That Cuban Boy aka Raft Boy

Cuba is not the greatest place to live, but it is far from unique in this regard, nor would everyone choose to leave their family behind not to live there. On the other hand, it is generally held that a child should be with his parent, even if the parent lives somewhere less ideal than the possible substitutes (this belief is especially held by conservatives, who look down upon "children rights" over parents). Therefore, Elian, who I am damn sick of seeing, should be with his father. Oh one more thing, what he thinks (especially as influenced by his current guardians, who think it is a good idea to make videos of him giving "his" obviously coached views) would should be uh taken with a grain of salt given that he is six! Finally, though the transfer was not handled very well, a totally normal transfer of the child to his father given the protesters (and family security with gun permits) outside and the constant footdragging by the Florida relatives was rather unlikely. The best time to do this with the least fuss is early morning on a holiday or weekend. Not that any child custody dispute of this nature, especially one cruelly drawn out this long, usually ends without some trauma. Furthermore, loads of other refugees in much more dangerous positions are ignored so we can worry about a cute little Cuban boy going back to a loving father.

Such is my gut reaction, though I realize the case is more complicated (as is btw that picture), up to a point. Anti-Cuban sentiment and the usual Clinton style footdragging has helped to drag this case out too long (though custody cases often are dragged out longer and result in similar trauma to all involved). Nonetheless, it is clear that the Elian's previous guardians (understandably so) have also dragged things much too far, even when the federal government and the courts said the father should have custody (though he can't leave the country as of yet). Furthermore, anti-Cuban protest (with some threat of violence) and some support of them by Miami government officials further complicated matters. The idea the child could be peacefully removed without some show of force and trickery is naive in my opinion. Furthermore, before the final hearing, it is only fair that the child should be alone with the father, after the other side had him for six months -- this they did not want.

The amount of force truthfully seemed excessive, but only by a matter of degree. The Florida family have resisted the government too long; and if the child deserves a hearing, he should be with his father until he gets one. The end result was a peaceful removal to where he belongs -- thank goodness for that. Also, the best way to deal with unjust governments is also debatable, especially those that replaced injustice of a different kind. Perhaps, it is best for him to be with his family, especially as Castro grows old. Oh (to clear up a major misconception) the government did have a warrant. I will be so happy when this is over, should be around I don't know July.

As we consider the justice in sending Elian Gonzalez back to Cuba, it is proper that we look at Cuba as a whole. The poverty of the country for instance is not particularly terrible as compared to many others, including some regions of this one. Poverty alone is not a reason to separate a boy from his father. Furthermore, Cuba's poverty is greatly affected by our embargo against it, an embargo not inflicted on many other nations just as unfree as Cuba. Cuba's lack of freedom is clear, though some might be surprised at the level of religious freedom allowed in recent years as well as its limited capitalism, put in place in part to deal with the U.S. embargo. Nonetheless, Cuba is far from unique in its lack of political freedom, and does provide various social services (including a pretty good health system, especially given problems growing out of the embargo and overall poverty now that the aid from the now defunct Soviet Union has been cut for years) that other authoritarian countries do not. It was the hope for a more equitable life for all that led to the revolution that put Fidel Castro in office, overturning a corrupt U.S. backed regime. Communism and limited political freedom clearly brought various problems, but the Castro years also brought much good in health care, education, and an overall national pride of going their own way, while not being so controlled by the U.S. On balance, Cuba may not be the best place to live, but the suggestion by some that it is indefensible to require a boy to go back with his family is patently untrue as well.

I would also like to close (for now) with a caveat to not compare Cuba to the U.S. without keeping mind the differences of the two countries. The U.S. came into existence after centuries of practice and experience of freedom politically and economically, as well as an equality (limited as it was in various ways) other nations could only dream of. Cuba did not have such advantages, as well as being economically controlled by a rather small group of people (largely in thrall of foreign corporations). This latter point is especially important to note when we look at the appeal to socialism and communism to many Third World nations, countries without the wide middle class that this country always had. A less solid history of democracy also leads to the appeal of a strong man system such as support of Fidel Castro. It is to be noted that for centuries Great Britian, France, and many other countries were ruled by kings, kings not put in office via revolutionary movements either. When dealing with nations in their first century or less of existence as free independent states, it is expecting a bit much to expect complex free political systems such as ours. Such things should be kept in mind when making judgements on Fidel Castro and Cuba as a whole, while also understanding why it own people as people in other nations have such respect for a man so many despise in this country.