Henry Ramsager's Blog
Posted by Henry Ramsager
Fidel Castro, aged 80, continues to recover from surgery he underwent in July to stop intestinal bleeding. One thing that the surgeons cannot stop, though, are the persistent rumors and premature reports of his death.
Not known for being a tell-all government when it comes to things like Castro's health, the official line is that Castro is getting better and that y'all can forget about any further information, since his health is officially classified as a state secret.
Government officials have, however, helpfully ruled out cancer or any other nasty terminal illness. As yet, no one has been bold enough to suggest a game of charades to get closer to the truth.
Meanwhile, Castro's younger brother, Raul, aged 75, is, by all accounts, settling in well as he runs the show in place of his brother, whom he described as irreplaceable. He recently raised eyebrows by announcing that he would delegate more responsibility, a sharp departure from the micromanaging-maniacal style of his older brother. Raul Castro also promised more debate and, for long-suffering listeners of Fidel's speeches, which often run for hours on end, Raul has pledged to give shorter speeches.
Posted by Henry Ramsager
General Pinochet seized power in Chile in 1973 and is said to have been responsible for the deaths of more than 3,000 people who were either killed or who disappeared.
Attempts were made in recent years to bring him to trial, but his health problems prevented him from being tried. Most recently, he was placed under house arrest earlier this year.
Pinochet was not without his supporters, especially among the military, who believed he saved the country from Marxism when he overthrew the government of Salvador Allende.
Posted by Henry Ramsager
So many promises; so few expectations met. In the last blog entry, you were promised derring-do accounts of Captain John Coxon, Sir Henry Morgan, Blackbeard, Pierre Le Grand, Black Bart and at least one bad-girl female pirate. As of today, we've only delivered articles on Henry Morgan and Blackbeard. So where are the other pirate accounts, you may well ask. Now wait a minute: before angrying up your blood, take stock of the facts, matey. Morgan, whose exploits proved to be far more interesting and numerous for merely one article, was stretched into three rather longish articles. You also got Blackbeard. That makes four --or five, actually, if you’ll be kind enough (as I'm sure you will) to throw in Sir Francis Drake, whose article appeared just before the start of our pirate month.
Anyway, here's our remedy because we're so sweet and always looking out for your piratical needs. We'll extend the pirate month (which has proven to be very popular among readers) into December for at least a couple weeks more.
This should hopefully satisfy even the most bloodthirsty of pirate lovers.
Updated list of pirate-related articles:
Female Pirates on the High Seas
Morgan Plunders the Spanish Main
Posted by Henry Ramsager
Set sail with us as we present the derring-do accounts of Captain John Coxon, Sir Henry Morgan, Blackbeard (anyone with information as to the whereabouts of his missing treasure, please write in), Pierre Le Grand, Black Bart and the rest of the bad boys-- and, come to think of it, one or two bad-girl female pirates.
Updated list of pirate-related articles:
Female Pirates on the High Seas
Morgan Plunders the Spanish Main
Posted by Henry Ramsager
After celebrating Halloween, you might like to drink a toast to Ferdinand Magellan... or else build a small, miniature replica of an early sailing vessel. For it was on November 1, 1520, while circumnavigating the world, that Ferdinand Magellan entered the soon-after-to-be-named Strait of Magellan.
Until the completion of the Panama Canal in the early 20th century, the Strait of Magellan was the most important passage between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The strait is located between the southern tip of South America and the Tierra del Fuego ( meaning "Land of Fire") archipelago to the south.
The strait was found to be thank-you-very-much superior to the perilous Drake Passage with its rough, icy, ship-splintering waters churning and shifting in a narrow stretch of water between Cape Horn and the icebergs of Antarctica.
So if you only have one day a year to spend on celebrating an early waterway voyage of discovery, you’ll probably want to choose Magellan’s strait and pooh-pooh all others. Yes, leave the celebrating of Drake Passage to the few die-hard loyalists who are probably all descendants of Sir Francis Drake and have a dubious vested interest in preserving his name. And, anyway, he was a pirate.
