Books: Thunderous applause and a standing ovation from avid literary arts lovers cheered Jamaican writer Jean Lowrie-Chin on at the recent New York City launch of her book Souldance at the corporate offices of Ruder Finn Inc in midtown Manhattan. The audience in the jam-packed room was riveted by the passionate and dynamic readings of some of Lowrie Chin’s favorite poems and writings, some of which go back several years. Comment.

People: During this season of hope and thanksgiving, the Greater New York Red Cross reflects on the generosity of those who helped us bring comfort and assistance to our neighbors in need this year. Comment.

National: AIDS has killed 30 million people around the world, and 34 million are living with HIV. Today, I want to focus on the three key interventions that can make it possible to achieve an AIDS-free generation. Comment.

New York: A group of scholar athletes were honored recently by Brooklyn U.S.A. Athletic Association, Inc. for their contributions to the world of sports and to the community at large. Comment.

Music & Fashion: “Opera Is Hot” will be presented during five performances at The Faison Firehouse on Dec. 3 and Dec. 4 in Harlem. Comment.

Arts & Theater: Rhythm and blues singer Freddie Jackson will portray the role of Reverend Bolden when he makes his acting debut next month in a play entitled “I’ll Be Home For Christmas.” Comment.

New York: The premiere of Brooklyn’s Kwanzaa celebration kicks off on Dec. 17 at Medgar Evers College, 1150 Carroll St. The traditional annual, which feeds patrons with a free holiday treat, promises a potpourri of cultural activities including performances by Shanto, Cowteff, Carl Williams, Wayne Russell, and the Imani dancers. Vendors will display crafts and cultural items throughout the gymnasium. Comment.

Health: Prostate microwave thermotherapy is an ultra-modern, office-based, non-surgical, one-time long-lasting treatment for benign prostate enlargement. This is the latest in an ongoing series of scientific and technological advances designed to relieve the annoying symptoms caused by this common male problem. Comment.

Health: Baby boomers, adults born between 1946-1964, are most at risk for Hepatitis C because they are more likely to have been exposed to dangerous risk factors decades ago, such as sharing a drug needle, being tattooed or pierced with unsterilized tools or receiving a tainted blood transfusion. Two thirds of people diagnosed with the disease fall into this age range. Comment.

West Indies batting legend Lawrence Rowe is taking legal action against the Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) for their decision to remove his name from the Players Pavilion at Sabina Park. Comment.

Sports: One of the top cross country runners in the area happens to come from Long Island University. He competes for a college that overall cannot match up with some of the decent ones such as Central Connecticut, Monmouth, Robert Morris, Princeton, Albany, Marist, Fordham, Sacred Heart, and the list goes on. Comment.

National: Washington and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries have agreed to strengthen the region’s security structures and institutions and improve ties between CARICOM and the Dominican Republic, in order to more effectively promote regional and international coordination to address the security challenges facing the Caribbean. Comment.

Movies: Answers to Nothing (R for violence, profanity, nudity and graphic sexuality) Lost souls saga, set in L.A., about a miserably-married woman (Elizabeth Mitchell) too desperate to have a child to confront her philandering husband (Dane Cook) about his infidelity. With Barbara Hershey, Julie Benz and Kali Hawk. Comment.

Barbados: Fellow Barbadians. Comment.

Manhattan: Once again, jumpers from Europe will join counterparts from Japan and cities across the United States to see which country will win the best-in-the-show contest when the 20th Annual Double Dutch Holiday Classic gets under way 1:00 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4, at Harlem’s world famous Apollo Theater, 253 West 125th St. in Manhattan. Comment.

People: New York State Board of Regents has endorsed the federal Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act that would allow Caribbean and other immigrant students to obtain permanent residency, earn high school diplomas and go on to college. Comment.

Sports: India took control of the second Test match from start to finish with some fascinating display of batting and bowling. Comment.

Viewpoints: The plan devised by Republicans to arrange a pretty heavy schedule of debates for candidates vying for the 2012 nomination is, on its face, a commendable representation of democracy in action. Still, one would hardly be surprised if there’s considerable second-guessing among the strategists responsible for setting this course, given the extent to which the debates have produced results not at all flattering to this alleged cream of the GOP crop. Comment.

Sports: Last winter the freshmen’s basketball team at Brooklyn’s Bishop Ford advanced to the semi-finals of the Catholic High Schools Athletic Association Intersectional playoffs during a successful 11-5 season. Comment.

Music & Fashion: Last Saturday, Nov. 19, soprano Marilyn Oliver gave a Thanksgiving Celebration concert at the South Oxford Space in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Thomas Siklos accompanied her on the piano and steel panist Sheldon Rathan was a guest artist. Comments (3).

Sports: There was much at stake in the 2011 MLS Cup championship game between the Los Angeles Galaxy and the Houston Dynamo last Sunday night at Home Depot Center. The 2011 MLS Coach of the Year and Galaxy coach, Bruce Arena, and his counterpart, Houston’s Dominick Kinnear, were both seeking their second MLS Cup victory; the Galaxy not only had the pressure as favorites but had the added pressure of having to protect its undefeated home record this year. Comment.

MONACO (AP) — Usain Bolt wants to go for four gold medals at next summer’s London Olympics, adding the 4x400 meters relay to his usual schedule of three sprint events. Comment.

Viewpoints: Ever since Republican Herman Cain, a self-described “Black conservative,” remarked that two-thirds of Black Democrats are “brainwashed,” the question of his “Blackness” has been contrasted with that of President Obama. Beyond the resentment from brainwashing claims, this issue should prompt discourse and partisan introspection to determine if Blackness “politically exists” in either party. Comment.

Arts & Theater: There are few mediums that put life on stage, upfront and personal as does theatre. It’s a venue that allows life to play out wherein both the actor and the audience get to experience the multi-dimensional scope of life, past and present; staged, directed, written, lighted, costumed, produced, set to music, choreographed, costumed and even scored. Comment.

People: The selection process was difficult - from 40 applicants where five were chosen - for the 2011 “Civic Leaders of Tomorrow” Fellows, announced at a brief ceremony at the Manhattan Borough President’s office, Nov. 9. Comment.

People: The Washington-based Institute of Caribbean Studies (ICS) paid special tribute to eight Caribbean Americans who it claims have “blazed paths of success” in the arts, science, technology, business and the media. Comment.

Grenada: The Grenada government is warning that Taiwan’s aggressive effort to collect a US$28 million judgment will hurt the tourism-dependent economy of the Caribbean island. Comment.

Movies: “J. Edgar” Comment.

Movies: The Artist (PG-13 for a crude gesture and a disturbing image) Black & white film, set in Hollywood in 1927, chronicling the contrasting fortunes of a fading, silent movie star (Jean Dujardin) and an emerging ingénue (Berenice Bejo) positioned to leverage her big break in the talkies. With John Goodman, James Cromwell, Malcolm McDowell and Penelope Ann Miller. Comment.

Food: Eating healthy during the holidays can be difficult. Between scrumptious sweets and hearty special occasion meals, the extra calories can quickly add up. Comment.

Health: Stones buried within the flesh of the prostate can be present for years without symptoms. Prostate stones found on sonography are usually a big surprise for the patient. That’s because most of the time, such stones reside “silently” within the prostate gland, located at the base of the urinary bladder. Comment.

Health: We’re about to enter cold and flu season. There’s a good chance you or someone in your family may develop a chest cold and cough this winter. If you get sick, call your doctor’s office, and find out what you can do at home to ease symptoms without medication. Doctors know that sick patients may ask for strong medicines like antibiotics, but there are concerns with taking these drugs too often. Comment.

Health: Do you have a family member with a BRCA gene mutation and so you’re concerned about your own risk of developing cancer? Well, a new study may provide you with a reason for breathing a sigh of relief. Comment.

Cuba: A new report by the Washington-based think tank, Center for Democracy in the Americas, has urged the United States to do more to encourage market reforms and restructuring now underway in Cuba. Comment.

Grenada: U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is attending a two-day meeting of ministers and high-level officials responsible for public security in the Americas in Trinidad this week. He also is using the opportunity to meet with high-level regional officials including the prime ministers of Grenada and Barbados where he has ancestral roots. Comment.

Sports: To open their playoff run, in the PSAL post season Championship tournament, under sunny skies, Erasmus HS defeated JFK HS by a score of 28-0. Comment.

Sports: Injuries, including concussions, were a big topic of discussion at the first National Football League Health and Safety Forum in the Lexus Club of MetLife Stadium before the New England Patriots turned back the host New York Jets in a battle for first place. Comment.

Manhattan: How to Help your Child The Brooklyn Chapter of the Coalition for Public Education is sponsoring What Can You Do to Help Your Child/Children Succeed At School? for parents, educators, & educational workers with problem children, led by a panel of educators, focusing on testing, school closings, technology, books, inexperienced teachers & more, 3:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m., at The Bedord Stuyvesant Restoration, 1368 Fulton St., between Brooklyn & New York avenues. For information, call Raheem at (718) 616-9587 or Mr. Weusi at (718) 773-2252. Comment.

Manhattan: Healthfirst celebrated the opening of its new corporate headquarters at 100 Church Street in Lower Manhattan with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 7. Comment.

Queens: After examining data from nearly 1,200 four-year colleges, Education Trust, a research and advocacy group that promotes high academic achievement for students at all levels, identified Queens College as one of only five schools that do a good job of serving low-income students. Comment.

Music & Fashion: Lehman Center for the Performing Arts celebrates its 31st season with the return of Salsa Palooza, featuring three renowned Salsa singers -- Tito Nieves, La India and Michael Stuart – performing hit after hit from their spectacular careers on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. Comment.

Manhattan: Kings and presidents have dined on his scrumptious delights. As a critically acclaimed chef he has prepared unforgettable meals from Paris to New Orleans and finally in New York where James Rosebud created J. Rose Catering. Comment.

Trinidad and Tobago: Caribbean Airlines, ATR 72-600, France turboprop Comment.

Jamaica: The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has appointed a career senior Foreign Service Officer as its Jamaica Mission Director. Comment.

Sports: The second round of CONCACAF 2014 World Cup qualifying is now a mere formality with only second-leg games of the final series to play; all the group winners who will move to the third and semi-final round have been determined. Comment.

People: Caribbean Life columnist and reporter Vinette K. Price was honored for her continued commitment to coverage of stories addressing the concerns of various communities and in particular her coverage of the ‘Howard Beach Incident’ of December 1986 which shocked New York when Michael Griffith, a Black teen was struck and killed by a passing car as he ran onto the Belt Parkway to escape a group of white teens who were chasing him, following a verbal exchange in Howard Beach, Queens. Comment.

Music & Fashion: The second annual concert season of The Braata Folk Singers invited patrons to an evening of Caribbean music and in the process attracted supportive thespians and artists who banded to show solidarity for the company. Comment.

Health: Cardiovascular disease is the leading killer of Americans, affecting one in three people, according to the American Heart Association (AHA). And, the problem may be getting worse, as a new study from the AHA predicts that those who have heart disease are expected to increase to more than 40 percent of Americans by 2030. Comment.

Music & Fashion: After making an international outing to Trinidad & Tobago this year, the annual International Reggae & World Music Awards will return to the mid-west where it first started in 1982. Comment.

Music & Fashion: The first of many blockbuster celebrations slated for Jamaica’s golden anniversary kicks off in January with the debut of a brand new festival headlined by Canadian superstar Celine Dion. Comment.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, poet, writer, physician, and the probable inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Sherlock Holmes,” speaking to the Massachusetts Medical Society in 1860, said, “I firmly believe that if the whole “Materia Medica” (all the medicines in the world), except for digitalis and opium, could be sunk to the bottom of the sea, it would be all the better for mankind … and all the worse for the fishes.” Comment.

Travel: The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Council of Tourism Ministers has set out an action plan for the implementation of the recently finalized Common Tourism Policy for the sub region. Comment.

Courts, the Caribbean’s largest furniture, electronics and appliances retailer has expanded its U.S. presence by opening its second U.S.-based retail property on Nov. 10, in Jamaica, Queens 89-56 165th St., Jamaica, New York. Comment.

Movies: Another Happy Day (R for pervasive profanity, sexual references, brief graphic nudity and teen drug and alcohol abuse) Dysfunctional family drama chronicling the trials and tribulations of a distraught divorcee (Ellen Barkin) when she ventures to her parents’ (George Kennedy and Ellen Burstyn) estate in Annapolis for the marriage of her estranged son (Michael Nardelli). With Kate Bosworth, Demi Moore and Thomas Haden Church. Comment.

Movies: Jake Gibson (Cam Gigandet) is eagerly anticipating enjoying a great birthday after reading a horoscope which predicts nothing but the best for Aquarians. Unfortunately, the rosy forecast turns out to be totally inaccurate as everything that could possibly go wrong does go wrong over the course of a bitterly-disappointing, 24 hours. Comment.

People: Multicultural advertising agency UniWorld Group, Inc., (UWG) for the second year in a row won grand prizes in the Best African American Campaign and African American Print Campaign categories at the 11th Annual Association of National Advertisers (ANA) Multicultural Excellence Awards ceremony held last week in Miami, Florida. Comment.

Bronx: November is National Home Care Month and Montefiore Medical Center is celebrating the 64th anniversary of Montefiore Home Care, the nation’s first hospital-based home care agency. Comment.

Haiti: A Haitian human rights group is seeking at least $250 million in damages from the United Nations and its peacekeeping force in Haiti on behalf of 5,000 cholera victims. Comment.

Bronx: The Monroe Mustangs women’s soccer team is treading where they have never gone before. On the strength of Mikaela Howell’s second-half goal, Monroe defeated top-ranked Ocean County College (Toms River, NJ), 1-0 to advance to the NJCAA Division III Women’s National Championship game Sunday at 2:00 p.m. vs. (#4) Montgomery-Rockville(MD), the winner of the other semi-final. Comment.

Sports: In a marathon or in any race, most of the attention is usually focused on the men’s segment of the event. Comment.

Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla hosted the first of three Tests matches between India and the West Indies this month. Comment.

National: Years ago, students of public relations would invariably be introduced to the pseudo-event phenomenon. Among the ingenious practices of the industry, students would learn, would be professionals contriving all manner of “happenings” to draw media attention to a product, a service, a personality or what-have-you. What a bonanza such students would enjoy today if assigned to real-time engagement of a pseudo-event, here in this fantasia-like media fixation with Herman Cain’s implausible presidential nominee aspirations. Comment.

New York: Emma Lazarus’s sonnet — “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free” — greeted generations of immigrants. Comment.

Sports: In a highly anticipated game between two of the cities best, Abraham Lincoln HS played very well and defeated Fort Hamilton High School by a score of 22-6. Comment.

Jamaica: Jamaica’s Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has called on all tourism interests in the Caribbean to join in the debate regarding the reversal or adjustment being sought in the application of the controversial Air Passenger Duty (ADP) on travelers from the United Kingdom to the region. Comment.

Music & Fashion: Bartlett’s Celebration at Sea will begin its third decade of presenting great fun and phenomenal entertainment. The infamous Bartlett Brothers have booked passage on the fabulous Norwegian Gem, leaving New York January 29 and returning to New York on February 8. Comment.

St Vincent: The board of directors of the Bronx, N.Y.-based Garifuna Coalition, U.S.A, say they will honor Erline Williams-King, a former aide to the St. Vincent and the Grenadines New York Consul General, at its “Fourth Annual Yellow, White, Black Garifuna Settlement Day 2011” fundraising gala on Nov. 19. Comment.

St Vincent: The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Organization of Pennsylvania, Inc. (SVGOP) on Saturday night bestowed a special honor on prominent community organizer Verna V. Arthur during its annual Independence gala in Philadelphia. Comment.

Sports: The New York Red Bulls was eliminated for the 2011 MLS playoffs Thursday night when it suffered its second straight defeat at the feet of the Los Angeles Galaxy. Comment.

Sports: Four magnificent performaces from two West Indies bowlers and two West Indies batsmen propelled their team to defeat Bangladesh in the second Test match winning the two-match Test series 1-0. Comment.

People: The newly-founded European Union (EU)-Latin America and Caribbean Foundation (EU-LAC) opened its headquarters in Hamburg, Germany, on Nov. 5, aimed at developing economic relations between the German government and Caribbean and Latin American countries. Comment.

People: Milk Carton Molly Tavon Ray Dejon & Jammins Entertainment presents the stage play Milk Carton Molly, a musical by Tarana Peaches about Molly, who goes missing, after her husband goes to prison at C-PAC, 1020 East 48 St., Brooklyn. Doors open 8:00 p.m. For tickets log onto www.tix4me.com & for more information call (718) 282-8041. Comments (1).

Music & Fashion: After a two-year break, USVI Fashion Week founder and CEO Henry Marsham, returned to the helm for this year’s event, held Oct. 4-9 in the majestic Frenchman Resort in St Thomas U.S. Virgin Islands. Comment.

Viewpoints: When I first served in Congress, in the 1960s and 1970s, I would often sit on the floor of the House and listen carefully to members from both sides. I was trying to figure out the differences between the liberals and the conservatives, and to perceive how those differences could be narrowed or bridged. They broke over how to answer the overriding question of American government — the proper role of government — with liberals seeing an expansive role and conservatives a limited one. At the time, there was plenty of gray area where the two could find common ground. Comment.

Movies: On Nov. 25, the 19th annual African Diaspora International Film Festival returns with a slew of provocative and entertaining cinema representing five continents and emphasizing the perspectives of Africans in those regions. Comment.

Viewpoints: I’m one of those “job creators” members of Congress profess to admire so much. Thirty-two years ago, my partner and I started a small business with $300 worth of old records and a booth at the local farmers market. We’re now the biggest independent music store in St. Louis and employ 22 people. Our annual revenue is around $2 million. We’re a classic American success story. Comment.

Jamaica: Caribbean hotel mogul Gordon “Butch” Stewart was recently honored with the World Travel Awards’ inaugural Tourism Pioneer Award. Comment.

Guyana: Guyanese-American Sandra Chapman will work to make literacy programs easily available to residents throughout the borough of Brooklyn, as one of her top priorities as the new Brooklyn deputy borough president. Comment.

Health: A married man’s best friend is most often his wife and the older he gets, the more he comes to understand the wisdom and truth of that statement. Comment.

Movies: 11-11-11 (Unrated) Psychological thriller about a best-selling author (Timothy Gibbs) who moves to Barcelona to recover from the loss of his family in a house fire set by a fan only to learn that the number 11 is fated to remain his unlucky number forever. With Wendy Glenn, Michael Landers, Denis Rafter and Salome Jimenez. Comment.

Movies: “Tower Heist” Comment.

Health: As stroke awareness month drew to a close, several stroke related studies of particular interest were published. These include one showing that Black Americans develop hypertension (high blood pressure) more frequently, and more rapidly, than white Americans. Comment.

On returning home to Jamaica some nationals anticipate a hefty serving of stewed peas and rice, curried goat, brown-stewed chicken, escoveitched fish, mackerel run-down, sumptuous ox tails, jerk pork or maybe some sweet guineps, sugary naseberries or an uninterrupted swim in the Caribbean Sea. Relatives and friends also factor with a myriad of novelties. Comment.

Sports: All eyes were focused on Charlie Jenkins last year when he received the Haggerty Award, going to the outstanding player in the tri-state area. The area did not go as far north as UConn, which is a little too far away from the met area. Comment.

Music & Fashion: A momentous transformation will occur on the grounds of a former penal colony in St. Laurent, French Guiana when the Transamazoniennes Festival, 6th edition, returns Nov. 10-13 Comment.

Queens: Gerald Carter, a remediation specialist with the Parodneck Foundation, was the guest speaker at Assemblyman William Scarborough’s 29th AD Task Force Meeting. Comment.

Haiti: U.S. Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-Brooklyn) on Tuesday re-introduced a bill in Congress that would allow an estimated 55,000 Haitians who already have approved immigration petitions to join their relatives in the United States. Comment.

Manhattan: As Occupy Wall Street continues to galvanize America and numerous ‘Occupy’ movements keep springing up in cities, towns and communities across the nation, it was only a matter of time before Harlem residents and activists took the bull by the horns and brought the initiative uptown. Comment.