Cuba Diaries

Having just returned from a brief trip to Cuba, I found this podcast an apt and perceptive summary of conditions on that island. The people you meet are welcoming and hospitable. It is a heartbreaking sight to see a people so well-educated and hard working endure hardships that are wholly unnecessary, mainly at the hands (and policies) of the US govt captured by small group of hard-right Cuban expats determined to exact revenge over a 65-year old grudge. Epitomizing this was the revelation that our waitress at our hotel was a doctor, augmenting her meager medical earnings with her tips and pay from a basic service job.

I am interested in the topic of Cuba and their government and wanted to hear a perspective from someone with a friendly attitude to their policies. I only listened to the first episode and read the description of the next two. Unfortunately, Mr. Valdez’s information is based solely on government workers who prop up the government narrative. I think most governments will speak highly of themselves. I wish there were some personal interviews and history thrown in, but I guess the purpose of this podcast is simply a diary of his trip. I think this podcaster has potential if he digs a bit deeper into the issues he’s addressing.