AP Prints Cuban Propaganda With No Question

The headline: Castro says he's stable after surgery. The story, however details that said declaration was in the form of a statement read on television by the Cuban government.

Meanwhile, Blue Crab Boulevard announces it has completed a hostile takeover of the New York Times.

Both statements have equal validity. It would be nice if the AP had even an ounce of the skepticism they show whenever a statement is released by the US government. Or by almost anyone else. Castro gets a pass? Or whatever sockpuppet actually coughed up said statement?

HAVANA – Fidel Castro said Tuesday that his health was stable after surgery, according to a statement read on state television, as the Communist government tried to impose a sense of normalcy on the island's first day in 47 years without Castro in charge.

Castro, who temporarily handed power to his younger brother Raul on Monday night after undergoing intestinal surgery, indicated the surgery was serious when he said: "I can not make up positive news."

But he said his health was "stable," and "as for my spirits, I feel perfectly fine," according to the statement read by moderator Randy Alonso on a daily public affairs program.

Castro expressed his gratitude for the good wishes he received from leaders and supporters around the world, and called on Cubans to remain calm and maintain their daily routines.

"The country is prepared for its defense," he said in the statement. "Everyone needs to struggle, and work."

Castro's comments came after Parliament Speaker Ricardo Alarcon dismissed suspicions among anti-Castro exiles that the Cuban leader was dead, said the president's "final moment is still very far away."

Raul Castro, the island's acting president, was nowhere to be seen as Cubans began to worry about what comes next and exiles in Miami celebrated a development they hoped signaled the death of a dictator. Cuban dissidents kept a low profile while watching for signs of Castro's condition.

It really is quite ridiculous that the AP would run that headline and not question a darn thing about the statement. Nor even raise a question of why the worker's paradise has suddenly become a family fiefdom. Funny how that works in a lot of communist utopias, isn't it?