Charleston Currents

MORRIS: Don’t panic about market’s fluctuations

By Kyra Morris | Ten days ago on Augst 21, the DOW fell more than 500 points. Then on Monday, August 24, the DOW fell again another 500 points. By Tuesday, August 25, it looked like the DOW was on an upswing, but then in the last hour of the day it fell and closed again down more than 200 points. Whoa! Then … here comes Wednesday and Thursday with a rebound that was one of the best two-day percentage gains in more than six years. What’s happening and what will be next?

Most financial professionals doubt that this will be a repeat of the 53 percent drop experienced from October 2007 until March 2009. Why – what’s the big difference? The lack of a real negative economic event like we had back then makes this different.

by Kyra Morris · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Focus, Good news

Old cars cruise along the Prado in central Havana day and night.

BRACK: Cuba faces big changes in thaw with U.S.

By Andy Brack, Havana, Cuba, Aug. 27, 2015 | In dozens of ways, Cuba isn’t ready for the prime-time expectations of a projected tidal wave of Americans unfettered by decades of travel restrictions.

Yes, these new yanqui explorers to the 776-mile-long island south of Florida will be able to smoke smooth Cohiba cigars, drink potent mojitos and see shiny 1950s Chevys, Fords and Plymouths powered by a hodge-podge of Russian, American and Chinese engine parts.

by Andy Brack · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Andy Brack, Views

This young woman is a drummer and singer in a band that plays Afro-Cuban music at an art studio in El Callejon de Hamel in Havana.

PHOTOS: The faces of Cuba

Set aside political ideologies and international affairs. Cuba, at its heart, is defined by her people, a mélange of black, brown and white seemingly filled with a joie de vivre captured in quick smiles, infectious rumba and a welcoming spirit.

Here are several photos that show some of the faces of Cuba encountered during a nine-day August trip organized by Magnolia Plantation and Gardens.

by Andy Brack · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Photos

GOOD NEWS: Avery Center to present camp meeting exhibition

A new exhibition of black and white photography of the history and traditions of camp meetings will open with a 7 p.m. reception on Sept. 3 at the College of Charleston’s Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture Center.

by Charleston Currents · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Good news, News briefs

MYSTERY: Rabbits or snails?

Contributing photographer Michael Kaynard jokes that the frills at the top of this Charleston building look like rabbits or snails. Seriously, where was this picture taken? (And for extra points, what are the frills?) Send your answer to editor@charlestoncurrents.com. Make sure to include your name and contact information, including hometown.

by Charleston Currents · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Mystery Photo, Photos

8/31, full issue: The market; Cuba; more

In the Aug. 31, 2015 issue, Kyra Morris looks at market volatility. Andy Brack offers thoughts on Cuba after a recent trip, plus a host of photographs that show faces of Cubans. Good news from the Avery Center and more.

by Charleston Currents · 08/31/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Full issue

CALENDAR: Aug. 17+: Plays, dancing, fall benefits

Events after Aug. 17, 2015: Dirty Rotten Scoudrels, dancing, Bernie Schein, Jamaica Day, Charleston Green Fair.

by Charleston Currents · 08/17/2015 · Comments are Disabled · calendar

HISTORY: Prisons and penitentiaries

S.C. Encyclopedia | The first significant jail in South Carolina, a twelve-foot square designed to accommodate sixteen prisoners, was built in Charleston in 1769. Additional jails were built following the division of South Carolina into judicial districts. According to one account, “These jails were forbidding structures, reared to prevent escape and make life gloomy for their inmates.”

by Special to Charleston Currents · 08/17/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Features, S.C. Encyclopedia

REVIEW: Carsick, a film by John Waters

John Waters is commonly known as the Prince of Puke, the Pope of Trash, or just a plain weirdo. In Carsick, Waters chronicles his real-life hitchhiking journey from Baltimore to San Francisco.

by Charleston Currents · 08/17/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Features, Reviews

LETTERS: Two thanks on column about forgiveness

WOW! Thank you so much for being the voice for many of us in the community and the faith-based world that believe and feel the same way. Your article [Brack, “Acts of forgiveness may be key to real power”] was so powerful and moving.

by Charleston Currents · 08/17/2015 · Comments are Disabled · Feedback