Fidel Castro: Tyrant or Hero?

My God Father was in cuba and came to america on the S.S Shithole and I tried to ask his opinion on Castro and Communist Cuba but he didnt like going into it that much. Basiclly all I got was a bunch of JFK bashing because of Bay of Pigs.

I would really like to know what the people of Cuba think of him. I guess its kinda like trying to talk to a japanese person about WWII. So if anyone here is from cuba or knows someone Cuban I would like to know what the people actually think about him. Also cuba is one of the last original Russian communist countries. Since he came into power life expectancy is at an all time high because of healthcare and they dont have banks evicting thousands of people each day.

I believe that the USA should stop the stupid sanctions, because those sanctions actually helped the communist regime of Cuba to gain more support from it´s people.

When a dictactorship is more opened to the world, there is always more chance for that dictactorship to fall.

He was like any other dictator.imprisoned the people who was against him, shot them etc etc. He wasn't a saint nor was he the Caribbean Hitler

*Note: Cuba is actually state capitalist or state socialist depending on your view

Getting away from Commie red brainwashing, I'd say that Fidel has done a superb job at managing to govern Cuba. Regardless of his ideology, you have to admire the guy. Cubans have come a long way under his rule. I don't care if it's a dictatorship, because Castro has played his cards right.

Given his entire side collapsed and Cuba is still doing fine shows that he was not much of a failure. He killed some people, but even Ghandi killed some people.

i dont think ghandi has executed 5700 people with or without trial
or had more than 2000 dead political prisoners in prison
or had more than 2000 disappeared
but i agree he has done really good job if you compare him to other dictators.

Cuba is actually a good country the only thing is it needs elections, Internet, and political freedoms. Otherwise the country is perfectly fine the government actually does a good job but would probably be better if America lifted sanctions against it. I also recall recently released a lot of it's political prisoners and that is a step forward. it also a very nice place to vacation form what my friends have told me.

Indeed, openness is dangerous for communist countries... We've seen that in the Soviet Union...

P.S. That was rather a reference to Gorbachev's "glasnost" than a comparison of the USSR with Cuba...

Unlike those countries though Cuba has a good quality of life.

Yeah, what I've about Cuba is that they're well when it comes to that kinda things...

What I hope is that things can continue more-or-less as they have once Castro is gone. To see Cuba collapse into infighting, or worse, have some yankee-backed reformist type try to get into power would be very sad. I don't want to trivialise the whole situation, but I think Cuba should stick with state socialism, just because someone somewhere, should be doing something different; diversity is good, right?

Well they were radical but they actually worked. I also believe the quality of life could go up if sanctions were removed then the economic reforms would not be needed anymore. The only reform i have liked is to allow small business what I don't like is they made it so real estate can be sold. They would not to have done that if they could build more homes which they would probably be able to if the sanctions were lifted.

For a country under siege, Castro has done well, particularly in health and education. Cuba's enviable health service ensures the average Cuban lives longer than the average American, and their doctors are in high demand abroad. And of course, there is no finer cigar in the world.
The Cold War is over and it's time for the US to end these ridiculous sanctions.

Castro has done a great job, he managed to get Cuba out of the 'Special Period', and endure a decades long embargo with his political and economic system intact, which I doubt our leaders could emulate if they were in the same situation. As other people have mentioned, Cuba has a great healthcare system, which I dare say is better than the US. I hope Cuban socialism survives after Castro too, and there won't be excessive market reform that can only hurt society (China, I'm looking at you). After all, as AK has said, a bit of diversity in the world today isn't bad right?

A disclaimer before I post: Since you asked, I was born in Cuba and lived there my whole childhood up until I was 10.

Honestly, Castro is a tyrant; a sane tyrant, but a tyrant nonetheless. There are countries that have achieved the same human development goals without having to resort to a dictatorship. He could have been a great president, but he instead chose that route. It's a shame really.

Since it is a small island nation, the Cuban healthcare system can be effectively managed by the state. It's free but it's not comparable at all to the sophistication and care that you can receive in the US. The lack of funds show especially in everyday care. For example, Cuban hospitals cannot afford new needles, so they have to reuse them: they first put them in alcohol and the boil them in water, I cannot tell you how many times my aunt - a nurse - did this when I was sick. Nevertheless, having some access is better than nothing.

The education system isn't too shabby either but the lack of modern resources undermines the knowledge base and productivity of the average Cuban. For example, the average doctor there isn't as well trained as a US doctor which affects the competitiveness of Cuban migrants around the world. As far as I know, the degrees also don't transfer to the US.

Before anyone asks, the Cuban healthcare system is divided between the "officials" (this is not a term employed by Cubans, just me) and everyone else. The officials are Communist party members, the military, and tourists. If you're an average Cuban, you cannot go to a hospital designated for officials. There are also resorts and places that you can't go to. The hospital Michael Moore visited is one of these special hospitals. Of course, they get better funding than the average hospitals, which are by now unfortunately in shambles.

To end it, believe it or not, but Cuba now is actually worse than in the Special Period. I've heard from family members and friends that have gone that there is absolutely nothing to eat except alcohol. On a brighter note, recently, the oppression has relaxed due to international pressure.

My own opinions nonwithstanding [whatever those are], I have to admire the guy for managing not to get killed... no matter how many times the US has tried [and failed miserably].

Jesus.

Castro sucks Batista was far better. Now that momentary sarcasm is done i'll prepare a document on my thoughts on the great hero Fidel Castro.