At one time the Italian railroad system was notorious for the un-reliability of its daily schedules, prompting the widely repeated story that Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, who ruled from 1922 to 1945, made "the trains ran on time". During the fascist era, railroads and port facilities were improved, and airfields and a modern highway system were built. Because military considerations were paramount, the greater part of this construction was in the strategically important northern part of the country.
Some have argued that this claim is more myth than reality, that Mussolini was disingenuous in taking credit for the changes, since much of the repair work had been performed before Mussolini and the fascists came to power in 1922. It is said that the claim was largely propaganda to counteract critics of the regime. Montagu and Darling wrote: "Mussolini may have done many brutal and tyrannical things; he may have destroyed human freedom in Italy; he may have murdered and tortured citizens whose only crime was to oppose Mussolini; but 'one had to admit' one thing about the Dictator: he 'made the trains run on time.'"
Contemporaneous praise for Mussolini making the trains run on time is surprisingly scarce. The New York Times makes only a single contemporaneous mention of the trains running on time. The noted theologian Reinhold Niebuhr was quoted in the New York Times ["NIEBUHR HOLDS MAN DEPENDENT ON GOD"] on December 14, 1931 "Regardless of the compliments tourists give him for running the trains on time, the rule of Mussolini is the greatest outrage carried on against liberty" Continued
A politician should never say good things about Chairman Mao, for another example, though in a Chinese history class a professor might say that after his death there were many Chinese people who said as one was quoted that their “generation has a very deep attachment to Mao, who created a harmonious society in which people could trust each other with no tricks at all”. In fact, Frank Dikötter, the Dutch historian who has written three books about the horrors of Mao’s rule, wrote “I’m very reluctant to put him above Hitler but equal, head-to-head. It’s a tough race to win.” Reference
One could dredge up some good things Hitler did for some people, but of course no politician would dare do this. But somehow Bernie thought people wouldn't react the way they did to his Castro praise. To Cuban-Americans Castro was their Hitler.
Elizabeth Warren, the only former professor on the stage, knows not to come across like she’s lecturing in a classroom on the Harvard Law Quad. The same should go for Bernie Sanders. The election could hinge for the second time on the results in Florida. Bernie Sanders may not be mortally wounded by what he said about Fidel Castro but he sure shot himself in the foot as stories like this come out in the Sunshine State (see below).
Even those Floridians who didn’t watch the debate or don’t follow national news on TV will learn about what he said on “60 Minutes” and tried to defend in the debate while technically true simply did not need to have been said:
“We are very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba, but it’s unfair to simply say that everything is bad. When Fidel Castro came into office, you know what he did? He had a massive literacy program. Is that a bad thing? Even though Fidel Castro did it?” On “60 Minutes:”
It was almost as if Fidel Castro, who many Americans probably think is still alive even though he died in 2016, was still the dictator of Cuba. To Cuban-Americans, who can make or break a Florida election, his memory is very much alive.
On the lighter side because sometime you need to keep a sense of perspective with humor...
at least Bernie didn’t say this….
because Castro did make world famous cigars.
If you travel to Cuba, thanks to Barack Obama, it is now legal to bring them back. Prior to this only rich Americans with connections could get them, presumably not Michael Bloomberg who is no friend to cigar aficionados.