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05 Sep 2010 15:40

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World: Fidel Castro uses the Internet enough for the rest of Cuba

  • 13% of Cuba has access to the internet, which is only accessible by expensive satellite access (that’s a lower average than Haiti, even!)
  • 200+ the number of news items Fidel Castro reports to read daily, which is kind of a lot; he’s obsessed with Wikileaks, too source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Aug 2010 12:51

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World: Twitter all a-chatter about Fidel Castro’s public appearance today



Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Jul 2010 21:01

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World: Fidel Castro: The U.S. needs to, you know, stop causing nuclear war

  • Instead of taking practical steps towards the reduction of the chilling threat of the proliferation of nuclear weapons in Iran or any other part of the world, the United States is moving towards the control of the vital oil-producing regions of the Middle East – with violent means should other means fail.
  • Former Cuban president Fidel Castro • Speaking in a rare television interview tonight on the United States’ foreign policy, which he says is slowly building up to nuclear war with Iran. It’s an oddly-timed event, seemingly designed to make sure Castro’s stance on foreign policy was still part of the discussion. It worked – he’s currently Twitter’s top trending topic. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jul 2010 13:43

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World: Report: Cuban hunger striker Guillermo Farinas could die

  • 129 number of days he’s been on a prolonged hunger strike
  • Why did he protest?Since Feburary 24, Farinas has been hunger striking to protest the imprisonment of numerous political activists, as well as the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo, a prisoner who died during his own hunger strike.
  • His current statusFarinas is currently at Arnaldo Milian Castro University Hospital in Santa Clara. His doctor says he’s being fed a little via intravenous feeding and has gained weight, but has a blood clot that could prevent blood from getting to his heart.
  • A surprising facetPerhaps the most interesting thing about the Farinas situation is that the source which reported on the opposition activist was Granma, a communist newspaper – and they played it very big, devoting two of their eight pages to him. source
  • » Programming note: This is based on an AP article, which as you might know, we try to avoid here at the ShortFormHQ. But this article seemed important enough that it was worth bypassing the picket line, at least today.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Jul 2010 10:23

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World: Cuban cause celebré Elian Gonzalez: Thanks for the help, America!

  • Thanks to the help of a big part of the American people and of our people, today I’m with my father, and that is everything.
  • Elian Gonzalez • Looking back on that crazy raid that defined U.S./Cuba diplomatic relations about a decade ago. Seriously, it holds a place next to the Terri Schiavo case in terms of complete worse-than-it-needed-to-be theatrics. Gonzalez, now 16, is studying to become a Cuban military officer. Julius was considering a similar career path, except he doesn’t live in a communist regime. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Apr 2010 23:14

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World: Elian Gonzalez (remember him?) on the Che Guevara path to fame

In the movie bound to be made about this hard-fought-for Cuban kid’s life, Shia LaBeouf needs to play the lead. Gotta love communism! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Jan 2010 11:44

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World: China’s hardcore porn crackdown saw a lot of victims in 2009

  • 5,394 animal-like people were arrested throughout the year
  • 4,186 criminal investigations; that’s 4x the amount of 2008 source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

24 Dec 2009 23:47

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World: Top Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo jailed for “subversion”

  • 11 years for the freedom-pushing political activist source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Nov 2009 08:24

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World: Obama wants to come to China, but can’t nail down the details

  • What the U.S. wants An unscripted town-hall-style event in which the president talks to around 1,000 Chinese youths about the issues facing their country. Ah, democracy. source
  • What the U.S. wants An unscripted town-hall-style event in which the president talks to around 1,000 Chinese youths about the issues facing their country. Ah, democracy.
  • What China wants A highly-vetted town-hall-style event in which the president talks to around 600 Chinese youths – tops – about the issues China allows. Ah, communism. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Jun 2009 22:54

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World: North Korea’s heir apparent is a chip off the old Kim Jong block

Kim Jong Il’s former personal chef describes 25-year-old Kim Jong Un as being just like his dad. Oh crap. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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