6 ms·

Fidel Castros Blog

43 points by robchez 16y ago

koollegged 16y ago
this makes me glad blogs were invented. if this is truly fidel castro's blog, it is fascinating. I don't agree with the majority of the decisions he has made a s a leader, but there is no doubt he is a thoughtful man. Having a vision into what makes him tick...available on your computer or phone any time day or night...kind of remarkable.
- robchez 16y ago
  I agree, it is an incredible look into the mind of this leader. Whether you agree with his ideologies or not, it is a fascinating read. (just spent better part of an hour going through each of his posts)
  - isyourfriend 16y ago
    Did u called him a "leader"? his real title is "tyrant"
    - swah 16y ago
      People often respect the worst because it makes them feel good.
  - swah 16y ago
    You can agree or disagree with his ideologies - but you can't agree or disagree with putting innocents in jail, killing people, ...
    - hebejebelus 16y ago
      >you can't agree or disagree with putting innocents in jail, killing people Yeah, you can. It depends on your own personal philosophy, but the most common idea where this could be supported is (a slightly extreme version of) the greater good, or perhaps if you believe that the ends justify the means. Disclaimer: I know very little about Cuba and Castro. Just being argumentative.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- Legion 16y ago
  I was watching the documentary series Cold War, which is brilliant in that it is full of first-hand accounts in interviews with people that were at all the important meetings and events. Some of my favorite moments were the bits from Castro's interviews. "Thoughtful man" is a great description. It was fascinating to see him describing events from his view, and he was captivating to listen to even in a language I had to read subtitles to understand.
samg 16y ago
Fascinating article and followup on some of Castro's changing views "Fidel to Ahmadinejad: 'Stop Slandering the Jews'" http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fidel-to-ahmadinejad-stop-slandering-the-jews/62566/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fid... "Fidel: 'Cuban Model Doesn't Even Work For Us Anymore'" http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fidel-cuban-model-doesnt-even-work-for-us-anymore/62602/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fid...
- patrickaljord 16y ago
  He said the second one was misinterpreted http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE68C5A520100913 http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE68C5A52010091...
kingkawn 16y ago
Is this just a repost of his Granma articles? It goes back a couple of years, and makes me think we'd have heard about it sooner if it were a separate blog.
- Vivtek 16y ago
  He's talking about the heat wave in Russia and the flooding in Pakistan. It's current.
  - kingkawn 16y ago
    right, i just meant that the archives here are back a few years, i saw that the dates are up to current news. What I meant was that we'd have heard if he'd started blogging independent from the regular articles he already publishes in Granma.
blasdel 16y ago
Hosted in blog format with an RSS feed: http://monthlyreview.org/castro/ http://monthlyreview.org/castro/
jwecker 16y ago
Meh, I was hoping for blog headlines like: "Cuban Cigars- worth the hype?" "Western Society - I mean, seriously" "Now THIS is a hand-made boat you could emigrate in!" etc...
- robchez 16y ago
  18 ways to stay in power when the entire world is against you!
  - lionhearted 16y ago
    Funny, but the answer is that part of the Kennedy-Khrushchev agreement to end the Cuban Missile Crisis was that the United States wouldn't invade Cuba, and anyone else with the force to do so was a NATO member/American ally. This is speculation, but looking at how the Cold War played out, then without that agreement the U.S. likely would've invaded Cuba at some point or other. It was still a good agreement overall because of the Moscow-Washington Hotline getting installed, though one can look at history and wonder if the Cuban people would've been better off living in an American territory similar to Puerto Rico instead of a backwards impoverished dictatorship. Hotline Agreement was good though - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline_Agreement http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline_Agreement
    - riffic 16y ago
      >backwards impoverished dictatorship. You mean the one under the Batista regime?
      - gyardley 16y ago
        Mildly clever, but this isn't an either-or issue. Cuba was a backwards dictatorship then, and it's a backwards dictatorship now.
        Ennis 16y ago
        Perhaps in terms of GDP per capita or some fundamental rights like political opposition and freedom of speech. Otherwise, "backwards" is relative and baseless.
jaekwon 16y ago
I will pay bank to see PG and Fidel Castro in a fireside chat. Just saying.
- mahmud 16y ago
  Make something people want. vs Make people want something.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
aik 16y ago
His analysis of the Iranian issues is a bit frightening.
augustflanagan 16y ago
I love Reflexiones del Comandante en Jefe. I had the opportunity to study at the University of Havana in 2009. I read Fidel's "blog", which appears on the front page of Granma, the country's biggest newspaper, every time he publishes a new article. Want to improve your Spanish? Read Fidel. You can also follow Fidel Castro on Twitter - http://twitter.com/reflexionfidel http://twitter.com/reflexionfidel
- rdtsc 16y ago
  > I had the opportunity to study at the University of Havana in 2009. What are your impressions of the country?
cschep 16y ago
I don't know his viewpoints very well, but it's interesting that the source of his posts look like they were created in Word. Does Microsoft sell that product in Cuba? hmm..
fnazeeri 16y ago
I was in Cuba on a "cultural visa" for a week about 10 years ago and a few things struck me: - There are no rich people and there are no poor people. I didn't see a single homeless person / beggar but I also didn't see a single person that looked "middle class" in US terms. - People seemed really happy to talk to Americans. I remember talking to a woman celebrating her 86th birthday and she told me (through a translator that she'd "see me next year in Miami".). - Based on my understanding of the USSR, I was expecting a cult of personality around Castro, but there was no 'Placa del Castro' or anything like that. The only cult of personality was for Che Guevara, who was everywhere. - There were two economies...one for tourists and one for Cubans. If a Cuban had a job, like in a hotel, where they could get dollars, they would be very well off. Everyone else was left with ration cards. - We met a kid who spoke English but was afraid to talk (or to be heard talking) in English in public. He took us to his house where we talked for several hours and then there was a party (his grandmother's 86th birthday) where we (a friend and I) drank rum and partied until the wee hours. The rum was in a really old plastic jug (from the 80s?) that they would pour they monthly ration or rum into...they saved up for celebrations. Overall I walked left thinking that Cuba would be a great place to live for most people but if you were the "Bill Gates" of Cuba it would suck. I suspect that when the embargo ends and sanctions are over (both ways) Cuba will become the "Caribbean Tiger" like Ireland or South Korea. The population is very healthy and education but the infrastructure sucks. All they need now is capital investment and they will really thrive. I suspect in the long run (as in 100 years) Communism will have served Cuba well relative to it's regional peers that didn't experience Communism...similar to China.
- gaius 16y ago
  I was there earlier this year. There are no rich people and there are no poor people That is just not true. In central Havana, there are buildings that are literally crumbling - they couldn't exist in a Western city, they'd be condemned and torn down, but there are three families crammed in there, electrical cables strung across the street, corrugated aluminium in place of glass in the windows, wooden door and window frames rotting. . But if you head out to the suburbs and have dinner at a paladar, there're people living one family in a gorgeous Spanish colonial mansion with landscaped garden, a pond and a gazebo, who want for nothing and amuse themselves by entertaining Western guests. In a society where everyone is equal - how do you get that?

43 points by robchez 16y ago

this makes me glad blogs were invented. if this is truly fidel castro's blog, it is fascinating. I don't agree with the majority of the decisions he has made a s a leader, but there is no doubt he is a thoughtful man. Having a vision into what makes him tick...available on your computer or phone any time day or night...kind of remarkable.

robchez 16y ago
I agree, it is an incredible look into the mind of this leader. Whether you agree with his ideologies or not, it is a fascinating read. (just spent better part of an hour going through each of his posts)
- isyourfriend 16y ago
  Did u called him a "leader"? his real title is "tyrant"
  - swah 16y ago
    People often respect the worst because it makes them feel good.
- swah 16y ago
  You can agree or disagree with his ideologies - but you can't agree or disagree with putting innocents in jail, killing people, ...
  - hebejebelus 16y ago
    >you can't agree or disagree with putting innocents in jail, killing people Yeah, you can. It depends on your own personal philosophy, but the most common idea where this could be supported is (a slightly extreme version of) the greater good, or perhaps if you believe that the ends justify the means. Disclaimer: I know very little about Cuba and Castro. Just being argumentative.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
Legion 16y ago
I was watching the documentary series Cold War, which is brilliant in that it is full of first-hand accounts in interviews with people that were at all the important meetings and events. Some of my favorite moments were the bits from Castro's interviews. "Thoughtful man" is a great description. It was fascinating to see him describing events from his view, and he was captivating to listen to even in a language I had to read subtitles to understand.

samg 16y ago

Fascinating article and followup on some of Castro's changing views "Fidel to Ahmadinejad: 'Stop Slandering the Jews'" http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fidel-to-ahmadinejad-stop-slandering-the-jews/62566/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fid... "Fidel: 'Cuban Model Doesn't Even Work For Us Anymore'" http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fidel-cuban-model-doesnt-even-work-for-us-anymore/62602/ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2010/09/fid...

patrickaljord 16y ago
He said the second one was misinterpreted http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE68C5A520100913 http://af.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idAFTRE68C5A52010091...

kingkawn 16y ago

Is this just a repost of his Granma articles? It goes back a couple of years, and makes me think we'd have heard about it sooner if it were a separate blog.

Vivtek 16y ago
He's talking about the heat wave in Russia and the flooding in Pakistan. It's current.
- kingkawn 16y ago
  right, i just meant that the archives here are back a few years, i saw that the dates are up to current news. What I meant was that we'd have heard if he'd started blogging independent from the regular articles he already publishes in Granma.

blasdel 16y ago

Hosted in blog format with an RSS feed: http://monthlyreview.org/castro/ http://monthlyreview.org/castro/

jwecker 16y ago

Meh, I was hoping for blog headlines like: "Cuban Cigars- worth the hype?" "Western Society - I mean, seriously" "Now THIS is a hand-made boat you could emigrate in!" etc...

robchez 16y ago
18 ways to stay in power when the entire world is against you!
- lionhearted 16y ago
  Funny, but the answer is that part of the Kennedy-Khrushchev agreement to end the Cuban Missile Crisis was that the United States wouldn't invade Cuba, and anyone else with the force to do so was a NATO member/American ally. This is speculation, but looking at how the Cold War played out, then without that agreement the U.S. likely would've invaded Cuba at some point or other. It was still a good agreement overall because of the Moscow-Washington Hotline getting installed, though one can look at history and wonder if the Cuban people would've been better off living in an American territory similar to Puerto Rico instead of a backwards impoverished dictatorship. Hotline Agreement was good though - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline_Agreement http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline_Agreement
  - riffic 16y ago
    >backwards impoverished dictatorship. You mean the one under the Batista regime?
    - gyardley 16y ago
      Mildly clever, but this isn't an either-or issue. Cuba was a backwards dictatorship then, and it's a backwards dictatorship now.
      - Ennis 16y ago
        Perhaps in terms of GDP per capita or some fundamental rights like political opposition and freedom of speech. Otherwise, "backwards" is relative and baseless.

jaekwon 16y ago

I will pay bank to see PG and Fidel Castro in a fireside chat. Just saying.

mahmud 16y ago
Make something people want. vs Make people want something.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]

aik 16y ago

His analysis of the Iranian issues is a bit frightening.

augustflanagan 16y ago

I love Reflexiones del Comandante en Jefe. I had the opportunity to study at the University of Havana in 2009. I read Fidel's "blog", which appears on the front page of Granma, the country's biggest newspaper, every time he publishes a new article. Want to improve your Spanish? Read Fidel. You can also follow Fidel Castro on Twitter - http://twitter.com/reflexionfidel http://twitter.com/reflexionfidel

rdtsc 16y ago
> I had the opportunity to study at the University of Havana in 2009. What are your impressions of the country?

cschep 16y ago

I don't know his viewpoints very well, but it's interesting that the source of his posts look like they were created in Word. Does Microsoft sell that product in Cuba? hmm..

fnazeeri 16y ago

I was in Cuba on a "cultural visa" for a week about 10 years ago and a few things struck me: - There are no rich people and there are no poor people. I didn't see a single homeless person / beggar but I also didn't see a single person that looked "middle class" in US terms. - People seemed really happy to talk to Americans. I remember talking to a woman celebrating her 86th birthday and she told me (through a translator that she'd "see me next year in Miami".). - Based on my understanding of the USSR, I was expecting a cult of personality around Castro, but there was no 'Placa del Castro' or anything like that. The only cult of personality was for Che Guevara, who was everywhere. - There were two economies...one for tourists and one for Cubans. If a Cuban had a job, like in a hotel, where they could get dollars, they would be very well off. Everyone else was left with ration cards. - We met a kid who spoke English but was afraid to talk (or to be heard talking) in English in public. He took us to his house where we talked for several hours and then there was a party (his grandmother's 86th birthday) where we (a friend and I) drank rum and partied until the wee hours. The rum was in a really old plastic jug (from the 80s?) that they would pour they monthly ration or rum into...they saved up for celebrations. Overall I walked left thinking that Cuba would be a great place to live for most people but if you were the "Bill Gates" of Cuba it would suck. I suspect that when the embargo ends and sanctions are over (both ways) Cuba will become the "Caribbean Tiger" like Ireland or South Korea. The population is very healthy and education but the infrastructure sucks. All they need now is capital investment and they will really thrive. I suspect in the long run (as in 100 years) Communism will have served Cuba well relative to it's regional peers that didn't experience Communism...similar to China.

gaius 16y ago
I was there earlier this year. There are no rich people and there are no poor people That is just not true. In central Havana, there are buildings that are literally crumbling - they couldn't exist in a Western city, they'd be condemned and torn down, but there are three families crammed in there, electrical cables strung across the street, corrugated aluminium in place of glass in the windows, wooden door and window frames rotting. . But if you head out to the suburbs and have dinner at a paladar, there're people living one family in a gorgeous Spanish colonial mansion with landscaped garden, a pond and a gazebo, who want for nothing and amuse themselves by entertaining Western guests. In a society where everyone is equal - how do you get that?