You guys will have to forgive me, but I’m translating from Spanish, I wanted to include a link to a Google translated page but somehow it’s not working, however, the original link is here, for those of you that can read in Spanish.
‘Business is Business’ – El Pais: Commercial relationships between two of the most enduring governments in the world, the State of Lower Saxony in Germany and the Cuban Dictatorship, has increased in the last few years.
What stands out lately in the commerce with Lower Saxony is the import of some emblematic products from the German Industry. German press has informed about the acquisition of 183 BMW cars for Cuban ambassadors. The Embassy in Berlin has stated the following: ‘These are vehicles for embassies’. BMW hopes to sell them 60 more cars. The embassy refused to confirm that Raul Castro already uses a quite modern BMW, compared with the old Mercedes used by his brother Fidel.
What, no Ladas? Damn.
Those spokespersons from Lower Saxony companies consulted by the newspaper that trade with Cubans, all fled like demons escaping from holy water to the question about fearing sanctions from the U.S. as a consequence of the Helms-Burton Law, which forbids commerce with the Cuban dictatorship.
Something that all the Bavarian exporters agree with is that Cuba is a trustworthy commercial partner and pays on time.
I bet they have loads of cash from using its citizens as slave labour in Latin American countries and all the Oil given by the lovely Kuzco. Isn’t that peachy. 
#51 oh man. This is going to be soooo damn easy.
In #29 you came to the defense against the cuba “bashers” (as if you have to come up with shit from there) saying that cuba has offered the US help when Katrina as an argument that the US should have accepted this help yet when faced with the fact that cuba has rejected several help attempts (i’m not going further back) you aim for second best and blab that 1. US help is useless and meaningless and that cuba is more efficient than the US in helping its citizens.
First of all, by going sideways you admitted defeat and are looking for a second argument to see if you get lucky there. Well, strike two.
What a smug attitude from cuba by saying that the help is too little. I thought that when you’re in need, any help is useful. I guess they’re doing too well in cuba to be that galivant and reject aid in wahtever form they could. Then, maybe, the US thought that “help” cuba was offering was meaningless. I mean, the US has a lot more doctors & money than cuba, don’t you think?
And, like if the US help would have been greater, fidel would’ve not rejected it on the grounds that he would never accept such a buy-out attempt from the US. He said so, he would never recieve money from the US, that why he has been trying to find buttloads of money by conquering countries. He has the money to shame the US. Damned if they helped, damned if they didn’t. He would rather steal the money from Venezuela, it’s easier are more convenient.
And you’re happy that cuba was able to move, was it 1.5 mill? I’m to lazy to read your feeble attempt again. Yeah, great achievement in human life preservation. Kudos.
But, does the fact that cuba is administered as a militar boot camp had something to do with moving so many people in such a short time? people used to eat with a food ration card because the “good food” without restrains is for turist only? or that they have been moving them like cattle whenever castro wants to make his “spontaneous” rallies a factor in being able to move that many people that fast? One of the ways they used to make people come “spontanously” to those rallies is by saying things like “show or else”. Or the fact that castro’s militias can do whatever they want with their citizens without a single reprieve from the government (they sent them) and have nobody to come after them in defense be it by public support nor advocacy? Could also the fact that no single cuban citizen owns a home? or that several families are forced to share the same home? man, this last one sure makes moving people a lot easier than going home by home for each family, don’t you think?
I bet the US citizens would had loved to see the national guard force them out of their homes at gunpoint. I would have liked to see anyone being told to leave because here comes the flood and stayed because they wanted in cuba. Did it happen? we’ll never know because that kind of news is against the revolution. All have to come out rosie in the news. The revolutions is the best no matter what. Like that Chernobil accident from their mentors that never happened, remember? Again, I bet if somebody tried to make them leave against their will in the US would have opened fire against those trying to help them. Oh wait, it happened! but not when telling them to move, but when they where trying to help them afterwards. Can you fathom that in cuba? whomever dared do so there would have been sent to jail and killed by a fire squad afterwards by now for shooting a government official. BTW, how many people left the Katrina zone by their own foot or in their cars? don’t know, but there were surely a lot. I know of several. How many did the same thing in cuba? this one’s easy: 0
I’ll stop here, it’s too easy
Oh, and nice try on manipulating the BBC news post. Your effort was worthy of them (their article shows only their interpretation of the account and not a single quote). The line I quoted from that article was the last one, which said something like “they refused the help”!. Now, how can an article that starts saying that cuba accepts the help yet the last line completely contradicts what’s not only written in the headline, but on almost the entire article beats me. I guess the editor was upset about the thing and told the journalist to rectify or they went so far into manipulating the news that they thought it was way too much and decided to add that last line.
I love your #52. Like all your other post, WRONG!
You’re defending the undefendable (communism) and you don’t want me to conclude that you’re a commie lover? tell me how not to then. Make me right…if you can
#57 – Mr. Fusion – The most dangerous political system is Totalitarian.
Absolutely. Just look at Germany in the years that lead up to World War 2. Hitler and company grabbed power and got the support of the people because the Nazis dragged Germany out of the recession, killed of unemployment, rearmed the military and brought pride to the German people. Then they had a big propaganda triumph with the 1936 Olympics. After that the Nazis grabbed areas of other countries by rattling their guns, just to end it all with a war that cost some 50-70 million deaths. There’s a lot to learn from history on what’s happening in the current.
Loved the quote from Einstein.
#58 – Mr. Fusion
Thanks.
The US democracy is in effect a two party system. I can’t say that I’m too thrilled about that idea, but it’s better than the one sported by China. If I could put together a system I would like to live in… it would be Swedish multi-party democracy with the Swiss approach to referendums. If you have more than two parties, you get more representative development of the country since not just one party will rule the country (unless they alone get 50% of the votes).
Editor – Please put and end-i tag after Totalitarian. in my #62 post..
Thanks in advance.
Oh, I forgot #49, your next backpedaling for a second try.
This one was started by you when you said “Cuba doesn’t send her citizens to die in foreign countries while killing innocent civilians to generate corporate profits.”
And you were proven wrong. Are you expecting an apology for being wrong? Sit tight.
Besides, that thing is an oximoron. Cuban corporantion? Although, on second thought, there is one: the cuban government. And it played big time in Angola.
You have seem to take only wrong conclusions in here, it’s shown all over. The fact that you think I’m defending the US is WRONG. I’m against that stupid dictatorship that cuba is and seeing someone try to find arguments against the current US administration (which I’ve said many times it’s quite bad) it’s a person with a very poor judgement. People like you will be the undoing of your country. Much like people like you were the undoing of venezuela.
The most pathetic example of that is a guy called “Padre Palmar” which is a pro-commie/pro govermnet clergy and journalist. Until recently.
This guy is so naive, that he is now filing 63 different corruption cases with their evidence into the congress about the state oil company, run by kuzco himself. There’s nothing that it’s being done there that kuzco hasn’t ordered (again, kuzco is a fidel proxy, evidence abound). An evidence of this is what Mr. Fusion said didn’t have to do with this article: The $800.000 Argentinian fiasco.
He went to the all pro-goverment congress to make the accusations and demanding an inquiry. Saying that kuzco and all the oil company’s directives are just a bunch of crooks that are driving the country to a crash. He seem to be convinced that kuzco and this guys are crooks. But here’s the kicker: he says the revolution can be saved. What a moron! What kuzco is doing IS the revolution, as directed by castro. And he thinks kuzco has deviated from the revolution.
You sound like those guys. You seem to clutch at straws finding whatever you are now “convinced” is a better way to conduct the US. LIke what we say when we tell kids to find a hidden present and they ask if they’re close: you’re ice cold. Not close by a long shot.
So, stop defending that dictator, there’s a lot of people suffering thanks to that hack. Unless, you wanna keep being proved wrong. It may be useful for you in the long wrong. But I’m not holding my breath
I just had a thought – John ought to have a page here just for these debates! LOL! What do all of you think about that. There are some DAMN good discussions here which get forgotten when the page dates.
#56 Jägermeister: You must have lived in China long enough to know that Government policy isn’t really what’s practised at root level. According to Chinese law, freedom of speech is allowed… is it followed? And Shanghai is different. Shanghai is the new Hong Kong, rich and powerful. Get to the smaller cities and the working conditions are not as stellar as in Shanghai.
Yes I have been in China for about +7 years but not sequentially. I agree with you that sadly government policy is not enforced as well as it should. The central Chinese government is of course aware of this but in practice it is VERY hard to turn around.
There are many damn good people in office but for many reasons – one being how Chinese hierarchy operates in all levels of life retards progress. Put simply (as this is a very complex subject) the boss is always correct and never has to (or expected to) explain the reasons why someone has to do something.
Chinese are TASK orientated while Westerners are RESULT orientated. Chinese will do the task they have been given to do and seldom give any thought to the reasons for it and what is the desired result.
Westerners are given the task and what is the desired result should be so if the task needs to be modified to get the result its ok to do so.
This is an important point as If there is a corrupt government official it is rare for an insubordinate to ever blow the whistle – one they might not be privy to damning information and two one never argues with the boss.
I know this may not be clear as my explanation is over simplified but suffice to say it is a real reason why progress in eliminating corruption is slow.
Another reason for government policy regarding workers is not followed is often the workers themselves. Its easy believe that must be them not willing or even contemplating to complain – but that is not always the case. If a company drops the 12 hours to 8 hours they will complain as they get less money. The more hours means more money. Additionally many workers are from small rural areas and not local and so they feel they are wasting time not working!
I had a VERY difficult time to understand this but it is true. Many workers get their base salary and piece work – overtime is not a extra payment but is factored in as part of their pay. I have been general manager of a few factories and now have my own business.
In Shanghai one factory I was managing I had workers complain about the cap on hours – they wanted to work 12 hours a day but my hands were tied.
The two business I have are not located in Shanghai but in smaller cities near Shanghai – 3 hours west and 5 hours north.
This is not to say that there are many workers which are abused and do not fall into this category. It is a VERY complex issue.
I think this ‘comment’ is too long already but I could put my views about what we are discussing later on my blog I just started.
Cheers
#65 – TIHZ_HO
I’m familiar with the Chinese bureaucracy and the “yes boss” mentality. This is something that stretches back thousands of years and won’t change anytime soon.
And I’m also familiar with the task vs result. Chinese are very good at following procedures. My wife usually jokes about this, because she’s like that herself and she realizes it.
If a company drops the 12 hours to 8 hours they will complain as they get less money.
This comes down to another thing about the Chinese mind. They’re very money minded. My wife is definitely the banker in our family.
I’m sure that when they earn more per hour, they’re going to prioritize health and life more than asking for longer working ours to make ends meet and get money in the bank.
Jägermeister My wife is definitely the banker in our family.
LOL! You and me BOTH!!
She cracked up when I told her what you said and she told me “you guys are too stupid with money!”
Drop me email off line tihz_ho@yahoo.com if you like.
Cheers!
Hi, I am very interesting to know about Kuzkoland’s state oil company which owns CITGO) offices in Uruguay . how i can i find more abut this company? or if about the woman in the plane? thank you.