Notable and Quotable

• Preparations for full-scale oil exploration are gaining momentum in Cuba’s Gulf of Mexico waters just 50 miles from the US. [Financial Times]

• “I was at death’s door, but I came back.”  [Fidel Castro's interview in La Jornada]

• Eight more arrested according to the Ladies in White.  Three human rights activists in Havana and five members of the opposition in Guantánamo. [AFP]

• “I still view corruption as an extraordinary danger to the country, since its “corrosive power” makes it a matter of “national security.” [IPS interview with Esteban Morales]

• The Cuban gov’t  is attempting to attract wealthy visitors by allowing the development of golf courses.  A new law allows foreign investors to use state-owned land for up to 99 years. [BBC]

Tagged as: bush administration, Cuba, Esteban Morale, Fidel Castro, Gulf of Mexico, Ladies in White, Obama administration, Oil exploration, U.S. security