Why I Hate Fidel Castro

An anonymous commenter left the following question: "What exactly do you hate about Fidel? What has he done to the US in the last 30 years?" Here is my answer: Fidel Castro wanted to attack the United States with nuclear weapons (I realize that this was not in the last 30 years). As egregious as this is I have more of a problem with what he has actually done to the Cuban people. Fidel Castro destroyed one of the strongest economies in Latin America. Fidel Castro restricts information to the Cuban people and inundates them with propaganda from which they have little alternative. Fidel Castro imprisoned and persecuted people based on their religious beliefs or sexual orientation. (Sound familiar?) Fidel Castro has had thousands of his political opponents murdered. (Sound familiar?) He is a Stalin-esque mass murderer. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans have died as a direct result of Fidel Castro and his policies. As if this wasn't enough of a reason to hate this evil man (I'm not one to throw around the world evil, either), I have personal reasons as well. My wife's Grandparents, mother, and Uncle were forced to flee Cuba after the Revolution. Their town in Cuba performed a Passion Play every year and one year after the Revolution, Castro's troops came and killed some of the actors in the production. (Did I mention that Fidel is not a big fan of freedom of religion?) My wife's Uncle was in the play but he escaped unharmed. Her Uncle escaped via the "Pedro Pan" (Peter Pan) program run by the Catholic Church which got young boys out of the country before they could be conscripted into the armed forces. His parents and my mother-in-law were allowed to follow him a year later. After they had passed security at the airport, my mother-in-law realized she had left her doll on the other side and when her father went back to retrieve it, Fidel's soldiers stole his watch because it was "property of the Cuban government". My wife's Grandfather was a successful baker in Cuba but they were forced to leave everything they had behind. They came to America with only a few cents. This is just one of many stories. But I guess they don't matter because they weren't Americans (then) and it wasn't in the last 30 years. My mother-in-law died last year. She never got to return to her hometown. Her father died last month. He never got to see his bakery again. He didn't even out live Fidel. My wife's Grandmother is old and will never be able to return to the Island. I've met people who were imprisoned. People who had to leave relatives behind. Castro murdered, tortured, imprisoned, and tore people's lives apart. Why? Power. No reason other than that he thought he should be in control. He is Stalin on a smaller stage. Sometimes it isn't just about what someone has done to America. The Janjaweed haven't done anything to America, but I'm no fan of their work either. So, to paraphrase Sam Jackson in "A Time to Kill": Yes, I hate him and I hope he burns in hell! PS: I can understand why you posted as anonymous, I can't imagine anyone openly supporting a mass murderer. Tags: Fidel Castro, Cuba, Americas, Castro