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Re: Agreed!

63.26.11.97

Posted by petew on April 25, 2000 at 10:55:07

In Reply to: Agreed! posted by Stephen Hayes on April 25, 2000 at 08:50:19:

Stephen, you and jimmy have the right idea, but I'm afraid it's too late. I let myself read this entire string, and I'm shocked and saddened by what I've learned about my friends. I can't abide the lies and misinformation and hate that I've read here. Since this string has been endorsed by Rod M--I'm compeled to answer.
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Jaun's father has a pretty good job in Cuba--working at one of the tourist resorts, where he has access to "real" money. The life he can offer his family is good by Cuban standards. The tourist industry in Cuba is big, and getting bigger every day, since they no longer have the support of the Russians, who used to send them oil and other economic support, and they have little else to offer the world besides boxers, baseball players, and tobacco (which is why the Republicans are working so hard to keep Cuba under communism--because they get so much tobacco money from companies that don't want Cuba to compete independently with them in "free-trade"). The name of the game is real money, and the tourists bring plenty of it. This capitulation to capitalism is the only thing keeping Cuba afloat. We can expect it to get better for them every day. Castro has been showing signs of dementia for some time now. He won't be "in power" much longer, assuming he is even now. We can expect his minions to be taking over, a power struggle is imminent, and everything will change completely in the next few years. Our president, our government, have to be very careful about handling Cuba for the next few years. There is a real chance for a reconciliation, in spite of all the efforts of the Republicans--idiots like Jesse Helms--to prevent it. It's a new age, a time to look forward to hope for a peace that circles the globe--a peace built from economic and technological miracles, an a real and lasting vision of the basic goodness inside everyone. Old enemies are our friends. We have to have hope, expect the best, and have the vision to keep moving towards the light in countries like Russia, China, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, and Cuba. We have to set an example for the world--not with street violence and demonstrations of civil disobedience where there is a clear rule of law at issue: a good law that serves to protect a son and his father from the corrupt influence of outsiders with self-serving interests.

Jaun's father did communicate with the Miami relatives when he learned that his wife and son had left Cuba. Since there was nothing else he could do at the time, he asked the Miami relatives to take care of them. What else could he do at that point? When the mother died the father clearly has both the moral and legal right to "speak for the son". He also has the right to reclaim the custody of his son at any time, baring a legal order saying otherwise. The judicial branch granted custody of Juan to the Miami relatives, and then revoked the custody about two weeks ago, and had both a court order--granted through due process, and a search warrent, when the Miami relatives refused to take any steps to transfer custody of the son to the father. The owner of the home in Miami went on national television and told the world that they would have to take Juan by force, and that he would arm himself with a pistol. He also was convicted of DIU and it is not known if his drinking problem is under control. Two of the relatives that have been seen with the boy are convicted felons, one of them an armed robber. There is known to have been weapons in the crowds outside the house. A sudden and overwhelming show of force and the advantage of suprise is a well-known tactic to minimise resistance in hostile situations. It worked. What is the problem?

Ms Reno gave the Miami relatives clear warning that there was an absolute deadline of 5 AM Saturday morning. She gave them clear notice that they would absolutely not capitulate on transfer of custody of the boy to his father, but all the other circumstances and situations were negociable. When they refused, the INS was sent on their way at about 4 AM EDT. There was one final attempt to negociate with the attorney for the relatives, at which point Ms Reno gave them five minuites to come to an agreement, from 4:21 AM to 4:26 AM, and the INS "storm troopers" who were already in transit to the house, actually pulled off to the side of the road and waited for Ms Reno's call. The Miami relatives would not yield, so the troops were sent in. They were out in three minuites. No one was injured. The crowd assaulted the van containing Juan with bottles and rocks, so they were sprayed with capsaysin to drive them back, preventing further rioting and violence while the federal agents, the family, and the boy were still at risk of the uncontroled emotions fanned by outsiders with hidden adgendas. The whole situation was handled with brilliance and the utmost professionalism. I applaud Ms Reno and the INS. Well done.

The boy lost his mother under horrble circumstances. Inconceivable. He never had the chance to morn. He was kept from contact with his father, who by all accounts had always been a good father to him and gave him the best life he could. The boy was forced to make a video tape "declaring his desire to stay in the USA" at 1AM in the morning! One AM! What kind of people are these? What kind of life did they give him--encouraging the spectical out on the street- with violent crowds at all hours? What kind of book deal were they maneuvering for? They were horrible to him--thinking only of their own psychic trama as ex-patiriots, and maneuvering constantly for a the best sound-bite, the best photo-op, the biggest political gain. Where were this child's best interests in their hearts? They had room only for their own personal saga, thinking little of the real needs of a six-year-old boy. He was thrown into a fantasy world of Disney and toys and late-night chaos in the streets. Nuts. What emotional disaster awaited this child when he realizes both is mother and his father are lost to him?

It is well established that the presence of the father is crutial to the healthy development of a boy. There is no reason to keep them seperated--none--not legaly, not morally, not politcally, not economically, no reason. A six-year old boy doesn't care if he lives in a county with communist politics or capitalist politics--a six-year-old boy needs his father, and a close, loving family, and kids his own age and of his own circumstances to play and learn with--a community safe from the drugs and violence that plague places like the Miami home he was held prisoner in. I think he has a chance for that now. We don't know where he and his father will end up, and we certainly can't predict what Cuba will be like when the boy is old enough to make legal choices for himself.

This is Ms Reno's finest hour. I'm very proud of her guts, her compassion, and her intelligence in the way she handled this. Bravo.

Now, who has bought the movie rights? Can you see Sharron Stone playing Reno? We can get Arnold to play the INS agent, and put in a wild chase scene through Miami with low-riders sparking behind the fleeing van and spraying the nieghborhoods with automatic weapons fire. That's what the Republicans wished would have happened. Sigh.

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