Peace Without Borders Concert Rocks Havana, Roils Miami Wing-Nuts

Havana, yesterday; maybe Glenn Beck can use this pic next year

When I woke up yesterday morning and checked Twitter I noticed that mad dog Miami Congresswoman and anti-Cuba fanatic Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) was howling about Juanes' "Peace Without Borders" Concert in Havana. Juanes is a Colombian pop idol living in Miami and Ros-Lehtinen, who is already supremely unpopular with Miami's large and growing non-Cuban Hispanic population, was aghast that he was comforting her enemy with his music. Between half a million and a million people showed up in Revolution Square for the event, more than ten times the number of people who bothered going to Glenn Beck's Million Moron March on Washington last weekend. Unlike the Moron Marchers, Juanes' 14-artist concert wasn't about hatred, racism or political paranoia. It was about peace and love and music. Ros-Lehtinen and other far right old school Cuban desperados used to be able to dictate American policy-- always punative-- towards Cuba. Those days seem gone as the long overdue thaw in relations between the two countries takes on a life of its own outside of government interference.

Back in Ros-Lehtinen and the Balart Brothers' Florida-- a corrupt and stale leftover from Batista's fascist regime in pre-Revolutionary Cuba-- "Juanes had endured death threats, CD-smashing protests and boycotts since announcing his plan for the concert in Havana," although the kinds of people boycotting him weren't from his demographic. The Balarts were pulling out their hair because "Spanish-language stations covered the event, and several exile groups voiced support, describing it as a rare chance for Cubans to get a glimpse of the outside world."

Asked during his Univision interview what he made of it, Obama was positive about Juanes' music and had no problem with the event. His administration's go-slow pace of normalizing relations is just starting to talk about sending mail. People are moving faster than he is though, and every month the travel ban becomes less and less relevant. I'm going to guess that as many people weren't born as were when the U.S. slapped its pointless travel embargo on Cuba. It's time for that to end.

UPDATE: Will U.S. Travel Ban Against Cuba Be Overturned This Year?

California Congressman Sam Farr thinks there's a chance. �It is believed we can get to this before the end of the year,� said Farr. �We haven�t had a policy about Cuba. We�ve had policies about getting votes in Florida and Obama changed that by getting those votes... If you are a potato, you can get to Cuba very easily. But if you are a person, you can�t, and that is our problem.�

The bill to let U.S. citizens resume travel to the Caribbean island except in times of war or cases in which they face imminent danger has 181 votes in the House and needs 218 to pass, said Farr, a co-sponsor of the legislation. The plan is backed by travel groups such as the United States Tour Operators Association and the National Tour Association and human rights groups such as the Washington Office on Latin America and has been helped by President Barack Obama�s election, he said.

...Ending the travel ban may lead as many as 1 million Americans to visit the island every year, Lisa Simon, president of the National Tour Association, known as NTA, said in an interview. It would also help push forward talks on human rights issues, Thale said.

�We�ve had a policy for 50 years of isolating Cuba and it hasn�t done anything about the human rights situation,� Thale said. �I don�t think there is some magic solution. I don�t think ending the travel ban will cause Fidel to say let�s have elections, let�s release all the political prisoners tomorrow. What it will do is open the process of dialogue.�

Obama�s administration has been showing a �gradual relaxation and diplomatic opening� toward Cuba, Thale said. He cited the government�s decision to reinitiate talks on migration and direct mail, and also to put down the billboard operated by the U.S. government outside its special interests section in Havana, which he said often displayed anti-Cuba messages.

Is Right Wing Extremism Threatening Tourism In The Palmetto State?

Since South Carolina secessionist and radical right Senator Jim DeMint is the Senate's most ardent obstructionist and votes "no" on virtually everything, it's sometimes difficult to tell when he really means it. When the Senate got back from their long summer vacation, they immediately took up S.1023, the Travel Promotion Act of 2009 and it passed with a huge bipartisan majority, 79-19. DeMint, as usual, was one of the 19. What's he got against promoting travel? Charleston, Hilton Head Island, Drayton Hall, Fort Sumter, Magnolia Plantation, Myrtle Beach, the Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Garden in Columbia, Murrells Inlet, Mount Pleasant... are all being heavily promoted by South Carolina's burgeoning tourism sector. Now DeMint is still freaked out and hysterical that one year ago his state's tourist industry was catering to gays with an international campaign "South Carolina Is So Gay," a campaign not directly related to the gargantuan number of closet cases dominating the Republican Party hierarchy in the state, from Lindsey Graham and Lt. Gov Andre Bauer to the state Senate President.


But DeMint may not have to worry about gay tourists-- or any other tourists-- coming to his state. Even without any help from Arthur Frommer, it looks like a spontaneous boycott of South Carolina tourism is shaping up.

State and local tourism officials are being flooded by emails and calls from people across the country, saying they won't vacation in South Carolina because they're upset by GOP Rep. Joe Wilson's outburst at President Barack Obama.

The officials said that a number of the out-of-state e-mailers have said they've taken beach trips for years in Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head and other South Carolina resort areas, but don't plan to return.

...In a new USA Today/Gallup poll, 68 percent of Americans said they "oppose what Joe Wilson did during the speech." Twenty-one percent said they support Wilson's behavior.

South Carolina's $1 billion-plus tourism industry, centered around its beaches, had already been hit by the recession as Americans postpone vacations or cancel travel altogether. The state's 11.8 percent unemployment rate is among the highest in the country.

Marion Edmonds, a spokesman for the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, said his agency had received 147 emails from people who cited Wilson by name and expressed displeasure with his remark.

"Some of them have been specific and said they won't be coming to the beach this summer for their family vacation," Edmonds said.

Both Columbia and Hilton Head are major tourist attractions in Wilson's district. His wife, Roxanne, of course, won't be joining the boycott, although she did ask her husband, "Joe, who's the nut who hollered out, 'You lie'?"

At 4pm (EST) House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn introduced a Resolution of Disapproval on the floor which passed 240-179 (with 5 voting "present").

Preparing For My Trip To Rome-- With Penn And Teller And Sabina Guzzanti

I may have mentioned how I'm planning out a trip to remote, mysterious Albania in a few months. In all honesty, most of the vacation will be spent in Rome eating in places like La Pergola, Roscioli, Quinzi & Gabrieli, Colline Emiliane, and Al Ceppo and wandering around the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Castel Sant'Angelo and, of course, the Vatican. Two weeks of that, then Albania; then more Rome. Yesterday, though, Roland, who was raised an atheist and claims to not even know what religion his antecedents were, directed me to a story in the L.A. Times about how Junipero Serra needs just one more miracle and-- BOOM-- he's a saint. It's been 75 years since they've been looking and 22 since he was beatified after being credited with curing a nun in St Louis who had lupus. One place they probably shouldn't look for the second miracle is on the Penn and Teller show, Bullshit!. You, on the other hand, might enjoy it, especially if you're planning a trip to the Vatican-- or even plan to live it vicariously through my reports here.

[This video was originally hosted as a single clip by Vimeo, a company that pulls down videos if anyone says "boo" to them.] LOL! Looks like the Vatican got to YouTube too! OK, I found another copy online. The facsistic Catholic League has been suing to get this episode removed so... watch it while you can:

Will We All Be Visiting Cuba Any Time Soon?

My travel-bud Roland loves Cuba. He's been there three times and every time I bring up some groovy place for us to go, like Myanmar, Madagascar, Mali or Albania he always starts in with how amazing Cuba is. I'm hearing the same thing from one of my neighbors who's working on a movie soundtrack there. But I've never gone. I want to... but I never quite got around to it. I have a feeling it's all greasy food fried in deadly oils and pork and no fresh fruits and veggies like I like to eat. But I was still excited today when I read about New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson's trip to Cuba. He said he's for "enhanced tourism travel for Americans." I think most Americans would agree.

But, as a nation, we've long ago ceded our foreign policy in regard to Cuba to a few wealthy gangster families of former Batista operatives and their allies.

"I'm not an envoy of the (Obama) administration. I'm carrying no message. I'm here as a governor seeking agricultural trade," he said.

"Obviously I do plan to submit my impressions to the administration after I conclude," he said. "I will do that as a citizen and as a governor. They're my impressions alone."

As a congressman, Richardson secured the release of three Cuban political prisoners during talks with then-President Fidel Castro in Havana in 1996. As U.N. ambassador in 1997, he held talks on terrorism with then-Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina.

Richardson supported Obama's declaration during last year's U.S. presidential campaign that he would be open to meeting current President Raul Castro without preconditions. The governor also has opposed lifting the U.S. embargo, while advocating negotiations with Cuba to promote human rights.

The Obama administration has relaxed restrictions on Cuban Americans' travel and money transfers to family on the island. Most U.S. citizens cannot visit-- technically, the U.S. Treasury Department bars them from spending money in Cuba-- in tandem with the U.S. embargo imposed in 1962 to weaken Cuba's Communist government.

The U.S. and Cuba also are resuming talks on migration and direct mail, but they have sparred over a U.S. suggestion that Havana release its political prisoners. Cuba insists that any dialogue have no preconditions.

Roland uses the Lonely Planet Cuba Country Guide but for a little context it's also important to read Reese Erlich's book Dateline Havana: The Real Story of U.S. Policy And The Future of Cuba. So will we all be allowed to go there? Obama doesn't seem to have much backbone when it comes to standing up to the extreme right-- and he does have a lot on his plate before addressing a problem that's extremely important to one small segment of a powerful special interest. By more and more forces are lining up for a liberalization-- and a normalization-- of relations between a country 90 miles from Florida. I suspect if Obama is re-elected, he'll deal with it then. Meanwhile, a broad bipartisan coalition in Congress seems to be pushing for a quicker timetable.


CUBA UPDATE... From Afghanistan

The aforementioned Reese Erlich wrote me from Kabul, where he's working, to let me know that "Cuba has lots of healthy, fresh vegetables and yummy fruits, not to mention rum with which to mix the fruit." I'll keep it in mind!

And an update from the U.S. Treasury Department: Change we CAN Believe in! Some concrete first steps towards normalization.

Warning From Frommer's: Arizona Too Dangerous For Americans?

Some people check the State Department's website for their list of the most dangerous countries, places they're suggesting Americans avoid-- like Somalia, Afghanistan, Sudan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Mali, Algeria. Arizona isn't on the list. But it's on one that makes more sense: Frommer's. First off, I don't know if Arthur Frommer, the guide book magnate, is a Democrat or a Republican or an independent. It never even crossed my mind. On Wednesday, though, he indicated he's not a teabagger.

He's not advocating a boycott of Arizona (yet) but he does say that he's "shocked beyond measure by reports that earlier this week, nearly a dozen persons, including one with an assault rifle strapped about his shoulders and others with pistols in their hands or holsters, were openly congregating outside a hall at which President Obama was speaking to the Veterans of Foreign Wars."

For myself, without yet suggesting that others follow me in an open boycott, I will not personally travel in a state where civilians carry loaded weapons onto the sidewalks and as a means of political protest. I not only believe such practices are a threat to the future of our democracy, but I am firmly convinced that they would also endanger my own personal safety there. And therefore I will cancel any plans to vacation or otherwise visit in Arizona until I learn more. And I will begin thinking about whether tourists should safeguard themselves by avoiding stays in Arizona.

What Frommer didn't mention is that Arizona is also home to a bizarre bunch of crackpot right-wing extremists who are very, very dangerous. It's a violent part of the country and he's worried tourists will wind up getting shot. Pam Spaulding brought a whole other perspective on this climate of crackpot violence today. Tempe fringe "pastor," Pastor Steven Anderson of Faithful Word Baptist Church has been urging that gay people be executed: "The same God who instituted the death penalty for murders is the same god who instituted the death penalty for rapists and for homosexuals, sodomites and queers... Our country is run by faggots. You know who was the man who was the architect of the bailout? His name is Barney Frank, he is a pedophile..."

And he doesn't stop with Barney Frank. He thinks Obama should be killed too: "God Hates Barack Obama, I hate Barack Obama. I hate Him. God wants me to Hate Barack Obama... Someone who commits murder should get the death penalty." I don't hate Arizona. In fact, I love Arizona. And most people are know from that state are probably as mortified about this kind of crap as you are.



UPDATE: Almost Three Years Later

What a mess! Arizona is, if anything, even worse and even more dangerous for civilians and tourists. Just today, another mass shooting by a local crackpot neo-Nazi! Anti-immigrant fanatic and vigilante lunatic "T.J." Ready murdered 5 people, including an infant before committing suicide. He wa shoping to run for Pinal County sheriff. Probably safer to visit New Mexico or California.

Boycott Travelocity For Underwriting Racism And Bigotry

I try not to mix this blog too much with my political blog Down WithTyranny but sometimes... it's just hard to resist. Americans are boycotting Travelocity and several other companies and I want to make sure Around The World Blog readers know why. Travelocity-- like GEICO-- has been keeping racist inciter Glenn Beck on the air spewing his divisive hatred, They pay for his air time. Unlike GEICO-- which just pulled all their advertising today-- Travelocity refuses to stop underwriting the hatred and racism. Please don't do any business with Travelocity until they stop spending money on Glenn Beck's Fox News HateFest. Kayak.com is a way better site anyway. MediaMatters did a short video clip that puts it in perspective:



UPDATE: Roaming Gnome Relents... Dumps Glenn Beck

The same thing happened to Travelocity that happened to Blue America. Like us, they just did a cable buy and wound up with some of their ads going to underwrite the hatred, racism and violence being incited by Glenn Beck. And like Blue America, Travelocity has asked the cable systems to stop running their ads on the hate shows. After all, how many racists like to travel anyway? Where would they go? From C&L:

Dear Roger - We did not specifically place our ad on the show. We basically buy ads in bulk and then they are placed somewhat randomly. However, we have now specifically asked that our ads do not appear during this show. Thank you for your concern,

Sincerely,

Amanda

Healthy Eating In Bangkok and Bali

I was happily surprised to find so much health food consciousness in Bali. Wherever you looked, at least in Ubud, restaurants had signs that said "No MSG" and "organic food." Ubud has several that serve raw vegan food and there really was a lot of options for people concerned with good nutrition. Putu and Made, our cooks happily made delicious, healthful meals everyday combining organic Balinese vegetables with raw food preparation techniques and, homemade food is always better than restaurant food. Still Bali Buddah and Kafe always had good, healthful food including raw dishes.

I was even more surprised when I got to Bangkok. I have to admit I had some anxiety knowing my favorite Thai restaurant had closed this year. I'd been eating at Bussaracum for decades. Last year I even wrote a post, Lunch In The Same Bangkok Restaurant Everyday For A Month-- Bussaracum, The Best Restaurant In Thailand. Where would I eat? The food in Bangkok isn't always so wonderful and a number of my favorite restaurants have closed down or moved away to locations miles away.

Looking back over my own 2006 Bangkok restaurant guide, I was reminded that someone had told me about a raw food restaurant called the Rasayana Retreat. I ate there today. HEAVEN!

Clean, beautiful, wonderful vibes and the food... unbeatable. The food was very seriously raw and health oriented and SO DELICIOUS! I had lasagna and key lime pie and I can't wait to go back tomorrow to try some more. Here's their raison d'etre:

From the moment that a fruit or vegetable is harvested it undergoes change in it�s chemical and nutritive make up. The fresher a fruit or vegetable is, the higher it�s nutritive content. When you cook food a huge percentage of available nutrient is destroyed, and its chemical make-up is altered, in essence stripping the food of the very nutrients that your body is requesting when it signals hunger to your mind and stomach. Nutrient stripped food does not satisfy the body�s hunger, leading to overeating and dissatisfaction with food for many people. But there are also much greater consequences.

In order for the eliminative systems and organs of the body to function optimally a person must eat at least an 80% alkaline diet. The majority of alkaline foods are fruits and vegetables. The majority of acid foods are animal products, such as meat and dairy, or processed foods that have been heated (as in cooked), ground and separated, and/or have added sugar, salt, preservatives, stabilizers, colorings and many other additives as well. If acidic foods are the greater part of the diet, elimination from the bowels, lymph, kidneys, respiration and skin becomes sluggish, allowing a build up of toxins to collect in the organs and tissues of the body. This ultimately leads to unpleasant symptoms and chronic disease.

Eating raw food is like giving yourself high-octane fuel so that your body can be energized, run efficiently, cleanse efficiently, think clearly and work out toxins so that health and beauty can be a reality instead of a distant goal. On a cleansing program a 100% alkaline diet is a necessity if one wishes to get maximum results from the cleanse. A cleansing diet treats food like medicine, using food to assist the body in healing and rejuvenation. A wonderful aspect of this is that Living Food also tastes good.

It's open everyday. It's real close to the skytrain that runs down Sukhumvit. And it is very inexpensive.