An Intimate In The Family Life
At the latest Democratic debate, Barack Obama was happy to announce that he would meet with Raul Castro "without preconditions " just as soon as the necessary arrangements could be made. Hillary Clinton showed at least some understanding about what Cuba is under the communist dictatorship Raul inherited from his better known brother Fidel and pledged she would only meet if things were shown to be changing.
Obama fails to understand what exactly life is like for those who have dissented with the "fatherly" Fidel and his regime. There are those who would rather that Fidel Castro, who, in the words of Fidel's trained media seals "has managed to transcend political life to insert himself as an intimate in the family life of the overwhelming majority of Cubans," really had not done so. And they see no chance that things will improve under Raul.
HAVANA — I imagine that the outside world sees the latest developments in Cuba quite differently from what we are shown here. Reacting to the message this week from "El comandante en jefe," Fidel Castro, that he is stepping down, Lazaro Barredo, editor in chief of the Communist Party newspaper Granma wrote approvingly the next day that "Fidel has managed to transcend political life to insert himself as an intimate in the family life of the overwhelming majority of Cubans."
In my family this insertion was a very painful one. In March 2003, a group of police officers invaded our home and began a 15-hour search of our small apartment. They took away my husband, Omar Rodr¿guez Saludes, a journalist who dreamed about a prosperous Cuba and wanted our fellow citizens to be happy. Omar was sentenced to 27 years in prison for "acts against the independence and the territorial integrity of the country." In reality, this was for writing articles and taking photos and publishing them in one of the few samizdats that saw the light of day on our island, called — fittingly — "De Cuba." The indictment notes tools of his supposed crimes that were confiscated from him: a tape recorder, a microphone, a cable, a battery charger.
My husband, the other 73 men and the one woman detained in this roundup were all declared prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International. I have no doubts on whose orders this act of repression was carried out, so I do not view the announcement from El Comandante objectively.
Obama would meet with the successor to the man who jailed Ileana Marrero's husband and hundreds of others "without preconditions." He would not even insist that those political prisoners be freed before meeting. He would lend the power and prestige of the American presidency to a totalitarian regime and to its new, hereditary ruler.
Clinton at least had a somewhat better take on it. John McCain had an even better one. He hopes Fidel Castro gets to meet someone soon: Karl Marx.
Politically incorrect? Why not ask Ileana Marrero? Or better yet, ask her husband, Omar. Oh, that's right, you can't. He's rotting in Cuba's Toledo Prison in a filthy cell.
Politics, World news | Gaius Saturday, 23 February , 2008
By ted goldman, Saturday, 23 February , 2008 @ 9:12 am
Barack and Michelle Obama actually hate America, as evidenced by their repeated negative statements.
Both happily accept Communist Cuba , without critcism.
These empty headed Democratic "sloganeers" will result in a Republican victory in November.
By martian, Saturday, 23 February , 2008 @ 1:31 pm
Why would Obama not meet with the Raul Castro without pre-conditions? After all this is a man that, reportedly, respects and idolizes the murderous Che Guevara - Castro’s hit man during the revolution. It has been reported that Che’s picture is prominently displayed in at least one of Obama’s campaign offices. If he likes the hit man how special do you think he feels the hit man’s boss is? This is just more evidence of Obama’s strong socialist tendencies and sympathies.