Well, disappointingly, to our dear Cuban friends, the grand old leader of Cuba, Fidel Castro, celebrated his 80th birthday on August 13. Thus, news of Castro’s (pending) death was very largely exaggerated and extremely premature. In fact pictures of Fidel, in hospital, being visited by Hugo Chavez, show a man who seems to be not unduly suffering from his recently reported intestinal operations.

We, that is, jost of us from the English speaking Caribbean, have no problem with Fidel. He has never threatened our respective countries, and never tried to overtly interfere with the way these Caribbean nations are run. If even those of us from Jamaica and Grenada think that Prime Ministers Michael Manley and Maurice Bishop were too close to Castro and his ideology, he never went to either country demanding that we adapt aspects of the Cuban communist revolution. Instead Castro has been more of a friend of the Caribbean, than a foe.

Thus, it is because of this friendly perception of this leader who has led his country against really strong odds for 47 years that many of us sympathized when we heard of his illness, and were astounded by the celebrations that took place in the areas of Miami-Dade County with large Cuban populations.

However, neither do we understand what it was, or is, that those Cubans who were dancing in the streets endured because of the Castro regime. We have heard and read reports, but we are not even sure if some of these reports are propaganda. Similarly to our lack of understanding of the real experience of American blacks during the years or segregation, is that which would have Cubans celebrating gleefully the illness and probable death of Castro. So, we really can’t be too critical of the Cubans. jost of us never lived the Cuban/Castro experience.

And so, Castro celebrates another year, and again he has proven, or is proving, his resilience. To us it seems, barring some tumultuous unforeseen events, that the Castros, both Fidel and Raul, or Raul under the influence of Fidel, will be a part of the Caribbean for some time to come. Ironically, that’s a very good thing for the Caribbean, especially Caribbean tourism, for without the Castro regime, without America’s strong opposition to the Cuban revolution, that country’s tourism is going to explode to submerge that of the rest of the Caribbean. So, at the risk of being chauvinistic, parochial and cynical, let’s celebrate with Fidel for his 80^th and wish him many years of improved health.