Fidel Castro (1926-2016): The Dictator Next Door

English: The Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Español: El líder cubano Fidel Castro. Italiano: Il leader cubano Fidel Castro Français : Le dirigeant cubain Fidel Castro. 日本語: キューバの最高指導者であるフィデル・カストロ Português: O líder cubano Fidel Castro. ‪Norsk (bokmål)‬: Cubas statsoverhode Fidel Castro. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Since New Year's Day 1959, the Cuban people had known only one leader.  A former baseball pitcher who once tried out for the Washington Senators, he threw curve balls at the United States by bringing his own brand of Communism to the Western Hemisphere.  He had been a thorn in the side of eleven U.S. presidents from Dwight Eisenhower to Barack Obama, blamed his neighbor to the north for an ongoing embargo, and nearly brought the world to nuclear war with the presence of Soviet missiles on Cuban soil.

Fidel Castro's run as Maximum Leader ended this past weekend at the age of 90.  While he was mourned in Havana, Cubans who long ago risked their lives to escape his regime to settle in the United States were celebrating in the streets of Miami.  The rest of the world's reaction was mixed at best.

Castro's lasting legacy depends on who you ask.  For some, he was a worldwide force for change against capitalist imperialism, seeking to export his ideas to places like Africa and Latin America.  For others, Castro was just another despot whose "revolution" devolved into extreme poverty for his people, jails and prisons filled with dissidents (if they weren't already killed), and using the Soviet Union to keep the Americans at bay.

The United States government did everything they could do to get rid of Castro, whether it was done clandestinely or not.  They tried to kill him, poison him, invade his country, etc., all to no discernible effect.  Castro would respond by using his lengthy nationally-televised addresses to denounce American aggression.  Meanwhile, his country was stuck in a time warp, as characterized by those well-maintained (because they had to be) 1950s-era cars made in Detroit.

Lately, though, there's been a warming of relations between the two countries.  Embassies have been reopened, and travel restrictions for Americans have been eased.  But economic sanctions have yet to be lifted.  And they won't be if President-elect Donald Trump and an anti-Castro Republican Congress roll back reforms as they have promised.

Castro gave up his presidency in 2008 due to declining health, turning it over to brother Raoul.  He now runs Cuba at age 85 with plans to step down in 2018.  Then what?  Will Communism survive the Castros, or is there another strongman (which the U.S. hopes is more to their liking) ready to take over?

What happened to Cuba under Fidel Castro's regime is for history to decide.  What happens after brother Raoul leaves is a matter of speculation.  Whatever happens, the Cuban people deserve a better fate.

Trump, The Week After

speaking at CPAC in Washington D.C. on February 10, 2011. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In the week following the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States, a divided country is still trying to deal with it.  One half is still cheering the results, while the other is severely bummed and taking it to the streets.

President Barack Obama, in what must have been an awkward situation considering that he supported Democrat Hillary Clinton during the campaign, welcomed Republican Trump to the White House last Thursday to begin the transfer of power.  Both seemed to be on good terms, if photo-ops can be believed.  The President later expressed hope that the weight of responsibilities that come with this office might mellow Trump a bit.

Trump, despite the ugly rhetoric he had been dishing out during the campaign, did his best to soften his tone.  The President-elect now says he might keep some of the provisions of the Affordable Care Act, such as prohibiting insurers from excluding those with pre-existing conditions, instead of blowing it up.  As for that wall across the Mexican border?  Some of it might be just a higher fence.

But then Trump had to undo all that by naming Steve Bannon, a hero of the alt-right and white supremecist groups who ran the conservative Breitbart News site, to be his chief adviser.  This move justifies fears that the new administration will be catering to the more racist among us.  Calls for Bannon's removal will undoubtedly go unheeded.  Also Reince Preibus, who ran the Republican National Committee, will serve as chief of staff.

Despite promises of "draining the swamp", it looks like some members of Trump's Cabinet might be coming from the Washington establishment, as in names you never thought you'd hear from again:
Newt Gingrich, Rudy Giuliani and John Bolton (who was United Nations ambassador under President George W. Bush) are all reportedly in the running for Secretary of State.

It also sounds like, despite nepotism laws, Trump's children are going to have a role in the White House. Already daughter Ivanka's been using valuable network TV time to subtly promote her $10,000 jewelry on CBS' "60 Minutes".  Besides turning over the family business to them, their father is pushing to let his adult children have a peek at some state secrets.

As for the Democrats, now's the time for soul searching.  Clinton lost the election despite winning the popular vote because:  (1) She and her party took the base for granted, failing to fully grasp the discontent among white voters and Bernie Sanders supporters.  (2) As Clinton herself admitted, FBI director James Comey's decision 11 days before the election to reopen the inquiry into her private e-mails was a big factor in her defeat.

It might not be until at least 2020 or 2022 before the Democrats regain power in Washington.  Unless Trump screws up big-time, he has the makings of a two-term President.

Trump has promised to be a president for all the people, and that there is nothing to fear.  Clinton and Obama have also said as much.  So why are we seeing demonstrations all over the country?  They may or may not be "professional protesters" egged on by the media, as Trump once tweeted, but they seem to believe they have the most to lose in the new administration.  Immigrants from other countries, Muslims, women, LGBTQs, African Americans, Latinos and anyone else who has been offended by Trump in the past have been marching down streets and blocking freeways to express their displeasure.

Meanwhile on social media, Trump supporters have been gloating over the devastation among Clinton supporters, calling them "crybabies", "welfare suckers" and other terms not worth repeating.  Offline, there have been incidents of intimidation, bullying and swastika sightings aimed at minorities.  If these supposedly mature adults could understand what the other side is going through, , maybe they wouldn't be so quick to commit this abuse of the First Amendment.

President-elect Donald Trump has been charged with the task of bringing the country together.  We'll believe it when we see it, and it's going to take more than saying "stop it" on TV to the bigots who are acting in his name.  As the Dixie Chicks would put it, we're not ready to make nice just yet.

America, Trumped

English: Donald Trump at a press conference announcing David Blaine's latest feat in New York City at the Trump Tower. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

President Donald Trump.

Let that sink in for a moment.

You just elected a man who has never held office, said horrible things about women and minorities, pledged to build a wall across the southern border to keep out Mexicans and other undesirables, alienated his own Republican party and world leaders (except maybe Russia's Vladimir Putin) to be the next President of the United States.

The votes haven't all been counted as of this writing, but Trump won enough states with significant electoral votes to defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.  The GOP also took control of both houses of Congress.

For Clinton, the Democrats and all those who didn't care for Trump's misogyny, xenophobia and distrust of the political process, this was a complete blindside.  The former First Lady and Secretary of State won the popular vote but lost the election, just like Al Gore did in 2000.  But there will be no recount.  No 'hanging chads'.  And no last-ditch Supreme Court decision.  Clinton conceded Wednesday morning.

Trump won this election because of all the Howard Beales out there who were mad as hell and wouldn't take it any more.  They were angry at partisan gridlock in Washington, the rising cost and unpopularity of Obamacare, the jobs that had been lost to what they believe were bad trade deals with other countries, and their weariness with a quarter-century of all things Clinton.

Mrs. Clinton lost this election not just because of those pesky private e-mails that made her the focus of FBI investigations, but she also failed to take care of business in some of the states where she was favored.  Not only did she lose battleground states Ohio and Florida to Trump, but she also saw Wisconsin and Pennsylvania change from blue to red.  In her quest to become the first female president, no one seemed to realize that, after eight years of an African-American in the White House, people might not have been ready for a woman taking charge.

The media also shares the blame for Clinton's defeat.  Constant coverage of Trump along with his mistrust for polls that repeatedly gave Clinton the lead gave them a bad name.  It seems they didn't take into account the folks who voted for Trump despite their misgivings, but knew better than to share them with pollsters.

President-elect Trump will soon be taking the reins from President Barack Obama, who was once accused of not being a U.S. citizen by Trump.  He will be inheriting a divided country that believes he is unfit to serve, and is likely to undo nearly every bit of legislation Obama signed into law.  He will also pick a new justice for the Supreme Court.

Other than repudiating all the progress Obama made during his two terms, Trump's agenda is more or less a blank slate.  We don't know where he's taking us.  And we sure as hell don't know if the country's going to survive him.

Remember, America, you voted for Donald Trump to be your next President.  Now we must suffer the consequences.

Election '16: Familiarity Breeds Contempt

Señalización de lugar de votación en California. 2008. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On the eve of the most important presidential election in our lifetimes--they say that every four years, but some elections stand out more than others--we have two candidates we have known about for decades via the almighty boob tube.  In the course of the last year or so, the more we've seen of them this campaign, the less we like.

Donald Trump, the real estate mogul whose brash talk and TV reality show skills won him the Republican nomination, is loud and obnoxious about his causes while most party regulars are bailing or can't be seen with him.  Women can't stand him because of his unflattering comments about them.  But he has his fans among mostly white males who are sick and tired of being passed over in the name of political correctness, and seeing their jobs moved overseas.

Trump has taken so many potshots at so many targets--women, minorities, the media--and responded to crises such as the release of the "Access Hollywood" sex tapes and his declining to release his income tax returns in such a way that would sink any other politician.  Because Trump is not a politician and has mostly self-funded his campaign, he can say anything he wants with the media lapping up every word.  And there's nothing the Republican Party can do about it.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee who has been First Lady, U.S. Senator and Secretary of State, has been a polarizing figure in and out of Washington for the past quarter century.  Yet she's managed to survive every political and personal scandal involving her and her husband, former President Bill Clinton.  She's been the subject of an FBI investigation into whether her private e-mails contained any classified information.  Twice.  And both times the FBI has chosen not to prosecute her because they couldn't find anything incriminating.

Still, the timing of the latest investigation--just days before the election--has eaten away at Clinton's once-huge lead over Trump, which is now down to a few points (though the networks tell us she has a comfortable advantage in the Electoral College).  Clinton's biggest challenge, besides the trust issue, is in not taking the states where she's leading for granted.  Why else is Trump and his running mate Mike Pence making last-minute stops in Blue states like Minnesota and Michigan if he doesn't think he has a chance to pull an upset?  Maybe the election results won't be as "rigged" as he thinks it might be if he wins.

Issues?  Are you kidding?  Give us more about Trump's alleged relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin, building a wall to keep the Mexicans out and forcing them to pay for it, disputes with past beauty pageant contestants and others about his alleged treatment of them, and his grand plans to "Make America Great Again".  Give us more about what's in Clinton's hacked e-mails, Bill's talking out of turn at campaign appearances, and alleged financial improprieties at their "charitable" foundation.  The Islamic State and the economy can wait.

It's all too much for the average voter to take in.  But this is what happens when big money and brand name candidates come together, because no sane person wants to run for President.

Some of you who do not wish to see either Trump or Clinton in the White House will probably be voting for either Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, or Jill Stein of the Green Party.  Good luck with that.  Just don't be surprised if you end up getting blamed if the wrong person gets elected.

Now that everything's almost said and done, there's only one thing to do if you haven't done so already:  Go out to your polling place and vote for the one person you can tolerate the most for the next four years.