Ozzie Guillen's recent comments

[theAmazingMet]

And teh Soviets did so because we placed nukes in Turkey

I find it ironic that descendents of the regime ousted by Castro who used power,influence and money to place sanctions and embargoes on Cuba are the ones up in arms. he stated something not so controversial but due to misquotes by our biased,incompetent and lazy mass media....is being persecuted. A tactic Castro used often in the 70's to get rid of dissentors

And you being from Cuba can speak for them yes?. The captain has already stated to leave the politics out.

[9RoyHobbsRF]

shaking hands is not all that was done

travel to the country supposedly off limits and playing a 3 hour game and sitting in the same box with him for three hours and all you got out of it was a 3 second hand shake

some things never change

[jnakamura]

shaking hands is not all that was done

travel to the country supposedly off limits and playing a 3 hour game and sitting in the same box with him for three hours and all you got out of it was a 3 second hand shake

some things never change

How is sitting together in a stadium box for a few hours an endorsement of love or admiration?

When Khrushchev met with JFK there were handshakes and smiles, and they spent many hours together. Again, If JFK said he loved Khrushchev or admired Khrushchev he would have been crucified for it.

If you can't see the difference between meeting a dictator and exchanging pleasantries and saying you LOVE them and ADMIRE them, then you're out of touch.

[doctor_gogol]

Interesting! Guillen exercising his right to free speech, expresses admiration for a regime that eliminated free speech, only to have his free speech punished by people who oppose the tyrant who eliminated free speech.

No irony to see here! Move along!

[doctor_gogol]

"Fidel Castro, he's a bull--dictator and everybody's against him, and he still survives, has power. Still has a country behind him. Everywhere he goes they roll out the red carpet. I don't admire his philosophy. I admire him."

--Ozzie Guillen, Mens Journal, 2008

It's hard to buy Ozzie's backtracking when this isn't the first time he's praised Castro in a public article.

Ummm... thats not praising Castro.

Yeah, Castro is a douchebag! But his ability to persevere 50+ years is impressive.THAT is what Guillen was saying. Not: Yippie, hooray, yahoo for Castro!

People get too emotional and outraged and stop being analytical.

[Cowtipper]

Interesting! Guillen exercising his right to free speech, expresses admiration for a regime that eliminated free speech, only to have his free speech punished by people who oppose the tyrant who eliminated free speech.

No irony to see here! Move along!

The right to free speech, as stated in the Constitution, limits Congress and (by extension) the government's ability to limit what people can say.

Guillen said what he said. He has that right. No governmental force is stopping him from saying it.

But any private group or organization has the right to criticize, condemn or silence an internal cog or piece that can and will harm its interests. That's why people can get banned from this website. The Marlins' interests include a large swath of Cuban fans, who clearly do not like Castro--which is why they are in Florida and not in Cuba.

Guillen always has and will have the right to say what he said. He can keep saying it as he is sitting at home on his couch, wondering why he is out of a job. He won't go to jail for it.

[jnakamura]

Ummm... thats not praising Castro.

Praise
noun
1. the act of expressing approval or admiration

Ozzie: "I admire him"

Ummm...yeah, it is.

[doctor_gogol]

Praise
noun
1. the act of expressing approval or admiration

Ozzie: "I admire him"

Ummm...yeah, it is.

Yet he expressly stated that its not his policies, its his staying power. Get it?

[jnakamura]

Yet he expressly stated that its not his policies, its his staying power. Get it?

Makes no difference.

Same as if he said he admired Adolf Hitler--not because of his policies, but because he was a commanding public speaker.

You can't cherry-pick admirable qualities of brutal dictators. Life doesn't work that way, as Ozzie's now finding out.

[Rich the Giants fan]

This is hardly the first, or even fifth or sixth time Ozzie's mouth has gotten him in trouble. He's lucky he only got a five-gamer out of it. I hope he'll finally learn something from this, but I somehow doubt it. That mouth will roar again, I have no doubt.

[Bothrops Atrox]

Makes no difference.

Same as if he said he admired Adolf Hitler--not because of his policies, but because he was a commanding public speaker.

You can't cherry-pick admirable qualities of brutal dictators. Life doesn't work that way, as Ozzie's now finding out.

Exactly. Walk into a Jewish synagogue and explain how you admire Hitler's love and treatments of domesticated animals. See what happens. You have to know your audience. Leaving politics out of it, we should all agree that Guillen made a very foolish choice.

[ol' aches and pains]

Exactly. Walk into a Jewish synagogue and explain how you admire Hitler's love and treatments of domesticated animals. See what happens. You have to know your audience. Leaving politics out of it, we should all agree that Guillen made a very foolish choice.

Hitler was a vegetarian, as am I. But I don't go around saying I admire him for it. It didn't make him a better person, obviously. Guillen, whom I like, has to be the most politically naive man in the world to say what he said. I hope it doesn't cost him his job, but I think it likely will. If he gets fired, it won't be because The Marlins are sensitive to the feelings of their Cuban fans, it will be because of money. Strictly a business decision. MLB will cozy up to Castro when it suits them, play an exhibition in Havana when there's a buck to be made. But this time, it will cost them money if Cuban fans boycott The Marlins, which is probably already being discussed.

[Melottfan]

Open mouth insert foot.

[9RoyHobbsRF]

You can't cherry-pick admirable qualities of brutal dictators

But you can sit in his box for three hours and have a cordial game

total double standard

I always thought actions speak louder than words

and hitler killed 6 million jews and devestated and over ran countries with a devestating war machine

how many has castro killed and and what countries did he attack with a war machine

totally innappropriaite comparison which was self serving

i understad why miami cubans are upset i dont see why they are/were not so upset about selig and the exhibition game

you cant have your cake and eat it too

[Captain Cold Nose]

And you being from Cuba can speak for them yes?. The captain has already stated to leave the politics out.

He gets the same pass as you did.