Fidel Castro resigns Cuban presidency

Found this to be interesting... Just came off the wire

[quoted197c138a3]HAVANA - An ailing Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba's president Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying he will not accept a new term when the new parliament meets Sunday.

"I will not aspire to nor accept - I repeat, I will not aspire to nor accept - the post of President of the Council of State and Commander in Chief," read a letter signed by Castro published early Tuesday in the online edition of the Communist Party daily Granma.

The announcement effectively ends the rule of the 81-year-old Castro after almost 50 years, positioning his 76-year-old brother Raul for permanent succession to the presidency. Fidel Castro temporarily ceded his powers to his brother on July 31, 2006, when he announced that he had undergone intestinal surgery.[/quoted197c138a3]

http//canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gNfupECxrP7KSLya3UsIAjfDyZRw

[quote570efd3c2e="h3x"]Found this to be interesting... Just came off the wire

[quote570efd3c2e]HAVANA - An ailing Fidel Castro resigned as Cuba's president Tuesday after nearly a half-century in power, saying he will not accept a new term when the new parliament meets Sunday.

"I will not aspire to nor accept - I repeat, I will not aspire to nor accept - the post of President of the Council of State and Commander in Chief," read a letter signed by Castro published early Tuesday in the online edition of the Communist Party daily Granma.

The announcement effectively ends the rule of the 81-year-old Castro after almost 50 years, positioning his 76-year-old brother Raul for permanent succession to the presidency. Fidel Castro temporarily ceded his powers to his brother on July 31, 2006, when he announced that he had undergone intestinal surgery.[/quote570efd3c2e]

http//canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gNfupECxrP7KSLya3UsIAjfDyZRw[/quote570efd3c2e]

lol. I thought successors to a dictatorship are usually youngbloods with similar ideas to the originator. I suppose Castro doesnt trust the young generation and hasnt found a young successor at this point. How are you going to have your brother take over at 76 years old?

Seriously Castro has been near death bedded for a year or so now and he's had to forsee that his reign is coming to an end. I think this just illustrates the level of distrust that Castro has for all Cubans not in his family. If you were a dictator and were on your last wheels wouldnt you find a youngblood to continue your legacy?

Wow, I figured he would die before he gave up his presidency.

I think there's gonna be a few parties tonight 8)

[quotee6f9a7ceed="gmario"]I think there's gonna be a few parties tonight 8)[/quotee6f9a7ceed]

Well, it IS Tuesday after all.

[quote88fb5cf3e9="EatChex89"]Wow, I figured he would die before he gave up his presidency.[/quote88fb5cf3e9]

Same here. I really hope (even though I am not an American) that Cuba and the US can resolve their differences now.

[quote357bdce903="EatChex89"]Wow, I figured he would die before he gave up his presidency.[/quote357bdce903]

Yeah - that is what he promised. I wonder why he has changed his mind. He has been sick for a long time. I am surprised he will pass it down to his baby brother at 76 years of age and not to one of his sons or nephews.

Odd that he would not trust others in his family that might stick around a bit longer. ?????

[quote1acee2a8d7="Twon"]I really hope (even though I am not an American) that Cuba and the US can resolve their differences now.[/quote1acee2a8d7]

Hear, hear.

[quote80d98b2160="h3x"][quote80d98b2160="Twon"]I really hope (even though I am not an American) that Cuba and the US can resolve their differences now.[/quote80d98b2160]

Hear, hear.[/quote80d98b2160]

That will be up to the U.S., not Cuba...



This doesn't change very much, really.

Well, I know that. After all, it was the U.S. that placed the embargo on Cuba.

State Dept. says it is unlikely the U.S. will lift the embargo anytime soon

[quoted8af8e9b2b]WASHINGTON - Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said today the United States will not soon lift its embargo on Cuba despite Fidel Castro’s resignation.

Asked by reporters at the State Department if Washington planned to change its Cuba policy now that Castro has stepped down, Negroponte replied "I can’t imagine that happening anytime soon." He declined further comment.

The centerpiece of American policy toward Cuba has been the economic embargo, first instituted in limited form in 1960 and strengthened in 1962. Castro persistently called the trade embargo "criminal," and claimed that its economic impact on the island ran well into the tens of billions of dollars.[/quoted8af8e9b2b]

http//news.bostonherald.com/news/national/politics/general/view.bg?articleid=1074590&srvc=home&position=recent