Tag: Cuba

Castro–A “What If”

I would like to try something new for Info Ink….hopefully my readers will find it interesting and thought provoking……it will be how one minor decision could have changed history……I wish I could say that this is an original idea but it is not…..several noted authors have written along these lines……from time to time it is fun to re-write history…i mean…if politicians can do it why not us mere mortals?

From time to time I do take some time away from the endless political mierda that the media would have us to believe and some times it is just not what is real…..during this time I think of “what ifs” in history, just how things might have turned out differently if another choice had been made…..

During this election season the GOP has started bringing up Castro again….it seems to be inevitable that Cuba’s leader ill be brought up, especially in a Florida campaign with its massive amounts of Cubans living in Southern Florida….so with the disingenuous subject made me think of one of my “what ifs”…..

There is a myth that was flying around that back in the 1950’s that Fidel Castro had a try-out with the Washington Senators as a pitcher.  Now, what if Castro had tried out and signed with the Washington Senators……..he would not have lead the 1959 rebellion against Batista, who would have remained in power and a friend to the US….without the rebellion there would have been no need for the Bay of Pigs and without the bay of pigs there would have been no Cuban Missile crisis…..and Cuba would today be the most sought after vacation spot in the Western hemisphere…..

Batista would have probably been ousted by the CIA because he was a cause for concern……Cuba would have become more democratic but still with problems but nothing the CIA could not handle…….without the rebellion there would have been no massive Cuban immigration into South Florida….without that immigration there would be NO huge GOP voting bloc in the 1980 election and Jimmy Carter would have eeked out a win…….with a win in 1980 and the hostage thing settled Carter would have turned his energy into finding a solution for the Israeli-Palestinian problem……and the middle east would have been a quieter place…..

And if Carter had won re-election we would have a better alt energy policy and our dependence on foreign oil would be considerably less……

These are just a few things that would have been altered if Castro had been signed by the Washington Senators……just a ‘what if’ but it illustrates that even one minor decision could have changed the world considerably…….

I will be posted these types of ‘what ifs’ from time to time….gives my mental processes a break from the mind numbing ‘political crack’ that is US politics……hope it was enjoyable.

Cuba Gets A Breather

Cuban-Americans will be allowed to travel to the island once a year and send more money to relatives there.

Curbs on sending medicines and food have also been eased. The measures were part of a $410bn bill to fund US government operations.

The legislation was approved by the Senate after clearing the House of Representatives last month.

The legislation overturns rules imposed by the Bush administration which limited travel to just two weeks every three years, and confined visits to immediate family members.

President Obama – who needs to sign the bill – has said he supports it.

But he has said that like previous American presidents, he will only consider a full lifting of the embargo once Cuba’s communist government makes significant moves such as the holding of democratic elections.

Cuba’s President Raul Castro has said he is prepared to negotiate with the new US administration, providing there are no preconditions.

Gitmo To Close

President Barack Obama began overhauling U.S. treatment of terror suspects Thursday, signing orders to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center, shut down secret overseas CIA prisons, review military war crimes trials and ban the harshest interrogation methods.

With his action, Obama started changing how the United States prosecutes and questions al-Qaida, Taliban or other foreign fighters who pose a threat to Americans — and overhauling America’s image abroad, battered by accusations of the use of torture and the indefinite detention of suspects at the Guantanamo prison in Cuba.

The centerpiece order would close the much-maligned Guantanamo facility within a year, a complicated process with many unanswered questions that was nonetheless a key campaign promise of Obama’s. The administration already has suspended trials for terrorist suspects at Guantanamo for 120 days pending a review of the military tribunals.

In the other actions, Obama:

_Created a task force to recommend policies on handling terror suspects who are detained in the future. Specifically, the group would look at where those detainees should be housed since Guantanamo is closing.

_Required all U.S. personnel to follow the U.S. Army Field Manual while interrogating detainees. The manual explicitly prohibits threats, coercion, physical abuse and waterboarding, a technique that creates the sensation of drowning and has been termed a form of torture by critics. However, a Capitol Hill aide says that the administration also is planning a study of more aggressive interrogation methods that could be added to the Army manual — which would create a significant loophole to Obama’s action Thursday.

A task force will study whether other interrogation guidelines — beyond what’s spelled out in the Army manual — are necessary for intelligence professionals in dealing with terror suspects.

Another Cuban Missile Crisis?

Russian warships have entered Cuban waters for the first time since the end of the Cold War.

A Russian destroyer and two support ships sailed into Havana Bay on their way home from joint exercises with the Venezuelan navy.

It is the latest sign of improved ties between Moscow and communist-run Cuba, which were allies during Soviet days.

Russia has been angered by US plans for a missile defence system in Europe, and its support for Georgia in the recent conflict with Russia.

The Russian embassy in Cuba told the AFP news agency that the ships were on a friendly, working visit designed to “develop” relations and “co-operation” between the two countries.

But analysts say Moscow is sending a symbolic message to the US about the consequences of Washington’s activity in regions that Russia regards as its sphere of influence.

Cuba’s communist leadership was closely allied to Moscow during the Cold War, but relations have weakened since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

This situation might need to be watched closely….or the possiblity of another missile crisis could be in the making.

Why Not Follow Cuba’s Lead

When Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, Cuba offered to send help even before the storm had cleared but the administration in their infinite wisdom turn them down.  Why?  If anyone country on the face of the earth that has more experience with hurricanes than CVuba, they are keeping it a secret.  Politics got in the way of humanitarian aid.

As Hurricane Georges approached in 1998, a foreign aid worker living in Havana was astonished by the attention to preparedness, she told Oxfam.

“We had a steady stream of neighbors in and out of our apartment, counseling us to fill the bathtub with water, tape the windows, unplug all electrical items, get batteries or candles and put the car in the garage.”

At the same time, a neighborhood representative from the Federation of Cuban Women checked on the “vulnerable population,” including elderly people and single mothers who might need help evacuating. “Everyone, even the children, knew what to do,” the foreigner noted.

Despite its poverty, Cuba has a high literacy rate – almost 96 percent. Instruction in disaster preparedness begins in grade school and continues through higher education and into the workplace. Under a 1976 law, every adult receives civil defense training.

Before a new hurricane season starts on June 1, authorities review and revise disaster plans based on the prior year’s experience. In May, the entire country goes through a two-day hurricane drill, called Meteoro, that includes such practical measures as trimming tree limbs and checking for weaknesses in dams before a storm hits.

Most important, all those living in high-risk areas know beforehand where to take refuge – in sturdy homes on high ground or in group shelters, usually schools. Every shelter is stocked with food, water and medical supplies.

Agreed, that some of ththese are common sense, but their neighborhood watch program seems to be a pretty gooid one.  Mazybe the US should go back to the old Civil Defense days, it worked pretty good, in theory, against those darn pesky commies and the bomb  Anyway, ALL options should be pursued, no matter whose idea it is as long as it saves more lives during hurricanes.

The Cuban Embargo

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday that it would be unwise for Washington to lift an embargo against Cuba, despite its pleas following Hurricane Gustav.

Cuba spurned an offer from the U.S. to send hurricane victims $100,000 in aid through relief organizations and said on Saturday that the United States should instead sell it relief supplies and allow food sales on credit.

Rice said U.S. President George W. Bush had made clear that Washington would be “responsive” to the Cuban regime if it was prepared to free political prisoners and had a process for free and fair elections, among other reforms.

Gustav slammed into western Cuba damaging or destroying 100,000 houses and dealing a blow to agriculture. Hurricane Ike is now charging toward Cuba and was expected to arrive late on Sunday, severely threatening sugar cane fields, the tourist hotels of Varadero and the crumbling colonial buildings of Havana.

Are the two administrations playing games with the lives of their people?  A disaster like a hurrican is not the time to be thumping one’s chest over ideological BS.

A Second Cold War?

For over a year now I have been saying that there is the possibility of the approach of a second Cold War.  With all the chest thumping by the US and Russia, the possibility is there.

This does not help the situation at all.  Let us say Obama wins the general and he has , in some circles, he has been seen as the second coming of JFK, then this only will fuel that preception.

Russia may start regular flights by long-range bombers to Cuba in response to US plans to build missile defence sites in Eastern Europe, the newspaper Izvestia reported Monday, quoting an official.

“Such discussions exist,” the unidentified senior Russian air force official was quoted as saying, adding that the measure would be a response to the United States “deploying missile defence systems in Poland and the Czech Republic.”

It was not clear whether he meant permanently basing the bombers in Cuba or using the island as a refuelling stop, but former top defence ministry official Leonid Ivashov told the newspaper that Cuba was best used for brief stopovers.

Cuba should be used “not as a permanent base — this is unnecessary — but as a stopover airfield, a refuelling stop,” Ivashov was quoted as saying.

Starting long-range bomber flights to Cuba would signal a reawakening of military cooperation by former Cold War allies Moscow and Havana. In 2002 Russia closed its last military base on the island, a radar base at Lourdes.

If Obama is elected then he will have a full plate from day one.

Are The Chinese Drilling Off Of Cuba?

This was echoed many times after the McCain proposal to open up the US Coastline for drilling.  But is it true?  This from Factcheck.org:

No. George Will and Vice President Cheney got that wrong. But Cuba has allowed for exploration by at least six other non-Chinese firms in the region and onshore testing and exploration by China’s Sinopec.

While it’s true that as many as 4.6 billion barrels of oil and 9.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas may lie off Cuba’s coast, no country, including China, is drilling for a drop of it. But on June 11, in a speech to the board of directors of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Vice President Dick Cheney claimed, citing columnist George Will, that the Chinese were drilling 60 miles off the coast of Florida:


 Cheney: As for other locations, George Will pointed out in his column the other day that oil is being drilled right now 60 miles off the coast of Florida. But we’re not doing it, the Chinese are, in cooperation with the Cuban government. Even the communists have figured out that a good answer to high prices is more supply.

Cheney was right about one thing: George Will wrote in his June 5 column that “[d]rilling is underway 60 miles off Florida. The drilling is being done by China, in cooperation with Cuba, which is drilling closer to South Florida than U.S. companies are.” But the substance of Cheney’s and Will’s claim is false, according to independent experts, diplomats in the region and elected officials whose states could potentially have been affected by such a deal.

Cuba has leased exploration blocks to foreign companies for areas as close as 60 miles off Florida’s southern coast. A 2006 New York Times article said China was one of the countries that had negotiated an offshore lease. But experts quoted recently by The Associated Press say none of the companies involved are Chinese and all are only allowed to explore for now, not drill in the region. Another exploration deal was announced between Brazil’s state oil company, Petrobras, and Cuba. The deal would allow Petrobras to explore in Cuba’s offshore territories in the Gulf of Mexico, with a potential drilling start-date in two years.

On June 11, the McClatchy Washington bureau reported that China has entered into a deal with Cuba for potential onshore drilling west of Havana. McClatchy also reported that Florida Republican Sen. Mel Martinez said a deal between China and Cuba for offshore drilling is “akin to urban legend.”

McCain On Cuba

First of all that this speech was so uninspiring that I was underwhelmed.  It was blatant pandering.

He keeps pushing the “Obama will meet with out enemies” thingy, to the point it is pretty tiring and time to find a new hook.  But then McCain says if he was president he would push for the release of all political prisoners………..(thinking)……and how would this be accomplished without a meeting or two?

He then says that a free Cuba is in America’s best interests—–what does that actually mean?–it means to open the island up to batista-esque rape.  He is talking about business interests, not democratic interests.

He went on to criticize Obama further even calling him “a tool of organized labor”…….(thinking again)….does that mean that Obama is a worker for labor rights?  If so, where is that a bad thing?  Does that mean the business will not run rough shod over the population?  If so, wherfe is that a bad thing?

McCain needs help!  His policies are Bush policies and the voters have pretty decided that those policies are wrong.  I believe all those jerking off at the thought of a maverick nominee are now cringing every time this guy opens his mouth.  If he somehow is elected, then look for 4 more years of Bush style policies.

To me, no matter which candidate is elected in November, it will be a conservative in the White House.  Just that Obama may be a bit less conservative than any of the others.

Don’t worry–Be happy!