone, 8, and Katie Boone, 7. Don Pyle, 56, was chief operating officer of ScienceLogic in Reston, Virginia.

The fire was reported about 3:30 a.m. Jan. 19 by an alarm-monitoring company, reporting smoke had been detected inside, and a neighbor who spotted flames. The home had smoke detectors, and there was no indication they did not work, said Deputy Chief Scott Hoglander of the Anne Arundel County fire marshal’s office.

The big tree fueled the fire, which spread rapidly. The 911 call from a neighbor came within 2 minutes of the report to the alarm-monitoring company.

“I think it’s more about the actual fuel load of the Christmas tree and the output of energy and heat from that particular fuel load that caused the rapid fire spread,” Hoglander said. “It really had nothing to do with the building construction itself.”

The investigation found that a failure in an electrical outlet in the floor that provided power to the tree produced heat that ignited something combustible, probably a tree skirt, said Russ Davies, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department.

Some 85 firefighters from several jurisdictions fought the four-alarm fire, which burned for three hours before it could be contained. Because there was no hydrant in the area, firefighters shuttled tankers to the site and stationed a fire boat at a pier nearby.

Investigators brought in dogs to search for bodies and evidence, such as accelerants, and conducted more than 50 interviews. Bill McMullan, special agent in charge of the Baltimore field office of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said the investigation concluded the fire was the result of “a tragic accident that occurred at the absolutely worst possible time, while the Pyles and their grandchildren were sleeping.”

Hoglander declined to mention a specific cause of death, because officials have not received an official report back from the state medical examiner’s office.

A spokeswoman for the children’s parents said that the day before the fire, the doting grandparents bought the children costumes before taking them to dinner at a medieval-themed restaurant.

Charlotte and Wes Boone were sister and brother. Lexi and Katie were sisters; they had a newborn brother who was home with his parents, Randy and Stacey Boone, the night of the fire. The cousins’ fathers, Randy and Clint Boone, were the sons of Sandra Pyle, 63. The four children were students at the Severn School in Severna Park.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Boone family thanked investigators for their work and well-wishers for their prayers.

“While the explanation that has been shared with us today does not bring solace, it does start us down the long road to acceptance,” the statement read.

The Pyles built the home in 2005, four years before the county began requiring sprinkler systems in new homes. Hoglander said he believes sprinklers would have made a difference.

“I would say without a doubt,” he said.

The $6 million property once boasted turrets, spiral staircases, lion statues, a sprawling lawn and forested land. All that remains resembles a colonial ruin: a brick wall with windows missing and a mountain of burned debris.

As investigators from the fire department, the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the state fire marshal’s office probed the scene, members of the community brought notes and teddy bears for a small memorial just outside the property. On brick columns that flanked an iron gate, Christmas decorations were still displayed.

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Christmas tree fueled deadly electrical fire at Maryland mansion, authorities say

Congressional travel to Cuba surged last year - Raul Castro demands U.S. pay back Cubans for "damages," return Guantanamo - OPINION: Five ways Obama could make Castro pay Cuba"s $6 billion debt to Americans

Travel by members of Congress to Cuba shot up last year ahead of President Obama’s December executive action normalizing relations with the island nation.

Thirteen Democratic House members traveled to Havana in 2014 on at least three separate trips sponsored by nonprofit outside groups, according to travel reports members are required to file with the House Ethics Committee.

One of the trips, in which at least seven lawmakers participated, ended just one day before Obama’s Dec. 17 announcement of a détente with the Castro regime.

The visits coincide with a furious behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign from longtime advocates for normalizing relations with Cuba and pressing Obama last year that the time was right to make a bold move and ease sanctions and lift travel restrictions.

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Congressional travel to Cuba surged last year - Raul Castro demands U.S. pay back Cubans for "damages," return Guantanamo - OPINION: Five ways Obama could make Castro pay Cuba"s $6 billion debt to Americans

Alabama pol threatens to out lawmakers" alleged affairs over gay marriage criticism

Alabama’s only openly gay lawmaker says if her colleagues don’t stop calling same-sex marriage immoral, she’ll publicly out her heterosexual colleagues she claims are having extramarital affairs.

State Rep. Patricia Todd said she was furious and disappointed by comments made after a federal judge struck down the state’s gay-marriage ban last week. 

“I’m sick of the hypocrisy,” the Birmingham Democrat said on Facebook. “If you start disparaging my community, and I know that you are not exactly the family values person that you put yourself out to be, well, then, beware.”

Todd has not identified by name anyone she is considering accusing.

U.S. District Judge Callie V. S. Granade’s order, issued Friday, potentially makes Alabama the 37th state where gay marriage is legal. She put the order on hold for 14 days to let the state appeal. The state wants the ruling to remain on hold until the Supreme Court takes up the issue later this year.

Republican House Speaker Mike Hubbard called Granade’s ruling outrageous and said Alabama would defend “the Christian conservative values that make Alabama a special place to live.” Todd said that was one of many statements that upset her, although she hasn’t accused Hubbard.

Hubbard said he considered Todd a friend and was sorry he upset her, but they have a “fundamental disagreement on allowing same-sex marriages in Alabama.” Hubbard later took down his statement from social media because, his spokeswoman said, she was constantly removing profane responses from people on both sides of the debate.

Todd was elected in 2006 to the Alabama House of Representatives, a body that passed the gay-marriage bans and where a legislator in 2004 proposed banning any textbooks and public school library books that suggested homosexuality was acceptable. Todd said she has been treated cordially through the years, but became fed up with the recent comments.

“It’s again making Alabama look stupid, but we can’t help ourselves,” Todd said.

Todd has yet to follow through on her threat, and has acknowledged that to do so risked slander.

“It was an attempt to say, ‘Hold your tongue and speak about the issues and not the emotional response you are trying to incite in people. And how dare you say that we are not family,’” Todd said.

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore on Tuesday urged state probate judges not to give marriage licenses to gay couples if the district judge’s stay expires.

In a letter Tuesday to Gov. Robert Bentley, Moore denounced Granade’s decisions as judicial tyranny and said he was dismayed that some probate judges indicated they would give licenses to gay couples if the stay is lifted.

He said the rulings were nonbinding on Alabama courts and said he would advise probate judges that giving marriage licenses to same-sex couples would violate “the laws and Constitution of Alabama.”

Lifting the ban could lead to “marriages between multiple groups of people, whether they be men or women, or marriages within a family – incest,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of things that could occur because of this.”

Moore was removed as chief justice in 2003 when he ignored a court order to remove a Ten Commandment monument from the state judicial building. He was re-elected in 2012.

Richard Cohen, the head of the Alabama-based Southern Poverty Law Center, called Moore’s letter “outrageous.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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Alabama pol threatens to out lawmakers" alleged affairs over gay marriage criticism

"BRADIE" BALL REVEALED Pa. candy maker gets kicks from "Deflate-gate" scandal

Jan. 28, 2015: A “deflated” chocolate football called a “Bradie” Ball is on display at Sarris Candy store in in Canonsburg, Pa. (AP)

A Pennsylvania candy maker got some kicks out of a deflated chocolate football it made as it poked fun at the New England Patriots’ “Deflategate” scandal.

Sarris Candies owner Bill Sarris created a chocolate football with a dent in its side and shared a picture of it on Facebook. Sarris told the The Washington Observer-Reporter that the company made the treat “just for fun.”

The name of the candy is called the “Bradie” ball. It is spelled B-R-A-D-I-E for legal purposes. The company posted the ball on the social media site with a caption that reads, “Net weight 13 lbs … Oops! We meant 11.2 lbs.”

The Western Pennsylvania company told the paper it received 30 calls Tuesday asking if the Bradie ball was for sale. However, Sarris managers revealed that the item was not available for purchase..

Sarris did not reveal how he made the candy, which was used as a shot toward the Patriots and the scandal surrounding the team after its win over the Indianapolis Colts in the conference championship game nearly two weeks ago. The team and quarterback Tom Brady are being accused of deflating footballs to gain an unfair advantage in the game.

Sarris said making the candy and sharing it on Facebook was a way for Pittsburgh Steelers fans to “beat up on New England.”.

Football fans in the area can still purchase a chocolate football helmet for $60.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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"BRADIE" BALL REVEALED Pa. candy maker gets kicks from "Deflate-gate" scandal

AirAsia co-pilot was at controls before fatal crash, investigator says

Jan. 19, 2015: An Indonesian police officer stands guard near the wreckage of AirAsia Flight 8501 at a warehouse at Kumai port in Pangkalan Bun. The plane disappeared Dec. 28, 2014 en route from Surabaya, Indonesia, to Singapore. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

The lead investigator looking into the fatal crash of AirAsia Flight 8501 said the co-pilot was at the controls before the jet went into a dangerously fast climb.

Mardjono Siswosuwarno, head of Indonesia’s air-crash probe agency, also told reporters on Thursday that the plane was in sound condition and the cockpit crew had proper licenses before the accident.

Indonesian authorities are delving into what factors may have surprised or confused the first officer, who was much less experienced than the captain, according to two safety experts familiar with the probe. Investigators, these people said, seek to determine what caused the nose of the Airbus A320 to point upward at an unusually steep angle, while the plane’s computerized stall-protection systems either malfunctioned or were disengaged.

The Airbus A320 lost forward airspeed during its rapid climb, stalled and then crashed into the water below.

After spending more than two weeks analyzing twin black-box recorders, investigators believe First Officer Rémi-Emmanuel Plesel, a French national born in the Caribbean territory of Martinique, was flying the aircraft as it maneuvered to avoid a storm cell on Dec. 28 en route to Singapore from Surabaya, Indonesia. Turbulence or updrafts are suspected of contributing to the plane’s dramatic climb, but investigators continue to examine the interaction of pilot commands and computer-controlled flight systems during the climb and subsequent descent.

Repeated automated stall warnings were captured on the cockpit-voice recorder as the co-pilot and captain struggled unsuccessfully to regain control of the jet, investigators have said.

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AirAsia co-pilot was at controls before fatal crash, investigator says

At least 1 dead, 6 injured in San Francisco fire

Jan. 28, 2015: San Francisco Fire Department members fight a four-alarm fire at 22nd and Mission Street in San Francisco, Calif., (AP)

A massive four-alarm fire in San Francisco at a residential building has left one dead and six others injured, fire officials say.

A man was pronounced dead at the scene as a blaze engulfed a building in the city’s Mission District Wednesday night. Four people were taken to San Francisco General Hospital with smoke inhalation and burns, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Firefighters rescued 12 people from the burning building, including six people struck on a fire escape. Others were rescued after hiding from the flames and the smoke in interior stairwells, the paper reports.

The smoke started at around 7 p.m. with more than 100 firefighters responding to the call. The smoke could be seen for miles.

A neighbor told The Associated Press that families live on the third floor of the building, while offices occupy the second floor. The ground floor houses restaurants, including a Popeye’s.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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At least 1 dead, 6 injured in San Francisco fire

NEPA urges public not to capture crocodiles

Friday, January 23, 2015 | 8:06 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) is appealing to members of the public to desist from capturing or harming crocodiles.

The environmental agency says recent reports of residents in Whitehouse, St James attempting to capture a crocodile is of concern.

The American Crocodile, which is one of Jamaica’s protected animal is typically docile but can be aggressive when harassed, NEPA informed in a release today.

Crocodiles are protected under the Wild Life Protection Act and it is an offence to have a crocodile or any part of the animal in one’s possession. Anyone found guilty of these offences are liable to a fine of up to $100,000 or twelve (12) months imprisonment.

Members of the public are urged to call NEPA at 1-888-991-5005 or 754-7540 if crocodiles are seen in areas outside of their natural habitat where they may pose a threat to human activities or if they are being captured, harassed, harmed or the meat is being sold.  

Reports may also be made to 119 or the nearest police station.

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NEPA urges public not to capture crocodiles

Kaci Fennell Reacts To Short Hair Controversy

After placing fifth in Miss Universe 2015…Kaci Fennell returned Home to Jamaica and walked into our camera to answer questions about her hair, placing fifth, and her future plans

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Kaci Fennell Reacts To Short Hair Controversy

Pinchers Talks About Being Shot

Two days after he was shot and injured Pinchers opens up about the incident in which two were killed.

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Pinchers Talks About Being Shot

Miss Universe Jamaica aware of overwhelming support

REIGNING Miss Universe Jamaica Kaci Fennell is currently in the throes of the Miss Universe competition in Doral, Miami, with the finals set for Sunday.

The pixie-haired beauty has already garnered a legion of fans worldwide with the pageant-watching website globalbeauties.com placing her in fifth position behind hot favourites Spain, Colombia, Serbia and the USA.

Thanks to social media, the groundswell of support for the local beauty has already reached her ears and, according to Fennell’s grooming and deportment coach Angelie Martin-Spencer, a former Miss Universe delegate for Jamaica, this could have one of two effects on her.

“I am in Miami but we have not met face- to-face just yet. She is well aware of the overwhelming support she has been receiving from Jamaicans and non-Jamaicans alike. I am really hoping that it fuels her drive and confidence rather than scares her. At Wednesday’s preliminary show the support for Kaci was unbelievable. Even persons from other countries were supporting Jamaica,” said Martin-Spencer.

With coronation just hours away, she said her advice to Fennell is to focus on staying true to herself and believing in the goals she set for herself and the international pageant.

“She has a really great chance. She is a different kind of beauty… not the cookie-cutter type of pageant girl. She has really embraced her short hair and is wearing a lot of black, unlike the typical contestant. But this just goes to show her confidence and strength of character which will do her well in this tough competition.”

Having participated at Miss Universe in 1994, Martin-Spencer is very aware of what is going through the mind of a contestant at this time.

“Your one thought at this time is making it into the top 15. If you don’t make it, you don’t have a shot at the crown. So Kaci and the others are concerned that in the preliminaries, did they do everything to impress the judges — ‘Did I walk well? How was my posing? Did I show my personality in the interview?"”

Jamaica has never won the Miss Universe title. The country came closest in 2010 when Yendi Phillipps took the first runner-up spot. Local representives Sandra Foster, Kimberley Mais, Nicole Haughton and Christine Straw have all made it to the top 10.

Phillipps has offered her support to Fennell in a video posted on social media.

“So proud of you. Jamaica is already proud of you. You’ve really done a great job flying our flag, girl. Keep flying it high. You’re almost there. Good luck. You’ve got this, just show them who you are, show them your personality. Be you. Good luck, chica,” said Phillipps.

— Richard Johnson

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Miss Universe Jamaica aware of overwhelming support

One Love for Bob in "Cali"

THE 70th birthday elebrations for reggae icon Bob Marley is a big deal, with a number of events planned globally.

One of them, A Global Call for One Love, will be held in California February 6-7. It is staged by the One Love Foundation, operated by American author Robert Roskind.

“The events will be held at two different venues. The first will be at the Mateel Community Center in Redway and the following day it will be at The Catalyst Club in Santa Cruz,” Roskind said in a statement.

Scheduled to appear on both gigs (which will be streamed live) are Luciano, Prezident Brown, Admiral Tibet, Kenyatta Hill and Sister Carol.

“It’s an invitation to us all to make the same commitment as Bob made. To devote our lives to healing the planet through love, forgiveness and justice,” Roskind said.

The One Love Foundation was founded by Roskind and his daughter Alicia. They have produced a number of similar events marking Marley’s February 6 birthday in Jamaica, including the 60th anniversary celebrations 10 years ago.

Marley, who died in May 1981, performed several times in California which has a vibrant roots-reggae scene.

–Basil Walters

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One Love for Bob in "Cali"

Together for a worthy cause

Sponsors and entertainers at the Rainforest Seafood Festival launch yesterday (from left), Wisynco Food’s marketing assistant Kimberley Williamson- Smith acting CEO of Cornwall Regional Hospital Anthony Smikle, Digicel’s Sandra Ledgister, chairman and CEO of National Bakery Gary Hendrickson, Beenie Man, Ding Dong, Marica Griffiths, Lt Stitchie, Agent Sasco, Rainforest CEO Brian Jardim, and Rainforest general manager Ernest Grant. The festival will take place at the Catherine Hall Entertainment Centre, Montego Bay, on Ash Wednesday February 18, 2015. (PHOTO GARFIELD ROBINSON)

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Together for a worthy cause

Harris"s Ol" Fyah Stick for Theatre Place

IT’S a popular saying, ‘Ol’ fyah stick easy fi ketch’ but according to playwright Dahlia Harris when there’s someone throwing water on the flames, rekindling lost love may be harder than you think.

That’s the premise which drives her latest project Ol’ Fyah Stick which opened at Theatre Place in St Andrew last night.

Comedic legend Volier ‘Maffie’ Johnson leads the cast in the romantic comedy. He is joined by Deon Silvera, Harris and Chris ‘Johnny’ Daley who alternates with Desmond Dennis.

Harris states that Ol’ Fyah Stick centres around Joe Moore, a widower of 15 years who feels thats its once again time for marital bliss. That his choice of companion is his domestic helper Betty, makes things interesting. That he and Betty were school sweethearts and have been carrying on secretly for years, makes it complicated. Things get even more complexed as Joe needs to be upfront in order to secure the blessings of his uptight and upwardly mobile daughter Margaret, whose idea of a stepmother doesn’t go below Half Way Tree. Throw in the meddling security guard who has his own agenda, and Harris states that things get turned upside down.

Ol’ Fyah Stick follows on a string of theatrical successes from Harris as writer/director including favourites like Judgement, Thicker Than Water, God’s Way I & II, To The Finish, Her Last Cry and God Go Wid Yuh. The play is scheduled for a limited six-week run.

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Harris"s Ol" Fyah Stick for Theatre Place

Easy Skanking in Boston for Feb release

Bob Marley and The Wailers’ shows at Boston’s Music Hall in June 1978 is the subject of a multi-faceted project by Universal Music Enterprises. It will be released February 3, three days before what would have been the reggae superstar’s 70th birthday.

Titled Bob Marley & The Wailers-Easy Skanking in Boston ’78, the package comprises a CD, a Blu-Ray/CD combo and a VD/CD. They capture Marley and his band in two shows on June 8. The project is one of many planned by the UME (distributors of the Marley catalogue) and Marley’s family to celebrate his birthday throughout 2015.

The CD contains 13 songs, many of which Marley performed while on tour. They include Slave Driver, Them Belly Full, Rebel Music, I Shot the Sheriff, No Woman, No Cry, Jammin’, Get Up, Stand Up and Exodus.

The 46-minute Blu-Ray/CD version has seven songs: Rebel Music, I Shot the Sheriff, No Woman, No Cry, Lively Up Yourself, Jamming, War/No More Trouble and Exodus.

Marley and his band had performed at the One Love Peace Concert in Kingston in April where he famously brought on bitter rivals, Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley and Opposition Leader Edward Seaga, in a symbolic gesture of peace.

It was his first live date in Jamaica since the Smile Jamaica event in December 1976. Two days before that show, Marley, his wife Rita and manager Don Taylor were shot by gunmen at his St Andrew home.

After the Smile Jamaica show, Marley left the country for The Bahamas and England.

On his 1978 tour of the United States, he was promoting his Kaya album.

His band at the Music Hall shows were Carlton Barrett (drums), Aston Barrett (bass), Tyrone Downie (keyboards), Junior Marvin (guitar), Alvin ‘Seeco’ Patterson (percussion), Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley and Judy Mowatt (backup vocals). Marley died from cancer in Miami in May 1981. He was 36.

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Easy Skanking in Boston for Feb release

"Dukie" makes the cut

ONE month after winning the ‘Make the Cut’ film-making competition, Lionel ‘Dukie’ Thompson has left the island for a week-long stay at the New York Film Academy.

Thompson said he was looking forward to the stint, which is part of his victory package.

“I won $150,000, so I want to get a better computer, a faster one so I can really push on with what I need to do to become a standout producer,” he said. “I’m excited. I researched the school and it’s a wonderful opportunity for me to go there and meet like-minded people as well as pick up some really important information and make some serious links.”

Under the banner of Drink Right, Red Stripe’s responsible drinking campaign, Make the Cut challenged aspiring film-makers to promote responsible alcohol consumption.

Using the slogan, ‘Right Age. Right Amount. Right Way’, participants were asked to interpret this message in 30-second television commercials.

Thompson’s winning production will be aired on local television.

Aldwayne Tomlinson and Damion Radcliffe were the first and second runners-up, respectively.

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"Dukie" makes the cut

Ja"s Kaci Fennell "confident", says management team

Friday, January 23, 2015 | 7:55 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica’s Kaci Fennell is said to be “extremely confident” ahead of the 63rd Annual Miss Universe Pageant that is set for Sunday, January 25 in Doral-Miami, Florida.

OBSERVER ONLINE received word from her management team late Friday that she is “very calm” at the moment.

“Kaci is in a great place right now; she is very calm and extremely confident and we strongly believe that she has what it takes to make history by bringing home the crown on Sunday, a feat that has been eluding our Miss Universe queens over the years,” said a statement from her management team.

Kaci, up to late Friday, was in the number one spot on the Miss Universe Poll FanPage table on Facebook with 306,460 votes, followed by Philippines who was on 233,001. Fans worldwide have helped her by voting through liking and sharing her photo on social media network Facebook, racking up the points.

Her management team said her journey has been a long one with several engagements, which included voice and speech training, sessions on deportment as well as personal training with Spartan Health Club and style consultation with Uzuri International.

Members of her team are expected to join her in Miami ahead of the show Sunday.

Kaci is among 88 competitors who are vying for the Miss Universe crown.

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Ja"s Kaci Fennell "confident", says management team

Dancehall"s man in Toronto

This is the third in a 10-part series looking at the Canadian reggae scene.

One of Toronto’s most popular dancehall artistes is the deejay Eyesus whose recordings show he is just as comfortable doing R&B and hip hop.

In 2011, Eyesus, who is in his mid-20s, won an award from the Canadian Reggae Music Achievement. He considers it a career milestone.

“I won Best Reggae Entertainer. It is one of the biggest highlights of my career and mi just give thanks for the support,” Eyesus told the Jamaica Observer.

Born Ricardo Rhoden, he grew up in the Waltham Park Road area of Kingston until he migrated to Canada in 2003.

The dancehall scene in Canada is splintered. The biggest markets are Toronto which has a massive West Indian community, and Montreal which has warmed to the sound in the last 15 years.

Dancehall was growing in Toronto on the popularity of Shaggy and Sean Paul when Eyesus moved there 11 years ago.

He always knew he wanted a career in entertainment.

“Music has always been a part of me from I was a teenager. After I moved to Canada I launched into the music fully and that’s when I began to gain acceptance from the fans,” Eyesus noted.

Songs including Skip to My Lu, We Hate Yuh (featuring Jahvinci), Gangsta Love, One Drop and Fake Friend (with Big Wayne) have enjoyed favourable rotation on Canadian radio.

They earned Eyesus slots on major shows in the Greater Toronto Area alongside dancehall big-wigs like Mavado, Beenie Man, Elephant Man, Serani, Lady Saw, Sanchez, Bounty Killer and Sean Paul.

A member of Toronto’s Us Squad, he has performed at Sting.

Kevin Jackson

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Dancehall"s man in Toronto

Storm Saulter is film-maker in residence at UWI, Mona

Thursday, January 22, 2015 | 9:08 PM    

KINGSTON, Jamaica – The Department of Literatures in English at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona has announced the appointment of Storm Saulter as film-maker in residence, which will run from January to May of the 2014/15 academic year.

During his tenure, Saulter will be responsible for the delivery of the course, Creative Writing: Screen/Stage. He will also be available to interact with students and offer guidance to those who are interested in the world of film-making.

Saulter, a graduate of the Los Angeles Film School, released his debut feature, the award-winning film, Better Mus’ Come, in 2011. The film is a sensitive and haunting account of Jamaica in the 70s, told from the perspective of a young man caught up in the violence of intense inter-party rivalry. Saulter was the director, screenwriter and director of photography for the film.

More recently, Saulter was executive producer for the anthology film, Ring Di Alarm! This film is said to have pioneered a new collective approach to film-making that may well be a successful model for independent film production in small localities. Produced by the New Caribbean Cinema (Film Collective), of which Saulter is co-founder, Ring Di Alarm! was released in Jamaica, Europe, the USA, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Saulter has been lauded locally for his contribution to cinema in Jamaica. He was identified by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica as one of “50 Under Fifty Business Leaders Shaping Jamaica’s Future”. He was also named by The Jamaica Observer as one of Jamaica’s most influential people.

Saulter’s commercial credits include directing the music videos Who Knows, performed by Protoje and featuring Chronixx; and Tarrus Riley’s Shaka Zulu Pickney. He has done commercial work for Puma, Digicel and Virgin Media.

The Department of Literatures in English Writer/Film-maker in Residence programme was inaugurated in 2013 when writer, Dr Kei Miller, who is also a graduate of the department, was appointed to the post. Author, historian and social scientist Dr Erna Brodber held the position in 2014.

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Storm Saulter is film-maker in residence at UWI, Mona

Fighting crime with rhymes

BY SIMONE MORGAN Observer staff reporter

Thursday, January 22, 2015    

Police constable Ricardo McCalpin has conceptualised a new crime-fighting plan, and it involves music. Called Fighting Crimes With Rhymes, it started just over one year ago and sees the policeman visiting several high schools across Jamaica to singjay and offer words of advice to students.

In an interview with the Jamaica Observer, McCalpin, who goes by the stage name Wowski, said he has performed at Paul Bogle, Port Antonio, Charlie Smith and Ewarton high schools.

“The target area is really schools that are in the Corporate Area and St Catherine, because those are the divisions with the highest crime rates. The aim is to use music as a motivational tool,” said McCalpin. “Music has a great impact on the lives and thoughts of our youth. For example, when a song or a selector instructs the listener to take out his/her gun and ‘buss’ a shot in the air, even me as a police officer is tempted to pop off and buss a shot, too. I never do that though but it just goes to show the impact that music has,” he added. “If the lyrics are cleaner and more positive the youths will follow.”

Among the songs McCalpin performs for students are the originals, Pearl Black and a pre-released track called Real Friends.

“Pearl Black explores the mpact of crime and violence on the nation, the victim and the person who commits the act, while Real Friends promotes loyalty and integrity,” he said.

Pearl Black was produced by Kamal Briscoe and released last year.

Real Friends, a production of Vision House, is slated for release this week.

McCalpin and some of his colleagues in the Jamaica Constabulary Force plan to expand Fighting Crimes With Rhymes with a song completion.

It is expected to be launched during the first quarter of this year and is open to students only. Each contestant will be required to create an original song about a crime-related issue and present solutions.

McCalpin, 30, has been a member of the JCF for over four years.

Stationed at the Community Safety and Security Branch on, Oxford Road, he holds a Masters Degree in Physical Education from the University of Technology.

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Fighting crime with rhymes

Etana prepares for Europe

AFTER an outstanding performance at last weekend’s Rebel Salute concert, Etana is now gearing up for a European tour based on the strength of her Billboard chart-topping album, I Rise.

The 31-year-old kicks off her tour on January 29 in Belgium and will go through several countries before climaxing on February 22 in Stuttgart, Germany.

Released in 2014, I Rise marked the first time in 17 years that a Jamaican female reggae artiste has topped Billboard’s Reggae album chart.

“It [the album] was a great showing. It topped the album charts for four weeks, and then when I went on a US tour, it jumped once again and topped the chart for three weeks, so it shows that my brand is very strong in the reggae world,” said Etana.

The Clive Hunt-produced album is Etana’s fourth entry on the album chart. The last time a Jamaican female reggae artiste topped the chart was 1997 with Diana King’s Think like a Girl.

Etana, whose given name is Shauna McKenzie, released her debut album The Strong One in June 2008. Her other sets include Free Expressions (2011) and Better Tomorrow (2013).

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Etana prepares for Europe

Big crowd for Sultry"s milestone

By Kevin Jackson Observer Writer

Saturday, January 24, 2015    

WEEKLY club series, Sultry Lounge marked its first anniversary at the Quad nightclub in New Kingston, last Friday night.

The large crowd — comprising trendy, young adults and professionals, partied until the wee hours of Saturday morning.

Jermaine Davis, a member of Team No Shirt (TNS) — event coordinators for Sultry Lounge, said the large turnout was due to target marketing.

“We have a specific demographic that we target and our weekly themes are fresh and innovative. We have some of the best disc jocks in the business,” Davis told the Jamaica Observer.

A cadre of disc jocks from Chromatic and X Factor sound systems provided the evening’s music.

Davis said the event’s staging is not without its challenges, especially from other hot spots.

“That challenged us… but we’ve pulled through, all the way to the first year. For 2015, patrons can look forward to a bigger and better Sultry Lounge,” he said.

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Big crowd for Sultry"s milestone

JahDore takes on Fake People

BY KEVIN JACKSON Observer Writer

Friday, January 23, 2015    

SINGER/MUSICIAN JahDore kicks off his 2015 campaign with Fake People, a song produced by JDMP Records.

He hopes it will get him back into the spotlight after success a few years ago with the single This Love is Over.

He recently spoke about the inspiration for Fake People.

“After losing the files for an album that I was working on, I tried to get help from persons who claimed that they were my friends. I didn’t get support from any of them and that’s when I realised that people are not necessarily who they appear to be,” he said.

To help promote the song, a video will be produced and released in February.

As for the incomplete album, JahDore plans to revive the project with new producers and management led by JDMP Records. He is confident they can take his career to the next level.

“I’ve just compiled a 14-track CD with some songs that the fans are familiar with and some new ones as well, and I’m looking forward to working with some good producers,” he said.

JahDore made his debut as a vocalist in 2011 with This Love is Over. He followed up with Security Work and Hello Girl.

Born Sean McDonald, he is originally from Ebony Vale in Spanish Town and attended the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts.

Most of his early days in the music industry were spent touring Europe and the United States with Jimmy Cliff and Luciano as a saxophonist and keyboardist.

One ‘Kool’ combination

DANCEHALL artiste Mr Kool collaborates with singjay Sean Sonic on the track Pawty. It was produced by So Serious Records.

“Is basically a party song. It’s full of energy and vibes. I appreciate the support that it has been getting from underground DJs in the US,” Mr Kool told Splash.

To promote the song, a video was recently filmed in Manchester. It was directed by the London-based LJ Logan Productions, which has done videos for a number of dancehall acts including Beenie Man.

Born Damean Carter, Mr Kool is known for songs like Voom Voom, Dry Flask and Bar Sheller which were produced by Insight Records.

The Yuletide season saw him performing at GT Taylor’s Christmas Extravaganza and Sting.

His upcoming dates are in Manchester: Short Shorts Affair on January 23 and Wadup Birthday Bash in Windsor on January 31.

Barbee goes solo on Just Like That

BARBEE, known in dancehall circles for the hits Give it Up (featuring Beenie Man) and Missing You (with Junior Kelly), has her sights set on a solo hit with Just Like That.

Released late last year, it is produced by Rock City aka Planet 6, known for his work with big-name acts such as Rihanna, Miley Cyrus and Kelly Rowland.

Barbee is currently in the United Kingdom promoting the single.

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JahDore takes on Fake People