Cigar Geeks

Puro Sabor, Nicaragua’s annual cigar festival will not take place in January. Cámara Nicaraguense De Tabaceleros (Nicaraguan Chamber of Tobacco) has announced that “for reasons beyond our control” it is postponing the festival. While specific reasons were not disclosed, I believe it is safe to say that the festival is not taking place in January due to the civil unrest taking place in Nicaragua.

Cámara Nicaraguense De Tabaceleros stopped short of saying it is canceling the festival. The organization says new dates for the festival will be announced in due time. In the interim, it was announced that a special event will be held in Miami, Florida on January 26, 2019. Details of what that event entails have not been disclosed.       Also posted on Halfwheel

                                                                                                                                                                                                        https://cigar-coop.com/2018/08/cigar-news-2019-puro-sabor-festival-postponed-for-january.html

i can only imagine. i saw a pic of Saka down there with a driver/security dude. looks pretty dangerous for non locals.

Quotetoby2 - 8/21/2018  10:26 AM

i can only imagine. i saw a pic of Saka down there with a driver/security dude. looks pretty dangerous for non locals.

I saw some pics from there also and it looks like they certainly have a dangerous situation.

Seems like the common sense decision.

 There are already more than 23,000 Nicaraguans who have requested asylum in Costa Rica since the protests against Daniel Ortega’s government broke out in April.  Nicaraguan organizations in South Florida will collect clothing and blankets to be sent to thousands of Nicaraguan refugees in Costa Rica.  The non-profit organization “Miami Managua Lions Club” will receive donations of coats, clothing of all ages and sizes, shoes, quilts, towels, sheets, sanitary pads and pampers for adults and children. Medicines, food and water will not be accepted.

The collection will take place between Thursday August 23 and Sunday 26, at 125 SW 107th Ave., Miami, from 9:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m.  The Costa Rican government has asked the international community for its support to face what it considers could become the next humanitarian crisis in Central America.

SAD.............seems to be trending towards the "normal" - most everywhere you go.

"for reasons beyond our control" = read fascism, and just like socialism failing the people

QuoteCfickter - 8/22/2018  9:08 AM  "for reasons beyond our control" = read fascism, and just like socialism failing the people

Here is a good explanation of what happened...."The Dictator's fragile alliance of the Elite set the stage for Crisis".  Ortega, a former revolutionary, learned from his past mistakes in confronting the powerful private sector.                                                                                         http://qcostarica.com/nicaragua-how-ortegas-fragile-alliance-of-the-elite-set-the-stage-for-crisis/

Quoteamigodecigars - 8/22/2018  8:24 AM  

QuoteCfickter - 8/22/2018  9:08 AM  "for reasons beyond our control" = read fascism, and just like socialism failing the people

Here is a good explanation of what happened...."The Dictator's fragile alliance of the Elite set the stage for Crisis".  Ortega, a former revolutionary, learned from his past mistakes in confronting the powerful private sector.                                                                                         http://qcostarica.com/nicaragua-how-ortegas-fragile-alliance-of-the-elite-set-the-stage-for-crisis/

I read the article, here are few snips,
he may have learned but he will not apply anything unless he benefits

the increasingly authoritarian government of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, paired with the instrumental, conditional support of the private sector–coalesced around the Superior Council of Private Enterprise (COSEP)–and the complacency of the Catholic Church, was a recipe for unrest. 

This three-pronged alliance—state, business, and church—was extremely effective in hiding some of the signs of trouble in the Nicaraguan political and economic system,

 Access to basic services is a daily challenge in Nicaragua, which ranks 124th in the UN’s Human Development Index.  (countries with a better rating Botswana, Iraq, Palestine, Tonga, Armenia)

 But the truth is that no authoritarian form of government, even one favorable to big business interests, can truly benefit the majority of a population.

 Ortega will likely renege on any promises made as his paramilitary forces continue massacring citizens,

 Ortega’s economic and family interests have obviously started taking precedence over his business sector allies.

 

Though Daniel Ortega rose to prominence by leading a popular workers’ revolt against the entrenched dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza Debayle in 1979, he has had little use for democracy. His selected political allies have included the late Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Libya’s former strongman Muammar Gaddafi. Since returning to power in a disputed 2006 election, Ortega has turned thuggery into a high art form by unleashing mobs on his opposition and consolidating his power through patronage. Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in its region, with 30 percent of people living below the poverty line, and it has wide income disparities. Why is no one surprised? When Mr. Ortega was booted from office in 1990 after his first time as president, he and his Sandinista cronies looted the country to the tune of $700 million, by some estimates. They stole from the central bank, and they seized homes and businesses in a scandal dubbed “La Pinata,” after the children’s game where kids whack papier-mâché animals to get the goodies inside.  He has millions stashed off-shore and even some laundered through real estate investments in Costa Rica.  "Panama Papers"...he has offshore accounts registered in Panama through the law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Pretty sad stuff for the people of Nicaragua. Hope something turns in their favor.