Fidel Castro: Difference between revisions
imported>IAMGOD No edit summary |
imported>Trashanimal →Biography: Go to the article on LGBT rights in Cuba and you can see that it says in the 2000's - 2010's, he apologized for his horrible treatment of them. Also Cuba's GDP per capita is higher than most other Latin American countries. I'm not a commie but still. |
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''"The Castro regime came to power by deception and terror, resulting in what can only be described as a state of war against the Cuban people. Executions, labor camps, forced re-locations and exile, and the imposition of a repressive military police force to exercise control over civilian society."'' | ''"The Castro regime came to power by deception and terror, resulting in what can only be described as a state of war against the Cuban people. Executions, labor camps, forced re-locations and exile, and the imposition of a repressive military police force to exercise control over civilian society."'' | ||
As prime minister, and then president from 1976, Castro ruled the country in line with Stalinist policies, seizing private property and eliminating free speech and free press. He was infamous for his overly long speeches, often rambling on for hours, which can be seen as an example of Liberal style. He was also virulently [[Homophobia|homophobic]] and heavily prosecuted homosexuals to the point where even his own advisers tried to reign in his homophobia, to no avail. | As prime minister, and then president from 1976, Castro ruled the country in line with Stalinist policies, seizing private property and eliminating free speech and free press. He was infamous for his overly long speeches, often rambling on for hours, which can be seen as an example of Liberal style. He was also virulently [[Homophobia|homophobic]] and heavily prosecuted homosexuals to the point where even his own advisers tried to reign in his homophobia, to no avail. However, he apologized for his homophobia later on in his life. | ||
Castro, who had been in regular contact with the [[KGB (Soviet Union)|KGB]] since 1956 and who used Soviet arms during his guerilla war, welcomed the presence of Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba to deter an American attack. This decision precipitated the Cuban Missile Crisis, a major confrontation in the [[Cold War]] that nearly resulted in the cataclysmic death of millions. According to Guevara: "If the Soviet nuclear rockets had remained, we would have used them all and directed them against the very heart of the United States, including New York." [[Nikita Khrushchev]] wrote that, according to Castro, "we needed to immediately deliver a nuclear missile strike against the United States a proposal that placed the planet on the brink of extinction." Fidel Castro admitted: "I would have agreed to the use of nuclear weapons." On October 26, 1962, the USS Beale had tracked and dropped signaling depth charges (the size of hand grenades) on the B-59, a Soviet Project 641 (NATO designation Foxtrot) submarine which, unknown to the U.S., was armed with a 15 kiloton nuclear torpedo. Running out of air, the Soviet submarine was surrounded by American warships and desperately needed to surface. Captain Valentin Savitsky ordered his crew to prepare the use of a nuclear torpedo against the Americans, but crew member Vasili Arkhipov stepped in and quite literally saved the world. | Castro, who had been in regular contact with the [[KGB (Soviet Union)|KGB]] since 1956 and who used Soviet arms during his guerilla war, welcomed the presence of Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba to deter an American attack. This decision precipitated the Cuban Missile Crisis, a major confrontation in the [[Cold War]] that nearly resulted in the cataclysmic death of millions. According to Guevara: "If the Soviet nuclear rockets had remained, we would have used them all and directed them against the very heart of the United States, including New York." [[Nikita Khrushchev]] wrote that, according to Castro, "we needed to immediately deliver a nuclear missile strike against the United States a proposal that placed the planet on the brink of extinction." Fidel Castro admitted: "I would have agreed to the use of nuclear weapons." On October 26, 1962, the USS Beale had tracked and dropped signaling depth charges (the size of hand grenades) on the B-59, a Soviet Project 641 (NATO designation Foxtrot) submarine which, unknown to the U.S., was armed with a 15 kiloton nuclear torpedo. Running out of air, the Soviet submarine was surrounded by American warships and desperately needed to surface. Captain Valentin Savitsky ordered his crew to prepare the use of a nuclear torpedo against the Americans, but crew member Vasili Arkhipov stepped in and quite literally saved the world. | ||
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On February 23, 1988, the Cuban poet Armando Valladares, who was a imprisoned for [[terrorism]] during 22 years, addressed the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. In his speech, he stated: | On February 23, 1988, the Cuban poet Armando Valladares, who was a imprisoned for [[terrorism]] during 22 years, addressed the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. In his speech, he stated: | ||
Castro's policies imposed poverty and slavery on millions | Castro's policies imposed poverty and slavery on millions. Most pharmacies in Cuba do not even have aspirins. Cuba is plagued with a humanitarian catastrophe involving massive and widespread malnutrition and lack of basic goods; death, suffering, and misery is the result. The streets are now choked with scenes of starving peasants frantically pleading for food. In September 2010, Castro admitted that "the Cuban model doesn't even work." | ||
Castro has been accused of [[genocide]] by ''Genocide Watch. ''He has been sued for genocide in Belgium and Spain. | Castro has been accused of [[genocide]] by ''Genocide Watch. ''He has been sued for genocide in Belgium and Spain. | ||