Headline from DT story of yesterday,-

"U.S. crisis won’t brake "armored" Dominican tourism industry, official says"

Nothing like putting your reputation out there.

SANTO DOMINGO. – The "armored" tourism industry is one of the few sectors that hasn’t been affected by this year’s crisis in the United States, with the arrival 3,126,559 non-resident passengers in the first 9 months, or a 2.2 percent jump compared to the same year ago period.

Tourism minister Francisco Garcia said the increase stems from the 3.6% rise in the arrival of non-resident aliens compared to last year’s 0.5%, an increase of 3.1 percentage points, or a total 95,618 additional visitors.

Hacienda minister Vicente Bengoa said Dominican tourism won’t suffer from the U.S. financial crisis this year, but the situation could change starting February during the high season.

What a lying bunch of theives in the DR government.

TS wrote: Nothing like putting your reputation out there....

What reputation?

Okay, I just read the JH comment: The reputation of "a lying bunch of thieves in the DR government".

Well, I think that reputation has been re-confirmed and still intact!

The only sad part is that I am sure they laid off 500 of the lowest paid workers with the most menial jobs instead of laying off one Hotel FAT CAT thereby saving jobs of the poor. Also, they could look for cost efficiencies in other areas and make productivity gains to offset the need to eliminate the lowest paid workers making only US$ 150 per month. They could also have saved more money by eliminating kickbacks to the RD Gov for expansion projects to get approved.

If this is how Cap Cana makes decisions then I will make sure that I book with the competitors instead of this outfit.

Out
JD (juan_de_eeuu@hotmail.com)

Like I said " Bull Shit " no need to be fancy--

I await for the Lie-onel loyalist and the PLD apologist to begin their spining of the isssue!

Ok! We know its Hipolito's fault but besides that, what do you have to offer?

Josean: Where is the correlation? Maybe, you can explain it because quite frankly you cannot connect every problem to the current government. Please advise.

How about 700,000, 000 million plus wasted on a METRO to nowhere that is sitting in mud rusting away? That money could have been used for a diversity of investments in agriculture and manufacturing to improve our export trade imbalance so we could benefit from DRCAFTA.

How about the money from SUNLAND, which is still unaccounted for and the people will have to pay, although it was never authorized by their legally elected representatives as the constitution requires?

How about all the eggs in one basket economic development model of this government? I.e. tourism while allowing free trade zones to whither and not expanding development into other areas, so we can move away from the dependency on the monoculture of tourism as we were depended on the monoculture of sugar in the past.

WHAT, ............WTF The Metro is not working yet !!!!!!!!!!!! I am shocked, shocked

Isin't that something the metro still isn't running but they are planning a second line.

Jim,

Remember the EDSEL!

Holy sh*t, I thought the Metro was working months ago. What is the delay?

Cap Cana is a vast project that requires vast financing ....it will not go away but the major players will change....This situation has more to do with lack of financing capital than lack of tourism

A Failed State = Failed Develpoment!

It is true as GC says, but not only for CC but worldwide. There are many viable and profitable businesses that are seasonal and thus have to rely on short term financing to make it through the valleys on the way to the next peak. This is the scary part of the spillover effect of the financial crisis. That banks stop trusting each other (some for good reason i.e. WaMu) and also stop trusting proven life-long customers needing financing. Banks now all of a sudden (after years of reduced regulation politics & wild lending) what to hoard & hold capital. Thus, choking off the circular flow of funds through-out the financial systems. This is one of the anti-growth strategy that led to the great depression after the stock crash.

The economy needs to be stimulated by the middle class, wal-mart shoppers and hockey moms in mini-vans. This will be done by giving the masses of middle class a tax cut in the US to be spent back into the economy & Gov investment in infrastructure jobs.

(con't)
Now, we are paying the price for Wall St sins and the de-regulation of McLame-Bush economics! The curse must be reversed with more regulation, audits standards and controls with sanity checks to prevent abuses. Without a global stabilization efforts like the US tax cuts for middle class to spend (vs. the super rich buying a new CD) businesses like Wal-Mart, Southwest Air will continue to grow. Otherwise, if all banks continue to hoard cash due to fear then there will be a worldwide contractionary JOLT to the economy (like a bad transmission). Whereas the great Bear market will run for years.... Now, the even more scary event is the ongoing negative spillover of closed business who can not get financing from "tight money banks" and thus the firms go out of business which creates a revenue problem for suppliers who supply them and thus lose business and go from the black into the red. This DOMINO EFFECT is what Obama wants to avoid & Roosevelt had to turnaround.

(con't)
The 500 Dominican familes that lost their jobs will do more damage to the local economy (than if CC had just let one executive go). Now laid-off Dominican bread winners without a job will have no income to buy from local colmados in their poor barrios which will be a localized but BIG contractionary effect to the local areas. The "trickle-down" supply side voodoo economics does NOT work as Bush is breaking deficit records just like Reagan did in his day. I personally, can not reduce my revenues (big corporate tax breaks) and then run record deficits with my own checking account. Warren Buffet states that he pays the lowest tax rate among his office staff of 15 or so (including secretaries). If you give a billionaire a tax break then he will buy stock or a 13th home like McLame and these funds have much less probability to go to work in the economy circular flow of funds.

We need a new McLame ad that simply states: "let me finish the job Bush I and Bush Jr started!"

Cap Cana is not a tourist destination, as is typical in the area. It is more a residential hotel development for the top end traveller...not the everyday traveller that the region depends on.
Of course all of us are aware of the situations worldwide, and it puts a strain on every business....not just the tourism trade.

How Capitalism Will Save Us
Steve Forbes 10.16.08, 6:00 PM ET
Forbes Magazine dated November 10, 2008

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2008/1110/018.html?partner=links

As for the 500 workers it is unfortunate, but without Cap Cana they wouldn't have jobs anyways.

If they don't cut back now then they won't be any good to anyone in the future if they are bankrupt..

And even if they do go under, some Arab Sheik or Chinese toy maker will buy it up and bring some of those workers back.

.

Anyone that says that the crisis in the U.S. wont affect the DR is delusional and should go back to business school.

Remember the under ground economy the Dr government rely gets its revenue from is stable. Why do they want to shoot down planes? Get rid of the competition or extort a higher cut?

Majority of the Resorts in DR have there major monies tied into foreign banks. So stop the B..S... Mr. Tourism, and lets watch the Dominos as they go around the world falling down.

Hi!!!!!! gouletcolonial,

So tell me now, remember me !!!!!

Check your sources a little bit more, Cappicce!!


Percy.

perceptive one how are you ! you just get out of the joint