viva la revolucion

i'm sure we won't know for some time just how bad things are for fidel (if that link asks for a log-in, click here instead). but any way you look at it, this is big.

i can understand cuban-americans and cubans themselves wanting a better standard of living. but i don't wanna see havana become "mini vegas" again. or even see a starbucks on every corner.

i fear these exiles--as they're called--don't understand the advantages to not being america's bitch. they've been softened by our glitter and gold.

of course, all i know is what i've read. given the opportunity, cuba is one of many places i would have liked to travel, but it's been difficult to get to the west coast, let alone the forbidden fruit just a few miles south of the good ol us of a.

at any rate, i know cuba has a higher literacy rate than we do, that their ppl have indiscriminate access (slow or no) to healthcare, and that while the ppl may be poor, they haven't seen fit to overthrow fidel or support u.s. efforts to do so in a way that's made our government successful. they also haven't seen fit to extradite assata shakur.

i wasn't alive to see haiti free herself in the midst of slavery. i was born a full decade or more after india, the nations of africa, and other third world countries gained their independence. not to mention missing the turmoil and black power surge of the 60s and early 70s.

seeing little cuba hold up in the face of uncle sam's bullying long after the cold war was frozen and buried is the only revolutionary example i have from my lifetime (cesar chavez & 'nem notwithstanding).

so, instead of wishing for his demise--yes, i heard a few folks on tv doing just that this morning--i'm going to pray that the cuban people maintain the good points and the spirit of the revolution while allowing for the basic freedoms and human rights we all deserve. i pray they stand fast and refuse to undo fidel's work for the promise of a ham in every oven & a buick in every driveway.

'cause in a generation or so, they may find that the price was far too high.

viva la revolucion.

(read more here)