A Reflection on July 26th

It seems like forever since I’ve written about my good friends the Castros. But I figured after reading some of the crap that came out of Raul’s July 26th speech to the “nation” that is was worth a few lines on my little blog. In this post I’m going to use quotes from two people, the first being Raul that I’ve obtained from various sources on the net, the second being a Cuban blogger named Deya:). She had posted something a few days before the speech that I thought would make the perfect answer or at least ask the perfect rebuttal to the supreme leader.

Castro’s speech on the 26th was, as usual, punctuated with a lot of useless rhetoric and fluff, when speaking of the hurricanes and the damage they did he said: “Many people mobilized and they stayed away from their families and homes, even when their own houses were damaged. They trusted the Revolution and they did their duty.” (Quote from the Cuban News Agency) 57% of the people who trusted in the Revolution are still homeless in Cuba following the hurricanes.

Those who aren’t and those who are now living a “decent” life are those who rely on their children, cousins, brothers and sisters living abroad… “I would like to ask how many pants, pairs of shoes and cell phones I have to send my dad to not miss him…” “Or how many computers and home decorations I have to give to my mom so that she doesn’t worry about if I am eating well, sleeping the hours that I need and associating with good people…” Says Deya:) in her post, (she is now living abroad.) The Cubans living outside long ago stopped trusting the Revolution, and a Revolution that forces children to support their parents, splits up families, makes mothers worry for the safety of their children living so far away and breaks so many hearts is no Revolution at all. “But, truly, if someone gave me some magic formula, I would kill myself to work even harder so that they don’t miss me so much or feel the impact of my absence, and so I wouldn’t feel that way about them.”

Castro talks about a return to the land to help with Cuba’s food shortages and the fact that they are having more and more trouble acquiring what they need from foreign sources. In referring to cultivating barren land he says "Let's see if we get to work or not, if we produce or not, if we keep our word." While agriculture might be the way to save people from physical starvation, what about the mental anorexia and the emotional famine caused by the Revolution? “You see, I sincerely wonder … When is this better future that the pro-Castro slogans promise coming. For what purpose and motive do they ask us to work more and harder? Where is this ideal we have been chasing for 50 years already?”

Castro also referred to the help of those abroad in the hard times after the hurricanes of 2008. “The Cuban people also thank the assistance, support and solidarity offered by people from many nations.” How much of that help was actually given by the millions of Cubans living abroad such as Deya:)? And is that really a solution? Because the island will keep being hit by hurricanes, disaster after disaster, how long can Raul and the people rely on those living abroad to survive? What is the real solution? “The solution is not to send money and things ... that is palliative. Nor is it staying there drying up, giving all your strengths, your hopes and your youth to the one who has given you absolutely nothing but promises and lies. I don’t have a solution, I would like one. I know this isn’t it. But this can’t be the natural order of things ...”


From his podium, in front of his crowd of sheep, Castro can pound his fists as much as he wants and yell “Fatherland or death! Down with imperialism!” all night long. But out of those 200,000 people in the crowd many of them are attending wearing jeans, shoes, hats and watches sent by loved ones who cry themselves to sleep every night far away from home working to help those left in Cuba. Those people in the crowd know the truth and know that Imperialism as defined by the Regime is not the enemy, the enemy is the one closer to home that keeps you wondering where your next meal will come from, how you will survive the next hurricane and the one that keeps you wondering how many children you will have to give up to foreign nations before things change.

In a heartfelt post, probably much more honest and true than Castro’s speech, Deya:) pours out her feelings; the feelings of a young woman, far away from her family her home and from those she loves. She is now on the outside looking in with a broken heart and teary eyes. “Obviously we aren’t on the right track. We will keep trying to find another, which may not be right, but I will keep trying for another. One that doesn’t involve so much pain, separation, hatred, repression and tears ... especially tears.”

(Deya:)'s original post can be found by clicking HERE)