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Susan
Mangatal - susan@ariousentertainment.us
Greetings
On-Line Family:
Another Hurricane has come and gone and the devastation and
destruction left behind by Category 2 Hurricane "Ike"
is immeasurable. This past weekend is one that will
certainly go down in history due to "Ike's" size (a
500-mile stretch) and it's rampage across Texas. It's an
unbelievable site to see the businesses people are so familiar
with and frequent are just gone...VANISHED; leaving behind only
stilts that held up the structures and landmarks. Homes
wiped-out...just completely gone, and entire towns simply obliterated by
the astronomical winds, torrential rain, and strong storm surges
which caused excessive flooding, along with major ruin and damage.
The after effects are just as worst, because many who decided to
"ride out" the storm are stranded without water,
power, and food. As for
debris, the Texas gulf coast is full of it; as a matter-of-fact,
the entire region is covered in debris.
When with it
all end - all the suffering so many have been enduring over
these past months? I know many are distressed and is
overcome with grief due to the lost of their homes and
practically everything. My heart is certainly breaking
with them, and for them. I am thankful though that an
estimated 2 million people took note of, and heeded the
evacuation warnings and left the area. Now, returning to
their homes is another worry because the officials are stating
that it may be quite a while before folks can return to their
homes. (Approximately a month).
Fortunately,
many did not die due to Hurricane Ike's fury - the death toll in Texas is very low.
So far it is being reported approximately only 40 have died;
keep in mind though the number may increase since recovery is
ongoing. As for normalcy in Texas, that is far from sight;
Galveston will take some time to recover, as well as Houston -
who is currently without power (approximately 80%), and the
water supply is threatened causing thousands to be without water
for drinking and for flushing toilets, etc. Food is low
due to becoming spoiled because of the NO power situation and
also from the heat. Gas is out of the question, and if
some is found the price per gallon has skyrocketed over these
past few days. I actually saw pictures showing a gallon of
gas in the amount of $5.00 and more. Health issues are a
major factor as well due to sewage backing up onto waterlogged
streets, air being foul-smelling, and swarms of mosquitoes all
over. Snakes are also reported slithering through
debris. As you see, it is absolutely horrendous and definitely
not safe in Texas.
Hurricane
Ike was an absolute terror because it pounded the Bahamas
causing structural damage on the southernmost island of Inagua.
Then moved on to the Turks & Caicos causing major damage,
including damage to the Cruise Center on Grand Turk, as well as
wind and water damage in Salt Cay and South Caicos. Ike
then raced up to Cuba in it's Category 3 strength and actually
made landfall twice, making 2.6 million people temporary
refugees. Finally before hitting the US, Ike slammed into Haiti
causing tons of damage and more lost of lives, as Haiti
struggles to recover from the series of storms that have brought
massive flooding and the death of hundreds of people. Tons
of roads are gone, cities are flooded, thousands are homeless
and without food, and the entire place is in distress.
To learn
more about the destruction in Haiti CLICK
HERE per an article by The Red Cross. To
contribute to the approximately 800,000 Haitian people who are
in need CLICK
HERE to make your donate. For those who are
contributing specifically to help those in Haiti, I urge you to
contact the Red Cross to find out how it's done, or to make sure
that your donation will specifically go towards the many
suffering in Haiti.
My heart
aches for the many residents who are suffering from these disasters,
and my hope and prayers go out to the many who are
suffering in Texas and Louisiana, and in the other countries
that was struck by Hurricane Ike. I pray that the power
and water is restored, and that recover and clean-up is done
expeditiously.
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Click
on to the first picture below to view a few photos of
the damages of Texas caused by Hurricane Ike courtesy of
National Geographic; and CLICK ON THE 2nd Picture to
view more photos courtesy BBC News.
Click on
the Below Picture to launch a video on the damages of
Hurricane Ike! Courtesy of National Geographic (AP)
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 Devastating
Financial Crisis!
In the words
of Legendary singer Marvin Gaye "What's going on...tell
me what's going on?" Yup, someone please tell me
what's going on with the financial storm America is
undergoing. Giant "powerhouses of finance" have
toppled causing the stock market to plunge drastically.
First it's Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac who were
lucky enough to be bailed out by the US Government. Then
later it was Merrill Lynch, who was bailed out by Bank
of America due to a merger. Late last week Investment
Bank Lehman Brothers filled bankruptcy but was bailed
out/purchased for less than Lehman Brothers hoped for, by British
bank "Barclays"; and during mid week American
International Group, Inc. (AIG) declared itself unable to
meet its claims, but was bailed out of their predicament by the
U.S. Federal Reserve with a $85 Billion loan, which in turn the
Government has acquired about an 80% stake in AIG. Now I understand
Financial Giant Morgan Stanley are in merger talks with Wachovia
(even though their stock doubled Thursday (9/18/08).
Click
here to read an interesting article on this entire crisis
published in the Wall Street Journal and written by Jon
Hilsenrath, Serena NG and Damian Paletta entitled "Worst
Crisis Since the '30s , With No End Yet in Site".
You can also
CLICK
HERE to check out Wall Street Journal''s Economic Editor David
Wessel as he discusses this Financial crisis - Courtesy of Wall
Street Journal.
Indeed it is
an awful financial crisis taking place in the US, and to
"top it off" I learned the American dollar has
decreased in value again. These are the worst times in
America since the depression, surly it's a time for change. Don't you
agree??? Everyone is suffering and everything is
going wrong with the state of this country. Let's look
towards change and the hope for a stronger economy, more
stability with America's giant financial institutions, stock
market increases, and a brighter future as we vote a new President into
office to help save this country from many of its downfalls.
On a
brighter note though, since many experts
are saying "Banking and brokerage firms may consolidate
or fold, but the American economy will rebound."
It is quite clear to me that now is a good time to purchase
stocks.
As the
National Elections draw closer, lots of jabs and punches are
being launched between the presidential candidates. Tons
of untruths are being told, and for me I make myself miserable
on a daily basis by tuning into the hateful "right
wing" radio stations, so that I can keep abreast with all
the negative things that are being said about my
candidate. I must say the things that are being said are
the most awful, and is filled with racial undertones.
Actually, let me correct myself, they (the hosts) are outwardly
racists and constantly say some of the most negative, untruthful
things that criticizes something or another about Senator Barack
Obama.
I often wonder if people are listening, are they as angry as I
am? Are there a lot of people in America who has that same
hateful outlook and feeling about Senator Obama? If so,
surly he could not win this election. However, as they say
in Jamaica "so it ah go". It's really just part
of the entire process.
None-the-less,
what's important now is
for us to get ready to vote in the upcoming elections; and to do
so we all must be registered to vote prior to this important
day. We must make sure our voices are heard through this
voting process, and according to all the reports voter
registration is at an all time high! It's undeniable that
throughout this entire USA there is a strong surge of voter
registrations, which is a first in American History. How
exciting is this??? I understand voter
registration has risen substantially in Virginia, which is one
of several key battleground states. These times are truly
amazing, so let's keep the countdown going to one of the most
important days in American History. As of Friday,
September 19, there is approximately 48 days left before
Election Day - November 4, 2008, and before history is made in
America.
Register To Vote!!!!
For your
information, the voting registration deadline is rapidly
approaching. I know October 6th is the deadline for folks
in my area. To be sure about your voter registration
deadline log on to http://www.voteforchange.com
for the deadline date. It's very simple after you log on,
you will be able to register to vote, request to vote absentee
and find your polling location. Additionally, you can LOG
ON HERE to see the voter registration date deadline for each
state, and proceed
with registering to vote by logging on HERE, and filling out the registration
form at "Rock The Vote.com". (To
access the form, click the "Register To Vote" Button
from the menu at the top of the page).
Remember,
the first Presidential debate will take place next Friday,
September 26th, 2008, on the Campus of the University
of Mississippi. I'm
sure you can view this on CNN and many other local and cable
networks. Additionally, October 2nd the Vice Presidential
debate will take place. This one I am most excited about
- Sarah Palin and Joe Biden going
"head-to-head", how interesting and entertaining this
will be!!
As I close
out this portion, I leave you with a hilarious political skit
from Saturday Night Live performed by Tina Fey and Amy
Poehlar. Ms. Fey portrays Government Sarah Palin, the
newly chosen VP pick for Senator McCain and Amy Poehlar portrays
Senator Hillary Clinton as they address the nation.
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Click on the
Photo below to launch the Saturday Night Live Skit as
Tina Fey who portrays Governor Sarah Palin and Amy
Poehler who portrays Senator Hillary Clinton as they
address the nation.
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Additionally,
I have placed below Senator Obama's Presidential nomination
acceptance speech at the Democratic Convention some weeks
ago. It's important to check it out from time to
time. Click the below picture to view it courtesy of
The New York Times. You will find the full text there
as well.
Back to our simply everyday life, let me briefly share with you
my thoughts on the Annual One Love Reggae Festival that took
place last Sunday (9/14/08) here in Maryland. In a
nutshell it was good, and was pretty much all we expected it to
be. The attendance was real good and the performances were
exciting. The highlight of the evening for me was having
the opportunity to vibe with Queen Ifrica for a bit, and what a
wonderful person she seems to be. My interest in talking
with her was mainly to find out her motivation for writing her
controversial hit "Daddy", which was
insightful.
Hummm,
let me see...what can I say about Buju Banton to explain
to you about his performance. Just one word I can think
about instantly, and that is SUPERB! It was quite evident
that the crowd adored him tremendously. Superb he was
indeed!!!
The
only disappointment for me was the non-performance of Legend Maxi
Priest. Actually, we saw him and his band arrive at
the venue in the early evening, and I was sure he would be
performing. Of course, we heard lots of theories and
explanations why he didn't perform, but none of them made any
sense to me. Maxi Priest in my opinion is a legend
and I was sooooo looking forward to seeing him perform and
enjoying all of his award winning hits.
Unfortunately,
we arrived too late to see and enjoy Culture's
performance, but we were told they were great. Tarrus Riley, Dean
Fraser, and Duane Stephenson were excellent. As for DeMarco
and Serani they were fine. I've never been
one to enjoy artist performing to tracks; however, they
fulfilled their purpose. It seemed the dancehall crew
enjoyed them tremendously.
This
Saturday, September 20th, please support The Trinidad &
Tobago Working Women's Committee for their annual "End of
Summer Jam". This event is being held to support the
Caribbean Students Scholarship Fund. Scroll below to our
"Featured Events" section to view all the details, or
you can log into our "Events" Page. Also, on
Sunday, September 21st, join Lennard Jack for his "Dance
for the Ancestors" Fundraising Event at the PanYard.
Scroll below for all the details. See you there!!!
 Thanks
to the many who have sent me e-mails in
response to my past E-Newsletters and lots of important
information to use for our future E-Newsletters. Most importantly, I thank you for your
encouraging words! So until next week... please enjoy, and
be safe this Weekend and the upcoming week!!
 
     
Also
to all of you, thanks for reading, sharing your thoughts
and comments with us, and for always supporting
us. As you know without you there would be no us, so thanks very much for your support and One Love!
For All Events
Go To
Our "Events"
Page
Check out our
"Featured Events" listed below.
Also, there are
several events taking place this weekend, next weekend and beyond, so to view all the Events please log on
to our "Events" Page above!
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September
20, 2008
Andrews
Air Force Base, Maryland
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September
21, 2008
Brentwood,
Maryland
AKAN SPIRITUAL UNITED ORDER
HEAD
SPIRITUALIST
NANA
OKOMFOHEMA AKUA AMOABAA BOTWE 1
AND
THE
PAN MASTERS STEEL ORCHESTRA
Present
DANCE FOR THE
ANCESTORS
FEATURING
THE PANMASTERS
STEEL ORCHESTRA
THE ASUO DRUMMERS
DJ
SHORTMUS
PRESENTED BY
LENNARD AND OMETHA JACK
(KWABENA ASIEDU AND OKOMFO BADU)
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER
21, 2008
2:00 P.M. TO 10:00
P.M.
AT THE PANYARD
4559
RHODE ISLAND AVENUE
BRENTWOOD,
MARYLAND
DONATION: $15.00
(includes
food, drinks can be purchased)
THEME:
PRAY AND PARTY
WE
GIVE THANKS FOR LIFE
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September
26, 2008
Washington
DC
Her
Excellency Glenda Morean-Phillip
Ambassador of the Republic of
Trinidad & Tobago to the
United States of America
and Permanent Representative to
the Organization of American
States
is pleased to invite you to
commemorate the 46th Anniversary
of Trinidad and
Tobago
as an Independent Nation and 32nd
Anniversary as a Republic
LIVE
ENTERTAINMENT BY:
Image Band
and
Jambulay
Friday,
September 26th 2008
7:00pm - Cocktail Reception
8:00pm - Dinner, Awards &
Dancing
Thurgood Marshall Ballroom
Marriott Wardman Park Hotel
2660 Woodley Road, NW
Washington
DC
20008
Contribution: $100
Proceeds go to the Cyril Ross
Nursery of Trinidad and
Tobago
For Tickets: Call the Embassy of
Trinidad and Tobago
– 202-467-6490, extension 1022
Or
buy your tickets at 703-963-5715
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or Click
Here
