17 July 2008

All Over But The Crying?

Wow! Did you hear that splash?

Was that a Chinese or Brazilian drill exploring for $135 a barrel crude in the Cuban waters off the Florida coast? (Heaven knows it’s not Exxon-Mobil or Shell exploring the American waters, Congress forbid!).

Was it the just re-established US 4th Fleet hitting the waters?

Was it the much publicized and promised 500,000 refugee “mass exodus” out of Cuba all jumping off the Malecon simultaneously?

Was it The Miami Herald finally buckling under the weight of its own biases and sinking into Biscayne Bay?

Maybe it was just me getting out of my $400 a month habit, (my car), and sticking my leg-ankle deep-in a puddle.

No, I think it was the embargo, now slowly sinking into the Florida Straights. Glug, glug…

The Bush administration has declared open season on sanctions. First, the deal with North Korea, now the talks with Iran. The “Axis of Evil” demolished as quickly as it was constructed-by the same crew, even.

I can’t even begin to guess what this strategery is all about…

Maybe Dubya is trying out a new psy-ops operation to bring down the price of crude futures by easing tensions with Iran.

Maybe it’s an election year Morrisian triangulation strategery to help the Republicans keep the White House by “out-diplomatizing” the newly American flag lapel wearing “Barry O” and appeasing and pleasing every tyrant on the face of the ever warming planet and thus neutralizing the “not talking to your enemies” gripe that seems to strike a chord with so many of the “turn the other cheekers” in the American electorate. (try turning the other cheek on a rattle snake and see what happens)

Who knows? All I can do is shake my head in disgust and take another sip of my ice cold, All-American Budweiser. Not!

What I do know is that all these events will make it almost impossible for Washington to continue the silent treatment that it has given to the tyranny 90 miles due south of US1’s mile maker 1.

The Bush administration has decided to “negotiate” with the two remaining rogue nations on the “Axis of Evil”. Both are America hating, nuclear proliferating, terrorist financing, immoral tyrannies that haven’t made any real concessions to be allowed the right to join civilized and law abiding nations at a negotiating table. After all, I haven’t seen any reports of North Koreans being allowed to own computers or cell phones. Nor has the theocracy ruling Iran announced that it will provide free sex change operations to transgendered jihadists.

And so, what is Dubya planning on saying when the Castro fan club in Congress starts to pressure his administration to negotiate with Raúl and bring down the economic sanctions? What convincing logical reason can one come up with to justify negotiations, concessions and relations with Pyongyang and Tehran and not Havana?

As I sit here sipping on my InBev,(a company that also brews Bucanero beer in Cuba, by the way), brewed beer, I can’t think of a single solitary one.

So, I raise my bottle to toast the memory of my beloved embargo and say “This Bud was for you”

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