Castro resigns

oh yeah....and Musharraf is defeated in Pakistan....

Chris Judd will captain Carlton this season.

who? what?

hey, i bring real news. you bring some funny news.

Sports mad Aussie.

Younger Castro hints at 'more democratic' Cuba

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Raúl Castro has lived all his life in the shadow of his older brother Fidel.

Raúl Castro has a reputation for ruthlessness but pushed for a move toward more capitalism in Cuba.

Even when Fidel Castro underwent intestinal surgery in 2006 and Raúl Castro became Cuba's acting president, Raúl didn't make a public appearance for two weeks, until after photos assured the country that Fidel was alive.

Smaller, less imposing and less charismatic than his brother, Raúl Castro has known for years that he was the man designated to take over. Yet the world knows fairly little about the longtime Cuban defense minister -- or what he would do as Cuba's new president.

"Is there going to be a transition here toward something?" Raúl Castro once commented to reporters asking about post-Fidel Cuba. "Yes, toward a better form of socialism and -- here's something you'll like -- toward a more democratic society."

What did he mean by "more democratic society"? The world may soon know. Watch how Raúl Castro has helped shape Cuba »

On Tuesday, Fidel Castro announced plans to resign as president and commander-in-chief of the country's armed forces after 49 years in power. It's widely expected that Raúl Castro will be named as the country's new president when the 31-member council of ministers meets Sunday.

Always together

Fidel and Raúl Castro planned the Cuban revolution together.

The brothers were born in Biran, the sons of a Spanish immigrant -- a rich landowner -- and the housemaid he eventually married. Raúl Castro was always by his older brother's side.

Together, they plotted the 1950s uprising that became the Cuban revolution, brought Fidel Castro to power and gave birth to the first communist nation in the Western Hemisphere.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, which left Cuba on the brink of bankruptcy and starvation, it was Raúl Castro who insisted on allowing free enterprise farmers markets. He declared that "beans have as much importance as cannons, if not more."

Analysts say the world may see more of that pragmatism.

Six months ago, Raúl Castro began a "national debate" on the problems of the country, acknowledging high unemployment and other economic concerns.

Raúl Castro is "a man who's quite capable of showing flexibility when needed and quite capable of being hard-line when needed," said Harold Klepak, a professor at the Royal Military College of Canada. "So it will be what is best for Cuba. What's best, I think, in his mind for the revolution and its continuity."

Different personalities

Known as a fiery public speaker, Fidel Castro is said to be rather stiff in social situations.

Raúl Castro is seen as the more down-to-earth brother. He has a more common touch and enjoys parties and a good joke, according to those who have known him well. He's considered more the family man.

And sister Juanita, who defected to the United States in 1964 and lives in Miami, says it is Raúl, not Fidel, who is the patriarch of the Castro clan.

"He's kept the family together," said Ann Louise Bardach, author of "Cuba Confidential." "[Juanita] said he remembers everybody's birthday. He remembers everybody's anniversary. He goes to the graduations. He takes care of the gifts."

Still, in many ways, Raúl Castro is seen as more of a hard-liner than Fidel Castro.

During the early years of the revolution, the younger Castro earned a reputation for being ruthless with his enemies. Grainy black-and-white video shows him making impassioned speeches in the early days of the revolution.

Even before his brother announced his retirement, Raúl Castro said Fidel would be a hard act to follow.

"No one will ever again have as much authority as Fidel Castro has had, because of who he is, because he made a true revolution," 76-year-old Raúl Castro said.


Still, he says only the Communist Party can guarantee continuity.

And, as the architect of the Cuban army and its leader for 50 years, Raúl Castro has the military firmly behind him
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/02/20/raul.castro/

I would imagine that Raul is earnestly seeking the yankee dollar.

Cuba removes restrictions on sale of computers and DVD players

Reuters
Thursday, March 13, 2008

HAVANA: Cuba has authorized the unrestricted sale of computers and DVD and video players in the first sign that President Raúl Castro is moving to improve Cubans' access to consumer goods.

An internal government memo seen by Reuters on Thursday said the appliances could go on sale immediately, although air conditioners would not be available until next year and toasters not until 2010 because of limited power supplies.

Only foreigners and companies can buy computers in Cuba now, while DVD players were seized at the airport until last year, when customs rules were eased.

Now Cubans will be able to buy them freely, paying for them in their hard currency, the convertible peso, which is worth 24 times more than the Cuban pesos that state wages are paid in.

"Based on the improved availability of electricity, the government at the highest level has approved the sale of some equipment that was prohibited," the memo said.

It listed 19-inch and 24-inch - or 48-centimeter and 61-centimeter - television sets, electric pressure cookers and rice cookers, electric bicycles, car alarms and microwaves.

Castro, 76, has led Cuba since July 2006 when his older brother, Fidel, provisionally handed over power after intestinal surgery from which he has not fully recovered.

The younger Castro was named president on Feb. 24, formally becoming the nation's first new leader in almost half a century, and he promised to ease some of the restrictions on daily life.

"The country's priority will be to meet the basic needs of the population, both material and spiritual," he said as he replaced Fidel Castro, a staunch critic of capitalist consumer society.

Last year, under Raúl Castro's provisional government, customs regulations were eased to allow Cubans to bring in some electronic equipment and car parts.

The new memo circulated within the state-run retail system said Cubans would have access to a second group of products in 2009, including air conditioners, which are much in demand to help endure the hot summer days in the tropical country.

If Cuba's electricity supplies permit, additional appliances to be sold freely in 2010 include toasters and electric ovens, the memo said.

The sale of many electric appliances was banned in the 1990s when the collapse of the Soviet Union deprived Cuba of billions of dollars in subsidies and oil supplies, resulting in an energy crunch and daily blackouts of as long as 18 hours.

Cuba put an end to power cuts in 2006 by importing hundreds of electricity generators run on fuel supplied by Venezuela, its main foreign ally.

Raúl Castro has encouraged debate of Cuba's economic woes and has received a torrent of complaints focusing mainly on poor wages and limited access to consumer goods that are priced in hard currency.

In December he said Cuba had too many restrictions, and last month, formally assuming leadership, he vowed "in the next few weeks we shall start removing the most simple of them."

Many Cubans expect the state to soon allow them to buy cellphones. While they will now be able to buy computers, access to the Internet remains controlled by the government.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/13/america/cuba.php

Now, if any one wonders why I understand the "Real Socialism", jokes, here's a telling pic:

http://groups.msn.com/TheRavensRealm/panchospics.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=9131

Good photo, fb..

Casting aspersions againswt Castro's cuba is a banal barbaric, pathetic abysml DREAM OF UNFUFLFILLED american dream..
Ask the people around the globe about Castro and his counter part American presididents..

oh please. ever been to cuba? no? didn't think so.

I would love Rama to becoma a Cuban "citizen".
Only drawback, we wouldn't have him in A2K. Regime firewall.

that's a drawback?

For him, at least.