My Adventure in Miami with President Bush

Myself | 5/20/02 | Me

[walrus954]

Today was an amazing day for I finally got to see President Bush speak in Miami. My day started at 9 am when my father and I set out for the office of Rep. Lincoln Diaz Balarat. I got tickets from the congressman on Friday and had to pick them up. Then, it was off to the Orange Bowl where were boarded a shuttle bus to the James Knight Center. For someone who's Spanish is very shaky (I am only partially Cuban), this was a baptism by fire. I am 15, and I was the youngest on the bus by fire. Not only that, but my 45 year old father was the youngest on the bus by far. The people with us on the bus consisted of old Cuban-Americans who, like all Cuban Americans, had a strong love for Cuba and a passionate hate for Castro. After about a half hour of singing the Cuban National Anthem and reciting poems about Cuba, we made it to the James Knight Center, where we had to wait for two hours in line to get through security.

After this two hours of waiting, we had another hour and a half of waiting. It was interesting, however, because we got to hear the stories of the man who sat next to us who was a political prisoner in Cuba for 26 years. Then, at three o'clock, it started. Our senators and congress men (Graham, Nelson, Ros Lehithn and Diaz Balarat) entered, and Gloria Estefan and John Secada sang the national anthems of Cuba and the US. Governor Jeb Bush came to the podium and spoke in flawless Spanish. Then, he introduced the President of the United States. It felt like a volcano erupting inside the auditorium. All 3,000 jumped to their feet clapping and waving flags and screaming "Libertad" (Liberty!) and "Viva Cuba Libre!" (Long Live a Free Cuba). The feeling of goosebumps doesn't even begin to describe it. The president began to speak in Spanish, but then said he didn't want to destroy a beautiful language and reverted to English. The President gave a great speech spelling out his Cuba policy. After every few sentences, the crowd would leap to their feet, waving their flags, and shouting "Libertad!" and "U-S-A."

It truly was an amazing experience. He challenged Castro to allow free elections and introduced a Cuban refugee kid who came here 6 years ago speaking no English. Now, he will be going to Harvard. It proves what can happen to capable people when they are allowed to prosper in freedom. He then discussed his conditions for lifting the embargo (freeing political prisoners, allowing elections, etc), which I agree with. The President really gave me strength to continue to believe that someday, Cuba will be free again. I hope that this day is soon.

Viva Cuba Libre y Presidente Bush!

Andrew

[Luis Gonzalez]

I know some of you all have already commented on the report, sorry to flag you, but this young man's report should not be allowed to fade without a rousing "well done" by FReepers.

RJayne, I second, third or (whatever is next in line) for this as Essay of the Week.

Luis

[Luis Gonzalez]

"...stop repeating what you are told and think for yourself!!!"

So then, why are you in here parroting every bit of propaganda the left is trying to sell us on the embargo?

Your entire argument consists of "we are doing the wrong thing elsewhere, so we should be doing the wrong thing in the case of Cuba as well".

Come back with an original thought as to why we should subsidize tyranny, and then you can accuse others of not thinking for themselves.

[areafiftyone]

Thank you so much for posting your experience. I was watching it and jumping up and down with the cuban/Americans on TV. Wonderfully powerful speech. Brought a lump to my throat to hear him.

[agrace]

Critics also note the United States maintains trade and diplomatic relations with other nations that hold political prisoners and prevent free speech and elections, such as China, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia.

That's a good point. I think we should sever ties with all three. For the life of me I will NEVER understand our relations with China considering their unbelievable human rights abuses.

[Victoria Delsoul]

Thanks for the report.

[Coleus]

Exciting, isn't it? I got to see his father when he came to Bloomfield, NJ, when he was president. Too bad I borrowed my brother's camera (a 35mm) since none of the pics came out.

[abraxas_sandiego]

hmmm...iraq? no, hasnt worked there. cuba...fidel is still there. north korea...nope. obviously an effective policy.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

I am 15

. . . and quite an articulate person, especially of that age.

[Southack]

"hmmm...iraq? no, hasnt worked there. cuba...fidel is still there. north korea...nope. obviously an effective policy."

The embargo on Iraq severely limits the amount of funds that Hussein can spend on weapons of mass destruction development. Iraq has also been contained within its own borders since the embargo began, as has been North Korea and Cuba.

When Cuba had CCCP funds, it was sending tanks and troops to Syria for aiding the 1973 offensive against Israel, to Angola for propping up Communists, and to Nicaragua (as well as other South America countries). With the embargo in place and with CCCP funds finally cut off, Cuba has been much less involved in foreign wars.

Perhaps that's what troubles you the most...

[abraxas_sandiego]

?

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

about 3500 I think was what they said in the Miami Herald

. . . and reporters are neutral, objective, and accurate. We know that, they tell us that often enough. Can't think of any other reason to believe it, tho . . .

Do you have any experience or did you independently make an effort to evaluate the size of the crowd? Were they all in busses, and were there only about 100 of them, or were there much more?

Journalism pontificates about its own importance, but it is actually only light nonfiction (i.e., if they are making something up they don't admit it) entertainment. And the operating rules of journalism which help it succeed as entertainment--and thereby be able to afford the cost of publishing--make it negative and superficial.

For that reason journalism is in effect anticonservative, and journalists consistently tend to shade things that way. They probably don't even know they are doing it, necessarily--it's a reflex.

[Luis Gonzalez]

"Perhaps that's what troubles you the most..."

hehehehe...you've got such a way with words....

[Freedom'sWorthIt]

What do you recommend? Invasion?

[afraidfortherepublic]

...the most LIBERAL Texas town in the state!!

And that town would be??? (I'm guessing Austin.)

[Common Tator]

But can somebody explain to me why we have sanctions against Cuba but not China?

When Castro overthrew the Batista Government many Americans owned property in Cuba. Americans owned winter homes and vacation spots. Americans owned many businesses in Cuba. Americans owned sugar farms and plants. Americans kept bank accounts for the Cuban businesses they owned. The Cuban economy was one of the best in central America. They had encouraged American investment.

Castro took all that property and money for his own. He took the money Americans had in Cuban banks. Castro took all the property and businesses Amercians had in cuba. He refused to pay for them, or give them back. He still has not done so.

The Chinese never stole any of our citizens property. The opposed us in the cold war and supported North Korea. The Chinese are communists like the Russians were. They were not thieves. The Chinese did not steal our property and then tell us to go to hell when we wanted it back. Castro did and in return we put an embargo on Cuba.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Well, you believe is ineffective because you've been listening to the left for way too long. The embargo was never intended to bring down Castro, US foreign policy towards Cuba has been one of containment...by restricting his access to dollars/credit and/or US markets, Fidel's economy has collapsed, and the collapse of the Cuban economy helped bring about the collapse of the USSR's economy as well, Cuba was a bottomless pit for Soviet rubbles. This embargo that you deem ineffective helped bring down the Soviet Union as a side result.

Fidel's plan, from the very start, was the expansion of communism/totalitarianism in this hemisphere, the US embargo, and the Cuban government's innability to access funds from the World Bank severely limited Castro's dreams of exporting his "revolution" to Central and South America. He still did it, at the expense of the welfare of the people of Cuba, but nowhere near as widely as he had hoped for.

The embargo has kept Fidel busy shoring up Cuba's economy for four decades, not giving him time for much else.

Souns like a resounding success to me.

[afraidfortherepublic]

With his mangling of English, Bush is going to be out of languages soon.;^)

Crawl back under your rock! Everybody on this thread loves our President.

[abraxas_sandiego]

ok, so now that all that is in the distant past (no more ussr, no more exporting of communism within our hemisphere), WHY DO WE STILL HAVE AN EMBARGO????

[Luis Gonzalez]

"ok, so now that all that is in the distant past (no more ussr, no more exporting of communism within our hemisphere), WHY DO WE STILL HAVE AN EMBARGO????"

OK, so that we keep the score straight here, you've now conceeded the fact that unlike you previously claimed, the embargo has been quite effective.

Fair enough?

We still have an embargo because Castro has yet to return one penny of what he stole from American citizens, we still have an embergo because CASTRO still talks about the destruction of the US, openly, and repeatedly (he bragged in May of 2001 that Cuba and Iraq would bring the US to its knees while visiting his cronies there. That was just a few months before 9/11), we still have an embargo because he still practices apartheid (not that it bothers the libs that go there, or you for that matter), and we still have an embargo so that we can contain him from making a bigger mess in Venezuela, Colombia, El Salvador, Peru, and Nicaragua.

Last but not least, because in spite of the best efforts of leftists in the USA, there are still some people here who believe that oppression is wrong, and that the US has a moral obligation to stand by its principles, and not prostitute them for a chance at a new Caribbean travel destination. When we travel and vacation in a country that uses its citizens as slave labor, we cheapen this nation.

[RJayneJ]

Thanks for the nomination! };^D)