Cuba Warns America - A Lesson From History
by Pete Diaz - Edited by Bobbi Gyorfy - May 28, 2011

From an interview of Pete Diaz.

Mr. Diaz was born in Cuba but spent his early years in New York City. In 1960 he and his parents returned to Cuba. By that time, Castro had overthrown Cuban President Batista. Mr. Diaz remembers what life in Cuba was like after Castro came to power.


Before Castro came to power, Cuba and the United States enjoyed a close relationship. Cuba was a favorite spot for American tourists. U.S. companies established branches in Cuba. U.S. citizens traveled back and forth to Cuba daily. The value of the Cuban peso equaled the dollar. The Cuban economy prospered.

Castro, an eloquent speaker and a law graduate of the University of Havana, promised CHANGE to a people tired of government corruption. Although not yet a declared Communist, Castro called for equal wages for everyone, government “assistance” for the working class, redistribution of wealth, healthcare reform, and government regulation of industry and trade.

Once in power, Castro slowly began to make changes. Heavy taxes and regulations caused businessmen to take businesses out of Cuba. Castro nationalized all industry, including the banking industry, in order “to fix an economic problem in the country.” Castro’s coming to power brought subtle changes in Cuba’s infrastructure leading to Cuba’s present economic and social failure.

Phase 1. Transfer of military power to the executive branch of government. All military decisions came solely from the Commander-in-Chief, Castro. Any military personnel considered a threat to the new revolution was court-marshaled. This process was and is monitored by Castro’s homeland security, or “G2.” Fifty years later political prisoners remain forgotten in some of the most inhumane prisons in the world.

Phase 2. Healthcare reform. Government-run healthcare for everyone meant second class medical attention for everyone. Doctors received a salary and were told to work on every patient on a triage basis. Real doctors began to leave the country. Without private funding for medical research and supplies, Cuba became dependent on Russia for medical supplies in exchange for sugar and tobacco. Cuban healthcare went from being able to isolate yellow fever to requiring patients to bring their own linen to the hospital. Now, patients must bring their own supplies, including some medications available only through the black market.

Food rationing. Families were given a coupon book that stated what food and quantities could be purchased on a monthly basis. You might purchase these minimal items if they were available on the day you were assigned to buy.

Phase 3. Government control of individual freedom. Security of the party was insured by a total ban of guns, beginning with prohibiting the carrying of weapons outside the home and followed by the volunteer surrendering of private weapons. Ultimately all private-owned weapons were banned, beginning with handguns and then rifles. To insure compliance, Castro established “Revolutionary Defense Committees,” neighborhood associations whose role was to monitor all individuals in their private lives and report all activity to the G2.

Complete control of government by the Executive Branch. Castro assigned all judges and replaced all government officials with “czars,” appointed by him and his cabinet.

Phase 4. Government control of all press. Because Castro decided the press was “decaying the morals of society,” the government controlled all press. Only leftist press from abroad was authorized to visit Cuba, but under constant direct supervision. Ted Turner and CNN affiliates are among those authorized to operate, limited and censored, in Cuba.

Phase 5. Government-run and monitored voting. The government monitored voting tallying and reporting of results without impartial supervision. Civic groups appointed and monitored by the G2 guarded voting precincts. These civic groups consisedt of poor people given power and government employment.

Phase 6. Government ownership of land and businesses. The government determined the profit allowed the original owners. Code compliance and government regulations for selected landowners made it impossible to retain property without government assistance. The government encouraged reprisal by civic groups against land and business owners. Business profit turned into state property, and the state gave the “owner” a salary. The government could terminate the original owner as the government saw fit in order to benefit the revolution. Nationalization of the banking industry destroyed the economic value of the currency, now worth nothing.

Phase 7. Government regulation of education. Slowly, replacing textbooks with socialist propaganda, chosen by Castro to “improve” the system, changed the school curriculum. Castro realized that the success of the revolution lay with the children. Children were taught to hate capitalism and introduced to Marxist doctrine. The government established the “PIONEERS,” a communist version of the Boy Scouts. Although membership was not mandatory, anyone refusing to join was subject to reprisal from community associations. Jobs were awarded to parents of the Pioneers.

Parents were forced to send their children to camp, where socialist propaganda disguised as giving children a right to decide was taught. Children were encouraged to disobey their parents and to report parental discipline as abuse. Parents had no say-so over their children’s education. Home schooling was prohibited.

Religion banned. God was banned from schools and government institutions. Ultimately, it was considered offensive, and open worship was forbidden.

Pete Diaz: “I remember one day in school when the teacher told the class to put our heads down on the desk, close our eyes and pray to God for candy. Once our heads came back up, there was no candy. The teacher told us to put down our heads again and ask the revolution for candy. When my head came up, there was an array of goodies on my friends’ desks. My desk only had two pieces of candy. The teacher explained to the class that since my parents were anti-revolutionaries I only had two pieces. She also stated that at least I did receive two pieces due to the generosity of the revolution that didn’t blame me for having ‘confused parents.’”

Phase 8. Loss of individual rights. Freedom of speech became a target. It was deemed a threat to the revolution. Because of public objections, the issue was disguised as a security measure. Anyone speaking in public in opposition to the revolution was labeled a security threat and arrested on charges of public incitement and disturbing of the peace. The perpetrator was placed on a database as a dangerous person and monitored by the G2. Furthermore, the neighborhood association insured offenders were prohibited from civic activity in their neighborhood. Civic organizations vandalized their homes while the authorities looked the other way.

Reporting of all activity. Workers were assigned to work with unfamiliar partners. Each person was encouraged to report on his/her partner. “Failure to report” became a crime and the government’s best weapon.

Phase 9. Travel restrictions. All travel out of or into the country was suspended. Only officials of the party were authorized to travel abroad and only if they left part of their family behind during the trip. No child 15 years of age or older was allowed to leave Cuba. He would be drafted into Cuba’s military instead. Anyone applying to leave Cuba was labeled a traitor and called a “Gusano,” or worm.

Pete Diaz: “It took us 8 years to be able to return to the U.S. Once my parents applied to return to the U.S., my dad was sent to forced-labor until the day of departure. During those 8 years, life was unbearable. I was subject to ridicule in school, and we were treated as criminals in our own home.”

Phase 10. Espionage. Castro has one of the largest espionage rings in the world. His agents are everywhere. They infiltrate government agencies and civic organizations, many of them right here in the U.S. Castro uses mostly non-Cubans for this work in order not to be discovered. These organizations are funded by foreign entities, and money is laundered through what seems to be legitimate institutions, sadly sometimes operating as charitable organizations and preying on our good nature.

Cubans have struggled through 50 years of oppression with many failed attempts for liberation, such as the Bay of Pigs. Cuba’s downfall started with the lowering of the guard, people too busy to realize that liberty was being pulled right from under their feet.

The revolution began with a group of people with nothing to lose and everything to gain. They had nothing but time. They were persistent. Special-interest groups supported them. They had their own agenda and cared nothing for the country. They wanted what others had worked hard for. They were used as instruments of political corruption. They had no scruples.

Similarities between Cuba and what has been happening in our country for a while now:

Government officials with special-interests
Corruption
Out of control government spending
Biased press
Unfair, excessive taxation
Healthcare reform
Government control
Indoctrination of children
Separation from God and Christian values
Political correctness
Judicial control
Violation of the Constitution
Attack on the right to bear arms
Division among conservatives
PEOPLE WHO TAKE IT LYING DOWN.

What a fukin' retard.

At least with Castro, the people were infatuated by his courage and leadership in the beginning.

Us?

+ 87 Billion.

The only thing dumber than copying and pasting this drivel from some right wing nutcase email chain letter is believing it.

No wonder right wingers want to cut education dollars...it's the quickest route to more supporters.

Fish on...

Todd

+15,874,365,457,260

Oh, never mind.

(that's the amount of national debt as of July 2012)

the result of "educated" minds

Its been democrats in charge, that have not kept up with the cost of education. Those with the poorest education are more likely, to end up on the bottom of the economic ladder and vote democrat. I drive through a lot of those neighborhoods and I see the yard signs. More money for teachers pay, does not equal results, especially when you have nearly half of seniors, not graduating. That and out of wedlock parenting is the best path to poverty.

Your see no evil atttitude does not serve anyone. Instead of debatng the content of the opinion, you just dismiss it as a letter, when its got an interview on video of the person who lived this experience. I have neither the time or the interest
to rewrite any article that is available to link. Dont like it, tough [Bleeeeep!]. Most information on the web, has been cut and pasted. Local news sources rely on other articles and opinions in the same exact manner.

Have you been in the south, predominantly POOR and Republican with some of the lowest education levels in the US.

Nice Try!

Fishy

What is your definition of predominant
and which states are you talking about. The south is not much of a discription. You try and cast southern states as poor, but in reality, California is poor. There is plenty of income for a lot of people, but the politicians do their best to confiscate it and piss it away.

Sort of contradictory, since the media wants to cast republicans as rich selfish people. If you travel through small towns in Nevada, New Mexico, Montana, Oklahoma, Texas, you will instantly think they are poor, because its not LA or Seattle. Yet, Seattle and Washington in particular has a lot of poor people and it consistently votes democrat. There are a lot of issues, that determine party affliation, not just money.

Maryland has the highest median income, but it also is the full of government employees. Alaska is second, with 67,825 but the cost of living is probably the most expensive. New Jersey is third, with 67,458, but they were 2 billion dollars in the hole when the failed democrat governor left office. They raised taxes 119 times in eight years. I guess you cannot tax yourself into prosperity.

Who is it that democrats criticize for being against the poor and middle class, which according to you have a lower education. They charge that republicans do not relate to poor people. But yet, you think the poor vote for republicans.

Being poor is not a cast system. All young people are poor by comparison. Those who did not graduate high school and those who begin families, without being married, fall into poverty the easiest.
Its not Romneys fault if daughters are out late at night looking for a future husband in the back seat. It makes it a lot tougher to finish school if you are taking care of a baby. Schools send dolls home with kids as assignments, to get the point across, how much responsibilty is attached to a child. We have about 1.5 million abortions per year, so the education process does not seem to be working for kids and adults.

Connecticut is fourth
Massachusetts is the fifth richest state per median income.

The poorest is Mississippi but the median income is still 36,616 dollars, which not horrible wages, unless you have kids. Alabama has a median income of 41,415. Alabama is 5th from the bottom. West Virginia is no. 2. Arkansas is 3 and Kentucky is 4th at 41,141.

What is left out, is the cost of living. You dont get much in Ca, or Ny with the high cost of land and all the taxes. NY and CA are not poor income wise, but they are losing population and house seats.

Miss, Ark, Al, any where in that region of the country votes predominantly republican. The median income is only indicative of how much is made on average for all those in that state, having traveled extensively in that area I can tell you that there are a lot of people that do not meet that median income.That region also has some of the lowest rates of literacy in the nation.

While only traveling a little in CA, I know full well what NY is like since I lived there for 23 years. Median is a misnomer in some state where the differences can be extreme.

I've seen pockets of poverty here in the PNW, but nothing like I have in the south or the southwest.


Fishy

Dont mess with stinkies preconceived ideas AM.

The south votes rep because they are ignorant and poor. Held down by the rich they are.

The inner cities vote dem because they are better edumacated and on their way up the social ladder. Being lifted out of poverty one free phone at a time.

In Washington State the democrats have done a pretty good job at underfunding education. They have been in control for 20 years or more here. They did such a good job at underfunding education that there is a Supreme Court decision stating that as a fact and that it needs to be corrected.

I sure am, but look at the median income for the south, this includes those southern cities.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Illiteracy_rate_by_US_state

Fishy

Fishy, Im not going to dispute your experience. I dont know if Bill Gate income is part of the median income equation or if its chopped off. Its probably better to chop off the 1% in figuring median income.

There are other things however that affect income and wealth. Our gambling casinos are a bad idea. Drugs steal from everyones future. The lottery is also nothing but a poor tax. The cigarette tax is theft, like booze, but I dont know if the money is used to counter the problems they create. I doubt its enough. Taxing pot and decriminalizing it, wont make you safe on the road. It also wont pay for the car wrecks. Las Vegas has one of the highest vehicle insurance rates in the west.

While federal taxes have gone down, state taxes have gone up. I dont know how expensive it is to live in mississippi. Ca, Ore and Wa are all pretty high, so we have a higher minimum wage than most states.
minimum wage, is the starting point for union contracts and its the kids that pay for this, cause they wont get ahead, when everyone also gets a raise, behind them.

Im betting they all show up on the 7th. Demanding answers.

Its pretty obvious, it does not matter what race presidents are. The idiology overrides everything else.