Below: Demo in Poland protesting this weeks NATO summit in Wales In an article published in Cuban state media iconic revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro, calls out NATO and imperialist war mongering. He compares statements by NATO representatives with Nazi SS talk. Castro: “Many people are astonished when they hear the
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drive-by planet: US corporate media propaganda: NYT’s misleading photo ‘evidence’ of Russian soldiers in east Ukraine
Back in 2003, when Colin Powell presented “evidence” at the UN to back up the White House claim that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, major US news outlets ran the story believing the Bush administration had the goods. During the UN presentation Russia’s ambassador at the time, Sergei
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Vladimir Putin’s strategic crisis in 2014 sure looks a lot like John F. Kennedy’s in 1962
President John F. Kennedy signs the proclamation of the “Interdiction of the Delivery of Offensive Weapons to Cuba” on Oct. 23, 1962. The order imposed the U.S. naval blockade on Cuba that Mr. Kennedy had announced during his televised address the night before. Below: Soviet Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev, Russian
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: Mandela Was More Radical Than Most Know
Well, I miss Mandela. The post-Mandela world is sadly less colourful. While all sorts of people, including reprobate politicians in Canada laud him for this and that, it’s important to remember that he never seemed to angle for being a darling of right wing, neoliberal libertarian freedom fighters. Here are
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Irony of Raul Castro – Obama handshake: Cuba helped defeat S.A. apartheid in battle whereas U.S. sent Stingers to UNITA
Raúl Castro at Mandela memorial service / Nelson Mandela with Fidel in Cuba At the memorial service for Nelson Mandela, the media seized on the handshake between Barack Obama and the president of Cuba, Raúl Castro, as possible evidence of something more significant afoot in the relations between the two
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Che Wants to See You: remarkable untold story of Che Guevara by right-hand man Ciro Bustos
The English translation of Che Wants to See You was recently published. It is a remarkable insider account by Ciro Bustos, a comrade-in-arms who was intimately familiar with Che Guevara and the broader liberation struggle in Latin America. The book adds to the credibility of Bustos who has been unfairly
Continue readingLeDaro: Russian Warships to visit Cuba
It looks that relations between Russia and U.S have taken a new turn. The American government is quite upset over Russia giving refuge to Edward Snowden. Now the renewal of close relations by the Russians with Cuba is another indication of cooling off relations with America. Déjà vu all over
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: GroupThink ReSpun: The Death of Hugo Chavez
Hugo Chavez died of cancer on March 5, 2013. He represented an ideological pushback against neoliberal globalization. He pursued a progressive hemispheric trade agenda. He raised oil royalties dramatically to improve the social capacity of people in and around Venezuela. He revolutionized and democratized Venezuela’s constitution. He attracted the ire
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Reflections from Cuba – Civic Responsibility
January 23, 2013: In a previous post, I compared and contrasted Cuba and Canada in terms of the opportunities for achieving one’s potential through access to information, ideas, etc., noting that in Cuba the opportunities are almost non-existent, while sadly, in our country, there are those who choose not to
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Reflections From Cuba
The following is one of several pieces I wrote on my Blackberry Playbook while on a recent holiday in Cuba. Because Internet access and outside information is limited there, I spent some time writing pieces largely drawn from things I was thinking about at the time, and therefore are perhaps
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: The Ugly Canadian: Harper Policy in Latin America (VIDEO)
Under Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives, Ottawa has been openly hostile to Venezuela and leftward swing in Latin America – except in Cuba where Canada has large commercial interests. So argues Canadian author, activist and commentator, Yves Engler. RELATED: Photo Tells Us Why Canada Severed Diplomatic Ties With
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: On Hiatus
There won’t be any new blog posts for the next two weeks as we begin our annual hegira to Cuba, where the climate and the people offer a soothing respite from the Canadian winter. This will be our sixth visit to the island, and each time there we learn another
Continue readingPolitics, Re-Spun: GlobalTV Mocks Hurricane Deaths
Frankenstorm Promo How would you feel about a news organization that treats a hurricane as a campy Halloween ratings booster? I’m appalled. Watch the above clip from GlobalTV last Thursday night. Hurricane Sandy has killed dozens already and will likely kill more as it runs aground today in the northeast
Continue readingArt Threat: Una Noche a beautiful story of a challenging life
It’s rare to see depictions of Havana that don’t consist of the stereotypes: people playing music, someone sitting on the street smoking a cigar, old American cars, stunning old buildings. In fact, many films set in Havana (such as Our Man in Havana and even Die Another Day) are filmed
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Realities Of The Child Soldier
I suppose I might feel differently about Omar Khadr if I hadn’t read a particular book, A Long Way Gone, by Ishmael Beah. It provided indelible insights into both the realities of the child soldier’s world and the possibilities of redemption and rehabilitation. It should be read by everyone who
Continue readingSketchy Thoughts: Nehanda Abiodun, Political Exile
Recommended reading: Jake Krzeczowski’s blog post about Nehanda Abiodun, a political exile living in Cuba; “They say I and others were involved in expropriations of armored trucks, that we were also engaged in the ‘liberation’ of Assata,” Abiodun said. “Personally they say I was involved in the expropriations and aiding
Continue readingThe Monroe Doctrine is dead
A new age has dawned in the Americas. The Monroe Doctrine, a policy established by the United States ostensibly to keep European imperialists out of the Western Hemisphere but which eventually deteriorated into an instrument to maintain American dominance, is now effectively deceased. At the recent Summit of the Americas,
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Stephen Harper’s Summit Humiliation
Holy Chiquita Banana. What an embarrassment.There he was, looking like Obama’s Sancho Panza, or the Dirty Oil Man. Making an idiot out of himself. Again. Canada and the United States are finding themselves at odds with Latin American countries on two thorny issues — the war on drugs and the
Continue readingBaseball and that freedom of speech thing
Sports is a tribal business, and Miami Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen has upset his tribe. The outspoken Venezuelan had the audacity to express admiration for Fidel Castro in Time magazine. “I respect Fidel Castro,” he is reported to have said. “You know why? A lot of people have wanted to
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: How Long Before This Lynch Mob Mentality Comes To Canada?
As someone who is a regular visitor to Cuba and has seen both the good and bad of its society through friends that we visit there, I know that it has very real problems, but also very real benefits, under its dictatorial communist system. However, I can’t help but wonder
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