Actually, in totalitarian nations the two groups overlap with independent journalists often becoming political prisoners.
In today's NR Jay Nordlinger gives extensive coverage to independent journalists in Cuba here.
I have always been dismayed by the infatuation many on the left have for Castro and communist Cuba. Castro is an unprincipled lover of his own power who had done hellish things to keep himself on top. I can think of only two explanations for those who applaud him.
1) The Jane Fonda Fallacy: my country is bad, therefore the enemy of my country is good. In international politics the example of the war between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia should dispel that muddled thinking. In real life the choice is not between pure and spotless nations and wicked and evil nations. All nations are impure, have spots, and to some degree are evil. But, not all nations are equally bad: some are far, far worse than others. See Augustine of Hippo for a Christian understanding of nations and their relationships.
2) The need to believe the millenium will come. All of us live by hope. For most of humanity hope is personal and limited: we hope to have a better job, or more money, or a nicer house in the future. Those who take a broader view of life also must have hope to live by: someday we will beat our swords into plowshares and the lion will lie down with the lamb. If you have given up on religious hope, how do you keep your secular version of hope alive? By believing that there are signs of the millenium you can point to in the here and now, as many on the left have done with the Soviets, and with Castro's Cuba. The need to believe clouds vision.
Castro and his regime are evil and the Cuban dissidents see this fact clearly.
In today's NR Jay Nordlinger gives extensive coverage to independent journalists in Cuba here.
I have always been dismayed by the infatuation many on the left have for Castro and communist Cuba. Castro is an unprincipled lover of his own power who had done hellish things to keep himself on top. I can think of only two explanations for those who applaud him.
1) The Jane Fonda Fallacy: my country is bad, therefore the enemy of my country is good. In international politics the example of the war between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia should dispel that muddled thinking. In real life the choice is not between pure and spotless nations and wicked and evil nations. All nations are impure, have spots, and to some degree are evil. But, not all nations are equally bad: some are far, far worse than others. See Augustine of Hippo for a Christian understanding of nations and their relationships.
2) The need to believe the millenium will come. All of us live by hope. For most of humanity hope is personal and limited: we hope to have a better job, or more money, or a nicer house in the future. Those who take a broader view of life also must have hope to live by: someday we will beat our swords into plowshares and the lion will lie down with the lamb. If you have given up on religious hope, how do you keep your secular version of hope alive? By believing that there are signs of the millenium you can point to in the here and now, as many on the left have done with the Soviets, and with Castro's Cuba. The need to believe clouds vision.
Castro and his regime are evil and the Cuban dissidents see this fact clearly.
03/03: Breakup of Iran?
Once again, Gateway Pundit is on top of the news out of Iran where violence against the government continues.
The fragility of the current regime can be seen in these figures taken from the CIA Factbook;
Unemployment rate: 11.2%
Population below the poverty line: 40%
Inflation rate: 15.8%
Public debt: 25.3% of GDP
Ethnic groups: Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%
Languages: Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%
Median age: total: 24.8 years; male: 24.6 years; female: 25 years
Are we behind the current uptick in violence against the regime? I hope so. The Islamic Republic has been at war with us since 1979.
The fragility of the current regime can be seen in these figures taken from the CIA Factbook;
Unemployment rate: 11.2%
Population below the poverty line: 40%
Inflation rate: 15.8%
Public debt: 25.3% of GDP
Ethnic groups: Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%
Languages: Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%
Median age: total: 24.8 years; male: 24.6 years; female: 25 years
Are we behind the current uptick in violence against the regime? I hope so. The Islamic Republic has been at war with us since 1979.
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