I am not Cuban but I agree completely with Le Batard.

If Cuba is so idealistic, and members of one of the main US political parties seems to advance this, why do people risk there lives on a raft to leave the wonders of Cuba?

I have resigned myself to hoping some Cubans get to defect, but I wonder what would happen if Castro's Gestapo abducted someone.

Not possible? Who'd have thought Castro wouldn't be considered evil either.

Dear above, get over your hate! The U S A is the only civilized
country that does'nt recognze Cuba, trade with Cuba , and do all the things a normal relationship calls for. We look like a bunch of fools!!
There are many dictatorships around the world that we support or benignly ignore when it suits are purposes.
i suggest we get to go back to Batista times a dictatorship we supported. Lets ask the Cuban people which they prefer. Forget the cubans in florida ( who just loved Batista) they vote republican because they are blood brothers.these so called Cuban patriots have controlled ameican foreign policy for a long time . it's time it stops. wake up to reality!
Jerry rabinowitz i/ 22 /06

Sorry, Jerry.

The fear of looking foolish should not stop one from holding principles.

And in a totalitarian state, who gets to define "the Cuban people"?

well jerry

there sure are a WHOLE lot of cubans in florida and it is REAL hard to believe that ALL of them was rich people when batista was there. i remember reading about a WHOLE lot of folks around the time i was born in 1980 were ALLOWED to come to florida by castro and weren't none of them rich. and seem to me that all the folks who try to escape every year are NOT exactly the grandchildren of rich folks.

and hating castro and loving batista not the same thing

and seem to me that the cubans in florida are not "republican" or "democrat" - they are for whoever is against castro no matter what the party is. rich AND poor lost their home and a lot lost their families. and poor as we are if we had to leave what little we had a go to another country and i lost family to a dictator, i would be against him and i would always want to go back home. so i understand where le batard coming from

and sure the government is a hypocrite - being friends with china is good business. being friends with castro is not. it's all about the benjamins. always has been. always will be

I'm Cuban, living in the states since 1998. I left for the same reasons every Cuban leaves the country, but the embargo USA has against Cuba affects the Cuban people far more than it affects Castro, as a matter of fact, it only affects Cuban people, for Castro is a good thing as he uses it for his political machine against USA. Sports and politics have nothing in common, people playing for a given country in any given event do not represent their leader, they represent their country. As much as I hate Castro, I love the country I was born in, and letting them play in the WBC is the right thing. For those of you talking about Cuba without even putting one foot in the island, I suggest you visit our country, and then express your opinions about us.

I agree with Lisa. The Bush regieme and their Rebooblican minions have only money on their minds. My question is: can you blame them? Money is intoxicating beyond comprehension. Everyone's motivations are suspect while we continue squabbling over trinkets, behaving like children while concocting a slow death for all carbon-based life. You think you are thinking, when you are really just rearranging your prejudices - all the while the bed you sleep in is slipping into a pit of extinction-level goo. There is upon us now a great and perhaps decisive battle to be fought against ignorance, intolerance and indifference. These things will either pervade and ruin us, or be exposed and ridiculed in the newly enlightened court of public opinion. Thank you for not breeding.

i am from and live in belgium, i was 10 x in cuba and have a lot of cuban friends in cuba and belgium. i'am not accord, the regime is not so good. is the "regime" in america so mutch better ?
where are the social problems ? in america ore in cuba. think and sie further then you nose long is.
bush see only oil dollars, wehre are the chemical weapons in iran ? wy have non censuratet information in europe, i hope that the moment there is that you have it also.
sorry for my inglisch but its better than your flemisch.

I am Cuban and this author is full of shit. Castro is not Hitler or Sadam. If you not like Castro, fine, but do not get over dramatic because your rich grandmother was shipped to South Florida.

Ricardo is definitely not a Cuban he is probably a rich jew or something and if i knew where i could find you there would be no other way for you and me to talk then you and me fighting like men. If i only knew where you were at bro, damn i would tear you up you cuban imposter. you soft you hide behind your fake name ricardo, you only talk crap in when the computer covers your face, your adress, your identity, why dont you talk shit about a cuban in his face. nothin but a puzzy geek hiding behind the protection of his computer