PUBLIC HEARING ON VENDERS

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A series of public hearings on vendors will be held at 6 p.m. on Monday, March 20, at the St. thomas Taxi Association Hall. The moratorium on itinerant/mobile vendors will be discussed and other issues affecting vendors.
All vendors and interested persons are invited to attend. for further information contact the Division of Licensing at 774-3130.

SCENE & HERD — MARCH 16, 2000

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BLUES NEWS: Anybody into the blues is probably already aware that The Butanes are in the midst of a Virgin Islands tour — but maybe not. Listen up, then: The group, which spent last weekend on St. Croix, will be at the Hard Rock Cafe Thursday night, and at Iggie's Beach Bar & Grill at the Bolongo Bay Beach Club Sunday afternoon.
Audiences and fellow blues artists tend to be surprised that The Butanes, who have cultivated a loyal following over 15 years, are based in Minneapolis. Band leader/guitarist Curtis Obeda started his musical career in the Twin Cities but did get some exposure to Chicago-style blues along the way. He's equally at home coaxing long Albert King-style double stop bends out of his guitar or playing rapid-fire single notes in the style of B.B. King.
Much in demand by top blues solo artists, The Butanes have played behind John Lee Hooker, Bo Diddley and Percy Sledge. They were there with Fenton Robinson at Duluth's Bayfront Blues Festival when National Public Radio recorded him for its program "Blues Stage." The four-member group has played with guitar legend Earl King at the last 10 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festivals, toured and recorded with him, and even played with him four years ago at the first St. Croix Blues and Heritage Festival — it says so right there in their bio!
Also in the bio: "Grammy-award winning Zydeco accordionist Al Rapone has completed East Coast, West Coast, Midwest, Caribbean and Alaskan tours since 1992 with The Butanes disguised as the Zydeco Express" band. (It doesn't mention that one Caribbean stop was on St. Thomas last year for Beach Jam 1999 — or that Rapone and company played at the late Barnacle Bill's a few years back.)
Promotion materials typically include quoted snippets of praise from professional critics. What The Butanes offer is a pageful of "what they said" comments from blues headliners they've played with. Examples: Al Rapone, after people inquire what Louisiana town the band is from: "They're from the Northern bayou — it's not on any map." Earl King, when asked why he used Minnesota musicians at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival: "I do songs with them I wouldn't even try with other guys." And Bo Diddley, whose contract specified no encore, when the band agreed to do one on its own because the crowd refused to budge: "Do you mind if I play, too?"
The band's reputation is based on its technical ability combined with its soulfulness of spirit. When The Butanes play, as the bio puts it, "the dance floor stays crowded, the bartender stays busy, and all eyes stay fixed on the stage." The Hard Rock gig Thursday is from 8 p.m. to midnight. Sunday's beach jam at Bolongo Bay starts at noon and goes to sunset. There's no cover at either venue.
GREEN SCENES: The date in honor of Ireland's patron saint fortuitously falls on a Friday this year, so every watering hole that cares to rechristen itself an Irish pub is looking to attract patrons in the mood for St. Paddy's Day partying into the wee hours. The emphasis is on drink specials, with assorted pub crawls being promoted. Here's where there's more going on:
On St. Thomas. . .
The most ostentatiously Irish food and drink emporium (year 'round) these days is Molly Molones, owned and operated by the senior Frank Brittingham, who used to do the same thing in Philadelphia, then brought Irish pubbery to St. Thomas some years back in the personification of Finn McCool's. This will be the first Caribbean St. Patrick's Day celebration at Molly's, in the American Yacht Harbor complex, replete with a St. Thomas-style Paddy's parade.
Friday's lineup of live music kicks off at noon. The "direct from Ireland " musicians are Sean O'Neil from County Tyrone, Ritchie Dowling from County Claire and Cletus McBride and Company, who previously played at McCool's. O'Neill and Dowling will perform from noon to 3 p.m. Foxy Callwood, the most Irish musician in all of Jost Van Dyke, takes over from 3 to 5. Then Sun Mountain Fiddler Dick Solberg — who's been playing to appreciative audiences at Latitude 18 and a lot of other spots this winter — is booked from 5 to 6. The local folk group Harmony Dem will perform from 6 to 7.
McBride and Company, Irish step dancer Chrissy Dunham, other local musicians and Irish videos will be featured anytime the other artists are not at the mike. Irish food and drink will be available throughout the day. Brittingham notes that he stocks "the most extensive line of Irish whiskeys anywhere around" — 18 varieties, including the top-of-the-line Midlands, which goes for $25 a shot. Also, he notes, his Irish coffee recipe "won awards 15 years in a row" back in Philly. The menu, in effect every day, includes not only corned beef and cabbage but also shepherd's pie, ham and cabbage, a farmhouse mixed grill and fodg, an Irish fried bread.
In good island style, the St. Paddy's parade will take place not on Friday, when folks with regular jobs mightn't be able to make it, but on Sunday at 1 p.m. The march around the main American Yacht Harbor parking lot and brickways will step off from and end at Molly's, "where you'll enjoy Irish grog and revelry," the publicity proclaims.
Elsewhere, the Hard Rock Cafe will be serving corned beef and cabbage for lunch and Solberg will be fiddling there from 1 to 4 p.m. before heading to the East End. And at Tickle's in Crown Bay, in the midst of the week-long guest chefs celebration that culminates in a culinary competition on Sunday, there'll be corned beef and cabbage from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and music in the evening by Stevie Legend on keyboards/vocals.
To mark St. Paddy's Day at the island's most English outpost, the Toad & Tart, proprietor Anna Clarke deadpans, "We'll be doing what we always do — Christmas dinner. Turkey and stuffing and all that." Um, why? "Just because we feel like it. We're not Irish." She promises the price will be "very affordable — under $20."
And on St. John. . .
Skinny Legs in Coral Bay will be serving corned beef and cabbage from 5 to 9 p.m. And, co-owner Doug Sica notes, Sun Mountain Fiddler Solberg, who "plays here once a year," will be doing so on Sunday from 5 to 8 p.m.
In Cruz Bay, the Quiet Mon Pub is organizing the third annual St. Paddy's parade. It's to start at noon between the tennis courts and the Texaco station and proceed the couple of blocks to the pub, where the kitchen offerings will include corned beef and cabbage and Irish stew from 11:30 a.m. There'll also be corned beef and cabbage at The Front Yard.
CEAP CALLS OFF MEMORIAL DAY JAM: Cause Effective Arts Program person-in-charge Steve Bornn has given up on staging a big-name world music event on St. Thomas over the Memorial Day weekend. Reportedly just back from an exploratory trip to Trinidad to check out talent, he says the not-for-profit CEAP was unable to mobilize the corporate backing needed to pull the event off.
The organization's first presentation was Beach Jam '99 on Magens Bay beach, held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day last year. Featuring Tito Puente with his band and Al Rapone and Zydeco Express, the day-long event was well attended but lost money, CEAP officials have said. CEAP's only other activity to date was presenting the Danish Polcalypso Orchestra in a round of local performances last summer.
Bornn had been promoting his plans to mount a day-long event on the date the Memorial Day holiday is observed this year — Monday, May 29 — at the Crown Bay dock, which he had yet to get permission to use. No confirmed performer bookings had been announced.
NO FUN FOR THE FUNKATEERS? Meantime, also unannounced are any plans by anybody to put together any sort of on-land music event on Tuesday, May 30, when the SS Norway wil l bring a couple thousand "Old School funkateers" to St. Thomas on The Tom Joyner Foundation's private booking of the cruise ship for Fantastic Voyage 2000. This is what the territory is getting in lieu of a second annual week-long Sinbad Soul Music Festival (Sinbad canceled earlier this year, also citing lack of sponsorship).
The Norway is scheduled to be in port from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m. Then it crosses to St. Croix, where it will be at Frederiksted from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, May 31. The ship makes no other ports of call on the seven-day cruise out of Miami except for a half day at a private island in the Bahamas owned by the cruise line. Aboard with Joyner will be Miss Dupree, J. Anthony Brown, Myra J and Sybil Wilkes — and more likely than not, Sinbad. Do no entrepreneurs in the territory — does not the Tourism Department — think thousands of fun-minded African-American tourists might enjoy getting off the ship to party for a reasonable price, as well as to shop? The Tuesday itinerary is made for staying ashore for night-time out-and-abouting. But if nothing's organized — and promoted — you know where they're likely to go: back to the ship.
ON THE WALLS: Donald Laurent Dahlke's new show at Mango Tango is what art appreciators have come to expect from the former St. Croix artist, who has been exhibiting twice yearly of late at the Raphune Hill gallery: more of the same, but a bit different.
There are nine oils of his airborne characters creating their own traffic jams a hundred feet or so above clapboard shacks on the beach below. The usual suspects — musicians, market women, dinghy rowers, a bicyclist, umbrella holders — populate the deep blue skies. Six of the works are larger than those he usually does in this genre.
And there are eight portal paintings, Dahlke's signature views from outside a shadow- dappled structure through an open door or window, across the murky interior, and out again into the sunlight through a window on the opposite wall. Here, viewers find a distinct variation on the theme: While five of the pieces look typically Caribbean, three of them clearly convey a Hispanic setting — through painted tiles, flagstones, religious imagery and, in once case, a bold use of red and yellow for the building's exterior. And the exterior vista seen through the far windows of these three is not the typical Caribbean sea, but landscapes of rolling green hills with cactus or trees in the foreground.
Granted, these architectural images could be from Old San Juan or Santo Domingo, but it turns out that they are not. Their inspiration is from Mexico, where Dahlke has recently been spending a lot of time painting — specifically in San Miguel de Allende. The Mexican environment has also inspired the artist's five oil monochromes on white-painted canvas. Called "Aztec Visions," the pieces are figurative designs incorporating mostly curved surfaces.
Part of the appeal of a Don Dahlke exhibition is its variety of mediums and styles — all the artist's own, yet all very different. In addition to the airborne characters, the portals and the Aztec designs, this show has five colorful pop computer-art pieces that picture bizarre human-ish images that come across as mostly amiable aliens, not much like you or me, but not threatening or disturbing, either. Rounding out the show are eight pencil and/or pen-and-ink drawings that do give the viewer pause — to ponder the significance of bodies with multiple heads, an inchworm being with a human foot at one end and a full-face mask at the other.
Dahlke through years of continuing growth within the realm of recognition has earned a loyal following. His largest piece, an almost-life-size portal priced at $11,000, didn't sell at the opening reception Sunday. But his third-largest, tagged at $5,200, did. Other works range from $125 (for the computer art) to $5,800 (for another large portal). The show will hang through April 8.
THE EAT BEAT: Tickles at Crown Bay winds up its guest chefs week Sunday with a day-long "Ticklefest" from 11 a.m. until that includes competitions for best drink and best food, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Victim Advocate program, and lot of music.
The best drink contest is at 3 p.m. An hour later, chefs from the luxury yachts and charter vessels at the marina will submit their entries for the culinary competition. Among those taking part are Kevin Rico of the Lady Allison, Christoph Scherer of Daybreak, Scott Schwaner of Excellence II and "Dan" of Belle Rhonda. "The dishes they will enter that day are a secret," Tickles general manager Peter Zachko says.
Confirmed for the entertainment line-up are musicians Erin Alain, Paul Borghi, Greg Certo, Sonny G., Greg Greer, Stevie Legend, Mar, Bob Meadows, Public Nuisance and Lee Whalen; plus juggling and a magic act by Steve Prosterman.
BIG SCREEN SCENES: The three scheduled showings this weekend of Speaking in Strings, the Academy Award-nominated documentary feature film produced by St. Thomas daughter Lilibet Foster, turns out to be a double feature. Sharing the bill is another film screened last month at the Reichhold Center for the Arts as part of the premiere International Film and Video Festival, La petite vendeuse de Soleil, which translates to "The Girl Who Sold the Sun." The 45-minute video documentary, the last work directed by the late Senegalese filmmaker Djibril Diop Mambety, focuses on a paraplegic girl who sells newspapers (The Sun) in a bustling Dakar marketplace. While the premise might sound like a downer, the picture conveys the resilience and resourcefulness of "the little people" in a world of corrupt authority and mean- mindedness.
Speaking in Strings, a 75-minute film, documents the art and life of flamboyant classical violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg. It is one of five contenders for the best documentary feature Oscar at the Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday, March 26.
Presented by the brand-new V.I. Film Society, the pictures are being shown in the Westin Resort ballroom on Friday and Saturday starting at 7:30 p.m. and at the Sugar Bay Resort on Sunday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 for all showings, with proceeds to benefit the society. Tickets for the St. John showing are available in advance at Connections. Those for St. Thomas are being sold at Color of Joy and the Draughting Shaft in Havensight.
Note: There's no "Cinema Sundays" film at the Reichhold Center this weekend, because the theater is booked for a UVI Humanities Festival program.
ONE CAMPUS, TWO PLAYS: In the coming week, two locally produced plays will open on the St. Thomas campus of the University of the Virgin Islands, for overlapping three- and four-day runs — one on Reichhold Center stage and the other in the Little Theater.
Thursday, March 23, will bring the world premiere of Eddie Donoghue's musical drama "Jankombum," a play about the universal human traits of love, jealousy and betrayal that is set in plantation times in the Danish West Indies and has its focus on the free and enslaved Africans of the time and place. Produced by St. John's Carabana Ensemble Theater Company and directed by Carabana's Clarence Cuthbertson, the play will be presented at the Reichhold. It will have performances as well on Friday and Saturday, March 24 and 25. Tickets are $25 (all seating is in the covered section) and are being sold on St. Thomas at Crystal & Gifts Galore, Modern Music in Havensight, Parrot Fish Music, The Draughting Shaft in Sub Base and on campus at the UVI bookstore and Reichhold box office. On St. John, they're available at Connections.
Friday, March 24, will bring the opening night of Trinidadian playwright Mustapha Matura's "Play Mas." According to UVI theater professor Rosary Harper, the play, situated in Trinidad, is full of "fun and merriment" and focuses on the relationship between an East Indian tailor and his African-Caribbean apprentice . It also, she says, "deals with the important role that annual carnivals play in the various Caribbean cultures — regardless of limited funds and political disturbances, you can't stop carnival!" The play will continue Saturday, Sunday and Monday, March 25-27. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students; they're available at Dockside Bookshop, Education Station and Nisky Pharmacy and on campus at the UVI bookstore and Humanities Division office.
LUNAR TUNES: There are two full-moon music events on tap on St. Thomas.
On Saturday, Island Blitz is doing its monthly thing at Coral World, from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., featuring music by St. John's Cool Sessions Brass and Kary "Starman" Williams with his telescope. Admission is $10 at the door.
And on Sunday, Rotary East is sponsoring a Full Moon Jazz evening starting at 7 p.m. on the Marlin Deck of the main American Yacht Harbor building. Joining keyboardist/singer Sally Smith will be friends Rhett Simmonds on bass, Louis Isaac on percussion, Rusty Vellek on saxophone, and Jerry Harris and "maybe" Joan Bennett on vocals. The emphasis will be on a sambista beat. There's a $5 cover, with desserts and hot and cold drinks available.
CAMPUS CONCERTS: The UVI concert band, concert choir, jazz ensemble and steelband share the Reichhold stage Sunday night for the annual UVI Charter Day concert — this one marking year No. 38 for the land-grant school. The music begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students with I.D.
The following Sunday, March 26, jazz ensemble director and trombonist Martin Lamkin and friends will present Jazz on the Green from 4 to 8 p.m. on the Herman E. Moore Golf Course. Admission for this one is free. Take a blanket or folding chairs and a picnic if you like, along with a container to take your trash away afterward.
GOTTA GET DANCERS: The Reichhold Center is looking for a few good dancers for STARfest 6, which is to have performances May 13-15. The requirements are that you be at least 12 years of age, be a good modern dancer able to take direction, and be available for the required rehearsals and performance dates.
Auditions will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 25, at the V.I. Institute of Performing Arts studios in the Kronprindsens Gade complex. Those wishing to try out are asked to come in dance attire and be on time. For more information, call Malissa Neille at 775-6393 or the Reichhold Center office at 693-1550.
TO BE SEEN BY THE HERD: Scene & Herd appears weekly in the Source, previewing arts and entertainment events open to the public on St. Thomas and St. John. To have material considered for inclusion, submit it in writing by the Monday preceding desired publication date. Fax to 776-4812 or e-mail to jetsinger@viaccess.net.

BRYAN, BATTISTE PLEAD NOT GUILTY

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Former Schneider administration officials Maureen Bryan and Alvin Battiste pleaded not guilty to all charges against them in their arraignment Thursday morning in Territorial Court, following the lead set two weeks ago by former governor Roy L. Schneider and aide Dean Wallace.
This completes not guilty pleas by all four defendants in the charges the government has filed against them of conspiracy, fraud and falsification of records.
Two weeks ago the government opened the case with the arraignment of Schneider and Wallace. Wallace was Schneider's former acting Finance commissioner.
The charges against the four stemmed from the use of government funds to pay for a room at Frenchman's Reef after Hurricane Marilyn that was occupied by Walter Brunner, a consultant to the government. The room was registered in the name of Jean Greaux, who at the time was a Government House information officer and considered an essential government employee.
Bryan, who was Schneider's former executive assistant, was represented by attorney Gary M. Alizzeo of the law firm Dudley, Topper and Feuerzeig.
Battiste, until last month director of management and budget for the Governor's Office, was represented by attorney Leonard B. Francis. Battiste has been transferred to the Public Works Department.
Both Francis and Alizzeo asked Swan for a "speedy" jury trial.
Joseph Arellano, one Schneider's defense attorneys, added, "if it goes to trial."
There appears to be some doubt that the case will proceed to trial, with a flurry of motions coming from defense attorneys.
Arellano asked Swan for early hearing dates for motions for probable cause and on the statute of limitations. Both matters were brought up in the earlier arraignments.
Schneider was not present at the proceedings though his wife, Barbara, was in the audience.
Swan set 10 a.m. Tuesday, March 21, at the Justice Department conference room for the attorneys to present their discoveries — the evidence to be introduced at the trial.
The attorneys have 45 days after the Tuesday meeting to file motions. The date for jury selection is tentatively set for Monday, June 5.
Swan touched again Thursday on the possibility of recusing himself, something he spoke about at length at Schneider's arraignment two weeks ago.
He made no definitive statement but noted that attorney Rhys Hodge, recently appointed to the bench, probably would not be available for "at least three months," until he closes his private practice.

$4 MILLION IN DRUGS CONFISCATED

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As the result of a drug seizure Wednesday, $4 million worth of illegal drugs are off the streets of the Virgin Islands.
Federal agents and local police officers confiscated 360 pounds of marijuana and 324 pounds of cocaine from No. 65 Agnes Fancy.
No arrests were made during the raid, primarily because no one was at the residence when the agents descended on it.
The anti-drug initiative was carried out by FBI agents and officers in the Safe Streets Task Force, which includes local police, FBI agents and federal marshals.
An FBI spokeswoman said the raid was one of the largest that her agency has been involved in in the territory. The agents were acting on information that "drug trafficking activity was taking place at No. 65 Agnes Fancy," the press statement said.
The confiscated drugs are being kept in FBI custody in a secure facility in Puerto Rico, the release noted.

MAKE CARNIVAL MORE CHILD FRIENDLY

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Do things change in the Virgin Islands or do they remain the same? This column was originally placed on-line in May 99 and encouraged our community to look at making Carnival "child friendly". As we approach Carnival 2000, let’s see if it gets closer to this goal.
The new rule of thumb for communities that want their children to develop into healthy adults is to question everything they do or are planning to do from the perspective "Is it Good for Our Children"? If it does not pass this litmus test, then people with foresight either find a way to make it good for children or abandon the idea and look for another.
I think that Carnival should be put to this test also. We need to ask, is our Carnival celebration good for our children? I asked myself this and there are several areas that I feel could be made more child friendly.
I think we need to explore alternate times, and in some cases days/nights, when we schedule events that are of interest to children. Take the Junior Calypso Tent competition. This event is held on a school night and ends after the legal curfew of 10:00 P.M. This year, I am told, it ended after 11:00 P.M. Couldn’t we find a night when there is no school the next day for this event? If the event must be held on a school night, couldn’t we start it in the late afternoon?
I have a vested interest in this event. You see my daughter is fourteen and has never attended even one Junior Calypso tent. I want her to. I know she would enjoy it, but I am determined to continue making school her first priority and that does not include her being out on a school night when she has homework and early classes the next day. Besides, what about the contestants, don’t we also want them to view school as their first priority? Should we as a community be comfortable with their being tired in school the next day?
Other events that attract young people should also be viewed in the context of whether it is good for our children or not, such as Panorama; can this too be held earlier?
Let us not forget the "Children’s Carnival Village". I am told that my idea of banning adults, particularly males, from the Children’s Village until 10:00 P.M. is unconstitutional, but what about creating a separate area for the games of chance that attract mostly adults. Could we not place the rides in one area and the games of chance in another?
The Childrens’ Parade is another issue. This year, it was sad to see the little four and five year olds wilt because the parade started two hours late. Even when it starts on time there is a significant wait in the staging area by the Waterfront and Franklin’s Building. What are these kids to do about their bodily functions? They drink a lot because they are hot, but it naturally follows that they will have to go the bathroom. Would it be too much to ask that a couple of those portable toilets be placed in the staging area so they could take care of nature’s calls appropriately? Do we really want them to be trained to urinate behind cars as they do now?
Other ideas that we might want to consider are creating a teen section in J’ouvert, rather than their commingling in the larger crowd. Sometimes I have seen unwanted adult male attention that some teens seem unable to avoid. I guess the remedy to that would be for all teens to be accompanied by responsible adults, but this is probably just on my wish list.
There are other aspects of Carnival that are really not child friendly, including allowing children/teen groups into the adult parade. I wish I could change many of them, but there is that Constitutional issue that keeps getting in my way. Let us advocate to make our next Carnival good for children, not just the adults. Let me be the first to say, Happy Carnival 2000!
Editor’s note: Catherine L. Mills of St. Thomas, a former Human Services Commissioner, holds a master’s degree in social work.. You can send comments to her on the articles she writes or topics you would like to see addressed at source@viaccess.

WHO'S LOOKING OUT FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR YOUTH?

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Someone recently told me about how Sen. Hansen won in court against
Beal Aerospace, thus keeping Beal from building their corporate headquarters in Great Pond Bay. They said that Beal was about to appeal, when an area in Florida pitched a good deal to Beal to get them to build over there.
So Beal left.
And the same people bickering not to have Beal bringing their business into the Virgin Islands, are the same people bickering now about not receiving their wages, tax returns, paved roads, and school maintenance.
They boldly blame the government or previous leaders for squandering funds to not provide. Well that does nothing to settle the situation.
My friend said that later on, a friend of his was traveling through Europe, and overheard a conversation between some businessmen who were saying
the Virgin Islands was an unfriendly place to do business.
They specifically mentioned Beal and some other issues. That made me fear for my future livelihood in the Virgin Islands. I do think that it was wrong for them to refuse Beal. The repercussions are drastic.
What big business would come down here if we have such a bad reputation. I don't think the decision was made in the best interest of the youth who will eventually grow in a dying and impoverished Virgin Islands.
That is what this place will be, if we allow things to continue this way. And the hot heads in the senate do whatever they feel would insure their political future rather than the future of the Virgin Islands and those who have to live here.
Beal would have created work. New business would come in. Housing would be needed for the families. Gasoline and grocery purchases would increase.
More flights would have come into St.Croix and St.Thomas to support the rotation of employees. Air cargo and shipping would probably make the biggest money, and reduce the shipping costs in and out of the Virgin
Islands.
Hess and many other businesses would need to employ more people. I don't see how Beal was not going to give back to the community, besides also hiring and training local people. New programs would have probably developed in the University to produce local workers. Local kids could have benefitted from Beal scholarships or guaranteed jobs upon graduation that requires them to work for a certain amount of years locally or elsewhere with Beal, with the option of returning to work in the Virgin Islands.
Did the politicians set up something like that in Beal's contract to do business in the VI?
There are so many ways to make the Virgin Islands better, but we keep fighting ourselves. I could understand if they wanted to preserve the land, but is the land worth the demise of the Virgin Islands?
Did we have better options in a time where the government is going broke, and the Feds are waiting to take over? Conditions are even worse than this one incident.
The government gives too many tax cuts to big businesses. Smaller businesses and the middle income tax payers suffer greatly.
I am sure tax deductions would be less than what we pay, and the government would not be in the condition it is in now if things were done different, and not by what is considered popular.
Beal could have been contracted each year to provide books, computers, or money to the public education system.
It really bothered me that the youth of today had no voice to speak out concerning their future, or someone who would rally in their interest. Who is looking out for us?
B. Bradshaw

CAHS NEW MARCH 16

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Cosmetologists In Action
by Jshurene Gift
One of the career paths here at Charlotte Amalie High School in our
technology preparation programs is Cosmetology Technology. The Cosmetology
Technology pathway includes English 9-12, three years of Math, three years
Science, three years of History, two years of foreign Language, CPR and First Aid, and other elective courses. However, in grades 11 and 12, students must
perform an intense course of study in cosmetology.
This year, the cosmetology class of C.A.H.S. is a perfect example of
"career in action." Students are trained to do hair, nails, skin, and more.
The nine talented students in the class this year are Shanique Frett,
Tireka Thomas, Nesiree Richards, Jolena Harrigan, Taima Harvey, Marlita
Hickson, Claudina Pennyfeather, Rita Ledee, and Maurice Simmonds, the only male.
These students are working hard on a variety of skills. Their hair
designs include finger waves, braids, coloring and perms. They also do manicures, pedicures and skin conditioning.
Headed by Ruth Slaughter, (fondly known by her students as Ms. Ruth) students learn both theory and practice.
In the theory phase of the class, the students study nail structure, hair structure, anatomy, physiology, first aid, chemistry, geometry, business,
and communications. They learn more than just how to prevent and treat
chemical damage on one’s hair and nails.
In the second phase of the class, the students put what they have learned into practice. Starting with work on mannequins, the students also work their magic on teachers and students around the school.
"We are open to the public during third and fourth period, so anyone can
stop by and get their hair or nails done," said Harvey.
"This two-year track prepares the students for the world of work and their business license," said Slaughter.
"From this class I have gained a lot of experience and knowledge about
taking care of myself," says Nesrie Richards.
More than just learning about hairdressing and manicures, the students are learning a trade that can give them extra money even if they do not want to pursue cosmetology as a full time career time job . By benefitting themselves and others, the Cosmetology Class of 2000 demonstrates "cosmetologists in action."
New Science Teachers
by Staff
Charlotte Amalie High School now has two additional science teachers. They are Sheryl Joseph, and Saltieh Said.
Said, who was a former math teacher left, came back, and is currently teaching science. Joseph who taught at a junior high level is now a teacher here.
With more and more teachers becoming part of our staff, it decreases the number of students who have no teacher and were on the path of failing. The CAHS family would like to welcome you into the family. Have a nice stay!

BILL TO CURB POLITICAL HIRES CLEARS COMMITTEE

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Legislation aimed at limiting the number of government employees holding political jobs cleared its first hurdle Wednesday, the Senate Government Operations Committee.
The bill, the brainchild of Senate President Vargrave Richards, would require the governor to determine which positions are exempt and submit that list to the Legislature for approval.
The measure would also repeal a provision of the law which allows employees who serve in an unclassified, or exempt, position for at least two years to apply for a permanent position in the classified service.
Organized labor warmly embraced the bill, noting that in the past governors have used the exempt service to hand out jobs to political supporters, often at higher salaries than their counterparts in the merit system.
Testifying for the administration, Personnel director Joanne Barry told the committee that "titles and parameters of unclassified, or exempt, positions must be clearly identified."
If the measure becomes law, Gov. Charles W. Turnbull will have to submit a list of current position titles considered exempt to the Senate within 90 days.
Barry also said the law allowing the reclassification of exempt workers "has long been a thorn in the side of organized labor." It permits exempt employees moving into classified positions to retain their higher unclassified salaries, thereby creating a situation in which employees performing similar duties are paid at different rates.
The bill will now move to the Rules Committee.
In other action, the committee tabled indefinitely a measure calling for a constitutional convention to be held in December.

BILL TO CURB POLITICAL HIRES APPROVED

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Legislation aimed at limiting the number of government employees holding political jobs cleared its first hurdle Wednesday, the Senate Government Operations Committee.
The bill, the brainchild of Senate President Vargrave Richards, would require the governor to determine which positions are exempt and submit that list to the Legislature for approval.
The measure also repeals a provision of the law which allows employees who serve in an unclassified or exempt position for at least two years to apply for a permanent position in the classified service.
Organized labor warmly embraced the bill noting that in the past, governors have used the exempt service to hand out jobs to political supporters, often at higher salaries than their counterparts in the merit system.
Speaking for the administration, Personnel Director Joanne Barry said that
"titles and parameters of unclassified or exempt positions must be clearly identified."
If the measure becomes law Barry said Gov. Charles W. Turnbull will have to submit a list of all current position titles considered exempt to the Senate within 90 days.
In other testimony, Barry said that the proposal allowing the reclassification of exempt workers "has long been a thorn in the side of organized labor" as it permits an employee to retain his higher unclassified salary which creates a variation in the salary of employees performing similar duties.
The bill will now move to the Rules Committee.
In other action, the committee tabled indefinitely a measure that called for a constitutional convention to be held in December.

BILL MOVES FORWARD TO CURB POLITICAL HIRES

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Legislation aimed at limiting the number of government employees holding political jobs cleared its first hurdle Wednesday, the Senate Government Operations Committee.
The bill, the brainchild of Senate President Vargrave Richards, would require the governor to determine which positions are exempt and submit that list to the Legislature for approval.
The measure also repeals a provision of the law that allows employees who serve in an unclassified or exempt position for at least two years to apply for a permanent position in the classified service.
Organized labor warmly embraced the bill, noting that governors have used the exempt service to hand out jobs to political supporters, often at higher salaries than their counterparts in the merit system. Many of those political appointees wind up being permanent government employees.
Speaking for the administration, Personnel Director Joanne Barry said that "titles and parameters of unclassified or exempt positions must be clearly identified."
If the measure becomes law, Barry said Gov. Charles W. Turnbull will have to submit a list of all current position titles considered exempt to the Senate within 90 days.
Barry said allowing the reclassification of exempt workers "has long been a thorn in the side of organized labor" because it permits an employee to retain the higher unclassified salary while creating a disparity in the salary of employees performing similar duties.
The bill now goes to the Rules Committee.
In other action, the committee tabled indefinitely a measure that called for a constitutional convention to be held in December.