In Communist societies, the fall of a dictator is often marked by a public statement about the dictator’s failing health that (a) doesn’t make sense, and (b) is not delivered by the dictator himself. That’s what we saw on Monday night, when Cuban dictator Fidel Castro issued a “letter to the people” in which he explains that he had suffered intestinal bleeding due to stress, needed an operation, and would be in bed for several weeks. The missive was coldly Orwellian in how little it said about Castro — and in how much detail it gave about those who were now “temporarily” assuming power.
The next day another Cuban official read a more entertaining letter in which Castro purports to explain (again in pure Newspeak) that because of the imminent threat from the United States, the details of his health are now a state secret. But there’s only one detail about Castro’s health that could possibly be a state secret: that he’s dead.
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Let's not assume the beloved leader is dead. Many years back, rumors spread that Chairman Mao was dead, a few days later the official Chinese news agency printed pictures of a healthy looking Chairman swimming in the Yangtze.
Cuba will undoubtedly soon display pics of Fidel playing soccer with the Cuban national team, then won't we all feel silly!
Posted by: dmorris at August 9, 2006 9:52 AMGalbraith just got dead, Trudeau's dead most of the time now, Tommy Douglas is mostly dead, Che's dead, Stalin, Lennin, dead and dead, Karl Marx is dead.
Castro is test driving the new 2007 dead.
Is there an innoculant for the stupid, we can use, to ensure this horrible disease stays dead?
Wishful thinking..., so lets go after the carrier of this evil pathogen, and kill the CBC.
Posted by: richfisher at August 9, 2006 10:31 AM
we can only hope . . .
Posted by: Fred at August 9, 2006 11:16 AMHow long will the Cuban regime last after Fidel finally does something good for humanity and dies?
I'll give it a year before major riots; sudden deaths by "natural causes" for top regime figures; and the counter-revolution.
It will be...interesting times, to borrow that ancient Chinese curse, blessing.
Posted by: Dave at August 9, 2006 11:28 AMI think part 2 of Dr. Suzuki's " how to farm like it is the middle ages" is on CBCpravda tonight.
someone has to carry on the idea of serfdom to the masses now that Mr. Trudeau is being recycled as worm food himself.
Posted by: cal2 at August 9, 2006 11:57 AMI think dmorris can't decide if his recollection of the whole Arafish death throes was real or just a bad dream.
Nevertheless, thinking about it now makes him "feel all silly 'n stuff!"
Posted by: Doug at August 9, 2006 12:18 PM"later the official Chinese news agency printed pictures of a healthy looking Chairman swimming in the Yangtze"
Interesting analogy...as I recall, THAT picture was exposed pretty throughly as a crude fake...history repeats itself.
Posted by: Bruce at August 9, 2006 12:42 PMCanadians are measurably more brainwashed than the Soviet Bloc ever was, or Cubans are today.
Posted by: Bob at August 9, 2006 1:10 PM"test driving the 2007 dead"
LOL !!!
guys, guys, its turdeau, ok? *TURDeau*
friend to castro, admirer of mao and ally to ceausecu..... and whatsisname from east germany
Posted by: Robert J at August 9, 2006 1:59 PMTonight on CBC "the accidental revolution" Suzuki's take on life in socialist paradise Cuba. I'm sure it will mention thier great educational system,without mentioning that the ordinary people are not allowed on the internet. The great health care that puts HIV victims into prison camps. The fact that people are so desperate to leave that they will put thier children on inner tubes for a 90 mile moonlight ocean cruise. I could be wrong but somehow I doubt that the warts will be shown.
Posted by: wallyj at August 9, 2006 5:33 PMThe people try to get to the Universities there because they have their room, board, etc, looked after. When they "graduate" they work as bouncers in bars or are unemployed. Apparently Cuba made a deal with Venezuela in which thousands of Cuban trained doctors went to Venezuela in return for oil. It was in a book published in Cuba (The History of Cuba). Isn't that kind of human traficking?
Posted by: Al Wilke at August 9, 2006 7:15 PMI watched the CBC special on cuba. Can anyone say what Suzki does other than make propaganda for CBC. It was vile,puerile,self-serving garbage.Distortion,deception and delusion.The typical socialist crap. CBC,news for the nuanced.
Posted by: wallyj at August 10, 2006 12:31 AMDr. David belongs in the same group as Al Gore who lives in a 10000sq.ft house with a few additional residences on the side. They fly around the world pronouncing to us all to cut back.
Dr. D is CBCs current Ralph Benmurgi,Rick Mercier , or Bruno Gerussi. CBC at a billion dollars a year can only fund one "Star"
Posted by: cal2 at August 10, 2006 9:40 AM