Baseball Diplomacy: 2016, Cuba

     Prez Obama went out to the "ol' Ballgame today- in Havana, Cuba, with the head dictator hisself,  Raul Castro, successor to his big bro, Fidel, who is cooling his heels in an institution for Alheimers patients in an undisclosed location.  The American Tampa Rays baseball club played a "friendly" with the Cuban national team, that group of aging players who didn't defect when they could years ago.
     The two executives watched a couple of innings, then split.   Obama wanted to meet with local dissidents who wanted to tell him that despite his efforts, the arrests of protesters against the regime continues, with 2,200+ arrests so far this year.  That comes on top of almost 8,000 arrests last year.
The weather was rainy yesterday, but today was better for the historic meeting.  Some dissidents were able to express dissatisfaction with their monthly salary of $19.   In Mexico,a factory worker with a steady job makes $19/day.  In America, it's closer to $19/hour by comparison.  In Cuba, doctors are at the top, earning $200/ a month.  What luxury!  Gotta love those Commies-they know how to keep things equal.  What inequalities?   "That's only in America."
      The Prez also attended a memorial service for the Cuban patriot: Jose Marti'.   Marti' is praised as the great poet of Cuba, and the great revolutionary force who died fighting for independence.  His extensive writing, including both poetry and books, remains a symbolic guide for present day Cubanos.   It is often said, there's something for everybody in his work.
     After this visit, President Obama will get used to our allies in Europe dealing with yet another terrorist attack, this time in Belgium, the weak link in the EU chain.