Eco-Hunk Fidel Castro
This might be old news to everyone by now or it might never have been news at all, but Fidel Castro recently wrote a piece called “Where Have All the Bees Gone?” following Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lulu da Silva’s meeting with George Bush at Camp David earlier this month. The piece is posted at Alexander Cockburn’s reliably contentious Counterpunch.
I have no comment about the Castro piece except to say that I recommend reading and considering it.
(Thanks again to my man on the street with his ear to the ground. You’re better than a press release.)
Adolph Hitler – Genocide Hunk
Josef Stalin – Purging Hunk
Chairman Mao – Smock wearing cultural revolution hunk
Eco-chick – idiotic idolater of murderers.
04/10/07 » 5:42 pm »
Sigh. This is why I generally keep it so straight-laced and serious all the time. Any real thoughts on the actual content of Castro’s piece?
04/10/07 » 7:20 pm »
Well, it’s in an interesting piece, to say the least. It’s always good to see a person in a leadership position talking about these sorts of matters in that particular way. However, Castro’s got an environmental past that doesn’t really look all that lovely – water dams/dikes that have disastrous to land… His initial attempt was to prevent water from leaving the river/sea but it ended up in displacement, flooding in some areas, drought in others.
The regime liked to state with its falsely contrived bureaucracy that there has been improvements on the ecological systems in the area, but the reverse happened… forests are 60% depleted in some areas.. which will inadvertently affect the soil erosion.
However, this sort of environmental destruction happened following the ‘59 revolution intensifying in ‘89 with Castro…. But you know, that was ‘89… it reads as though he’s had a bit of a change of heart and a grown up mind, as we sort of saw in ‘92 at a UN Enviro Conference.
Anyway…
I think that it is a really good way for Castro to get his voice back on the international political spectrum. We haven’t heard from him a lot since his falling ill, and this is a really great way for him to bust out at the states a bit. The more criticism about foolish attempts to try and normalize our energy consumption and over use of fuels …the better.
04/10/07 » 8:00 pm »
We could all be a lot more eco-friendly by following el comandante’s lead. Of course that would mean everyone working for the government for $10 a month and having to ride a horse to work. We would save a lot of energy on account of black-outs and population growth would be radically reduced as a result of the high abortion rates. It’s a worker’s paradise don’t yuu know? That’s why so many people jump on rafts in Miami trying to get there.
Sigh.
04/10/07 » 8:39 pm »
Cuban Patriot,
I think you have missed Brianne’s point of posting this entirely. I have to wonder if you even bothered to read Castro’s paper at all. With the production of ethanol being pushed by the U.S. as a so called “green” alternative, we must seriously consider the effects it will no doubt have on the poorest nations of the world. Is the idea of converting food into energy a good idea, with so many in this world allready hungry and starving. In the past year we have already seen the poor of Mexico protest the spiraling food prices. Most analysts agree that the main cause of the increase has been a spike in corn prices in the United States, as the demand for corn to produce ethanol has jumped. I won’t defend Castro here other then to point out that the social problems of Cuba you speak of can with out a doubt can be attributed in some part to the sixty years of United States sponsored terrorist aggression towards Cuba and the Cuban people. Anyways, this wasn’t at all what the article was about. I live in Miami, Fl and know all to well of the censorship of anything coming out of Cuba. Thank you for posting this Brianne.
04/11/07 » 10:04 am »
I have to say it: Fidel Castro seems to have a good grasp of the situation and he at least acknowledges climate change.
04/12/07 » 3:30 am »
Renewable Energy Generation » Fidel Castro Speaks Out About Climate Change - Renewable Energy News
[...] Via Eco-Chick Share and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]
04/12/07 » 5:03 am »
Cuban Patriot,
Your opinions about Castro personally and politically are beside the point and do not change the validity of his argument: global warming is happening; climate change is happening; the consequences of climate change are unpredictable but are likely to be particularly serious in poorer countries. Given those facts, does it really make sense to utilize arable land to fuel automobiles? Might it not make sense to insist that conservation measures be taken before we jump headlong into a “solution” that may do more harm than good?
P.S. Please reread for comprehension this sentence from Brianne’s post: “I have no comment about the Castro piece except to say that I recommend reading and considering it.”
05/02/07 » 6:12 am »