What does Gerontocracy Mean?

[protocol rv]

ger·on·toc·ra·cy (jrn-tkr-s)

n. pl. ger·on·toc·ra·cies

1. Government based on rule by elders.
2. A governing group of elders.
3. Very old guys entrenched in power.

Example: Cuba (coo-bah)

President - Raul Castro, 79 years old
Vice President - Jose Machado, 80 years old
Head of National Assembly - Ricardo Alarcón, 73 years old
Chier Puppet Master: Fidel Castro, 83 years old

Cuba's main imports: Geritol (yeh-ree-tohl), Prunes (proons), Viagra (vee-ah-grah)

[subsuelo]

1. what's with the snide pronunciations? n/t

[flamingdem]

4. This kind of "sense of humor" can be seen on right wingy blogs

but they like to use photoshopped photos.. Protocol fire up your graphics program, we demand an illustration!

[bemildred]

2. Old people are more inclined to vote?

And they don't look down on other old people?

[protocol rv]

5. I don't know about you guys

But my grandparents stopped work when they were in their late 60's, and by the time they reached 75 they weren't exactly 100 % upstairs - they suffered from short term memory problems, for example.

Be really honest about it, don't you think it's a little odd to see so many really old guys in charge in Cuba? They're all white males, fairly educated, wrinkled, and don't look in good health. Yet they cling to power. Do you think the "elections" going on in Cuba are anything but a sham, when their leadership remains constant, with so little change, for so many years? Do you really think this is what works best?

I'm not going to fire up photoshop. The point isn't to ridicule them. The point is to catch your attention, and show you why things in Cuba don't work. And I'm afraid Venezuela is headed the same way. We'll have the same wrecking crew dialing us down into a life of primitive bliss, barefoot and skinny, and oh so admired by Americans communists who continue to shop at Walmart.

[Mika]

6. You're full of it.

Generational Shift
http://cubapolidata.com/?p=224

(snip)

Interesting statistics of note:

* Of the 614 candidates for the parliament, 374 (60.91 percent) were born after the triumph of the revolution in 1959. Another 134 (21.82 percent) were under the age of ten. Only 106 candidates (17.25 percent) knew capitalism in Cuba, that is to say, those who were part of the generation that defeated the Batista dictatorship and began building socialism.

* In terms of continuity and renewal, 36.78 percent of the candidates (224) are incumbents in the current 609 member legislature. Therefore, a little over 63.22 percent (385 legislators) will be newcomers in the new legislature of 614 members with the additional 5 members reflecting population growth.

* 42.16 percent of the candidates (265) are women and a majority (481) of the candidates have a university level education (78.34 percent) and 127 (20.68) with high school and/or technical degrees.

Electing Cuba’s National Assembly Deputies:
Proposals, Selections, Nominations, and Campaigns
http://www.cedla.uva.nl/60_publications/PDF_files_publications/82RevistaEuropea/82-Roman-ISSN-0924-0608.pdf

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You know nothing about Cuba. Period.

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[protocol rv]

8. That Nationa Assembly is toothless.

Tell me who's at the top in a communist country, and I'll tell you who really run things. Also, that has to be a typo, they allow 10 year olds to run? What's the deal, they go to the assembly to play with legos?

[Mika]

10. Based on your questions, I am convinced you have a reading comprehension issue.

Hey Pavlov's dog, slow down and take some time to figure out what you're reading. No putdown, but you have understood virtually nothing that has been posted for you to take a look at. I'm not the only one who has observed this.

Based on the entirety of your posts on this forum: you either have a reading issue, or you're here to disrupt and spam DU.

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[flamingdem]

3. Dude, Fidel is still pretty sharp

He's still capable of the analytical thinking that seems to be missing in the USA in terms of Latin America.

[Name removed]

9. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Vogon_Glory]

7. I Don't Recall Post Kruschev USSR Being Run by Young Whippersnappers, Either

I don't recall the old Soviet Union being run by young whippersnappers, either. Breznev, Andropov, Chernenko, all of them looked long in years and set in their ways. I used to wonder if the guys on the Kremlin wall had been freeze-dried and set out on chilly November and May Day parades, and put back into cold storage between times.

I don't think that approach would work in tropical Havana.