: : In a rational world, there would be no question about what to do with a young boy whose mother died, and who had a loving father waiting for him at home: return him.: you seem to omit that the mother died trying desperately to bring the boy a new future in the US *AWAY* from his 'homeland'. the father, btw, was estranged - dont make assumptions about their relation, nor that Cuba is free speech (try and get Animal Farm or a Von Mises book printed there)
: To return him is to undo his mothers intention as if it were a mere windsurfing accident.
*You're really something. First, you harangue the original poster to not make 'assumptions' then go on to impart the most noble of motivations on the part of the mother. Perhaps it escaped your razor keen intellect, but the stepfather appears to have masterminded this little jaunt to the tune of $1000 per head. Under the circumstances, I don't think it requires a leap of faith to believe that Elian's mother had some inkling about what was really going on.
On the other hand, there is *no evidence whatsoever* that Elian's father is anything other than a completely devoted parent and I challenge you to post any evidence at all to the contrary. Shmuck.* --K
: : By the way, as one black pundit has pointed out, it's a shame Elian isn't Haitian -- he'd have been sent home in a heartbeat!
*Hey! 'black pundit' ...? Hey... I kinda like that! Though I believe the 'black flag' pundit is waiting in the wings and may join us soon (you'll like this guy... for an anarchista, he's o.k...;)* --K
: Note the lack of Haitian people desperately trying to escape to America on anything floating and the corresponding dispicable image of US coast gaurds turning them away, back to their terror.
*Ah go wrap yourself in an American flag you dolt. You really owe it to yourself to get out of your bunker now and then and take a look around.
Start HERE; then look HERE; and then try HERE.
Finally professor, it is a fact that even the Dominican Republic (*thats* how desperate these folks are to leave... they'll even take living conditions in the DR over those of home...)has thousands of Haitian refugees culled over the past couple of years. Simultaneously, the numbers of Haitians trying to make it to the US has dropped precipitously after tens of thousands were repatriated back to their US sponsored hell-holes in 95-96.
Either that or Haiti has staged one of the most dramatic turn-arounds politically-economically in the history of the world and we've all been too busy to notice.
It is a fact that the US continues to blockade Cuba while the CANF mafia continues holding out the prospect of automatic citizenship for any Cuban who washes up on our shores and *that* is what's responsible for the sort of tragedy you have in Elian. The fact that you get so worked up over the fate of this child who has unwittingly been made the poster-child of the CANF while fishing in your pockets looking for Haitians and not finding any proves the utter hypocrisy of your position.
Solution: Lift the embargo, abolish any and all immigration restrictions on people wherever they are, and fight as tenaciously for the freedom of people as this country does for freedom of trade. As it stands, commodities enjoy more freedom in this world than people do.
