June 30, 2007
The Police, Enforcing insensitivity
Check out what's available at the official site of The Police.
Who's the real sicko? -- Updated
Special Blogburst about Michael Moore's fantasy film, SiCKO. Welcome Michelle Malkin readers.
Here's some items for you to read:
UPDATES: June 30th
More on Moore, coming soon. Have a piece you would like featured here? Email me the link.
U.S. Cuba custody case update
This past Wednesday, a Miami appeals court ordered the judge in a child custody dispute between a Cuban national and a Cuban exile family to open all hearings to the public.
''Under Florida law, the trial court may close any dependency hearing to the public upon determining that the public interest or the welfare of the child is best served by doing so,'' the appeals court wrote. ``However, such a determination must be supported by competent substantial evidence. The evidence presented to the trial court fails to satisfy this requirement.''Eunice Sigler, a spokeswoman for Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit, which encompasses Miami-Dade County, said the ruling was not yet final, pending a possible appeal by either the girl's caregivers or the Guardian-ad-Litem Program in Miami, which sought the closing of the hearings.
It is my opinion, that labeling this case as being between a Cuban national and a US family is a travesty. As I’ve argued before, there are no parental rights in Cuba, children are in fact “owned” by the State of Cuba, and if this little girl is returned there, she will grow up without human rights, indoctrinated with the frightening, hateful militancy of castro’s revolutionary curriculum.
It would be wrong to grant custody of this little girl to her father if it means returning her to Cuba.
Read the article here.
June 29, 2007
La Unica
This lady needs no introduction, from Youtube:
Better Late than Never
105-year-old man becomes American citizen.
Read it here.
Maybe we should refer Hamas to the Teletubbies
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8Q2L8K80&show_article=1
"W" Clarifies
Over the last ten months or so, I have had a mounting concern over US foreign policy in regards to Cuba.
With castro’s demise imminent, it started to look like the United State’s primary focus was to prevent a mass exodus a-la Mariel.
It seemed to me, that the US was willing to settle for a stable undemocratic government in Cuba rather than deal with the all too real chaos and the socio-political upheaval that would result from the rebirth of a Cuban Republic.
When pressed on the issue yesterday at the Naval War College in Newport, President Bush is quoted in today’s Miami Herald:
``Some will say all that matters is stability -- which in my judgment will just simply reinforce the followers of the current regime. I think we ought to be pressing hard for democracy.''
That’s certainly a welcomed clarification of his administration’s policy.
After all, attaining a country’s freedom is a messy and chaotic process which “may” lead to instability on our shores. Really, it will be a mere inconvenience with many opportunities for the US in the not–too–distant future.
But the underlying phobia of “Another Mariel” of some within the administration is real:
His stance has triggered some private grumbling in the administration that this was not promoting the U.S. national interest of averting a flood of migrants from Cuba.
This myopic vision of what constitutes American national interests needs to be challenged. America’s interests have always been to stand for freedom. A free and democratic Cuba is what will bring a lasting stability and serve America’s, (and I mean the continent), interest. Those within the government that would trade a false short –term stability for freedom need to be reminded that they are going against the core values that this Nation was founded on.
June 28, 2007
Anita Snow: not eating like a Cuban
The month of June is almost over, and I couldn’t help but wonder how Anita Snow is doing after four weeks of pretending to eat like a Cuban.
I just caught up on her blog entries, and I’m sure Babalu readers will be surprised to hear that Ms. Snow is alive and well, and enjoying ham and cheese laden pizza. Of course, it doesn’t count against the ration card because, someone else paid for it.
I went back this week for another pizza in a basket. A friend who is leaving Cuba soon invited me out for one last lunch, so I suggested Pizza Celina.I wrote about the popular private fast food joint earlier this month both for this blog and a story for AP news wires about Cuban street food, describing a lunch that arrives in a basket lowered from the terrace-top kitchen where it is made.
Still on my month eating within the limits of Cuba's food ration plus an average salary, it didn't seem right to accept lunch at a fancy restaurant - even if someone else was paying.
The pizza was as good as the last time, with its thick, soft crust and lots of cheese and ham.
I don't think I could have handled a month of beans and rice on a typical Cuban diet without some kind of occasional escape like Pizza Celina.
What a revelation! So where is the post denouncing the castro regime for its inadequate wages and food rationing?
Unfortunately, Ms. Snow is otherwise occupied with the differences in regional tamales and “chocolatin,” which sells for eight pesos. She admits that’s more than the “average” Cuban can afford, but again, there is no criticism of the regime. In other words, “Let them eat cake.”
How benevolent of her, to spend a month writing dismissive, condescending blog entries about her personal reality show type experiment that exploits Cubans and their daily struggle to put food on the table. It’s so hard you know, just eating mostly rice and beans. (Snicker, snicker, good thing I have steak in the freezer, can't’ wait to eat that.) Not only do Cubans not have the steak, they also don’t have the freezer.
Ms. Snow would be perfectly at home living in colonial times, giving food scraps to her servants, and then regaling her guests with stories about how happy they are in her employ.
Read the whole sickening thing here.
A big thanks and hat tip to Ray.
What Now?
So the immigration bill fell flat on its face today. Not surprising considering that seemingly the only people who were in favor of the bill were George W. Bush and Ted Kennedy (odd couple there).
So now what? We still have 12 or who-knows-how-many millions of illegal immigrants in this country. What do we do with them? Do we have strong enough laws currently in place that simply need to be better enforced? I don't know the answer to those questions, but I do know this:
- We need to secure our borders AHORA. No excuses. If we need to hire thousands more border patrol agents, fine. If we need to put a fence up, great.
- We can't just send the illegals that are already here back. That would only work in Fantasyland. Honestly, this aspect of the immigration problem is the one thing that the failed bill was on the right track with. Far from perfect, mind you, but at least it acknowledged that you have a recipe for disaster if you start rounding up illegals and send them back. If some people consider anything short of sending them all back "amnesty", then I'm guilty as charged.
One thing really pissed me off tonight. Watching the Miami TV show Polos Opuestos, host Maria Elvira Salazar had ex-Hialeah Cuban-American mayor Raul Martinez along with an immigration attorney and a Nicaraguan father and son, of whom the father I believe is here illegally. Anyway, Raul Martinez, a Democrat (go figure), and apparently still bitter over the failure of the immigration bill in the Senate, started lashing out at Americans for their bad treatment of Hispanics in this country. I have never heard anything more ridiculous. Martinez cited examples of Hispanic politicians in Pasco County, Florida with burning crosses set on their front lawns, as well as the (in)famous "Will the Last American Leaving Miami Please Bring the Flag" bumper stickers that were common in South Florida during the early 1980s. He really can't think that the country which generously adopted him as a child feels that way in the majority about Hispanics, right? Of course, he would never admit that in person, but his words spoke volumes and they really got to me. At best, it was pandering. At worst, an example of how polarized we have become. I don't care if he's "one of us", but Martinez is a mal agradecido (ungrateful) for making those comments tonight.
The issue here isn't how we feel about Hispanics or any other ethnic group. Goodness knows some Republicans are guilty of the same prejudice Martinez displayed, except in reverse. It's about what fair and just. Granting a freebie to illegals isn't going to solve our immigration problems and is a slap in the face to those who come here and seek to become residents the right and lawful way. Not only that, but those who advocate for true amnesty would never even think about properly securing our borders against the real menace...Al Qaeda.
Talk about real problems.
(Cross-posted at 26th Parallel)
Fred Thompson on Cuban-Americans
My wife and I have a standing joke when we watch Law & Order whenever District Attorney Branch comes on. I always say "You know, he used to be a ..."
And the Missus interrupts "...a US Senator."
I hope that a year or so from now, as we're watching Law & Order repeats on TNT, that I can look at my wife, smile, and say " You know, that guy's the President of..."
"...the United States of America."
A Good DayPosted on June 28th, 2007
By Fred in ImmigrationThis has been a good day for America.
For a while, it didn’t look like Washington was going to listen to us regarding real immigration reform. Thankfully, we’ve been spared a serious mistake, but I wonder if things would have turned out the way they did without the work done by the bloggers, talk radio and the American people. Rush, Hannity, Laura Ingraham, RedState, Powerline, Pajamas Media and a lot of others have done a great job. Take that, Fairness Doctrine.
I’m up in New Hampshire today. Met some great people and got to help the state GOP up in the Granite State. I did want to clarify something coming out of my time yesterday in Columbia, South Carolina.
Anybody who knows my track record or has read some of the things I’ve written about the Cuban-American community knows where I stand. While the communist dictatorship has been a tragedy for Cuba, America has been in some ways, at least, the beneficiary.
One of those benefits is the presence of the great Cuban-American artist, Gloria Estefan. She co-wrote a song called “No hay mal que por bien no venga” which I understand translates something like — there’s no bad that doesn’t bring some good. The bad that is Castro’s tyranny has given America one of the greatest communities in the Western Hemisphere.
And no one knows better than that community that the Castro regime remains dedicated to infiltrating American institutions to spread his ideology of tyranny. Castro admitted it himself in an interview with CNN in 1998.
This is why the Cuban government rightfully remains on the State Department’s terrorist list for its continued support of terrorism. It’s also why we must oppose the illegal immigration of Castro’s agents into the United States while welcoming the vast majority who immigrate legally and with legal intentions.
It seems to me that few Americans understand the threat that the illegal entry by Cuban spies represents to our country, though Cuban-Americans have never forgotten or stopped pointing it out. Ambassador Otto Reich, the former Assistant Secretary of State for the Western Hemisphere has called Castro’s efforts to penetrate U.S. intelligence networks “relentless.”
The best-known incident involving Cuban espionage, which many believe may have provided U.S. secrets to hostile Middle Eastern regimes, is probably that of former Defense Intelligence Agency analyst Ana Belen Montes — convicted of espionage in 2002. Now, our intelligence picture has been further complicated by the emergence of oil-funded Hugo Chavez and his anti-American, pro-Castro regime. We know that Cuban intelligence officers, for instance, are in South America — presumably training Venezuelans and others in the intelligence arts.
Our national security is too important an issue to let folks twist words around for a one-day headline. Cuban-Americans are among the staunchest opponents of illegal immigration, and especially so when it’s sponsored by the Castro regime. We know we have a porous southern border in which they can currently slip through easily. Our enemies know it too.
All of us should be rightfully concerned about Castro and his ideological pal Chavez sending agents and provocateurs into the United States through Mexico. I’m sure that Cuban-Americans share this concern as well.
We’ve seen today what the voice of the people can do in Washington. Let’s hope similar voices can do the same thing for Cuba.
58,253
During Lyndon Johnson's administration of the Vietnam War (1964-1968) 36,618 Americans were killed in action; total Americans killed in action equals 58,253 -- and the Communists eventually marched into Saigon and won the war. One man -- and one man alone -- had the power to win the war in the first two years of the conflict with our overwhelming air superiority and 10 or 20 more divisions -- but he chose not to because of public opinion. I am not excusing LBJ's successor by any means; Nixon is as much to blame as LBJ for expanding the war and not winning it. No balls. No principles.
I just want to remind all of you of LBJ's most enduring legacy: 58,253 names chiseled into the black granite, almost two-thirds of which belong to him.
More Jimmy Carter
I wonder how much he got paid for this little ditty in the (sic) documentary, Salud.
In an interview in SALUD!, former President Jimmy Carter says, "Of all the so-called developing nations, Cuba has by far the best health system. And their outreach program to other countries is unequaled anywhere.
Sick of Jimmy Carter?
We're not the only ones:
Washington, DC... Yesterday, the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) today sent a letter signed by six former U.S. ambassadors to Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, asking him to remove former President Jimmy Carter from his position as Honorary Chairman of Democrats Abroad, an arm of the DNC.The letter comes in response to statements by Carter which call into doubt his suitability as a representative of the United States abroad. Recently, he criticized the U.S. government for withholding direct aid to Hamas, describing this policy as "criminal."
The letter states:
As you probably know, in public comments made on June 21 after receiving a donation for his foundation from a group in Dublin, Ireland, the former President castigated our government and the governments of Israel and the European Union for withholding direct aid to Hamas leaders in the Palestinian Authority. Carter described this policy as “criminal.”
It has been nearly a decade since the State Department under President Clinton designated Hamas as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. As you know, it is illegal for individuals in our country – much less the federal government itself – to knowingly provide material support or resources to an organization that has been so designated.
In light of these considerations, it is the course of action Carter is advocating – provision of direct aid to Hamas by the U.S. government – that would be “criminal.” In light of Hamas’ long record of murderous attacks on civilians in Israel and within the Palestinian territories, it would also be grossly immoral.
... You may recall that last November, a Hamas subsidiary issued a communiqué calling on sympathizers to attack American targets “all over the globe.” It is difficult for us to understand how Carter can be deemed fit to serve as Honorary Chairman of Democrats Abroad after having urged support for Hamas.
When a prominent American such as a former U.S. President makes statements abroad so at odds with American policy and with good sense, they raise diplomatic and public diplomacy difficulties for our government and our official spokesmen abroad.
When Jimmy Carter published an anti-Israel book, the DNC issued a statement saying that "on this issue President Carter speaks for himself, the opinions in his book are his own, they are not the views or position of the Democratic Party." Given Carter's most recent statements, the former ambassadors call upon Chairman Dean to match action to words by removing Jimmy Carter from his official position with Democrats Abroad.
Read the whole thing here.
Note: Ari Fleischer will appear on the John Gibson show, The Big Story, on the Fox News Channel Today at 5:40 pm East Coast time.
What to Cherish
Sitting here at the office addressing the pile of work on my desks, trying to make a deadline tomorrow and our intern's cellphone rings. Her desk is right outside my office and even though I try not to eavesdrop on her conversation, I cant help but hear it. I look over at her, her head droops down between her arms, and through what at first sound like sobs, I here her say "No. But what happened? I thought you..."
I know immediately what has happened of course. When you spend so much time together in an office, basically sitting right across from each other, you not only tend to talk about your lives but you become friends. Confidants.
She's seen me lose it many a time here as I had issues with the health of my parents or in laws. Or, at times, when Im sitting here typing away at some emotional essay or post im writing, which, more often than not, she asks me to read to her and I comply, sometimes through tears.
But today, today I know what that call was about. It's her abuelita. Her grandmother who has been in and out of hospital for longer than I can remember with a myriad of health issues. I ask about her abuelita everyday, she in turn tells me the latest goings on with her health and how it affects her family and how they are dealing with it all. I, in turn, can only offer a few words of comfort, sometimes a bit of advice from someone who's already lived that a particular stage of life.
She hangs up her celphone and cant stop crying. She's yet to raise her head and I am just sitting here staring at her, reliving the death of my own gradparents. I wipe my tears, get up from my desk and go stand alongside her.
I dont say anything to her. Dont offer my condolences or say Im sorry as yet. I know when shes ready she'll lift her head. right now, I just want her to know that I am there. Right here with her.
A minute or two pass, I hear her take a deep breath and straighten up. She looks up at me and she can hardly say the words. "My abuelita died."
My eyes well up again despite my trying to hold back the tears. "Im so sorry," I say "Im so sorry."
"I dont understand it," she says. "She had a bit of a setback early this morning but my mom told me later on that she was all happy and lucid and even joking."
Not knowing what else to say at that particular moment, all I can muster is "Im so sorry."
"She even told my mom and her sisters to go home and rest. get some sleep because they'd spent the night at the hospital." She pauses for a few seconds, tries to conrol the pain that is overwhelming her at the moment. "They called from the hospital, told my mom she had passed quietly."
I think about asking how her mother is at the moment but realize just what a stupid question that is under the circumstances. "You need to be with your mom right now," I say. "But I dont want you driving in that condition so just take a few minutes or as long as you need and try to calm down a bit."
She nods, wipes the tears away and takes a few deep breaths. The other employees come by and offer their condolences, express their sorrow for her and her family.
"At least she's not in pain any longer," she says. "She's not suffering like she's been for so long."
We all agree as we all believe her abuelita is in a much better place right now. There are no such things as pain or sorrow in Heaven.
After a few minutes she gathers up her things, tosses her school books in her bag, fumbles through her purse for her keys and tells us she's heading home. I ask her to please call me when she gets there so we all kow she made it alright and offer to be there for whatever she or her family may need.
When she leaves, the office no longer feels the same. There is a sadness around us. The pile of work and that deadline seem so trivial right now. So unimportant. What was I thinking? Getting all stressed out and worked up about a dumb deadline?
I remember at that precise moment just how the death of my grandparents affected me. How their passing changed my life forever. How much I missed them and still do. How there isnt a day that goes by in my life where I dont remember them. A joke, a laugh. Some wonderful nugget of truth they bestowed upon me. Bandaids and scraped knees. Baseball games and haircuts. Abuela's cane and balance, that creaky old Cuban rocking chair. My grandfather's "Who is it? You or your brother?" each and every time I knocked on their front door. "It's my brother, Primo."
The phone rings a few minutes later. It's her on the other line and I notice right off there's something different in her voice.
"I made it home OK," she says. "But you're not going to believe this."
Before I can blurt out a "what happened?" a smiling voice on the other end of the line interrupts me. "The stupid hospital called the wrong family. My abuelita is alright."
I let out a sigh of relief as tears stream down my face. "What you need to do right now," I say. "Is go spend some time with . . ."
"I know," she says. "I'm already on the way there."
Something Cool from Marta's Cuban American Kitchen
Last week I did a post at MBFCF in which I wrote about, not just the sights and sounds of my childhood summers in Varadero, but the tastes.
Ah, the taste of Cuban summers.
Well, I’m Cuban and its summer, so I’m going to share with you my favorite cool dessert of the moment.
I know. That was cheating. But sometimes that's about all you feel like doing when it's summer.
I took the kids to the beach and then all their friends decided to sleep over, so now I have a houseful of overnight guests and they are staying up late and we’re playing games and watching movies and, honestly, who really feels like cooking on this fun summer day? (hint: not me. =D) I promise I'll be back next week with something fun to cook, but for now, go load up on some Haagen-Dazs Dulce de Leche ice-cream.
And just CHILL. =D
Hallelujah!
BREAKING NEWS: Senate blocks immigration bill.
Your Assistance Needed
Does anyone by chance know whose or what offices were located on the 6th floor of Cuba's INRA building in Havana in the early years of the revolutionary government? Please let me know if you have any information.
Many thanks,
Anatasio
The 40-Year Wait
What follows is the text of an essay written by an individual identified only as "Gabriel." With his permission, I am posting his words here at Babalu, in a bid to foster just a bit of understanding as to the life of an exile. Be it a Cuban exile, a World War II-era refugee escaping from Nazi Germany or a Haitian refugee fleeing Papa-Doc Duvalier - we all share similar qualities. Our stories often show striking commonalities. With that, I give you Gabriel's "40-Year Wait: a Collision of Two Worlds."
As a young child, Cuba was nothing more than a fictitious place that existed only the minds of my mother, grandparents, aunts and uncles. The representation of Cuba in the media and in school textbooks was that of an impoverished third-world country, and not the prosperous society of my family’s memories. Cuba for me simply boiled down to a variety of items in the Maryland home of my grandmother Yolanda; a few framed photographs hanging on the wall of her TV room, a safe full of jewelry smuggled out of the island in the early sixties, and a dog-eared book held together by Scotch-tape, titled “Memories of the Cuba We Left Behind.”“79 views in full natural color,” boasted the little tattered booklet. My grandmother had paged through its depictions of the Cuba that once was on countless occasions and it showed. There were no photographs of decaying facades in Havana, no depictions of tourist-only hotels in Varadero, rather, the image presented was that of a bustling nation of middle-class workers, old world architecture, clean streets and Woolworth’s five-and-dimes. I was never quite able to wrap my head around “the two Cubas.” Until the Spring of 1999, the Pearl of the Antilles was nothing more then a few dozen musty items withering away in dark drawers and dusty bookcases.
After news arrived from relatives in Miami that my grandfather Marco’s brother Emilio and sister-in-law Cuca had finally been awarded exit visas to travel to the U.S. from Cuba for a ten-day visit, I realized that after 20-some-odd years of wondering about what Cuba had become, I’d be able to truly understand. Emilio and Cuca were for me, the embodiment of what had happened to the island. Already married with children at the time of the revolution, they had experienced the full circle of recent Cuban history: from first-world economy to third-world disaster. They had seen it all.
At first however, Marco wanted nothing to do with the reunion. Looking back on the Spring of 1999, his daughter Rosi theorizes that he feared the arrival of Emilio would spark his death. Eventually however, he relented to fate and agreed to meet a man and woman he hadn’t seen since the Winter of 1960.
When the door opened at the Cabrera residence on May 26, 1999, two worlds collided. Marco grabbed his cane and eased his tired body up from a chair in the corner of the living room and set eyes on what had become a stranger. Emilio was not the 40-year-old architect who bade farewell to his brother in 1960, thinking he’d be hack in a matter of months. Rather, he was a wrinkled man of eighty who had watched over the ancestral home their father had built 60 years earlier as it decayed in a syncopated rhythm with the revolution. For 40 years, Marco's chair at the head of the Sunday dinner table in Havana had sat empty – Emilio refusing to take his place at what he felt was rightfully his brother’s spot. Now, amid the manicured lawns of suburban Maryland, the brothers Cabrera would sit together at the head of a new table, surrounded by an even larger family than the one that ceased to exist after Fidel Castro had rolled triumphantly into downtown Havana decades earlier.
What struck me the most about the reunion that day was the initial lack of tears. I had expected a symphony of welled-up waterworks but witnessed a sort of quiet shock instead. Marco stood silent and wide-eyed throughout the first moments of the reunion, seemingly unable to speak. He knew he wouldn’t last past Emilio and Cuca’s return to Havana and it was alright. They had done what the Castro regime had tried so hard to prevent for so long. For seven days in May, they had rebuilt a bridge torn asunder by a revolution’s broken promises, and less than a year later, I would find myself sitting in the chair my grandfather once occupied every Sunday more than four decades earlier during those compulsory family meals in Havana. I was finally home.
-Gabriel
Venezuelans Clamoring for Press Freedom
GatewayPundit has the scoop on massive protests in Venezuela yesterday over the closure of RCTV.
Via Instapundit.
Unbelievable
If you want an example of the level of disconnect the Senate (and possibly The House) has with We The People, you need look no further than this example published in WorldNetDaily yesterday. The story relates an exchange between Sean Hannity and Senator George Voinovich (R, OH) regarding the Immigration bill. What caught my eye was this exchange:
The conversation began with a question from Hannity about whether the senator supported the Fairness Doctrine, currently a hot topic among Voinovich's colleagues."Fairness Doctrine – I'm all for it, whatever it is," he said. "I think everyone should be open to show the other side. That's what you do every night on Fox. That's great!"
When Hannity reminded Voinovich that the Fairness Doctrine would establish government regulatory bureaucracies to enforce this balance, Voinovich quickly retreated.
[. . .]
"He doesn't even know what the Fairness Doctrine is," exclaimed Hannity. "He doesn't even know the outcome of a vote in the Senate today. And he gets mad at me when I try to explain it to him!" [My emphasis]
And this guy is (allegedly) on our side! In moments like this I truly miss Ronald Reagan. Read the whole thing here.
"My son is doing badly"
One of the bravest of the brave men locked away in the Cuban gulag for their beliefs and their work is the journalist Normando Hernández González
Jeremy Girard, an editor at Bloomberg News, this morning writes of how Hernández's life is in great danger:
"Mi hijo esta muy mal. Muy mal.'' Even on the speakerphone from Miami, Blanca Gonzalez's voice is unmistakably choked with emotion. "My son is doing badly. Very badly,'' she says. "He said that from there he will leave dead.''"There'' is Kilo 7, a maximum-security Cuban prison in Camaguey, one of several in which journalist Normando Hernandez Gonzalez, now 37, has been held since April 2003. He is serving a 25-year sentence for crimes against the state that include writing articles critical of the Cuba's health, education and judicial agencies. Suffering from tuberculosis and a chronic parasitic infection, both contracted in prison, Hernandez Gonzalez is perilously underweight at just over 100 pounds, according to his mother, who adds that his illnesses are poorly treated.
In April, at her urging, Costa Rican legislators granted Hernandez Gonzalez a visa that could have gotten him out of prison and the country. But Cuban officials last week refused to honor the visa.
So he continues to deteriorate, limited to one visit every two months from his wife, Yarai Reyes, and Daniela, the daughter from whom he has been separated since her first birthday celebration, on the day before his arrest.
His wife's visits are the only time he is allowed fresh food. There are also occasional examinations by a gastroenterologist, who confirms his condition but cannot or will not provide regular, proper medication and diet.
"The eyes of a doctor won't cure me,'' the writer told his wife when she visited last week, according to his mother.
Independent Journalists
Hernandez Gonzalez was arrested on March 18, 2003, during a crackdown that netted 75 journalists and other alleged dissidents. After brief trials, most of which reportedly lasted less than a day, they were sentenced to prison terms of as long as 25 years. According to human-rights organizations monitoring the situation, 59 of the 75 remain in prison.
At the time of his arrest, Hernandez Gonzalez was the head of the Camaguey College of Independent Journalists. "It was a group established by Normando,'' says his mother, who now lives in Miami. "The headquarters was at my house, in Camaguey. They are all in jail now.''
The group's 10 writers, of whom Hernandez Gonzalez was the youngest, were charged with violating Article 91 of the Cuban Criminal Code for writing stories that tracked government abuses and mismanagement by social-service agencies, according to a report by the PEN American Center, a watchdog group that publicizes human-rights violations against writers around the world.
Read the whole thing here, and read more about Hernández's current condition here.
For more on how you can show your support for Normándo Hernández and other Cuban political prisoners, visit Bloggers United for Cuban Liberty.
June 27, 2007
R.I.P. Millo Ochoa
To learn more about him visit LatinAmericanStudies.org
Hope is still alive
Maybe, just maybe, our voices will be heard tomorrow. Call, fax, and write your Senator or Representative to kill the Amnesty bill.
Immigration Measure in Doubt Over Senate DefectionsBy James Rowley and Nicholas Johnston
June 27 (Bloomberg) -- The fate of U.S. immigration legislation was cast into doubt when at least six senators who helped revive the proposed overhaul said they either oppose or are leaning against a move to permit a vote on final passage.
The measure is in more jeopardy ''than I thought a few hours ago,'' said Senator Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat.
The supporters' strategy of disposing of amendments that threatened the legislation's bipartisan support hit a procedural snag late in the day, adding to the uncertainty. The Senate refused to set aside an amendment by Montana Democrats Max Baucus and Jon Tester that would dilute requirements employers verify the identity of new workers.
Under Senate rules, Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, now can't move to consider other provisions without getting the consent of all 100 senators.
''I think this hurts'' the measure, said Texas Republican John Cornyn, an opponent.
Earlier today, Senate sponsors had succeeded in killing a series of proposed changes that would undermine the measure's support. Nonetheless, senators who voted yesterday to resume consideration of the bill were withdrawing support.
Leaning Against
Republicans Richard Burr of North Carolina and Christopher Bond of Missouri and Democrat Ben Nelson of Nebraska said they oppose permitting a vote on final passage. Virginia Democrat Jim Webb and Republicans John Ensign of Nevada and Pete Domenici of New Mexico said they were leaning that way.
It takes 60 votes, or three-fifths of the Senate, to shut off debate. Yesterday, the Senate voted 64-35 to permit debate to resume.
Five other senators who voted to resume the debate said they are undecided on the next procedural test. They are Republicans Ted Stevens and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Judd Gregg of New Hampshire and Democrats Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico and Mark Pryor of Arkansas.
The legislation would create a path to citizenship for 12 million illegal immigrants, tighten the U.S. border with Mexico and create a guest-worker program to help employers fill low- paying jobs. The Senate had planned to complete action on the bill by the end of the week.
Angry Senators
Sponsors of the bill shut off efforts by critics to offer their own changes, angering some senators.
''We are in trench warfare and it's going to be rough,'' said Pennsylvania Republican Arlen Specter, a chief sponsor of the legislation. ''But we are going to see the will of the Senate work one way or another.''
The amendment that the Senate refused to table, by a 52-45 vote, would have deleted requirements that by 2013 employers insist upon an identification card that meets the specifications of the 2005 Real ID Act. That law gives states financial incentives to require a tamper-proof driver's license.
Baucus and Tester argued that, because more than a dozen states have opted out of the 2005 law, citizens of those states would be forced to obtain U.S. passports to get jobs.
(http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20670001&refer=&sid=a3MLP26VTFMU)
Babalu Radio Hour
Tonight at our normal time: 8:00 PM EDT.
The call-in number is (646) 652-4506. Or if you are shy you can drop us an email here or here. Click the image below at 8:00 PM eastern to hear the show live.
The Fairness Doctrine, Vamos a Cuba Edition
George posted last week about the re-introduction of the "Fairness Doctrine" by certain Democrat legislators. It seems some left wingers are a bit peeved that talk radio caters to and is heard by an overwhelmingly conservative audience, with most "leftish" talk radio either in the radio gutter or, as in the case of the infamous Air America, in bankrupcy.
I cant even begin to tell you how this sort of thing gets my ire up.
On a national level, conservatives are always on the receiving end of criticism for all matter of illusory "censorship" issues. On a local level, just last week some liberal commissioner in Broward sought to ban WIOD - a local radio station that hosts conservative talk radio shows - from being the official Hurricane Emergency broadcast station because some commisioners were "unable to stomach' the fact that WIOD hosted Rush Limbaugh. Not to mention certain editorial columnists, reporters and Stuck on Stupid bloggers crying CENSORSHIP! because some Cuban-Americans in this community sought the removal of an obviously slanted and disingenous book about Cuba in Dade County's Public Elementary Schools.
Yet here we have Democratic leaders like Dainne Feinstein, Dennis Kucinich and former presidentail candidate and Senator John Kerry clamoring to instill censorship under the guise of "Fairness Doctrine" for the entire nation.
Dont expect anything but one of two things from your liberal MSM members and Stuck on Stupid bloggers: Wholehearted support or complete silence.
Conservatives may be a lot of negative things, but hypocrites surely isnt one of them. The donkey party has dibs on that.
Outbound email
Glad you enjoyed your trip. I was wondering if you inquired of your hosts about the health and well being of Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet. Never heard of him? Ok, he's a political prisoner. Amnesty International calls him and 70 others like him "prisoners of conscience". You obviously are not encumbered with such a thing as a conscience.You can't be naive enough to believe that economic ties with Cuba, given its system of 100% state ownership, can do anything except enrich the state. And if it's not naivety it's got to be self-serving cynicism.
Glad you enjoyed your mojitos and maybe even the company of some mulatas. You've done a great service to the Revolution and its Comandante.
Henry Louis Gomez
H/T to Miguel
Another Invisible One
There are no political prisoners in Cuba, so says the regime. The world is silent as Cuban dissidents suffer the gulag.
Cuban dissidents say colleague died in custodyHavana, Jun 26 (EFE).- The outlawed Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation reported Tuesday the mysterious death in police custody of dissident Manuel Acosta.
Elizardo Sanchez, head of the commission, told Efe that police reported "verbally" to family members that Acosta, 47, apparently hanged himself before dawn Sunday with his own trousers in a cell at a police station in the central province of Cienfuegos.
CIA plots to kill castro
CIA admits castro plot ok'd at top
CIA tried to get Mafia to kill castro
LSD experiments, castro death plot
CIA hired gangster to kill castro
and on, and on, and on, and on .....
So what? castro wanted to nuke the U.S., and in his 2001 visit to Iran, he said, "Iran and Cuba, in cooperation with each other, can bring America to its knees". It seems to me the U.S. is the good guy here. It's too bad the CIA wasn't successful, because then there wouldn't be this:
June 26, 2007
Do not forget the invisible ones ...
... do not forget Alberto Martínez Fernández, who is serving a 4-year prison in the La Bamba work camp in Guantánamo.
His crime?
Well, Martínez, president of the Club of Prisoners and Former Political Prisoners in Guantánamo, committed no crime, other than to oppose the castro dictatorship, which was enough to get him labeled a "pre-criminal social danger."
Even in jail, the harassment and threats don't stop. A secret policeman recent visited Martínez to remind him that he has been charged with "disrespect" since 2005, according to a story by journalist Maria Antonia Hidalgo Mir, posted at Payo Libre.
Of that, Martínez, who has done time in the Cuban gulag before, might be guilty.
Alejandro García Rodríguez, an activist with Youth for Democracy, told Hidalgo that the authorities put the squeeze on Martínez after he shouted anti-castro slogans.
For more on how you show your support for Alberto Martínez and other Cuban political prisoners, visit Bloggers United for Cuban Liberty.
(Cross-posted at Uncommon Sense.)
BUCL Campaign Coverage
Here's a link to the WFOR (CBS-Miami) piece that ran at 6:00 PM today about our BUCL campaign for political prisoners in Cuba. In addition to the candlelight vigil mentioned in the piece, we're going to undertake some special activities. If you're interested in sponsoring this campaign, email us and I'll send you the proposal. The cost to sponsor is $60.
Here's a link to the text version of the story.
"Young Rambo"
Has Rosie O'Donnell volunteered her daughter for Hamas or is she in the new musical Young Rambo?
150 large?
So the CIA releases a crapload of documents today and among them is a gem that details the Mafia plot to kill you-know-who. The biggest surprise is the price on his head: $150,000. Sounds like they were trying to get 'im on the cheap... Lo barato cuesta caro.
Ellas Bailan Solas
Opinions solicited
I started a new blog to post technology and consumer pieces. It's called Opinion Emporium and I'd like all of you to go to there and leave your comments regarding my Sears post. I'm curious to find out about similar problems and/or horror stories with Sears or other companies related to service contracts and extended warranties.
From our man in Brazil
Good friend and frequent commenter Daniel, who lives in Brazil, brings us this report:
Hugo chavez is causing some stirs in Brazil this week. Things have not been cozy since Lula has kept cordial relations with the US. Chavez expected Lula to side with him in this war of words with the US and that has not been the case.The media in Brazil has been sniping at Chavez with every opportunity. Several cities/towns that presented chavez with "honorary citizenships" revoked them after Chavez cracked down on the media.
The Brazilian congress and senate sent strong rebukes which, even if just "political hot air," still reached and upset Chavez.
But what really set them off is when Hugo tried to mess with the most sacred of Brazilian treasures, futebol. Copa America starts tonight in Venzuela. The 10 South American countries plus the USA and Mexico will participate in this soccer tournament.
Seems hugo has the Brazilian team training under heavy artillery, as these pictures show.
The Brazilian people love protection, but in a country where they need to send the army in to battle drug dealers and crime gangs, even they think this is excessive. Even worse is this article that says chavez had seized tickets and is trying to keep them out of the hands of protesters.You see, Hugo knows this tournament is a huge deal and will be watched by most South Americans and many others around the world. Could it be that Hugo does not want the world to see protest banners? It is not enough to control the media in his own country, now he wants to control what the rest of the world will see.
BUCL on TV
Ileana Varela of WFOR (CBS-Miami) interviewed me and Alberto de la Cruz about the latest Bloggers United for Cuban Liberty Campaign today. The piece is supposed to run on the 6:00 PM news.
The Only Promise Fidel Castro Ever Kept
Days after Fidel Castro’s January 8, 1959 march into Havana, veteran CBS news correspondent Edward R. Murrow interviewed the young revolutionary from his Havana Hilton penthouse. During the five-minute segment, a young Fidel made what is perhaps the only promise he’s ever kept to the Cuban people. Before I divulge the bearded one’s single act of honesty however, I thought I’d list a handful of broken promises made by one of the Western Hemisphere’s most reviled dictators. Most of these statements are attributed to Castro’s April 1959 visit to Princeton University.
A.) “I will lead the country to economic and cultural progress without sacrificing individual freedoms.
Some 48 years after that sentence was uttered, Cuba remains a nation known across the globe for its arbitrary imprisonment of independent journalists, librarians and those accused of being “counter-revolutionary” for the simple crime of speaking their minds. Labor unions are non-existent and the government in Havana has even ignored the tenets of its very own constitution – look up the Varela Project for more on that last statement.
B.) “There is little room in Cuba for communist ideas.”
Thousands of Cubans on the island read the writing on the wall well before January of 1959. Castro’s association with known communists stemmed all the way back tot he Bogotazo riots of 1948, yet many of our countrymen took him for his word. That statement was revealed as an outright lie in 1961, when Castro openly declared himself a Marxist-Leninst. Add Stalinist to that hyphenation.
C.) Cuban rebels didn’t preach class war.
Really? Given the rhetoric commonly found in the Cuban Communist Party daily, Granma, one would think that every Cuban exile who left the island any time after January 1959 was a hardcore, corrupt Batistiano vampire. Of course, Fidel prefers the term “gusano” over the common reference to Bram Stoker’s character. One of Castro’s first tasks upon taking the reigns of the Cuban government was to force the exile of thousands of Cuban business owners, claiming they had enriched themselves at the expense of the Cuban people. The Cuban “leader” would then go on to complain in later years about the brain drain of professionals sparked by the mass exodus of Cuba’s middle and upper classes members. Those same “corrupt violators of el pueblo cubano” are now vastly outnumbered in exile by the island’s impoverished huddled masses who regularly take to the Florida Straits in a bid to escape the Cuban nightmare.
D.) Promise to restore the Constitution of 1940
One of the Castro regime’s initial promises upon gaining power was the restoration of Cuba’s respected 1940 constitution – a progressive document that protected individual freedoms the likes of speech, assembly, religion and private property. Acting against the very same constitution he supposedly sought to uphold, the Castro regime immediately suspended all of the previously mentioned freedoms, and then some. Going further, in May of 1961, Castro would declare the 1940 document as being “outdated.” How convenient.
E.) The promise of free elections
Yest, it’s true, good old fifo even promised free elections, despite the fact that Cubans had already gone to the polls in late 1958 to elect a new president to replace outgoing dictator Fulgencio Batista. Revolutionaries aren’t fans of democratic elections apparently. In fact, those altruistic luminaries of the Cuban revolution warned the Cuban people that anyone caught voting in the '58 election would be subject to attack or death. It’s been 48 years since the “triumph” of the revolution and we’re still waiting on this promise.
So there you have it. I’ve chosen to outline five of Fidel Castro’s more blatant lies but what about his one truth? What about that one pact made with Edward R. Murrow while dressed in pajamas at his Hilton penthouse?
“When we have fulfilled our promise of good government, I will cut my beard.”
No wonder that curly mop is just as thick today as it was oh so many years ago.
Babalusians can watch the Murrow/Castro interview right here.
It's not easy being castro's friend
The Spanish have literally bent over backward to get Cuba into Europe's good graces after the gross violations of human rights that got castro into the European doghouse. After a much ballyhooed campaign to remove the suspended sanctions against Cuba altogether, a compromise was struck in which Cuba would be invited to negotiate its beef with Europe provided they be willing to put everything on the negotiating table, including human rights and political prisoners.
Well, the Cuban answer was for the Europeans to go fly a kite. This of course is nothing new. Cuba does not do diplomacy. It does antagonism. But the people that criticize the US for being a "cowboy" and bully don't say anything about how Cuba bullies it's "allies".
Back in November Cuba denounced Canada for its "treatment of aboriginals."
Canada of course is big source of tourist dollars for the regime and also an important trading partner for castro, inc.
With friends like those, who needs enemies?
BUCL Campaign Proposal
UPDATE: We've gotten 8 sponsors so far (including Val and myself) and are looking for a few good men (and women). Please read below to see what I'm talking about.
Are you a blogger or webmaster, or even a reader, that would like to do something to counter the propaganda that comes out of Havana? Perhaps then you'd be interested in sponsoring the next campaign from Bloggers United for Cuban Liberty. Our first campaign brought attention to Spanish exploitation of Cuban workers. We received local and international news coverage as well as blog coverage.
We are now recruiting sponsors for the second campaign.
The purpose of this campaign is to raise awareness of Cuba's political prisoners which the regime tries to make invisible. We will be conducting two activities surrounding the South Florida stop of the highly anticipated world tour of The Police.
As you may know, Sting, The lead singer and bassist of The Police was very outspoken on human rights during the 1980s, denouncing both the Pinochet and Apartheid regimes of Chile and South Africa respectively. That's why we were surprised that The Police accepted an invitation from the castro regime to play in Havana in December.
Details of what we plan to do will be available in the campaign proposal which I will email to those who contact me about it. Please include which blog or web site you represent (if you represent one).
We need sponsors to cover the costs of the activities and this campaign will cost $60 to sponsor. Those who are interested in helping but that don't wish to sponsor, can donate a lesser amount or simply help by blogging about our campaign (feel free to post the logo above on your blog).
June 25, 2007
Have you seen this reporter?
I haven't.
It's been very quiet since the cub reporter lost his rabbi at the Herald. All these articles about Radio and TV Marti coming out in the paper and the resident expert on such matters hasn't been seen or heard from. A little birdie tells me that Jimmy Olsen has done so much damage to his reputation that nobody important in the exile community will talk to him anymore. Kind of hard to be the reporter on all things Cuban, when you can't get anyone to answer your questions.
Humberto Fontova Events
To all our southern California readers, here's your chance to meet, and hear our very own colorful, erudite, Humberto Fontova talk about his new book, Exposing the Real Che Guevara: And the Useful Idiots Who Idolize Him.
There are two events:
Tomorrow, sponsored by the Republican Jewish Coalition, at Galpan Ford, Tuesday, June 26 , 7:00-9:00PM.
15555 Roscoe Blvd. (just east of the 405)
2nd Floor Meeting Room
North Hills, CA
For information and to purchase your tickets, please call 323-215-4500.
The following night, Wednesday, June 27, 2007, sponsored by David Horowitz’ Freedom Center, at the Luxe Hotel, located at 11461 Sunset Boulevard, LA, CA 90049.
Registration and the reception begin at 7:00 p.m. Mr. Fontova will begin his talk at 7:30 p.m., with book signing to follow.
This should be a great event!
To Register:
Contact Stephanie Knudson at (323) 556-2550 x 209
or stephanie@horowitzfreedomcenter.org
LA Cubanos, come on, let's make Humberto feel at home!
Insanity
The "glorious" Cuban health care system is not much for one of its products, Dr. Luis Milán Fernández, who since February 2005 has been held in the psychiatric unit of the Boniato prison in Santiago de Cuba. Milán, a veteran dissident, was arrested during the "black spring" of 2003, and sentenced to 13 years in prison.
Via e-mail, the Coalition of Cuban American Women has more:
Dr. Milán Fernández is forced to share a cell with two or three mental patients who are suffering a variety of disorders (obsessive compulsive, schizophrenia, depressive neurosis who attempt to commit suicide, etc.). Penal authorities at the Prison of Boniato follow a pattern, changing his cellmates, sometimes leaving him alone. In addition, all those criminals who must be psychiatrically evaluated at the Prison of Boniato are always assigned to remain in Dr. Milan’s cell for weeks until the results of their evaluations are concluded.During her last prison visit on June 12, 2007, Lisandra Lafitta, wife of Dr. Milán Fernández, found that her husband has lost weight and has deep dark under-eye circles. The unbearable heat in his cell and the erratic and unruly behavior of his fellow inmates (one of them had recently cut off one of his own ears) prevents him from getting enough sleep or rest, and it is impossible for Dr. Milan to read or write.
His wife added that her husband is unable to look outside of the cement blinds in his cell, “ …he can smell and hear the rain but he is unable to see it fall... “
Dr. Milán, who is 37 years old, was a very healthy man before being imprisoned. When he was transferred from the Prison of Canaleta in Ciego de Ávila (where he was confined along with 146 common prisoners) to the Combinado del Este Prison in Havana where he underwent a medical check-up, penal authorities diagnosed the following illnesses: a tumor in the left humerus, loss of hearing, pulmonary emphysema (he does not smoke but was exposed to cigarette smoke in the Prison of Canaleta), hypertension, swollen nasal turbinates, and an enlarged liver. Dr. Milán refuses to undergo the required biopsies and surgical procedures required to treat these ailments since he does not trust the medical personnel in the prison.
Dr. Luis Milán Fernández is a member of the Independent Cuban Medical Association (Colegio Médico Independiente de Cuba). In June 2001 he and his wife, a dentist, signed a document titled 'Manifiesto 2001,' calling, among other measures, for the recognition of fundamental freedoms in Cuba. Together with other health professionals they carried out a one-day hunger strike to call attention to the medical situation of detainees and other issues.
Dr. Milán was arrested and tried summarily on April 4, 2003. He was applied Law 88 and accused of "disrupting internal order, destabilizing the country and destroying the Socialist State and the independence of Cuba", and sentenced to serve 13 years in prison.
For one way to express your solidarity with Milán and other Cuban political prisoners, go here.
(Cross-posted at Uncommon Sense.)
Consequences
For an eighty year old half-cadaver, fidel seems to have an awful lot of lead left in the old number two.
Aside from his duties as Granma’s chief blogger and meeter-greeter at the Walmart of worker exploitation, fidel is now also writing love letters to the disaffected Cuban youth.
In a letter to Juventud Rebelde, he writes:
"If the young people fail, everything will fail. It is my profound conviction that the Cuban youth will fight to stop that. I believe in you."
On the surface, this appears to be an admission that things are not as rosy in castrolandia as they like to pretend it is. A statement like this could empower the youth to realize that the future is in fact theirs to choose. They can continue to hold on to an absurd ideology that brings only oppression, deprivation and sacrifice (along with “free” education and healthcare) or move on to a future with hope and opportunity.
But, they guy’s a thug-a Gangster
Gangsters make offers you can’t refuse.
Failure would mean they lose power. Failure is not an option.
This is more like a warning.
“If you fail, there will be consequences.”
Pretending
I got this email, from Alex Perez. It's his response to all the propaganda about castro care, etc....
Yes, that is what Cuba has become - fantasy island.Why?
Well for starters, the Cuba government pretends to pay Cubans a salary and the Cubans pretend to work.
The government also pretends to run all the commercial industries and retail businesses yet very little is produced and not much is available for Cubans to buy.
The government pretends to offer universal health care to all Cubans which includes pretending they can do so without providing actual free medication.
Raul Castro pretends to offer 5 star all-inclusive tourist hotels for real cheap. Then the Cuban workers pretend they never heard about that deal but they just happen to be able to get hold of some water, toilet paper and other Cuban luxuries provided the tourist will give a "teep."
To get tips the Cuban worker will pretend to even like tourists to gain their confidence and pull on their heart strings. Then once the tourist's guard is down the Cuban sells them a blank CD purported to be their latests hits from their Cuban combo or they hustle a box of banana leaf fake cigars to the tourist suckers.
Then the tourist pretends to understand and not feel violated by these frauds, pick-pocketing's and bag snatching. Also the tourists pretend that their tourist dollars and euros are not arming Raul's goons so he can oppress the Cuban people .
They pretend Cubans don't want democracy or the most basic consumer goods like toilet paper or human rights like freedom of speech. Some pretend that Cubans actually can speak freely while ignoring the hundreds in dungeons for doing just that.
They pretend they know everything about Cuba so they don't even bother looking at all of the widely available information about 49 years of total tyranny under Castro.
Then the tourist is abused on their vacation in Cuba and either pretends to know the reason for their bad time (loosely referred to as the embargo or blockade, for the more dramatic) and simply forgets it.
But a few raise hell about their bad trips on some tourist chat board. So to counteract this bad PR the Cuban government also goes onto these chat boards and pretends to be satisfied tourists to Cuba and raves about such normal things as "the elevator worked all week long!"
So new prospective tourists read all the glowing fake reviews from the Cuban government, pretend they know what they are doing and book a holiday to Cuba.
Some Cuban pretends to give them some bottled water that is actually Havana tap water, the tourist becomes violently ill and pretends he know what got him ill - the spicy food or perhaps the fish.
So the cycle begins all over again. These tourists continue to pretend that they do not keep Raul in power with their tourist hard currency.
However, soon tourists will start to die from this third world treatment disguised as healthy accommodations and then maybe these tourists will finally grow up and quit pretending.
Video Offers Rebuttal to Michael Moore
With Michael Moore’s latest polemic work, "Sicko," out in theatres, I thought it might be interesting to have a look at a recently released documentary short by filmmaker Kevin Leffler. Leffler recently released "Shooting Michael Moore," a sort of video rebuttal to Moore’s work. The piece was released through Chainsaw Productions, in association with 7M pictures.
Apparently, many of the subjects of Moore’s own documentaries are crying foul, alleging that Moore misrepresented them in his works. Ya don't say!
Vilma Espin displays arrogant senile dementia.
UPDATE: Thanks to Dr. de la Cova for the new and improved headline to this post.
Alfredo and Stefania bring us this almost unbelievable, but very revealing, clip. In it, a Cuban-born Univision reporter approaches the late Vilma Espin at the UN. He begins to ask her sensitive questions about the regime, and she appears disoriented saying that "we don't talk about those things." She mutters that the Cuban exiles are "hijo