This is what leftists are defending..
Credibility score: 46/100 — Mixed Credibility. Several questionable claims detected. Watch with healthy skepticism.
BSmeter analyzed "This is what leftists are defending.." and rated it 46/100 for credibility (a BS score of 54/100 — mixed credibility), on 2026-06-09. Its weakest claim — "Gas was easy to get before Maduro's capture, now bad" — scored 10/100 and was flagged as bs. 37 claims were checked against the video transcript. Scores are produced by BSmeter's AI analysis of the transcript, not independent human verification.
Of 37 claims analyzed: 4 scored under 40, 33 between 40 and 69, and 0 at 70 or above.
Claims analyzed
Cuba is in total absolute poverty due to communism — Opinion (50/100)
At 0:00
Opens with the classic 'communism destroyed Cuba' framing — skips every embargo and policy layer.
Why this score: Broad opinion, not a data claim.
- Cuba's poverty is real and widely documented
- Attributing it solely to communism ignores the 60+ year US embargo
- 'Victim of communism' is the standard talking point, not a neutral description
Original quote: “Cuba is apparently a total [ __ ] hole. It is awful and people living there are living in co to total absolute poverty. And Nick Shirley went to Cuba to try to raise awareness to this and another country that has been the victim of communism.”
Cuba in biggest humanitarian crisis, US blockade blocking oil/gas — Dubious (45/100)
At 0:30
Calls it 'one of the largest' crises — no numbers, just vibes. US embargo is real but Cuba's own policies and Venezuela collapse hit harder.
Why this score: Mixed accuracy.
- Cuba does face severe shortages and blackouts as reported in 2024-2026.
- US embargo restricts some trade but does not fully block oil/gas imports from other countries.
- Venezuela's economic collapse removed Cuba's main subsidized oil source — bigger factor than embargo alone.
Original quote: “Cuba right now is facing one of the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. Cuba's government is a one party communist ruled country and they are facing massive food shortages, daily blackouts and a lack of medicine and right now a US blockade is restricting oil and gas on the inside of the…”
US capture of Maduro cut off Cuba's gas supply — BS (15/100)
At 2:30
Maduro is still president of Venezuela — no US capture happened.
Why this score: False premise.
- Maduro remains in power in Venezuela as of June 2026
- No credible reports of his capture by US forces
- Cuba's fuel shortages predate any such event and stem from its own economic issues
Original quote: “When the United States captured Maduro, their main supplier of gas and oil was shut off. So the country right now has hardly any gas.”
Cubans wait in 1,200-person government gas lines — Personal Story (60/100)
At 2:37
Local testimony about long lines — matches known Cuban fuel shortages.
Why this score: Anecdotal but plausible.
- Cuba has chronic fuel shortages and long queues
- 1,200-person line is extreme but directionally consistent with reports
- Personal account from someone in line, not a verified statistic
Original quote: “And if you do want to get gas, you have to wait in a line from the government. The guy that we're in our tax with right now, he said he his position to get gas is 1,200 in line.”
Government gas $4/gal, black market $40/gal in Cuba — Dubious (45/100)
At 2:46
$40/gallon black market price is wildly inflated — no supporting data.
Why this score: Price claim lacks evidence.
- Official Cuban fuel prices are controlled and subsidized
- Black market premiums exist but $40/gal is extreme
- No corroborating reports of that specific rate in 2026
Original quote: “And gas from the government cost around one,200 in line and it's $4 a gallon. And that's cub dollar. But gas if you were to buy it on the black market cost $10 per liter. That's $40 per gallon if you buy gas here in Cuba.”
Gas was easy to get before Maduro's capture, now bad — BS (10/100)
At 3:03
Again — Maduro wasn't captured. Cuba's shortages have other causes.
Why this score: Timeline is invented.
- Maduro remains Venezuela's leader
- Cuba's fuel crisis stems from its economy and sanctions, not a fictional capture
- Pre-2026 shortages were already severe
Original quote: “Before they captured Maduro, was there gasoline in the gas station? Jesus. Always. Always were easy. Nowadays is really bad, but it was easy to get gasoline.”
Average Cuban is living in absolute hell — Opinion (50/100)
At 3:39
Strong opinion based on visible empty streets and shortages.
Why this score: Subjective framing.
- Cuba faces real economic hardship and scarcity
- "Absolute hell" is rhetorical, not measurable
- Conditions are bad but vary by location and person
Original quote: “Just imagine the reality of it with a thousand uh sacrifices and a thousand daily struggles. The average Cuban citizen is the one really going through absolute hell here in this country.”
Streets quieter now than during the pandemic — Personal Story (55/100)
At 4:13
On-the-ground observation of empty plazas — hard to verify remotely.
Why this score: Local impression.
- Video shows visibly empty areas
- Pandemic comparison is subjective
- Fuel and money shortages plausibly keep people home
Original quote: “They're saying that this is even more quiet than during co during the pandemic. Less people are even leaving the streets than during the pandemic. That's how bad the crisis is right now.”
Cuba's problems are entirely the government's fault, not US sanctions — Opinion (50/100)
At 4:30
Blames Cuba's government 100% while calling the US-fault theory pure delusion.
Why this score: Opinion on causation.
- Speaker asserts internal policy failures are the sole driver
- Dismisses external sanctions as irrelevant
- No specific sanctions data or embargo details referenced
Original quote: “to say that this is the United States fault is like the most [__] thing that you can possibly say. The reason why it's this bad is because the government's making it this way.”
Cuba is a total failure in every category — Dubious (45/100)
At 4:39
Calls Cuba a complete hole across ideology, mechanics, and politics.
Why this score: Broad sweeping judgment.
- Anecdotal hospital visit used as total verdict
- No comparative metrics on education or healthcare outcomes
- Absolute language exceeds the single data point shown
Original quote: “The place is a [__] hole. It's a [__] hole ideologically. It's a [__] hole mechanically. And it's a [__] hole politically.”
Cuba's multiple failures prove self-inflicted problems — Opinion (50/100)
At 4:55
Argues multiple internal failures rule out blaming the US.
Why this score: Causal logic claim.
- Suggests single-issue problems might allow external blame
- Multiple failures = self-inflicted in his view
- Remains interpretive rather than data-driven
Original quote: “if there was only one thing that they had wrong... then I think you could make an argument... But the reality is that they're making things bad for themselves.”
Communist systems have zero free speech; neighbors report you — OK (60/100)
At 5:08
Describes Cuba's informant system and speech restrictions.
Why this score: Generally accurate description.
- Cuban law does punish 'enemy propaganda' and dissent
- CDR neighborhood watch system is documented
- 'Supernormal imprisoned' phrasing is unclear but intent is clear
Original quote: “Communist country, there's no such thing as freedom of speech or freedom of the press... your neighbor can then report you... you have the risk of supernormal imprisoned for speaking out against the regime.”
Says communist countries do fascism 10x worse than Trump — Opinion (50/100)
At 6:30
Calling it '10 times worse' is pure heat, not a measurable stat.
Why this score: Subjective comparison with no defined metric.
- 'Fascist' is already a loaded label applied to policy disagreements
- No specific policies or data offered to support the multiplier
- Functions as rhetorical escalation rather than analysis
Original quote: “everything that they criticize Trump doing for being fascist these countries do 10 times worse.”
Claims leftists defending these regimes have zero logic — Opinion (50/100)
At 6:36
Blanket 'no logic' dismisses people who simply weigh different tradeoffs.
Why this score: Dismissive framing that treats disagreement as irrational.
- Many defenders cite literacy gains, healthcare access, or anti-imperialist stance
- Whether those tradeoffs are worth it is debatable, but they aren't 'no logic'
- Reduces complex political reasoning to a total absence of thought
Original quote: “There's like no logic or reasoning for this at all.”
Cuban says communism is the worst thing in Cuba — Personal Story (50/100)
At 6:42
Direct lived experience — hard to fact-check, easy to respect as testimony.
Why this score: Personal testimony from someone currently living under the system.
- Rates as anecdote rather than data point
- Valuable for showing how some citizens experience daily life
- Doesn't prove systemic causation on its own
Original quote: “The worst thing in Cuba is communism. To live in communism is the worst thing now in Cuba.”
Blames current Cuban president for people dying of hunger — Opinion (50/100)
At 6:50
Links leadership directly to hunger — strong claim with no numbers attached.
Why this score: Causal attribution without supporting statistics.
- Cuba does face documented food shortages and economic strain
- Whether one president bears sole responsibility is the opinion part
- Real conditions exist; the single-cause framing is the debatable leap
Original quote: “I don't think he's capable to be president. Damn. Because we are dying of hunger.”
Says government is responsible for giving people food — Opinion (50/100)
At 6:58
Short answer that reveals the core expectation: state as provider.
Why this score: Core ideological stance in one line.
- Reflects the social contract many Cubans were raised under
- The question was whether government owes food; answer is yes
- No deeper policy debate offered in the clip
Original quote: “they're the bosses.”
Cuba blocks videos because of government spies — Opinion (50/100)
At 8:54
Straight from the 'communist censorship' starter pack — zero proof it's the full story.
Why this score: Opinion about Cuban media controls.
- Interviewee links lack of videos directly to spies and state control.
- No data on actual video output or censorship mechanisms provided.
- Plausible factor but presented as total explanation.
Original quote: “That's 100% why you don't see videos come out of Cuba. It's very limited the videos that you see come out of Cuba because”
Average Cuban salary is $14 USD per month — Dubious (45/100)
At 9:04
That $14 figure keeps getting thrown around — it's the official rate, not what people actually live on.
Why this score: Dubious use of official exchange rate.
- Cuban average salary is reported around $14-30 USD at official rates.
- Most Cubans rely on remittances, black market, and side work that isn't captured in official stats.
- Number is technically cited but misleading without context on purchasing power and informal economy.
Original quote: “the average salary of someone here for the month is $14 USD”
Cubans want the USA to take over their country — Personal Story (50/100)
At 9:20
One guy on the street says 'take us' — turning that into 'Cubans want annexation' is a leap.
Why this score: Personal Story from a single interviewee.
- Represents one person's frustration, not a poll.
- No evidence this view is widespread or representative.
- Valid anecdote about local sentiment but can't be generalized to the population.
Original quote: “You're going to come here. USA is going to take Cuba. Of course. Would you like the USA to take Cuba? Of course.”
Cuba's old cars and lack of innovation caused by 1959 communism plus US embargo — Dubious (45/100)
At 10:30
Embargo started 1960, but pre-1959 cars also reflect 60+ years of state control and parts shortages — not just the ban.
Why this score: Partial timeline error. Key issues:
- US embargo began February 1960, not immediately in 1959
- Cuba's own policies on imports, currency, and state ownership blocked new cars for decades
- Classic single-cause explanation that skips domestic economic controls
Original quote: “The reason for these cars here in Cuba is because in 1959 is when communism took effect and the United States then later put an embargo on Cuba which stopped new companies from working with Cuba. So all they had left was cars from the 1950s and earlier. Innovation tends not to take place in…”
Maduro was captured and boxed like in the US — BS (10/100)
At 12:30
Maduro is still running Venezuela in 2026 — no US box ever happened.
Why this score: Straight fabrication.
- Nicolás Maduro remains in power as of June 2026
- No credible reports of capture or extradition to the US
- Speaker is mixing fantasy with real events
Original quote: “I wonder if they're going to just do what Maduro did what they did with Maduro where they just get the main guy and then put him in a box like in the US”
Cuba's old cars and blackouts prove communism is garbage — Opinion (50/100)
At 14:30
Calling 70-year-old cars and power outages 'proof communism is garbage' — that's a whole system reduced to one broken grid.
Why this score: Opinion framed as obvious fact.
- Ties visible infrastructure failure directly to ideology
- Ignores 60+ years of embargo, tourism reliance, and post-Soviet collapse
- Classic single-cause reasoning: one bad outcome = entire system invalid
Original quote: “I don't see how you can look at something like this and then not come to the conclusion that obviously communism is is a is garbage. Like I mean very clearly this is garbage. Very clearly this isn't working. Duh. It's not working.”
Communism made everyone equally poor in Cuba — Opinion (50/100)
At 16:30
Cuban guy nails the punchline — everyone equal in the hole.
Why this score: Personal observation from someone who lived it.
- Matches decades of reports on Cuban living standards.
- No data presented, just lived experience.
Original quote: “Reality of communism is high and the other isn't. Communism should make everyone equal. Yeah. Well, everybody is equal. Everybody lives in a [ __ ] hole now. There you go. No one's rich. Nobody else.”
Gas costs $10/liter on Cuba's black market — Dubious (45/100)
At 18:30
$10/liter sounds extreme — Cuba's official prices are far lower; black market premium possible but unverified here.
Why this score: Price claim needs context.
- Official Cuban gas price is heavily subsidized (~$0.40-1/liter range)
- Black market markup exists but $10 figure lacks independent confirmation
- No source or receipt shown for the specific number
Original quote: “Go to jail or get killed. People tried in the past have problems with the government. And how much does it cost right now for gas? $10 a liter. We're buying on the black market.”
Cuba has zero food or medicine at night and needs foreign military intervention — Opinion (50/100)
At 20:30
Nighttime shortages are real — the 'send in the Marines' part is pure wishful thinking.
Why this score: Shortages documented but the proposed solution is political opinion.
- Multiple reports confirm medicine and food scarcity after dark
- Calls for military intervention are the speaker's personal stance, not evidence
Original quote: “At night time, there's nothing. No food, no medicine. How much long we're going to go on like this? Come in and have military intervention here.”
Cuban elites control electricity, cars, oil, gas and most companies — Dubious (45/100)
At 22:30
Broad ownership claim lacks specifics — state vs. party elite distinction matters.
Why this score: Mixes state control with personal ownership. Evidence gaps:
- Electricity and fuel sectors are state monopolies, not private elite holdings
- Some luxury vehicles and homes belong to high-ranking officials, but scale is anecdotal
- "Majority of companies" phrasing overstates without ownership data
Original quote: “Wow. Surely there must not be a Surely it's the United States fault. Equality for man doesn't exist here. Holy [__] They're the ones with everything. They have electricity. They have the nicest cars. They have oil. They have gas. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. There it is. Majority of the companies are theirs.…”
Calls socialism the worst thing that can happen in life — Opinion (50/100)
At 24:30
Strong take — socialism as life's ultimate disaster, no nuance allowed.
Why this score: Opinion claim with no factual metric offered.
- Ranks one economic system as 'worst' without defining criteria
- Personal judgment, not measurable statement
Original quote: “No no no no. The worst thing you can have happen in life is socialism.”
Cuba, Sudan, Gaza, Zimbabwe and others are all identical because humans have always done this for 20,000 years — Sketchy (25/100)
At 26:30
Lumping wildly different countries and histories into "exact same" for 20k years is lazy.
Why this score: Oversimplification of complex political and economic situations.
- These countries have distinct histories, colonial legacies, sanctions, and internal dynamics
- Claiming identical behavior across 20,000 years ignores massive changes in governance and technology
- No evidence presented that the mechanisms are literally "the exact same"
Original quote: “stuff the thing is that like whether it's Sudan, Gaza, um you know, Guatemala, um you know, like pre-bukle, El Salvador, uh Cuba, um you know, Zimbabwe, they're all the exact same. Every single one is the exact same. They all do the exact same thing because that's what people do. We've been doing…”
Cuba's communist government is deliberately starving and displacing millions to preserve ideology — Opinion (50/100)
At 28:30
Frames Cuba's poverty as pure ideological choice — ignores the actual US embargo mechanics he mentions 30 seconds later.
Why this score: Strong framing, weak on cause.
- Speaker correctly notes the human cost in Cuba.
- The claim reduces a 60-year sanctions regime plus internal policy failures to one variable: "they won't roll over."
- No numbers given for "millions displaced" or "millions starving" — both are rhetorical.
Original quote: “Is it worth the suffering of all of your people for you to keep your ideology on life support and then take your entire country into a total [ __ ] like a a ghettoization of the entire country? Millions of people displaced, millions of people starving, living in [ __ ] holes, living like animals,…”
Cuba is poor because communism made it a shithole with bad laws — Opinion (50/100)
At 30:30
Blames Cuba's poverty on communism and 'social laws' without naming any specific law.
Why this score: Opinion framed as fact.
- Attributes Cuba's economic issues solely to communism
- No specific Cuban laws on expression or social policy cited
- Ignores 60+ years of US embargo and other external factors
Original quote: “If communism is so wonderful, why aren't they self-sufficient? because they're a [ __ ] hole. Like like again nothing about like look at the social laws they have. Look at the laws on expression that they have.”
Calls Cuba the 'North Korea of Latin America' with spies watching them — Opinion (50/100)
At 32:30
Cuba's surveillance state is real but the North Korea comparison is pure hyperbole.
Why this score: Strong opinion, weak comparison.
- Cuba does have extensive state surveillance and restricted movement
- North Korea's total information blackout and hereditary god-king system are in a different league
- The line works as rhetoric but collapses on specifics
Original quote: “This is literally the North Korea of Latin America and we have spies on us.”
General asked random people on street about their footage — Personal Story (55/100)
At 36:30
They claim the same general who just questioned them was also canvassing street people about the footage — that's a pretty hands-on approach for a two-star.
Why this score: Anecdotal claim with no external verification.
- The detail about questioning locals is presented as fact but rests solely on the travelers' account.
- No timestamps, names, or other corroboration offered in this clip.
- Possible but unusually direct involvement for senior military in routine tourist matters.
Original quote: “You saw the two stars, right? Yep. There it is. That's nuts. Two star general asking the people on the streets what kind of footage we got.”
Cuba might torture or hold Americans hostage briefly — Opinion (50/100)
At 38:30
Speculating about torture without any evidence or examples given.
Why this score: Pure speculation. Key issues:
- No specific incident or report cited
- Based on general assumptions about Cuban government
- Conversation is guessing, not reporting facts
Original quote: “What are they going to do? Disappear a bunch of Americans? Yeah, they could probably hold them there for a while. Maybe torture them. uh you know, maybe hold one of the guys but then let the other ones go. Yeah, sure.”
Cuba would punish American for criticizing government — Opinion (50/100)
At 40:30
Framing Cuba as a place where tourists get disappeared for opinions — that's the same script every time.
Why this score: Rhetorical escalation. The speaker pivots from "they didn't search phones" to implying Cuban authorities would have detained or harmed an American for negative comments. No specific case or law cited.
- Cuba does arrest dissidents, but foreign visitors face different (usually lighter) consequences.
- The claim stays at the level of "you don't know what they would have done" — impossible to verify.
Original quote: “I think you underestimate how dangerous these governments can be. And also like you don't know what they would have done.”
Cuban gov could beat, jail, starve, or torture Americans short of killing them — Opinion (50/100)
At 42:30
Lists plausible harassment tactics Cuban authorities could use without killing the journalist.
Why this score: Personal assessment of risk levels.
- Draws from general knowledge of authoritarian tactics rather than specific documented incidents involving Nick Shirley.
- Highlights the gap between "nothing happens" and "they murder you" as the realistic danger zone.
Original quote: “Well, there's a lot they could do besides that, right? I mean, they could beat you up. They could put you in jail. They could starve you. They could torture you in different ways. I mean, there's tons of ways that they could do that are not killing you. I mean, killing you is the obvious one,…”
Critics dismiss Cuba footage to defend communism — Opinion (50/100)
At 48:30
Calls out the motive without proving every critic shares it.
Why this score: Opinion on intent.
- Speaker attributes disagreement to ideological cover rather than evidence disputes.
- No specific data offered on how many critics actually hold that view.
- Classic motive-based dismissal of opposing takes.
Original quote: “People are saying it's [ __ ] reporting. These are the same people that were saying that the Minnesota stuff was [ __ ] These are the same ones. And the reason why they're saying that is they want to downplay the bad actors and the bad behaviors of communism and communist governments because they…”
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