19 February 2008

Castro resigns

BBC Breakfast News has just reported that Fidel Castro has resigned as Cuban president. There aren't any other details at present

14 comments:

Frank Partisan said...

There is a push/pull going on in Cuba. When Castro is completely out of the picture, Raul wants to take Cuba, into the Chinese model. I'm sure he'll be opposed from the left.

jams o donnell said...

We shall see Ren. Aside from factions within Cuba, the exiles in the US will surely se this as an opportunity to assert their interests.

SnoopyTheGoon said...

The suspense is killing me. Well, figuratively speaking, of course.

maryt/theteach said...

It's wonderful news isn't it? Now no matter who steps up the US can talk to them and lift embargoes and allow us to go visit! Will life be better for the people now? I hope so.

The Lone Beader® said...

Hmmm... maybe Cuba will be a popular vacation destination now. LOL.

Garth said...

Casting pearls perhaps... you can read his resignation here

Richard Havers said...

George Galloway on C4 News tonight talking about, actually shouting about, Cuba was one of the strangest bits of telly in a long while.

roman said...

Castro's brother Raul has been the de facto ruler of Cuba for a while now. I certainly hope that there can be a movement to introduce opposition political parties without the usual imprisonment of any that become REAL challengers. The political system for the last 50 years in Cuba has been a farce and an insult to its citizens. I'm quite sure that Raul, also pretty old, is loading the political system with cronies that will maintain the Castro tyranny into the distant future.

jams o donnell said...

I doubt there will be a lot of change immediately. What happens after Raoul remains to be seen.

Roland Dodds said...

I am surprised (but I guess I shouldn’t be) that a massive number of comments at the Huffington Post are remorseful of the end of Castro! Of course, most say he is far better than Bush.

Anonymous said...

What, or who, is NOT better than Bush?

beakerkin said...

Jams

This is insane. Castro is a criminal and the far left have essentially given a lifetime pass to a military dictator who apes a few words about social justice. Castro lives in luxury with political prisoners, drug dealing and so forth while the far left sings platitudes about his health care.

Castro is a criminal who has sent mercenary troops into several war zones where they all did poorly. The same self righteous types who pretend that Bush is Satan or Hitler have ignored decades of military interventions and subversion.

You are not an apologist. However, many of the others seem to miss the point entirely.

Castro will not be defied from the left because he embodies all of the far left's worst excesses.While the far left rationalizes the Cuban people suffer

jams o donnell said...

Now one Castro is gone, the other won't last that long, being old himself. I am not fan of Castro but as for the future? We shall see

jams o donnell said...

True Red, power and money are potent aphrodisiacs. Perhaps Castro has seen teh writing on the wall and doesn't want the end the likes of Brezhnev etc had. On the other hand going at his time of choosing is a canny move, not that I care for him.

LOL Red, We;ve seen too many of the sort of arsehole who would!