Today, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and his huge entourage returned from their six day trip to communist Cuba. The supposed purpose of the trip was for the Mayor to investigate Cuba’s hurricane preparedness programs and to bolster trade ties with the poor country.
Unfortunately, Nagin did what he does best and made ridiculous comments that embarrassed the people of New Orleans. In an interview with the Associated Press, Nagin lamented our response to Hurricane Katrina and said that “it wasn’t clear” who was in charge. Seemingly, Nagin longs for the type of dictatorship that has ruined Cuba for the last 50 years. In that country, the Castro brothers run everything with an iron fist. Anyone who disagrees or dissents will either be shot or thrown in a Cuban gulag. Does Nagin want that kind of system here?
Amazingly, Nagin said that Cubans do “a much better job” than U.S. officials in handling hurricanes. I guess so, Mr. Mayor, because there is no freedom of movement or freedom of speech in Cuba. No one can rebel and everyone has to follow the commands of the communist authorities.
Nagin also said that “in Cuba, you don’t have the problem” of the President and the Governor “going back and forth.” Of course not, in Cuba there is no back and forth, there is only Castro and communism. It is what a dictatorship is all about, but sadly Nagin is clueless about Cuban history and the struggles that have been going on during fifty years of brutal suppression. Nagin should talk to Cuban exiles who can educate him about the reality of communism. There is no freedom there, only repression. In Cuba, there are no free elections, no freedom of assembly, no free press, no freedom to express religious faith and no freedom to unionize. Citizens who try to speak out or oppose the government repression are sent to a gulag. This barbarism is why so many Cubans flee the country each year on the high seas and risk their lives to make it to America.
If Cuba has such a great system, why are so many people trying to leave the country? Nagin joins other Castro apologists like Ted Turner, Dan Rather and Michael Moore. These individuals are blinded by liberal ideology and do not recognize the real tyranny that the Castro brothers represent.
Either Nagin is ignorant of what a dictatorship means or he wants to emulate one in this country. Who knows what motivated Nagin to open his mouth and criticize his own country, while praising a communist dictatorship. However, we do know that this is a very familiar situation with Nagin making foolish comments. Whether he is touting the city’s high murder rate as a way to get “the brand out there,” or calling the 9-11 sites in New York a “hole in the ground” or claiming that he is a “vagina friendly” Mayor, Nagin can’t help but make asinine statements. In fact, his entire list of dumb comments is too numerous to list.
Thankfully, his reign of error will be coming to a close in seven months. Sadly, we have lost eight years with Nagin and his City Hall crew. The real losers have been the taxpayers who will probably pay the costs for the Nagin team to visit Cuba. These same taxpayers were left with the $29,000 bill for Nagin and company to visit China and Australia.
None of these trips will lead to anything of substance for New Orleans. The only things that people will be left with are bills to pay and more embarrassment. Such is the price of electing a fool as Mayor.
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Jeff Crouere is a native of New Orleans, LA and he is the host of a Louisiana based program, “Ringside Politics,” which airs at 7:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and 7 till 11 a.m.weekdays on WGSO 990 AM in New Orleans and the Northshore. For more information, visit his web site at www.ringsidepolitics.com. E-mail him at jeff@ringsidepolitics.com.
My apologies to the readers of these comments. I was in error and did not place my correct name to this remark: Sorry, Jeff, dear, I must disagree. Rays "reign of error" was in reality a "reign of terror". To all of New Orleans, my humble apologies for having supported him in the run-off. It really was one of those hold your noses and vote in my humble opinion. The Landrieus had done enough to this city and it is time to say good bye to them also. Now who will be next?
Written by RhettsWife
on 10/23/2009
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Written by on 10/23/2009 , are you saying Jeff Crouere lied about republicans voting for Nagin when Jeff Crouere put it, “The explanation for the increased white vote, and to the election itself was Rob Couhig’s endorsement of Nagin. Couhig, a Republican businessman who ran a strong 4th in the primary, gave Republicans and conservative white voters the security they needed to vote for Nagin. I may not agree with Jeff but I will never believe he lied about this. Written by Cry over this
on 10/23/2009
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Well excuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuse t, er uh, me. Didn't vote fer Ray Nay, not eligable to do so, but if I could have, I wouldn't have voted for either Ray Nay or Laundryloo.... but you know that was a funny thing? How easy it is to play the offense defense thing during elections. Repubs electing Ray Nay? Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!! That is sort of like the the Dems sidestepping the rumble in the jungle and putting their star cheer leader Hillary on the bench, with the Repub's making sure O'bama got elected by inserting their stellar Mickey Moose Club candidate the statuesque Sarah who was uhPalin. Written by
on 10/23/2009
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Sorry, Jeff, dear, I must disagree. Rays "reign of error" was in reality a "reign of terror". To all of New Orleans, my humble apologies for having supported him in the run-off. It really was one of those hold your noses and vote in my humble opinion. The Landrieus had done enough to this city and it is time to say good bye to them also. Now who will be next? Written by
on 10/23/2009
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Jeff ,Republicans must be proud to have helped re-elect Ray Nagin to office. Thank God Republicans picked Nagin over Mitch landrieu.
As Jeff Crouere put it, “The explanation for the increased white vote, and to the election itself was Rob Couhig’s endorsement of Nagin. Couhig, a Republican businessman who ran a strong 4th in the primary, gave Republicans and conservative white voters the security they needed to vote for Nagin. Written by Cry over this
on 10/23/2009
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Sugar Ray has been offered a spot on the Comedy Channel if he doesn't join the shock jock circuit. Why not--C. Ray has been a comedian for the past seven and a half years and will not disappoint until His Honor's tenure ends in May. The whole country has been laughing at us, not with us. I am certain Clarence Ray has many more comedic or pathetic comments in his arsenal of studpidity like the Castro and Chavez diatribe. Hey Ray, go back to China and do us a favor by getting quarantined the next seven months and one week. What a shameless and complete joke he is. Written by Randall
on 10/23/2009
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Oh hell, I can't help myself, time for some relevant humor... go to dubya-dubya-dubya-dot-strongconcrete-dot-com / Page15. html.... Even though it is going on 4 years old it is still fresh, I guess that's why I assembled the website the way I did... Written by
on 10/22/2009
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Anyone who disagrees or dissents will either be shot or thrown in a Cuban gulag. Does Nagin want that kind of system here? You ask? It is not so much what Nagin wants but what the people will get would have been a better question. Cuba is not the only place that has the patent on “repression”. But instead of a dictatorship, we here in Louisiana are allowed to live under the rule of the plutocracy… “Sadly, we have lost eight years with Nagin and his City Hall crew.”? No Jeff, Nagin and his City Hall crew is merely a sidetrack. Valid to a point perhaps but they are not the main freak show….. And I am not going to cite 12 years as being lost even though that was about the length of time that has elapsed since I first approached the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers with my concrete technology that in its least structurally demanding format could have served as inexpensive levee matting or levee earthworks scour protection that could have aided in warding off a great deal of the flood waters associated with Katrina, Rita, Ike, and Gustave in and around New Orleans as well as neighboring proximities or Parishes. No Jeff, it is not 8 years, or 12 years, actually it is the past 100 years of building that was impacted and then of course the next several decades it will take for ‘reconstruction’ or ‘rebuilding’ or ‘recovery’ or whatever it is you want to call it…. Hey, enjoy your new reality, it eagerly beckons you and everyone else foolish enough to dance to its tune. Written by So ya think you can read the writtings on the wall
on 10/22/2009
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Well said Jeff. And, of course, we few taxpayers in this city will indeed pay for the trip (where are the city contractors when we really need them). It would be intteresting to know who he took along in his huge entourage for this junket. We know one of his bimbos, Mrs Nagin, but did he take his garbage "specialist" and extra close friend? Did Meffert get him a credit card from corporate buddies. Nagin is an incompetent buffoon and now, it turns out, a huge admirer of the communist gulag system. Please Mr Letten, do hurry and take him away. Written by Noladude
on 10/22/2009
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"Such is the price for electing a fool." Yeah, but what do you really think Jeff? :) Your comments about the lack of understanding among the liberal left of the realities of Cuban life under Castroite tyranny are very much appreciated Jeff. There will come a day, perhaps within five to ten years when the brothers Castro are gone from power and Cuba changes, perhaps a little longer, when the truth of Castro's crimes will become known as the world listens to the Cuban people telling their story. It may be that the most outrageous thing Nagin and Co. have done with their visit is to provide one more element of legitimacy to one of the most illegitimate regimes on earth. Written by Jacob Sulzbach, Lafayette, La.
on 10/22/2009
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Today, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and his huge entourage returned from their six day trip to communist Cuba. The supposed purpose of the trip was for the Mayor to investigate Cuba’s hurricane preparedness programs and to bolster trade ties with the poor country. 
