Cuban Power and Blackouts
On a day that the Cubans declared a permanent end to summer power blackouts, the world's press is instead focused on the supposed purposeful cutting of electricity and water supplies to the US Interests Section in Havana
What is interesting is the prominence given the story by our Government. The State Dept. website featured the Cuba "story" first on its website and a statement was carefully crafted to link the "bullying" to the odd public harassment of so-called dissidents. The mainstream Spanish and English media were eager to parrot this crap all over even before today's Cuban response. "A deepening of the diplomatic crisis" related to the billboard affair, they pretend to know. Amazing shit.
Well, it turns out that it is all a big "shameless lie," according to the Cubans. The power outage was linked to the recent Tropical Storm. A front page Granma piece said: In fact there were a large number of power failures in the city of Havana and throughout the country; one of them occurred along the underground 13,000-volt circuit Vedado2, which directly feeds the Interests Section offices, and one of the two channels that supplies electric power to the Anti-Imperialist Tribune, due to the adverse weather conditions
The motives of the obvious US shenanigans such should be clear to those who've been paying attention. With Bush in office, we immediately worsened the few ties (family visits, cultural), then begin paying and organizing "dissidents," then started playing with Visa distribution, then formed a "Transition" planning group, then put up the giant electronic message board... Now this. At first I wasn't sure I believed the Cuban line - that the US wants to provoke a crisis - but now I do. The Bush's have a special place for Castro in their heart, and are looking towards regime change.
If you think I'm overstating things, check out the fascinating detail in the El Nuevo Herald report. They report: "the United States Interests Section in Havana had given instructions on Friday to its personnel to begin destroying all non-essential documents," and "The sources who offered this information to El Nuevo Herald consider the destruction of documents in the U.S. diplomatic offices in Havana to be the prelude to an evacuation, or as a minimum, a preparation for one if necessary."
It is really pathetic. The US Interests Section is sitting there with a perfectly fine generator, while thousands in Havana are also without power and it goes and complains to the world's press that it is being harassed and specifically targeted. It goes further and runs accusations about car alarms being set on purpose outside diplomat's homes, about not being able to import cars, as well as petty vandalism (graffiti) and stone throwing. The implication apparently is that these were Cuban Government acts.
posted by leftside at
7:47 PM
5 Comments:
"Well, it turns out that it is all a big "shameless lie," according to the Cubans."
Wrong. You mean "according to Cuban State Run media controlled by the dictatorship".
"The power outage was linked to the recent Tropical Storm"
Wrong, the storm came AFTER the cut. Long after.
"The motives of the obvious US shenanigans such should be clear to those who've been paying attention. With Bush in office, we immediately worsened the few ties "
Wrong.
The House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to make it easier to sell U.S. farm products to Cuba
You're trust in the cuban media is unshakable. You're, frankly, naive.
"The US Interests Section is sitting there with a perfectly fine generator, while thousands in Havana are also without power"
The surrounding buildings, immediately surrounding the interests section, had electricity. There building was the absolutely only one in the area without electricity. You didn't report that part because it goes against your theory. Wrong again.
JSB, you're exasperating...
1) Re: "shameless lie" - I cited Granma (state run media) right after this quote.
2) The power probles were certainly related to the storms. If the power went out a couple days before the center of the storm passed Havana, that does not discount the two weeks of poor weather the capital experienced before that. And when the storm hit, it certainly affected the ability to get the repairs done. I assume that is what Granma was referring to when it said the problem was "due to the adverse weather conditions experienced by the country over the last two weeks up until yesterday afternoon, Monday (June 12)."
3) You didn't really even try to negate that Bush worsened ties. He obviously did. Yes, the House has passed many anti-embargo votes, but Bush has threatened to use his first veto ever if an embargo weakening measure was put in front of him. Doesn't that tell you something? Bush made it illegal for Cubans to visit Aunts or Uncles, made it so they can visit parents only once every 3 years, made cultural and educational exchanges impossible.
Lies. All lies. Explain to me how the only building in the area to lose power was the building housing the U.S. interests section. And explain the simultaneous water outages. You are truly and organ for the dictatorship. You believe them absolutely. Absolute belief. Sad.
JSB, I beleive what makes sense to me based on the 47 years of non-aggression towards the diplomatic community in Havana.
If, on most occassions, I beleive what the Cuban Government says it is based on a history of truth coming from there. Nothing they've said has ever been disproved, has it?
So you believe that the Cubans intentionally cut the power to the Interests Section? For what reason? What proof do you have? You (and the State Dept.) are relying solely on the apparent fact that most buildings in the immediate area had power. First off, that is not true. The neighboring Anti-Imperialist Plaza was also without power. Also, this area of Havana is a bit isolated - a jut out into the ocean. The explanation is that a line going directly to the IS and Plaza was cut. I'm not a power expert but this is not unusual. If the US could catch Granma and the Govt. in a lie by studying the power grid, don't you think they have would by now?
You, of course, beleive everything the US State Department says, which has a history of lies so deep I could make a list a mile long. It is sad that is the case but that is the reality.
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