At Summit, Chávez Seeks Attention as Obama Aims for Something Else

I’m somewhat disappointed in the lack of real knowledge of Cuba evidenced by President Obama.
He is unaware, for example, that in Cuba people have freedom of religion, and exercise it regularly.
Hopefully these trips abroad will give him a better perspective, as he seems to believe what he reads in the US corporate media without question.

Chavez is no match for Obama unless Obama again feels compelled to start apologizing for America.

Thus far I have been giving the President a chance because he new on the job. If he appears in any way to be giving in to this arrogant dictator then I will feel his sold out his office.

leave behind the ideological arguments of the past, leave them in the past and focus instead on how do we work together in partnership with countries throughout the hemisphere to advance on dealing with the economic crisis, on energy and climate future, on citizen safety, on the issues that day in, day out, on any street corner anywhere in Latin America and the Caribbean, if you ask folks what they’re most concerned about, it’s those issues.”
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Sometimes I think he is too naive to realize countries do have real ideological differences.
I also wonder if he is open to free trade agreements such as CAFTA.

“Sometimes I think he is too naive to realize countries do have real ideological differences.”
You can’t be serious.

Silky, I could not agree more, appears just seem to be the best I could come up with, sorry my vocabulary isn’t vast enough to meet your standards.

The pack of propaganda lies about the worker’s paradise in Cuba in this article are amazing. Cuba should never be recognized and to have that idiot in Venezuela pushing his Marxist agenda is an insult to the entire world.

Obama should be courteous towards Chavez if they meet, have a drink with him, agree that diplomtic relations need to be improved and end the meeting on a positive note with promise to have Clinton follow up. Chavez should do likewise.
As to Cuba – Raul has promised to meet with everything on the table even the political prisoners. Nothing more must be said about this. Clinton should meet with Raul and see where it goes.
About Cuba’s prisoners – how can we complain when we are holding about 240 detainees in Gitmo with no trial? I know some are guilty and should not be released but many have no business there as testified by the fact that once the 550 we did release were set free once they got a trial.

Chaves and the Castro brothers are all tyrants. When Fidel took over Cuba, he with the help of Raul and Che Guevara killed thousands of people. Chavez is no better.
I would like to have Obama ask Chavez if Castro is will to return (or compensate for) my father’s property and business that were confiscasted in 1960 by the communist government.

I’m very interested in knowing if Barack Obama will be travelling to Trinidad with his teleprompter. Please let me know,

For God’s sake just don’t kiss up to Chavez by making statements that imply America is the one with issues. That would just play right into his hand.

I can only hope that Pres. Obama does not fall hook, line, and sinker for the scam Raul and Chavez are trying to pull on him..I may not agree with Obama on most if not all things, but I do believe he is smarter than most give him credit for…WE WILL SEE…

Brian…Problem is left-wingers like you, HOWEVER NOT ALL, love to put ALL Republicans in one basket…Which only proves that the new left-wing is also the new old foggey of today…BTW I DRIVE A HYBRID, X-SCAPE MY YARD…RECYCLE…PRO-CHOICE..AND BELIEVE IN GAY MARRAIAGE… DON’T CARE FOR LIMBAUGH OR HANNITY BUT ENJOY BECK BUT LOVE FOX NEWS AND I VOTED REPUBLICAN….GEEZ LIGHTEN UP…AND TRY TO KEEP UP

3500 Cubans have been killed and 2100 wounded in terrorist actions against Cuba over the last 40 years.
Some of the people described as ‘Cuban political prisoners’ here are the perpretrators of some of these acts.
Others are convicted of taking money from US programs explicitly founded for the purpose of regime change in Cuba.
All of them have recieved open trials, and none of them have been tortured.
The people of Cuba are per-capita, the victim of more terrorism than any country on earth.

Castro is worried he’ll lose his power and influence with his anti-American capitalist rhetoric now that Obama is President. Obama is moving America into a Socialist State, the same as Venezuela.

“Cuba’s infant mortality rate, and the under 5 mortality rate, is lower than that of the United States.”
So another sap falls for Castro’s bogus figures: no doctor with any sense is even going to report the death of an infant in its first year. “The official Cuban infant-mortality figure is a farce,” asserts Dr. Juan Felipe Garcia. “Cuban pediatricians constantly falsify figures for the regime. If an infant dies during its first year the doctor often reports he was older. Otherwise such lapses could cost him severe penalties and his job.”
According to a report by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, the mortality rate of Cuban children aged 1 to 4 is 34% higher than the U.S. (11.8 versus 8.8 per 1000). But these don’t figure into U.N.-spotlighted “infant-mortality rates.”
And note that Cuba has the highest abortion rate (0.71) in the western hemisphere, many of those abortions being performed when there is any indication that the newborn may have difficulty. (The Worker’s Paradise also has the highest suicide rate in the hemisphere.)
Fidel can put these numbers out there in confidence that they’ll be accepted uncritically by useful idiots everywhere.
“Hope you are enjoying the most expensive health care in the world.”
I certainly am. I can schedule an MRI for myself tomorrow if need be, and I can get one for my dog on Monday. How long does it take in Canada or the UK?
And of course, dunces the world around consider that any health care paid for by taxpayers (including themselves) is “free,” and thus less expensive than that in the US.

Blame America.
Blame Bush.
Say America is arrogant.
Apologize for America.
Prance Michelle around.
Grin for the camera.
Go to the next country.

“All of them have recieved open trials, and none of them have been tortured.”
As we have seen, there is no propaganda from Cuba so manifestly false, so preposterous, that some fool isn’t going to fall for it hook, line and sinker. Let us see, just for openers, what we can find at Wikipedia:
“In practise, repression is ‘is written into Cuban law’ according to Human Rights Watch.
“International human rights organizations accuse the Cuban regime of systematic human rights abuses, including torture, arbitrary imprisonment, unfair trials, and extrajudicial executions.
Cuban law harshly limits freedom of expression, association, assembly, movement, and the press. There is no due process; the judicial system is constitutionally subordinate to the government. The government maintains tight control on religious institutions, affiliated groups, and individual believers.
Censorship is extensive; Cuba ranks on the bottom of the 2008 Press Freedom Index. Cubans with official permission to access Internet face Internet surveillance. Cubans face five-year prison sentences for connecting to Internet illegally.”
But hey–some people here say their health care system is great.

“Quackwatch lists JPandS as an untrustworthy, non-recommended periodical.”
What does it have to say about Fidel Castro?
And would you care to address AAPS’s assertions on the merits, or are you content simply to quote other people’s descriptions of the organization and let it go at that?

“And note that Cuba has the highest abortion rate (0.71) in the western hemisphere”
The rates in Peru and the Dominican are higher even though abortion is illegal.
Though the abortion rate in Cuba is higher than in the US.
“(The Worker’s Paradise also has the highest suicide rate in the hemisphere.)”
So what?
Mexico’s suicide rate is half of ours.

“This is from the CIA world factbook on Cuba,”
How does the CIA factbook treat Cuban infants who die on the day of their birth?

How long does one wait for an MRI in Cuba? For a CT scan?

“Their arguments have no merit.”
Well, that’s pretty persuasive.

From InfoCuba:
“Cuba’s infant mortality rate of 32 per 1,000 live births in 1957 was the lowest in Latin America and the 13th lowest in the world, according to UN data.”
1957? Say, wasn’t Fulgencio Batista still in power then? Maybe we oughta copy his health care system…

“Well, yesterday Mr. Obama’s intelligence director acknowledged that Bush has made us safe.”
Except he didn’t.
The right wing has nothing but lies and fear.
“For that we owe him undying gratitude.”
ROFLMAO!

“Except he didn’t.”
Here’s what Admiral Blair said: “Those [Bush's] methods, read on a bright, sunny, safe day in April 2009, appear graphic and disturbing.”
So who made that bright, sunny April day safe?

I assume he’ll apologize to Chavez.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | Apr 17, 2009 11:15:26 AM
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Chavez is short, shorter than the King. Bo will bow.

“Fascist Hyena – Why aren’t you attacking the CIA for spreading these lies and giving credibility to the Cuba health system?”
*chuckle*

“..a nation that poor provides better care to more people than the richest nation on earth.”
That’s a fact very much not in evidence, and indeed is quite contrary to fact. But there’s no dissuading those who want to believe it, and I’ll let the actual fact speak for themselves. Next time you’re in Cuba, try to buy an aspirin for your kid.
“The right wing has nothing but lies and fear.”
Fear? Fear? Who’s afraid? Certainly not this right-winger. I’ve got loads of money, all honestly earned, and in places where neither Obama nor the congress can reach it. And I’ve got magnificent healthcare, second to none. And Admiral Blair assures me that we’re safe.
The only thing I would fear is having to go back to work, and that will never happen. I do whatever I want, every day of the year. Very hard for me to be afraid of anything.

So let me get this straight -
- Obama goes to Europe to apologize for and denigrate America.
- Obama bows to his Saudi king and benefactor, and lies about it when he notices Americans object to his submission.
- Obama refuses to visit Normandy, where so many Americans gave up their lives for liberty and to save Euros from themselves, because he didn’t want to OFFEND the Germans.
- Obama goes to Turkey, backs down from mentioning the Armenian genocide, goes to a mosque, removes his shoes
- Obama puts out a report targeting large swaths of Americans as ‘extemists’ to be monitored.
- Obama speaks at Georgetown, a JESUIT university, and TELLS them to hide all religious symbols?
Is he getting his instructions from Bill Ayers, the Rev. Wright, or his Saudi king? And why in HELL did that stupid school allow it?

FH,
BTW, the literacy rate in Cuba is higher than it is in the US>

People are actually arguing for Castro’s Cuba? The world is truly upside down. They risk their lives in rickety boats to get here and when they do they find out there are those that wonder why they fled the island paradise.

Are we allowed to use html tags here?

======”Why aren’t you attacking the CIA for spreading these lies and giving credibility to the Cuba health system?”=====
Why aren’t you attacking the CIA for spreading lies and giving credibility to weapons of mass destruction? You pick and choose what to believe from the CIA. Maybe Fascist Hyena, like me, chooses not to ignore anything the CIA says.

Axey, you have a good point. Though, generally the CIA factbook is considered fairly accurate, you can never tell whether something coming out of the CIA is from its information or operations directorate, hence its unreliable. The CIA has been knows to run propaganda operations targeting the US population in the past.
I cited the CIA factbook even though their estimate of the infant mortality rate in Cuba is higher than is generally agreed. I didn’t mean to impute any authenticity to their figure, just to show a less charitable estimate as a basis of comparison.

Axey – I am not defending anything about Cuba. I just have fun with people that wear blinders. Examples are: “We have the best health care system in the world.” “For three months Obama has done nothing right.” “For eight years Bush did nothing right.” “For eight years Clinton did nothing right” “____ is not my President.” American need to learn there are strengths and weaknesses in everyone. Also, almost every issues have pros and cons that needed to be looked at and evaluated because no one position is perfect. We can all learn from each other.

MikeMo1947
The only thing Castro’s Cuba has that I should learn is to stay away from communism.

MikeMo1947,
You have to admit those on here defending Castro’s Cuba know little of Castro’s Cuba, don’t you?
I often wonder which political party JFK would identify with in today’s world. He wouldn’t fit in with today’s democrats. Even though they still hold him in high esteem.

Communist countries as Cuba should be helped out by other communist countries. If Cuba cannot have good economical, political, social, relations with the U.S. Then it should look elsewhere for help. It is not good for the U.S. to be embargoing Cuba. One country is communist one is for democracy. The relationship between the two can only go so far. The U.S. may not want other communist nations to help Cuba because the island is not far away from the mainland. Oh well Tough luck! Countries as Russia, China, and others should want to lend out a helping hand to Cuba, they have the same structural belief system. If the U.S. is worried about Cuba being helped out by their enemies, then they should look at the scenario this way. How do they think North Korea feels Knowing that South Korea has 20,000 American troops not far away from its countryside. Or Taiwan having U.S. issued weaponry given to them not far away from China. Or having military bases in Japan not far away from China. Also trying to install a missle defence in the small country of Georgia not far from Moscow. Cuba needs to make serious effort to stop depending on U.S. and look to other countries for help. And the U.S. should learn how to respect the game.

the tough part of the job is selecting the price of the commodity involed when the structure is a $1.40 ,
`natural gas is $3.45
essential goods and services that cost too much…..
salil.

Well, Holder won’t prosecute, and now Spain won’t either:
“Friday, Spanish press reported that Spain’s attorney general, Cándido Conde Pumpido, called the complaint filed against John Yoo, Douglas Feith, and four Bush officials fraudulent’ and he warned that he won’t allow Spanish courts to become ‘a toy’ to be played with. The chief prosecutor of Spain’s national trial court, Javier Zaragosa, responded to Judge Garzón’s referral a few weeks ago by advising him that the case should not proceed, and in any case should not proceed before Garzón.”
Looks like the Leftist Fringe will have to find someone else to do it. Say, what do you suppose the statute of limitations is?

Brinson, I dont think you quite understand the situation.
Last month (under Obama), the US government fined a US affiliate of a French company for selling milk to Cuba.
Its not necessarily a question of aid, but ordinary commerce.

This fetish with Cuba is more than absurd:
A few months ago, U.S. government sources revealed that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Treasury Department had only four full-time employees investigating the fortunes of terrorism suspects, but 24 officials were engaged in prosecuting citizens who dared to travel to Cuba and in detecting alleged violations against the Cuban blockade

“Every time that I pull the president aside to have a conversation, we’ve had that conversation, so I assume that he would do the same [with Chavez]” – Robert Gibbls. Man, there is so much idiocy in that statement, so much water-carrying mindset, that I do not even know where to begin! So, in Gibbs obviously starry-eyed mind, he actually equates Barack agreeing to converse with his Press Secretary to agreeing to converse with dictator/President Hugo “America is Evil” Chavez?! I wonder, is there ANYTHING that Barack’s mind-numbingly sheep-like staff does NOT like about Barack? Anyone? Anyone? ….”Beuller?, Bueller?…”Weve replaced butt-kissing Republican administration officials with butt-kissing Democratic admin officials. I just shake my Democratic head and wonder how much more naive and ego-centric our new President can get.

We must WAKEUP and realize that we don’t have capacity or dollars to fight wars by borrowing from China and others. Bush did so by turning the economy and this country upside down, Now we will be busy rebuilding this country in next few years, hopefully also rebuild the army to respected levels. So, this is the time to find a way to deal with all tyrants with the respect they are asking for (but may not deserve). Hence, let Obama deal with these in his own intelligent way, and still keeping our nose up. He has to deal with world of problems and diplomacy everywhere, yet while rebuilding our economy and infra-structure. If you are an old dog, with no new tricks, its better to stay put, and shut up !!!

MikeMo1947, have you considered running for president?