Heads Roll in Havana—Dunce Caps Crown Beltway “Cuba Experts”

The biggest political shake-up in twenty years rattled Cuba's regime last week when Raul Castro purged almost twenty regime officials. The most prominent among the purged were the youngest and most reform-minded (as these things are measured within a Stalinist regime), and they've all been replaced by diehard Stalinist septuagenarian with military and secret police backgrounds.

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Ramiro Valdes was Chief of Cuba's KGB and STASI-trained, funded and mentored secret police for over a decade. After Che Guevara was kicked upstairs as Cuba's "Minister of the Economy" Valdes took his place as Stalinist Cuba's version of Stalinist Russia's Lavrenti Beria. Last week Raul Castro promoted Valdes to Cuba's new "Vice President of the Council of Ministers." In perfect keeping with the Stalinist nature of the Cuban regime --and especially in keeping with Raul Castro's rule, (Raul worked with a KGB handler as early as 1953)-- the more prominent among the purged (Carlos Lage, 56, VP of the Council of State, Felipe Roque, 44, Foreign Minister) have signed confessions seemingly lifted from the very template used by Zinoviev, Kanev and Bukharin in 1936. Trotsky's murderer, Ramon Mercader, by the way, served as Cuba's “inspector of prisons” in the 1960's, was favorite companion of both Raul Castro and Che Guevara, and upon his death in 1978 was buried with honors in a Havana cemetery. Don't look for this in the MSM, but similar purges have re-Stalinized the Cuban regime at least once a decade since 1959--and will continue as long as Fidel or Raul remain alive. If the Mainstream Media and U.S. Governmental sources seem sheepish or downright mum regarding Raul's latest purge, there's an obvious reason. These organs, along with their pet “Think Tank” and “academic” “Cuba experts” on which they habitually rely for guidance, talking points and soundbites are all sharing dunce caps that tower over the very Washington Monument. Since Fidel Castro's “retirement” in July 2006, the name of the recently purged Carlos Lage had become a veritable mantra in MSM and “scholarly” reporting on Cuba. He's a young technocrat (not a military man) and an economic “reformer,” we were assured. Raul Castro had tapped him as his point man for reforming the Cuban economy along more free-market lines, we were assured. Lets' start with a show on American Public Radio's Marketplace dated Jan. 18, 2008:

"In March, (2008) Cuba's National Assembly will name Cuba's president and Cuba experts uniformly predict that for the first time in 50 years, Cuba's president won't be a Castro. So who will he be” “It's Carlos Lage...This is a time when Cuba's leadership moves toward generational change.” (“Phil Peters is the oft-quoted “Cuba Expert” at the Washington D.C based Lexington Institute)

Now over to the prestigious BBC, Feb.21, 2008:

“Carlos Lage is already a kind of de facto prime Minister.. the new Cuban brand will be pragmatic and flexible.” (Brian Latell is former head of the CIA's Cuba division and author of After Fidel: Raul Castro And the Future of Cuba's Revolution.)

Now over to the Miami Herald, Feb 2, 2007:

Carlos Lage is key in all this. Lage wants to move ahead with economic reforms...Raul comes in and makes Lage his right-hand man." (Wayne Smith is former chief of the U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana and is director, of the Cuba Program at the Center for International Policy)

Now over to the New York Times from Feb. 21, 2008

“Fidel and Raúl Castro said in recent months that they have an obligation not only to lead but also to yield to a younger generation of leaders. At the top of the list of possible candidates to share power with Raúl Castro or become first vice president is Carlos Lage. (Julia Sweig is Cuba Expert at the Council on Foreign Relations)

Now over to CNN News. Feb. 19 2008

“Castro is now going out on his own terms, securing a smooth transition to his brother and to a younger generation of leadership in Cuba......such as Vice President Carlos Lage." (Peter Kornbluh is Senior analyst for the National Security Archive at George Washington University.)

A recent samizdat from Cuba reports that after his sacking, Carlos Lage remains under a form of house arrest in Havana. Here's part of his “confession,” published in Cuba on March 3rd: Compañero Raúl: I recognize and assume all responsibility for my errors. My ousting has been very just. Be assured that I will always serve the revolution and will always remain faithful to the Communist party, to Fidel and to you.” Fraternally, Carlos Lage Davila Now we turn to a Frontpage Magazine an article from Feb. 21, 2008

"Raul Castro, despite all you're reading in the Mainstream media and hearing from their pet "experts," is not the one to upset the Cuban applecart. Why would Cuba's military robber barons voluntarily upset their own apple carts? None of those "Cuba Experts" provide a clue. As for Cuba's immediate future, with a (very) heavy heart I'll borrow a line from The Talking Heads: "Same as it Ever Was." (Humberto Fontova, according to some of these same scholars and experts, who have debated the issue with him on panels and symposiums, is an insufferable right-wing Cuban exile crackpot with an axe to grind against Communism and too blinded by hate and emotion to accurately predict developments in Cuba upon Fidel Castro's retirement.)