One of the last Communists

Benito Mussolini.  Nicolae Ceausescu.   Saddam Hussein.  Muammar Gaddafi.  All men that died ignominious deaths and the world did not mourn them.   Augusto Pinochet, despite his human rights abuses, escaped execution but was reviled in the press for his brutal rule as dictator of Chile—there were no condolences, no kind words from world leaders upon his passing even though Pinochet capitalism to Chile after his overthrow of Allende in 1973.   None of these blights on humanity received much in the way of recognition upon their deaths, other than described as “brutal dictator,” “tyrant,” or “monster.”

Fidel Castro brutally repressed and impoverished his nation for two generations.  He tried to abolish religion, stole property from its citizens, executed and tortured dissenters, and nearly started WWIII which may have obliterated all of humanity.  He proclaimed himself a man of the people but like his soulmate Hugo Chavez, leaves his heirs with a net worth of $500 billion by some estimates.  It would have been entirely justified for Fidel Castro to meet the same end as his brother-in-arms Nicolae Ceausescu.  Yet almost 60 years after his overthrow of Batista in Cuba, Fidel’s quiet passing was marked in some quarters with reverence and praise, and overlooked or whitewashed his role in undermining U.S. interests during the Cold War.

President Barack Obama offered this tepid message:

"We know that this moment fills Cubans--in Cuba and in the United States-- with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families and of the Cuban Nation.  History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and the world around him." Of course, Obama offered his usual moral equivalency between liberty loving America and the brutal repressive dictatorship of Cuba:  "For nearly six decades, the relationship between the United States and Cuba was marked by discord and profound disagreements."  In other words, the relationship was no worse that an ongoing marital spat.  No party was better or worse or more or less culpable.

The New York Times downplayed his brutality: “he had complicated record on human rights.”

Not so.  His record was not complicated at all.

Chris Matthews who similarly had a thrill run up his leg when Obama was elected, gushed that Castro was a “folk hero,” and a “romantic figure.”

The most egregious statement came from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who referred to Castro warmly as a "larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century," and "both Mr. Castro's supporters and detractors recognizing his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for 'el Comandante'."

Most inexcusable of all was the statement from Pope Francis:

"I express my sentiments of sorrow to Your Excellence and other family members of the deceased e, as well as to the people of this beloved nation."

The Cuban exiles and their children in Miami saw his passing differently.  There was dancing in the streets, celebrations that went on for days in Little Havana, and partying all night (and shockingly, no burning cars or smashed store windows as occurred in Portland following the U.S. presidential election).  Fittingly, Colin Kaepernick, sporting a Castro t-shirt and vocalizing his support for Castro just a day before was roundly booed in Miami, the city that also ran off Ozzie Guillen after he made positive comments about Castro the decade before.

Only Donald Trump got it precisely right:

"Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades.  Fidel Castro's legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty, and the denial of fundamental human rights."

While the MSM and others on the Left equivocated and even sung hymns of praise, Trump took an important first step toward re-establishing America as a beacon of hope and moral leader of the West. His statement used the words, "liberty," "freedom," and "prosperity," --words we haven't heard often from the leader of the West over eight years.

The lessons of Castro are this: 1.  Tyrannies can last a long, long time and it appears that Cuba will not be giving up its authoritarian regime anytime soon.  Power is rarely forefeited without blood.  Cuba, North Korea, Syria and Iran continue to hold a grip on power and none are close to granting their people freedom and fundamental liberties.  Iraq would have been in the same position as Saddam had already developed a succession plan, which like Hafez al-Assad, would have vested all despotic authority in his sons.  Only the U.S. invasion disrupted his plans.

2   2. Unilateral concessions and recognition do nothing except legitimize tyrants.  “This is what change looks like,” Secretary of State John Kerry foolishly proclaimed when he opened diplomatic relations with Cuba last year.  Raul Castro promptly responded with a statement that amounted to, “We ain’t changin’ nuthin.’”  And earlier this fall there were reports that Russia was considering putting a base in Cuba.

Shockingly, the MSM and some Western leaders have been lavishing praise on Castro, lauding him for Cuba’s literacy rate, health care and even going so far as to praise him for his contributions to the world of art and sports.  And most disheartening was the sympathy shown by Pope Francis for a man that banned religion and brutalized his people.