A brief, uncontrolled rant on Cubans in Florida

Much has been made, both in the news and on numerous blogs, of the current situation in Cuba, with Fidel's giving of power to Raul. Others are more able and have better provided intelligent analysis of the situation, and Mister Trend is in no way informed enough to contribute anything new.

However, nothing can stop me from ranting about the Cuban so-called "emigres" in Florida, so if you're not up for a VERY opinion-laden, editorial-based blog, if you're seeking new political and analytical insights and possible scenarios in Cuba, then stop reading now.

I find few people more despicable as a political group than these imbeciles. They are one of the worst of the numerous special interest groups that politicians pander to, and they have far too powerful a voice (and an ignorant and bigoted voice at that) for their small numbers.

But what really gets me is the sudden response. As numerous papers have reported, they are out in the streets celebrating (even though, last I checked, Castro's still alive, and it's just Raul who has power now). They bemoan the loss of property under Castro (which happened, but that's what you get for being part of a long line of elitist families who did all they could to keep a nearly absolute majority of your population in poverty and desolation, creating and reifying a ferocious racial hierarchy). Yet, given the passage of time, many of the "Cubans" in Florida were born AFTER 1959, and many were even born IN the US. Sure, there are also many many immigrants/"refugees" in Florida as well, but nonetheless, many are second (or even third) generation migrants. What's strange is, many of them seem to think they're going to get their land/holdings/etc. back when Castro's in power, but as people who are often born here or who have lived here since their childhood, one must ask: what holdings? You've been in the US almost your whole life, if not it, and for many of you, you never had any holdings in Cuba.

And are you really going to go back to Cuba? Don't get me wrong - your interest group has really fucked with American politics over the last 45+ years (how many other countries do you know who keep the same policy towards another country that long the way the US has towards Cuba?). But if you go to Cuba, there should be a proviso - don't come back. If it's the heaven you think it once was and will be again in a post-Fidel era, and you find out it's not that way, tough shit. You made your choice, the one you fought for for so many years, the one that you used to get politicians to bend over backwards to you at the state and federal levels, so you deal with it. There are no take-backs on this one.

So before you're all laudatory (again - he's still alive), consider the legacy of elitism in Cuba, and the roots that led to Castro's revolution, and decide if you want to impose those class-based hierarchical conditions again. My guess is, if and when you return to Cuba, you'll find the utopia you imagine not only doesn't occur, it was never there in the first place.