Emancipation Day is celebrated on August 1, 2014

Emancipation Day is celebrated in many former British colonies in the Caribbean and areas of the United States on various dates in observance of the emancipation of slaves of African origin. It is also observed in other areas in regard to the abolition of serfdom or other forms of servitude.

The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ended slavery in the British Empire on August 1, 1834. Emancipation Day is widely observed in the British West Indies during the first week of August. In many Caribbean countries the Emancipation Day celebration is a part of Carnival, as the Caribbean Carnival takes place at this time (although Carnaval in Trinidad and Tobago takes place in February or March according to Ash Wednesday. In Belize it is not observed. The anthem and flag of Belize prefers to remember “Our father’s the Baymen valiant and proud”. In truth, the British were regarded as the most cruel slave masters. The clip I prepared for a Caribbean History class on the slave trade. 

April 16, 1862 marks the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. Over 3,000 enslaved persons were freed eight months before the Emancipation Proclamation liberated slaves in the South. The District also has the distinction of being the only part of the United States to have compensated slave owners for freeing enslaved persons they held.

11 Countries are about to head into Bankruptcy

After years of bitter court battles with creditors, Argentina has defaulted on its debt, according to rating agency Standard & Poor’s. After failing to come to an agreement with creditors from its previous default in 2001, the country missed necessary bond payments on July 31, triggering the default announcement. As of publication, other organizations, most notably the rating agency Moody’s Investors Service and the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, a derivatives trade group, have yet to release public statements confirming the default.

Argentina is not the only country that has struggled, or even failed, to pay its debt in recent years. It is hardly the only country with a severely impaired credit rating either. Alongside Argentina, Moody’s currently lists 10 other countries with a rating of Caa1 or worse. A Caa1 rating is several notches below Ba1, which still carries substantial credit risk. Based on ratings from Moody’s Investors Service, these are the 11 countries at risk of default.

The countries with the lowest credit ratings significantly differ from one another. They span the globe, ranging from Greece and Ukraine in Europe, to Pakistan in Asia, to Ecuador, Venezuela, and Belize in South America.

These nations also suffer from vastly different problems. Some nations, such as Ukraine and Egypt, owe their recent downgrades to political conditions. Others, such as Belize and Ecuador, have actually been upgraded in recent years based on their improved financial positions.

When a government has a great deal of debt relative to the size of its economy, its credit rating may also be lower. Three of the nations potentially at risk of default had among the world’s highest debt levels, at 120% of GDP or more based on 2014 estimates. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Greece’s debt is projected to hit nearly 175% of GDP by the end of this year, more than that of any other nation in the world except for Japan.

However, not all countries with low ratings necessarily have a large amount of outstanding government debt. For example, Ecuador’s government debt, according to the IMF, was forecast to total just 24.8% of GDP in 2014 — an exceptionally low amount. In many cases, these countries simply do not regularly access international bond markets, either because of small financial sectors or because of debt-restructuring agreements.

Borrowing funds in the international bond market can be quite expensive for countries with poor credit ratings. Countries have to pay high interest rates on their debt because because investors require greater returns on what they perceive to be riskier investments. For example, a 10-year U.S. Treasury Note pays an annual coupon of just 2.5%. By contrast, a comparable bond recently issued by Jamaica pays out 7.65% a year. In Greece, yields on 10-year government bonds reached 29% in early 2012, right before the country defaulted.

Often, countries that tap into international bond markets do so in other currencies. For example, nations such as Argentina, Jamaica, Belize, and Ukraine have all issued bonds in other nations’ currencies. The main reason to use common currencies — such as the dollar, yen, and euro — is that their inflation rates are typically far lower than the currencies of the issuing countries. This means that investors do not need to worry as much about their investment losing value.

In fact, inflation is a major problem in several of the countries with the worst credit ratings. In one such nation, Venezuela, inflation is expected to exceed 50% in 2014, according to the IMF. Argentina’s inflation rates are likely much higher than reported by government statistics on consumer prices, which were long considered highly unreliable.

Based on credit ratings provided by Moody’s Investors Service, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 11 countries with credit ratings of Caa1 or worse. A rating of this level indicates considerable credit risk. Because many of these nations have significant debt in other currencies or have otherwise weak currencies, we used foreign currency ratings and outlooks for these nations. Figures on GDP growth, inflation, unemployment, population and debt levels are estimates for 2014 from the IMF’s World Economic Outlook.

Winner's of the most Photogenic on International Costa Maya

As the contestant arrived in San Pedro during the course of the day on Thursday July 28th,2014 this contestant are Miss El Salvador Ana Graciela Hasbun, Miss Costa Rica Raquel Maria Guevera, Miss Nicaragua Katherine Gadamuza, Miss Panama Karol Salinas, Miss Honduras Maria Jose Alvarado, Miss Guatemala Keyla Bermudez, Miss Mexico Elisa Espinoza and Miss Belize Grisel Rosseli Carballo.

As a competition with the photogenic was vote among all this are the winner's for the most popular photogenic. Miss Costa Rica Raquel Guevara Avila wins the Miss Photogenic competition. Miss Belize Grisel Rosseli Carballo finishes 2nd, while Miss Guatemala Keyla Bermudez finishes 3rd. Miss Costa Rica will receive a plaque, while all three will receive gift baskets. They will receive these next week before the pageant. Just a reminder that this competition does not affect the results of the actual Miss Costa Maya pageant. Thanks to all who voted and supported the delegates.




Vote total of the Top 5:

Costa Rica: 3,664
Belize: 3,659
Guatemala: 1,467
Honduras: 929
Mexico: 851







This are the three winner's of the most Popular Photogenic with the most voted. Also their will be prizes for the winner's.