Cuba Lacks TP and Health Care, Not Murderous Leaders

Cuba has gotten a lot of attention lately. According to a McClatchy news report, the island nation is facing a severe toilet paper shortage. The problem won't be alleviated until the end of the year. Cubans are forced to use their local news paper (which, luckily, is dirt-cheap).

Cuban officials blame the problem on the suffering global economy and last summer's hurricane season. CNN Commentator Fareed Zakaria may have identified a more accurate reason for the shortage: "Cuba's continuing commitment to its bizarro world of socialist economics."

The other news on Cuba was an updated version of its history as explained by Democratic Rep. Diane Watson of California's 33rd District. In a recent town hall meeting, she praised the efficiencies of the Cuban health care system and stated that Fidel Castro is the brightest leader she has ever met. She gave her constituents background on the Cuban revolution that most of us have never heard.

The good congresswoman told the audience, "And you know, the Cuban revolution that kicked out the wealthy? Che Guevara did that, and then, after they took over, they went out among the population to find someone who could lead this new nation, and they found an attorney by the name of Fidel Castro."

According to her biography, Watson holds a bachelor's degree in education from UCLA and a doctorate in educational administration from the Claremont Graduate School. One would assume she knows history.

Cuba was developed as a Spanish colony in the 1500s and run with an iron fist. The occasional rebellion was dealt with severely -- and little mercy was shown to insurgents.

U.S. intervention during the Spanish-American War helped the Cubans overthrow Spanish rule. The Treaty of Paris established independence in 1902. For half a century, corrupt politicians and brutal military leaders ruled the island. And then along came Fidel Castro.

Born in Cuba in 1926, Castro attended law school at the University of Havana and graduated in 1950. After practicing law for two years, his plans to run for parliament in 1952 were interrupted when the overthrow of the corrupt government du jour by Fulgencio Batista cancelled all elections that year.

Frustrated and angry, Castro led an unsuccessful attack on Batista's government in July 1953. He was captured by Batista forces and served two years in prison. After his release, he voluntarily exiled himself to Mexico -- where he met Ernesto "Che" Guevara in 1955. Never one to turn down a rebellion, Che, an Argentine, was quick to align himself with the young Cuban.

Castro returned to Cuba in 1956, leading a small band of rebels and attracting followers who were disgusted by the Batista government. On Jan. 1, 1959, Batista fled the island and in February, Castro became prime minister.

Once in power, Castro began revealing his Marxist agenda by confiscating property and nationalizing industry. He appointed hard-line communists to government positions. The break in U.S.-Cuban relations came when Castro confiscated American-owned oil refineries that refused to process oil purchased from the Soviet Union.

Castro was also quick to purge the Cuban population of any undesirables. By the mid-1960s, most of the Roman Catholic clergy, who had worked in orphanages, schools, and hospitals, had been expelled or fled the country. Of the few priests and nuns left, many were sent to gulags, along with artists, homosexuals, and others deemed unfit.

Castro's idea of human rights would be laughable if it hadn't brought such tragic consequences. Estimates put the numbers held in his concentration camps at more than 100,000 prisoners. Torture, rape, and beatings were -- and are -- common for political dissidents. Thousands met death at the hands of his firing squads.

And the role of Che Guevara in all this? Guevara held several posts in the all-new Cuban government, including minister of industry. He ran Castro's political prison, where he earned his endearing nickname, "The Butcher of La Cabana." At the fortress of San Carlos de la Cabana, Guevara ran a kangaroo court that was responsible for deciding which prisoners were to be shot on a daily basis.

In Guevara's own words, "To send men to the firing squad, judicial proof is unnecessary. These procedures are an archaic bourgeois detail. This is a revolution! And a revolutionary must become a cold killing machine motivated by pure hate."

Guevara had no problem condemning to death former military members, policemen, businessmen, and the occasional journalist. At one point, Guevara himself shot a 14-year-old boy at point-blank range. What a hero, what an icon!

Since Castro's resignation for health reasons, the country has continued its downward spiral under the leadership of his brother, Raul. Cuba is falling apart.

At least Cubans have a great, free, health care system that is far superior to ours. Both Watson and Michael Moore have pointed that out, right? Wrong. The reality of Cuban health care is that it is rationed and two-tiered. If one isn't a member of the elite ruling class, health care is a joke.

Even common drugs like aspirin are dispensed by prescription only. Hospitals are filthy and patients are required to bring their own bedding and fresh water.

Cuba is a beautiful land of lovely people but her problems are legion. To hold her up as an example of health care run right is like holding her up as a beacon of freedom. To tell Americans otherwise is wrong, Rep. Watson.

Contact Robin Beres at (804) 649-6305 or .