One more cigar.

I listened to a live speech by Fidel Castro once (don't ask), and even though I didn't understand a word he was saying, I found myself cheering my ass off. The guy was that charismatic.

Now, after almost fifty years in power, Fidel has turned over the keys to his brother Raul. Yes folks, Fidel has outlived nine (count em) nine U.S. Presidents, countless assassination attempts, and a long standing U.S. trade embargo. Sadly, the last time I checked his little Communist outpost was still at our back door. It is still the only such government in the Western Hemisphere.

When the fake ass cowboy told the Russian leader to tear down "that wall" in East Berlin, he should have been focusing some of his commie fighting skills on that beautiful island to the South of us as well. But no such luck. Like other U.S. Presidents before him-- starting with JFK---and all the presidents who have come since, Cuba, for the sake of political expediency, became a political pariah, and the land that A-merry-ca's leaders forgot. Hey, gotta get that Florida vote. We have to pander to those Cuban Americans down there, forget the fact that we have lost sight of the bigger picture over and over again.

The irony is that we created this monster. For years, pre Fidel, our businesses controlled Cuba's economy, and we supported the corrupt and brutal Fulgencio Batista. Enter the man with the beard and great hand rolled cigars to stage a revolt and take power. Things have not been the same since. Fidel ruled with an iron fist, and democracy took a back seat.

Now I know that there are many Cuban A-merry-cans in South Florida who would kill Fidel themselves if they were given a chance. And their beef might be legitimate. Hell, if the Jamaican government were to take my families land I would be pissed off too. But sorry, this isn't about them. This is about a country of millions of people who would be so much better off if that silly ass trade embargo was lifted. Normalized relations with our Cuban brothers and sisters would be so nice.

Unfortunately, I just read where Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte said this: " I can't imagine that [improved relations with Cuba] happening anytime soon".

Oh well, looks like I will have to just keep paying a little more for those Cuban cigars.

MY FAVORITE PRESIDENT

Happy President's Day A-merry-ca!

On this the day when we celebrate our Presidents, I would like to tell you who my favorite A-merry-can President of all time is, and why. Now admittedly, the pickings are slim, as I have never really been fond of any of A-merry-ca's Presidents. I mean something can be said for Truman and what he did to integrate the Army, and FDR and the New Deal was cool I guess. Lincoln supposedly freed the slaves, but true historians know that there were other reasons for that.

JFK? He was young, he was stylish, and came along at a time when A-merry-ca really needed him. LBJ? I don't think so. The war on poverty didn't work, and well there was a little problem called Vietnam. Bubba? Please!

No folks my favorite President of all time was Ricahrd Milhous Nixon. "Oh come on field you are smoking your native country's national plant again." No, I mean it. Nixon was the first President to embrace a real affirmative action policy by the federal government. He appointed African American Secretaries like Arthur Fletcher (who crafted the "Philadelphia Plan" which tried to force trade unions into hiring minorities into their ranks) over labor. James Farmer over HEW, and Samuel Jackson (not the actor) over HUD. Can you say Mount Rushmore anyone?

Under Nixon the ante was raised for minority business enterprises from eight million dollars to over a billion. He appointed the first African American four star general (Daniel Chappy James), and he pumped millions of dollars into historically black colleges which he supported. He also wiped out tax credits for schools that discriminated against blacks. And I know there might to be a whole family of us in there soon. But let's not downplay the fact that it took Nixon to allow the firs African American (not counting the servants) to spend the night in one of those fancy White House guest rooms (Sammy Davis, Jr.). Oh, and let's not forget, that we were under Nixon's administration when we finally got out of Vietnam.

So Nixon is my guy, and I know some of you had issues with him because of Watergate, but come on. All politricksters lie and steal, my man just got caught. "But field he was a republican". Yeah and? Look folks don't get it twisted, I don't dislike rethuglicans because they are rethuglicans. I dislike them now because this current group of rethuglicans are so fucked up.

It's that simple.

Finally, "tricky Dicky", you weren't perfect. There was Spiro Agnew and Henry Kissinger. And A-merry-ca still remembers how you folded like a cheep suit in that debate with JFK. But until the "O" man can win the highest office, and spend four years showing me otherwise; you are the greatest A-merry-can President of all time.

HAPPY PRESIDENT'S DAY!