Defending the liberal tradition in history, science, and philosophy.
Val notes a letter recently sent to Carlos Santana, who was such big idiot that he wore a crucifix over a Che Guevara t-shirt at the Oscars.
Which would be sort of like wearing a Star of David over an "I Love Hitler" t-shirt.
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The issue isn't whether Jebediah Springfield was the evil Hans Sprungfeld, it's what Jebediah Springfield means to the people of Springfield now.
This, despite the well-known fact that he had been responsible for the murder, starvation and imprisonment of perhaps some 20 million soviet citizens, and the impoverishment of perhaps an equal number. Because beating Hitler was more or less universally accepted here as more important than what the old bastard had done to his victims at home in Russia.
Was this wrong? Hell no. Beating Hitler was the key priority of the western alliance, and to do that, we needed Soviet allies as much as they needed us.
Now for Cuba. Fidel Castro isn't and never was anything but a cheap, watered-down, Caribbean hell-hole version of either Stalin or Mao. And when he dies, it is doubtful he will leave anything behind but a bad memory.
If so, this means that Ernesto Guevara was little more than Castro's strictly temporary local hoodlum. Sort of like Frank Nitti in comparison with Al Capone. Meaning, no Castro, no Guevara. Plus, chances are Castro might have jailed his ass if he hadn't left Cuba early on. Anyway, he seemed to want martyrdom as well as revolution, and he did his best to provoke both.
I think American leftists idolize him because of that famous bad-ass photograph, taken of him on a day he was attending someone's funeral in Havana. Probably one of his fellow hoodlums and certainly not one of his victims.
I never much cared what happened to Cuba or the Cubans, communist or otherwise, until I took the trouble to read -- carefully -- the story of the brave men of Brigada 2506, who hit the Cuban beach along the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961, after John F Kennedy's administration in Washington sold them right down the river by withholding their vital air support. This after having recruited them, training them under CIA auspices, then sending them into harm's way.
Those men, the ones who got ashore and died under fire or were captured by the communists, had the "right stuff", and their memory ought to be honored by all Americans. Especially because our own government was totally responsible for what happened to them. The fact is, this country let them down, in spades. And we ought to make up for it.
I won't take a stance here about trading with Cuba or any of the rest. If the US Congress thinks that's in the interest of our country and if it shows promise of helping to undercut Castro's control of that island, okay by me.
But one thing I want to see for sure. That we spend as much time and effort trying to rebuild freedom, democracy and liberty in Cuba, 90 miles from our shores, as we have done half way around the world among the Arabs and Kurds in Iraq.
Meaning that when Castro croaks, right then and there I want to see the remains of that regime swept into history's dustbin. Which means no deals with any his stooges that he leaves in power behind him. Enough is enough.
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
Hey, what about wearing either symbol with a picture of Arik "The Sabra and Shatila Butcher" Sharon?
Tell you what, Alex, instead of playing shell games, why don't you just acknowledge the blood on Che's hands? Then we can talk about ruthless gangster thugs like Batista in a more honest fashion. Tap-dancing and changing the subject so you can avoid acknowledging the mountain of corpses Che created in his climb to power with Fidel just makes you look like a dishonest dipshit.
Changing the subject to the Jews makes you look even more silly. One day I hope we know the truth about what happened at Sabra and Shatila. Sharon is certainly not a nice man and if he's guilty of what he's accused of he should pay a heavy price. But it's fascinating that someone would bring up these allegations without even bothering to mention the countless human rights atrocities committed over the decades by the thug Arafat--quite often against his own Palestinian people.
Even more fascinating that you'd bring it up in a topic about the mass-murdering sadist Che Guevara. Now why would you do that? Is it because you'd like to hide the fact that Che was a bloody executioner and no hero?
I'm ready to accept there is blood in Che's hand, he was fighting in a revolution, there was guns involved.
Historic figures like Che are quite complex, adding Batista to the mix helps understand what went on.
Even more, I do consider Castro a murderous communist dictator.
The lack of Batista mentions is what tells me that others are not willing to acknowledge right wing dictators, who are just as murderous.
As you seem up on the subject, can you please explain to me why Sharon is the "Butcher of Lebanon," but Hafez al-Assad is not the "Butcher of Hama"? I mean, after all, his massacre was right next door, in the same year, and killed at least three times as many people (more, by some accounts). This has always puzzled me.
Some of us are mighty selective in who we will forgive for their atrocities, aren't we?
And if it's all so fucking relative, why isn't anyone I know wearing Batista buttons and celebrating his memory? He was also a revolutionary, leading more than one coup himself.
Mind you, I wouldn't celebrate Batista because he was a thief, a crook, and a bastard.
And see, that's the difference, Alex: Only one person in this conversation is making any effor to defend a torturer, a murderer, and a terrorist: you.