Cuban blogger threatened and beaten ... by gimleteye

There is nothing to say but words of empathy and anger in response to news that Cuban blogger Yoani Sanchez was apparently detained and beaten by state security officials in Havana, on her way to a protest march against violence. But for The Miami Herald, this story would not have emerged in the mainstream press.

The internet has proven to powerfully break down barriers and obstacles to reaching wide numbers of readers with information that otherwise would not be available. It has other impacts, too: breaking down the profit model that eroded the quality of news. In repressive nations, the internet has proven especially dangerous to the legitimacy of authorities. In China, for instance, our main economic competitor imposes Big Brother tactics against internet users.

In America, we complain a lot, and do, about the decline quality of news and information available to people. I feel angry that this is, for instance, "The Age of Stupid". I regularly extend my criticism to the majority of our county commissioners in Miami-Dade as "unreformable" and part of the Idiocracy. But I write these words knowing, too, that the United States is the gold standard for freedom of speech, and stories like the one from Cuba today remind me to be thankful for that, every day.