Ivan and Cuba

Another note on Ivan...a little more serious. Earlier in the week, while Ivan was aiming for Cuba, a few things struck me about the reaction to the impending disaster there as opposed to here. CBS News reported:

"The hurricane hit hours after President Fidel Castro stopped to discuss
preparations in Pinar del Rio city, where residents shouted 'Fidel! Fidel!' 'We
are so happy to have him close to us,' said 78-year-old Elsa Ramos, when Castro
visited the tobacco-growing town of San Juan y Martinez. 'Fidel protects us from
all bad things.'"

"Fidel protects us from all bad things." The sad thing is that this poor guy may really think that. And the infuriating thing is that Fidel allows, and even encourages him and his fellow Cubans to think that.

The Protector of Cuba himself had this to say about any aid which might be forthcoming from the United States:

"We won't accept a penny from them. The hurricane before this they offered
$50,000. Even if they offered all that was necessary - $100 million, $200
million, we would not accept."

Well, buddy, I didn't hear anyone offering. Oh, I'm sure the Cuban exiles in Florida who risked their lives and fortunes and sacred honor to come to this country would be glad to help out given the chance. There is no doubt that they still love the land and the people they left behind. But, they now live in a place where they are free to worship a different King. And, they have been welcomed into a new land where they can say what poor Elsa Ramos might have also said, given the chance. "We are so happy to have God close to us...it is He who protects us from all bad things." Fidel, you wicked old fool, your days are numbered. The people who have fled your tyranny are now part of a society where they are free to offer or accept assistance without deference to the ego of a leader whose "benevolence" is by decree. And the day will come when those left on that beautiful island that you have made a prison will triumphantly say, "What you have offered, we will no longer accept."