Saturday, December 22, 2012

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Construction crews acknowl-edged “it was an intense 16weeks of work” to completewhat is now Aruba’s largesttraffic circle, situated at the

airport/Cumena crossing ofthe Oranjestad/San Nicolashighway.

Continue on pg 2

Airport rotunda isnow open!

May your Christmas be wrapped in

happiness and tied with love.

Official opening of Airport Rotunda

2 Saturday, December 22, 2012

Aruba’s Prime Minister MikeEman and Minister of Infra-structure, Immigration andEnvironment, BennySevinger were joined by air-port officials and the con-struction team of MNOVervat for the dawn openingof the highway.

Department of Public

Works Director Jossy Figaroaexpressed gratitude to ProjectManagers Marlon Croes andJossy Kock for seeing thework done on schedule andbudget. The new “spiral” ro-tunda is expected to facilitatethe flow of traffic at this cru-cial intersection, whichtended to get particularly

backed up during commutinghours. Minister Sevingerconfirmed its importance, asit will mark the beginning ofthe “Green Corridor” to SanNicolas, and the projectedring road that will allowthrough traffic to hotel areasto bypass the often bumper tobumper traffic in Oranjestad.

In the dawn’s light, thePrime Minister and MinisterSevinger enjoyed the privi-lege of being the first to tra-verse the roundabout, joinedby a group from the localHarley-Davidson Club in in-augurating the traffic circle.

Early morning commutersquickly joined them, relievedto no longer be required tofollow the narrow temporaryroad set up during the con-struction phase. The circlequickly filled with traffic,horns honking in celebrationof its completion.

By Rosalie Klein

Airport rotunda is nowopen!Continued from pg 1

The festive days of Christmasand the New Year are uponus. Our local Hospital haslearned from experience thatduring these days the Emer-gency Department receivesan avalanche of visitors for avariety of reasons. Most ofthe visits, however, are foremergency cases. In this con-text it is also important toemphasize that, indeed, theEmergency Department isprimarily for handling emer-gency situations.

Emergency Department(SEH):

The number of patientsneeding assistance during the

festive days can be enro-mous. Due to the fact thatDoctors are not working withappointments on these days,people normally head to theEmergency Department toconsult a Doctor. The conse-quence hereof is that the Hos-pital receives a great deal ofpatients who would normallygo to their primary healthcare provider (‘house doc-tor’), but instead come to theEmergency Department. TheEmergency Department,however, is not equipped forthat purpose. With so manypeople at the departmentmakes for long wait lists.

Continue on pg 3

Emergency Department ofHospital ready for holidays!

Early morning commuters from San Nicolas use the rotunda

Saturday, December 22, 2012 3

During the festive daysahead, the Department willhave extra personnel on handto help aleviate the flow ofpatients and so doing help toreduce the waiting time.

Patients who come to theEmergency Department willhave to pass through their‘triage’ system by a profes-sional emergency nurse.Based on the ‘triage’ system,which happens to be an inter-

national standardized system,they will determine the levelof urgency of each patient.This will determine whetherthe patient will be attendedimmediately or if the patientwill have to wait for other pa-tients with greater urgency tobe attended first. It is impor-tant for everyone to under-stand that getting to theEmergency Department isnot a matter of “first come

first served.” It could happenthat your turn is about tocome and someone appearswhose case is of greater ur-gency and you would have towait for that patient to receivehelp before you.

Doctors on duty/”Huis-artsenpost” (HAP):

If your situation requiresthe attention of a primarydoctor, you may proceed tothe office of the Doctor on

duty situated next to the Urol-ogy Clinic. On holidays thescheduled hours are from9:00am to 1:00pm and from6:00pm to 10:00pm.

Every patient is requiredto present with their AZVcard, if not they will be re-quired to pay cash for theservices rendered. On De-cember 24th and 25th and onDecemb er 31st, the Doctorsoffices will be open as usualaccording to the above sched-

ule.Our Hospital hopes that

the entire community willenjoy the festive days ahead,and reminds everyone to doso in a healthy and safe man-ner. Drive carefully, do notabuse alchohol and do notdrive if you are drinking.Those on special Doctor pre-scribed diets, be sure to main-tain your prescribed dietduring these days.

Emergency Department of Hospital ready for holidays!continued from pg 2


SETAR Teleshop andSETAR Store wishes to re-mind everyone that they willbe open today from 7:45 am- 2 pm. So all those whoi have notdone their Christmas shop-ping as yet or did not find theperfect Christmas gift as yet

this is your opportunity!SETAR has a great varia-

tion of the latest models inmobile phones, laptops,tablets and much more instock, especially for the holi-days.

So drop in and find theperfect Christmas gift.

SETAR Teleshop andSETAR Store open today!WASHINGTON (AFP) - US

President Barack Obama onFriday nominated SenatorJohn Kerry as his new secre-tary of state, as he began toreshape his national securityteam for a second termclouded by increased globalturmoil.

Kerry, 69, a decoratedVietnam War veteran, de-feated former presidentialcandidate and foreign policysage, will succeed HillaryClinton, who is steppingdown after four years as thetop US diplomat.

"Over these many years,John's earned the respect andconfidence of leaders aroundthe world," Obama said at theWhite House as he an-nounced Kerry's nomination,

his first second-term cabinetpick.

"He is not going to need alot of on the job-training."

Kerry stepped up follow-ing the withdrawal of UNambassador Susan Rice, theearly favorite for the post,who was caught in the politi-cal aftermath of the attack ofthe US consulate in Beng-hazi, Libya in September.

Obama said that Kerry,chairman of the Senate For-eign Relations committee,had played a central role inevery US foreign policy de-bate for 30 years and that his"entire life" had prepared himfor his new role.

Kerry saw life overseas asthe son of a Cold War foreignservice officer, served as a

navy officer in Vietnam, andspent years wrestling withforeign policy issues in theSenate.

Obama said that Clintonhad hoped to be at the an-nouncement, but was still re-covering from a serious virusand a concussion.

The White House hadhoped to make a clean sweepby announcing all nomina-tions to the national securityteam, including new chiefs ofthe CIA and Pentagon at once.

But a crush of politicalevents, including the "fiscalcliff" economic crisis, haspushed them back. A battle isalready raging as opponentsseek to tar former senatorChuck Hagel, a possible pickfor Defense Secretary.

Obama picks John Kerry as secretaryof state


The Value of a Sermon

One Christmas morning, the Reverend Jones

announced to his congregation, 'My good

people, I have here in my hand

three sermons......

A $50 sermon that lasts five minutes

A $20 sermon that lasts thirty minutes

And a $5 sermon that lasts a full hour.

Now, we'll take the collection and see which

one I'll deliver.'

Every family and cook hastheir own style and recipe; theseasoning of the chicken, apiece of ham or not. Holland’scolonial influence on thepreparation is sometimes evi-dent as well. VariousCaribbean spices dependingon location, can result in non-traditional ayacas; their com-monality is they are alldelicious!

Ayacas can be found in thefrozen food section of most is-land supermarkets. If any areleft this close to Christmas, dobuy some to prepare in yourtimeshare, or try them whenoffered on the menu of manyresort Christmas buffets. Sim-ply boil for 30 minutes to de-frost and warm, clip the stringand unwrap to savor this sin-gular tradition of holiday sea-son on the islands.

by Rosalie Klein

grated into Aruban culture hasnot been pinpointed. The daythe women spend scrubbingthe banana leaves, producing

big pots of funchi, the corn-meal concoction in

which the various in-gredients are

imbedded, is atreasured familyg a t h e r i n g ,where manycompete toproduce thebes t - t as t ingayacas. The

important fac-tors in judging the

quality of the cookis the balance of salt

and sweet; olives andraisins or prunes with spicymeats and crunchy cashewscreate a memorable melange.The intriguing mix and con-trasts of textures and flavorsare the indicators of a superiorayaca.

argue it most likely referred, atthat time, to a bundle of rawcorn. According to researcher

Adolfo Ernst, the word "hal-laca" evolved from the indige-nous tongue 'Guarani' andderives from the verb "ayua"or "ayuar", which means tomix or to blend. It is presumedthat the term “ayuaca” (mixedthings), evolved into “ayaca.”The earliest use of the wordwas found in documents from1781.

Arubans cannot imaginetheir Christmas meal withoutthis filling, tasty treat. Theyhave been a welcome part ofthe holiday in the memory ofeven the oldest islanders, soexactly when it became inte-


--The regional influences onAruban culture and traditionsare particularly evident duringthe holiday season; many ofthe practices of the island’sneighbor to the south are par-ticularly a part of holiday cel-ebrations.

Gaita bands are usuallyfound at most celebrations,and a favorite item on themenu that makes a Christmasdinner complete is ayaca- de-rived from the hayaca, ofVenezuela, also known as hal-laca, which has been an essen-tial part of the holiday meal forcenturies.

The origins of the dish andeven the etymology of theword ayaca is a matter ofscholarly debate. Popularmyth proposes during colonialtimes it was common practicefor plantation owners to do-nate leftover Christmas foodscraps, such as bits of pork andbeef, to their slaves. These

would be molded into a corn-meal paste to create a moresubstantial dish, then wrappedin plantain leaves for cooking;a process which could takeanywhere from 2 to 3hours.

However, mostbelieve the likelyorigin of themaize bodyand plantainenvelope ofthe hallaca ist h eMesoamericant a m a l -“ T a m a l i ? ”Ta m a l - d e r i v e ddishes, under variousnames, are mentionedthroughout Spain's Americancolonies, as far south as

Argentina, in the decadesfollowing the conquest. Theword "hayaca" has been foundin a Maracaibo documentdated 1538, but etymologists

Ayacas-a holiday tradition you must try!


Happy Holiday

INGREDIENTS:

6 herb-flavored or plain flour tortillas (8 inch) 2 cupsshredded Colby or Cheddar cheese (8 oz) 1 smalltomato, chopped (1/2 cup) 4 medium green onions,chopped (1/4 cup) 2 tablespoons Old El Paso® choppedgreen chiles (from 4.5-oz can) Old El Paso® Thick 'nChunky Salsa or guacamole, if desired - Heat oven to 350°F.- 2 Sprinkle 3 of the tortillas with 2/3 cup cheese each.Top cheese with remaining ingredients except salsa.Place on ungreased cookie sheet.- 3 Bake about 5 minutes or just until cheese is melted.Cut each quesadilla into 6 wedges. Serve with salsa.

Christmas Services at the Holiday Inn:Christmas services at the Holiday Inn Hotel has provento be what guest and friends of the Island of Arubalook forward to attend. It hasbecome their yearly event toworship the Christ of Christmaswith ‘The Aruban Christian Fel-lowship’ at the Holiday Inn.This Sunday, December 23rd,2012 at 10:00 to 11:00 am will beno exception. Singing of carols,choruses and hymns is awaitingeager hearts to sound theChristmas atmosphere withmusic as you like it in the Eng-lish language. Pastor EusebioPetrona is always looking for-ward to meet old and newfriends at Christmas time:friends like you,

to say ‘Welcome’, at The Holiday Inn Hotel.

Christmas Quesadillas


compared to the elaboratework of art the project is today.

Most nights during theweek, it is relatively quiet, ifwishing to take pictures with-out too many people present.During weekends and inChristmas and Boxing Day itwill be busy with musical per-formances by seasonal singinggroups, called “Gaita” untillate at night. Very likely therewill be wagons selling snacksand refreshments. I

On Three Kings Day thevolunteers usually host ablowout farewell bash, beforeturning off the lights. Thisnight usually segues into a ju-bilant Carnival celebration,which will officially begin onJanuary 4 this year.

(see photos by RosalieKlein on page 1)

-- Now is the time of year tovisit Aruba’s City of Lights atSeroe Preto in San Nicolas Itis an annual community effortof volunteers who build andentire town out of coloredlights on this striking hillside.Each year has a differenttheme; this year it is Alto VistaChapel and a classic cunucuhouse.

The City of Lights will beon display until Three KingsDay, January 6. It is a labor oflove by Stichting HunbentudUni Seroe Preto, (UnitedYouth Foundation of SeroePreto.) Average annual cost is$12,000 to construct, whichdoes not include the utilitybills. The project is funded bydonations and fundraisingevents throughout the year.The first efforts began back in1957. These were very simple

Our front page: Seroe Preto City of Lights


Best of all, Christmas means a spirit of love, a time when the love of God and love of our fellow men should prevail over all hatred and bitterness,

a time when our thoughts and deeds and the spirit of our lives manifest the presence of God.

-George F. McDougall


5 holiday party tips for pet owners-- As you and your loved ones gather for holiday parties,

keep in mind that your pets may also have their eyes on

the feast. Here are some tips to keep them out of harm’s

way and healthy:

1. Keep food and wrappers out of reach. Agile and clever

pets are known to take food and anything that smells like

food from the floor, kitchen counter, trash bins and ta-

bles.

2. Resist offering leftovers. Rich and fatty foods like

gravy, dressing and pie can cause painful and serious

health problems. The bones easily splinter and can

cause fatal injuries.

3. Keep decorations out of reach. Climbing cats and

dogs with wagging tails and curious noses can knock

over candles and other decorations. Some pets may also

chew on decorations that look or sound like toys.

4. Plan ahead. Have pet appropriate treats on hand. Con-

sider cooking a special treat for your pet. Dog owners

may want to take their pooches out for an extra walk be-

fore guests arrive.

5. Set up a quiet zone. It's easy to get stressed amid the

holiday chaos. Place the pet's crate or bed in a room or

area where it can relax. A special toy may also help your

pet burn off some stress and enjoy the festivities safely.

ANNOUCEMENT

Post Aruba N.V. would like to inform all its clients

that: On December 22nd, 2012:

The post office at Palm Beach Plaza Mall will be

open from 8am until 8pm

All offices of Post Aruba will be closed on Monday

December 24th, 2012.

All our offices will operate with its normal business

hours on December 27, 2012.Management and staff would like to wish you

a Merry Christmas.

Sincerely,

Management

May all the sweet magic of this Holiday Season conspireTo gladden your hearts and fill every desire.


THE HAGUE (AFP) - A waveof biker gangs from the US,Canada and Australia arrivingin Europe has raised fears ofdeadly turf battle like theNordic biker wars of the1990s, European policeagency Europol warned on Fri-day.

Gangs such as the Co-mancheros and Rebels fromAustralia, Rock Machine fromCanada and the Mongols andVagos from the US were mov-ing into Europe, said a Europolstatement.

The total number of what itcalled Outlaw MotorcycleGangs (OMCG) in Europenow ran at more than 700 , itsaid.

The gangs were seeking outparticularly a dangerous hardcore of recruits in their bid toseize territory to traffic drugs,weapons and people.

Now they were approachingfar-right militants, prison gangmembers, hooligans and mili-tary personnel to exploit theirexpert knowledge, said Eu-ropol.

The gangs "have a propen-sity to use extreme forms of vi-olence", including withKalashnikov assault rifles andgrenades.

Modern biker gangs werebecoming less associated withthe biker lifestyle, with somemembers having neither a mo-torbike nor a driving licence,Europol noted.

The deadly conflict ex-ploded when the Bandidosgang penetrated Nordic coun-tries and challenged the Hell'sAngels for a region that hadbeen under their control formore than a decade.

Bikers used weapons in-cluding assault rifles, anti-tankweapons and car bombsagainst each other, leaving atleast 11 bikers dead anddozens wounded.

Police fearturf war asbiker gangsarrive inEurope

made and the building pro-ceeded.

That's one of the reasonsthere was no formal agreementon the job," he said.

The aluminium-hulled yachtwas built by Royal De Vriesshipbuilder's in Aalsmeer, justsouth of Amsterdam, with in-teriors designed by Starck.

The bridge features a controlpanel made up of an array ofseven iMac computers.

Starck said last year that hewas working on the yacht,which was mentioned in Wal-ter Isaacson's biography ofJobs, who died on October 5,2011. He said it was "sleek andminimalist", with teak decks.


SEOUL (AFP) - Psy's "Gang-nam Style" became the firstvideo to hit a billion views onYouTube on Friday, marking afresh milestone in the globalcraze for the South Koreanrapper and his horse-ridingdance.

The view counter attached to"Gangnam Style," which wasonly posted on the video-shar-ing site July 15, clicked overinto 10 figures at around 1550GMT, confirming its status asthe most viewed video in thesite's history.

"One billion views is an in-credible number," said KevinAllocca, YouTube trends man-ager, who attributed Psy's suc-

cess "to the universal appeal ofcatchy music -- and er, greatequine dance moves."

Psy has swept all before himin the past five months,hoovering up awards and scor-ing guest appearances witheveryone from Madonna to thehead of the United Nations.

Although its imminent de-mise has been predicted manytimes, the Psy phenomenonhas simply refused to die.

Every time it has lookedlike fading, another parody,another celebrity or even an-other world leader has poppedup to administer some public-ity CPR and restore it tohealth.

Psy's 'Gangnam Style'reaches one billionviews THE HAGUE (AFP) - Steve

Jobs' Dutch-built superyachthas been impounded in Ams-terdam because of a disputebetween the late Applefounder's estate and designerPhilippe Starck over an unpaidbill, a Starck lawyer said Fri-day.

The Venus reportedly costover 100 million euros ($130million) to build and was onlyunveiled in October, just overa year after Jobs died.

Jobs' estate says Starckshould be paid a percentage ofthe overall cost of the project,which took over five years tocomplete. Starck says heshould be paid a fixed ninemillion euros for his contribu-tion, Klaassen said.

The estate is offering sixmillion euros.

Klaassen said he was incontact with a Dutch lawyerrepresenting the Jobs estate,Gerard Moussault.

"Hopefully we will come toan interim agreement with re-gard to security," Klaassensaid.

Jobs' family, includingwidow Laurene Powell Jobsand their three children Reed,Erin and Eve, was supposed totake charge of the yacht in theUnited States.

Klaassen said he had seendocuments that show Jobs andStarck were "very close in theperiod that the design was

Dutch impound Steve Jobs superyachtover unpaid bill


district that includes theschool.

"Walking out of another fu-neral and was handed the NRAtranscript. The most revolting,tone deaf statement I've everseen," he said, on Twitter.

And the statement immedi-ately drew criticism from sup-porters of tougher gun control,who are pushing to ban semi-automatic assault weapons likethe .223 Bushmaster rifle thatLanza used in Friday's shooting.

"The NRA leadership'sdrive to fill our schools withmore deadly guns and ammo iswildly out of touch with re-sponsible gun owners and theAmerican public," New JerseySenator Frank Lautenbergsaid.

But LaPierre ploughed on,warning that more killers areactively plotting to attackschools.

And he slammed and at-tacked media conglomerates,denouncing violent videogames, music videos that cele-brate crime and Hollywoodmovies that glamorize vio-lence.

"Isn't fantasizing aboutkilling people as a way to getyour kicks really the filthiestform of pornography?" he de-manded.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - TheUnited States' most powerfulpro-gun lobbying group de-manded Friday that armed po-lice be deployed to everyschool in the country follow-ing a mass shooting that left 20young children dead.

Even as the NRA leadersmade their combative and de-termined appearance anotherfour people died in Pennsylva-nia in America's latest shootingspree. But the lobbyists cededno ground to those calling fortougher gun laws.

NRA vice-president WayneLaPierre,said the NRA wasready to help train securityteams for schools and workwith teachers and parents toimprove security measures,and accused the media and thepolitical class of demonizinggun owners.

These deaths were only thelatest in a series of mass shoot-ings in the United States thisyear, and prompted PresidentBarack Obama to throw hisweight behind plans to revivea ban on assault weapons.

America has suffered anepidemic of gun violence overthe last three decades includ-ing 62 mass shooting incidentssince 1982. The vast majority

of weapons used have beensemi-automatic weapons ob-tained legally by the killers.

There were an estimated310 million non-militaryfirearms in the United Statesin 2009, roughly one per citi-zen, and people in America are20 times more likely to bekilled by a gun than someonein another developed country.

But LaPierre insisted gunownership was not the prob-lem.

You know, five years agoafter the Virginia Tech tragedywhen I said we should putarmed security in everyschool, the media called mecrazy," he said, referring to a2007 campus shooting that left32 people dead.

"But what if, what if whenAdam Lanza started shootinghis way into Sandy Hook Ele-mentary School last Fridayhe'd been confronted by qual-ified armed security?" he de-manded. "Will you at leastadmit it's possible that 26 littlekids, that 26 innocent livesmight have been spared thatday? Is it so abhorrent to youthat you'd rather continue torisk the alternative?"

The statement did not im-press Chris Murphy, the con-gressman who represents the

US gun lobby urges armedpolice in every school

cious metals lower.By late Friday on the Lon-

don Bullion Market, gold slidto $1,651.50 an ounce from$1,696.25 a week earlier.

Silver dropped to $29.89 anounce from $32.52.

On the London Platinumand Palladium Market, plat-inum declined to $1,533 anounce from $1,613.

Palladium fell to $675 anounce from $700.

GRAINS AND SOYA:

Maize, wheat and soya pricesall fell.

By Friday on the ChicagoBoard of Trade, maize for de-livery in March dipped to$7.01 a bushel from $7.30 aweek earlier.

would never have passed inthe Senate, where they hold amajority.

By Friday on the New YorkMercantile Exchange, WestTexas Intermediate (WTI) orlight sweet crude for deliveryin February rose to $88.40 perbarrel from $86.51 a week ear-lier for the January contract.

On London's Intercontinen-tal Exchange, Brent North Seacrude for February dipped to$108.88 a barrel from $109.00last week for the January con-tract.

PRECIOUS METALS:

Gold struck the lowest levelsince August, hit also byprofit-taking ahead of theyear-end, dragging other pre-

ventories, which indicatedstrong demand.

Crude futures paused onThursday but dived by morethan a dollar on Friday amidthe political stalemate inWashington.

A Republican plan to let taxbreaks expire on US million-aires collapsed late Thursdaywhen it failed to earn enoughparty support.

Early Friday, Republicanleaders said they were notwalking away from negotia-tions but a compromise re-mains elusive, and investorsremain on edge.

The measure had beenblasted by Obama's Democratsas a diversionary tactic that


percent in the third quarter,faster than previously esti-mated, dampening hopes ofmore stimulus.

OIL: Prices diverged thisweek, but saw steep losses onFriday as sentiment wasrocked by intensifying fiscalcliff concerns in top crudeconsumer the United States.

Prices had rallied Tuesdayamid indications Washingtonwas inching closer to resolvingthe budget impasse, after USPresident Barack Obama metwith top Republican lawmakerJohn Boehner in the latest ef-fort to broker an agreement.

The market also rose onWednesday following news ofa decline in US petroleum in-

LONDON (AFP) - Commod-ity markets were hit this weekin the run-up to Christmas, ashopes faded for a deal to avertthe "fiscal cliff" of tax risesand spending cuts that couldsend the world's biggest econ-omy spinning into recession,analysts said.

Unless the political deadlockin Washington is broken, thefiscal cliff measures will beimplemented in the UnitedStates -- a major consumer ofmany raw materials -- on Jan-uary 1.

Commodity markets hadwon support last week afterthe US central bank launchedmore stimulus measures. Butdata showed Thursday that theAmerican economy grew 3.1

Commodities haunted by US fiscal worries before Christmas

Saturday, December 22, 2012

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