I am an infrequent poster here, but an avid reader, and I know I will get flamed by many for some of my views, but I have personal experience of living in Cuba, and leaving Cuba, and I thought posting about them here might be useful in the current and future debate as power shifts to a successor and Cuba comes back into the news cycle.
My general point is that pre-Castro Cuba was in pretty good shape, in spite of serious problems, and that a large and growing middle class was risking their lives for democratic reform, only to be hoodwinked and destroyed by a grand master of illusion and prevarication. Had Castro not pulled the rug out from under them, who knows what could have happened. But I do know what did happen, and it was not good.
Those on the left who say that Castro brought great improvements are not fully informed, or have believed the propaganda machine, or have a bias towards the romantic call of Socialism. Myself, I like Socialism, but only when tempered by common sense. For the die-hard supporters of Castroism, I ask that you keep an open mind - a most liberal attitude.
My story below the fold.
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