Totalitarianism
Posted at 1:38am on Feb. 20, 2008 The Long Goodbye
Fidel Castro Thinks He'll Go For A Walk. He Feels Happy! He Feels Happy!
By Pejman Yousefzadeh
It may have just gotten a little shorter:
An ailing, 81-year-old Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba's president Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying he will not accept a new term when parliament meets Sunday.
The end of Castro's rule - the longest in the world for a head of government - frees his 76-year-old brother Raul to implement reforms he has hinted at since taking over as acting president when Fidel Castro fell ill in July 2006. President Bush said he hopes the resignation signals the beginning of a democratic transition.
"My wishes have always been to discharge my duties to my last breath," Castro wrote in a letter published Tuesday in the online edition of the Communist Party daily Granma. But, he wrote, "it would be a betrayal to my conscience to accept a responsibility requiring more mobility and dedication than I am physically able to offer."
My RedState colleague, Erick Erickson, believes that Fidel Castro will not survive the Bush Administration. I can only hope that Castro lives long enough to see Cuba regain its freedom at long last. Given the state of his health, that would not take long and beyond that, I couldn't possibly care less what happens to the despicable, destructive tyrant. Cuba cannot be rid of him too soon.
Posted in Contra Tyrannum | Cuba | Cuba Libre | Dictatorship | Fidel Castro | Totalitarianism | Tyranny — Comments (1)/ Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 1:38pm on Jan. 21, 2008 That Recurring Word
By Pejman Yousefzadeh
President Hugo Chavez threatened on Sunday to take over farms or milk plants if owners refuse to sell their milk for domestic consumption and instead seek higher profits abroad or from cheese-makers.
With the country recently facing milk shortages, Chavez said "it's treason" if farmers deny milk to Venezuelans while selling it across the border in Colombia or for gourmet cheeses.
"In that case the farm must be expropriated," Chavez said, adding that the government could also take over milk plants and properties of beef producers.
"I'm putting you on alert," Chavez said. "If there's a producer that refuses to sell the product ... and sells it at a higher price abroad ... ministers, find me the proof so it can be expropriated."
Addressing his Cabinet, he said: "If the army must be brought in, you bring in the army."
It leaves one speechless.
Posted in Authoritarianism | Contra Tyrannum | Dictatorship | Hugo Chavez | Totalitarianism | Venezuela — Comments (3)/ Email this page » / Read More »
Posted at 7:53pm on Dec. 22, 2007 So, The New York Philharmonic Decided To Go To North Korea . . .
By Pejman Yousefzadeh
And Marcus Plieninger has some rightfully uncomplimentary things to write concerning the trip. Do notice that the post takes note of the many, many, many people who, because of state-sponsored oppression, will be entirely unable to enjoy the music of the Philharmonic during its stay in North Korea. I mean, when you travel to a country for Christmas concerts and the rendition of Handel's Messiah could be the cause of increased oppression because the music and the sentiments it expresses are entirely antithetical to the ideology of the North Korean regime, there really isn't much use for the trip, now is there?
Posted at 12:07am on Dec. 8, 2007 More Proof Of Hugo Chavez's Dictatorial Tendencies
By Pejman Yousefzadeh
As if you needed any. But just in case you did: Link.
Posted at 10:49pm on Nov. 27, 2007 In The Unlikely Event You Forgot
By Pejman Yousefzadeh
