http://www.mail.com/locations/1410-caribbean.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.23/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/locations/1410-caribbean.html http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862762-cuba-us-spar-blame-poor-ties.html HAVANA (AP) — A senior Cuban official sharply criticized U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday for suggesting Cuba was stuck in the past, saying the only anachronistic element of the relationship is Washington's half-century-old economic embargo. Josefina Vidal, the head of the Foreign Ministry's North American affairs division, said Obama was poorly info... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:04:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1862762-cuba-us-spar-blame-poor-ties.html 2013-02-01T19:04:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1862256-puerto-rico-teeters-fiscal-edge-pensions.html SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Office clerk Lillian Marti hopes to retire one day with a decent pension. Now, like many other employees of Puerto Rico's government, she's beginning to fear she might not get that chance. "Of course, I'm worried," said the 61-year-old, who has worked for the government for 20 years. Some experts are calling for cutting benefi... Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:57:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1862256-puerto-rico-teeters-fiscal-edge-pensions.html 2013-02-01T19:57:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858392-menendez-reimbursed-donor-2-jaunts.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Robert Menendez's office says he reimbursed a prominent Florida political donor $58,500 on Jan. 4 of this year for the full cost of two of three trips Menendez took on the donor's plane to the Dominican Republic in 2010. More details about the New Jersey senator's trips emerged as his office said unsubstantiated allegations that the... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 22:51:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1858392-menendez-reimbursed-donor-2-jaunts.html 2013-01-31T22:51:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1860022-haiti-snake-artist-uses-carnival-to.html PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Saintilus Resilus' day job this time of year is walking the streets of Haiti's capital with snakes on his head. He sees himself as something of a performance artist, showing off with snakes and other animals that Haitians don't see every day, earning tips from impromptu audiences during the pre-Lenten Carnival season. ... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 20:38:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1860022-haiti-snake-artist-uses-carnival-to.html 2013-01-31T20:38:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859110-sept-11-judge-rules-censor.html GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) — The second round of pretrial hearings in the Sept. 11 case sputtered to a close Thursday with the judge ordering the government to remove censorship equipment from the courtroom at the U.S. base in Cuba but little progress on some fundamental legal issues that must be resolved before the long-stalled case can go to trial. ... Thu, 31 Jan 2013 19:43:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1859110-sept-11-judge-rules-censor.html 2013-01-31T19:43:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1857698-cuba-dissidents-approved-denied-passports.html HAVANA (AP) — Two Cuban dissidents who applied for passports to go overseas under recently enacted travel reform reported mixed results Wednesday, as one former prisoner was turned down while a prominent blogger excitedly tweeted a photo of her brand new, bright blue travel document. "The called me at home to say my passport was ready! They just delivered... Wed, 30 Jan 2013 23:42:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1857698-cuba-dissidents-approved-denied-passports.html 2013-01-30T23:42:00Z http://www.mail.com/sports/baseball/1855146-angels-pujols-hopes-to-join-dominicans-wbc.html SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Los Angeles Angels slugger Albert Pujols says he hopes to play for the Dominican Republic after the second round of the World Baseball Classic. The first baseman and three-time NL MVP had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in October. He would need special permission from the Angels to take part in the Classic... Tue, 29 Jan 2013 23:12:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/sports/baseball/1855146-angels-pujols-hopes-to-join-dominicans-wbc.html 2013-01-29T23:12:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1854306-judge-weighs-amount-access-to-secret-gitmo-camp.html GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) — A military judge was deciding on Tuesday how much access defense lawyers should have to a secret section of the Guantanamo Bay prison where five men charged in the Sept. 11 attacks have been held in near-total secrecy for more than six years. Lawyers for the prisoners say they need to spend time inside Camp 7 to eval... Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:15:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1854306-judge-weighs-amount-access-to-secret-gitmo-camp.html 2013-01-29T20:15:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1853852-obamas-envoy-closing-gitmo-prison-reassigned.html WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department has reassigned its special envoy for closing the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in another step away from one of President Barack Obama's first campaign promises. Ambassador Daniel Fried is starting this week as the department's sanctions coordinator, according to an internal notice, focusing on governments lik... Tue, 29 Jan 2013 16:11:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1853852-obamas-envoy-closing-gitmo-prison-reassigned.html 2013-01-29T16:11:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1851064-lawyer-fired-911-case-guantanamo.html GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) — A Guantanamo Bay prisoner charged in the Sept. 11 attacks fired one of his military attorneys Monday in an apparent sign of distrust of his Pentagon-appointed legal counsel. Waleed bin Attash at first refused to speak when questioned by the judge about his desire to dismiss one of his three lawyers, Marine Corps Maj.... Mon, 28 Jan 2013 23:42:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1851064-lawyer-fired-911-case-guantanamo.html 2013-01-28T23:42:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1850858-antigua-to-copyright-haven.html LONDON (AP) — Americans call it piracy. Antiguans call it justice. The islands of Antigua and Barbuda are threatening to strip intellectual property protections from American goods as part of a long-running trade dispute over the U.S. embargo on the tiny Caribbean nation's online gambling industry. U.S. officials say the proposed copyr... Mon, 28 Jan 2013 23:15:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1850858-antigua-to-copyright-haven.html 2013-01-28T23:15:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1849610-court-rulings-dim-outlook-guantanamo-trials.html GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba (AP) — A civilian appeals court has now reversed the verdicts of the only two Guantanamo Bay prisoners convicted in trials by military tribunal, casting a shadow over proceedings set to resume this week at the U.S. base in Cuba for the men accused in the Sept. 11 terrorist attack. A federal appeals court on Friday threw out... Sun, 27 Jan 2013 18:09:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1849610-court-rulings-dim-outlook-guantanamo-trials.html 2013-01-27T18:09:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1847456-chavez-starting-medical-treatment-cuba.html SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has defeated a respiratory infection and has begun additional medical treatment in Cuba after struggling with complications following cancer surgery more than six weeks ago, a government spokesman said Saturday. Venezuelan Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said that it remains unclear how soon Ch... Sat, 26 Jan 2013 23:11:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1847456-chavez-starting-medical-treatment-cuba.html 2013-01-26T23:11:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1847900-ap-interview-haiti-eyes-tourism-businesses.html DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — Haiti's prime minister says his country is hoping to attract high-end tourists and multinational investors — instead of constant aid handouts — so it can get on its feet after the devastating 2010 earthquake. Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe said Saturday he recognizes that's an ambitious dream for a country where 52 percent of the... Sat, 26 Jan 2013 19:06:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/markets/1847900-ap-interview-haiti-eyes-tourism-businesses.html 2013-01-26T19:06:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1848238-kerry-hagel-drive-reboot-us-cuba-ties.html HAVANA (AP) — The nominee for U.S. Secretary of State, Sen. John Kerry, once held up millions of dollars in funding for secretive U.S. democracy-building programs in Cuba. Defense Secretary hopeful Chuck Hagel has called the U.S. embargo against the communist-run island "nonsensical" and anachronistic. Both men are now poised to occupy two of the most imp... Sat, 26 Jan 2013 18:55:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1848238-kerry-hagel-drive-reboot-us-cuba-ties.html 2013-01-26T18:55:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/celebrity/1846222-round-2-sloppy-joes-bar-havana-original.html HAVANA (AP) — A half-century later, Jose Rafa Malem remembers the balmy breezes blowing through the bar's arching porticos, the grain of the tall wood stools, the whiff of Pedro Domecq brandy on his father's breath. And how could he forget the tangy ground-beef-and-tomato-sauce sandwiches synonymous with what was then one of Havana's hippest hangouts, pla... Sat, 26 Jan 2013 01:12:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/celebrity/1846222-round-2-sloppy-joes-bar-havana-original.html 2013-01-26T01:12:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1846684-chavez-impersonator-cancer-laughing-matter.html MIAMI (AP) — It's an hour before showtime, and Gustavo Rios is transforming himself into Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. A makeup artist paints his skin a dark olive tone. A plastic mole is glued strategically on the upper right corner of his forehead. Large, latex ears and a short, black wig cover his head as he squints and purses his lips in front of ... Fri, 25 Jan 2013 21:40:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1846684-chavez-impersonator-cancer-laughing-matter.html 2013-01-25T21:40:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1844088-absent-omnipresent-chavez-powerful-symbol.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — While Venezuela's sick president recuperates from surgery behind closed doors in Cuba, at home he is more visible than ever. Iconic images of his eyes look out from murals lining the streets of Caracas, his portrait appears on T-shirts sported by followers, and on television he can be heard booming "I am a nation!" Though still a... Fri, 25 Jan 2013 02:25:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1844088-absent-omnipresent-chavez-powerful-symbol.html 2013-01-25T02:25:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1844698-guyana-pledges-to-protect-jaguars.html KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — The lushly forested nation of Guyana on Thursday joined a regional pact to protect jaguars, the elusive spotted cat that is the biggest land predator in the Americas but is vulnerable due to expanded agriculture and mining that carves away at their fragmented habitat. Leaders of the government's environment ministry were signing a... Fri, 25 Jan 2013 00:12:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1844698-guyana-pledges-to-protect-jaguars.html 2013-01-25T00:12:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1843750-cuba-confirms-undersea-cable-carrying-data-traffic.html HAVANA (AP) — Cuba's state telecom monopoly confirmed Thursday that the island's first hard-wired Internet connection to the outside world has been activated, but said it won't lead to an immediate increase in access. In a statement published in Communist Party newspaper Granma and other official media, ETECSA broke its long silence on the ALBA-1 fiber-op... Thu, 24 Jan 2013 22:54:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1843750-cuba-confirms-undersea-cable-carrying-data-traffic.html 2013-01-24T22:54:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1844260-mcgoverns-personal-items-to-sold-s-dakota.html SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — George McGovern once gave his daughter a bookend made out of soapstone in the shape of a bear — a symbol of the "Terr the bear" nickname the former South Dakota senator often called Teresa, who froze to death 18 years ago in a snow bank near a bar where she'd been drinking. The figure is one of many deeply personal items going up ... Thu, 24 Jan 2013 21:49:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1844260-mcgoverns-personal-items-to-sold-s-dakota.html 2013-01-24T21:49:00Z http://www.mail.com/sports/baseball/1841936-sosa-mcgwire-belong-hall-fame.html CHICAGO (AP) — Sammy Sosa thinks he and fellow steroid-tainted star Mark McGwire belong in the Hall of Fame. Slammin' Sammy also said the Chicago Cubs should retire his number, and he left open the possibility of running for president of the Dominican Republic during an interview Wednesday on the website Ustream.com. Asked if he thinks... Thu, 24 Jan 2013 06:24:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/sports/baseball/1841936-sosa-mcgwire-belong-hall-fame.html 2013-01-24T06:24:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1841220-venezuela-vp-plot-chavez-allies-revealed.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's vice president said Wednesday that the government has uncovered a plot to attack him or another senior leader of President Hugo Chavez's party. The purported plot involved "groups that have infiltrated the country," Vice President Nicolas Maduro said in a speech to government supporters. He added that the authorities ... Thu, 24 Jan 2013 01:23:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1841220-venezuela-vp-plot-chavez-allies-revealed.html 2013-01-24T01:23:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1838112-haitian-amputee-comeback-dance-floor.html PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Georges Exantus thought he'd never dance again. He was lucky just to be alive. The earthquake three years ago in Haiti's capital flattened the apartment where he was living and he spent three days trapped under jagged rubble. After friends dug him out, doctors amputated his right leg just below the knee. Is... Tue, 22 Jan 2013 22:15:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1838112-haitian-amputee-comeback-dance-floor.html 2013-01-22T22:15:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1838822-venezuelan-government-hugo-chavez-recovering.html CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is in good spirits and recovering six weeks after he underwent cancer surgery in Cuba, his government said Tuesday in a continuation of more upbeat assessments of the leader's fragile health. Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said officials received a "very encouraging" report Tuesday about th... Tue, 22 Jan 2013 21:45:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1838822-venezuelan-government-hugo-chavez-recovering.html 2013-01-22T21:45:00Z http://www.mail.com/business/economy/1838978-un-team-evaluates-dominican-mine-expansion-project.html SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — A team of experts from the U.N. on Tuesday began evaluating a proposed nickel mine expansion in the Dominican Republic that has been halted by a court over environmental concerns. The team from the U.N. Development Program will analyze the project and the government environmental reports of the potential environmen... Tue, 22 Jan 2013 21:26:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/business/economy/1838978-un-team-evaluates-dominican-mine-expansion-project.html 2013-01-22T21:26:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1838014-telefonica-no-involvement-with-cuba-cable.html HAVANA (AP) — Spanish telecom Telefonica denied Tuesday that it has anything to do with an undersea fiber-optic cable between Cuba and Venezuela, even as an analyst who monitors global data traffic noted an additional uptick in data speed to and from the island — suggesting the cable is in full operation. In a brief statement to The Associated Press, Tele... Tue, 22 Jan 2013 16:06:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1838014-telefonica-no-involvement-with-cuba-cable.html 2013-01-22T16:06:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1835776-report-cuba-using-undersea-fiber-optic-cable.html HAVANA (AP) — Cuba apparently has finally switched on the first undersea fiber-optic cable linking it to the outside world nearly two years after its arrival, according to analysis by a company that monitors global Internet use. In a report posted Sunday on the website of Renesys, author Doug Madory wrote that Cuba began using the ALBA-1 cable on Jan. 14.... Mon, 21 Jan 2013 18:17:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1835776-report-cuba-using-undersea-fiber-optic-cable.html 2013-01-21T18:17:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1835600-big-truck-details-disastrous-haiti-aid-effort.html "The Big Truck That Went By: How the World Came to Save Haiti and Left Behind a Disaster" (Palgrave Macmillan), by Jonathan M. Katz After two and one-half years in Haiti, Jonathan Katz was preparing to leave the impoverished but endlessly intriguing nation in January 2010. His next reporting assignment: Afghanistan. Then, a massive earthquake ripped apart... Mon, 21 Jan 2013 16:25:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1835600-big-truck-details-disastrous-haiti-aid-effort.html 2013-01-21T16:25:00Z