Bernie looks for the good in socialist despots

Washington Examiner Editorial:

Democratic presidential front-runner Bernie Sanders used the final debate before Super Tuesday as an opportunity to defend his praise for the achievements of tyrannical communist governments. He defended the principle that it was important "when dictatorships — whether it is the Chinese or the Cubans — do something good to acknowledge that."

At one point, he said, “Cuba made progress on education,” and a part of the crowd booed. An angry Sanders responded, "Really? Really?"

Sanders, a proud socialist, has actually made a long career of talking up the silver linings of socialist regimes that he even admits are brutal, “authoritarian,” dictatorial, and otherwise undesirable. In doing so, he is just repeating those brutal authoritarian regimes’ excuses for their own brutality and authoritarianism. Benito Mussolini famously claimed to have made Italian trains run on time. Whether it was true or not, would he have deserved a pat on the back for doing what was expedient?

Back in 1989, Sanders described a trip to Cuba in glowing terms for his local newspaper. “I did not see a hungry child,” he said. “I did not see any homeless people. Cuba today not only has free healthcare but very high-quality healthcare. ... The people we met had an almost religious affection [for Castro].”

We hate to have to explain this, senator, but, when you visit unfree countries, their despotic regimes don’t generally expose you to a representative sample of the population. You're not going to see the starving children whose parents were shot as enemies of the people. You will likely encounter only fanatical supporters who are thriving due to their collaboration with the oppressor. And, while you’re busy touring unusually nice-looking medical facilities reserved for foreigners’ edification, the regime’s opponents are probably languishing in a prison that will not be on your tour, most likely starving and without any medical care.

That Sanders didn’t understand this is a sign of either disqualifying naivete or else outright complicity in evil. With that interview, as with many others, he was handing Castro a propaganda victory, parroting the brutal dictator’s visual propaganda in verbal form.

In a 1985 interview, Sanders sang a similar tune, much the same tune as he does today. Castro was “certainly not” perfect, he acknowledged, but people expecting his overthrow by Cubans “forgot that he educated their kids, gave them healthcare, totally transformed their society.”

Again, this merely makes excuses for Castro’s brutality. Sanders spoke as if the average Cuban is too satisfied and grateful to resist communist dictatorship. It couldn't be that they fear swift, certain retaliation by a lawless, murderous state. It couldn't be that so many of Castro's most capable opponents, many of whom contributed much more than Castro to the overthrow of the Batista dictatorship, were either murdered or forced to flee for their lives when Castro seized power.

When Sanders praises literacy programs under Castro, remember that Cuba's literacy was already as high as 75% when he seized power and began shooting his political enemies. Even setting all that aside, Sanders is actually just praising cynical communist efforts to make sure citizens can be indoctrinated more efficiently using the written word. Castro never wanted a genuinely educated populace. Why else would he have blocked internet access for Cubans? And why does Cuba’s regime even today continue to censor the internet and monitor citizens’ online behavior lest they start getting ideas for themselves?
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Sanders talks about the Chicoms lifting billions out of poverty and overlooks the mass murder of millions on a near-genocidal scale.  How can anyone excuse what socialist have done to Venezuela?  Sanders should be asked how many people he is willing to kill to impose sociaism on the US?  Is that one of the resons why Democrats also want to disarm the innocent in this country too?