Val:

You may notice the Gunson piece on increasing in poverty in Venezuela under Chavez
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/world/americas/12157949.htm
is not showing up in other newspapers.

Neither is the horrific increase in murder rate:
http://blogs.salon.com/0001330/

The fact that Papillon is still on the voter rolls in Venezuela

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/a2fbd3d0-f6f4-11d9-aeff-00000e2511c8.html

is not getting much attention either

take care and be well

Larry

She's the same writer who reported on the 13 de Marzo demostrations last week. The Sun-Sentinel (Ft. Lauderdale) bylined her as reporting from their Havana Burea, which I take as making her an employee of the newspaper.

Anyway, in her lede paragraph, she described the breakups of the two demostrations as tense but non-violent. I got the impression from reading her report, as contrasted with the Reuters report linked by Val here, that she wrote the story from a news release, or from what someone told her. I don't get the impression that she actually went out and saw the events with her own eyes.

It would be interesting to know more about her and her relationship with the newspaper.

I also noticed the mention of "non-violent" protests in the Bauza article. I briefly alluded to that in one of my posts last week which quoted a Miami Herald article which indicated the exact opposite.

As far as Bauza is concerned, her status is puzzling to say the least.

'Havana Bureau' is meaningless. She could be a freelancer or a regular staffer. Even if she is a regular staffer, this doesn't mean she's not compromised. One of my foreign correspondent friends tells me the Havana news scene is weird because it is full of people, (Vanessa?) who would think their whole lives were ruined if they had to pack up and report from somewhere else. Hence, their desperate desire to please the regime. The other thing is, castro's agents watch these people closely, far closer than almost anyone, and if they find one little thing done wrong - even a bad email or something - they have the correspondent over a barrel. I thought Vanessa's coverage really clanked with unreality when she reported that incident on July 13 - the film alone proved she was lying. Vanessa acts like someone who's on castro's payroll or in castro's pocket. She's really bad.

Notice that Vanessa uses a yahoo email instead of a regular newspaper email. That could be a sign of her being a freelancer.

Mora,

I've noticed the yahoo e-mail myself. I agree with you on her bad coverage of the demonstrations.

test

Thanks Robert - I think I'll google her - she sounds like one of these womenandcuba.org types.

In my googlings, I found an email reference to reaching her at editor@cubadebate.cu - I don't know if she was the editor or the editor's address was put there as an indirect way of reaching her. But clearly the site shows castro sponsorship and she is affiliated with it. Here is the site: http://www.cubadebate.cu/

Can anyone report on the bullshit that is going on in Matanza?

When I say bullshit I mean, certain people in the area who have the keys (sort of speak) to government shops are inflating prices for their own financial gain.

I wouldnt call it black market,but it's deffinately private enterprise,may be it is black market?

i.e., those who hold positions which materials and supplies are at their reach are buying all the goods for themselves before they even open the stores,then they go out and sell the items at a hefty inflated price while turning a nice profit.

My understanding from what I am told,that everyone is involved,including the cheif of police in the area who people have complained to.

I have a cousin in the area who is a "Cabron" that for many years has hustled on the streets in order to provide for his family by trading bills,if anything goes down in Matanza,this kid will know,and he just told me about this scam as well.

He even went as far as telling me that he knows some of these people,that they are doing this because supplies are not getting to Matanza so quickly and they know it,so they take advantage of the fact and gooble it all up to turn a profit.

Although before this week I had never heard of that,my sources tell me it is nothing new, that it happens all the time,that they somehow know how long supplies of any kind will take to reach Matanza and when they see the oppurtunity,they take advantage of it.

I just read a comment on the Globovision site (the all-news TV station in venezuela) that some organizations and other people inside Cuba are saying that the country is on the verge of a social explosion. Is there any other information about what's happening?

Frank - scroll down, you'll find plenty of material to support that. I think the bearded scumbag is sweating these nights.

Vanessa Bauza is listed as "National News Staff Writer" for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in the MediaQ website. To see about a dozen articles she has written recently, just log onto the SFSS website and do a simple "search" on her name.
Don't miss the article she penned about "los acu'aticos," a group of people in Cuba who place their faith in the curative powers of plain water!
I think we should start keeping, perhaps through an electronic archive in Babalublog.com, a more formal "watch" on what Bauza publishes, to try to figure out whether she shows any tendencies or leanings from a strict, objective way.
George Moneo, do you think this type of compilation might be something for the "Fidel's Wall of Shame" website project?
Julio

1) feed-el has obviously reached the delusional stage where he believes he can command nature, as King Chanute tried to stop the tides...but King Chanute was trying to prove a point, that he was a mere mortal and in fact had no power over nature. feed-el, el Canuto del Siglo XXI (play on words - in Cuba, a canuto is a stupid, dense, obstinate fool)...

2) Vanessa - La Canuta del Sun-Sentinel. Maybe we oughta roll one up and give it to her, where the Sun-Sentinel don't shine...

Chavez thinks he can command oil wells to produce, too. These megalomaniacs have really lost it.