Louise,

I think you’re absolutely correct on the issues with this site and others. My other favorite site, Truthout.org has undergone a format change as well, and it’s taking some getting used to. (at least for me.) But, it now allows for comments, (which it didn’t before) but even that took me a while to manage. I discovered that the IE browser doesn’t allow me to access the comment posting, (or at least it doesn’t work…the comment just’sits there” -not sure else how to describe it in techno-lingo). Samosamo was having troubles with it as well. But, that mozilla firefox browser works fine, so I think it’s catching up to speed. Maybe they should post some sort of a suggestion for that on the site. Maybe I’ll get a chance to drop a suggestion to that effect. So far I’ve noticed that the comments are thoughtful, and while they express a general outrage, (without looking at everything or the context) they are mostly ‘real’ people. In other words, I’ve not detected any trolls on that site since they’ve opened it up for comment.

I think an added reason is –believe it or not- the ‘human power’ as well, that manages these websites. Despite all of the wonderful technology, it still needs some human intervention. But then, maybe that was your point…with how we can’t keep up with it.
Most of these sites, (the better ones) operate on limited budgets, and through donations. Some have limited advertising, (and some of the advertising is better than others…TD will pretty much accept ANY advertisement dollars) and others have none at all. (like truthout and consortium news.) Actually, that’s not true. Consortium does have very limited advertising for books and stuff. Just none of these political ads sponsored by mostly repugs.

So, that makes a difference as well. Limited funds can’t usually offer as much in terms of voluntary human resources and the techno equipment as well.

Ernest, your’re right about the ‘comeback’ to Cyrena’s Lover. But to tell you the truth, he might not really ‘wish’ that at all, if he knew the real deal about my talents with cut ‘n paste, and slice ‘n dice.

Reminds me of a photo and caption that one of our professors used in a lecture power point presentation. It was the Law and Racism course, (which mostly covered everywhere that racism was embodied in the Constitution). But this one slide was from the collecion around the time of the active slave trade, (before it had been outlawed, and still continued). This one slide was a photo and caption of a female slave at auction. She’s telling the potential ‘owners’...You can buy me if you want, but I’ll CUT YOU the very first time you turn your back!

I have to admit, I laughed out loud at that slide. (My Korean-American professor struggled to keep a straight face); you know he put it in there for that reason.

Anyway, that’s just a reminder that folks should be careful what they wish for.

What right does Europe or the USA have to tell others how to live?  Fuck Imperialism.

Cyrena, perhaps some levity might help.  Next time the guy calling himself “Cyrena’s lover” posts, respond with, “You wish!”

Right you are, Louise.  Perhaps we should start using larger type, lest some NSA agent sue us for eye strain.

For what it’s worth, I think the biggest single reason truthdig and just about every other site is/are having problems is because their servers cant handle the traffic. For years we couldn’t keep up with the technology, now the technology cant keep up with the volume of we.

Factor in a handful of fruitcakes who have taken it upon themselves to weed out the threats to Bush’s version of truth justice and the American way, and the literally exploding moving parts, like pop-up’s, add-on’s, videos and mom and pop entrepreneurs buying add space, and the wonder is anything comes out right!

If the government, or their respective agents and agencies wanted to silence us, they could pull the plug tomorrow. They really could. Truth is they DON’T want to silence us. After all what’s the point of having laws written to allow snooping on us, if we disappear and they cant snoop? And the same goes for Google. They have been a valuable source for anyone wanting to hear from us. The last thing in the world they want or need is to alienate a hunk of their click-ons, or remove that valuable source.

If truthdig wants to shut one or many of us up, they have the tools in place to do so. And always have had.

So if there is a bad guy out there that keeps mucking-up things, I think it’s that first one. The fruitcake who takes it upon himself to weed out threats to Bush’s version of truth, Justice and the American way. Just a cut above hackers, or maybe below. We all know the most dangerous people in the world are the self-appointed!

Interesting.

It’s almost like the EU is sending the US the message, You have become irrelevant.

Maybe that’s how the US wing of the empire will end. Being dismissed and pushed aside. Able to issue statements full of sound and fury, followed by a mother-may-I ... please ...

Now if they, the EU have summarily decided we are all thunder but no lightening, we really are in a lot more trouble than we realized. And where is what’s left of our defense force? Anywhere but where they need to be, like home.

Not that the EU will attack us or anything, since our own stupidity is doing a splendid job of doing us in. But then when you have megalomaniacs running things there’s always the chance that we could become a threat to more than just defenseless countries and ourselves.

Serves us right I guess. What else could we expect from liars and crooks and morons? Blowing up the house to get rid of a few cockroaches. Yeh dumb, but who put them there? Who keeps them there?

Or maybe this is a good reason why there should be conditions placed on political refugees. Sorry about your previous misery folks, but if you want to live here you need to get it through your head, your gripes will not dictate our policy.

Oh my gosh that is the history behind every stupid blunder we’ve made in the last fifty years!

Obama’s right. Lobbies have way too much power! I think we need to put them all on a barge, set them out to sea, and let them sort out their own petty differences. We’ll check in with them in a few years and if there’s anyone left maybe ... JUST maybe, give them another chance.

Naw. Leave them out there. And good riddance!

When you’ve been a pig-headed jackass for 40+ years, it’s almost impossible to turn back...think of just the pride!

I think i’m going to start a list of all the ways in which the United States of America has been left behind to feed on the picked over scraps of its former greatness.

Wait, its former, self-perceived greatness.  If we were so great, so tough, so important, would we be so threatened by tiny island nations and men in caves half a world away?

By the way, anyone know why the clock is four hours earlier than EDT? Truthdig in BC?

You’ve got to be kidding me, we can’t give in now; that would erase 40+ years of the kind of arrogant moronity we are known for. You people better get your heads on straight--this is America.

Close Guantanamo and give it back to the Cubans. 

Lifting sanctions and normalizing relations with our neighbor is the right thing to do.

To hell with the “sugar lobby” and those ex-cuban expats whom our government has been beholden to all these many years.  They don’t represent me or any of my interests regarding Cuba.

Ernest,

Someone else had pointed this out, and I did notice it myself. (about the earlier pages of comments just dropping off).

I don’t have a clue. And yeah, it’s really odd. BUT, so are a lot of things on Truthdig lately. Like really for about the past month or so. Maybe longer.

It’s been infiltrated with insanity, and some really nasty stuff...frequently directly specifically at me, but other’s have been attacked as well. And anybody can easily tell the difference between what is downright HOSTILE, and pathologically so, and what is the standard back and forth of blogspeak. The nuance can often be subtle, but it’s still noticeable. Then in other circumstances, it’s blatant.

So, ALL of that has been happening at the same time...the format changes, all of the complaints about comments (and posters) being censored/banned. Shenonymous asked me if I knew what was going on as well.

But, I don’t.

I do know that by now, several of the people who have commented here for a long time, have expressed disgust and split.

Anyway, I don’t know if all of that has anything to do with the fact that the comments aren’t be maintained on subsequent pages. But I’m wondering if I need a new id myself. Some wise ass has decided to make his user name ‘cyrena’s lover’. That’s not even funny. And, there’s been worse in recent weeks. Something makes me think Douglas Chalmers is stalking again under various names.

So maybe I just need to change my own and just post unregistered, since the site is becoming a mob pull.

We’ll see. Seems like just another hassle to go through, when they’ll probably go away after the elections anyway. (if we have them). Dick Bush et all are clowning their asses off. Maybe it’s infecting most others as well..or rubbing off on ‘em or something.

Cyrena, do you know what gives with the new format?  It used to be that earlier posts would be accessible through subsequent pages.  Now they drop off once the first page is finished.  Are they forever lost, or am I missing something?

I agree with you cann4ing, (on the human rights hypocrisy) I thought I’d said as much in that same post, but it may have gotten away from me. It’s like the computer has a trigger finger or something today.

Thanks for the heads up on the name. I had a feeling it was probably you. Thanks for hanging in there with us. There’s been like this major high jacking of the site, which is kind of creepy if one wants to take a break from the constant hostilities that surround as anyway.

Have you noticed that? Folks are either just pissed off in general, or depressed in general, or both. At least if they have a clue to what’s going on in the world.

Almost makes me wanna talk a temporary escape to fat/dumb/happy land. But then I realize that can’t even happen, because for the fat part, I’d need food, and the cost of a twinkie triples everyday.

Anyway, glad you’re here, and thamks for picking up the slack..

The US has, from the mid’50s, targeted the Cuban population, and advertised the leadership as the ones that would deprive you of the very toilet on which you sit. save for the pigs, now safely ensconced in Miami...Terrorists in the grand tradition.  Ft. Lee, N.J., too.!  What ya’ gonna do, ‘bout yer problem?

By the way, Cyrena, who are we to talk about human rights to Cuba or anyone else.  Under the Bush regime, the United States has amassed one of the worst records on human rights since Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot.

The U.S. doesn’t sanction human rights violations so long as the people committing them serve the Empire.  Indeed, the Bush regime did everything it could to help Karimanov in Central Asia even though we knew the guy was not merely engaging in torture but boiling people alive. 

Many of the claims made about Castro’s human rights violations have been the product of U.S. generated propaganda and have been greatly overstated.

I LIVE IN NORTH FLA. ever since the failed bay of pigs invasion, i have lived in constant fear that the right wing cubans in miami would migrate farther north and change my state from a previously democratic blue state,into a republican red state. my worst fears have come to fruition. there are 4 cuban families living on my street and they all have mcsame signs in their yards. fortunately the muslims across the street{recent immigrants from iraq], have an obama sign in their yard. the 3 mexican families on my street are also for obama. the family from sarajevo are obama supporters. the rednecks next door support mcsame. the rednecks next to them are for mcsame. the rednecks don’t like any of the immigrants,but they seem to like the cubans political position. cuba is threat to our democracy. they take the same stance as the illiterate rednecks.

Cyrena, just so that you know, I formerly posted as Ernest Canning.

cann4ing,

I agree with you in principal. However, in the case of the EU, they seem pretty serious, (and not posturing) about some fundamental sort of human rights in Cuba. Like, what we were just talking about in the decision on habeas corpus recently handed down by that razor thin SC decision.

So the question is, SHOULD the Castro regime be forced to extend some human rights, and basic levels of democracy, (if only to release political prisoners)in order to eliminate the sanctions?

Now the EU has agreed to go ahead and do that, but has made it a point that they EXPECT Cuba to follow through with this. Probably just the release of the political prisoners would be a major start. And then hopefully they would begin to incorporate more..like Internet access and that sort of stuff.

Meantime, the US can’t even claim any of these demands from Cuba in exchange for having the sanctions lifted, because we are just as guilty of the same human rights violations as the Castro Regime is.

But, I DO agree on the only reason they were ever imposed to begin with. Punishment for not rolling over to the Corporate Empire. Lord knows it’s hapened to a long list of others as well..But Cuba, Iraq, and Iran have been catching hell for the longest. At least they’ve been mostly content to just isolate Cuba, instead of destroying it like they’ve done to Iraq, and are planning with Iran.

The only reason sanctions were ever imposed on Cuba was because the Cubans refused to service the U.S.-led, multi-national corporate Empire.  All sanctions should be lifted.