The filing will not affect the operation of the company's 20 parks in the United States, Mexico and Canada, said spokeswoman Sandra Daniels.

"This restructuring will have no impact on families who come out to our parks. They will not see an inch of difference," Daniels said.

In an online letter to employees, President and CEO Mark Shapiro said Six Flags inherited a $2.4 billion debt load that that "cannot be refinanced in these financial markets."

"This process is strictly a financial restructuring of our debt and that's how you should view it and speak about it," Shapiro said in the message posted on the Six Flags Web site.

He said Six Flags was seeking expedited approval from the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware of a pre-negotiated plan of reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.

He said the company actually performed well in 2008, attracting 25 million visitors and making $275 million. But it could not keep up with its debt obligations.

"That's a balancing act you just can't risk year in and year out," he said. "Today, we are moving to rectify our balance sheet once and for all. Believe me when I say we will emerge from this process stronger and more competitive than ever."

The restructuring would reduce the company's debt to $600 million.

Shapiro told employees that the company was on "solid ground" and the bankruptcy decision was "difficult." He assured them their paychecks and jobs were safe

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The spread of cholera in Zimbabwe as of 19 February 2009, using data from several sources.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

The 2008 Zimbabwean cholera outbreak is an ongoing cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe that began in August 2008, swept across the country^[6] and spread to Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia.^[7][8] By 10 March 2009 there had been 89,649 reported cases and 4,041 deaths.^[9] The Zimbabwean government declared the outbreak a national emergency and requested international aid.^[10]

 Causes

An open drain in Kuwadzana township, Harare in 2004. By 2008 drains such as this were carrying sewage from burst sewage pipes and faeces washed out of the neighbouring areas as the urban sanitation system collapsed. This contributed to the rapid spread of the cholera outbreak.

The principal cause of the outbreak is lack of access to safe water in urban areas. This is due to the collapse of the urban water supply,^[11] sanitation^[12] and garbage collection systems,^[13] along with the onset of the rainy season leading to faeces with cholera bacteria being washed into water sources, in particular public drains,^[14] as well as providing readily available but contaminated water.^[15] Due to a shortage of purification chemicals, such as chlorine, the capital city of Harare stopped receiving piped water on 1 December 2008.^[16] By that date, many suburbs had not had any water supply for much longer.^[17] On 4 December 2008, the Zimbabwe deputy minister for water and infrastructural development stated that there were only sufficient treatment chemicals in stock nationally for twelve weeks supply.^[18] The collapse of these systems has frequently been blamed on the current economic crisis.^[19][20] Attempts have also been made to attribute the blame to colonial rule, although Zimbabwe had become a fully independent nation 28 years earlier, in 1980.^[21] Many households cannot even afford sufficient fuel to boil all of their water.^[22] According to Medecins Sans Frontieres, the spread of cholera from urban to rural areas from December 2008 onwards was due to infected city-dwellers visiting their families' rural homes for Christmas and the burial of infected city-dwellers in rural areas.^[23]

The cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe has had an unusually high fatality rate. According to Oxfam, "this is due to the fact Zimbabweans are seriously weakened by hunger, HIV and AIDS".^[22]

A major contributing factor to the severity of the outbreak is the collapse of Zimbabwe's public health system, declared a national emergency on 4 December 2008.^[24] By the end of November 2008, three of Zimbabwe's four major hospitals had shut down, along with the Zimbabwe Medical School, and the fourth major hospital had two wards and no operating theatres working.^[25][26] Zimbabwean hospitals still open by December 2008 lacked medicines and staff. Due to hyperinflation, hospitals were not able to buy basic drugs and medicines, and the resources of even internationally-funded emergency clinics are stretched.^[15] The ongoing political and economic crisis also contributed to the emigration of the doctors and people with medical knowledge.^[27] Some victims were travelling to Botswana and other neighbouring countries for treatment.^[19]

 Impact

The spread of cholera in Zimbabwe: (top) The number of cases recorded in the most infected centres and districts, and in the remainder of each province of Zimbabwe as of 4 March 2009. (bottom) Total number of reported cases. Since totals for many districts are not updated daily, the first occurrence of a case may represent the date of the reporting of that case, not the date of infection. Data sources: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs,^[1] the World Health Organisation,^[5] the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.^[2][28] and news media,^{[12][16][29][30][31][32]}

The outbreak began in Chitungwiza on 27 August 2008, with the first case in Harare reported four days later. The next district to report cholera was Kariba on 21 September 2008, with Makonde following on 3 October 2008.^[1] Thereafter, the disease spread to reach all of Zimbabwe's ten provinces.^[1][13] The attack rate was highest in Beitbridge, Chegutu, Mudzi and Zvimba Districts (above 1,000 cases per 100,000 people or 1.0%).^[5]

The number of infected cases reported by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs escalated from 30 on 1 September 2008^[33] to 15,572 by 10 December.^[30] It was argued by some agencies that the reported number of cases probably under-estimated the extent of the outbreak, since many people were unlikely to have reached the clinics or treatment where the numbers were recorded. According to the Red Cross, around 46% of reported deaths occur en route to clinics and hospitals.^[34] The head of the British Department for International Development in Harare said that "there are probably twice as many people with cholera as turn up for treatment."^[35]

The case fatality rate for the outbreak was higher than expected for such outbreaks, although it began declining by January 2009.^[5] Official estimates of fatalities have run from 484 to 800, since the outbreak in August 2008,^[36] with an upper estimate of 3,000 from an anonymous senior official in the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare.^[17] Fatality rates varied from 2.5% in Harare to 18% in Chitungwiza. ^[37]In Harare, the crisis reached the extent that the city council offered free graves to cholera victims.^[14] On 4 December, Oxfam estimated that by the end of March 2009, some 60,000 would be infected.^[20] By 7 December, Oxfam had revised their estimate to 60,000 cases by the end of January 2009 and a 10% fatality rate,^[22] with UNICEF giving a similar estimate.^[38] On 4 December 2008, the Zimbabwe government declared the outbreak to be a national emergency.^[24]

 Politicisation

As the outbreak and health crisis grew worse, American and British leaders cited the crisis as further proof that it was, in their view, "well past time for (President) Robert Mugabe to leave"^[39] and that Zimbabwe had become a failed state.^[40] The Zimbabwe government and state media responded by blaming the outbreak on European and American sanctions^[41] and accused Britain of plotting an invasion under the cover of the outbreak.^[42] Information minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu blamed the cholera deaths on Western sanctions, saying "the cholera issue has been used to drive a wedge among us".^[43] On December 12, Ndlovu repeated his accusation, and claimed that the cholera outbreak was actually a "serious biological-chemical weapon" attack by the United Kingdom, which Ndlovu asserted was trying to commit genocide.^[44] Said Ndlovu:

"Cholera is a calculated, racist, terrorist attack on Zimbabwe by the unrepentant former colonial power, which has enlisted support from its American and Western allies so that they can invade the country."^[45][46]

In the meantime, a senior ZANU-PF official argued that the government and party leadership was more focussed on the forthcoming ZANU-PF conference than on the current crisis.^[47] On 11 December 2008, President Robert Mugabe made a speech screened on national television in which he said:

"I am happy to say our doctors have been assisted by others and WHO (the World Health Organization)... so now that there is no cholera... Because of cholera, Mr Brown wants a military intervention... Bush wants military intervention because of cholera... There is no cause for war any more. The cholera cause doesn’t exist any more."^[48][49]

Reports from the WHO contradicted Mugabe’s view and indicated a growing death toll. According to the WHO, as of 8th December nearly 800 people had died of cholera and more than 16,000 cases were being treated.^[48] Later that same day, Zimbabwean visas were denied to six French aid workers, including three crisis management specialists, two epidemiologists and a water treatment expert.^[50] Britain's Africa minister, Mark Malloch-Brown, dismissed Mugabe's claim that the Zimbabwe cholera crisis is over, commenting as follows:

"I don't know what world he [Mugabe] is living in. There is a raging humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe as well as an economic crisis and still there is no representative government able to lead the country out of this disaster.."^[51]

The French foreign ministry and USAID also contradicted Mugabe's statements and called on him to allow aid to reach the people in need.^[51][40]

 Response

Assistance has been made available by numerous international agencies,^[15] and funding for water, sanitation and hygiene programmes, epidemic response and the provision of essential drugs has come through from several governments and trans-governmental organisations:

Government or Agency	Amount	Date
Government of Australia	AUS$8,000,000 for food and emergency aid	2 December 2008 .[52]
Government of Botswana	US$300,000	3 December 2008 [53]
Government of France	€200,000 for water purification tablets and distribution points Water treatment equipment	4 December 2008 [54] 11 December 2008 [55]
Government of Germany	€1,000,000 to the Red Cross	8 December 2008 [56]
Government of Namibia	US$165,000 of medical supplies	7 December 2008.[57]
Government of the Netherlands	€5,000,000 for medication, drinking water and water purification tablets	December 2008.[58]
Government of South Africa	Emergency food and medicine	4 December 2008 [59][39]
Government of Switzerland	US$820,000 to an emergency aid programme and logistical support for UN agencies	9 December 2008 [60]
Government of United Kingdom	£3,000,000	November 2008 [11]
USAID	US$6,200,000 for health, water and sanitation programmes	11 December 2008 [40]
Government of Venezuela	Over 74 tons of medical supplies and drinking water	3 January 2009 [61]
African Union	US$100,000	11 December 2008 [62]
European Commission	€9,000,000	3 December 2008 [63]
World Health Organisation	US$340,000 of medication and supplies	4 December 2008 [64]
Giving Children Hope and World Vision	US$500,000 of medication	2 December 2008 [65]
Red Cross	over 13 tons of medical supplies	4 December 2008 [64]
World Vision and Health Partners International of Canada	US$4,000,000 of medication	13 January 2009 [66]

By 7 December, UNICEF had secured sufficient international donor funding to provide sufficient water treatment chemicals for three weeks water supply for Harare and had arranged a shipment of chemical sufficient for four months supply.^[22] UNICEF distributed 360,000 litres of water per day in Harare, as well as handing out soap and buckets.^[35] Notwithstanding the contributions received, UNICEF indicated on 9 December 2008 that US$17,500,000 was needed to respond properly to the outbreak.^[67] As of 15 December, following agreement with the Zimbabwe government, the World Health Organization was procuring medical supplies to roll out a response plan to run health centres.^[68]

 Spread beyond Zimbabwe

Spread of cholera within southern Africa, as of 10 February 2009. Not all cases are part of the 2008–2009 Zimbabwean cholera outbreak.
Key:
█ Deaths recorded
█ Infections recorded

The cholera outbreak spread during 2008 to districts in Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia bordering Zimbabwe.^[8][12]

 South Africa

The outbreak spread to the Zimbabwean migrant worker community in Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa^[69] and cholera bacteria were detected in the Limpopo River on 3 December 2008.^[67] By 12 December 2008 11 deaths and 859 infections had been recorded in South Africa.^[37] This rose to 2,100 cases and 15 deaths by 14 January 2009^[70] and to 12,000 cases and 59 deaths by March 10.^[71]

The South African government set up medical facilities and drinking water supplies at the Beitbridge border post^[72] and deployed the National Outbreak Response Team and additional medical personnel to Musina.^[73] Anthony Turton, a political scientist with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa, who had earlier warned of the risk of cholera in South Africa and wrote a report that recommended that the South African government increase its spending on water treatments lest a cholera outbreak occur in the country, was suspended for having made "inappropriate statements to the media".^[74] On 10 December 2008, the Limpopo Provincial Government declared Vhembe District Municipality, which borders Zimbabwe at Beitbridge, Matabeleland South province, a disaster area.^[49] On a 28 January 2009 visit to Musina with high-ranking government and ruling party officials, Health Minister Barbara Hogan said

Cholera is spreading... We are beginning to see a shift from Zimbabwe to South Africa. The situation is scary... I am concerned about the impact this is having on our provinces.

 Other countries

The spread of the outbreak to Zimbabwe's other neighbouring countries was initially slower than in South Africa, with one death recorded in Kafue District in Zambia and none in Botswana or Namibia by 9 December 2008.^[32] However as 2009 came, cases have increased, with 4,354 cases and 55 deaths reported by 10 February 2009 in Zambia and 1,596 cases and 14 deaths in Katanga, the southernmost province of the DR Congo.^[76] in Mozambique, cholera has spread to 10 out of 11 provinces^[76], with a total of 9,533 cases and 79 deaths between 1 January and 1 March 2009 – as well as the deaths of four health workers in a mob attack, blamed on "misinformation and misunderstanding in efforts to combat cholera".^[77] In Malawi 67 deaths were recorded in 17 districts.^[78]

Memo to Obama

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Remember all the talk during the presidential campaign about a middle-class tax cut? It could be showing up in your paycheck early next year.

As the debate heats up over how to pull the economy from the ledge, it's likely that tax cuts for the middle class will play a central role.

President-elect Barack Obama hopes to have a massive economic stimulus plan waiting for his signature when he takes office on Jan. 20. It's expected to include hundreds of billions in spending on infrastructure and green energy, but he also made clear last week that he wants it to also feature tax cuts to lower- and middle-income Americans.

Tax cuts are "part and parcel of what we need when it comes to stimulus," Obama said last week.

"We're going to be putting money in people's pockets so that they can spend on buying a new computer for their kid's school, so that they can, you know, make sure that they are able to deal with heat and groceries and all the other strains on the family budget," he added.

The long-term benefit, in his view: It would create more fairness in the tax code.

One promise he made but may hold off on for awhile: the reversal of some of the Bush tax cuts for high-income taxpayers, who are roughly defined as individuals making more than $200,000 and couples making more than $250,000. Specifically, Obama has said he would increase the top two income tax rates and the capital gains rate to their pre-2001 levels.

Mindful that a tax increase during a recession might do more harm than good, he and his advisers have left open the possibility that they might wait to implement the increases until 2011, rather than next year. "Whether [the tax rate changes are] done through repeal or whether that's done because the Bush tax cuts are not renewed is something that my economic team will be providing me a recommendation on," Obama said at a press conference last week.

Some economists think tax cuts for the middle class might be one way to create or save some of the 2.5 million jobs Obama has promised over the next two years if lawmakers put together the kind of stimulus package he envisions.

Others say it's a bad idea.

"It would be a serious mistake to enact tax cuts aimed at increasing already excessive consumption," wrote Stephen Roach, chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, in the New York Times last week. "The Obama administration needs to encourage the sort of saving that will put consumers on sounder financial footing and free up resources."

So what kind of tax cuts are being considered? Obama's transition team isn't offering details yet and one Democratic aide on the Hill told CNNMoney.com that specifics have not yet been discussed.

But in talking about his economic recovery package, Obama has mentioned his campaign promise to offer a "net tax cut" for "95% of American workers."

One option that could get Obama a good way toward that 95% is his proposed Making Work Pay credit -- a centerpiece promise in his campaign. The credit would essentially work as a payroll tax credit equal to $500 for individuals and $1,000 for couples.

The credit would have an income threshold. Only those making $75,000 or less ($150,000 or less for couples) would get the full credit. Individuals making between $75,000 and $85,000 (and couples making between $150,000 and $170,000) would get a partial credit.

The credit also would be refundable, meaning that even tax filers without any tax liability -- typically very low-income workers -- would receive one.

Rather than mail out checks to consumers, the IRS, together with employers, could coordinate a change in how much money is withheld from workers' paychecks, so they'd simply get a bigger paycheck.

Economist Mark Zandi, however, believes a payroll tax credit like the kind Obama has proposed could be tricky to implement because it's based on income. As a result, it could take longer to take effect than, say, an across-the-board payroll tax holiday -- a temporary suspension of the payroll tax viewed by some as another way to boost spending.

"Under the Obama payroll tax credit, payroll and other accounting software would have to be recoded and implemented across many businesses," said Zandi, chief economist for Moody's Economy.com.

Even though the short-term impact of such a credit could be muted, it has more potential bang for the buck in the long run than a tax holiday.

"A payroll tax credit would provide more of a spending boost since it is a permanent change in the tax code," Zandi said. "Households are more likely to spend a tax cut if it is the result of a permanent change rather than a temporary one."