7-Eleven breaking affiliation with CITGO

Joe Negron replaces Mark Foley

The 38 member executive board of the Republican Party in Florida, unanimously selected State Representative, Joe Negron from Stuart to contest the District 16, U.S. Congressional seat recently vacated by disgraced ex-congressman, Mark Foley. However, under Florida election law, Foley’s name will remain on the November 7 ballot.

Negron is a married father, who has displayed a strong conservative stance borne out I his voting record in the Florida House. He attempted to run for the District 16 seat in 2004, when Foley had indicated that he would giving up the seat to run for the U.S. Senate. However, according to Miami Herald reports, Foley changed his mind at the urging of White House leaders “nervous over questions about his (Foley) sexual orientation.”

The Democratic candidate, for the seat is Tim Mahoney, who stands to benefit from the fall out over the Foley scandal.

US city renames street in honor of Jamaica's national hero

A major city in the United States has renamed one of its streets in honor of Jamaican National Hero, Marcus Garvey.

At the urging of the International Foundation for the Exoneration of Marcus josiah Garvey of Connecticut, Inc, the city of Hartford, Connecticut, over the weekend renamed

Mayor Eddie Perez, and Garvey's son, Dr. Julius Garvey, were present for the ceremony, which also comprised a groundbreaking dedication of the Marcus Garvey Gardens.

Garvey was born in Jamaica on August 17 1887 and moved to the US in 1916. In 1923, Garvey, who founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), was convicted and sentenced in the United States to five years in prison for mail fraud. After US President Calvin Coolidge commuted his sentence in 1927, Garvey was deported to Jamaica. He subsequently died in obscurity in London in 1940.

Haitian teen needs more surgery

Months ago a Haitian teenager traveled to Miami from Haiti to seek treatment for a huge, melon sized mass on her face. The life of 15 year-old Marlie Casseus was threatened by the growth, which had completely distorted her face.

In a series of operations surgeons at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center removed the mass, which was cased by a genetic disorder. Marlie appeared before the media last week, receiving a much-improved face, with the huge mass removed. However, more treatment is required. Her jaw remains deformed, preventing her from closing her mouth; a tube in her mouth prevents her from speaking, and she is being fed through a tube in her stomach.

An appeal is being made by the nonprofit International Kids Fund to raise money for the additional treatment for Marlie, which is anticipated to cost more than $500,000.

Miami City Commission approves new budget

The Miami City Commission has approved a $508 million budget for that city -- an increase of $7 million from a preliminary budget approved earlier this month.

Under this new budget the city’s property tax rate and fire fee have been slightly reduced.

Miami’s new tax rate is $8.99 per $1,000 of assessed value, down from last year’s rate of $9.26. This low rate means that property owners whose houses last year were valued at $354,900, used then as the median value for houses in Miami-Dade County, would see their taxes move up from $3,054 last year to $3,061 this year, assuming the property owner claimed a homestead exemption and their appraisal increased by three percent. However, a drop in the city’s fire fee, down from $46 to $31 would reduce those homeowners’ overall tax bill down to by $8.

The $7 million increase in the budget will go towards increased spending for new trucks and cars for police and solid waste workers, technology upgrades and roadway improvements.

The convenience-store chain, 7-Eleven announced recently that it was breaking its affiliation with CITGO as its gasoline supplier after 20 years. This, representatives for the chain said, was part of a previously announced plan by the convenience store operator to launch its own brand of fuel.

However, some people see the move by 7-Eleven as political, in light of comments made by Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez against President George W. Bush in a recent speech at the United Nations. In fact, 7-Eleven officials admitted that the company’s decision was partly motivated by politics. The company is concerned that public reaction against Chavez could prompt motorists to fill up elsewhere because CITGO Petroleum Corp. is a Houston-based subsidiary of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company.