During the morning conference of the President of Mexico, Andres Manuel López Obrador, the Secretary of Foreign Relations, Marcelo Ebrard Casaubón, responded to questions about the current restrictions on border crossings between this country and the United States.

Ebrard commented that every week the information released by the Ministry of Health of Mexico is reviewed since every month there is a dialogue with authorities in the American country.

“There are different ways of looking at it, Mexico is not going to opt for imperative closure, that would have many consequences and that applies to the border. Recommendations are made, orientation is made, but we are not anticipating closure of activities, ”he said at the morning conference.

However, despite observing an outbreak of Covid-19 in the United States , which is not in the border cities, according to Ebrard, “the restriction has not been changed with different modalities to activities that are not considered essential. We do not estimate that this provision will be modified in the short term, but until this date we will not modify what is already established, ” said the Chancellor this Thursday.

In addition, when asked if Mexico would be stricter with foreigners who cross into the country, the Secretary said that “Mexico is not going to opt for an imperative closure”, since by not allowing their entry there would be many consequences due to the paralysis of activities at the border, “and probably the damage that we would do, imagine how many months we have been, could be enormous. We are not anticipating a closure of activities, ” added Casaubón.

At the moment, the Mexican covid-19 "traffic light" has also been adopted in the United States , with the same colors and similar meanings, which simplifies the dialogue between the two countries , as mentioned by Marcelo Ebrard.

Worst-case scenario is Covid vaccine by March; best-case December

A coronavirus vaccine will be available by the end of March in a worst-case scenario, Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said Tuesday.

“What is the worst-case scenario? That there is not a safe vaccine until the month of March. What is the best-case scenario? That there is a vaccine that works at the end of December,” he told President López Obrador’s regular news conference.

Ebrard said the best and worst-case scenario predictions come from the European Union,“especially the Health Ministry of Germany, which sent us their own information.”

“Why the huge global investment and beyond the obvious why are they preparing all this? What is wanted is to limit the impact of the [northern hemisphere] winter, having the vaccine at some time in winter will mean an enormous change in the course this pandemic will follow,” he said.

Ebrard said that authorities in Mexico also hope to be able to start vaccinating people against the coronavirus before the end of winter, and provided an update on the progress of vaccine trials by companies with which Mexico has entered into purchase agreements.

Mexico is set to finalize agreements with two more suppliers, said Foreign Minister Ebrard.

The foreign minister noted that AstraZeneca, which has an agreement with Oxford University to supply its vaccine, has successfully restarted phase 3 trials that were paused due to a serious adverse reaction in a participant.

Those trials are now on the verge of being completed in Brazil, the United Kingdom and South Africa, he said. Ebrard also said that Mexico is making progress in preparing to produce the AstraZeneca vaccine here.

(The charitable foundation of Carlos Slim, a telecommunications mogul and Mexico’s richest person, announced in August that it would fund production of the AstraZeneca vaccine in Mexico and Argentina should it pass phase 3 trials.)

“Mexico has already made progress in the transfer of technology, which is very complex,” Ebrard said. “The goal is to have production ready [to go] in Mexico and Argentina so that we can have the vaccine ready … in March.”

The vaccine developed by the United States company Pfizer in collaboration with two other companies is also nearing the end of phase 3 trials. Ebrard said reports about the efficacy and safety of the vaccine will be published in the United States by the third week of November.

The foreign minister said Mexico would finalize its supply agreement with Pfizer by November 12 and stressed that there will be enough funds to purchase its vaccine should it prove to be effective and safe.

Ebrard noted that a vaccine developed in China has been approved by the Chinese military and shown positive results. It will be tested in Mexico starting in the first half of November, he said, adding that the government would finalize its agreement with the Chinese firm by November 12.

Russia announced last month that it had reached an agreement with Mexican pharmaceutical company Landsteiner Scientific to supply 32 million doses of its Sputnik V coronavirus vaccine but its use in Mexico has not yet been approved by health sector regulator Cofepris.

President López Obrador has pledged to make vaccines available for all Mexicans free of charge and offered to be the first person to be inoculated no matter where the vaccine comes from.

As November 2, Day of the Dead, approaches, various urban legends reappear year after year. Here are two such stories that are told throughout Rocky Point, and which are/were corroborated by the actual people involved in the original telling. Halloween is more akin to the scary story, as Dia de los Muertos is typically viewed as a time to remember and celebrate those who have passed to the next life, and not a holiday of witches and demons. However, there are stories throughout Mexico in which beings "from beyond" come to visit the living around this time of year.

The first story was told by Idelfonso Verdugo Villegas who had been traveling from Puerto Penasco to Sonoyta with his friend “El Burrola”, (RIP, he died some time later in a vehicle accident). While driving the highway at night, the saw a lady at the side of the road beckoning for a ride. She was carrying a plastic jug in her hand so the friends assumed that she had run out of gas.

They stopped their car about 30 meters in front of where the lady was standing and both men were startled when she was immediately standing at their window, gesturing that she would like to get into the car. While they were nervous and bewildered at how quickly she had moved the 30 meters to the car, they asked her to get into the back seat. Verdugo, who had been commander of the Red Cross first-aid corp in the mid 80's said in his telling of the story that both men were praying in silence as they drove, while the lady sat quietly in the back seat with a deathly blank look on her face.

As the men entered the urban area of Sonoyta they began to relax, says Verdugo. He then turned to the back seat to ask the lady where she would like to be dropped off. To his horrific surprise, she was gone! They had not stopped the car and had not heard the door open. Both men swear that this story is completely true.

Another oft-told legend is that of the chupacabra and the nightmares caused throughout much of Mexico.

Stories of the chupacabra became famous in the late eighties, not only in Puerto Penasco, but in several cities throughout Mexico. Many people believed the stories and refused to leave their houses at night in fear of the chupacabra, a gruesome animal that seemed able to appear everywhere.

The little creature was documented in and around this city as killing goats, chickens, and sometimes even dogs. The animals were left whole but mysteriously had the blood drained from their lifeless bodies. Multiple local people at the time claimed to have lost animals in this way.

The stories of the chupacabra faded over time and it is still unknown if it even existed or was only an urban legend which arose from the vivid imagination of someone starting and spreading rumors. But, the fear was real and, supposedly, the bloodless dead animals were real as well.

In case you were wondering where the smoke was coming from a few weeks ago, the landfill had caught fire which became a challenge to control. This problem has happened before and some say that it is scavengers who search for metal that start the fires in order to more easily locate it.

Mayor Kiko Munro conducted of the City's sanitary landfill and, given the serious problem it represented, issued an energetic but respectful call to Sonora Governor Claudia Pavlovich, with a request to release of resources already approved by the State Congress for the construction of a new Puerto Penasco landfill.

The Mayor of Puerto Peñasco noted that 17 million pesos have already been allocated for a new landfill in the state budget, however the funds have not been released to the local City Council as of yet.

Mayor Munro recognizes that the fires and smoke from the municipal garbage are a serious problem, but states that it is a situation inherited from previous administrations since the sanitary landfill has exceeded its useful life by several years. The Mayor emphasized that even with that fact, work continues to maintain the landfill and to generate a definitive solution for the disposal of the waste generated by Puerto Peñasco.

Kiko Munro added that he will continue to insist that the State Government proceed with the release of the 17 million pesos approved by the State Congress for the construction of a new sanitary landfill.

"Those resources were approved in 2019 but were not released, so they were approved again in 2020, but have still not reached the municipal coffers, and that is why the energetic and respectful call to Governor Claudia Pavlovich to expedite the delivery of that money was made”, he stated.

The Municipal President clarified that he does not intend to evade his responsibility in relation to the garbage issue, but he does want the public understand the situation.

As part of the third delivery of equipment and machinery from the resources of the Federal Maritime Terrestrial Zone (ZOFEMAT), Mayor Kiko Munro announced delivery of a model 2020 hydraulic tower for the surveillance and supervision of beaches and events specials.

Accompanied by César García, director of Zofemat, Alán Ontiveros, in charge of the office of the Civil Protection and Fire Department, as well as Carlos Bravo, director of the Tourist Auxiliary Unit, the Mayor of Puerto Peñasco gave his thanks and urged them to continue working to the benefit of the Puerto Penasco residents and visitors.

“In Peñasco we continue to do things well,” said Kiko Munro “That is why we were one of the first municipalities to reactivate its economy and to open the doors to its visitors, without lowering guard in terms of health and safety in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic ”.

The Mayor reported that the 2020 hydraulic tower has a surveillance camera system, mobile recording equipment, as well as a generator and autonomous electrical power generation system for its operation, which will support special operations and events for departments such as Civil Protection, Tourist Assistance Unit, and Zofemat.

El “Gallo” Estrada lived up to his nickname in the ring in an electrifying duel against Carlos “Príncipe” Cuadras, who despite his delivery and technique for 11 rounds, fell to Juan Francisco Estrada, who retained his super flyweight title from World Boxing Council.

The bout, one of the most anticipated fights in national and international boxing, took place at La Casa del Boxeo, where Estrada arrived as a defending champion, after previously winning against Cuadras in 2017, when Estrada defeated him by unanimous decision.

At the TV Azteca facilities, the bell rang and the two warriors began to punish each other from the first round, leaving the so-called study round for another time. Cuadras showed that at 32 he had all the power to knock down Estrada, who on paper came as a favorite, but received a hard blow in the third round, falling uncontrollably against the ropes, and receiving shouts from his corner headed by Alfredo Caballero.

By the sixth round, Estrada had received the attention needed stopping the bleeding from above his eye as he fought back lacerating the forehead and cheek of Cuadras. Both corners did their job, tending injuries, motivating the boxers, giving instructions, and asking each fighter to give their all.

As the fight went on, fatigue began present in both fighters and that was when Estrada threw a combination at Cuadras, who tried to stay on his feet but could not avoid falling to the canvas.

With that, Juan Francisco Estrada celebrated, recognizing the end of the fight. After the fight, El Gallo stated that if the promoters were to agree, he would give Cuadras another rematch.

Given the closure of the United States market for the export of marine products from the Upper Gulf of California due to the ban imposed on that region, there is the possibility that markets such as Europe may begin to open.

Ecologist Martha Román reported that Europe may be an alternative for fishermen in terms of point of sale, but there is a long way to go. "The European market is a very good possibility, and it should be explored as a market for products, such as shrimp or corvina".

She added that possibly, if a way is found to sell to them, the first years will probably not show great profits, but as export levels increase, the market should provide large dividends.

Roman added that the greatest obstacle that fishermen may have is post-capture management, since they have to taylor management to the items in order to comply with the regulations of fishery or animal health required by each export location.

“That is a potential problem, because there are large volumes and there is often no way to store it. If not properly handled and stored, it is detrimental to the quality of the product. ”.

She mentioned accomplishing this task requires time and money, again explaining that fishermen will not immediately see the fruit of their work.

"At some point it needs to begin though, and better soon based on the situation right now in terms of the embargo that the United States has on Mexican seafood."

The reduced human presence on the beaches, due to the confinement and restrictions caused by Covid-19, has given rise this season to a historic hatching of olive ridley turtles in the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora.

"In my community and in two nearby towns there never been anything like this, which is a majestic thing for me," said Mayra Estrella Astorga, coordinator of the Tortuguero of the Comcaac indigenous community (Seri).

This season, which runs from October 22 to November 4, some 2,289 turtles have hatched on Desemboque beach, on the coast of the Sea of ​​Cortez, near Pitiquito, in Sonora. This beach, where about 500 turtles are born in normal years, was closed at the beginning of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic, which caused a drop in fishing and visitors, creating unique, favorable conditions.

" On the one hand, the pandemic did have some positives, because it was a benefit for us to see more turtles due to the fact that they did not allow boats or fishermen to enter the areas.

The hatching began about a week ago and to date 2,289 Lepidochelys olivacea turtles, a species included in the list of endangered species by the official Mexican standard, have already been born.

Astorga assures that 2020 has been the most difficult year for the Seri indigenous people who inhabit the region, since the Covid-19 has dealt a severe blow to its economy. However, the decline in human activity such as tourism and fishing are the main causes that led to an excellent year for the reproduction of this endangered species, she points out. The community recently organized a release of 720 turtles, in an event complete with live music and celebration.

"It is really very nice to see the Comcaac tribe showing the beautiful relationship they have with their environment. All of these native peoples have that connection and a deep knowledge about it. They are the ones who take care of these areas that give life to the planet. That is why they are the older brothers and we can learn from them, that awareness, that relationship they have to keep the environment safe, "assured Albarrán.

The main risks that threaten this species is the trafficking of their eggs and illegal and accidental fishing. Turtle eggs are illegally taken because they are considered an aphrodisiac delicacy and the accidental and illegal fishing has become a security problem on the coast of the Mexican state. The sale or possession of eggs from the olive ridley sea turtle are permanently prohibited based on the danger of extinction of the species.

In addition to Sonora, this species breeds on the coast of Oaxaca, where 700,000 olive ridley turtles have arrived since the beginning October to spawn, according to the National Commission for Protected Natural Areas (Conanp).

This species of tortoise is from the cheloniidae family. It is the smallest of the sea turtles. It measures up to 70 cm and weighs around 40 kilos. It feeds on a wide variety of marine invertebrates.

For Guillermo Nieto, a Mexican businessman who grew up smoking pot, the cannabis greenhouse on his family’s vast farmlands in Guanajuato state is part of a bigger dream. One that involves deep-pocketed pharmaceutical companies. Nieto and several Mexican businessmen have spent years positioning themselves for a time when the country opens up what would be the world’s biggest legal cannabis market in terms of population, where the drug can be lawfully cultivated and sold.

Mexico finally outlined rules in July covering cannabis for medical use, and the sign-off is expected in coming weeks. A bigger prize may also be close for Nieto and foreign companies; Senate majority leader Ricardo Monreal told Reuters he expected a law to be passed before December for recreational use of the drug, allowing regulated private firms to sell it to the public.

 “It’s going to generate a market,” said Nieto, wearing a smart blue shirt, blazer, and bright marijuana-leaf print yellow socks. “We are expecting to create jobs and revenue for the government. We think it could really help our economy.”

Indeed the legal cannabis industry is already a multi-billion-dollar global trade, and some big players, including Canada’s Canopy Growth and The Green Organic Dutchman, and a unit of California-based Medical Marijuana Inc, told Reuters they were eager to tap the new Mexican market.

Business aside, Nieto says the new regulations will have a profound social impact on the conservative nation of 126 million people, where drugs are a sensitive subject due to a long and painful history of violence perpetuated by feuding cartels. “The first thing that will happen is that no Mexican will die or go to jail because of this plant,” Nieto said. “With that, everyone wins.”

However Mexicans are by no means unified on this issue.

While a growing cannabis industry promises to be a money-spinner, it faces resistance from campaigners who are worried that regulations for both medical and non-medical cannabis will heavily favor big, often foreign corporations. The initial regulations covering medical use permit entrepreneurs such as Nieto to grow marijuana on behalf of pharmaceutical companies and allows foreign businesses to import medical cannabis products into the country.

However Mexico’s Supreme Court, which has effectively legalized cannabis by ruling prohibition is unconstitutional, has given the government until Dec. 15 to draft new legislation for the recreational use of cannabis. Monreal, Senate leader of the ruling National Regeneration Movement (MORENA) party, told Reuters that lawmakers were currently ironing out the finer details of the legislation.

He said his party, which has a majority in both houses of Congress with its allies, should have no problems passing the law, which he added would decriminalize possession of a “certain amount” of marijuana. Monreal said the law would not allow Dutch-style cafes in the first stage of liberalization, but the public would be able to buy marijuana from privately run and strictly regulated “sales and distribution centers”.

However he added the Senate was divided over whether to allow industrial cultivation of hemp, a cousin of cannabis plants used in products ranging from food and clothes to building materials, citing opposition from industries that fear hemp will displace their goods.

Depending on what laws Mexico passes, Latin America’s second-largest economy could morph into a hot new frontier in the so-called “green rush” spreading across Canadian and American farmlands, spurred by growing global investment buzz around legal marijuana.

Globally the legal marijuana industry was valued at $17.7 billion last year by consultancy Grand View Research, and is expected to reach $73.6 billion by 2027. Large cannabis companies, which have pharmaceutical facilities to test products, said they were eyeing both the medical and non-medical marijuana sectors.

Canopy Growth, the world’s biggest pot company, told Reuters it aimed to contribute to “the responsible development of this new market” and would review the upcoming regulations.

The Green Organic Dutchman said it “looks forward to participating in the Mexican cannabis market” through its subsidiary, TGOD Mexico, adding it was monitoring the situation.

Raul Elizalde, co-chief executive of HempMeds Mexico, a distributor and subsidiary of California-based Medical Marijuana Inc, said it had held talks with some Mexican pharmaceutical companies about a joint venture about, initially, medical cannabis. However it may launch its own pharma business in the country should the new medical regulations require it. Elizalde said most companies would hold off making investment decisions until they see what laws the senate passed in December, in case they also amend the medicinal rules. “It’s much better to wait and see if this will change,” he said.

To start with, big Canadian companies are likely to see Mexico as a place to export their cannabis products, while U.S. players, hamstrung by federal laws that prohibit marijuana exports, may franchise their brands in Mexico, said Avis Bulbulyan, CEO at cannabis consultancy Siva Enterprise.

Further down the line, Mexico’s inexpensive land, relatively cheap labor force and favorable weather would likely make it a top destination for companies to grow and export cannabis raw materials and products. “It’s on a lot of people’s radar,” Bulbulyan added.

Not everyone is happy with how the new industry is shaping up, however.

The coalition that led the cannabis legalization drive through the courts, made up of pro-marijuana activists and parents of ill children seeking cannabis-based pain relief, say the new medical regulation helps big businesses rather than patients.

Lawmakers legalized the use of medicinal marijuana in 2017, while the Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that recreational marijuana should be permitted.

As it stands, the medical regulation would bar people like Margarita Garfias from growing cannabis for personal use to relieve pain. Farmers could only cultivate marijuana through partnerships with pharmaceutical companies that can conduct product trials, tie-ups which are out of reach for most. Garfias, the mother of a wheelchair-bound 16-year-old son with multiple disabilities, said families who live in fear and have faced getting criminal records for trying to help their children feel short-changed. “The regulation doesn’t help with this, nor with social justice nor human rights for patients,” added Garfias, who said her home-grown cannabis-derived medicine had reduced her son’s epileptic fits and hospitalizations.

Mexico’s health ministry referred queries about the regulation to the regulator, COFEPRIS, which said the rules were focused on ensuring the population was not put at risk. “Medicines must have quality, safety and efficacy,” it said.

Marranitos (or cochinos, or puerquitos, as are they are called in some Mexican-American communities) are often called 'Gingerbread Pigs,' although they don't actually have ginger in them - and no cinnamon either. In fact, traditional marranitos get their delicious spicy-brown goodness from molasses. This recipe is a trans-pecos region variation, it uses the non-traditional addition of cinnamon. You may wish to try also adding a bit of dry ground ginger, and you may use a milk wash instead of an egg wash.

Marranitos (Mexican Pig-Shaped Cookies)

Ingredients:

1 ¼ cups packed brown sugar

¼ cup shortening

1 egg

¼ cup milk

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 cup unsulfured molasses

6 cups all-purpose flour

1 egg, beaten

Prep: 20 mins

Cook: 15 mins

Total: 35 mins

Servings: 15

Yield: 15 large cookies

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2

In a large bowl, cream together brown sugar and shortening until smooth. Mix in 1 egg, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the baking soda, cinnamon, and molasses. Mix in flour until the dough is stiff enough to roll out.

Step 3

Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into cookies using a pig shaped cookie cutter. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush the remaining beaten egg over the tops of the cookies.

Step 4

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the centers of the cookies appear dry and edges are lightly browned.

He was given two tablets and gave away the second

A young boy who decided to sell his toys in order to buy a computer tablet to keep up with his school work has been given two tablets by kindhearted citizens after a newspaper published a story on his plight.

So he turned around and gave the second away to another student without a device to access the internet.

Mario Lara, 11, of Ciudad Madero in Tamaulipas, had been struggling with technology as he attends school online. When classes began in August, he used his mother’s smartphone, but that situation quickly grew complicated as his mother also needs the phone to run her business.

She struggles to make ends meet so purchasing a tablet for their son was financially impossible.

But Mario was determined to keep up with his studies, so he decided to sell off his toy collection, mostly action figures like Max Steel and Spider-Man and Star Wars characters.

He placed them on a plastic table in front of his house to which he affixed a sign reading “My toys are for sale. I need a tablet or a cell phone for my classes, help me with your purchase.”

Word soon spread on social media and Milenio published a story on Mario on September 23.

A non-profit called Movimiento Benito responded and gave Mario a tablet.

But so did a person from Guadalajara who was moved by the story. Mario gave the second tablet to another child in his same predicament.

“I am proud of my child for his noble heart,” his mother said.

Other Mexican children have come to understand that tough times can mean sacrifices have to be made.

Such was the case of a young man in Tampico named Dereck Peto Castorena, who in May decided to sell off his extensive collection of “The Simpsons” figurines to help his family survive economically.

The sixth-grader set up shop at his father’s mask and hand sanitizer stand where he sold the figurines for 15 to 70 pesos (US 70 cents to $3.27) each, using the money to help his family survive because “they have struggled a lot,” he said.

A child in Tijuana adopted a similar tactic in April. After his mother lost her job he began bartering his favorite playthings, placing stuffed animals, puzzles and balls on the fence outside his family home with a sign reading, “I’m exchanging toys for food. We want to help my mom.”