    http://www.israelshamir.net/

    Cuba Libre

    By Israel Shamir

    A Talk for the International Conference

    WITH ALL AND FOR THE GOOD OF ALL

    Havana, Cuba (24 – 26 October, 2005)

    In the North of the Holy Land, in a deep valley, there is a shining
    white stone pierced by a perennial spring. One may swim in its lucid
    waters into the depth of the rock, until the tunnel abruptly ends. But a
    brave soul can inhale, dive under the stony roof for a few meters and
    emerge in a spacious chamber with good air to breathe and sunlight to
    enjoy. Such a narrow passage is called a ‘siphon’, and daredevils
    venture into this great unknown, hoping for the air bubble in the deep
    innards of earth. This is a risky enterprise, for they do not know
    whether they face a siphon or a dead end.

    In 1991, Cuba came to the abrupt end of the world socialist system. In a
    course of a few months, the mighty edifice built by the workers of the
    world in Russia and Eastern Europe collapsed and was taken over by the
    imperialist forces and their local agents. A cowardly or simply prudent
    man would turn back into the tender clutches of the new world order
    waiting at the exit. But Cuba, led by intrepid Fidel, bravely soldiered
    on, into total darkness of isolation, blockade, embargo, trade war and
    threats of invasion. Cubans survived with little food and no oil, grass
    grew thick on their motorways, and their enemies in Miami and Washington
    counted days to Cuba's collapse.

    Surprisingly, this adventure worked out well, for Cuba is no longer
    alone – her Bolivarian sister Venezuela stands next to her. The blockade
    is broken, Venezuelan oil flows into Cuban factories and power stations,
    the darkness is left behind. The Cubans emerged into the sunlight. Their
    cars are running the roads; people come from all over the world to learn
    the lesson of survival and victory. Once the backyard of the Yanks,
    Latin America today strives for freedom and independence.

    Cuba's miraculous survival and the Venezuelan breakthrough were made
    possible, to a not discountable extent, by the stubborn peoples of the
    Middle East, for theirs was the area the US imperialists planned to take
    over after their victory in the Eastern Europe. Instead, they
    concentrated all their attention in Faluja and Baghdad, in Gaza and
    Ramallah, in Tehran and Damascus, and forgot about the glowing unrest in
    Latin America. Thus the Eye of Sauron was wandering in far-away places
    and battlefields while its Nemesis was approaching the Dark Tower. Even
    now, as we speak here, the US war machine is ground down by the barbudos
    of Iraq. Iran withstands the pressure, encouraged by your successes. The
    bleeding wound of Palestine is still open, and the overextended Yanks,
    in hock to the Zionists, can’t disengage from the Middle East and turn
    to slipping-away Latin America. The neocons of Washington have thus
    brought the long-predicted disaster to their own powerbase.

    Your stand is the great encouragement to people everywhere. Belarus
    upheld the red banner of the Soviet Union; it sticks to its independence
    despite NATO threats. In Kiev, the pro-American president tried to vote
    against Cuba, and masses of people crowded the main square protesting;
    they forced him to apologise for this act. In Russia, your friends are
    recovering lost ground. The Red giant of China goes through its
    modernisation and liaises with Venezuela.

    The world has changed greatly since 1991. If, in the 1980s, Islamic
    militants fought the Russians on the US side in Afghanistan, now they
    have made a full turn-around, and have taken an important place in the
    anti-imperialist struggle. In Palestine, Hamas has gained wide public
    support; in Lebanon, over a million men and women demonstrated in
    support of Hizbullah. This is not to be dismissed -- in the new war
    against globalising imperialism, we need all the allies we can get!
    Their success also shows the need of the masses for spiritual dimension.
    The Old Left led by rigid Marxists overlooked it; now we should build a
    new coalition for freedom, for spirit, for patriotism and love for one’s
    land against the enslaving, uprooting neo-Liberal and pro-Zionist
    forces.

    The great success of Cuba was due to this amalgamation of Left paradigm
    with patriotism as expressed in Fidel’s words “Patria o Muerte.”
    Patriotism offers a way for new coalition building, for there is a
    convergence of interests of various Left and Right patriotic forces,
    despite many inherent differences. Within the Left, as well as within
    the Right, there are pro-globalist, pro-US and anti-globalist, anti-US
    elements. In post-Soviet Russia, such a political coalition between the
    Communists and other Left patriotic forces on one side and the
    Nationalists, religious and right-wing patriotic elements on the other
    side came to existence, in order to counteract the union between
    pro-Western left liberals and pro-Western right-wing neo-liberals.

    Such coalitions are not a new phenomenon: Chairman Mao called for
    cooperation with the nationalist Kuomintang against the compradors.
    However, there are new elements. The new globalist imperialism differs
    from the older version by its anti-spiritual anti-national
    anti-traditional tendency. This tendency creates new possible allies,
    namely, the patriotic elements in the national churches, nationalists
    and traditionalists.

    Within the US, your great neighbour to the North, disenchantment grows
    with the imperialist course of the political establishment. We wish US
    well, provided they keep to themselves. A good dose of isolationism is
    the best we can hope for them. Let them sort out their social disparity,
    attend to their own problems, and forget about the rest of the world for
    a while. It will be good for them, and for the world.

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    From Dennis Hayman

    Dear Israel,

    Well said my friend! Cuba has been an inspiration to many here in the
    United States as well. What this poor country, made poorer by the
    actions of the U.S. government, has accomplished using cooperation among
    its population, is a closely guarded secret here in the U.S. Imagine if
    the people got wind of this?

    Cuba may be poor by financial standards but it is hugely wealthy in
    social capital. There is a lesson there for the whole world to learn
    from.

    For example, to people I know, I like to compare the difference between
    what happened in the United States with hurricane Katrina in 2005, with
    what happened in Cuba in 2004 when a Category 5 hurricane came across
    the island. The U.S. had a disaster - while Cuba did not. Not one person
    was killed, even though the devastation of the storm was great. People,
    on the grassroots level, are heavily involved in risk management,
    mitigation, preparedness and recovery from the storms. People work
    together all the way up the chain to the national level. Human life -
    (and the lives of the people's animals also) are given priority - from
    the national level all the way down to the neighborhood level. This is a
    rich nation. Rich in the important things in life.

    As you say so many times - and for this I love you - it is the
    connection with the land that is so important to people. The Earth is
    our Mother and if we all still feel a part of the land, our family
    oneness will be evident again.

    Keep up the great work, Israel. Bless you in all you do.

    Warmest regards,

    Bear