Thanks Tim for another penetrating and incisive essay about US imperialist ambitions in Cuba, and the truth about those "dissidents" jailed.

No doubt we will now hear more from those ignorant, armchair anti-communist blatherers who know so little of cuban history, have never met and talked to an actual cuban, and are unable to think critically about the self-serving yankee propaganda that infests our "mainstream" media.

Thanks very much Tim for another example of looney-left hypocrisy. Here he is defending the Cuban imprisonment of 75 journalists, librarians and dissidents to an average of 17 years jail for "sedition". And this from someone who gets so sanctimonious over asylum seekers getting locked up. What a joke.

No mention of the estimated 70 000 deaths and disappearances attributed to Castro. No mention of a country destroyed and a people trampled so Castro could make him and his family rich. The only thing that has saved Cuba is the demise of the Soviet Union. Without their money which was the only thing that allowed Cuba to even sort of survive, they've had to turn to a little bit of State capitalism in the form of tourism. Now political murders, squalor, incredible poverty and fear does not make for happy tourists. No one accused Castro of being a fool. I think if dear old Grace has gone on her jaunt to Cuba about 25 years ago, she would have seen a very different country. Captialism saves the day again!

Grace, I'd rather be an ignorant arm-chair anti-communist blatherer than a clapped out old Marxist who doesn't realise that their views are as old and stale as the dinosaurs - and just as dead.

Thanks Tim,I'm amazed at the rabid rights reaction to irrefutable facts when all they can come back with is infantile name calling rhetoric in the hope that if they repeat their misinformation long and often enough, their misinformed lies will become facts.
In other words, Take a page out of George W. Bush's diary of WMD Words of Mass Deception.
I am concerned that a similar scenario is being created in our part of the World with East Timor.
The similarities are quite astounding.

A very poor Country desperately trying to develop an economy not dictated by the IMF and World Bank.
Economic development is being hampered by the actions of the 'Deputy Sheriff'in stealing their resources whilst refusing to accept International Court Jurisdiction.
There is evidence of external efforts by organisations posing as non-political humanitarian to influence the country's direction in opposition to the Constitutional Government.
Maracas

Maracas, isn't the phrase: "infantile name calling rhetoric in the hope that if they repeat their misinformation long and often enough, their misinformed lies will become facts" an example of infantile name calling rhetoric?

Rhian, I'm surprised you would waste an opportunity to respond to Tim Andersons argument as to the USA's strategy in using the UN Commission on Human Rights to further it's imperial designs on Cuba by engaging in a semantic response to my post.
Imperial USA has intentions to introduce Iraqi model democracy and freedom to Cuba.
They have a foot in the door with the Guantanamo base already established.
They fund cuban dissident groups with the intention of furthering their objectives.
Remember the 'Bay of Pigs" ? It failed but the yanks havent given up.

Maracas – the only reason Cuba is a poor nation is because of the despot in charge. It should be the richest in the Caribbean. Castro is a murderer and destroyer and it’s unbelievable (actually, it isn’t) that the trampling of the rights and lives of 11 000 000 people plays a very distant second to your hatred of America.

Anderson's and your defence of this swine is nauseating.