This old man will get superior health care for free. This is an abomination! Set him free to the U.S. where he won't be available to pay for affordable health care. That will be just.

WIKILEAK DOCUMENT : Viewing cable 08HAVANA103, CUBAN HEALTHCARE: “AQUI NADA ES FACIL”-
In one Cuban hospital, patients had to bring their own light bulbs. In another, the staff used ``a primitive manual vacuum'' on a woman who had miscarried. In others, Cuban patients pay bribes to obtain better treatment.

Those and other observations by an unidentified nurse assigned to the U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana were included in a dispatch sent by the mission in January 2008 and made public this month by WikiLeaks.

Titled ``Cuban healthcare: Aquí Nada es Facil'' -- Nothing here is easy -- the cable offers a withering assessment by the nurse, officially a Foreign Service Health Practitioner, or FSHP, who already had lived in Cuba for 2 ½ years.

CLICK LINK BELOW FOR ORGINAL WIKILEAK DOCUMENT

http://www.wikileaks.ch/cable/2008/01/08HAVANA103.html

YOUTUBE: Room at a Hospital for Cubans - This room at the Miguel Enriquez Hospital (Formerly known as Benefica) happened to be empty at the time and it was possible to take a more detailed video. Notice the filthy conditions of the patient bathroom; the mattresses; pieces of plastic and rags covering the broken windows.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8N5HFzd1zk

YOUTUBE: Patients in Hospital for Cubans part 2 - More videos showing patient's rooms at the 10 de Octubre and Miguel enriquez hospitals in Havana. Notice how some of the beds have bed sheets that are not the typical white sheets used in most hospitals. This is because many patients have to bring their own bed sheets, pillows and towels.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8T4SinsfWQ

YOUTUBE: Patients in Hospital for Cubans part 1 -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=812_ubADC0U

In one room, you have to bring your own mac and cheese, and salsa music. Oh, the horror.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kv31vrX_j2g

If he's not a spy, please read what I've said. You may not agree with the Cuban government, but you couldn't be so ignorant as to say he wasn't a spy. He doesn't speak Spanish, I do, and I don't think you know what the hell you're talking about. Si a usted le importara tanto su querida Cuba como dice, porque viene aquí como balsero a hacer dinero y ¿no regresa para ayudar? Me imagino que todos los diputados en Cuba al igual que el presidente no fueron elegidos por el pueblo, igual que Bush en el 2000, ¿verdad? Cuba sigue igual de pobre por el embargo ecónomico impuesto por su nuevo país, señor, un país que yo conozco muy bien, habiendo nacido y sido criado aquí. No tiene nada que ver con ni con capitalismo ni con comunismo, pero con la política. ¿Cree ud. que es justo que ud. puede venir aquí a hacer dinero, traicionar su pueblo y no dar nada en cambio a Cuba, si tanto la quiere? ¿Qué carajo ha hecho ud. por Cuba? Ud. vive como rico aquí mientras que los cubanos de verdad (ud. no) viven en la pobreza por el embargo. Si todos los cubanos no están de acuerdo con el gobierno, ¿porque no levantan otra Revolución como Fidel y el Che hicieron contra Batisita? Si no tuvieron tanto miedo en aquél tiempo, ¿por qué lo van a tener ahora? ¿Por qué no luchan todos contra el gobierno? Y ¿por qué a ud. le importa tanto Cuba si le gusta más su nuevo país? Si le gusta tanto el sistema de aquí, quédese. Yo no entiendo el razonamiento de ustedes en Miami.

Just some tech facts on the state of the internet in Cuba for those who do not know that might add information to the story. The total bandwidth between Cuba and the global Internet is just 209 Mbit/s upstream and 379 Mbit/s downstream which is provided by SATELLITES. The average internet speed in the U.S. in 2012 is almost 7 Mbit/s in the downstream and it would only take 54 houses to max out the bandwidth. Intersputnik provides internet service for the general public right now via satellites. Therefore, the story of "satellites" seems/sounds right since that is the only way to get access. There might be a faster fiber optic cable (2011), but the general public does not have access to it atm.

I highly doubt Mr. Gross was a "spy" in the terms that everyone likes to think of. He looks like an old geek/tech guy and may have been hired to do a job that was in some "grey" areas. Maybe he was setting up or taking things to other people, but "spying" is not really my area of expertise. Why the U.S. is sending satellites to the Jewish community in Cuba is beyond me, but it does make you wonder?

(P.S. It really helps if you know people that have lived or are living in those countries, might give you some perspective. I would not want to live in Cuba and feel for those that do.)

you don't have to be a spy to smuggle spy equipment. That is what he is charged with, weather justified or not. So the UN cares about arbitrary imprisonment? since when? Isreal does it every day and nobody says a word to them. there are others also. Back during the cold war, if u visited Russia and had new clothing in your suit case, they could arrest you for trying to sell stuff on black market. Cuba has laws, even if you think their laws are dumb, when you go to a country, just follow their laws. I think the more press this gets, the more Cuba will hold him in jail.

The claims that Gross did not know the risks or that what he was doing was illegal are total BS. There are excerpts from his trip reports from his previous trips to Cuba which clearly indicate that he knew the risks and that what he was doing could land him in hot water.

One report says a community leader "made it abundantly clear that we are all 'playing with fire.'"
Another time Gross said: "This is very risky business in no uncertain terms."
And finally: "Detection of satellite signals will be catastrophic."

I hate to see anyone held in prison under the conditions Gross is dealing with, but when you come right down to it he knowingly broke Cuban law. Just because we do not agree with the law in another country does not give us the right to ignore it. As an American I am embarrassed by the attitude exhibited by so many Americans when they travel abroad. They expect the countries where they travel to extend to them the same rights that they have at home. People need to wake up and realize that when you travel to another country you are subject to the laws of that country. Anyone traveling internationally should make it a practice to familiarize themselves with the laws and customs of the country they are traveling to. There are many sites on the internet that provide country briefings highlighting major differences between the laws and customs of other countries and US law. Yes, by US standards Gross' imprisonment may seem arbitrary, but he did violate Cuban law. The communications equipment he was delivering contained non-commercial encryption chips designed to prevent determining the location of the transmitter and to prevent intercepting of the traffic on the link. This equipment was obviously not intended for people the harmlessly access the internet within the bounds of Cuban law. It was clearly designed to prevent the equipment from being located so as to allow clandestine use.

When he was arrested, he was carrying a high-tech chip, intended to keep satellite phone transmissions from being located within 250 miles (400 kilometres). The chip is not available on the open market. It is provided most frequently to the CIA and the Defense Department, but can also be obtained by the State Department, which oversees USAID. Asked how Gross obtained the card, a USAID spokesman said that the agency played no role in helping Gross acquire equipment.

Like it or not, this violated the law and Gross is paying the price. He was well aware of the risks and was well paid for the chances he was taking. He even enlisted others to help him smuggle equipment into Cuba. This guy is not the innocent, naive USAID contractor the media is trying to make him out to be.

Israel and Cuba have something in common. The UN condemned both. Now what?

wow, as long as your American, nothing you do will ever be wrong as long as its in another country breaking their laws.

This is so sad that we Americans are above everyone else. NO wonder...no freaking wonder everyone hates us

A United Nations panel has called on Cuba to immediately release jailed American contractor Alan Gross after finding that his detention was “arbitrary” and violated international human-rights standards, according to a report obtained by NBC News.

It will be interesting to observe what Cuba does if the UN General Assembly calls for the release? If they ignore it then I think we should be done with the UN as a relevant entity. I'm sure there are a bunch of countries out there that would line up to host this august body.

road,

This is so sad that we Americans are above everyone else. NO wonder...no freaking wonder everyone hates us

Who cares if a bunch of Eurotrash, Muslims, Communists, et al hate us? They'd hate us regardless. Time grow a set and stop feeling guilty about being an American.

Svenolafson this is not the UN general Assembly (were Cuba has a lot more of international sympathy), this is a work group in the UN, composed by "some" countries that were easy to pressure, this is also the same UN work group (altogether with Amnesty International and others) that declared the 5 Cuban spies detention, trial and long sentences in the US as arbitrary.

So, I think is time to exchange our arbitrary imprisoned for theirs and the UN work group and their families would be happy.

Svenolafson

1.13

ummm, you are the very description you so happily wrote. If a GPS location makes you better than someone else, there is no hope for you.

hahahh ashamed of being American, that's what someone who always thinks they are better would say...its called a bully. Sorry sir, I can think for myself and nothing you say will make that different. Not even if you threatened me...see not ashamed. I can tell you to go to ___in a hand basket....see that me flexing my rights that I enjoy as an American. but I RESPECT my fellow Americans and left out the word that I think you belong in.

romilio,

Svenolafson this is not the UN general Assembly (were Cuba has a lot more of international sympathy), this is a work group in the UN, composed by "some" countries that were easy to pressure, this is also the same UN work group (altogether with Amnesty International and others) that declared the 5 Cuban spies detention, trial and long sentences in the US as arbitrary.

I know. Please reread my post. My point was to wait and see what the General Assembly does after the report is filed with them.

Jason Martens! HERMANITO! SOLAMENTE PONGO INFORMACION DE LOS MEDIOS! PORQUE ESTAS THAN ENOJADO COMPAY?? TU NO SABES NADA DE MI QUERIDO! ME GUSTA LA JUSTICIA Y LOS DERECHOS HUMANOS!

ALJAZEERA VIDEO: Cuba dissidents Ladies in White & Antonio Rodiles @ 8:50 - After 53 years of revolution, Cubans ar increasingly exasperated by the restrictions imposed on them by the country's change-averse communist regime. In spite of, or perhaps because of, recent modest economic reforms, activism is growing as the government's opponents overcome their fear of arrest and take to the streets. But it is not easy. Today, even the church based Ladies in White -- a group of women relatives of imprisoned activists - say they are routinely spied on and arrested. Nevertheless, inspired by the Arab Spring, the Ladies are determined to keep up their protests, sensing that the regime's grip on power is fading and that sooner rather than later it will be forced to give way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=XgylqDUh5-I

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL VIDEO: Routine repression in Cuba - Harassment and detention of political dissidents, human rights activists, journalists and bloggers across Cuba has risen sharply over the past 24 months. - Mar 22, 2012
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyWLTbHMHmc&feature=youtu.be

JS in SD!! THESE ARE THE CUBAN LAWS DEAR! JUST TRYING TO EDUCATE YOU!
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: Cuba urged to revoke repressive laws and release prisoners of conscience- 16 March 2010
Amnesty International on Wednesday called on the Cuban authorities to revoke laws that restrict freedom of expression, assembly and association and to release all dissidents unfairly detained by the authorities. The organization also urged President Raúl Castro to allow independent monitoring of the human rights situation in Cuba by inviting UN experts to visit the country and by facilitating monitoring by other human rights groups. "Cuban laws impose unacceptable limits on the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly," said Kerrie Howard, Americas Deputy Director at Amnesty International. "Cuba desperately needs political and legal reform to bring the country in line with basic international human rights standards.
"The long imprisonment of individuals solely for the peaceful exercise of their rights is not only a tragedy in itself but also constitutes a stumbling block to other reforms, including the beginning of the dialogue needed for the lifting of the US unilateral embargo against Cuba."
Several articles of the Cuban Constitution and Criminal Code are so vague that they are currently being interpreted in a way that infringes fundamental freedoms.
Article 91 of Cuba's Criminal Code provides for sentences of ten to 20 years or death for anyone "who in the interest of a foreign state, commits an act with the objective of damaging the independence or territorial integrity of the Cuban state".
According to article 72 "any person shall be deemed dangerous if he or she has shown a proclivity to commit crimes demonstrated by conduct that is in manifest contradiction with the norms of socialist morality" and article 75.1 states that any police officer can issue a warning for such "dangerousness". The declaration of a dangerous pre-criminal state can be decided summarily. A warning may also be issued for associating with a "dangerous person".
Law 88 provides for seven to 15 years' imprisonment for passing information to the United States that could be used to bolster anti-Cuban measures, such as the US economic blockade. The legislation also bans the ownership, distribution or reproduction of "subversive materials" from the US government, and proposes terms of imprisonment of up to five years for collaborating with radio, TV stations or publications deemed to be assisting US policy.
Local non-governmental organizations have great difficulty in reporting on human rights violations due to restrictions on their rights to freedom of expression, association and movement. International independent human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, are not allowed to visit the island.
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/cuba-urged-revoke-repressive-laws-and-release-prisoners-conscience-2010-03-17

We should send in the clowns. Their big red shoes will surely make a statement that will not go unnoticed among our Latin-American bretheren.

What was he doing in Cuba anyway? thought we had an embargo on Cuba. Why do i think there is more to this then we are being told?

Didn't the UN tell the USA a number of times to end the embargo (US trade restrictions) against Cuba and we have always ignored the UN. If you don't like what the UN says then you just ignore it.

SAN DIEGO CHANNEL 10 : With American In Cuban Prison, Wife Hopes For Clemency- Alan Gross Convicted Of Trying To Subvert Cuban Gov't - From Jill Dougherty,CNN Foreign Affairs Correspondent

"The equipment is illegal in Cuba without government permission, but a source close to the case told CNN that "at trial, the defense presented a receipt from Cuban Customs to demonstrate the Cubans were both aware of and approved what Alan brought in.""

http://www.10news.com/news/29066339/detail.html

George-3715504!! PLEASE PROVIDE LINK TO YOUR ACCUSATIONS OF ALAN GROSS! GLAD YOU HAVE NO REAL NAME THAT CAN BE VERIFIED, OTHERWISE YOU COULD BE SUED FOR LIBEL OR DEFAMATION DEAR!

DEFAMATION—also called calumny, vilification, traducement, slander (for transitory statements), and libel (for written, broadcast, or otherwise published words)—is the communication of a statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government, religion, or nation a negative or inferior image. This can be also any disparaging statement made by one person about another, which is communicated or published, whether true or false, depending on legal state. In Common Law it is usually a requirement that this claim be false and that the publication is communicated to someone other than the person defamed (the claimant).[1]

george, again, tell me how do we know? Are you on the inside of spook business? Are are you just a blow hard and post info will no intelligent source?

How can the US claim anything is 'arbitrary' after their introduction of the Patriot Act which removes 'habeaus corpus' (due process). The US has broken just about every law there is under the UN. When I say US I am referring to the crime syndicate which is running the US, along with all other Western countries, along with many others. The American people are as victimized as the rest of us at the hands of the psychotic parasites. Mr Gross ought to thank his lucky stars that he is locked up in Cuba, otherwise he would be at the mercy of the US government and they torture their prisoners!

Humberto Capiro Nobody cares of your long postings here, I told you, go to Babalu website and spread your long posting in uppercase, the way you like it.

romilio!! ARE YOU TRYING TO TREAD ON MY FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSION?? WE ARE NOT IN CUBA WITH NO ACCESS TO INTERNET DEAR!

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL: RESTRICTIONS ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN CUBA- Amnesty International Publications 2010
CONTROL OF INTERNET ACCESS
In Cuba, access to the internet remains under state control. It is regulated by the Law of Security of Information, which prohibits access to internet services from private homes. Therefore, the internet in Cuba has a social vocation and remains accessible at education centres, work-places and other public institutions. Internet can also be accessed in hotels but at a high cost. In October 2009, the government adopted a new law allowing the Cuban Postal Services to establish cyber-cafés in its premises and offer internet access to the public. However, home connections are not yet allowed for the vast majority of Cubans and only those favoured by the government are able to access the internet from their own homes.
However, many blogs are not accessible from within Cuba because the Cuban authorities have put in place filters restricting access. The blogs affected are mainly those that openly criticize the Cuban government and its restrictions on freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly and movement. For example, Generation Y is one of the dozens of blogs that are filtered or intermittently blocked by the government and are not accessible inside Cuba.

http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AMR25/005/2010/en/62b9caf8-8407-4a08-90bb-b5e8339634fe/amr250052010en.pdf

Humberto Capiro Ha, ha, ha !!! No man, I'm just saving you some time and effort in your freedom to post and reply to yourself, cause nobody cares about your old rhyme. You are a rabid anti-Castro figure, that would be happy to blow Cuba and all its inhabitants up, if that would get rid of Castro. You are a fanatic, just in the opposite side, that can't see the shades in between the black and white of the Cuban issue.

I've been reading your posts in other venues for a while (your last name reminds me of a baseball player I liked when I was a kid) and I just think you are sort of funny to watch.

romilio, what type of name is that? Are you european? Please tell me you are not a natural born citizen of the US of A. Please don't tell me that you jerk off.

romilio!! ARE YOU STALKING ME?? AND ARE YOU A PSYCHIC? YOU SEEM TO KNOW ALL ABOUT ME AND HOW I THINK! FUNNY, BUT ALL I REALLY EVER POST IS INFORMATION FROM PRESS AND HUMAN RIGHT NGO'S! YES THAT MAKES ME A FANATIC OF JUSTICE AND AN ANTI-CASTRO YOU BET! WE ARE TIRED OF 53+ YEARS OF THE CASTRO FAMILY OLIGARCHY! NOW IF YOU WANT TO DEFEND THAT, BE MY GUEST AMIGO!

FOREIGN POLICY MAGAZINE: The Castro family playground- Blake Hounshell
Friday, May 2, 2008During the past few years family members of both Fidel
and Raúl Castro have come to occupy important positions in Cuba's government.
This Castro clan represents in addition to the military, the security apparatus
and the Communist Party, a significant force in Cuba's political and economic
structures.

Fidel Castro Diaz-Balart- Relationship: Fidel Castro's son
Position: Advisor, Ministry of Basic Industry

Col. Alejandro Raúl Castro Espin - Releationship: Raúl Castro's son
Position: Chief, Intelligence Information Services, Ministry of the Interior; Coordinator, Intelligence Exchange with China

Ramón Castro Ruz- Relationship: Fidel and Raúl's oldest brother
Position: Advisor, Ministry of Sugar

Dr. Antonio Castro Soto - Relationship: Fidel Castro's son
Position: Investment Chief, Frank Pais Hospital. Doctor for Cuba's baseball team

Major Raúl Alejandro Rodríguez Castro - Relationship: Raúl Castro's
grandson
Position: Raúl Castro's military guard in charge of his personal security

Deborah Castro Espin - Relationship: Raúl Castro's daughter
Position: Advisor, Ministry of Education

Mariela Castro Espin - Relationship: Raúl Castro's daughter
Position: Head, Center for Sexual Education

Marcos Portal León - Relationship: Married to Raúl Castro's niece
Position: In charge of nickel industry, member of the Central Committee
of Cuba's Communist Party

Col. Luís Alberto Rodríguez López-Calleja - Relationship: Raúl Castro's son-in-law
Chief Executive Officer of Grupo GAESA (Grupo de Administración de Empresas, S.A.) which supervises military enterprises Alfonsito Fraga, Related to Raúl CastroMinistry of
Foreign Relations

http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2008/05/02/the_castro_family_playground

What if most Cuban's like it just the way it is?

They don't george.

george, they don't like it that way, simply don't have a choice. However, when they finally join us in the 21st century, you should be able to buy a cheap 57 chevy.

John McAuliff TAKES PEOPLE TO CUBA FOR MONEY! HIS COMMENTS ON THESE ARTICLES ARE TAINTED BECAUSE HE WANTS THE BEST POSSIBLE SCENARIO FOR HIS MONEY MAKING. THAT IS QUITE A HIGH COSTS AT OVER $3100 FOR 9 DAYS AND AND A FLIGHT OF LESS THAN ONE HOUR! HOLBROOK TRAVEL: Wednesday, March 7, 2012Orientation Program for Study Abroad StaffTimes, sequence and content subject to changeHolbrook Travel Higher Education Orientation Program in Cuba led by John McAuliff, Fund for Reconciliation and Development June 15 - 24, 2012 LAND COSTS: Per person in double occupancy: $2,550.00Single occupancy supplement: $225.00Cost does not include: individual tips, tourist card for entry into Cuba, bottled water, departure tax of approximately $27 USD (25 CUC’s), and other items of a personal nature. AIR COSTS FROM MIAMI AIRPORT (to be confirmed): Estimated price per person: $ 650.00 http://cubapeopletopeople.blogspot.com/2012/03/orientation-program-for-study-abroad.html

Bah, Francle, when I was a kid, we used to beat bricks together for fun, and we liked it like that. Bah, you kids today, are so spoiled. BAH.

Did you notice that , as rich as Chavez is, when he gets sick, he goes to Cuba for medical attention? So how backwards is Cuba?

george, where else does he have to go? Can't come to America. By the way, didn't he just name someone to take over for him? I believe that the growths came back. Maybe they aren't as good as you think.

Bradley was blowing on some lonely boy's whistle. Hello! Gay-dar Alert!

link please and more links to your accusations! why is it so hard for you to provide data on your comment dear? are you afraid or just dont have any! be a man!

john, say it ain't so. Give me a list of countries we invaded in the last 40 years please.

bill, again, you had to bring the republicans into the picture. Look, obama is a big eared, black feller. He would fit in much better in cuba than a white republican. Anyway you guys seem to think that all white guys are republican. So, lets send obama and his muslin ass to cuba.

letsplayfair, and you know this how?I wish this guy was your mother, father or child, but then you probably could care less.
What a asswipe you are.

It seems to me that the US is rather hypocritical with its perspective that any US resolutions, passed by their Senate, should hold any weight at all in Cuba. How can the US demand the immediate release of Mr Gross's arbitrary detention, which is claimed to violate international human-rights, when the US are holding people in incarceration without any due process being observed at all, which is also a human rights violation. At least Mr Gross received a trail in Cuba. Under the Patriot Act the US believes it can now incarcerate anyone it pleases, without a trial, for an indefinite period. It is becoming increasingly obvious that the US Government, and I use that term lightly because this body does anything but represent the American people, cares little about the welfare of its people. If it did its members would not have removed habeaus corpus with the Patriot Act and created a police state. I am sure we have all heard the elites cry that they removing all our rights for our protection, but from where I sit they are the ones we need protecting from. If Mr Gross was not involved in anything underhanded, either knowingly or unknowingly, than it is my contention that the US government would not give a crap about him, because the US government obviously doesn't give a crap about any of its people. The only reason the US government could have for wading into this debate is that they have an interest here, and if that is the case than my bet is that the Cuban government knows exactly what it is doing. The sad fact is that Mr Gross is caught up in the middle of all this, as are the rest of us, but what Mr Gross needs to understand, as do we all, is that we each have a responsibility to know exactly what we are doing and take responsibility for our actions. If Mr Gross has been caught up in something unknowingly than he is paying a steep price for his ignorance, and this is why St Augustine stated that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Knowing the state of the world and what is transpiring I can only add that Mr Gross will not be on his own, because the world is floundering under the weight of people who are operating in a state of ignorance, who are simply doing what they are told to do! Part of being a responsible adult is knowing what you are doing, so to all those people out there who are just doing their job, or just following orders, keep in mind that at the Nuremberg trials after WWII the Nazi's used this same defence, and the court found that this defence was not acceptable because we all have a higher duty to humanity, and right now there are far too many people in this world working to the detriment of humanity, so although I have compassion for these poor lost souls I have much more compassion for the innocent women, children, and men who are being murdered under false pretences, as a result of false flags, so the elite can install their debt slavery IMF system, so they can systematically rob that country of its natural resources.