THE E.U. DOES SOMETHING RIGHT:

BRUSSELS, Belgium – (AP) — The European Union awarded Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya its top human rights prize Tuesday and pledged to support his efforts to bring democracy to his home country.

The 2002 Sakharov Award honored his human rights activism, which dates back to the 1960s when he was condemned to forced labor by the regime of President Fidel Castro.

Despite fearing for the safety of his family back home, Paya traveled to Strasbourg, France, to receive the award at the headquarters of the European Parliament.

”The day before I left, they broke down my door, they have threatened me and my family with death. I was afraid, but you don’t get paralyzed by fear, you go on,” he said.

San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, however, was making nice with Castro recently:

“To Alcalde Willie Brown,” the bearded one wrote on a crisp C-note suitable for framing, at a party at the presidential palace thrown for a state- sponsored agricultural delegation.

There weren’t a lot of hayseeds in this group. In addition to Brown, the delegation included Gov. Gray Davis’ appointment secretary, Michael Yamaki; top Davis aide Susan Kennedy; and millionaire lobbyist/developer/fund-raiser Darius Anderson.

The one face that really caught our attention, however, was former Central Valley Rep.-turned-lobbyist and businessman Tony Coelho.

That’s admirable.

UPDATE: Then there’s this.