A popular theme park in California is under fire for a Halloween installation that some allege is culturally insensitive to Latinos.

Knott's Berry Farm’s “Day of the Dead Scare Zone” is being called sacrilegious and inappropriate and a Change.org petition already has close to 800 signatures to force the park to take down the attraction.

The campaign against the Knotts Berry Farm Scare Zone was started Hesperia, California, resident Armando Cruz Velasco, who is angered that the park is using a traditional holiday like the Day of the Dead – or “Día de los Muertos” in Spanish – to market what he sees as just another Halloween haunted house.

“This sacred holiday—although trivialized in media and mainstream—is important to the Latino community,” Cruz Velasco said in a statement sent to Fox News Latino. “Would Knott's get away with taking another sacred cultural holiday and creating a Scare Zone with it? I think not. So why are we letting them appropriate Día de los Muertos, year after year after year?”

Knott's Berry Farm did not respond to Fox News Latino’s calls for comment.

The Change.org petition has drawn a number of supporters from Southern California’s Latino community who are similarly angered at the theme park.

“Dia de los Muertos is a day of remembrance, a tribute to loved ones who have [passed] would you go out and party the day ... of your mother or father’s death?” Luis Ray of Los Angeles said. “It is a day of respect for the dead, and has significance in our culture. Why not go out and party on Memorial Day? How about 9/11? It’s a day of remembrance and respect for the dead.”

This is not the first time that marketers and companies have faced a backlash for using Day of the Dead iconography.

The holiday originated in Mexico but has spread across the globe and is meant to honor deceased family members. Families build private altars called ofrendas to honor the dead, offering them sugar skulls, marigolds, their favorite foods and beverages and visiting graves with those items as gifts.

Disney drew the ire of angry Latinos when it tried to trademark “Dia de los Muertos” with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office last year and quickly announced it was withdrawing its trademark request.

"What were they thinking?" Genevieve Barrios Southgate, director of community programs at Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, told the Orange County Register.

"Disney obviously responded to public pressure," she said. "I guess that's what happens when you don't have culturally sensitive people as your advisers."

In 2011, Universal Studios Hollywood also added a “La Llorona: Villa de Almas Perdidas” to their popular Halloween Horror Nights and recruited Mexican actor and “Y Tu Mamá También” star Diego Luna as a creative consultant to design the new maze.

La Llorona, or "the weeping woman," is a mythical figure attached to the Day of the Dead in popular culture.

Some people were angered that the Latino figures they grew up with would be used as fodder for ghoulish mazes and haunted houses.

“La Llorona is a macabre figure. It wouldn’t occur to me to dress up as this character. She isn’t a woman I can respect or relate to in modern day,” said Yolanda S. Walther-Meade, a San Diego Film Festival host. “Women really do murder their children. What about a Mexican soccer player? That’s a more positive example of a Latino figure to dress as for Halloween. Even a Day of the Dead skeleton would be at least a little educational and not so offensive.

"The Latino culture has so much more to offer than only these scary folkloric characters,” she said.

The New Halloween Treat: Latino Costumes

The cruise ship carrying a Texas health-care worker who “may have” handled lab specimens from Dallas Ebola victim Thomas Eric Duncan is headed back to the United States after Mexican authorities failed to grant permission for the ship to dock off the coast of Cozumel, according to a Carnival spokeswoman.

The Carnival Magic had been waiting off the Mexican coast since Friday morning for its scheduled port visit. Mexican authorities still hadn’t given clearance by noon, so the ship continued to its home port of Galveston, Tex., where it was due back on Sunday, according to Carnival.

The health worker, a lab supervisor who has not been named, has shown no symptoms of the disease but remains on board and in voluntary isolation, according to Carnival. “We greatly regret that this situation, which was completely beyond our control, precluded the ship from making its scheduled visit to Cozumel and the resulting disappointment it has caused our guests,” read a statement from Carnival.

The Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital employee and a partner boarded the ship Oct. 12 in Galveston before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated the requirement for active monitoring, the U.S. State Department said in a statement. Although the worker is healthy, the U.S. government had said it was working with the cruise line to get the ship back to America “out of an abundance of caution.”

The employee did not come into direct contact with Duncan, the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States. However, she may have been exposed to his clinical specimens, the State Department said.

Carnival said it would provide $200 credits to guests aboard the ship and 50 percent discounts on a future cruise.

The news comes amid growing concerns after two nurses who cared for Duncan tested positive for Ebola.

Amber Vinson was diagnosed with Ebola earlier this week — a day after she flew with a fever on a Frontier Airlines flight from Cleveland back to Dallas. Since then, the CDC has contacted the 132 passengers who flew with her. However, officials said Thursday she may have shown symptoms as many as four days before they initially indicated. Now the CDC says it is busy tracking all passengers who were on her first flight to Ohio last week.

The Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital employee and a partner boarded the ship Oct. 12 in Galveston before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated the requirement for active monitoring, the U.S. State Department said in a statement. Although the worker is healthy, the U.S. government had said it was working with the cruise line to get the ship back to America “out of an abundance of caution.”

The employee did not come into direct contact with Duncan, the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States. However, she may have been exposed to his clinical specimens, the State Department said.

Carnival said it would provide $200 credits to guests aboard the ship and 50 percent discounts on a future cruise.

The news comes amid growing concerns after two nurses who cared for Duncan tested positive for Ebola.

Amber Vinson was diagnosed with Ebola earlier this week — a day after she flew with a fever on a Frontier Airlines flight from Cleveland back to Dallas. Since then, the CDC has contacted the 132 passengers who flew with her. However, officials said Thursday she may have shown symptoms as many as four days before they initially indicated. Now the CDC says it is busy tracking all passengers who were on her first flight to Ohio last week.

Belizean news reports stated that the cruise ship Carnival Magic was offshore after the government of Belize learned that a U.S. hospital worker on board may have been exposed to Ebola and that the Belize Coast Guard was deployed to prevent the ship from going into port. The government of Belize assured its citizens that the health-care professional “never set foot in Belize.”

A Carnival spokeswoman, however, said the ship made its scheduled visit to Belize Thursday. “Passengers were free to disembark there for the day other than the guest and her traveling companion who are in voluntary isolation,” she said.

In its own statement Thursday, the the Belize government said it “was contacted today by officers of the U.S. Government and made aware of a cruise ship passenger considered of very low risk for Ebola…. Nonetheless, out of an abundance of caution, the Government of Belize decided not to facilitate a U.S. request for assistance in evacuating the passenger through the Phillip Goldson International Airport.”

While the Carnival Magic didn’t dock in Mexico, some passengers aboard are still trying to enjoy their vacations, as shown by tweets from Eric Lupher, a reporter with Denver ABC affiliate KMGH who is also aboard the ship:

Correction: An earlier version of this story quoted reports from Belize that the ship had been denied entry to the port. Carnival said that the vessel has already made its stop in Belize, and all passengers except the worker and spouse were free to disembark.

[readon1 url="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/10/17/cruise-ship-carrying-texas-ebola-nurse-refused-entry-in-belize/"]Source:www.washingtonpost.com[/readon1]

An American defence company claims it is on the verge of launching a new atomic age with a truck-sized fusion reactor that could be tested in less than a year. Lockheed Martin expects to unveil a prototype of its compact fusion reactor (CFR) by 2020.

A decade from now it could be powering warships and in 20 years providing a source of virtually limitless clean energy around the world. Unlike conventional nuclear fission that relies on splitting atoms, fusion harnesses the same forces that drive the sun.

Super-hot atomic nuclei are fused together to release huge amounts of energy, while avoiding harmful radioactive waste. Although the dream of fusion power has been pursued for decades, it has so far failed to live up to its promise. The Lockheed team, which has been quietly working on the project for about four years, says the secret of its success was to stay small.

Team leader Dr Tom McGuire said: "Instead of something the size of a building, we have something the size of a large truck. "Small is the reason we can do this quickly. If something's small, you can build up momentum; you can develop it fast. It doesn't take five years to design it, it takes three months. We can design it, build it, test it, under a year."

The CFR is being developed at Lockheed Martin's secretive Skunk Works facility in California, which created the U2 and Blackbird spy planes. A decision to "go public" about the project was taken because of pending patents and the need to find industry and government partners to take the technology forward.

The initial design is for a 100 megawatt reactor measuring 10 feet by seven feet that could be loaded on to the back of a large truck. As well as providing clean energy, compact fusion reactors have the potential to revolutionise sea, air and even space travel, it is claimed.

Speaking in a Lockheed Martin video, Dr McGuire said: "Fifty years ago when people were super-excited about nuclear power, we tried to put it in everything, including aeroplanes. There were some big operational issues; it wasn't safe. Fusion is a much safer option - a next generation of aeroplanes that doesn't rely on fuel, that can just stay aloft. Unlimited range, unlimited endurance. That's what nuclear fusion can do for an aeroplane.

"He envisaged compact fusion reactors taking the place of gas turbines in power stations to provide a readily available source of emission-free energy. Dr McGuire added: "The true atomic age can start. Ten years, we have great military vehicles. Twenty years, we have clean power for the world."

Production of the prototype will follow a round of design-build-test cycles, the first of which could be completed in less than a year. Last week the European Commission announced an 850 million euro (£677 million) initiative to develop nuclear fusion as an energy source by 2020.

Key to any form of nuclear fusion is the ability to handle temperatures as high as 100 million centigrade - hotter than the sun's core. Generally this is done using a "magnetic bottle" to confine the hot electrically-charged gas, or plasma. "Our compact fusion concept combines several alternative magnetic confinement approaches, taking the best parts of each, and offers a 90% size reduction over previous concepts," said Dr McGuire.

Using a deuterium-tritium fuel source, the reactor would generate nearly 10 million times more energy than the same quantity of fossil fuels, according to Lockheed Martin. Deuterium is a heavy isotope, or atomic strain, of hydrogen found in the Earth's oceans, while tritium is a radioactive hydrogen isotope derived from lithium.

The company said it hoped future reactors would use a different source of fuel to eliminate radioactive waste completely. Professor Roger Dargaville, head of the MEI Energy Futures Group at the University of Melbourne, Australia, said: "In moving towards a low carbon energy system, necessary to avoid dangerous climate change, it is important to consider all options.

Nuclear energy is low carbon, and will be an important part of the electricity generation fleet in various countries around the world where other low carbon alternatives are not viable. "The potential for the use of fusion reactors over fission is exciting news as the dangerous by-products of fission reactors are a major disadvantage of the technology."

Professor Steve Cowley, head of the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, said: "We're aware of claims of a 'technological breakthrough' in nuclear fusion by the Skunk Works group at Lockheed Martin. We cannot make any informed comment until further details of the performance of this device are revealed.

"We will continue to advance fusion on large scale tokamak devices (such as the European JET project based at Culham, which has achieved 16 megawatts of fusion power) and await further information on the Lockheed Martin project with interest."

[readon1 url="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/10/16/lockheed-martin-unveils-compact-fusion-reactor_n_5997130.html?utm_hp_ref=world&ir=World"]Source:www.huffingtonpost.co.uk[/readon1]

In September, we got insight into the depravity of domestic violence as we watched the video of Ray Rice knocking his fiancé unconscious and dragging her motionless body out of that elevator. We cringed at the police report detailing the phone call made by U.S. District Judge Fuller's wife in which she cried, "He's beating on me. Please help me." The police arrived at the hotel room moments later to find her in tears with visible lacerations on her face. Unfortunately, incidents like these occur in our communities each and every day, and sadly there is rarely video footage or police reports that detail the emotional, physical, and sexual abuse that victims of domestic violence and their children endure. We should be no less appalled and disgusted about these incidents that never make the evening news.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and it's important that we realize that the faces of domestic violence victims are all around us -- it may be a friend, a family member, a neighbor, a co-worker, or the clerk at your local grocery store. These victims may cover their bruises with long sleeves or their emotional scars with forced smiles because they're embarrassed or afraid to come forward. They may have no hope for breaking the cycle and escaping their abuser. The responsibility of raising awareness about domestic violence falls on our shoulders. It is only with our encouragement that victims will have the strength to come out of the shadows and seek help. As a community we must be ready and willing to help. The crisis of domestic violence knows no race, social boundaries, class distinction or age. It affects individuals in every community and its stain on victims and their children is so deep that its consequences cross generations.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, nearly 20 people are victims of physical violence by an intimate partner in the United States each minute. This equates to more than 10 million men and women annually. Combined, these victims lose a total of 8 million days of paid work annually and the violence inflicted on them costs $8.3 billion per year. Nationally, four women are murdered each day by their abusers. We have failed these victims and their families. We can and must do more. We must come together to address the societal factors that tolerate and perpetuate the continuation of domestic violence and eradicate the system that allows perpetrators to hide behind the silence they depend upon.

On September 10, I joined my constituents in calling for the resignation of U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller in light of his recent arrest for battery following a domestic dispute with his wife in an Atlanta hotel room. My call was shortly followed by a chorus of calls from the entire Alabama Congressional delegation, including our two Senators, Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions.

In a recent interview, Judge Fuller and his attorney dismissed our calls as responses to "public pressure and public passions that a federal judge doesn't have to respond to." If Judge Fuller believes that public passions fueled by the domestic violence epidemic aren't worthy of his response, then he never belonged on the federal bench. Domestic violence is a severe crime, worthy of the attention of every public official. In the same interview, his attorney went on to make the following claim: "It got caught up in the Ray Rice and NFL scandals, and it's gotten lumped into a category of domestic violence that I don't think it belongs in." Judge Fuller and his attorney are gravely mistaken. Any act of domestic violence is reprehensible and should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Judge Fuller's high-profile position does not shield his victim from the emotional and physical violence he inflicts upon her and any legal immunity he is granted is a violation of justice. There is no treatment or counseling program that can resurrect what Judge Fuller has compromised as one who sits in the judgment of others.

Congress is the only body that can remove Judge Fuller from the bench should he not resign. My statement released on September 16 expounded upon my initial call for his resignation. In that statement, I affirmed that I would not hesitate to initiate impeachment proceedings if warranted. Today, I maintain that position. I cannot battle violence against women while turning a blind eye to Judge Fuller. Should he not resign prior to Congress' return to Washington on November 12, I will institute impeachment proceedings. This process will be long, and it will be daunting. Even more daunting, however, is the crisis of domestic violence. Even more embarrassing is our society's silence about this preventable epidemic. To all the men and women who are victims of domestic violence, I send a message of love, encouragement, and hope. Together we can make a difference and break the silence.

Rep. Terri Sewell

[readon1 url="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/congresswoman-terri-sewell-/no-tolerance-for-domestic_b_6004008.html"]Source:www.huffingtonpost.com[/readon1]

The Guatemalan government has reached an agreement with 33 indigenous communities to pay them 122 million euros (around $154 million) for damages from the construction of a hydroelectric power station more than 30 years ago.

The terms of the settlement still to be signed were agreed on Tuesday at a meeting in the presence of the governments Human Rights Ombudsman, according to officials.

“It is a historic pact which comes after a 30-year-long negotiation process related to the damages caused by the construction of the Chixoy hydroelectric power station,” said presidential adviser Miguel Angel Garcia.

Around 2,300 families from the 33 communities were affected in 1978 due to the construction of the power plant in the northern department of Alta Verapaz.

Guatemala’s National Ombudsman, Jorge de Leon Duque, also described the agreement as historic in statements to journalists.

The Coordinator of Communities Affected by the Construction of the Chixoy Hydroelectric Plant, an entity that brought all the victims together, requested compensation of 1.2 billion quetzals (122 million euros or $154 million) which was finally agreed.

In January, the United States included Guatemala in the Consolidated Appropriations Act and conditioned new loans at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and World Bank to make progress in the restitution of the case.

The Chixoy hydroelectric power station, the largest in Guatemala with a production of 300 megawatts providing 18 percent of the country’s total energy demand, was funded by the IDB and other organizations.

The agreement contains measures for “repairing houses, land, sanitation, and the improvement of health” of the 33 communities.

At least 400 farmers were killed by the government and thousands were evicted for refusing to surrender their land for the construction of the hydroelectric plant.

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has acquired part of a Hawaiian island for $100 million to build a retreat for his family, Forbes magazine has reported.

Zuckerberg bought two adjacent expanses of land on the island of Kauai in the north of the archipelago which include a white sand beach and a former sugar plantation.

The two land purchases cover a total area of 283 hectares (700 acres).

The beach included in the land acquired by Zuckerberg was sold by Jim Pflueger, a former owner of Honda automobile dealerships in the islands.

Last year, Zuckerberg visited Hawaii to look into buying property.

Despite his attempts to maintain a low profile he was photographed dining at a burger bar and the photo made the front page of a local newspaper.

Zuckerberg announced on his Facebook account Tuesday that he and his wife, Priscilla, had donated $25 million to the U.S. government’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to aid the fight against Ebola.

Forbes magazine lists Zuckerberg, 30, as the 11th richest person in the United States with a personal fortune estimated at $32 billion.

The first made in Japan passenger jet in four decades reaches a development milestone later this week.

A "rolling out" ceremony in Nagoya, central Japan on Saturday will unveil the long awaited Mitsubishi Regional Jet, or MRJ, a fuel-efficient lightweight carbon-fiber composite passenger plane.

Major Japanese machinery maker Mitsubishi Heavy Industries says the MRJ90 will seat 88 people, while the MRJ70 will seat 76, and the planned MRJ100X will have 100 seats.

The plane is billed as fuel-efficient, quiet and green, with a comfortable cabin of relatively wide seats and high ceilings.

The first flight is planned for the second quarter of next year, with test flights to follow totaling 2,500 hours, and the first deliveries are set for 2017.

MRJ has received 191 orders, from All Nippon Airways, Trans State Holdings, SkyWest, Air Mandalay and Eastern Air Line with 184 additional purchase options.

Japan Airlines announced in August it will buy 32 of the jets, with deliveries set for 2021, although the final deal has not yet been inked.

Mitsubishi has struggled to obtain orders, and initially attracted almost no interest even though it approached dozens of potential customers.

The regional-jet industry targets mostly North American and European markets, and is expected to be lucrative. But competition is intense, including from the Embraer E-Jet family and CRJ700 and CRJ900 from Bombardier, as well as newcomers.

More than 5,000 deliveries of regional jets are expected over the next 20 years, according to Mitsubishi, whose aircraft division is called Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp.

Japan's regional rival China has two commercial jet aircraft projects underway, the first of which, the ARJ21, is now ready for delivery, according to manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, also known as Comac. The plane, with room for up to 90 passengers, had been promised for 2007, but technical problems led to years of delay.

Comac's larger single-aisle C919 is even more ambitious, intended to compete with Boeing's 737 and the Airbus A320, with room for as many as 168 passengers and a range of up to 5,100 kilometers (3,200 miles). The plane's official delivery date hasn't been announced.

Mitsubishi and other Japanese manufacturers are longtime partners with U.S. airplane maker Boeing Co., and made main components for the 787 Dreamliner.

But having a home grown jet is a source of pride in Japan, whose prized aircraft creations have included the wartime Zero fighter.

Major automaker Honda Motor Co. is planning its own jet, the HondaJet, its first foray into aeronautics, although it's much smaller, seating only several passengers. A production model went on display earlier this year, and it's aiming to go into service next year.

The MRJ engine is supplied by Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies.

[readon1 url="http://news.yahoo.com/first-japan-passenger-jet-4-decades-rolling-050153752.html"]Source:news.yahoo.com[/readon1]

Paging through the famed record book's 60th edition one is struck by two things: first, the number of weird things people do to get themselves into the book, and second, how many records people in Latin America hold.

The Guinness Book of World Records has released its 60th edition for 2015 and leafing through the pages one is struck by two things: first, the number of weird things people do to get in the book, and second, how many records people in Latin America hold.

From the largest enchilada to the world’s highest suspension bridge to the most likes on Facebook, the region is ripe with record setters who go above and beyond the normal to have their names in the famed book.

If one country in the region – and the world, for that matter – can claim to be the epicenter of record-setters it would be Mexico. The country has for years had a national obsession for breaking obscure records, from the most people kissing simultaneously (39,897 on Valentine’s Day 2009) to the most mariachi musicians ever gathered in one place (about 549 in August 2009), it's a country infatuated with getting into the book.

Mexico, however, doesn’t always hold records that are admirable, as the case of Manuel Uribe attests to. For some the World’s Heaviest Man, peaking at 1,230 pounds, before his death at 867 pounds back in May 2014. (What do you expect however from the country that made the largest pork taco, at about 240 feet long and weighing 330,000 pounds in November 2011?)

Ambiguous records, too. Such as the country being the home of the person with the most Harry Potter memorabilia.

But other countries in the region are writing their names in the records as well, with such feats as a 664-yard long pound cake made in Colombia, the largest group of people taking part in a "full body" aerobics workout routine in a Peruvian prison yard, and the highest number of lightning strikes per square kilometer per year at Venezuela’s Catatumbo River mount, which notched an impressive 3,600 flashes per hour (or 1.2 million a year).

Colombian singer Shakira hit the record book when she became the most ‘liked’ person on Facebook in April. She also broke records when she became the first person to reach 100 million likes on Facebook.

Brazil has the record of the most murders in absolute terms and Honduras holds the record of the most murders per capita, while the Dominican Republic is known as the deadliest place to travel by road.

If as an American, you are feeling left out by failing to hold the record for the longest fruitcake in the world (Nicaragua, at 1,640 feet) or the most telescopes pointed simultaneously at the moon (2,753 telescopes in Mexico), we can rest assured that we still have the highest score on Donkey Kong (Hank Chien with 1,138,600 points), the greatest distance travelled with a pool cue balanced on your chin (5,472 feet, 9 inches by Ashrita Furman in Jamaica, New York) and the greatest recorded weight of apples collected in eight hours (15,830 pounds picked by George Adrian of Indianapolis, Indiana).

How do you like them apples, Mexico?

[readon1 url="http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/lifestyle/2014/10/15/guinness-world-records-book-turns-60-and-latin-america-dominates-its-pages/"]Source:latino.foxnews.com[/readon1]

On October 31 Mary L. Yost will present two lectures on PAD in Mexico. At the General Session on Peripheral Arterial Disease, Management from Claudication to Critical Limb Ischemia, Yost will discuss “Socioeconomic Consequences of Three Mexican Epidemics: Diabetes, Peripheral Arterial Disease and Critical Limb Ischemia.”

In addition to providing estimates of the number of Mexican citizens afflicted with PAD and critical limb ischemia (CLI), the discussion highlights the unique characteristics of diabetes in Mexico. These are believed to predispose this population to developing chronic complications, including PAD. Yost will also talk about the close relationship between diabetes and CLI and provide estimates of the number of CLI-related amputations in Mexico. The lecture also includes preliminary estimates of the economic cost of PAD and emphasizes the need for Mexican cost data.

During the Merck-sponsored Academic Session on the Epidemiology of Peripheral Arterial Disease and Diabetes, she will speak on the “Diabetes Epidemic in Mexico: What is the Impact on Peripheral Arterial Disease, Critical Limb Ischemia and Amputations?”

This lecture expands on the close interrelationships among diabetes, PAD, CLI and amputation. Yost explains why PAD is one of the most expensive chronic diseases and elaborates on the costs and adverse patient outcomes of CLI-amputations.

“I am honored to have this opportunity to present our research on PAD and CLI in Mexico to this distinguished audience of international angiologists and vascular surgeons,” said Ms. Yost. “PAD has been characterized as a ‘global pandemic’. Its rapid spread reflects a combination of factors, particularly the worldwide epidemic of diabetes and the aging population. Unfortunately, Mexico is not immune to these trends.”

The XLVI National Congress of Angiology and Vascular Surgery will be held October 28-November 1, 2014 at the Hilton Hotel in Guadalajara, Jalisco Mexico. For additional information visit: http://www.angiologiamexico.com.mx/.

About THE SAGE GROUP

THE SAGE GROUP, a research and consulting company, specializes in atherosclerotic disease in the lower limbs, specifically PAD, CLI, intermittent claudication (IC), Acute Limb Ischemia (ALI) and ischemic DFU. The most recent research focuses on quantifying the economic and social costs of PAD, CLI and amputation. For additional information visit www.thesagegroup.us.

Contact:
THE SAGE GROUP, Atlanta
Harrington Witherspoon, 404/816-0746
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

From greenlighting movies to anchoring the most watched news program in L.A. (it's not in English), these leading execs and talent are changing Hollywood

This story first appeared in the Oct. 17 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.

If demographic trends continue, in three or four decades, THR will be printing a list of the 25 most powerful Anglos in entertainment … and it'll be written in Spanish. For the time being, though, only a fraction of decision-makers in Hollywood are Hispanic, even though Hispanics are becoming a bigger and bigger part of the audience every year (by 2050, Latinos will make up 30 percent of the U.S. population). That makes the people on these pages all the more extraordinary: They've been able to accrue power -- defined here as the ability to impact the culture -- in an industry that doesn't always have an open-door policy toward minorities. After consulting with Latino and entertainment leaders and observers, THR ranked the top 25.

1. Nina Tassler
Chairman, CBS Entertainment
Her power only has continued to grow since her promotion from president in February. Overseeing TV's No. 1 network means that Tassler, 57, whose mother is Puerto Rican, has a huge influence over the consumption habits of a plurality of Americans (something she learned while developing the CSI and NCIS franchises more than a decade ago). She certainly started her new job right by presiding over CBS' drama-free late-night handoffs while shepherding a full summer slate and expanding emphasis on limited series and live events.

Read more CBS Chief Nina Tassler Talks Courting New 'Late Late Show' Host James Corden

2. Cesar Conde
Executive vp, NBCUniversal
Conde, 40, left Univision in 2013 to become the highest-ranking Latino at NBCUniversal, where his job is to identify international opportunities, particularly in Latin America and Asia. But he's not just jetting around the globe scouting theme park locations; he also is reassessing the company's digital strategy. "As the Latino population has grown, so too have the opportunities," he says. "The trend of Hispanics being named to top roles in this industry is just the beginning."

3. Jennifer Lopez
Actress, musician, producer and chief creative officer of NUVOtv
J.Lo's empire covers every conceivable aspect of media and entertainment, both in front of and behind the camera as well as onstage and in the boardroom. Sure, her rom-com career hasn't exactly been flourishing (whose has?), but this summer saw the American Idol judge, 45, release her eighth studio album, A.K.A., as well as the official 2014 World Cup anthem "We Are One (Ole Ola)," recorded with fellow listmaker Pitbull (No. 17). Her production company Nuyorican Productions (a nod to her Puerto Rican-by-way-of-New York roots) is behind her upcoming starring vehicle The Boy Next Door, ABC Family's groundbreaking drama The Fosters (which earned Lopez GLAAD's Vanguard Award in April) and NBC's 2015 cop drama Shades of Blue, which has nabbed a straight-to-series order from the network. Nuyorican also has a slew of shows with NUVOtv, a millennial-focused English-language Latino cable network that named her its chief creative officer in 2013 (she owns a minority stake in the company). And then, of course, there are her branded businesses, which include a fragrance line (which has grossed nearly $2 billion since its 2002 launch) and a best-selling collection of apparel, accessories and home furnishings for Kohl's. Oh, and one more job description to add to her crowded nameplate: author, when her memoir, True Love, is released in November.

Read more Barry Levinson to Direct, Exec Produce NBC's Jennifer Lopez Drama 'Shades of Blue'

4. Alfonso Cuaron
Writer-director
After Gravity's $716 million worldwide gross -- and those Oscars -- Cuaron, 52, pretty much can write his own ticket in Hollywood. But the Mexican director had some trouble getting off the launchpad; 10 years ago, he was all but broke before J.K. Rowling handpicked him to direct the third Harry Potter movie.

5. Robert Rodriguez
Writer, director, producer and founder of El Rey Network
There are Latino directors whose films have made more money (see Alfonso Cuaron). There are Latinos whose TV ventures have been more high-profile (see Guillermo del Toro). But Rodriguez, 46, is the one filmmaker on this list who thinks most like a mogul. "People have always asked me how to get to Latinos' wallets," he says. "It was never about putting more Latinos in more shows. You've got to get them here" -- he touches his heart -- "by giving them characters to fall in love with." And now the guy who pretty much invented the super low-budget indie movie (shooting his breakthrough 1992 film El Mariachi for a mere $7,000, much of which he scrounged up as a guinea pig for new pharmaceuticals like Lipitor) has launched his own English-language crossover cable TV network, El Rey, with a $72 million investment from Univision and a war chest estimated at more than $100 million. It's still early going -- El Rey (Spanish for "The King") arrived on the dial just last year. But series like From Dusk Till Dawn (spun off from Rodriguez's extra-gory vampire films) are generating big-time buzz.

Read more 'Jane the Virgin' Star Gina Rodriguez Wants to Be the Latino Meryl Streep

6. Guillermo del Toro
Writer-director-producer
When he first came to Hollywood, "everyone tried to limit me to drama or comedy with a 'Latin' slant," says del Toro, 50. "But I wanted to be free to explore my worlds the way any other filmmaker did." Mission accomplished, with such films as Pan's Labyrinth (which won three Oscars) and Pacific Rim (a sequel is in the works). Plus, he now has added a hit TV show to his resume with FX's The Strain.

7. Armando Nunez
President-CEO, CBS Global Distribution Group
A member of Leslie Moonves' inner circle for 15 years -- "pound for pound, one of the best executives in town," his boss has called him -- Nunez, 53, oversees the global and domestic distribution of one of the biggest TV content libraries in the biz.

8. Alex Garcia
Executive vp production, Legendary Entertainment
Even before his promotion this year -- he's been at the studio since 2009 -- Garcia, 37, produced movies (Godzilla and Michael Mann's upcoming cyber thriller Blackhat) with an eye toward global domination. And now, with a $250 million infusion from SoftBank, he's certainly got the resources to think big. Latinos' growing industry role "mirrors the ever expanding marketplace," says Garcia.

9. Sofia Vergara
Actress
Vergara, 42, has turned her Modern Family celebrity into a booming industry, earning $30 million in endorsements, from Diet Pepsi to Kmart. She co-founded Latin World Entertainment, which in 2012 handled 87 percent of Spanish-language endorsements in America. "[People] think I have no idea what I can deliver," she recently said, "and [that] ends up costing them more."

10. Jorge Ramos
Anchor, Univision
"He's our Walter Cronkite," says National Hispanic Media Coalition president and CEO Alex Nogales. Meaning that when Ramos, 56, talks, more than 2 million Spanish-speaking households across North America listen. In L.A., Ramos' program frequently has more viewers than the English-language newscasts.

Read more Simon Cowell Sells Latino Boy Band Reality Competition to Univision

11. Alejandro G. Inarritu
Writer-director
Though the jury still is out on Birdman (it closes the New York Film Festival on Oct. 11), there's already Oscar talk. But then there almost always is for Inarritu, 51, whose Biutiful and Amores Perros received foreign language nominations and whose Babel was nominated for best director and picture.

12. Zoe Saldana
Actress
With three Avatar sequels on the way, another Guardians of the Galaxy movie and Star Trek 3 in the works, Saldana, 36, arguably is the most successful action movie actress ever. But what she really wants to do is produce; her banner, Cinestar Productions, signed a first-look deal last year with Pantelion to develop film and TV projects for Hispanic audiences.

Read more Zoe Saldana on 'Avatar' Sequels, Marriage and Race in Hollywood

13. Emilio Azcarraga Jean
President-CEO-chair, Televisa
The 46-year-old Mexican billionaire ($3.1 billion net worth) controls 70 percent of Mexico's TV market and also has been busy up north -- with a Lionsgate joint venture and a five-year, 12-series production pact with Sony Pictures TV, not to mention his longtime relationship with Univision.

14. Eva Longoria
Actress-producer
Since Desperate Housewives ended in 2012, the Mexican-American actress, 39, has kept busy pro­ducing. Her Universal-based UnbeliEVAble Entertainment is behind the primetime soap Devious Maids, which Lifetime has renewed for a third season.

15. Alberto Ciurana and Isaac Lee
Programming and content president, Univision; president, Univision News
On five nights in the last week of September, Univision beat at least one (sometimes more) of the big networks in the 18-to-34 demographic. Much of the credit for that goes to Ciurana, 58, and Lee, 43, who run the strongest units in North America's No. 1 Spanish-language network.

16. Luis Silberwasser, Jacqueline Hernandez and Jorge Hidalgo
President, Telemundo; chief marketing officer Hispanic Enterprises and Content, NBCUni; and executive vp sports, Telemundo

Silberwasser, 49, has one mission: Overtake Univision. Hidalgo, 51, has done his part, helping nab the World Cup from 2015 to 2022, while Hernandez, 48, serves as a bridge between Telemundo and parent company NBCUni.

17. Pitbull
Musician, record producer
"I don't think I do Latin music," says the multiplatinum 33-year-old singer, who had a single (with J.Lo) named the official song of the 2014 World Cup. "Call it global music if you want."

Read more Power of Pitbull: 'Timber' Rapper Reveals Plan to Become Next Billion-Dollar Brand

18. Eugenio Derbez
Actor, writer and director
He's the most famous Latino performer that non-Hispanics have never heard of. In fact, the 52-year-old Mexican has the highest Q-rating in the U.S. among Spanish-speaking Latinos. But he finally got Hollywood's attention in 2013, when his tiny $5.5 million bachelor-and-kid comedy, Instructions Not Included (which he wrote, directed and starred in) grossed more than $44 million, overtaking Guillermo del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth as North America's most successful Spanish-language film. Soon, English-speaking audiences will get to know him, too: In September, he signed a first-look deal with Pantelion Films, the Lionsgate and Grupo Televisa joint venture that distributed Instructions, to develop Spanish- and English-language movies for Latino and crossover audiences in the U.S.

19. Roberto Orci
Writer-producer
Orci, 41, has his hands in everything from Transformers and Spider-Man to Fringe and Sleepy Hollow, and is about to make his directorial debut with Star Trek 3.

20. Jose Valle, Raul Alarcon and Walter Ulloa
President, Univision Radio; president, Spanish Broadcasting System; chairman and CEO, Entravision
Together, these three men run a combined 144 Spanish-language radio stations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

21. Belinda Menendez
President, NBCU International TV Distribution & Universal Networks International
Menendez speaks multiple languages (Spanish being one, of course), which comes in handy for this exec in charge of NBCU's international channels as well as global distribution of its 100,000 TV episodes and 4,000 films.

22. Shakira
Singer-songwriter
As of this writing, the 37-year-old singer, who is in the middle of a 10-year, $30 million deal with Live Nation, is the most "liked" celebrity on Facebook (104.7 million).

Read more Shakira Album Release Party: Talks New Music, Love and Having 86 Million Facebook Friends

23. Rita Tuzon
General counsel, Fox Network
Tuzon, 55, was Rupert Murdoch's mouthpiece in battles against Dish's Hopper and against former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt.

24. Soledad O'Brien
Journalist
Her Starfish Media Group has deals with HBO and Al Jazeera America, and its PTSD doc The War Comes Home aired on CNN in August.

25. Marla Provencio
Executive vp marketing and chief marketing officer, ABC
"Early on, within executive suites, it was a challenge to find diverse women, let alone Latina women," says Provencio, who launched Agents of SHIELD and built Thursday night into Shonda Rhimes' empire. "Today, the industry is starting to reflect the world we live in."

[readon1 url="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/nina-tassler-jennifer-lopez-more-738489"]Source:www.hollywoodreporter.com[/readon1]

Now available from US Labor Department - Applications are due by Friday, Nov. 7

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs today announced a $1,389,000 competitive solicitation for a project to assist the government of Mexico to combat labor discrimination by supporting enforcement of the strengthened anti-discrimination provisions in Mexico's Federal Labor Law Reform of 2012.

"Countries like Mexico are making welcome progress in reforming laws to better protect workers from discrimination and harassment based on gender or sexual orientation," said Carol Pier, deputy undersecretary of labor for international affairs. "This project will support the Mexican government's efforts to more effectively enforce such non-discrimination provisions of the Mexican Federal Labor Law Reform of 2012."

The goal is to increase compliance with the expanded protections against labor discrimination under Mexican labor law, with a specific focus on combating gender discrimination, forced pregnancy testing, sexual harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation.
The project will focus on improving enforcement of these protections by labor inspectors, increasing employer participation in government social compliance programs that incorporate best practices to combat labor discrimination, and raising public awareness of the recent legal reforms on labor discrimination.

To achieve the project's goal, the successful grantee will:
revise existing inspection methodologies and materials to reflect the 2012 legal reforms,
develop an electronic module on such labor discrimination for incorporation into the existing electronic inspection planning and tracking system,train labor inspectors,incorporate best practices for combating labor discrimination into existing social compliance programs and provide support for their expansion, and
design and implement public awareness campaigns.

Any commercial, international, educational or nonprofit organization(s), including any faith-based, community-based or public international organization capable of successfully implementing the activities outlined in the solicitation is eligible to apply.

Applications must be submitted in English by Friday, Nov. 7, at 4 p.m. EDT electronically via http://www.grants.gov or in hard copy to the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of Grants Management, Attention: Donna Kelly, Grant Officer, Reference SCA-14-25, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room N-4716, Washington, DC 20210.

The award will be made by Dec. 31. The funding opportunity announcement (SCA-14-25) is available online at http://www.grants.gov and http://www.dol.gov/ilab/grants/.

News Release
ILAB News Release: [10/14/2014]
Contact Name: Egan Reich or Chelsea Brint
Phone Number: (202) 693-4960 or x4661
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Release Number: 14-1945-NAT

Join us on Wednesday, October 22, from 4–5 p.m. EST for a Twitter party all about the best culinary destinations to travel to this winter! We'll be tweeting with a panel of experts—a diverse group of food editors, writers, photographers, and chefs—who travel the globe in the pursuit of incredible food. Take part in the conversation with the hashtag #CulinaryEscapes. RSVP using the form below for the chance to win an amazing prize: a getaway for two to Puerto Vallarta with round trip airfare from the U.S. and a three-night stay at an all-inclusive resort! Expert panelists include:

Lindsay Anderson and Dana V., bloggers, FEAST: An Edible Road Trip; @feast_on
Julia Bainbridge, food editor, Yahoo Food; @yahoofood
Javier Cabral, restaurant scout, LA Times; @theglutster
Robyn Eckhardt and David Hagerman, writer and photographer, Eating Asia; @EatingAsia
Erica Hueneke, editor in chief, Destination Weddings & Honeymoons; @destweddingmag
Stephanie Le, blogger, iamafoodblog; author of Easy Gourmet; @iamafoodblog
Shane Mitchell, contributing editor, SAVEUR; @shanegoesforth
Lauren Mowery, travel, food, and wine writer, Chasing the Vine; @chasingthevine
Bao Ong, food writer; @baohaus
Pichet Ong, pastry chef; @pichetong
Katie Parla, Rome-based food writer; co-author of Really Roman; @katieparla
Pavia Rosati, travel and food writer; founder, Fathom; @pavianyc
David Rosengarten, journalist and wine writer; @d_rosengarten
Penny de los Santos, NYC-based travel and food photographer; @pennydelosantos
Krista Simmons, food editor at LAist.com; @kristasimmons
Mike Sutter, food writer and blogger, Fed Man Walking; @fedmanwalking

GRAND PRIZE: Three (3) night stay for two at an all-inclusive property in Puerto Vallarta, including round-trip airfare from a major U.S. city

WHEN: Wednesday, October 22, 2014, 4–5 p.m. EST

WHERE: Follow the conversation on Twitter using #CulinaryEscapes. Party hosted exclusively by @saveurmag along with @PVvisit.

FOLLOW: @saveurmag

PARTY HASHTAG: #CulinaryEscapes