Aló, aló??!!

Qué si haló? Tanto haló que hasta la yegua se llevó!!!

A little pinareña joke to start off the week, because, after half a week taking care of an almost complete sick household, what else can one do when reading the latest news from Cuba?

I was really excited about being able to call my relatives in Boca de Galafre, San Juan y Martínez or Guane, now that they should be getting a post in the three block cola en la shopping the Pinar to buy their newly assigned right to freedom of speech, ahem, I mean, cell phone.

But, I wonder, how would they do that when the sole price of the phone, converted into Cuban pesos because, let me tell you, regular Cuban dudes are paid in pesos, nor in dollars, it's way too much more that the salary they make a year harvesting some yucas, raising some pigs and working in la escogida...

Well, maybe things are not that bad over there and they will chose to, instead of buying an old crappy cell phone and paying the prohibited monthly charges, go ahead and have a hell of a time in el Hotel Nacional, or maybe, en el Meliá Varadero?

Or, wait, how stupid I am! They are probably getting ready to defrost half a cow in their new microwave, even though their house still have dirt floors and a metallic zinc roof and the electricity is a luxury they enjoy, let's say, like four hours a day?

Dam it, it's so sad.
It's so sad to see how the Cuban people is being tainted like a dog with a treat, just to create the image that you're giving freedom, when the real thing is that you're giving table scrapes to a whole society that simply does not know any better. And, on top of that, table scrapes they can't even afford!

A sordid interchange of "out-of-people-reach-gadgets" and basic human rights is taking place under raul "reformist" government. Are they really thinking they are going to shut people up from demanding their basic freedom? What a crap!

But what's even crappier it's that in newspapers, newscasts and websites everywhere even more stupid individuals are selling the story of real reforms taking place in Cuba.

The whole point being missed spin around one verb: permitir (allow). From now on, Cuban will be allowed to buy cell phones, microwaves, computers (without access to Internet, of course), toasters, and, on top of that, they will be allowed to stay at hotels.

Let's cut it to the chase: what would the average American Joe --or the average guy from anywhere else in the world-- would say (or think, or do) if they need to wait for the government to allow them to have a cell phone, to stay in a hotel, to have a computer, to say "I won't vote for this ...", to say in a public speech "I have a dream", to write a non-censored letter to his/her local newspaper, to be protected by the 1st amendment... and the list could go on, and on, and on... forever.

The headline from El Compañero and Pong's cartoon make a whole lot of sense.

I'm telling you; I should have stayed at home, taking care of las inhalaciones de mi mamá and wiping off Nicolás nose. That is way too less disgusting!