2002 - September Issue

And, it's no wonder. I've seen some (actually many) of the "vessels" these poor souls have used to make that trip. They are often incredibly small. Sometimes, these desperate people don't even use a boat. They make the trip on a raft. Or sometimes an innertube. Some have held onto a mere log. They urgently need to get out of Cuba because... in that country (legally, at least)...

There Is No Way Out...

And... No Way Up!

It doesn't matter how hard you work, how much of an education you have or how valuable you are to society. A medical doctor, for example, makes about $8.00 a month. So does an unemployed bum.

Now, in your "mind's eye" I want you to visualize two Cubans who make it today to one of our Florida beaches. One of the men was a dishwasher in Cuba. However, he got "lucky" and managed somehow to steal $500,000 from a group of businessmen who were visiting his country. He got away with it, put the money in a waterproof container and managed to get himself and all that cash right here to the land of freedom.

Yahoo!

The other guy? He doesn't have a single penny. He doesn't have any carpenter tools or anything like that. He doesn't have anything whatsoever except the tattered clothes he is wearing. But, get this: This other guy was a brain surgeon in Cuba. One of the best that country ever produced.

Once again, using your mind's eye, I want to "fast-forward" to five years in the future and take another look at these two men. Where's the dishwasher? The one with the stolen $500,000? I bet he's broke. Or in jail. Or dead.