Americas News
Castro ends 8-month silence to slam US ethanol plans (2nd Roundup)
Mar 29, 2007, 19:59 GMT
Havana - Ending eight months of silence, ailing Cuban President Fidel Castro published an article in Cuban state media Thursday criticizing US environmental policies, and in particular plans to boost the use of ethanol.
'The sinister idea of converting food into fuel has definitely been established as an economic lineament in US foreign policy,' the Cuban leader wrote, arguing that US President George W Bush's support for using crops to produce ethanol for automobiles in rich nations could deplete food stocks in developing countries.
The article published in the Cuban Communist Party daily Granma was the first attempt by Castro, 80, who is recovering from intestinal surgery, to comment on international issues since he was taken ill in July 2006 and handed over power to his younger brother Raul.
Fidel Castro has only been seen in half a dozen videos and several pictures since the surgery, the last ones published in March where he appeared with Colombian Nobel Laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
'More than 3 billion people in the world condemned to premature death by hunger and thirst,' read the headline of Castro's article.
Castro's health has been treated as a state secret in Cuba, which has not revealed the exact cause of his illness. Over the past months, rumours of the imminent death of the Cuban leader have been strongly denied by the authorities. However, over the last few weeks the expectation of his return has increased, owing to several hints by Cuban and international officials.
A few weeks ago, Bolivian President Evo Morales announced the possibility of that Castro would appear publicly on April 28. This would mark the first anniversary of Bolivia's joining the Alternativa Bolivariana para las Americas (ALBA), the Cuban and Venezuelan alternative to the US-sponsored Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).
Cuba has not yet confirmed Castro's appearance. The island is entering its ninth month without its socialist leader of almost half a century.
In the article, Castro warned that the plans to convert products like corn, sugar cane or soy into ethanol for use as fuel additives could cause serious ecological damage and would adversely affect the third world population.
Castro referred to a meeting Bush had Monday with leading US automotive groups, in which he urged them to double the number of vehicles fuelled by alternative combustibles such as ethanol, in an attempt to combat climate change and US dependence on oil.
'I think that reducing and recycling all the electricity and combustible consuming motors is an elemental and urgent necessity for all humanity. The tragedy does not consist in reducing the costs of energy, but in the idea of converting food into combustibles,' Castro said in the article.
Bush strongly promoted the production and use of biofuels in Latin American countries in a regional tour earlier this month, with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as his main ally. The US and Brazil together produce around 72 per cent of the world's ethanol.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said he 'respects' the Cuban leader but defended the position of Lula's leftist government.
'I think everyone is free to express their opinion. But I do not think that was meant against the Brazilian government or Brazil. Our opinion on ethanol is that ethanol's success has been proved in practice,' he said.
Amorim pointed out that Brazil produces ethanol from sugar cane, while the United States uses less energy-efficient corn.
'Brazil is today looked at as almost an object of pilgrimage, or a Mecca - to use two different religious examples - by all developed or developing countries, who come to seek in ethanol and (other) biofuels a way out of energy problems, not to remain totally dependent on oil. Everyone knows that oil is going to run out,' the minister said.
According to the Cuban leader, even if the US dedicated its entire corn production to the production of ethanol, there still would not be enough ethanol for its fuel needs.
'If you apply this recipe in Third World countries, you'll see how many people of the hungry masses of our planet will stop eating corn. Or even worse: finance poor countries to produce ethanol from corn and there won't even be one tree to defend humanity of the climate change,' Castro wrote.
The Cuban president said instead of these policies, countries should concentrate on other ways of saving energy, as Cuba does.
'All the countries in the world, poor and rich, could save millions and millions of dollars just by changing all incandescent light bulbs into fluorescent ones, something Cuba has been doing in all homes. That would give climate change a break without starving the poor masses of the world,' said Castro, who in the past few years has made ecology one of his major interests.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
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Castro hit the nail on the head on this one.
Corn for ethanol is a counter productive theory.
The process requires more energy than it produces, and it's dependent on growing conditions. (drought, etc)
Jim
Who cares what Castro thinks. He's a tyrannical communist dictator who beats and tortures his politial opponents.
This all smacks of Marxist mentality. What belongs to USA's crop producers is none of his business. Perhaps Castro should mind his own country's business and try to feed HIS poor. Castro needs to just hurry up and expire and do the world a favor by leaving.
Besides, it is no longer the USA's responsiblity to feed the poor. If the world has such a large 'problem' with the United States, it can feed the poor on it's own. That's right, United Nations, it is your responsiblity now.
America would already be out of debt if we didn't give trillions in free money assistance programs to Third World countries.
How can anyone say 'Hail Castro'? This is an evil man who has taken away all private businesses and homes. He is starving the people in his own country. Who is he to criticize the US? He should have been killed years ago!
And in case you are wondering - I was born here - but my parents are Cuban! What a horrible situation - to be forced to leave your country because you have no freedom.
Do not speak of what you don't really know!
It all sounds like a massive chemical and farm lobby to me. It takes so many resources (fuel, labor, land, and lets not forget the most expensive piece of agricultural production, chemicals for higher yeilds)to make these fuels. Hydrogen and Nuclear, or more efficient currently existing mainstream fuels like petro seems the smarter way to go. I agree with Castro that shifting all of those resources, esp. land, to produce 'food to burn' seems like a waste.
Now he is thinking in the rest of the people, why he has not let his own peolpe come out in public and really express the anger, frustation of the Castro tirany. Now he worries about the poor people he is just a hipocrat in decadence.
Castro, What a leader, he has kept Cuba in a state of economic disaster since he took power. The Population of people in Cuba are very poor and live in a slum type atmosphere. He can comment all he wants, but the real problem for fuel needs must be met. At least people of the free world are working on different types of alternatives. Castro could trade his sugar cane for other types of food for his people. Does he do this?
The question may be: Is the use of corn to produce ethanol is another government concession to the ever successful lobby of Archer Daniels Midland? Check out the June 2006 Corpwatch.org article which may give you some insights into that.
There are grasses that are far more efficient per acre, not that the whole ethanol paradigm is necessarily a good one to begin with
(see: futurepundit.com and the reference papers on the subject (they won't let you post links here, sorry).
It is unbelievable that there is a new structure built in the US today that does not have at least some form of solar, if nothing more than to heat hot water when the sun is available.
Other lighting sources are also a highly viable energy saving option, although the answers there are more specific to the user and the application than just fluorescents (but they are certainly a huge improvement).
For more insight into that check out: treehugger.com's article on lighting efficiencies.
and bush isn't a dictator (look it up in the dictonay - it's a political leader who siezes power against the will of the populace) who imprisons people (including american citizens) without due process, has them torurured, and uses the military to carry out his will even though the majority of the populace is against its use? i'm no fan of castro but i'm less of a fan of gw bush... at least castro came to power without having his father's influence and wealth assure him of position. castro came to power because the people of cuba were sick and tired of the 'bush' types of thier generation and chose a path. if we're not careful the radical right will force the american people to the left - opening us to a 'bush' from the liberal / communist left. sorry about the spelling...
The question may be: If the use of corn to produce ethanol is another government concession to the ever successful lobby of Archer Daniels Midland? Check out the June 2006 Corpwatch.org article which may give you some insights into that.
There are grasses that are far more efficient per acre, not that the whole ethanol paradigm is necessarily a good one to begin with (see: futurepundit.com and the reference papers on the subject (they won't let you post links here, sorry).
It is unbelievable that there is a new structure built in the US today that does not have at least some form of solar, if nothing more than to heat hot water when the sun is available.
Other lighting sources are also a highly viable energy saving option, although the answers there are more specific to the user and the application than just fluorescents (but they are certainly a huge improvement).
For more insight into that check out: treehugger.com's article on lighting efficiencies.
Matt, you're an idiot. Have your heard of 'globalization'? We are all connected now because the business giants of the U.S. have interests all over the world. These business giants are like a giant octopus, with their sticky hands touching virtually every country on earth.
I'm not sure if corn is the best alternative to what we have now. But I know for SURE that we DO have a very profound impact on the rest of the world. You can no longer say 'we're not responsible for your problems' because if you look deep enough, we're at least partly responsible.
Yeah, not to mention the US only farms about a 3rd of its usable land to grow crops. What a crock, let farmers get back in the game and support their families and the American economy. Oil companies are reporting record profits in the billions, its time we say good bye forever to supporting the middle east investments.
Countries like Cuba and Iran will be begging the US to purchase their over priced oil once we have integrated bio fuels. ha ha suckas maybe lame idiots like Terhan's 'supreme' leaders will finally get the message that they are nothing special and do not deserve to be treated like royalty and start contributing something positive to this world instead of being degenerates.
Ethanol is a bad idea. But why should we expect a corrupt government to look after the interests of its citizens?
Watch 'Who Killed the Electric Car' . Very enlightening.
Corn is better used for food and not fuel, so he has a point. I think more R&D needs to be finding a way to modify some plant life into producing high sugar levels. Maybe the sweet potato could be modified into producing alot more sugar or some other plant. I think there is an even better way of getting hydrogen from water and that is under pressure in a centrifuge. The same way U235 is separated from U238. If the hydrogen molecule is smaller then the oxygen molecule then maybe a screen with microscopic holes can be used for separation and at the same time collect the energy that will come off of this separation to use for the motors that turn the centrifuge.
Who's Castro?????
There have been many advancements (very recently!) in Solar, Thermal, Wave, and Wind generation. Forget this ethanol/oil allternatives junk and put all of these new advancements into action. Places like denmark are almost completely powered by Wind Generators. Greenland has done a great job producing energy via thermal and hydrogen production. Scottland has just made plans to double their wave generating capacity. There is even a new technology out that uses some sort of material in combination with sea water to actually catalize the splitting of the h20 atoms into oxygen and hydrogen. If that technology gets to the market soon our entire country can convert to a hydrogen based society.
Also at little bit further out there but if you really start getting interested in this stuff you should also check out Zero Point Energy. Its completly theoretical but very facinating.
you must understand the American perception of Cuba has been altered by ceaseless propaganda against the country since the 1950s Castro has done tremendous help for his country, he has industrialized it, eliminated child labor, banned smoking, raised life expectancy and literacy, and helped many of the poor who were exploited by the fascist dictator Batista who came before him. just because the cuban economy has stagnated does not mean the country is a hellhole most of the people left who left Cuba after the revolution were middle wealthier middle class people who had nothing to gain from a peasant uprising.
you must understand the American perception of Cuba has been altered by ceaseless propaganda against the country since the 1950s Castro has done tremendous help for his country, he has industrialized it, eliminated child labor, banned smoking, raised life expectancy and literacy, and helped many of the poor who were exploited by the fascist dictator Batista who came before him. just because the cuban economy has stagnated does not mean the country is a hellhole most of the people left who left Cuba after the revolution were middle wealthier middle class people who had nothing to gain from a peasant uprising.
the united states could learn a thing or two about ecology from Castro if you ask me. The process used to turn corn into ethanol only provides you with a 32% gain in terms of the energy you use to turn the corn into ethynol it is not very efficient or practical.
He's becoming a Chavez puppet. USA stops using foreign oil, Chavez can't give it away to further his socialist agenda.
Castro is an evil dictator who holds power by military force. he is not to be celebrated.
Ethanol from corn is a terrible idea, using more energy than it produces, keeping us tied to consumption when conservation is the only answer, and driving up the cost of food, which will impact the ability of poor nations to feed themselves.
Is it really impossible to hold these ideas in mind at the same time?
Big Daddy,
You need to get your definitions and facts correct. There is no comparison between Bush and Castro. Your remarks show what your true political and philosophical leanings are.
Please move out of the country.
Thank you.
Castro is correct. There is no energy to be saved by burning corn, think about it, corn needs energy to grow, and not just from the sun. If all the arable land in America was converted to ethanol you would save about 12% of your oil consumption about the same amount that you could save by properly inflating your tires and bringing in strict new mileage regs.
Attacking Castro personally just shows that you cannot argue with his ideas. Cuba is not a perfect country, but at least they have not invaded Iraq.
Bravo Mr. Castro!
No Fidel Castro didnt come to power because the Cuban people where tired of ' Bush types' he came to power because he and his band of zealots killed and imprisoned anyone who stood in thier way.
bravo castro
absolutely dead on, speaking of the dead, castro has outlived more presidents than a washington madame
good for him, who the hell are the americans to preach? they're wasteful warmongers, hardly in any position to to honest or even believable when it comes to the environment
CASTRO NOT THINKING,...
Uh,... Castro,... Dude!!!! Fluorescent lights contain mercury!!!!! What other envrionmental changes has the Dude made to the country? Oh, yeah, I forgot, loss of all freedoms! That's environmental!
Using alternate energies to oil and the like, is a good solution. Living in the past is a very bad solution.
Of course, it will be many years before the best alternate energy will evolve,... but we must do it!
Sincerely,
As long as selfish north americans dominate the Internet and the mass-media, pieces like this will attract anti-communist churls like bad pennies, and the message will get somewhat drowned out in their bilious swill.
So it's a Good Thing that the masses of the planet will vote with their feet. And their AKs.
First off everyone who agreed with Tyrant Castro are Idiots and who ever wrote RE:Matt - is a simplified dumbass.
finding alternative fuel sourcees other than oil is a must for all Civilized countries as the middle east is an unstable and volitale source to rely on for fuel, or even habitation- oil is limited and running out, money from oil funds terrorists and thier sponsors.
Whether its corn, sugar cane, or seaweed,and whatever else it a much needed responce the the worlds energy crisis- of course weather permitting, those crops are easy to grow and maintain,the notion that using any one of those sources would cause a food crisis is absurd! the world is not even usings its full crop growing potential and in fact those harvests would give poorer countries money for food and higher living standards instead of wagerring nuclear ambitions to destablize the world. - 'crop for fuel' is not even in its 'beta' stage in north america but brazil is a perfect example of natual evolution from the use of fossil fuels and a richious demand that we at least try -
also Matt's sarcasism is right on the money - the United States gives billions not in petty crop but cash!!!! Castro's rheteric is just that- how can 1 country solve the worlds food crisis when some of those very starving countries hav dictators that starve thier people to the point that even if we send the hungry poor steaks, they wouldnt get it- the controlling party would even if it means to stockpile or destroy any extras. but at least WE try to help anyways
I know Castro is a tyrant but so is Bush.Castro though did make a great point in the way all countries should try to conserve energy.There is a drought that is going to come in years soon and the corn, soybeans, and sugar cane will not be enough to cover the food and fuel resources. The USA needs to go back to the table and think of other ways to help stop the global warming effects.
Before Castro's comment I felt that, as long as there are hungry people in this world, we are wrong, maybe even evil, to use food for machines. Of course, this philosophy also extends to housing and feeding the people of the middle east instead of killing them to gain territorial control and oil.
Don't worry too much though, the universe will adjust these mistakes sooner or later.
I think it's important to point out that human beings are incapable of even fully digesting corn on a cellular level... it never has been the best nutritional source.
This isn't turning grain or rice into combustables, but rather corn.
Besides, Castro... humanity has been turning food into fuel for a long time. Just because you're too sick now to enjoy a beer, vodka, whiskey, or any other alcohol produced for consumption by fermentation doesn't mean you should pick on others for it.
I dare you to try to tell your people that cerveza is evil. ;-)
Fidel saves energy by not providing any. The power works about 3 hours out of the day, old folks are made to ride bicycles (my grandfather fell 3 times at 80 and died), the US has a surpplus of corn, canada and brazil have been mixing high levels of ethenol with gas for years, and fidel is dead. Why the hell would a sick man (or dead)be talking about ethenol. This is part of the little communist group that includes Chavez, which is hurting for money since Americans have stopped buying citco gas. I can't say Bush has made relationships better, but the last time I checked people were still crossing the borders from these wonderful countries, which are all about taking care of the poor, right. Make the ethenol, close the borders, and watch the revolutions start towards democracy.
The wide variety of views is leaning toward the left in this one, signaling I believe, that Bush has (over) spent what little political capital he ever had, and that the average working stiff has had a real nightmare
over breakfast- there were (so many) killed yesterday (1500 days in a row), Gas is up to three dollars, there will never be hydrogen fuel, there will never be a balanced budget, or justice for that matter. Only the very wealthy are considered for political office. Where is harry truman when you really need a good tailor??? But Castro was a ball player and I think we have a future president in Jeter, if we can all get to 2012. The answer to ethanol is to make it from hemp, legalize cannabis, ferment the sticks and stems and outlaw alcohol for human consumption so it can go in the gas tank. by 2012 the public transportation BETTER be functioning, the airlines and buses. Some one must look ahead to make all this work. nzo
The wide variety of views is leaning toward the left in this one, signaling I believe, that Bush has (over) spent what little political capital he ever had, and that the average working stiff has had a real nightmare
over breakfast- there were (so many) killed yesterday (1500 days in a row), Gas is up to three dollars, there will never be hydrogen fuel, there will never be a balanced budget, or justice for that matter. Only the very wealthy are considered for political office. Where is harry truman when you really need a good tailor??? But Castro was a ball player and I think we have a future president in Jeter, if we can all get to 2012. The answer to ethanol is to make it from hemp, legalize cannabis, ferment the sticks and stems and outlaw alcohol for human consumption so it can go in the gas tank. by 2012 the public transportation BETTER be functioning, the airlines and buses. Some one must look ahead to make all this work. nzo
The U.S. would be out of debt if it had not spent 350 billion dollars on the war, much of which has gone directly out of our pockets into the profits of large corporations like Halibuton. I wish we had just written them the checks directly and not had to see the deaths of so many thousands in the process.
Why do we get so ugly when someone criticizes us? The problems of dwindling resources and increasing hunger warrant discussion. This is not a competition, us against them, anyone who disagrees with us deserves to die. Our 'elected' officials are not always right in their world views, and I wish legions of us had begun resisting long ago.
I am not threatened by Castro's views on using food to fuel our excesses. I feel that I am a patriotic American but would love for us to clean house before we throw stones.
Castro need not worry. Corn is only being used short-term to get things going. The U.S. and other countries are going to be making cellulosic ethanol from switchgrass and miscanthus grass. It's far more economical, it produces more and
switchgrass and miscanthus do not require much fertilization. You can read more at Wikipedia.
to bigger daddy - as a proud memmber of our nations military i can assure you that my facts are based on personal experience. i served from 1980 to 2000 with in theater experience in the first gulf war as a volunteer combatant. i have voted for democratic, republican and independant canddates since i was first able to in 1976.
since that time we (the us) has never had a sitting president that was so out of touch with the electoriate about an issue that was as important as iraq.
i should mention i'm all for us doing the job in afganastan where the 9/11 enemies of the us originated/organized (it is documented fact that all but 2 or 3 of the hijackers were of saudi origin - but you'll never see bush go after his cronies)
i currently work for he dod as a civillian and am proud to do so. but i'll tell you this - if i were still in uniform i would refuse orders to iraq and gladly spend my time in jail.
you are truely an idiot to invite me to leave the us as dissent is the reason for the existance / foundation of the us.
using food for fuel instead of food is morally wrong. there are plenty of other ways to extract the components needed for ethanol production. but you won't hear about them because the current republican party establishment is firmly in the pocket of the american farmer. why else do we pay farmers to not grow crops and to use price controlls and subsidies to encourage farmers to produce unneeded harvests?
Barry my friend people like you are the only reason why i try not to generalize in my thoughts of Americans (obese, close minded, i let the people on tv do the thinking, consumerist ignorants)...If only there where more Americans like you.
willam - what do you suppose the british called the leaders of the american revolution? i suppose zealots might be one of the nicer words they used. a revolution can't come about unless the populace generally supports it. take a look at all of the failed revolutions that the us has funded - created around the world - they fizzle out pretty quickly. the people of cuba would have tossed out castro long ago if they were that dis-satisfied. i'm not saying what they have is what thy want - but it's better than what thaey had under batista - an american placed puppet.
As someone born in Cuba, I enjoy watching these little twerps get so hysterical about the 'evil' Castro...I guess any government that provides health care and education, free of charge, to all citizens, regardless of income, must be 'evil'.
In fact, I thank my lucky stars that I live in the US, where education and health care are considered consumer items that you can purchase for the right price.
And if you can't...well, stay ignorant and die young. Money talks. And 'human needs' are bullshit. You know, for 'losers'. Like the kid with cancer.
I don't care. I've got mine. And I'm the only one that counts.
I think it is important to point out that a major reason that ethanol research takes place is every one with any desgins on the presidency (all the senate, half the house and governors)must bow to the whims of Iowa farmers. First in the Nation. Not sure if Castro is exactly correct I think the states would more likely protect its farmers from forgein competion. Mr Castro should welcome the possiblity of loosened trade aiding the development of the thrid world rather than the knee jerk capitailism bad response that has worked so well in the past for him and his allies.
The issue is not that we do not have enough food. We will always have more than enough food. The problem is getting the food to the people who need it. Castro really does not know what he's talking about and has not done his research.
Fuel from corn and sugar cane is an excellent idea and a great way to take power away from fanatics who are receiving large amounts of money for their oil and spending it to further their religious purposes i.e. killing those who do not agree with their religion.
Fuel from corn and sugar cane will also not only help clean the air but aid non-religious-fanatic countries economically.
It is way past time for Castro to end his tyranny. All that sugar cane being used for fuel would not only help his country economically but help reduce obesity in the world, esp the U.S.
Castro is completely right! If third world countries can educate their citizens to save energy, why not the US? Why the United States have to keep poluting and using all the energy of the planet without thinking on the evironment? Its all a matter of education and consciousness.
Castro, fear by most of his people for being a blood thirsty tirant is still trying to fool the world interfering in other countries internal affairs.
Castro's government of almost fifty years, has damage the Island ecology as in the port of Havana which is constanly polluting the bay and also severely damage what use to be a beatifull river in the same city. Is this the same man that is so concern about protecting the ecology in other coutries and completely disregards his own country?
This is the same dictator who force almost two million Cubans out of their country for political and economic reasons (Cuba is a country of less than 12 million people). Many Cubans have lost their live in the sea trying to find a better live in a free country.These are the Cubans that have kept the economy alive by supporting their relative with the millions of Dollars they sent from foreign countries.
This totalitarian facist dictator has created his own internal economic embargo by not letting the Cuban people work with freedom. Cuba use to be one of the world greatest sugar cane exporters and know there is not enough sugar for cuba itself.The regime does not allow cubans to own busisnes or property and it forces it's people to steal from the government to survive. This is a coutry were a Doctor earn less than $20.00 a month.Castro like to sent medicine to other countries and while the dusty shelf of the Cuban Pharmacies are completely empty.He blameS the U S A for his economic problems when in reality he is to blame.
The is smarter know than years ago, people are not that ignorant anymore. Please don't let this modern blood thirsthy Dracula fool you.
With corn ethanol, you can always shut your car off during a famine or drought. Isn't it better to be dependent on silos of renewable grain? You can't eat crude oil nor even switchgrass.
Biblical Joseph feed the world with stored grain.
Use ethanol in a car and eat meat when times are good. Ride your bike and eat stored grain when times are bad.
With higher grain prices, maybe Afghanistan's farmers can pay the poor to grow grain instead of opium.
Ethanol is misguided but so is the ideal that people are hungry for lack of food. There is plenty of food in the world. It's just not distributed to all those in need. Surely Castro gets that.
How stupid to allow your population to outgrow your food supply.
No matter how much food is pumped into so-called 'third world' countries, there will ALWAYS be millions of hungry people.
In cultures where it seems that the goal in life is to bring as many children into the world as humanly possible, knowing full well there will not be enough food to feed them, demand will always grossly outstrip supply.
So the formula is simple: More food in = more hungry children out. Who would want to contribute to such a pointless endeavor? We're not doing them any favors by making them dependent on our 'generosity.'
This is strikingly similar to the 'welfare' phenomenon we experience here in the states... the more you enable someone to sit at home and do nothing but make babies by handing them other people's hard-earned money, the more they will expect to be given, and the more they will try to take from people who have earned what they have. These people then have kids who grow up expecting to be able to lead the same kind of lifestyle. And so it goes from generation to generation. Just look at pre-Katrina New Orleans!
So, I say let them make Ethanol, and lots of it!
Bush is a Monster.
Fidel never invaded and caused civil war in other countries.
This is just a passing fancy anyways.
Until the Oil countries mellow out.
Bush is a Monster?! We make islamists kill one another? What?? Castro probably has killed god only knows more of his own people. You need to wake the heck up buddy.
Castro sounds like Al Gore, or is Al Gore Castro? Seems like Castro sounds just like the Democratic Party. Makes one wonder what the Democrats really represent. Maybe 'Inconvenient Truths' really represent attempts to effect socialist control over the lives of Americans.
Do we really want our policies and lives run by communists?
PAY THE MIDWEST FARMER AND NOT THE MIDEAST.WE BUY FROM COUNTIES THAT HELP TERRORIST.
Get in yours, gangter!!!
shut up, gangster!!!!
Castro (as any comunist/islamic country) as no credibility. Who care what a criminal low life thinks? The best thing castro could do is expiring... as all the leader who openly oppress they own peoples... (axis of evil anyone?). Corn may not be a good idea as fuel (from a ethical point of view) but sure not because some 80 years old crook who have a transformed a prosperous country into a 3rd world country says so. Now if only the US could use more then peas shooter to exterminate ennemie of democracy criminal like castro whould have long be gone.... islam and communist are the cause of 99% of the world's suffering....
Very typical of Castro to find something to complain about with the US about. The US produces more than enough corn to feed the world and his actions are more directed at the US than Brazil which produces much more ethanol.
Moreover his ecological and conservation stance is not out of choice but out of necessity since the embargo has hurt him economically. Even with the oil subsidies from Chavez in Venezuela his economy is nearly broken down. If his country produced ethanol in huge quantities he'd be crowing about its possibilites but because the USA is the one doing so in its own country and not anywhere else he has his beef about it.
Not only that he knows what everyone else in the USA knows. Even in an oil-producing country like the USA, the US still depends heavily on imported oil, especially from Venezuela. Castro knows that the USA push toward ethanol would reduce oil supplies from his main ally. His oil subsidies and financial aid that he is getting from there would also be reduced and he is obviously afraid of that.
Besides if Castro is so concerned about ethanol why isn't he criticizing the Brazilian push toward ethanol? It is much more expansive than the American one.
Anyway nothing he says or does will ever change anything. The embargo is still on and the push for American ethanol will continue. Go choke on that Sr. Castro.
Please do a cursory glance at world statistics and facts before making stupid comments.
1. Cuba doesn't have starving people. It is a socialist system, where food is distributed to everyone, and not used as a tool of speculation and profit first and foremost. During the time after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba had to adapt and increase its food production when trade stopped. There was hunger then, but it has been remedied.
2. If you read the quotes from Castro, you will see that he is commenting on third world nations growing food crops or crops that replace food crops in order to export ethanol fuel to the United States. He points out that the US can't make enough ethanol itself to power its fleet of gas guzzling cars, so this fuel would come from third world nations at the expense of food for the people who live there. So saying 'What belongs to USA's crop producers is none of his business' demonstrates you either didn't read carefully or understand what you read.
3. Look up USAID figures. You will see it is not trillions of dollars, and if you investigate this issue of food aid further, you will learn that this is a tremendous subsidy to American farmers first and foremost. In fact, many of those rugged, individualistic western farmers wouldn't stand a chance in business without this form of US subsidy of their products. Maybe biofuels for the US market will help them, but Castro's point is that even they couldn't supply the amount needed to produce fuel for the US market. As for third world nations that receive this food aid, there is much research showing that it keeps domestic farmers in those countries out of business by flooding their markets with cheap, US government subsidized foods. But the US doesn't care because its farmers need that help to stay afloat themselves.
So stop going around saying that the US feeds the world and that you wish the UN would feed the world instead. If you got that wish, our agricultural economy, as presently structure, would collapse. But perhaps that would be a good thing. All this anger directed at others might be replaced by a realization of your own self contradictions and hidden assumptions and prejudices.
Castro's government does need to improve its civil rights record, but compared to the human and civil rights record of the US, it is nothing. We imprison the greatest percent of our population of any nation, and largely for victimless small drug possession charges. We bomb other nations with agent orange and napalm and depleted uranium, causing generations of children to be born with deformities and cancers and die terrible deaths, and then decide we made a mistake and leave others to pick up the mess of ruined lives.
We Americans are hardly in the position to criticize a small island nation that has been under constant attack from the CIA and Cuban Miami mafia for decades, that has one end of its island occupied by the US with a military base in which inmates are tortured routinely and put on secret trials with secret charges and secret kangaroo court rules. Learn a little more before you make baseless, stupid comments, and put things in perspective.
Well, that's enough critique for one night.
Castro should get rid of Bush...HAIL CASTRO!!!
This is hilarious.
Watch how quickly the campus leftists among us will turn from 'we must develop alternative fuels' to 'ethanol is a waste of energy that starves developing nations'.
Irrespective of Castro's political history, he I think he does have a point in that, despite what some others in this comment list have said against him, the world is a very small place and our economies and global food supply are very much tied in to cheap energy -- so moving a substantial part of our agricultural production into what I beleive is more expensive energy will have an effect on other countries we provide aid to in a myriad of ways. Castro particular experience in this topic because Cuba had a 'peak oil' effect forced upon them during the 1990's due to the collapse of the Soviet Bloc and the trade embargoes placed upon them by the U.S. Because of containerization, the global food supply is very much dependent upon cheap energy. If fuels disappear, we won't get fruit shipped to us from South America in the winter, coffee from Indonesia, nor will our oranges in Florida get shipped to other places, and so on.
Moving into biofuels is somewhat positive, but I don't think it will solve our energy problem. The energy and auto industry lobbyists are very powerful. Changing technologies is very expensive. I don't think Bush will be remembered as a visionary. To me Bush's policies are very short sighted and benefit the bank accounts of his business cronies. Most informed people know that Washington is pretty much a revolving door between government and the corporate world, through which powerful people move from position to position, amassing more and more power and wealth. The biofuel talk is just window dressing to appear to be concerned about it. But his real policies are much more short sighted: secure the pathways for oil to reach the U.S -- i.e. the Persian Gulf. Find more oil. Cuba (and North Korea) had to address the absence of oil and imported food and came up with sustainable agricultural solutions to feed people. Go to the Nation site (www.nation.com) and search for 'peak oil cuba'. So Castro has some authority on this topic. I'm not quite sure of the year but not long ago automakers ran a program in California testing about 800 electric cars. It was very popular, people loved the cars, yet they were recalled and destroyed (crushed) for some reason. I think fully electric cars is the answer. There's no reason why with our technological expertise and adequate financial backing we couldn't develop much more efficient solar technology.
Thanks,
Railer
'Yeah, not to mention the US only farms about a 3rd of its usable land to grow crops. What a crock, let farmers get back in the game and support their families and the American economy. Oil companies are reporting record profits in the billions, its time we say good bye forever to supporting the middle east investments.'
Right on, Jason!
'Countries like Cuba and Iran will be begging the US to purchase their over priced oil once we have integrated bio fuels. ha ha suckas maybe lame idiots like Terhan's 'supreme' leaders will finally get the message that they are nothing special and do not deserve to be treated like royalty and start contributing something positive to this world instead of being degenerates.'
Other than the superfluous flag-waving bit, there's some truth in that statement as well.
Castro's concerns about food security and the distribution of global resources are valid. Given that food and fuel resource production are commercial rather than publically-controled processes, there is a definite long term survival issue inherent in the dialogue, and given the economic lobby that will be involved in these decisions, one can certainly be forgiven for questioning the motives of the 'nouveau-Green'trend.
(It wasn't long ago, after all, that this same administration scoffed in the face of the bio-energy lobby, with statements like 'Americans will not apologize for our [resource-intensive and consumer-oriented]way of life.'
On the other hand, also valid are environmental concerns associated with fossil fuels (particularly as they apply to massive industrial and consumer economies like the United States).
Experimental attempts at technological advancement(even the ones that don't work out)are a valid contribution to an eventual solution (albeit greater regulation of personal and industrial consumption levels would be an even better and more direct response, but we can't have that).
At least some lip-service is finally being paid to environmental concerns in government energy policy, and with luck it will help make the issue carry more wait as political currency in future elections.
Someone explain something to me: In some 14 years of ruling Chile Augusto Pinochet killed some 5000 people and he is regarded as a dictatorial monster. Castro executes some 5000 to 10,000 people per year over the last 40 (including several thousands prisoners a couple of years ago when he had the the overcrowded jail on the Isle of Pines dynamited and bulldozed with all still inside), and yet he's held up by the left as a darling and a hero of the people! His plans for planting sugar cane across the island turned Cuba into a ecological nightmare, while his plans for cross breading cattle were such a disaster that the cattle population dwindled to near extinction! Haven't you loonies who think he's great been privy to any of this? This man eating despot is the last guy who should be criticizing the ecological plans of anyone else OR their cost to the humans he holds in utter distain.
Well shucks folks, I'm sorry to see old Fidel upset, but he's got good cause.
If Al Gore is wrong about Global Warming then there wil be a lot of hungry people after we turn all the food into fuel for nothing. With the impending Ice Age to come there will be some mighty hungry folks in this here world.
I think good old Al should reassure Fidel that with all the money he makes on his Carbon Credits Scam, he will be sure to send extra grocerys to Cuba.
For now they better hope the cost of Sun Screen doen't go up to high with all the hot air coming out of Washington these days. Those good ol'boys in the House and Senate, they be blowing some smoke now, and ya'll know where there is smoke there's fire.
I hear ya!
Doctor Will Wong,
Old Fidel may not be much better than Satan himself, but he IS right about this one. Ethanol as a fuel will prove to be one of the costliest mistakes we have ever made. It is a pernicious idea because it sounds good and it is an easy notion to sell, but the numbers are unworkable. It will never replace as much as five-percent of US crude oil consumption, even using all the 'cellulosic' ethanol we could possibly muster.
Bio-diesel makes a heck of a lot more sense. It is eighty-nine percent as efficient as diesel distilled from crude and the diesel engine (on any fuel it can burn) is twenty to forty percent more efficient than any gasoline engine burning gasoline. Worse, ethanol burned in a gasoline engine is only about seventy-percent as gasoline.
Bio-diesel in sufficient quantities to make a difference is five to ten years away. But what we could be doing and should be doing is converting over to diesel driven plug-in hybrids. We could start doing that next year if Congress would stiffen its resolve and behave for a week.
No, I'm not holding my breath and waiting on that to happen, either.
IT IS A SIMPLE ALLEGATION TO ACCEPT THAT MR. CASTRO IS NOW WRITING EDITORIALS FOR THE WORLD. GIVEN THE ARMY OF SPEECH WRITERS AND ECONOMIC ANALYSTS WHO REPORT FOR DUTY TO FIDEL VIA RAUL. SUCH SPEECH WRITING IN PLACE OF CASTRO'S 6 HOUR TALKS, IS REALLY DOUBLE EDGED PROPAGANDA. GOOD TO BOTHER THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, AND TO INSINUATE THAT FIDEL IS MUSTERING HIS 47 PAST YEARS BRAIN ENERGY BACK IN VIEW
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JerryMar 29th, 2007 - 21:00:04
It is stupid to convert food into fuel.
Hail to Castro!
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