Be Kind to Castro Week? Or, Weak?

Noted at the Babalu Blog this morning:

Michael Graham, blogging at The Natural Truth, brings us this disgusting but not surprising story about how CNN coached its anchors to treat the subject of fidel castro in an early morning email today.

I can now confirm independently that not only did such an email go out, here it is in its entirety:

From: Flexner, Allison
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 7:46 AM
To: *CNN Superdesk (TBS)
Cc: Neill, Morgan; Darlington, Shasta
Subject: Castro guidance

Some points on Castro – for adding to our anchor reads/reporting:

* Please say in our reporting that Castro stepped down in a letter he wrote to Granma (the communist party daily), as opposed to in a letter attributed to Fidel Castro. We have no reason to doubt he wrote his resignation letter, he has penned numerous articles over the past year and a half.

* Please note Fidel did bring social reforms to Cuba – namely free education and universal health care, and racial integration. in addition to being criticized for oppressing human rights and freedom of speech.

* Also the Cuban government blames a lot of Cuba’s economic problems on the US embargo, and while that has caused some difficulties, (far less so than the collapse of the Soviet Union) the bulk of Cuba’s economic problems are due to Cuba’s failed economic polices. Some analysts would say the US embargo was a benefit to Castro politically – something to blame problems on, by what the Cubans call “the imperialist,” meddling in their affairs.

* While despised by some, he is seen as a revolutionary hero, especially with leftist in Latin America, for standing up to the United States.

Any questions, please call the international desk.

Allison

The sender of this email is Allison Flexner whose current position at CNN is unknown. She was a producer and has been in Cuba according to this transcript from 2000.

Well, isn’t that special? It’s as I said last night; American socialists simply cannot stand any questioning of Castro’s status as a warm and wonderful human being. And of course it should be no shock that such “open mindedness ” prevails at CNN. Can’t let mere fact get in the way of our march toward socialism.

I’d say, given that CNN is at nearly the bottom of the ratings pile, being beaten to the bottom only by MSNBC, that most Americans understand that CNN is slanted left as this letter demonstrates quite well. But the point needs to be continuously hammered home.  And so, this post.

Mark Steyn puts up a bit in McCleans, this norning, under tyhe header: “So what would it take to alarm you?”

Since Maclean’s got into a spot of bother with Canada’s “human rights” pseudo-courts, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the number of our media confreres who don’t think it should be a “crime” for magazines to publish excerpts from books by yours truly. Nevertheless, in defending free speech in general, they usually feel obliged to deplore my exercise of it in particular:”Maclean’s published an alarmist screed by Mr. Steyn . . .” (The Economist)

“While the book may be alarmist . . .” (CFRB)

“Steyn’s argument is indeed alarmist . . .” (The Guardian)

And, oh dear, even:

“The fear of ‘a Muslim tide’ was alarmist . . .” (Tarek Fatah and Farzana Hassan in Maclean’s)

Okay, enough already. I get the picture: alarmist, alarmist, alarmist. My book’s thesis – that most of the Western world is on course to become at least semi-Islamic in its political and cultural disposition within a very short time – is “alarmist.”

The question then arises: fair enough, guys, what would it take to alarm you?

…

Sharia in Britain? Taxpayer-subsidized polygamy in Toronto? Yawn. Nothing to see here. True, if you’d suggested such things on Sept. 10, 2001, most Britons and Canadians would have said you were nuts. But a few years on and it doesn’t seem such a big deal, and nor will the next concession, and the one after that.

What Mark is suggesting is that despite winning the war, our sense of ;openminded fair play’ has us allowing the Islamic terrorists to win their goal of domination of western society anyway.  And you know what? He’s quite right.

Surber, this morning reports that FIdel Castro is among other things, in possession of about $900 million.  Lessee… $900  Huge. Do you suppose that this qualifies as Communism, under the definitions that Marx originally laid down? So, not oly have the people of Cuba been suffereing under Communism, but the man who caused it all got rich.

Yeah, that’s fairness, the way the left would have it…

But wait… aren’t ‘the rich’ the enemy?

Anyone want proof there’s a God?

Looks like one more scrap of proof just showed up to play: Roger Simon says he’s losing in his bid for his congressional seat to an unknown.

Little Green Footballs:

Unindicted Hamas co-conspirators CAIR have put out a press release targeting LGF: Hate Site Comments Suggest Violence Against Missouri Mosque.

UPDATE at 2/19/08 4:09:21 pm:

At Pat Dollard’s place, the Bashman has a few words for CAIR: CAIR Now Targeting Right Wing Conservative Blog Sites … Bring It Bitches.

(Military-grade language warning…)

UPDATE at 2/19/08 5:13:08 pm:

Note that the comments quoted by CAIR in their press release were posted only this morning, and were deleted as soon as I received reports about them. They’re watching LGF’s comments closer than I am.

We’re with you, guys.

By the way, I keep hearing CAIR has lost it’s tax shelter. Good news, if true, but I can’t get confirmation.

• The Jawas say Toshiba‘s given up on HD-DVD, and Sony will win this one with their Blu-Ray.. I dunno, after they lost on Beta, I guess it makes sense. The difference being this time quality at the consumer end, and not production costs, were the motivator.(And yes, I still have a Beta machine in my quiver, here) Personally, I wonder how that standard is going to work in computers. I’ve not looked closely at it, but I suppose I’d better.
• I see Sarkozy has France with it’s turbans in a twist over his plan to have government school kids study 11,000 Jewish children who were holocaust victims?  Now why do you suppose that would bother them? See, I doubt it bothers many French people. But the recent Islamic influx is here the rub lies, and Sarkozy is dealing with it correctly, I think.  Clever man, that Sarkozy.
• Do we really care that Barrack Obama is ripping off speeches of people whom he’s like to be pictured as? And by the way, Careful, there, Hillary…lest people start examining YOUR speeches.
• And why do we care what Obama’s wife has to say? Still, I suppose JPod nails it well.
  

  …it suggests the Obama campaign really does have its roots in New Class leftism, according to which patriotism is not only the last refuge of a scoundrel, but the first refuge as well — that America is not fundamentally good but flawed, but rather fundamentally flawed and only occasionally good. There’s something for John McCain to work with here.

  (Bolding is mine) Yeah, well, if McCain understands the need, and the difference between his new leftism, and theirs. Meantime, I suppose we oughta let her enjoy it; it won’t last long.

• OK, so everyone else knows by now that Kosovo has declared itself an independent country. It even made the White House feed, yesterday. I wonder if this will be another problem with Extremist Islam? I note Serbia’s ambassador got recalled from the US for our recognition of Kosovo’s independence. I’m not convinced that Serbia’s annoyance with this will amount to much, in the long run.
• Pakistan’s election looks to be in the hands of Benazir Bhutto‘s party. I wonder, though if they really understand what they’re asking for.
• New feeds on my list to add, (but not yet installed) include The State Dept, Defense Link, NASA, The Congressional Budget office, USDOT, the Federal Reserve, the FCC, The Navy, the Marines, the DOD, (Yes, David, still looking for the Air Force) The Census, The FDA, and a few more. You’ll notice a leaning toward governmental sources, here. The big reason for this is copyright law.  It’s not under copyright restrictions. Within that framework, I’m trying to use feeds which you’ll actually find useful. I’m starting to notice traffic on those pages already. A few inbound links…(Likley automated) and about 40 hits from sources that obviously came in from Google Searches. Which is what I intended. I note it’s taking at least a couple hours per group of feeds, to install.  The VOA feeds took two hours, mostly because of the sheer numbers.  It’ll take away from my posting time, to some degree, initially, but I think it’ll be worth the effort. An amazing bit of software, is WordPress, made moreso by it’s plugins, without which I’d not be able to do any of this.  As you may imagine, I’m doing backups more frequently due to all the added structure, so that takes time, too.  I have it flow restricted so you don’t notice when I’m doing it, which means a single backup of the PHP and the database takes around 3 hours total each time. Lately, this has been happening a few times per day. At the rate we’re going though, this place will be downright huge, come spring.
• By way of Boortz, I note RCP has a note up by Ruben Navarette.
  

  SAN DIEGO — Defeat has a way of unmasking Hillary Clinton. It’s when she suffers setbacks that the real Hillary comes out.And it’s not a kinder and gentler version of the original. There are those political observers and pundits who insist that after Clinton lost Iowa, she demonstrated a personal vulnerability that helped her triumph in New Hampshire.

  That is — to borrow a phrase — a fairy tale. When Hillary loses, she gets angry and condescending and terribly unappealing.
  The same goes for her supporters. Former President Bill Clinton’s “bubba eruptions” came after Hillary Clinton had lost key contests. It was after Hillary’s loss in Iowa that her husband Bill ripped into the media for allegedly going soft on Obama. And it was after Hillary lost South Carolina that Bill tried to cut Obama down to size by comparing him to Jesse Jackson.

  That seems to have backfired and made Hillary appear as unlikable to some Democrats as she has long been to many Republicans.

Ummmm…  No Duh. As a guess, this is going to be the first election in recent memory wherein both nominees have to run their election campaigns without their respective political bases.  And I suspect this is going to produce some rather strange results. I see this as particularly dangerous if the party leadership takes the election of either candidate as a message for future elections and the political direction of the country, given that any election,a nd thereby it’s message, will be at best muddled in the extreme.

• Speaking of RCP, it’s via that source I see EJ Dionne suggesting the Democrats should challenge McCain on the War on Terror. Of course, that both Democrat candidates have proven themselves idiotic on that subject, doesn’t help his point much. Or their chances, should they decide to follow his advice. It does show us how left-radicalized Dionne has become, however… and that everything he writes should be viewed in that very unappealing light.

Buried neatly in an article posted by the Toledo Blade, yesterday, is a fact that may play large in the Ohio primary: ONe of the people appointed by Camp Clinton to drum up grass roots support for her presidential bid is Toledo Mayor Carly Finkbeiner…  IN case you don’t recall, this is the one that decided Marines were not welcome in ‘her’ town… which was an error in judgment of nuclear proportions.  Yeah, that’s going to help Mrs Clinton gain the trust … and votes…of the people, huh?

Well, now… This was unexpected, but great news…

From the Shire Network Podcast:

Ezra Levant is our guest this week. Ezra is the former publisher of Canada’s Western Standard newspaper, who was famously hauled up in front of some sort of bogus Province of Alberta Kangaroo Court for a variety of thought crimes.

Show Exclusive: Shirlene McGovern, tormentor of Ezra, has asked to resign from his case! 

He fought back by arguing against the entire process, and posting a video of his encounter with the interrogator on You Tube. You can find all his videos and much more on his own website ezralevant.com.

Amazing what happens when you push back, ain’t it?

Addendum:  (David L)

Great news, Shirlene McGovern resigns?  No.   Great news would be that Canada has ended her persecution of Ezra Levant, and abolished, or at least greatly reformed, her Human Rights Commission.   McGovern was a  just foot soldier in the war, not the commander-in-chief.   The persecution of Levant continues, albeit with a new tormentor.

The good news coming out of Canada is not McGovern’s resignation, but growing sense that Canada Human Rights Commission should be abolished or reformed.   Sadly in the day and age professed nobility of purpose with noble sounding name provides sufficient political cover for the HRC to continues.

I remember eating breakfast the morning of Nine-Eleven.   The television rolled the images of the three hundred forty-three fire fighters lost by the Fire Department of New York City.   These fire fighters were entering a building they knew they would never leave alive    They were climbing to their deaths.   They knew it.   They did so.   I am proud to have have  such country men of valor and courage. That Michelle Obama can take no pride is selfless nature of her country men is despicable.

Via,  Byran, Hot Air.

“For the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country,” she told a Milwaukee crowd today, “because it feels like hope is making a comeback.” 

Our country has given much to Michelle Obama.  I dare say in no other country would she have gotten more.   For all the gifts that Michelle Obama has recieved, all we get is her galling ingratitude.

Local weather:  Twenty-four degrees that feels like thirteen. 

As the culture coarsens:

LEESBURG, Va. – (Fox News)-A children’s book about two male penguins that hatch a chick together has been pulled from school library shelves in Loudoun County, Virginia.

Parents complained that the book has a gay agenda and have called for its removal. But supporters say the book’s removal is censorship.

The decision by Superintendent Edgar Hatrick is being criticized by many parents and gay rights advocates. They say the school system shouldn’t have allowed one complaint to limit children’s literary choices.

The 2005 book is called “And Tango Makes Three.” It draws on the real-life story of Roy and Silo, two chinstrap penguins at the Central Park Zoo in New York.

H/T:  Lucianne. 

As the culture coarsens II:

CBNNews.com – Citizens in one Maryland county are fighting a new law that grants special rights to transvestites, cross-dressers and transsexuals.

Citizens for Responsible Government has launched a petition drive to repeal the measure that was passed by the Montgomery County Council.

What ever happened to a woman’s right of privacy?   

Dead Man Resigns:

HAVANA –(MSNBC)- Ailing leader Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba’s president early Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying in a letter published in online official media that he would not accept a new term when the newly elected parliament meets on Sunday

Food for Thought:

Bill Clinton has made it very clear he plans to rule from his wife’s side, his behavior on the campaign trail providing a distrubing example of what that means  and of his wife’s inability — or lack of desire — to muszle him.

Kathleen Whitfield, Greece, NY, letter to the editors, Rochester, NY Democrat  and Chronicle. (no link)

A call to action from Michelle:

Erick at RedState puts out a call to those of you in the D.C. area who are up for a party with John Murtha. Pig costumes preferred, but optional:

Mark your calendar for February 27, 2008. You are invited to a party at the Ritz-Carlton, Pentagon City – the one next to the mall.

Now, it’s not our party. It’s John Murtha’s party…If you have a big pig outfit you can dress up in, so much the better.

Heh. Yeah, that’s worthy. Passed along on that basis.

HAVANA -(AP)- An ailing Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba’s president Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying he will not accept a new term when the new parliament meets Sunday.”I will not aspire to nor accept – I repeat, I will not aspire to nor accept – the post of President of the Council of State and Commander in Chief,” read a letter signed by Castro published early Tuesday in the online edition of the Communist Party daily Granma.The announcement effectively ends the rule of the 81-year-old Castro after almost 50 years, positioning his 76-year-old brother Raul for permanent succession to the presidency. Fidel Castro temporarily ceded his powers to his brother on July 31, 2006, when he announced that he had undergone intestinal surgery.

Assuming we’d not had at least a year and a half of this dance of death from him (July ’06 as I recall) this might actually be earthshaking news. As it is, this is progressing about the way you’d expect it to.

I find the choice of words in this article, as regards Raul taking power…  “permanent succession” to be mildly amusing, given that Raul is 76, and appointments at that age tend to be not so very “permanent”.

Cuba’s going to be at the Crossroads shortly.

Hume on Fox, last night:

Obama’s voting totals during the New York primary earlier this month were vastly under-recorded in several New York City districts. The New York Post reports the Board of Elections says in nearly 80 districts – including many that are historically black – Obama was credited with receiving few or no votes at all – when in fact he had hundreds. Recounts have begun and the results have not yet been certified.

The mistakes are being blamed on human error. And there were some districts in which Clinton was shown as receiving no votes – when she really received hundreds.

Notice something, please….  No such problems among the Republicans.

We’re talking about cheating, or being stupid enough to trust the process to people who can’t count. Either way, do we really want such people deciding who our country’s leadership will be?

We continue to grow.

I’ve just added news feeds from NOAA to BitsBlog’s Newsroom. The button to get to the newsroom is at the top of every page.

A President’s Day tribute to our nation’s three worst presidents,  Ari K Kaufman, American Thinker:

Presidents Day has taken a deep back seat these days on our holiday calendar to the point that not only do schools go on as scheduled, but so do many state and government offices. This is not surprising in 2008, and many revel in it. Presidents Day now celebrates all presidents, not just our greatest. That being the case, let’s “celebrate,” or at least recall, the three worst presidents in our country’s otherwise proud history.