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Saturday, February 05, 2000 Page: 8A
A 6-year-old Cuban boy who has spent six years living in a communist na tion
was abducted by his mother, hopped a ship and sailed to America. His journey
touched the hearts of almost everyone, including the president, Attorney
General Janet Reno and members of Congress.
Return him to Cuba? Imagine dooming anyone to a life of communism, losing
the benefits of life in America. No way.
The president, attorney general and members of Congress could care less.
Imagine sailing from America to Korea or Vietnam to stop the spread of
communism, to change their way of life to a democracy – that’s the American
Way.
I bring this up because the so-called values in America are cynical,
two-faced, hypocritical. Bust a gut, turn the nation upside down for a
6-year-old Cuban. But do nothing – I do mean nothing – for an American GI. Our
national blemish, our national disgrace are the 9,723 deserted American GIs.
Return them to America? Forget it. They are no longer children – they now
are between 50 and 75 years old – and everything today is “for the
children.” Instead, they live in Russia or China doomed to live in communism
for all their lives. We Americans lost faith with them, deserted them. We
don’t even give a second thought to these 7,140 Korea POW/MIAs and the 2,583
Vietnam POW/MIAs.
It tears at my heart that one Cuban kid saved from a communist nation
causes more concern than 9,723 American GIs who were deserted by our nation
and doomed to Communism for the rest of their lives.
When our POW/MIAs are all returned to America, then I’ll sit down and
discuss the 6-year-old’s future.
Till then I can only say: “O’er the land of the free and the home of the
betrayed.”
That’s the American Way when it comes to our own American GI POW/MIAs.
Mike Thomas
Mountaintop