CONTRA EL PINGALISMO CASTRISTA/
"Se que no existe el consuelo
que no existe
la anhelada tierrra de mis suenos
ni la desgarrada vision de nuestros heroes.
Pero
te seguimos buscando, patria,..." - Reinaldo Arenas
When you turned that 250 into half a man,
Your words inspired me, I am a fan.
I do idolize my favorite rapper
And know all his songs.
But you’ve contradicted yourself,
So you need this now.
It’s not about politicians or my parents,
I don’t agree with either, neither.
But before you turn Havana into Atlanta
With Guayaberas and a Guantanamera,
Do your own research.
The truth might hurt.
But look, don’t take it from me,
go talk to Aldo and El B.
That’s Cuba’s Jay, and they don’t play.
Literally. They don’t play
On a stage cause their freedom was slain.
Black Cubans? Ask ‘em about expression.
Talk to Jorge Luis or Guillermo
AKA Cuba’s Y2K MLK.
Meet Berta Soler and see how it’d be
If Voletta were dragged through the streets.
Need one more Cubano? Ask about Zurbano.
See it ain’t about your bread or your fame.
I salute that, you earned it. No shame.
It ain’t about politicians making noise, either.
Look deeper.
You like Cubans? The people.
They’re beautiful and brilliant.
Full of potential, they’re hungry.
Something like a Young Hov in Marcy.
So before that revolution has you shootin’,
Open your eyes,
So you won’t miss history’s sheep in disguise.
Ladies and gentlemen of “American Idol,” you won’t have Lazaro Arbos to kick around any more.
The inspirational story who soon became mentor Jimmy Iovine’s nemesis, Lazaro looked to be indestructible as his fellow males fell before the voting masses one by one. He was even among the top three vote-getters a week ago. But the last man standing on season 12 finally ran out of chances on Thursday, finishing in sixth place and officially ending the guys’ five-year winning streak.
This means he won’t have to spend another Wednesday listening to the judges patronizing his courage for getting this far despite his speech impediment before moving on to crush him for his vocal miscues. There will be no more Thursday nights marred by having to stand there and try to smile as Jimmy rips him to shreds on video.
“Last night’s performance hit me like an Ambien milkshake” was this week’s gem from the “Idol” mentor. He later closed his evaluation with, “If I had to chart him this week, I’d put him 10th.”
“There’s only six singers,” a producer’ s voice chimed in.
“I know,” Jimmy answered.
That’s partially a burn, partially just a really bad joke.
Lazaro also won’t have to worry about butchering another group performance. Nor will any of the other contestants, which could be why none of them were crying at the results except for Amber Holcomb.
And Amber had reason to cry. She was the second lowest vote-getter despite Nicki Minaj’s very vocal sales pitch. Every season has a singer or two with a lot of talent who just doesn’t resonate with the viewers, and right now it’s looking like she has that honor this year.
“Amber, I don’t know what to tell you to change. Just keep on doing what you’re doing,” Jimmy said in his video recap of her Wednesday performance.
Or, you know, maybe try something different to avoid getting sent home next week.
In fairness, she also could have been crying because season one winner Kelly Clarkson showed up to perform in a glowstick-heavy performance wearing some really scary eye makeup. But I’m guessing it was the results.
Kree Harrison and Candice Glover were the top two vote-getters this week. That was not surprising, considering they sang the best on Wednesday. Angie Miller and Janelle Arthur were in the middle.
With the judges’ least-favorite singer at the bottom, this was the least dramatic sing-for-survival performance of the season, even though they now have to use it or lose it next week. But Lazaro tried anyway, because them’s the rules.
“It’s a new dawn. It’s a new day. It’s a new life!” Lazaro belted as he covered “Feelin’ Good.”
The judges couldn’t have agreed more.
“Lazaro, we love you, you’ve been a treasure to the show,” Randy said. “But we’re not using the save.”
That won’t come into play until next week, when the competition really gets interesting now that the guys are gone.
Two members of Congress from Florida are looking into how hip hop royals Beyonce and Jay-Z ended in Cuba this week.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart sent a letter to Adam Szubin, director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control at the Treasury Department, on Friday asking for more information about the celebrity couple’s trip, which coincided with their fifth wedding anniversary.
An excerpt from the letter, which is posted on Ros-Lehtinen’s website, reads:
We write to express concern and to request information regarding the highly publicized trip by U.S. musicians Beyoncé Knowles-Carter (Beyoncé) and Shawn Carter (Jay-Z) to Cuba. We would like to respectfully request, within all applicable rules and guidelines, information regarding the type of license that Beyoncé and Jay-Z received, for what purpose, and who approved such travel.
As you know, U.S. law expressly prohibits the licensing of financial transactions for “tourist activities” in Cuba (Section 910(b)(1) of the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act).
A rep for the stars didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
HAVANA — Beyonce and Jay-Z caused a big stir in Havana as they marked their fifth wedding anniversary Thursday.
R&B's power couple was mobbed by dozens of well-wishers at the renowned restaurant La Guarida on Wednesday night, and police had to step in to keep the crowds at bay.
La Guarida staffers showed The Associated Press pictures of the two dining on typical Cuban creole favorites – fish, chicken, black beans and rice – accompanied by their mothers.
The privately run restaurant is famous as the filming location for the hit movie "Strawberry and Chocolate," and is a mainstay on Havana's tourist circuit.
Waitress Silvia Fernandez said Beyonce toured the eatery and looked at photos of past celebrity clients: Jack Nicholson, Jodie Foster, Danny Glover, Will Smith, James Belushi and more.
Their bodyguards' presence outside set the gritty, bustling neighborhood of Center Havana abuzz, and a crowd gathered downstairs shouting Beyonce's name until she went to a balcony and waved.
Police arrived and made sure she was able to exit without incident.
"She was beautiful, without a drop of makeup, very natural," waitress Silvia Fernandez said. "What happened with the people was incredible."
On Thursday the couple toured colonial Old Havana wearing dark glasses and surrounded by bodyguards and excited fans. Beyonce posed for pictures with local schoolchildren while Jay-Z puffed on a Cuban cigar, and then they popped into another restaurant that boasts a rooftop terrace with a sweeping view of the harbor.
Beyonce and Jay-Z declined to speak to reporters, and it was not clear why they traveled to Cuba. State-run website CubaSi called it a tourist trip.
Washington's 51-year embargo makes it illegal for U.S. citizens to visit Cuba for mere tourism, although tens of thousands of Americans travel here each year on academic, religious, journalistic or cultural exchange licenses. In the past, artists who were challenged by the government have said they visited for cultural purposes.
Beyonce, the multiple Grammy winner who performed at this year's Super Bowl halftime show and President Obama's inauguration, and Jay-Z, the rapper and entertainment mogul who recently went into the sports-agent business, were married April 4, 2008, in Paris.
Christina Aguilera debuted what many are calling a slimmer figure this week when she hit the red carpet for a screening of "The Voice" in Los Angeles.
The 32-year-old songstress arrived in a black and white dress that accentuated her toned curves and Christian Louboutin stilettos.
With swimsuit season on its way, the “Your Body” singer may be ready to show off hers, and it wouldn’t be the first time Aguilera has undergone a transformation.
Check out Aguilera's many looks through the years:
(FoxNews.com)- Penelope Cruz strips off to a lacy basque in a sultry new pop video.
The "Pirates of the Caribbean" star shows off her amazing figure –
and her singing talents – as she warbles a Spanish love song dressed in
the black underwear.
And she writhes about on the bed in the smouldering black and white
video as she sings the duet with Grammy award winner Miguel Bosé.
MIAMI,
Florida, 20 de enero de 2013, Redacción, www.cubanet.org.- Con un
profundo cariño hacia Venezuela se manifestó Willie Colón, el famoso
trombonista y uno de los padres de la llamada Música Salsa. Su
identificación con el país sudamericano viene, según dijo al canal NTN24
desde Nueva York, porque Venezuela fue el primer país que lo aceptó
como solista y le otorgó su primer Disco de Platino con el álbum
Fantasma. Además, el gran artista vivió allí y tiene grandes amigos
venezolanos de los que desgraciadamente, expresó, no puede ni mencionar
sus nombres, porque las fuerzas chavistas son capaces de romperles los
cristales de sus casas.
Colón recordó que su controversia con Chávez en Twitter viene desde
hace mucho tiempo, pero que ahora ha decidido ser más activo en el tema
debido a que considera que el pueblo venezolano se merece información o
una fe de vida de su presidente, secuestrado en Cuba desde el 9 de
diciembre pasado, dijo.
También el músico comentó que los seguidores de Chávez lo han
insultado a través de las redes sociales, a él y a su familia,
llamándole drogadicto y utilizando otros improperios.
El emblemático instrumentista declaró abiertamente que no piensa
actuar en Cuba mientras estén los hermanos Castro en el poder, que
podría incluso haber actuado en Venezuela y llevarse de allí sacos de
dinero, como han hecho sus colegas Rubén Blades, los de Calle 13, Andy
Montañez. “Resolví no tocar en Venezuela mientras no haya democracia”,
aseguró el salsero de origen puertorriqueño.
Venezuela, recordó, es un país estratégico por sus grandes reservas
de petróleo y estos momentos está en la mira todo el mundo,
especialmente de Latinoamérica. No es justo, dijo Colón, que este gran
país se desangre suministrando sus inmensas riquezas naturales a los
países del ALBA
El tweet más polémico de Willie Colón sobre la crisis del país
suramericano fue este: “Venezuela tiene dos presidentes, uno maduro y
otro podrido”, aunque explicó su autor que en ningún momento intentó
molestar a Venezuela, sino que su intención estaba a tono con la
situación real de ese país. No obstante, apostilló, y con respecto a su
tweet, Hugo Chávez, en sus discursos y en redes sociales habla mucho
peor (que lo que Colón pudo decir).
Filmed and recorded at Brixton Electric in November 2012, this short
video features Cuban singer Danay Suarez performing 'Noche Sueños'
alongside Mala. Taken from the acclaimed 'Mala in Cuba' album. For more information, visit http://www.malaincuba.com With thanks to Havana Cultura // http://www.havana-cultura.com
Ana Meza, 16, plays a violin made of recycled materials during a practice session with "The Orchestra of Instruments Recycled From Cateura" on Dec. 11 outside Asuncion, Paraguay.
By The Associated Press
CATEURA, Paraguay -- The sounds of a classical guitar come from two big jelly cans. Used X-rays serve as the skins of a thumping drum set. A battered aluminum salad bowl and strings tuned with forks from what must have been an elegant table make a violin. Bottle caps work perfectly well as keys for a saxophone.
A chamber orchestra of 20 children uses these and other instruments fashioned out of recycled materials from a landfill where their parents eke out livings as trash-pickers, regularly performing the music of Beethoven and Mozart, Henry Mancini and the Beatles.
A concert they put on for The Associated Press also featured Frank Sinatra's "My Way" and some Paraguayan polkas.
Rocio Riveros, 15, said it took her a year to learn how to play her flute, which was made from tin cans. "Now I can't live without this orchestra," she said. Keep reading >>
NEW YORK -- A piano used in the classic film "Casablanca" sold for just over $600,000 on Friday, falling far short of predictions that it could fetch $1 million or more.
The 58-key upright piano on which actor and singer Dooley Wilson performed "As Time Goes By," the signature song of the 1942 film's star-crossed lovers played by Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, sold at Sotheby's for $602,500 including commission.
Sotheby's shows the piano used in the movie "Casablanca."
The auction house had assigned the iconic prop a pre-sale estimate of $800,000 to $1.2 million, given some astonishing prices attained by movie memorabilia in recent years.
In the film, the character Sam (Wilson) plays the signature song "As Time Goes By" during flashback scenes set in Paris, as well as in Bogart's club in Casablanca, where he and Bergman rekindle their romance.
Bergman's memorable lines included the imploring: "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time Goes By.' " More >>
Excerpted from ABC News: Justin Bieber was the target of a grisly murder plot hatched by a convicted killer imprisoned in New Mexico, police told ABC News today.
Dana Martin, 45, an inmate at the Southern New Mexico Corrections Facility, is accused of masterminding the plan, which called for castrating Bieber and his bodyguard in New York, and two unnamed victims in Vermont, before strangling them, according to a New Mexico State Police affidavit.
Martin, who was sentenced to 978 years in jail for rape and murder in 2000, had an image of Bieber tattooed on his leg and plotted to kill him after his attempts to contact the 18-year-old pop star failed, according to the affidavit, which also alleged he orchestrated the plot to achieve notoriety.
Former inmate Mark Staake and his nephew, Tanner Ruane, set off for Vermont on Nov. 14 to carry out the plan, intending to continue on to New York, according to the affidavit. They intended to catch Bieber between his Nov. 28 and 29 Madison Square Garden concerts.
The three now stand accused of two counts each of conspiracy to commit murder and two counts each of conspiracy to commit aggravated battery, according to Lt. Robert McDonald of the New Mexico State Police. New Mexico is awaiting Staake and Ruane’s extraditions from the East Coast. McDonald did not know whether they had retained legal representation.
Martin wanted Ruane to attack the victims with Fiskars “Durasharp” gardening clippers, and offered to pay Ruane $2,500 for each testicle he got, the affidavit alleged.
It added that Martin wanted the intended victims strangled with a paisley necktie, just as Martin had done in a prior crime.
He referred to the murders as “the whole putting down of the ‘dogs,’” the affidavit said.
Staake, who was released in October after serving time for burglary, and Ruane left Albuquerque for Vermont, where they had plotted to kill the two unidentified victims, according to the affidavit.
However, before committing any killings, the pair missed a highway exit in Vermont near the border crossing into Canada and got stopped by a border patrol agent, according to the affidavit. Staake was arrested in Vermont on outstanding warrants.
Ruane was released, but New York State Police later arrested him after officials eavesdropped on a phone call in which Ruane and Martin allegedly made references to the murder plots, the affidavit said.
The car in which Ruane and Staake had been stopped was found to contain the pruning shears.
When prison authorities confronted him, Martin allegedly detailed the plan and gave them a hand-drawn map of where Ruane and Staake had traveled.
A representative for Bieber released this statement to ABC News: “We take every precaution to protect and ensure the safety of Justin and his fans.”
By Muneeza Naqvi and Ravi Nessman, The Associated Press
With
an instrument perplexing to most Westerners, Ravi Shankar helped
connect the world through music. The sitar virtuoso hobnobbed with the
Beatles, became a hippie musical icon and spearheaded the first rock
benefit concert as he introduced traditional Indian ragas to Western
audiences over nearly a century.
From George Harrison to John
Coltrane, from Yehudi Menuhin to David Crosby, his connections
reflected music's universality, though a gap persisted between Shankar
and many Western fans. Sometimes they mistook tuning for tunes, while
he stood aghast at displays like Jimi Hendrix's burning guitar.
Shankar
died Tuesday at age 92. A statement on his website said he died in San
Diego, near his Southern California home with his wife and a daughter
by his side. The musician's foundation issued a statement saying that
he had suffered upper respiratory and heart problems and had undergone
heart-valve replacement surgery last week.More >>
--------------------------------
Ravi Shankar perfoms in Kolkata in 2009 [Jayanta Shaw/ Reuters]
Federal authorities inspect the site of the plane crash in El Tejote locality, Nuevo Leon State, Mexico, where Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera along with six other people died as they were travelling from Monterrey, in northern Mexico, to Mexico City.
By NBC News and news services
Updated 9:05 p.m. ET: Mexican-American singer Jenni Rivera died in a plane crash Saturday night, her father and brother confirmed on Telemundo.
The wreckage of the plane was found Sunday in northern Mexico with no apparent survivors, authorities said.
The wreckage was found in the Ejido La Colorada, Municipality of Nuevo Leon. Gerardo Ruiz Esparza, secretary of communications and transport, said that the plane is not recognizable, but the evidence suggests it was the aircraft carrying the singer, Telemundo reported.
Ese es precisamente el título de este tema de Stringfever, en la que recorren un montón de conocidos temas en algo menos de seis minutos, al estilo de aquellos Hooked on classics de antaño:
¨Saturno jugando con sus hijos¨/ Pedro Pablo Oliva
Seguidores
Carta desde la carcel de Fidel Castro Ruz
“…después de todo, para mí la cárcel es un buen descanso, que sólo tiene de malo el que es obligatorio. Leo mucho y estudio mucho. Parece increíble, las horas pasan como si fuesen minutos y yo, que soy de temperamento intranquilo, me paso el día leyendo, apenas sin moverme para nada. La correspondencia llega normalmente…”
“…Como soy cocinero, de vez en cuando me entretengo preparando algún pisto. Hace poco me mandó mi hermana desde Oriente un pequeño jamón y preparé un bisté con jalea de guayaba. También preparo spaghettis de vez en cuando, de distintas formas, inventadas todas por mí; o bien tortilla de queso. ¡Ah! ¡Qué bien me quedan! por supuesto, que el repertorio no se queda ahí. Cuelo también café que me queda muy sabroso”. “…En cuanto a fumar, en estos días pasados he estado rico: una caja de tabacos H. Upman del doctor Miró Cardona, dos cajas muy buenas de mi hermano Ramón….”. “Me voy a cenar: spaghettis con calamares, bombones italianos de postre, café acabadito de colar y después un H. Upman #4. ¿No me envidias?”. “…Me cuidan, me cuidan un poquito entre todos. No le hacen caso a uno, siempre estoy peleando para que no me manden nada. Cuando cojo el sol por la mañana en shorts y siento el aire de mar, me parece que estoy en una playa… ¡Me van a hacer creer que estoy de vacaciones! ¿Qué diría Carlos Marx de semejantes revolucionarios?”.
Quotes
¨La patria es dicha de todos, y dolor de todos, y cielo para todos, y no feudo ni capellanía de nadie¨ - Marti
"No temas ni a la prision, ni a la pobreza, ni a la muerte. Teme al miedo" - Giacomo Leopardi
¨Por eso es muy importante, Vicky, hijo mío, que recuerdes siempre para qué sirve la cabeza: para atravesar paredes¨– Halvar de Flake[El vikingo]
"Como no me he preocupado de nacer, no me preocupo de morir"- Lorca
"Al final, no os preguntarán qué habéis sabido, sino qué habéis hecho" - Jean de Gerson
"Si queremos que todo siga como está, es necesario que todo cambie" - Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
"Todo hombre paga su grandeza con muchas pequeñeces, su victoria con muchas derrotas, su riqueza con múltiples quiebras" - Giovanni Papini
"Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans" - John Lennon
"Habla bajo, lleva siempre un gran palo y llegarás lejos" - Proverbio Africano
"No hay medicina para el miedo"-Proverbio escoces "El supremo arte de la guerra es doblegar al enemigo sin luchar" -Sun Tzu
"You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother" - Albert Einstein
"It is inaccurate to say I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office" - H. L. Menken
"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented" -Elie Wiesel
"Stay hungry, stay foolish" - Steve Jobs
"If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert , in five years ther'ed be a shortage of sand" - Milton Friedman
"The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less" - Vaclav Havel
"No se puede controlar el resultado, pero si lo que uno haga para alcanzarlo" - Vitor Belfort [MMA Fighter]
Liborio
A la puerta de la gloria está San Pedro sentado y ve llegar a su lado a un hombre de cierta historia. No consigue hacer memoria y le pregunta con celo: ¿Quién eras allá en el suelo? Era Liborio mi nombre. Has sufrido mucho, hombre, entra, te has ganado el cielo.
Para Raul Castro
Cuba ocupa el penultimo lugar en el mundo en libertad economica solo superada por Corea del Norte.
Cuba ocupa el lugar 147 entre 153 paises evaluados en "Democracia, Mercado y Transparencia 2007"
Cuando vinieron a buscar a los comunistas, Callé: yo no soy comunista. Cuando vinieron a buscar a los sindicalistas, Callé: yo no soy sindicalista. Cuando vinieron a buscar a los judíos, Callé: yo no soy judío. Cuando vinieron a buscar a los católicos, Callé: yo no soy “tan católico”. Cuando vinieron a buscarme a mí, Callé: no había quien me escuchara.
Un sitio donde los hechos y sus huellas nos conmueven o cautivan
CUBA LLORA Y EL MUNDO Y NOSOTROS NO ESCUCHAMOS
Donde esta el Mundo, donde los Democratas, donde los Liberales? El pueblo de Cuba llora y nadie escucha. Donde estan los Green, los Socialdemocratas, los Ricos y los Pobres, los Con Voz y Sin Voz? Cuba llora y nadie escucha. Donde estan el Jet Set, los Reyes y Principes, Patricios y Plebeyos? Cuba desesperada clama por solidaridad. Donde Bob Dylan, donde Martin Luther King, donde Hollywood y sus estrellas? Donde la Middle Class democrata y conservadora, o acaso tambien liberal a ratos? Y Gandhi? Y el Dios de Todos? Donde los Santos y Virgenes; los Dioses de Cristianos, Protestantes, Musulmanes, Budistas, Testigos de Jehova y Adventistas del Septimo Dia. Donde estan Ochun y todas las deidades del Panteon Yoruba que no acuden a nuestro llanto? Donde Juan Pablo II que no exige mas que Cuba se abra al Mundo y que el Mundo se abra a Cuba? Que hacen ahora mismo Alberto de Monaco y el Principe Felipe que no los escuchamos? Donde Madonna, donde Angelina Jolie y sus adoptados around de world; o nos hara falta un Brando erguido en un Oscar por Cuba? Donde Sean Penn? Donde esta la Aristocracia Obrera y los Obreros menos Aristocraticos, donde los Working Class que no estan junto a un pueblo que lanquidece, sufre y llora por la ignominia? Que hacen ahora mismo Zapatero y Rajoy que no los escuchamos, y Harper y Dion, e Hillary y Obama; donde McCain que no los escuchamos? Y los muertos? Y los que estan muriendo? Y los que van a morir? Y los que se lanzan desesperados al mar? Donde estan el minero cantabrico o el pescador de percebes gijonese? Los Canarios donde estan? A los africanos no los oimos, y a los australianos con su acento de hombres duros tampoco. Y aquellos chinos milenarios de Canton que fundaron raices eternas en la Isla? Y que de la Queen Elizabeth y los Lords y Gentlemen? Que hace ahora mismo el combativo Principe Harry que no lo escuchamos? Donde los Rockefellers? Donde los Duponts? Donde Kate Moss? Donde el Presidente de la ONU? Y Solana donde esta? Y los Generales y Doctores? Y los Lam y los Fabelo, y los Sivio y los Fito Paez? Y que de Canseco y Miñoso? Y de los veteranos de Bahia de Cochinos y de los balseros y de los recien llegados? Y Carlos Otero y Susana Perez? Y el Bola, y Pancho Cespedes? Y YO y TU? Y todos nosotros que estamos aqui y alla rumiando frustaciones y resquemores, envidias y sinsabores; autoelogios y nostalgias, en tanto Louis Michel comulga con Perez Roque mientras Biscet y una NACION lanquidecen? Donde Maceo, donde Marti; donde aquel Villena con su carga para matar bribones? Cuba llora y clama y el Mundo NO ESCUCHA!!!