Harry Belafonte Criticized for Calling GOP Presidential Hopeful Herman Cain a "False Negro," While Years Ago Praised Fidel Castro

Harry Belafonte is under fire in conservative circles for his lambasting of black GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain. He called Cain a "bad apple," "a false Negro," someone "denied intelligence" and "denied a view of history," among other choice words. Most recently he appeared on HLN's "The Joy Behar Show" and kept up the assault on Cain. What has unnerved the right is the hypocrisy he may have shown years ago when he praised Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. Humberto Fontova at Town Hall wrote a lengthy column about why Belafonte, who played a prominent role in the fight for racial equality and justice during the civil rights era, is a hypocrite for praising Fidel Castro. But, does that mean Belafonte can't speak up about what he dislikes about Herman Cain? His views are widely shared by most people in the black community.

“If you believe in justice,” vocalized Mr Belafonte in an interview with Cuba’s propaganda ministry years earlier, “if you believe in democracy, if you believe in people's rights, if you believe in the harmony of all humankind—then you have no choice but to back Fidel Castro as long as it takes!”

If only Herman Cain were a lily-white Stalinist whose regime murdered more people in its first three years in power than Hitler's murdered in its first six, jailed and tortured political prisoners at a higher rate than Stalin's--including the longest suffering black political prisoners in modern history. If only Herman Cain proposed policies to plunge a nation more prosperous than half of Europe’s into one that repels Haitians. If only he’d driven into exile—even with machine-gunners and Tiger Sharks as dutiful border guards-- 20 per cent of the population from a nation formerly flooded with immigrants. Source

I guess my question to Mr. Fontova is where is the proof that Harry Belafonte colluded with Castro's KGB propaganda ministry for a documentary? Yes, I said it, a documentary. If this is the best the right wing can do to refute criticisms by Belafonte, then they must be in more dire straits than they would have us believe.

Rep. Broun (R-Ga.): Obama Part Of A Socialistic Elite That Plans To "Take Over"

It never ceases to amaze me how absolutely ignorant some of our elected officials are. The good times rolled at a town hall event in Athens, Georgia, where anti-health care protesters had no need to get rowdy because they had an ally in their corner. Rep. Paul Broun seemed to basically agree with their concerns and then some. Gee, I wonder why Rep. Broun didn't push his proposal for health care reform during the last administration, since he cares so much about his constituents? He also said that he will vote against any health care reform bill that comes before him. So, even it is the result of bipartisanship, he will deliberately abstain from voting on the basis of his ridiculous conviction. Sounds very selfish to me.

Broun described a "socialistic elite," led by Obama and senior congressional Democrats, which might use the occasion of a pandemic or a natural disaster to seize dictatorial powers. "They're trying to develop an environment where they can take over," he said. "We've seen that historically."

U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Athens, walked into a North Georgia Technical College auditorium Tuesday evening to a standing ovation, holding three thick white binders. "Folks, this is Obamacare," he said, holding the binders over his head. "Let me start this by telling you what I think of this bill and (President) Obama," he said, and slammed the binders on the ground.

With that, Broun set the tone for a town hall meeting on health care reform. The Democrats' proposal is too expensive and will threaten millions of Georgians' jobs and lives, he said. "This is a stinking, rotten fish, and they don't want you to smell it, and they want to shove it down your throat and make you eat it before you smell how rotten and stinky it is," he said.

At another point, Broun, who last year made national news by comparing Obama to Hitler, called Cuba's former dictator Fidel Castro and leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Obama's "good buddy."

Many speakers in the senior-heavy audience honed in on a clause in the health care proposal that would require insurers to cover end-of-life counseling sessions to help healthy patients decide beforehand what types of treatments they want to keep them alive if they are about to die. "(Obama) is going to let the old folks die, and I don't like that at all," Oconee County resident Gene Aycock said. Source: Athens Banner Herald

Gee, I wonder why Rep. Broun didn't push his plan when President Bush was on office? I guess that would be more work than he cares to engage in. This is the same idiot who said that President Obama was a good buddy of Venezuelan leftist nutjob Hugo Chavez. The Rethuglican Party continues to push nothing but lies and continue to foment the extremist fringe of the party. I have some real concerns about this proposed health care reform, but I would not embellish my position with a lot of mistruths and dirty smears.

Antigua-Barduda Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer Comes Under Fire for Accepting a Donation from Hugo Chavez Regime

Are the islands of Antigua-Barbuda in bed with Venezuelan nutjob Hugo Chavez? Well, it seems like the opposition Antigua Labour Party said it is distressed at what it called the government’s hoodwinking of the disabled community in Antigua and Barbuda and accepting funds from Venezuela. The ALP said that the Baldwin Spencer regime is basing a program to help disabled residents on a hand-out from the Chavez government.

The ALP also drew attention to a statement from Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer that help to the disabled in a fulfillment of his party's promise at the last general election. The ALP asked, "Does this mean that if Spencer had not received this money from Venezuela, he would not have fulfilled his promise?"

ALP political leader, Lester Bird, said, "This program, like all the other programs the UPP regime is now hustling to do, is another election gimmick that will not be sustained. It is a desperate attempt by a desperate political party to buy votes with money donated to the government." Source: Caribbean Net News

I did some research and discovered that the Government Treasury collected $1 billion in taxes, so why couldn't funds from that be used to fund the program? It seems that Hugo Chavez is trying to get his tentacles stuck in some of the Caribbean islands and that is a shame. I would think that the last thing a prime minister or president want is to be portrayed as a buddy of Hugo Chavez. At least in America's eyes. As someone from the Caribbean, I remember when I was a child that former Prime Minister Michael Manley had developed a relationship with Cuba's Fidel Castro and it made a lot of Jamaican very uncomfortable because of what Castro stood for and the mistrust of the communist ideology.

Antigua-Barduda Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer Comes Under Fire for Accepting a Donation from Hugo Chavez Regime

Are the islands of Antigua-Barbuda in bed with Venezuelan nutjob Hugo Chavez? Well, it seems like the opposition Antigua Labour Party said it is distressed at what it called the government’s hoodwinking of the disabled community in Antigua and Barbuda and accepting funds from Venezuela. The ALP said that the Baldwin Spencer regime is basing a program to help disabled residents on a hand-out from the Chavez government.

The ALP also drew attention to a statement from Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer that help to the disabled in a fulfillment of his party's promise at the last general election. The ALP asked, "Does this mean that if Spencer had not received this money from Venezuela, he would not have fulfilled his promise?"

ALP political leader, Lester Bird, said, "This program, like all the other programs the UPP regime is now hustling to do, is another election gimmick that will not be sustained. It is a desperate attempt by a desperate political party to buy votes with money donated to the government." Source: Caribbean Net News

I did some research and discovered that the Government Treasury collected $1 billion in taxes, so why couldn't funds from that be used to fund the program? It seems that Hugo Chavez is trying to get his tentacles stuck in some of the Caribbean islands and that is a shame. I would think that the last thing a prime minister or president want is to be portrayed as a buddy of Hugo Chavez. At least in America's eyes. As someone from the Caribbean, I remember when I was a child that former Prime Minister Michael Manley had developed a relationship with Cuba's Fidel Castro and it made a lot of Jamaican very uncomfortable because of what Castro stood for and the mistrust of the communist ideology.

Cuba Enters the Beeper Age, As Cellphone Calls Go Answered

We often take many things for granted in the United States, oblivious to the outside world. I was amazed at the recent introduction of cellular phones to Cuba. I have become so accustomed to having technology at my fingertips that I found it almost unbelievable that the phenomenon is just being introduced to the communist island. According to the Washington Post, the Nokia 1112 has been introduced to Cubans and they are absolutely mesmerized. As Cuba celebrates its 50th anniversary, the rickety state-run economy struggles to feed, house and care for its people, as well as provide little niblets of the latest technology and niceties available on a global scale. Since Raúl Castro became the president, he has added new items to their island fare. Cubans can now legally purchase items such as DVD players, microwave ovens, desktop computers and yes, mobile phones. The residents have embraced this experiment, especially the cellular phone. To them, the cellphone is a badge of modernity. The government began allowing purchases last April and slashed prices 50 percent in December.

Here's the twist..... Cubans don't actually talk on their cellphones. They use them as pagers. Didn't the pager craze in the United States suffer its demise quickly? Cuba has just entered the Beeper Age. According to Washington Post, the residents who own cellphones rarely answer when they get calls. Instead, they look at the number, find a land-line telephone, which is dirt cheap to use, and return the call. Or, if they are feeling adventurous, they might type a message. Still, no talk. Try telling an American not to talk on their cellphone. Sheesh, that was a scary thought!

There are estimates that there were no more than 250,000 cellphone users in Cuba, which has a population of 11.2 million. The odds are impossibly high for most Cubans to own a cellphone, however. Most cannot afford the new Nokia 1112 phone, they instead have worked out deals for used phones on the gray market, or may get an old phone from a relative living overseas. The government also makes it very hard for a Cuba to get a mobile phone account. To open an account with the state monopoly, ETECSA, the customer must go to one of the few offices in Havana, with the cellphone in hand and wait on line for hours, then pay $65 to activate the service. That may seem like a bargain to you and I, but the average monthly salary in Cuba hovers around $20. I guess the cellphone, a staple in our lives, is an expensive habit in Cuba.

The Cuban government has deliberately made it hard for Cubans to march into the new technological age. This is evidenced from the exorbitant price involved in maintaining the cellphone. Local calls between cellphones cost 65 cents a minute, with cellphone to land line costing slightly more. Calls abroad are laughable. It seems that no-one is crazy enough to call overseas with a cellphone. Let me humor you. Calls to the United States, reportedly costs $2.70 a minute, while calls to Europe will give you a nosebleed--$5.85 a minute. Texting comes in at 17 cents a minute.

I could not survive one minute under the Castro regime. For starters, there is no Web surfing, no YouTube watching, no emailing on cellphones. Cuba connects to the digital world through Italian satellite. Because of the U.S. trade embargo, there is no undersea fiber-optic cable connecting the island to Florida. I can tell you one thing, I am grateful that I live in a democratic country, where I am limited mainly by my capabilities and not the government telling me what to do and when.

Cuba Enters the Beeper Age, As Cellphone Calls Go Answered

We often take many things for granted in the United States, oblivious to the outside world. I was amazed at the recent introduction of cellular phones to Cuba. I have become so accustomed to having technology at my fingertips that I found it almost unbelievable that the phenomenon is just being introduced to the communist island. According to the Washington Post, the Nokia 1112 has been introduced to Cubans and they are absolutely mesmerized. As Cuba celebrates its 50th anniversary, the rickety state-run economy struggles to feed, house and care for its people, as well as provide little niblets of the latest technology and niceties available on a global scale. Since Raúl Castro became the president, he has added new items to their island fare. Cubans can now legally purchase items such as DVD players, microwave ovens, desktop computers and yes, mobile phones. The residents have embraced this experiment, especially the cellular phone. To them, the cellphone is a badge of modernity. The government began allowing purchases last April and slashed prices 50 percent in December.

Here's the twist..... Cubans don't actually talk on their cellphones. They use them as pagers. Didn't the pager craze in the United States suffer its demise quickly? Cuba has just entered the Beeper Age. According to Washington Post, the residents who own cellphones rarely answer when they get calls. Instead, they look at the number, find a land-line telephone, which is dirt cheap to use, and return the call. Or, if they are feeling adventurous, they might type a message. Still, no talk. Try telling an American not to talk on their cellphone. Sheesh, that was a scary thought!

There are estimates that there were no more than 250,000 cellphone users in Cuba, which has a population of 11.2 million. The odds are impossibly high for most Cubans to own a cellphone, however. Most cannot afford the new Nokia 1112 phone, they instead have worked out deals for used phones on the gray market, or may get an old phone from a relative living overseas. The government also makes it very hard for a Cuba to get a mobile phone account. To open an account with the state monopoly, ETECSA, the customer must go to one of the few offices in Havana, with the cellphone in hand and wait on line for hours, then pay $65 to activate the service. That may seem like a bargain to you and I, but the average monthly salary in Cuba hovers around $20. I guess the cellphone, a staple in our lives, is an expensive habit in Cuba.

The Cuban government has deliberately made it hard for Cubans to march into the new technological age. This is evidenced from the exorbitant price involved in maintaining the cellphone. Local calls between cellphones cost 65 cents a minute, with cellphone to land line costing slightly more. Calls abroad are laughable. It seems that no-one is crazy enough to call overseas with a cellphone. Let me humor you. Calls to the United States, reportedly costs $2.70 a minute, while calls to Europe will give you a nosebleed--$5.85 a minute. Texting comes in at 17 cents a minute.

I could not survive one minute under the Castro regime. For starters, there is no Web surfing, no YouTube watching, no emailing on cellphones. Cuba connects to the digital world through Italian satellite. Because of the U.S. trade embargo, there is no undersea fiber-optic cable connecting the island to Florida. I can tell you one thing, I am grateful that I live in a democratic country, where I am limited mainly by my capabilities and not the government telling me what to do and when.