CUBANEWS NOTES FROM LOS ANGELES - August 5, 2004
by Walter Lippmann

As I begin my third week back here after a month away on the
Pastors for Peace Friendshipment Caravan, I feel I have for
the most part recovered from the journey, which was at once
exhilarating and exhausting. The Caravan was an extremely
valuable activity, taking 120 people across the US border
into Mexico and on to Cuba with 126 tons (I remember that
figure well) of medical and humanitarian aid for the Cuban
people. This was in the face of substantial efforts by the
US government to discourage such solidarity activity.
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HIROSHIMA DAY
This is Hiroshima Day, a day of commemoration and activity
in memory of and in protest against the use of nuclear bombs
which was introduced to humanity when the United States in
1945 dropped the atomic bomb on the Japanese island of
Hiroshima. Over a hundred thousand people were incinerated
on that day. Three days later, the United States dropped a
further nuclear weapon on the city of Nagasaki, killing
thousands more. Japan was already suing to surrender as it
had obviously lost the war by then. Washington, however,
decided to conduct a demonstration of its a terrible and
awesome power, aimed at the peoples of the entire world,
and also at the government of the Soviet Union.

Fred Halstead, a wonderful anti-war activist and author
of the book OUT NOW: A Participant's Account of the
American Movement Against the Vietnam War (New York,
Pathfinder Press), whose manuscript I helped to type,
provided this wonderful analysis of the reasons why the
United States dropped nuclear weapons on Japan. I would
recommend anyone interested in this subject read Fred's
explanation of those horrible events.
http://www.themilitant.com/1995/5929/5929_20.html
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Thousands of Japanese Recall US A Bomb Attack on Hiroshima

Hiroshima, Japan, Aug 6 (Prensa Latina) Some 45,000
Japanese turned up early Friday in Hiroshima streets, for
the 59th annual commemoration of the US atomic bomb attack
on the city.

At the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, Prime Minister
Junichiro Koizumi promised to abide by the country´s
pacifist constitution and the three non-nuclear principles:
not possessing, not producing and not permitting nuclear
weapons in Japan.

In a ceremony that was televised nationwide, Hiroshima
Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba declared the year leading up to the
60th anniversary of the bombing a "Year of Remembrance and
Action for a Nuclear-Free World." He proposed year 2020 as
the time by which all nuclear weapons should be eliminated
from the world.

The mayor criticized the United States, saying that it has
resumed research "to make nuclear weapons smaller and more
usable."

The weapons include the so-called "bunker busters" capable
of hitting targets deep underground, and "mini-nukes" less
than a quarter of the size of the ones that leveled
Hiroshima.

Akiba charged that the US government is ignoring the United
Nations and international law by conducting such research.

He called on nations to attend a nuclear nonproliferation
meeting, to be held in May 2005 in New York, and sign a
treaty that would eventually abolish nuclear arms by 2020.

ile/ima
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GOOD NEWS IN THE FACE OF RISING PETROLEUM PRICES
Recent news has been a mixture of good and bad, as usual.
While the sharp increase in oil prices, now having reached
a record $44.00 per barrel will mean more expensive gas for
consumers in places like the United States, it also means
more money is available for social programs such as those
we've seen developed under President Hugo Chavez Frias's
Bolivarian Revolution in today's Venezuela. Just this week
the Chavez administration announced an additional housing
program comprising $500 MILLION additional dollars. So we
see what's bad for some people can be good for others, but
it all depends on who gets the money and what they decide
to do with it. Chavez must have seen Spike Lee's movie
DO THE RIGHT THING.

Meanwhile, the rightist US-backed opposition is fighting to
oust President Chavez, having petitioned for a recall which
will be held on August 15. In a way, two simple images will
tell you much of what you need to know about the counter-
posed platforms and the people on each side. Check this out:
http://www.brunei-online.com/bb/fri/aug6w23.htm

We post as much Venezuela news as possible on this list, but
it IS the CUBANEWS list, and we have to keep it focused as
much as we can on Cuba. There are three listservs which are
focused on Cuba that anyone interested in the Bolivarian
process ought to be familiar with. The most comprehensive
is the one published by the Venezuela Information Office
in Washington, DC. It's funded by the Venezuelan government
but provides a full range of pro and con information from
the English-language media. I only wish that someone would
be able to do something like that for Cuba. I used to do it
from time to time. You can learn about their list here:


The good news has been really good. Readers here may also
recall that Repsol, the Spanish oil company which has been
exploring for offshore oil recently in the Gulf of Mexico
off of Cuba's north cost, reported that it had found major
oil deposits there, but had determined they were not now
commercially viable (or words to that effect). Today we
learned that Sherritt International, which operates hotels
and which works with Cuba operating the the Moa nickel mines
in Eastern Cuba, has announced " plans to resume explora-
tory drilling in northern Cuba in the third quarter and is
considering an increase in its $90 million capital spending
plan in light of the current oil price. The trend toward
higher and higher petroleum prices means that what was once
considered uneconomic can become economic as the price goes
up. You can read more about this in the industry publication
OIL & GAS JOURNAL: http://ogj.pennnet.com/ It's good news!
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US AGRICULTURAL SALES TO CUBA CONTINUE THEIR UPWARD TREND
Some farmers in the state of Illinois are definitely happy
today. Here's why some of these farmers are smiling now.

Bellmont, the village in western Wabash County with an
estimated population of 250 people, will soon become the
focus of an entire nation -- and that nation is not in the
United States.

The Lewis Hering Elevator in Bellmont is one of several
facilities in Illinois that began today (Thursday) shipping
a total of 15,000 tons of field peas to the island nation
of Cuba. Cuba is an outstanding customer because unlike all
the others, Cuba pays cash on the barrelhead. DETAILS:
<
http://www.tristate-media.com/articles/2004/08/05/mtcarmelregister/news/news
1.txt>
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COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY CUBANS MOBILIZE AGAINST MICHAEL MOORE
Is it any surprise? Last year when anti-war demonstrations
took place across the United States of America and the world,
only in Miami were there pro-war mobilizations. Rightist
exiled Cuban reactionaries mobilized IN FAVOR of the invasion
of Iraq and demanded that Washington go after Cuba as well.
No surprise: these same elements (turds of a feather, shall
we say?) are protesting against Michael Moore as well.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/entertainment/9332301.htm

MICHAEL MOORE'S APOLOGY TO ELIAN GONZALEZ. Don't miss this:
<http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/message/index.php?messageDate=2000-03-31>


Other rightists tried to get advertising for the movie banned
on the grounds that it's electioneering. Fortunately, for the
moment, the authorities didn't buy it.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5896708

You know a movie is doing well with other people try to copy
it. Now some enterprising movie people are copying Micheal
Moore's ADVERTISING, trying to hitch their movie to Moore's
ads. You'll recall that FAHRENHEIT 9/11's ads show Micheal
Moore holding hands with George W. Bush in front of the
White House. Now the movie NAPOLEON'S DYNAMITE has taken
Micheal's add, put ITS leading character in between Moore
and Bush, and the three are holding hands. Looks in the ad
as if this was taped into the newspaper. Very clever.

BRITISH CARTOONIST KEN SPRAGUE, R.I.P.
The well-known British artist, long time Communist and
activist for many social justice issues, has died at 77
of Cancer. The obituary to him in the London Guardian
was sub-headlined "Radical artist in the service of
socialism" and added, according to John Green, author
of the obituary, " Every morning, he drew a political
cartoon to assuage his anger and frustration at the
state of the world. Only a few weeks before he died,
he was excitedly telling me about plans for an
artistic project in Cuba and a book he was
determined to publish of anti-war drawings." MORE:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,1277255,00.html

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FAMOUS GAY CUBAN WRITER'S HOME RE-OPENED AS A MUSEUM
Jose Lezama Lima, the famous gay Cuban writer whose novel
PARADISO became famous on its release in the sixties,
but who was hassled because of its content and, one can
only suppose, because of his gayness too, was recently
re-opened in Havana. Go and read the story for yourself:
http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=24912

CUBAN WEBSITE FEATURES WRITINGS ON SEXUAL DIVERSITY
The Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX)
has an entire section of its website devoted to what it
refers to as SEXUAL DIVERSITY. We've translated some of
the materials from the site, and by its director,
Mariela Castro, for CubaNews in the past. Now those of
you who are interested in this particularly complex area
of Cuban life, and who read Spanish, will have an entire
new area in which to explore. I was amazed to see that it
even has PERSONAL ADS with photographs. In Cuba! Amazing.
Anyone out there who would be interested in helping to
get these articles translated to English, please get in
touch with me offlist. Thanks.
http://www.cenesex.sld.cu/webs/cubagay/cubagay.htm
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NEW REPORT ON CUBAN MEDICAL DIPLOMACY IN HAITI, ETC.
This report describes the island's international work in
medical care, and takes up some of the complaints which
some Cubans have raised about missing their local doctors.
http://www.ipsnews.net/interna.asp?idnews=24976

There's a great deal more, but this is enough for the
moment. Keep reading. Much more to come...


Walter Lippmann
http://www.walterlippmann.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CubaNews/messages