Shutting down the DUP ports was an easy decision for the Regulator. And in a rare case, filling his pockets might not have been the motivation. You don’t need to look further than your phone bill to see why he’s a hero with the government. On the fist page of you bill, directly under the "total charges for international calls" is the government’s piece of the pie that’s being nibbled at. The one dollar tax per call is the reason why Net2phone will become only words in the history books of Panama. Imagine how many calls per day are made to other countries. Then times that by $1.The two communist countries that have also blocked the ports are protecting their own companies and while it’s easy to put the blame on the company that I love to hate, it’s simply not the only factor in this particular case. Technology will make phone services almost obsolete. What’s next? How about a computer tax to replace lost revenues for the postal service based on the amount of e-mails sent everyday. Sound ridiculous? Think again

Gary Jackson
David,Chiriqui

I have been reading you online newspaper, which I enjoy, however I have a great concern.

I have a number of acquaintances that have suggested Panama is bettter than Costa Rica as a place to retire. In reading your articles, I get the feeling that you believe that your country is very corrupt and anti-American. Being just an "average American", I would think that Panama would have a great appreciation for what we have given your country, but I am obviously very mistaken. I cannot decide if it is just your drive to "journalistic protaganisim" or you believe Panama really is a unsuitable place to live. Could it be that your paper is a well intentioned patroit, just airing the family laundry for the world to see?

Anonymous

Editor's note: The Panama News is meant to be a serious newspaper that reports the news as it happened, which means that in a time when we have economic troubles and an inept government a lot of the news that is reported will be bad. But still, if one comes here with eyes wide open and realistic expectations, Panama can be a very attractive place to retire. We are a country where the cost of living is low, the weather is warm, the culture respects privacy and in which many foreigners have found their ideal retirement spots.

All governments have their share of corruption and some political cultures are more tolerant of it than others. In the US, you have Minnesota on the one hand and Louisiana on the other, and my take on the person who strikes me at the opposition PRD's most able politician is that of a Panamanian female analogue of Chicago's Mayor Daley. Along with a lot of other Panamanians and foreign observers, I think that the present government here is more corrupt than usual. It's a big problem that needs to be alleviated, and the first step toward that is for the news media to report about it.

Though in every society you will find people who don't like foreigners, and given Panama's long history of relations with the United States there is a long-standing current of anti-Americanism in this society, I think that most Panamanians these days are very pro-American. Sometimes it's for bad reasons --- a dependent attitude which includes an expectation that the Americans will somehow solve problems that Panama needs to solve for itself, or the notion that all Americans are millionaires whom God put on this earth to be fleeced by Panamanian hustlers --- but lots of Panamanians have friends or relatives in the USA and many would emigrate to the states if they had the chance to do so.

In January the US military will be back in Panama, with army engineering units getting their tropical construction practice and giving us some needed roads, bridges, water wells, schools and health clinics in the process. No doubt there will be a few protests, but they will be small and most Panamanians will welcome the visiting troops as old friends.

Say it as you see it. Will things ever change? Best is to enjoy nature, stay away from the hassle.

Rita

Please stop publishing letters from this "SHANNON" non person. She had her minute of fame. We don't care.

Mr. Smith
Georgia, USA

I'm getting old. Finding your 'paper' a bit difficult to read as it goes right across the page & has pretty large, dark (bold?) type. Would you consider having two columns and smaller print? A very successful electronic paper from Costa Rica is at http://www.amcostarica.com and I find easier to read. Instead of a massive paper every couple of weeks, he does five days per week. This encourages you to read it more thoroughly & the news is more current. Perhaps you guys know each other?

Thanks for all the info that you print --- very helpful.

Cheers,
S.

Editor's note: I have met the editor of AM Costa Rica by email only, and we respect each other's work. Some of the matters you raise, like our publication schedule, are issues of money and labor. Others, like our format, are aesthetic issues that we could more easily change, and in some cases they were dictated by simplicity or complexity of web design or issues of readability. Do other readers have ideas, suggestions or preferences about the layout, size and form of type, and such other matters? I'm not promising any changes, but I'd like your input while I'm thinking about it.

Thank you for the English newspaper. It makes it much easier to follow current events in Panama from the United States. I am not one to agree with some opinions, but I am one to listen to all viewpoints.

Kevin Companik
Marietta, GA

U gottuh Kickass website, a Kickass newspaper + ura Kickass writer, even if you do have social consciousness.  I've heard that it's contagious; I found your site by accident while reading an interesting letter at the viviendo_en_panama Yahoo! Group.

Keep doin' wutchur doin', bro. (if yuh wanna).

Allen McDonald

P. S. I'm your neighbor cuz I live in Costa Rica, la tierra de mi sueños + am 50% Tico (adopted) + 50% Tejano.

I just wanted to let you know that I have been thoroughly enjoying this newspaper. I was born in Panama and left in 1968 to join my mother in the US. I have never been back and of lately I have felt an incredible need to revisit Panama and its beautiful culture. Thanks to your newspaper I am not only learning, but I'm kept up on some of the happenings their. I look forward to becoming reacquainted with the country of my origin.

Anonymous

Had the opportunity to read your paper on the email sent to me by a US citizen that lives in the Volcan area.I enjoyed it very much. Also, I see the Masonic emblem from the Grand Lodge of Massachusets, which my dad belonged to in the former Canal Zone. I am a member of the Grand Lodge of Colorado. Keep up the good work and thanks.

Bill Fulleton