Bay of Pigs Vets Raising Cash

Bay of Pigs Vets manned a booth at Cuba Nostalgia, trying to raise money for their new museum. The group recently honored the 45th Anniversary of the failed invasion.

Paul Crespo, conservative commentator on WQBA, is spearheading the fundraising.

http://www.bayofpigsmuseum.org/

Comments

[a thought....]

Such an episode in both American and Cuban history does indeed deserve this recognition. I happily put money in the jar and wished them luck. Before anyone starts spewing about how America does not need a museum about a "Cuban" event, please remember that Cuba does have a monument in La Habana honoring the USS Maine which sank off the waters of Cuba. So whatever your feelings are, I hope we can agree that these men who risked everything deserve more than just a mention in some history books. They deserve a place where future generations can go and see the sacrifices that were made in the attempt to free a country. By the way, Cuba Nostalgia was great.

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Article states: Bay of Pigs Vets manned a booth at Cuba Nostalgia, trying to raise money for their new museum.

I guess the question which comes into my mind, is why these supposedly great Cuban heroes even have to "raise" money from the most "successful" immigrant in American history. It appears as if they are a pair of immigrants on Washington Ave, shaking a can begging for nickels and dimes. At this point in their lives, the only booth that any Bay of Pigs veterans should be manning, is one of being congratulated and honor. It just seems as this is beneath them. Thankfully, "real" American veterans dont have to shake a can for money to honor their service!!

A.T. defensively wrote: Before anyone starts spewing about how America does not need a museum about a "Cuban" event.

I find that interesting that you used "Cuban" as the word of choice. You have often kindly reminded me that "Cubans" were really "Americans."

A.T. then wrote: By the way, Cuba Nostalgia was great.

Yes, i also attended that "immigrant" function, in hopes of showing you the "big" and "lovingly" sites of Miami. But unfortunately, i became overwhelmed by the hundreds if not thousands of Hialeah/Little Havana immigrants which attended the same event. I was not only startled, but also quickly overcome with apprehension, so i had to immediately vacate that immigrant haven. Hopefully, there will be other immigrant functions in Miami that you will be attending, which are a lot more conducive to my sanity. Note: I was surprised that there was no INS raid, as it became rather apparent that there were a bountiful amount of illegal alien right wing republican Cubans in attendance, which were in need of inspection and possible deportation.

Always,
john

P.S.
Did you enjoy the Cuban love poem which i specially selected for you?

[a thought....]

John, please notice that is why I put quotations marks around the word Cuban. The Bay of Pigs, as I stated, is equally an event in American history as in Cuban history. The Cuban love poem was very.... interesting. I was overwhelmed by your sincerity.

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Ok sugah, i understand now. You are the only Cuban-American that i have ever met, that i actually enjoy speaking with. You possess grace, class, and intellect, unlike certain other bloggers in the Cuban Connection. Moreover, i trust your judgment and analysis of all things Cuban. You are a breed apart from the other Hialeah Cuban divas.

Sincerely
john

[Robert Barrocas]

John said: Thankfully, "real" American veterans dont have to shake a can for money to honor their service!!

John, are you serious? One of my chief complaints against this country is that it does not do nearly enough for its veterans. I can't even come up with a ballpark estimate of how many destitute, handicapped veterans I've had the misfortune of meeting beneath overpasses with cans asking for change so they can buy themselves something to eat.

Cuba Nostalgia was not an immigrant event. What do you mean when you say: "in hopes of showing you the "big" and "lovingly" sites of Miami."

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Robert,

When A.T. and I are having a "private" discussion, then keep your fat nose out of it. Also, the Bay of Pigs vets are begging for money to fund a "museum," the American vets are asking for money for "personal" reasons. You wil never see an American vet begging for money to fund a "museum." LOL, i always best you Cubans. Too easy!!

[Robert Barrocas]

John,

Seriously, man, sign up for one of those beginner English courses that they offer for Cubans and other Hispanics who've just arrived in this country. It might take you a little longer than the rest of the class but don't worry, you'll get there.

How is it worse to solicit funds for a museum than for a meal? It tears me apart every time I see someone who fought for this country having to brave 90-plus degree temperatures to scrape together change for a sandwich.

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Robert,

Seriously, show me one error in the last post.

[Robert Barrocas]

John,

There are three errors but I'm not going to bother naming them. I was just offended because you called my nose fat.

[Floridiano]

Puaffff....¡qué asco!
El mismo puertorriqueño loco de siempre.
El mismo jabao loco que presume venir del Mayflower y ser un "real American".
El mismo puertorriqueño loco que presume "haber servido a la patria" y de ser "un veterano", cuando todos sabemos que vive de su pensión que recibe del gobierno por fingir una falsa cojera.
El mismo puertorriqueño jabao y loco que vivía en un "shack" al lado del Miami Reiver y que fue desalojado por un cubano que compró el terreno.
El mismo portorro de los cojones una y otra vez.
Bueno, el hecho de atraer el odio de todos los fracasados y derrotados de los Estados Unidos es una señal del gran enorme triunfo de los cubanos.

[Manuel A. Tellechea]

"I guess the question which comes into my mind, [delete comma] is [insert comma] why [do] these supposedly great Cuban heroes even have to "raise" money from the most "successful" immigrant[s] in American history. It appears as if they are [were] a pair of immigrants on Washington Ave, shaking a can begging for nickels and dimes. At this point in their lives, the only booth that any Bay of Pigs veterans should be manning, [delete comma] is one of being [delete "of being" and substitute "where"][they can be] congratulated and honor{ed]. It just seems as [substitute "as" for "that"] this is beneath them. Thankfully, "real" American veterans don[']t have to shake a can for money to [delete "to"} because [their fellow Americans] honor their service!!" --John/Juan

I have limited myself to just the most glaring grammatical errors.

[Floridiano]

Manuel

Cubans and all Americans are immigrants, except Native Americans.

But Longfellow aka Winetto, Gerónimo, Sitting Marmota and Coronel Spencer Mitchell, etc, etc, etc.... is not an immigrant.

He's a reject. In 1898 Americans tried to make an American out of his family and later spat them. He's just dribble, spit, smear.

[Manuel A. Tellechea]

Floridiano:

Now that you have exposed John/Juan's heterogeneous Puerto Rican heritage, it is easy to understand why he suffers from multiple-personality disorder. Is he a Puerto Rican or is he an American? Is he white or is he black? Every group rejects him and he is comfortable nowhere. Really, everything about John is mixed-up -- everything but his sexuality. He has shown in his postings that he knows absolutely nothing about women except how to make himself obnoxious to them. His pathetic overtures to A.T. would embarass a junior-high schooler.

[Albizu Campos]

Nostalgia is now for sale, and it's costly

By Ana Menendez
amenendez@herald.com

Cuba Nostalgia drew thousands to the fairgrounds last weekend, a three-day extravaganza that proves there is no story so worn or threadbare that it can't be repackaged and sold at a profit.

There was old art, there was sad art and somewhere amid the hackneyed paintings of mulatas and their roosters there must have been some authentic sentiment. It was just hard to spot past the shameless shilling.

Well represented in this paean to sentimentality were: Bacardi Mojito, La Bodeguita Goya, Navarro Pharmacy and Southern Chevy Dealers, this last one honoring the heart-warming Cuban tradition of driving.

Yes, the Cuban American National Foundation was there, featuring a video installation that would have been right at home in an edgy Wynwood gallery. The CANF information booth (''Adopt a Dissident'') stood in solidarity alongside Costco Wholesalers, Comcast and Miami-Dade Transit, which was ready to fill the gap for all those not lucky enough to win the 2007 Chevy Cobalt in the drawing next door.

Not to be outdone, The Miami Herald was also there, chasing after the lucrative target audience of octogenarians who consider this paper the mouthpiece of Satan.

THE POSTER

The official posters near the entrance set the cartoon tone for the whole spectacle: Curvaceous Cubanas in frilly cuffs waved maracas while cigar-chomping, congenial-looking fellows strummed guitars. ''Bienvenido a Cuba Nostalgia,'' it said above a prominently displayed logo for Merrill Lynch.

It was downhill from there. After several hours of wandering the space, I was forced to face a series of painful existential questions such as: How many $3.50 magnets of the Virgin of Charity does the average family need? Who buys pillows that say La Habana? Isn't there a better venue for selling boxes of desiccated Gallo Pinto? Is that really a painting of Burt Reynolds with a hat of roosters?

By the time I got to the booth for Memorial Plan cemeteries, I thought I was prepared for anything. But my heart nearly stopped at the sight of dozens of people lined up for some promotional give-away that featured a spinning wheel. Fortunately, this one turned out to be not the Wheel of Fate but the Wheel of Umbrellas and Visors. At that point, I was just relieved that no one was raffling off a free plot.

Cuban Americans have come a long way in this town. Out of the sorrow of leaving family and lives behind, they rebuilt what they could in a new place and struggled through the bad and lean years only to arrive near the end of their story and find it written as farce.

From the sublime to the Bacardi Mojito lounge.

People strolling through the Expo Center Sunday sometimes seemed delighted and sometimes just plain stunned as they gamely powered through the commercial pitches.

''Your roots are your roots,'' said Stella Menéndez (no relation to me). ``Still, it's a shame. It used to be more historical.''

`I FEEL GOOD'

Her brother-in-law, Martin Menéndez, 67, had a simple reason to be there. ''I come because I feel good here,'' he said, browsing through the $59.95 guayaberas.

By a certain age, men like Menéndez have earned the right to their nostalgia. The sad thing is that there's so much money to be made from it.

Saturday marked the 104th anniversary of Cuban independence, a struggle that killed thousands, including Cmdr. Antonio Maceo, who survived 24 battle wounds in his career before dying at the battle of Punta Brava.

That was fortitude in the service of an ideal. Today anyone can sell a T-shirt of Ché Guevara with a bullet hole in his head and call it courage.

As rip-offs go, the $12 entrance to Cuba Nostalgia wasn't nearly as offensive as this notion of an Exile's Bazaar: a place where history is a marketing concept and memory is always priced for a quick sale.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/14652741.htm

[a thought....]

You could have gone to Cuba Nostalgia, paid the entrance fee and just walked around. No one forced anyone to buy anything. Those vendors have to pay for the space they are occupying so heaven forbid they recover their investments and make a profit. It sounds as if Ana Menendez is upset that there were sponsors. Okay, so get upset with the Dolphins, the Marlins, the Heat and every other professional sports team and every band that is touring with sponsors. And don't even think about going to the Indy 500 or Nascar. Complaining about Bacardi? Bacardi had a right to be there; they are Cuban family owned and operated. I'm sorry if the capitalism ($59.95 for a guayabera? John can tell you that's actually pretty reasonable)upset Ms. Menendez' sensibilities. Oh, no! People actually making a living by celebrating Cuba's past? Sacrilege!! We should all be in guayabera sackclothes with ashes on our heads, wailing and gnashing our teeth. Gimme a break. And you know what? Putting on that Che shirt with the bullet hole can be pretty courageous when you have to confront the brainless baboons that defend that murderous, lice-ridden scum (don't tell me that beard was clean). While Ms. Menendez can sniff and look down on us for "buying" memories, the people that actually suffered through the exile in the early 60s didn't seem to have a problem with what was going on. And if anyone should have protested, it should have been them. My mom and my aunts went and they absolutely loved it. They ran into old friends and, yes, they bought a couple of things. So what? Capitalism at it's best!

Menendez wrote: Cuba Nostalgia drew thousands to the fairgrounds last weekend, a three-day extravaganza that proves there is no story so worn or threadbare that it can't be repackaged and sold at a profit.

Hmmm, "no story so worn or threadbare that it can't be repackaged and sold"...sounds like the countless movies made about JFK and Elvis (I like Elvis, though)? Whatever, Menendez...hey, you know what? Some Argentinian festival is coming up; I think you should go and see if nothing is for sale. And don't eat anything or drink anything, either. After all, we wouldn't want the Argentinians to become contaminated with "shameless shilling". I feel as ticked off as John now.

[Robert Barrocas]

A thought,

Very good points. You took the words right out of my mouth.

[Floridiano]

A Though

The Meléndez girl must be another of those Hispanics that hate Cubans.

Meléndez sounds like Puertorrican, just like John aka "Sitting Bull" or Pancho Beaner.

What can you expect of them? Cubans are guilty of their success, of Bacardi, etc.

[a thought....]

Floridiano: Menendez' parents are Cuban; she is from L.A. West Coast Cubans must see things differently than those on the East Coast. This country allows people the opportunity to become successful and when people do (like Bacardi), they get raked over the coals. She just sounded so self-righteous in her article that it ticked me off. The majority of festivals held in Miami (whether divided by cultural lines or not)usually have items and food for sale; it is not exclusive to Cuba Nostalgia. If it offended her so much, then she just shouldn't go.

[nonee moose]

"journalist" reviews of those types of festivals are seemingly compelled to be negative. if not, then the reviewer's "integrity" is questioned... tough! hard-hitting! IRRELEVANT!

any of you who went this year not going back? because of what some journalist says?

[a thought....]

I'll go where I want and I'll see what I want. Movie reviews and festivals review mean zip. And I'm saving up money for next year's Cuba Nostalgia so I can buy a $600 painting of some rooster....

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Floridiano falsely wrote: The Meléndez girl must be another of those Hispanics that hate Cubans.
Meléndez sounds like Puertorrican, just like John aka "Sitting Bull" or Pancho Beaner.

A.T. corrected the liar: Floridiano: Menendez' parents are Cuban; she is from L.A.

Ha, Floridiano calls anybody that takes issues with right wing Cubans, Puerto Ricans. Floridiano cant even state correctly the nationality of the most popular columnist at the Miami Herald, sweet Ana Menedez. I wonder if she is related to the Menedez brothers. I actually saw that movie on cable a while ago. Ms. Menedez is one tough chick. She is like Laura Croft from Tombraider. She doesn't take anyone's shit, and she always give the good word. I never have missed a column from her. Cubans who are not from Miami, tend to be very progressive people. That is why many times I qualify "Miami Cubans." If Ana Menedez had her own blog, I would show some respect for her, as I know she must get a hard time from the hard right wing Cubans like A.T. You know what A.T., your vicious backhand against Ms.Menedez is quite frankly very offensive. I dont know if i will look at you the same after reading your opinions about Ms.Menedez. Hmmm, is that diva really single?

[a thought....]

The post was not against Menendez personally; she can write what she wishes in her column and, due to the wonderful First Amendment, I can respond. She has her thoughts and opinions and I have mine. You told me once that you respected me because I wasn't like "the other Hialeah Divas". Do you dislike me now because I have voiced an opinion that differed from yours? We had something, John, you know we did....By the way, I'm getting my toes done again this week, John...any requests????

[nonee moose]

AT:

loujohn just remembered he had a fetish...LOL

poor kid don't know whether to shit or go fishin... you're just confusin the boy...

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

A.T.

Ok sugah, i have been fighting all this illegal alien immigrant traffic down in Coral Gables. I dont like leaving the beach unless i have to, i like it nice, green and English speaking. So i have been rather irritated the last several days. Therefore, i offer my apologies. I personally dont know what Nostalgic was/used to be like. But i think Ms.Menedez was observing that corporate America's huge footprint at Nostalgic has taken away from the celebration of Cuban history, which some Cubans, especially children would not be able to get somewhere else. Less corporate America booths, and more Cuban-American booths, was the underlining theme by this astute columnist. Truth of the matter is, there should be not one single Corporate American booth, save Cuban-American corporations, which should be there to celebrate and highlight achievements of Cuban businesses in America. I think a Corporate American booth from Idaho has no business trying to impose their wares in a Cuban fair, just because that Idaho corporation had more financial resources to squeeze into a Cuban event. And I think that the Cuban organizers should be more cognizant of that fact, and lowered their prices if necessary to attract more Cubans businesses to the fair, and keep more red state Corporations out. But hell we all know that when it comes to the Miami Cubans, money trumps what is correct. After all, you Cubans always like to remind anyone who will listen that the Cuban-Americans are the most successful people in the "History of the World." And someone like Ms.Menedez will get scorned, because the Miami Cuban has remained ignorant, even after carefully reading her hard-hitting, and thoughtful opinions.

John,

P.S.

Im still awaiting my request for pics of your feet from two months ago. But anyway what are you doing with them?

[a thought....]

Wow....that was the most astute post I have ever read from you. It was insightful and well-thought out. It brought up issues that were well-founded. I am so blown away that I will paint my toes red, white and blue in your honor. With a star on each.

[nonee moose]

AT, como te gusta j****...

[a thought....]

Me encanta...hey, if you worked with attorneys all day, you would need to go a little crazy on this blog too!

[gansibele]

Lest all the frothing at the mouth subside, both camps are wrong. Cuba Nostalgia was conceived from the very beginning as a commercial event (it was started by one Leslie Pantin, of PR fame) so Ms. Menendez's indignation is misplaced. Using "nostalgia" or any other emotionally charged incentives to sell product is neither new nor dishonorable. She does have a point though, the event is portrayed in the media as a grass roots festival and not as a bazaar, which is what it really is.

[Manuel A. Tellechea]

John/Juan: Not the most successful people in history, but the most successful immigrants in the history of this nation of immigrants. Look it up and all the facts supporting it in George Gilder's "Spirit of Enterprise."

Cuban success did not occur in a vacuum; nor is it restricted to a ghetto in Miami. In fact, Cubans who live outside Florida are even more spectacularly successful than those who reside in "la capital del exilio."

Therefore, it would be ridiculous to exclude the American corporations where Cubans have achieved their greatest success from participation at an event that celebrates the roots of that success.

There is nothing wrong with commercialization because there is nothing wrong with commerce. This word is anathema only to those who would return humanity to the pre-industrial age -- that is, to slavery and fiefdom.

[a thought....]

Thank you, Manuel. My point exactly. You can be a huge success and still be true to your roots. I used Bacardi as an example because they are recognized worldwide. They got criticized for "The Mojito Lounge" at Nostalgia. What if Bacardi would not have had a presence there at all? Then the comments would have been along the lines of: "What, they're too good for Cuba Nostalgia? Did they forget they were Cuban?" So damned if you do, damned if you don't. Again, this nation provides the necessary instruments for a driven, determined individual to make themselves a success, but, as you said about commercialism, "This word is anathema only to those who would return humanity to the pre-industrial age -- that is, to slavery and fiefdom." When you become a success (whatever your definition), sometimes you become a target as well.

[nonee moose]

AT, and Manuel. All good points. And whoever mentioned the history of CubaNos underscores the common sense of it all. There is no such thing as "amor al arte", at least not in America. A lot of people put their financial and personal reputations at stake to create this "bazaar" as one person put it. It is disingenuous to expect that the same principles that drive this contry should somehow not have some driving application here.

But... I'm willing to bet that on a net basis, CubaNos is a money loser. Hope that will shut up the anti-commercialist purists.

AT, my condolences on the attorney thing. I really know what you mean. Then again, lawyers turn up in the most interesting places... ;-)

[John Longfellow aka Lou Dobbs]

Manuel arrogantly wrote: I am glad that your parents are "very, very, very rich" and that you live a "very normal life."

A.T. admiringly wrote: Manuel, reminds me of when I was a kid. You gave me a funny flashback!

Manuel the Cuban exile propagandist that he is wrote: Not the most successful people in history, but the most successful immigrants in the history of this nation of immigrants.

A.T. ignorantly wrote in reply: Thank you, Manuel. My point exactly.

Nonee moose the nosey bastard that he is wrote: AT, and Manuel. All good points.

Interesting emails,,
Nuff said
(a non-jealous) John

P.S.

Nonee, come forward with your background,, specifically your education and your profession!

[nonee moose]

loujohn:

believe me, i sympathize with your struggle for identity and some objective and tangible basis to feel better about yourself... something more than emptiness you must feel from your incessant bluster, which by this time even you must notice the waning effect it is having on everyone here. even that poser wikiPancho will not offer you a friendly face... that's bad.

but i offer this advice, don't ask me anymore about my background and education... listen to that little voice in your head that keeps saying "don't go there"... its probably the only part of you that's right...

[Manuel A. Tellechea]

To A.T. and Nonee, my sincere thanks for your kind words of support. You are both excellent writers and I look forward to your posts, which are a necessary tonic for John's biliousness.

To Jon Juan: Yes, this is my new and definitive moniker for you. It incorporates your dual personalities: Self-hating Boricua and Mayflower descendent, as well as tipping the hat to your alter ego: Don Juan. So "Jon Juan" it is. You may think it unusual that I should baptize you with a new name, but, frankly, it is impossible to keep track of all the different identities you have adopted--a lot of time to make up aliases in a shack down by the river--so I think it best to devise a rubric to cover them all. Let me know if you approve. I have left remarks on the Cuban trade embargo under the "Spy/Spy Alone" topic that you may find instructive. Keep dry if possible. I will gladly donate to build the fourth-wall for your three-wall shack.

[boricua drums]

hehehe lou dobbs you lost yo girl to a real man gues its time to get ya inflatible sheep out the closet again

[Manuel A. Tellechea]

Your own proud Boricua countrymen have repudiated you, Jon Juan. And why shouldn't they? You have insulted all your Puerto Rican brothers by denying your ethnic origins, as if they were something to be ashamed of in being a Puerto Rican. Cubans also are your brothers through common ancestral ties and a shared history and culture. But I would rather that you curse Cuban-Americans ten thousand times than see you turn your back on your own people -- on your mother, your father, your brothers and sisters. What can be more hateful than that? But try as you might--and you have gone so far as to claim a fictional Mayflower pedigree--nothing, absolutely nothing, that you say or do can remove the imprint of your people from your face. By claiming to be anything other than a boricua, you have made yourself a public joke, more to be pitied than despised. Jon Juan, show us that there is one drop of dignity, one instant of self-recognition, left in your deformed character, and publicly acknowledge you boricua roots. You will not be disparaged for it, but applauded for having made it back from the precipice of your moral and spiritual ruin. Viva Puerto Rico!!!

[a thought....]

Nonee, far be it from me to complain about attorneys...I've been called all sorts of interesting names when I tell people I work for one...my standard reply is "Yeah, most people don't like them....until they need one." I can say this, it's never boring!!!!

[nonee moose]

AT:

What? No beach time today? Hope ur at least posting frm home. I'm off to the Depot, por si este HP nos manda otro ciclon...LOL

PS got a couple attys in my basement... I've tried everything, but I can't get rid of them...

[boricua drums]

manuel rite on brotha.. los boricuas y los cubano son hermanos

[boricua drums]

lou dobs ur a loser bro ofr real

[a thought....]

Nonee, we are stocking up as well. The stores are insane, but the new BJs in Kendall (all the way out on 88th) is relatively peaceful. As far as the attorneys in the basement, I know you're lying. I have yet to meet anyone in Miami that has a basement!!! You probably have them in the little shed in your backyard...

[nonee moose]

Backyard shed, my eye. LOL. If I had one of those, then I'd be compelled to get a lawnmower and other implement of destruction... Ok, you got me-- no basement, but will a crawlspace do?

BJ's in Kendall is a little farther west than am willing to do battle with, that is without good reason. I'll just elbow my way thru Little Havana. Hope they don't run out of... whatever I happen to need at the moment. It seems like that's an imutable law of nature...

loujohn, if you are still reading these posts, and haven't retired to your own private ida-blog... i beg you reconsider. if you don't, then change your nick, because someone will find you...LOL

i'll tell you something, loujohn--- i didn't think you'd last this long... you sure lasted longer than that wannabe wikiPancho. are you taking him with you?

[a thought....]

Attorney's in a crawlspace?....that's just too easy. I'll leave that one alone.

[nonee moose]

you know, i throw them to be hit out of the park... i like to see things fly. but it gets so slow here.

its funny, but in another thread, we are starting to get "institutional" posts. nameless, faceless, you know. i keep getting that scene from "the Warriors" in my head... the one where all the gangs converge on central park for some great gang summit...

wonder what happend now, since the bombthrowers have been worn down...

[a thought....]

Wa-aaariors, come out and play!!!!

[will]

At least these guys tried 45 years ago. No one else has done anything of consequence since. Banning, embargoing, preventing and all of the other child's play has helped the Commies.

A few Spring Breaks and loads of American tourists would have sent the Castro's packing years ago. The American Dollar corrupts all!!!

[nonee moose]

I disagree. There's no trickle-down of the dollar to the public at large. any dollar gets scooped up by the castro machine, legitimately or thru the (wink) black market. if there was the ability to build wealth, not as we understand it here, but wealth of... empowerment, then i would agree. but as it stands, how do you endrun the regime?

[will]

"Dollars To Castro" is what the local politicians feed you in Miami. There's plenty of trickle down but that reality doesn't keep those votes coming in Miami and New Jersey.

A huge influx of dollars on the streets and American tourists en mass would have run the Castros out long ago. It should be rather obvious by now that doing otherwise has been a major failure. Now Florida has even banned college students from going down there. The absurdities feed on themselves and your community!

[will]

Slip Cuban cops dollars and they'll end up as corrupt as Mexican cops. The Castro brothers have been protected from massive outside corrupting factors by Amercan laws and Miami politicos..face it.

[nonee moose]

Will, you sound angry, and very sure of yourself. That's a very dangerous combination for someone who uses "out-corrupting" as the basis for his educated opinion... Its so crazy, it just might work...