NEW: Sanders needs to stop talking up Cuba’s literacy rate—and instead start pointing out that Castro’s regime was/is as corrupt, craven, and kleptocratic as all the others his policies would target: newrepublic.com/article/156670…
Sanders's comments on literacy rates under Castro are technically true, but they miss the dictatorial forest for the trees.
What's a high literacy rate worth when the only things to read are state-sponsored paeans to decades-long dictatorship?
What's a high literacy rate worth when the only things to read are state-sponsored paeans to decades-long dictatorship?
Instead, Sanders should be turning the conversation to the Castro regime's mammoth corruption—and how that regime has, like all other dictatorships, relied on the pillage of the many for the privilege of the few.
Just look at the opulent lives of Fidel Castro's family: Mykonos beaches, luxurious suites, yachts galore...
("All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others," as Animal Farm, which is banned in Cuba, reads.)
("All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others," as Animal Farm, which is banned in Cuba, reads.)
All the more reason for Sanders to lump Castro's brutal regime in with the other dictatorships he's condemned—and to use it to highlight his strong anti-kleptocracy policies he'd push as president.
Interestingly, not all of Castro's family followed suit in ransacking Cuba. Fidel's daughter escaped with a fake passport, and had this great quote about Castro:
"When people tell me he’s a dictator, I tell them that’s not the right word. Strictly speaking, Fidel is a tyrant."
"When people tell me he’s a dictator, I tell them that’s not the right word. Strictly speaking, Fidel is a tyrant."
'Sanders is advocating a program of “corporate accountability” to shut down tax havens, eliminate anonymous shell companies and strictly regulate the Wall Street banks that have facilitated the flow of kleptocrats’ cash all around the world.' theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
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