Venezuela's Chavez says Castro does not have cancer

[cal04]

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Friday denied reports that Fidel Castro has cancer, but said the Cuban leader was fighting a "great battle" against a "serious" illness.

Chavez said he had spoken twice with Castro by telephone on Thursday amid intense speculation about his state of health after intestinal surgery earlier this year.

"Some comments have come out, that Fidel has a terminal cancer -- Fidel does not have cancer," Chavez told supporters in a celebration of his December 3 reelection.

(snip)
Chavez did not say Castro's health was improving, as he has repeated in recent speeches, but said he was optimistic and that Castro sounded in good spirits when they spoke

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2006-12-16T021135Z_01_N15347488_RTRUKOC_0_US-CHAVEZ-CASTRO.xml

[Captain Hilts]

1. Fine, but what's Bill Frist's diagnosis? nt

[Fridays Child]

2. Castro is able to sit up and play cards with Terri Schiavo's mother.

Thus spake Frist.

[MannyGoldstein]

3. It'll Be Interesting To See How This Plays Out

I'm still on the fence on whether Chavez is an honest guy - I guess we'll soon have a bit more data on this.

[Solo_in_MD]

4. Chavez honest?

I do know that he has done a number on the free press and other media in his country.

[Say_What]

9. Please explain how the 2 largest dailies and 3 largetst tv networks

in Venezuela, who (along with the USSA's MSM) are relentlessly hostile toward Chavez, are still operating freely.

Here's the names. Do some research and get an education.

El Universal and El Nacional,

Venevision, Radio Caracas Television, and Globovision

Btw, Bush pal Gustavo Cisneros, owner of Globovision, Venevision, and much of the media in LatAm, is an arch-enemy of Chavez and was a coup plotter (GOLPISTA) in 2002.

[robcon]

5. How the hell does this advance Castro's story?

Does anyone think that Castro's lap dog is anything but a shill for the Cuban government? We know the Cuban govt. wants to spread the word that it's not cancer. Does anyone think Chavez has some independent source for his claim?

[Vogon_Glory]

7. I Wouldn't Want Santorum Diagnosing Me, Either!

I confess that I'm as sceptical of "Doctor Hugo" Chavez's diagnostic abilities concerning Fidel Castro's health as I am of soon-to-be ex-Senator Santorum's abilities in the Terri Schiavo matter. I wouldn't want either Chavez or Santorum practicing medicine on me if I could have qualified medical care available as an alternative.

I don't know if Castro has intestinal cancer or not. Even if he doesn't have cancer, there are other diseases and medical conditions that can carry him off. Certainly the recent pictures don't suggest an octogenarian in robust health.

Whether DU's Fidel Castro fan club wants to admit it or not, Fidel Castro's behavior seems to be that of a man whose days are numbered. Fidel Castro may not be on his death-bed yet, but it looks like he's not far from it.

[Judi Lynn]

6. Venezuela's Chavez denies Castro dying of cancer

Venezuela's Chavez denies Castro dying of cancer
The Associated Press
Published: 2006-12-15 20:00:01

CARACAS, Venezuela: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez denied Friday that Fidel Castro has cancer and said the ailing Cuban leader is eating cautiously and feels well enough to joke.
(snip)

Chavez did not give any further details on Castro's health, but said they had spoken twice on Thursday and discussed a series of new projects between Venezuela and Cuba, including plans to jointly explore for oil.

Chavez said Castro's government would soon be giving a license to Venezuela's state oil company allowing it to explore for oil in Cuban waters in the Gulf of Mexico.

He added that Cuba's Cupep would help explore for oil in Venezuela's oil-rich Orinoco River region, joining a host of other state oil companies from friendly allies like Iran, China, Russia and Spain.

Chavez said he and Castro discussed other projects, including a wood company, a pharmaceutical factory and a company to exploit Cuban nickel and Venezuela iron.

"We have so many things to thank Fidel for," said Chavez, describing how Castro had surprised him with a phone call in the afternoon before he called him back later in the evening to discuss the left-leaning trade bloc their two countries founded, known as ALBA.
(snip/...)

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/16/america/LA_GEN_Venezuela_Cuba.php

[Say_What]

10. LOL .."very good mood, well enough to compare my parrots to Bush," ...

I could go for some of that Venezuelan chocolate... ;-)

From the article:

..."We are very optimist. Yesterday, I found him to be in a very good mood, well enough to compare my parrots to (U.S. President George) Bush," Chavez continued, describing how Castro had told him the pet birds were more talkative than their "northern neighbor."

Chavez said Castro "is eating little by little" and that he planned to send him one of his favorite treats, Venezuelan chocolate.


President Fidel Castro and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez talk during the opening ceremony of the annual International Book Fair in Havana, in this, Friday, Feb. 3, 2006 file photo. Chavez denies that Fidel Castro has cancer and says the ailing Cuban leader is eating cautiously and feels well enough to joke. Castro's medical condition is a state secret, but U.S. officials believe he suffers from some kind of inoperable cancer. (AP Photo/Javier Galeano)


Venezuelan Chocolate


Venezuela: The Carrao river leading to Angel Falls

[davidinalameda]

8. maybe he can diagnose his Iranian buddy's mental illlness while he's at it

[AngryAmish]

11. How can he be ill?

We were told he was going to live to 140.

[diamidue]

12. Gee, Chavez says one thing; Negroponte another.

Who to believe; who to believe....

[Judi Lynn]

13. Chavez's dynamic speeches connect

Dec. 17, 2006, 12:18AM
Chavez's dynamic speeches connect
His epic talks mix jokes, opinion, personal anecdotes

By JOHN OTIS
Copyright 2006 Hosuton Chronicle South America Bureau

CARACAS, VENEZUELA — Whether the subject is George W. Bush or the size of his own stomach, Hugo Chavez holds strong opinions— and rarely keeps them to himself.

Unlike the country's aloof leaders of the past, the Venezuelan president combines humor and personal anecdotes with stinging denunciations of the rich. His message connects with many poor Venezuelans, who gave him a landslide re-election victory earlier this month.
(snip)

As the country's first president to rise from poverty, Chavez speaks the street language of the bus drivers, cleaning ladies and peasants who make up his base. He entertains them, telling family anecdotes, war stories and even risque jokes, to make his points.

Pelted by sharp questions from reporters at a recent news conference, for example, Chavez sang a Colombian folk song, talked baseball, discussed his vacation plans and recalled how, after he was first elected in 1998, it took him a week to find the keys to the presidential palace.

Chavez delivers more than just rhetorical broadsides. By spending billions of petrodollars on schools, clinics and subsidized grocery stores, he has made good on promises to lift up poor Venezuelans.

As a result, "people have the feeling that Chavez means business," said Steve Ellner, an American who teaches political science at the Eastern University of Venezuela.
(snip/...)

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/world/4406600.html