Why Cruise Lines Are Buying Up Private Caribbean Islands

Last summer, a friend and I took a cruise to the Bahamas. As part of the cruise, we spent a day at Great Stirrup Cay and did some jet skiing.

The cruise was with Norwegian Cruise Line. Great Stirrup Cay is a private island owned by Norwegian Cruise Line. 

Above, the Norwegian Sky docked off Great Stirrup Cay. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Personally, I have no problem with that. We had a good time there. More cruise lines are buying up islands. If cruise lines are up front about it, I think it's okay.

But, some are voicing concerns over cruise lines owning islands and having their passengers go there to spend money.

Here's a video on the subject by The Wall Street Journal:

Covid-Era Travel Risks: Avoid Getting Stranded

Above, Japan is one country whose borders are closed to foreign visitors. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Travel is most difficult now than ever before, thanks to the coronavirus and the reactions of some government to it.

Some countries are allowing travel, others (such as Israel, Morocco and Japan) have closed their borders to foreign tourists. The reactions of some countries increase the risk of getting stuck in another country.

This is the topic of an article in the Wall Street Journal.

They begin with:

 At least you can see hurricanes coming.

The new Omicron variant did more than prompt governments to quickly close borders and tighten Covid-19-related travel restrictions. It signaled that health disruptions are here to stay as a normal part of travel concerns, right along with storms, strikes and terrorism.

For travelers, this means that you must now consider a new set of risks before making your trip, especially when going abroad. Travel can spread disease. There’s also uncertainty over testing and quarantines.

If you miscalculate or misstep, or just end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, you could be stranded, perhaps for weeks. Such a high penalty may make some people change where and how often they venture away from home.

He thinks 2019 will be viewed as the high-water mark for jumping on a plane spur-of-the-moment and taking a trip to another continent without care or concern.

Travel experts say the rapid reaction of various governments increases the risk of getting stuck in another country. It also appears to be the new standard procedure for any kind of new health risk.

To read more, go here. 

Harvard Researcher: About Half of New Gun Owners are Women

Those of us who are gun owners and are active politically in preserving our Second Amendment rights, we are well familiar with the lies the advocates of gun control and confiscation constantly sling about.

Here's one stereotype of theirs that has just bit the dust.

From NRA-ILA:

In a blow to the tired stereotypes perpetuated by gun control supporters, a recent academic survey found broad diversity among recent first time gun buyers. The findings bolstered what many observers had anecdotally discovered, the last year-and-a-half’s pandemic and civil unrest-fueled record-breaking gun sales.

Provided with the preliminary survey results, the Wall Street Journal reported, 

the 2021 National Firearms Survey, designed by Deborah Azrael of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Matthew Miller of Northeastern University, show an estimated 3.5 million women became new gun owners from January 2019 through April of this year. About 4 million men became new gun owners over that period, they found.

Therefore, the study suggests that 46.6% of new gun owners since January 2019 were women.

To read more, go here.

WSJ: Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Generates "Robust Immunity"

It looks like I was lucky to get the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

The Wall Street Journal posted this on Twitter:

Justice Dept. Files Antitrust Lawsuit Against Google

 Just a few minutes ago, I spotted this on Twitter:

Good, it's about time that the giant tech companies' are held accountable for their unfair business practices.

Hopefully, similar action against Facebook and Twitter will follow. Facebook is already under investigation.

From the Wall Street Journal:

WASHINGTON—The Federal Trade Commission is gearing up to file a possible antitrust lawsuit against Facebook Inc. FB 0.95% by year-end, according to people familiar with the matter, in a case that would challenge the company’s dominant position in social media.

The case preparations come after the FTC has spent more than a year investigating concerns that Facebook has been using its powerful market position to stifle competition, part of a broader effort by U.S. antitrust authorities to examine the conduct of a handful of dominant tech companies.

No final decision has been made on whether to sue Facebook, people familiar with the matter said, and the commission doesn’t always bring cases even when it is making preparations to do so, such as when it decided against filing an antitrust complaint against Google Inc. in 2013 after a lengthy investigation.

 To read more, go here.

Nike's Shameful Retreat

Above, the "offensive" shoes.

During my younger days, Nike sports shoes were me favorite go-to shoes for casual wear.

It seems that the company is now being led by the nose by NFL failure Colin Kaepernick when he claimed is "offensive" by the Betsy Ross American flag on special-edition Independence Day sports shoes that were already made and shipped to stores.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

Nike Inc. NKE -0.53% is yanking a U.S.A.-themed sneaker featuring an early American flag after NFL star-turned-activist Colin Kaepernick told the company it shouldn’t sell a shoe with a symbol that he and others consider offensive, according to people familiar with the matter. 

The sneaker giant created the Air Max 1 USA in celebration of the July Fourth holiday, and it was slated to go on sale this week. The heel of the shoe featured a U.S. flag with 13 white stars in a circle, a design created during the American Revolution and commonly referred to as the Betsy Ross flag. 

It was an act of politically correct cowardliness of Nike to pull the shoes. I would never buy from Nike again after this.

At least one Republican governor is not taking this lying down.

From AZCentral:

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on Tuesday slammed Nike for canceling the release of a shoe featuring an early design of the American flag, saying it had "bowed to the current onslaught of political correctness and historical revisionism." 

Calling Nike's decision a "shameful retreat" on Twitter, the Republican leader vowed to withdraw financial incentives recently promised to the company in exchange for opening a manufacturing plant in Goodyear with some 500 full-time jobs.

To read more, go here.

Meanwhile, on the end of the spectrum, the poor excuse of a governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Tweeted, "Hey @Nike, let's talk."

Airline CEOs Try Out Their Economy Seats

Above, ANA Premium Economy seating on display at a travel show. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

If you are planning to take an airline for a trip anytime soon, you may want to read an article on airline economy seating in the Wall Street Journal.

Three airline CEOs were asked to try out their economy seats.

According to the Wall Street Journal article:

Have you ever been vacuum-packed into a shrunken coach seat wishing the airline CEO had to endure the same discomfort? 

We did that for you, sort of. The Middle Seat asked the chief executives of the big three U.S. airlines to plop down in the back of one of their airplanes and explain why they think the skimpy confines of coach today are acceptable. 

Two agreed. Delta CEO Ed Bastian, 6-foot-3, arranged for an interview on his company’s most recently reconfigured Boeing 777-200 in Atlanta. American CEO Doug Parker, also 6-foot-3, snuggled into a coach seat on a reconfigured 777-200 in a Dallas-Fort Worth airport hangar.

One refused: United’s Oscar Munoz declined to be interviewed in a coach seat. Asked why, United declined to comment. 

Messrs. Bastian and Parker fit, although knees were kissing distance from the seat in front. Neither had to contend with a middle-seat neighbor to rub shoulders and sides or a passenger reclining in front of them.

There is also a chart of inches or legroom with the article that is also worth a long look.

To read more, go here.

Younger Generations Discover "Glamping"

Above, the California RV Show in Pomona. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The RV industry is currently booming. It is about to set a record of over 500,000 units for the first time ever.

Retiring baby boomers and younger generations are getting into the RV lifesyle. They tend to go for towable RVs instead of motorhomes.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

For anyone who has gotten stuck on a mountain road behind a massive recreational vehicle, get used to it, there are a lot more on the highway. 

Recreational vehicles, ranging from bus-sized motor homes to retro trailers, have been a boom-and-bust industry since they first became popular in the early 1970s. Now a wave of retiring baby boomers and a surprisingly young new fan base have sent U.S. unit sales above their housing boom peak. Shares of the two leading manufacturers of RVs, Thor Industries THO -1.28% and smaller Winnebago Industries , WGO -1.37% each hit records last week. 

The fundamentals—fuel prices, interest rates, disposable income and demographics—all look solid. That has the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association projecting a further jump this year and next. Despite that, delighted investors might want to unhitch themselves from these stocks. When things go badly for the economy, they go very badly for RV makers. 

Shares of one-time industry leader Winnebago Industries plunged by 94% from peak to trough in the first 1970s energy crisis and by 78% in the second one. A lack of easy credit and consumer confidence can be just as devastating. Shares fell 92% between their housing boom peak and housing bust trough, while wholesale RV shipments fell by two-thirds.

To read more, go here. 

Japan's Record Tourists Keeping Wallets Closed

Above, the ticket counters of the Tokyo Skytree. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Foreign visitors came into Japan in record numbers in 2016, but that didn't translate into big spending while they were in the country.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

TOKYO—Tourists are flooding into Japan in record numbers, but spending growth has slowed sharply in part because Chinese visitors are shying away from expensive items such as jewelry. 

The Japan National Tourism Organization said Tuesday that a record 24 million foreign tourists came to the country in 2016, nearly double the figure two years earlier. Visitors from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong combined make up slightly more than half the total. 

The visitors spent a total of ¥3.75 trillion ($33 billion) in 2016, another record. But the growth slowed sharply during the year. In the fourth quarter of 2016, spending was up just 1.3% compared with the same period a year earlier.

During my 2015 trip to Japan, since there was the three of us, I spent a little more than usual. Our spending mainly comprised of food, lodging, JR Rail Passes (a money-saver bought in the U.S.) and attractions and activities (such as the Tokyo Skytree, Sumida River cruise, Osaka Castle, Tokyo DisneySea, studio photos and a half-day tour of Kyoto). We did pick up some souvenirs, but those tended to be "practical" items such as yukatas and cutlery. Still, the trip was "under budget" as I returned home with plenty of leftover cash.

To read more, go here.

Japan Opens Door To Future Casino Gambling

Above, slot machines at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

American casino and gambling equipment companies are salivating at the prospect of big sales now that Japan has opened the door to casino gaming.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

TOKYO—U.S.-based casino companies are eager to grab a foothold in Japan, one of the world’s largest gambling nations, after parliament early Thursday passed a law ordering the government to prepare for the nation’s first casino resorts. 

The law gives Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government a year to develop specific plans on issues such as licensing operators and preventing gambling addicts from using casinos. The law doesn’t by itself legalize casinos, but proponents say they hope to pass further legislation in coming years that would enable the first casino to open in the early 2020s.

To read more, go here. 

WSJ: Where Our Monsters Come From

Above, a Universal publicity photo for Son of Frankenstein featuring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff.

Halloween is only days away and it is the perfect time to see where our monsters came from.

The Wall Street Journal has an article that does just that.

They begin with:

The Halloween season is upon us again and, with it, all the lurid paraphernalia of
assorted ghosts, ghouls and goblins. It’s all in good fun, but our favorite seasonal terrors
also say something deeper about what scares us and why. Halloween itself we owe to the
ancient Celts, whose festival of Samhain marked the beginning of the dark part of the
year, when the souls of the dead revisited the earth, but many of our current monsters
reflect more recent anxieties. 

Most anthropologists date the beginning of civilization to the institution of funerary
rituals and designated cemeteries, and it is hardly surprising that our imaginations,
even now, dwell on the disquieting line that separates the living from the dead. In many
cultures, too, ghosts are often angry because they represent, in guilty consciences, those
who been murdered, forgotten or somehow improperly laid to rest 

Religion also played a part. When the Protestant Reformation did away with the concept
of purgatory as a transit point to paradise, it opened the doors still further for unsettled
ghosts to roam the earth. Disputes between Protestants and Catholics over who could
best invoke angels and keep demons at bay ensured that those emissaries from the
invisible world would continue to be vivid realities for many believers.

Can you believe that 15 years from now the Universal Pictures horror classics Dracula and Frankenstein will be 100 years old?

To read more, go here. 

The Clintons: A Bunch of Grifters

The Wall Street Journal has a hard-hitting opinion piece by Kimberley A. Strassel on Bill and Hillary Clinton, "Grifters-In-Chief".

First off, what's a "grifter"?

According to The Free Dictionary:

grift  (grĭft) Slang 

n. 

1. Money made dishonestly, as in a swindle.
2. A swindle or confidence game. 

v. grift·ed, grift·ing, grifts 

v.intr. 

To engage in swindling or cheating. 

v.tr. 

To obtain by swindling or cheating.

In her opinion piece, Strassel begins:

In an election season that has been full of surprises, let’s hope the electorate understands that there is at least one thing of which it can be certain: A Hillary Clinton presidency will be built, from the ground up, on self-dealing, crony favors, and an utter disregard for the law. 

This isn’t a guess. It is spelled out, in black and white, in the latest bombshell revelation from WikiLeaks. It comes in the form of a memo written in 2011 by longtime Clinton errand boy Doug Band, who for years worked simultaneously at the Clinton Foundation and at the head of his lucrative consulting business, Teneo. 

It is astonishingly detailed proof that the Clintons do not draw any lines between their “charitable” work, their political activity, their government jobs or (and most important) their personal enrichment. Every other American is expected to keep these pursuits separate, as required by tax law, anticorruption law and campaign-finance law. For the Clintons, it is all one and the same—the rules be damned.

Strassel concludes with:

This is how the Clintons operate. They don’t change. Any one who pulls the lever for Mrs. Clinton takes responsibility for setting up the nation for all the blatant corruption that will follow.

She is right. Anyone who votes for Hillary Clinton on Election Day, and if she wins, bears the responsibility for the corruption that is sure to follow. Already, the Clintons (with plenty of help from President Obama, FBI Director James Comey and Attorney General Loretta Lynch) for ruining the once-solid reputations of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Justice. As I said before, anyone who votes for Hillary Clinton after all of the revelations put out by WikiLeaks and Project Veritas Action has to be either a moron, an idiot or dishonest.

Pure and simple, the Clintons are crooks!

To read the full article, go here.

Hillary Bombshells The Press Ignored All Week

The lamestream media has been boosting Hillary Clinton and has been aiding and abetting the systematic character assassination of Donald Trump.

While they were touting the fraudulent, sleazy women who, it turns out, made up their stories and some of which are actually Democrat activists, WikiLeaks and other disclosures were unreported.

Fortunately, there are some honest jounalists out there and one has compiled a list of Clinton bombshells of the past week that the media and press ignored.

From Caintv.com:

"A devastating case against a Clinton presidency." 

I've often told you how highly I recommend Kim Strassel's Friday Potomac Watch column in the Wall Street Journal. Strassel is an excellent writer and she does a deep dive into things that are happening in Washington that no one else is telling you about. But while I admire Strassel's reporting skills, and I'm sure she's worked hard to cultivate sources, the fact of the matter is that most of the media could be culling the same information Strassel comes up with. 

They just don't, either because they aren't interested or they don't think it would serve their ideological agenda.

So when Strassel today laid out what she called the "devastating case against a Clinton presidency" that was found in this week's WikiLeaks document dump, the real service she did for us was to bother pointing out what everyone else in the media could have and should have.

To see what they are, go here. 

Hawaii Visits Set Record For First Half of 2016

Above, performers at the Big Kahuna Luau. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It looks like my cousin and her husband and our group added some to Hawaii's all-time high tourism numbers for the first half of 2016.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

Tourism in Hawaii for the first half of the year is at an all-time high, and state officials say the destination is on track for another record-breaking year. 

The numbers solidify the Aloha State’s continuing comeback after years of recession. 

The number of overall visitors from January to June in Hawaii increased 3.3% compared with the year-earlier period, with more than 4.4 million visitors taking trips to the Hawaiian islands, according to a recent report from the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

Above, Diamond Head at dusk. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To read more, go here. 

Sen. Greg Smith and Other Conservatives Lose Primaries To RINOs

Above, Sen. Greg Smith of Kansas.

One has to sometimes wonder what drives the electorate to vote the way they do. Today is one of those times.

Kansas State Senator Greg Smith, along with several other conservative legislators, lost their primary bids last night.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

TOPEKA, Kan.—A top Senate leader and at least 10 other conservative Kansas legislators have lost their seats as moderate Republicans made GOP primary races a referendum on education funding and the state's persistent budget woes. 

Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce was among the lawmakers ousted amid a backlash against Republican Gov. Sam Brownback and his allies. 

Besides Mr. Bruce, the conservative senators who were unseated were Tom Arpke, of Salina; Forrest Knox, of Altoona; Jeff Melcher, of Leawood; Larry Powell, of Garden City; and Greg Smith, of Overland Park. All are allies of Gov. Brownback.

That is one of the reasons that I don't trust moderate Republicans. They would find any excuse to stab conservatives in the back during a primary or, failing that, support a Democrat in the general election.

Word has reached me that Smith's opponent, Dinah Sykes, ran a well-funded campaign (teacher's union money?). It will be interesting to see where her campaign contributions came from.

We are also seeing this on the national scale as moderates (RINOs) are backing Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump.

Sen. Smith served his community and state well. I was proud to support him. I hope this setback is only temporary and that he'll jump back into the arena.

To read more, go here.

The Tourist Flood, Japan Struggles

Japan set a new record last year by attracting nearly 20 million foreign visitors. They nearly met their 2020 goal five years early.

Above, our hotel during last year's visit to Japan. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

While Japan is pleased with the hordes of tourists visiting the country, it also presents problems that needs to be addressed.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

Two years ago, Mr. Abe set a goal of attracting 20 million visitors by 2020, the year Tokyo holds the Olympic Games, another sure bet to attract more visitors. With that number in sight late last year, he raised the target to 30 million, without specifying a date. 

But Japan is struggling to handle even two thirds of that number, hobbled by a shortage of hotel rooms and insufficient immigration agents that cause long airport lines.

Last October, when we arrived at Narita International Airport, all lines at the Immigration section were only about 3-4 people deep. Maybe we were just lucky when we arrived when we did. Other times, I've had to wait about 20 minutes before reaching an Immigration agent.

If the trend continues, they will need to expand their facilities for handling the influx of foreign visitors.

On the accommodation side, I had to put a little more effort to book rooms in Tokyo than in years past. Again, if the trend continues, this will get worse.

To read more, go here.

The Beast's Tax Break Passed By Congress

As much as I gripe about some things that Congress does or doesn't do, one thing that they did do this past week is something I am happy about.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

Congress’s Christmas-tree tax bill contains surprising presents: permanent extensions of tax benefits for individuals that have long been temporary. The Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015, or PATH, has been passed by both the House and Senate and is expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama.

What is it about this I am happy about? There is one provision in the bill that I can take advantage of:

Sales Tax Break 

WHAT IT IS The state and local sales tax deduction gives individual taxpayers the option of claiming an itemized deduction for general sales taxes instead of deducting state and local income taxes. 

COST $42 billion over 10 years. 

Since I purchased The Beast this year, I'll be able to deduct the sales taxes on it. (Source: New York Times)

Japan May Reach 20 Million Tourist Goal Five Years Early

Above, the Dotonbori restaurant district of Osaka. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The Japan Times reported that foreign tourism numbers in Japan for the month of October hit a new record, which was blogged previously.

Along with October's figures, it appears that Japan is on track to meeting its annual goal of 20 million foreign visitors, five years ahead of schedule. All this is due to the huge influx of Chinese tourists.

As we were in Japan in October, we did notice quite a number of Chinese tourists. I met a Chinese fertilizer salesman from Shanghai at the Narita International Airport. He said he travels to a number of foreign countries, including the U.S.

The Wall Street Journal reported:

TOKYO—Chinese tourists have pushed Japan within reach of its ambitious tourism target—five years ahead of schedule. 

Japan has attracted 16.3 million foreign tourists already this year, beating its previous full-year record of 13.4 million as the number of Chinese visitors has more than doubled, according to data released Wednesday by the Japan National Tourism Organization.

It will be interesting to see if Japan does indeed reach 20 million foreign visitors this year.

To read more, go here.

Japan On The Way To Setting A New Tourism Record

Above, Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Japan's tourism industry has had many reasons to smile about over the past few years. 2015 appears to be no exception.

If tourism figures continue as they are or expand, a new record number of foreign tourists will be visiting during this tourism year.

The Wall Street Journal reported:

The number of foreign travelers to Japan hit an all-time high of 13.4 million last year, but that record may be short-lived. 

The Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday that 9.14 million people visited Japan from overseas during the first six months of 2015, up 46% from the same period the previous year. The numbers are also likely to rise in the second half of 2015. Record numbers are expected in July, typically the peak month of tourism. At least 40 cruise ships from east Asia are also scheduled to visit Japan later this year, the tourism organization said.

To read more, go here. 

Tokyo Falls Out of Top 10 of The World's Most Expensive Cities

Above, a view of Tokyo from Tokyo City View. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There's good news for those expats who live in Tokyo and for those who just want to visit the city.

Tokyo has dropped out of the top ten of the world's most expensive cities.

According to the Wall Street Journal blog:

Japan has seen a record number of tourists visit the country in recent years as a weaker yen makes trips more affordable. The fall in the currency also means Japan is now a relatively cheaper place to live compared with other cities across the globe. 

Human resources consulting firm Mercer says Tokyo has dropped out of the top 10 in its annual cost of living survey for expats. Japan’s capital fell to 11th place from last year’s 7th, thanks to the depreciation of the yen against the dollar. 

The annual survey compared the cost of more than 200 items and factors including housing, transportation, entertainment and food, using New York as the base city.

To read more, go here.