Finally: Raul Castro Calls for Term Limits

Wonderful idea, pal. Maybe you should have tried this back in the 1960s.

Cuban President Raul Castro on Saturday proposed setting term limits for public office in a country where two brothers have ruled for more than 50 years.

"We have arrived at the conclusion that it is advisable to limit the fundamental political and state offices to a maximum period of two consecutive periods of five years," Castro said at the inauguration of a critical Communist Party meeting.

After his 1959 revolution, Fidel Castro was in power until 2006, when illness forced him to hand the reins over to his younger brother Raul Castro.

Raul Castro was officially elected in 2008.

CNN actually reports he was "officially elected," as if running unopposed with no other allowed to run makes an actual election.

But he also said Cuba's leadership had failed to prepare a younger generation to take over, leaving them without "a reserve of substitutes who were adequately prepared."

Yes, well they're all either dead or in prison.

I'm sure there are plenty of possible candidates living in South Florida.

Maybe Castro can pass along this novel idea of term limits to their buddy Hugo Chavez.

Fidel Castro: Comrade Obama Lied!

How bad are things going when an almost-lifelike dictator starts calling you out as a liar?

Former Cuban President Fidel Castro said President Obama misinterpreted remarks by his brother and successor, Raul, and bristled at the suggestion that the island should free political prisoners or cut taxes on remittances from abroad as a goodwill gesture to the U.S.

Raul Castro touched off a whirlwind of speculation last week that the U.S. and Cuba could be headed toward a thaw in nearly a half-century of chilly relations. The speculation began when the Cuban president said leaders would be willing to sit down with their U.S. counterparts and discuss everything, including human rights, freedom of the press and expression, and political prisoners on the island.

Obama responded at the Summit of the Americas by saying Washington seeks a new beginning with Cuba, but he also said Sunday that Cuba should release some political prisoners and reduce official taxes on remittances sent to the island from the U.S.

That appeared to enrage Fidel Castro, 82, who wrote in an essay posted on a government website that Obama "without a doubt misinterpreted Raul's declarations."

The former president appeared to be throwing cold water on expectations for improved bilateral relations -- suggesting that Obama had no right to urge Cuba to make even small concessions. He also seemed to suggest too much was being made of Raul's comments about discussing everything with U.S. authorities.

Sean Penn Gets a Gay Bashing

Couldn't happen to a bigger hypocrite.

NOT all gays are gaga over Sean Penn's portrayal of homosexual martyr Harvey Milk in Gus Van Sant's biopic "Milk."

In an Advocate.com article, writer James Kirchick slams Penn for his political leanings, arguing that any adulation he receives from the gay community should be tempered because of his affection for Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez and Cuban strongman Raul Castro.

Chávez and Castro are guilty of flagrant human-rights abuses, Kirchick writes: "Gay rights are human rights, as Milk said, and Penn discredits both when he rationalizes illiberal ideologies as 'anti-imperialist' and rushes to the defense of thugs who posture as victims of the West."

Penn has long been a supporter of the dictator duo. In this month's issue of The Nation, he lavishly praises both Chávez and Castro after paying them a recent visit. He asserts, for example, "It's true, Chávez may not be a good man. But he may well be a great one."

Kirchick's story includes a quote from Human Rights Foundation President Thor Halvorssen, who says: "That Sean Penn would be honored by anyone, let alone the gay community, for having stood by a dictator who put gays into concentration camps is mind-boggling."

Still, the mindless Hollywood nitwits always look the other way, so look for Penn to receive a stream of accolades and awards for his latest role.

After 50 Years of Misery, Castro Warns of Tough Times Ahead

Naturally, the New York Times lackey reports this with a straight face, failing to note what misery has overrun the island prison since 1959.

Like a true leftwing wacko, Raul Castro spouts the usual bilge about climate change and reminds us Cuba is prepared for the inevitable American invasion that never arrives.

President Raúl Castro used a speech Saturday on the 55th anniversary of the beginning of the Cuban revolution not to unveil any new changes but to call on everyday Cubans to prepare for tough times in the days ahead.

Citing the global economic downturn and the rising cost of oil, Mr. Castro said Cuba and other countries in the developing world face severe challenges that would require belt-tightening and patience.

“We must bear in mind that we are living in the midst of a true world crisis which is not only economic but also related with climate change, the irrational use of energy and a great number of other problems,” he said.

There was speculation that Mr. Castro, who officially took over the presidency in February from Fidel Castro, his older brother, would use Cuba’s important July 26th holiday — which commemorates a failed raid on a military barracks here — to extend the rash of modest changes he had announced in recent months. But he seemed eager to dampen expectations.

“We are aware of the great number of problems waiting to be solved, most of which weigh heavily and directly on the population,” he said, adding later, “Regardless of our great wishes to solve every problem, we cannot spend in excess of what we have.”

Citing one bright spot, he said that tourism had grown 14.8 percent in the first half of this year compared with last year, with nearly 1.3 million people visiting the island.

And the president, a former defense minister, said the country was as prepared as ever for any invasion that might be planned by the United States.

“We shall continue paying special attention to defense, regardless of the results of the next presidential elections in the United States,” he said.

No word who he's endorsing in November, but I have a sneaking suspicion who he prefers.

To show you how bad the reportage from the Times is, even NPR is more honest about what problem Cubans face.

Cuba, which used to be the world's largest sugar exporter, is facing a crisis in agriculture. It is now heavily dependent on U.S. food imports, which have been exempted from Washington's long-standing embargo.

Cuba's infrastructure is crumbling. Raul Castro said the government has plans to rebuild roads, pipelines, houses and railways. But he didn't address whether Cubans might be allowed to freely leave the country or whether they can buy and sell houses. He avoided mentioning the dilemma of Cuba's dual-currency which often forces people to buy necessities in a currency they're not allowed to earn.

Such joy. Now there may be tough times ahead.

BBC Slobbers Over Raul Castro

The BBC cheers the Cuban Communist government as they decide to raise some pensions. I mention the Cuban government is Communist for informational purposes only as the BBC editors somehow forgot to mention that in their article.

Cuban president Raul Castro has said he will raise state pensions by up to 20% and increase wages for court employees.

Raul Castro said the increases, which will come into effect next month, were "fair recognition" of workers' effort.

The BBC then break out the pom-poms for the new Communist leader in Cuba

Since taking over the presidency from his brother Fidel in February, Raul Castro has introduced a series of liberalising economic measures.

They include an easing of restrictions on the ownership of mobile phones, lifting a ban on Cubans staying at major hotels, and allowing private farmers more involvement in how they use their land.

So, how much is this wonderful bounty in the workers paradise?

Under the scheme, according to the newspaper, more than 2.1m pensioners will receive increases of about $2 (£1) a month, raising minimum monthly pensions to $9.50 (£4.70).

Two dollars a month, raising the minimum monthly pension to $9.50 ... wow. That works out to a total income of $114 a year.

I invite all American leftwing wackos such as Sean Penn, Alec Baldwin, Tim Robbins and Rev. Jeremiah Wright to move to Cuba if they hate America so much and try living on $114 a year.

Cubans Can Now Have Cell Phones; Problem Is, Nobody Can Afford Them

The island prison has lifted restrictions on citizens owning cell phones. Great news, huh? Just one minor problem. People make $20 a month on average, so what's the point?

President Raul Castro's government said Friday it is allowing cell phones for ordinary Cubans, a luxury previously reserved for those who worked for foreign firms or held key posts with the communist-run state.

It was the first official announcement of the lifting of a major restriction under the 76-year-old Castro, and marked the kind of small freedom many on the island have been hoping he would embrace since succeeding his older brother Fidel as president last month.

Some Cubans previously ineligible for cell phones had already gotten them by having foreigners sign contracts in their names, but mobile phones are not nearly as common in Cuba as elsewhere in Latin America or the world.

Telecommunications monopoly Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba S.A., or ETECSA said it would allow the general public to sign prepaid contracts in Cuban Convertible Pesos, which are geared toward tourists and foreigners and worth 24 times the regular pesos Cuban state employees are paid in.

The decree was published in a small black box on page 2 of the Communist Party newspaper Granma.

The government controls well over 90 percent of the economy and while the communist system ensures most Cubans have free housing, education and health care and receive ration cards that cover basic food needs, the average monthly state salary is just 408 Cuban pesos, a little less than $20.

A program in Convertible Pesos likely will ensure that cell phone service will be too expensive for many Cubans, but ETECSA's statement said doing so will allow it to improve telecommunication systems using cable technology and eventually expand the services it offers in regular pesos.

Free housing, education and health care. Woo-hoo! What a joy. Except for the fact it's dilapidated housing and rationed health care.

Wonderful. Such progress. Next thing you know they'll be able to drive cars made after 1959. Except they won't be able to afford them, let alone have money to buy gas.

They'd Get More Letters, But Nobody Can Afford Paper

Reuters is doing their best to prop up the calamitous situation in Cuba.

They actually devote a report to a novel concept washing over the island prison: Letters to the editor.

Let's forget for a moment it's rather unlikely they would ever print anything critical of the brutal Communist regime. But they try and pretend there's a stimulating public debate going on in a country that hasn't tasted freedom in nearly 50 years.

Cubans have a new vehicle to express their opinions: letters to the editor of the ruling Communist Party newspaper Granma.

Letters for and against reforms under consideration by Cuba's new President Raul Castro were published by Granma on Friday.

One writer called for the elimination of the dual currency system, a major source of complaint among Cubans, who are paid in Cuban pesos but must buy many consumer goods in Cuba's hard currency Convertible pesos worth 24 times more.

Publication of the letter was a novelty in a country where the press is controlled by a one-party state that allows no independent media and has a record of suppressing dissent.

Indeed. Ironic how alleged advocates of free speech love to tell us how wonderful Cuba is.

It follows a new trend of stimulating public debate started by Raul Castro since he took over running the government when his brother Fidel Castro fell ill in mid-2006.

For all the talk of debate and freedom of opinion, the irony of this seems to escape these Reuters nitwits.

"The idea is to show the public what people think. It is the people that will write the letter," said a journalist at the newspaper, who asked not to be named.