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Caribbean-Latin America
Castro Warns Bush Against Launching Attack
2004-06-21
HAVANA - Tens of thousands of dispirited Cubans rallied Monday, as Fidel Castro warned President Bush against launching a military attack on Cuba, saying it would provoke a mass celebration exodus and an all-out ground war. Washington has repeatedly told the old coot denied it is planning any military action against Havana. But an increased tightening of sanctions against the island, along with the Bush administration's pre-emptive strike on Iraq, has convinced the paranoid Cuban leadership that a military attack is not impossible. "Do not try crazy adventures such as surgical strikes or wars of attrition using sophisticated techniques because you could lose control of the situation," Castro said in a speech addressed specifically to Bush before the morning. "You could shatter the immigration agreement and provoke a mass exodus that we would not be in a position to prevent, and you could bring about an all-out war between young American soldiers and the Cuban people," he said. "That would be very sad."
For about 48 hr, then it would become progressively more happy.
"You would never be able to win that war," the Cuban leader said. "Here you will not find a divided people."
Isn't it great how Fidel has managed to unite the people of Cuba against him?
Dressed in his typical olive green uniform and cap, Castro spoke at insufferable length at a mahogany wood podium on a stage outside the oceanfront U.S. Interests Section — the American mission here. The coastal Malecon highway was crowded with tens of thousands of people ordered called out by their workplaces, schools and neighborhood authorities. The government estimated the crowd at 200,000, a number impossible to confirm independently but sounded ridiculous to us reporters. The Communist Party daily Granma said the morning gathering was called to deliver Cuba's "most energetic condemnation and protest against the brutal anti-Cuban measures by the current U.S. government."
Nuttin like a cattle prod to persaude the masses to protest energetically.
Posted by:Steve White

#9  Are there enough old Chevy's lying around for a flotilla of any size?
Posted by: Super Hose   2004-06-21 11:36:37 PM  

#8  "You could shatter the immigration agreement and provoke a mass exodus that we would not be in a position to prevent,..."

It's actually kind of sad when you're an evil dictator and the only weapon you have against the USA is to open the prisons and instigate a second Mariel boatlift. I'd say that's the very definition of impotence. Fidel needs to find some dictator Viagra.
Posted by: 11A5S   2004-06-21 8:04:55 PM  

#7  Laugh all you want... but it looks like the beard has won yet again. That's 42 years running we didn't invade Cuba. Now that gentle people of the blog is deterance.
Posted by: Shipman   2004-06-21 7:55:07 PM  

#6  Yank - I'd prefer we announce anyone making it to the fleet will be given arms and sent back
Posted by: Frank G   2004-06-21 7:11:41 PM  

#5  We should park the fleet just outside of Cuban waters and announce any Cuban that makes it to a US ship will be granted citizenship. Its possible the outflow could cause some collapse, just as the lack of border controls in eastern Europe contributed to the fall. It certainly would be embarrassing to the Castro apologists.
Posted by: Yank   2004-06-21 6:50:32 PM  

#4  *deep sigh*
Take a number, Fuzz-face. We'll see if we can work you into the schedule on a space-available basis.
Posted by: Sgt. Mom   2004-06-21 5:44:44 PM  

#3  guess it is time to distract the cuban people again..it's all the imperlist dogs fault!
Posted by: Dan   2004-06-21 5:44:41 PM  

#2  Isn't he dead yet?

Proof of the old saying: Only the good die young.
Posted by: mojo   2004-06-21 2:40:30 PM  

#1  ..Jefe, I inadvertently posted this same article a few minutes ago, please feel free to '86 it.

My comment there was that a friend of mine lives in Cuba about 10 months of the year and is due back here in about three weeks - I'll be able to ask him some more about this then, but based on our conversations last year, there's a possibility that El Commandante is planning another Mariel...in october.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski   2004-06-21 2:30:53 PM  

00:00