In this interview with the author, Dr. Miguel A. Faria, Jr. discusses his new book, Cuba's Etermal Revolution.
1 —A British publisher has released your new book, Cuba's Eternal Revolution Through the Prism of Insurgency, Socialism and Espionage. Why not an American publisher?
Let’s face it, the publishing industry, like the ruling establishment, is controlled by the left. Politically correct “peer reviewers” and Marxist professors, who sit in the Ivory Towers of academia, decide what gets published, including medical and scientific works, and will censor most of the material that does not go along with the prevailing views. As you know, I discussed this in some detail in my 2019 book, America, Guns, and Freedom: A Journey Into Politics and the Public Health & Gun Control Movements. I had a very difficult time getting the book published. For this book and my previous book, Controversies in Medicine and Neuroscience: Through the Prism of History, Neurobiology, and Bioethics (April, 2023), I was fortunate to have an invitation to publish from Cambridge Scholars Publishing in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It seems they had perused my published works on my website and at Surgical Neurology International (SNI), and decided they wanted my work updated, revised, and re-written for their editorial needs. Frankly, I really think that the British—who have always had a high level of civility, affinity for tradition, and learning—have gotten a bit scared seeing the U.S. turn to insane, leftward politics—such as wokeness, Critical Race Theory, trampling on freedom of expression, and political correctness bordering on censorship. I also suspect they wanted a conservative voice among the many leftist writers in academia, including their own publishing establishment that also leans left in the political establishment. And therein, I suspect, lies the invitation that I hope lasts for one or two more books.
2 – I have always felt that Cuba has more natural resources than some continents. With these resources available, why is Cuba one of the poorest nations in the Western Hemisphere?
Simply because Cuba is restricted by the central planning and repression of a typical communist or socialist country. Remember, Lenin, Stalin, the Castro brothers, all frequently referred to socialism and communism interchangeably. In the Gulag Archipelago, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn alluded to how the working Russian in the former USSR acted busy, pretended to work, but, in reality, did the least possible amount of labor; and there was also a Russian saying that, “the government pretends to pay us, and we pretend to work.” Therein lies the economic failure of socialism: People do not produce when they do not get rewarded for the fruits of their labors. Then there is also the political reason, which is that people do not produce in a climate of repression, where innovation is not rewarded and, in fact, may be dangerous, and the invisible hand of the free market is restricted, And this summarizes the Cuban situation today as well. There is no economic or political freedom on the island.
Unfortunately, celebrities are drawn to leftist politics because of the nature of insecurity of the entertainment industry. Moreover, in the case of American celebrities, their level of education is frequently wanting, so they easily conform to the prevailing views of the establishment to preserve their jobs and contracts.
Frankly, the media propaganda, the indoctrination by Marxist academia, the popular culture—all of which began in the 1960s—has created a mythic island only 90 miles from this shore that has allured many idealistic youths as well as easily indoctrinated Americans, who are blinded to the truth. I also discussed this in the book in reference to the Venceremos Brigade and the idolization of Che Guevara and the myths about his deeds, not to mention his own death.
4 – Why has Che Guevara become a hero to some Americans?
The mythic island I referred to includes Che Guevara, as I mentioned. The media and academia not only propagated many lies about Guevara but also romanticized his deeds, even when they were grand failures. This was possible because of Che’s good looks and the use of propaganda, which included pictures taken after his execution, in which some people saw in him another messiah.
“Chapter 7: Che Guevara, Ernest Hemingway, and Víctor Dreke,” shows Che as the cold-blooded executioner he really was at La Cabaña prison, his blunders in the Congo war in Africa, and his lethal miscalculation in Bolivia. The chapter should be an eye-opener to the uninitiated.
5 – Your book relates the story of Cuba’s “War Against the Bandits.” Most Americans don’t know anything about that unsuccessful uprising against communism. What’s the story?
After the Revolution turned repressive and it became clear that Fidel Castro was steering the nation into the Soviet camp, hundreds of former rebels went back to the hills, especially the Escambray Mountains of my native Las Villas province, to fight against the tyranny of the Castro brothers. They were followed by hundreds of peasants (campesinos) who had lost their land to collectivization—a propaganda campaign sold as needed “agrarian reform” to end the latifundia of the rich landowners.
Eventually 3,500 rebels referred to as alzados or “bandits” by the communist authorities, took up arms in an insurrection from 1959 to 1965, which caused more casualties than the Cuban Revolution against Fulgencio Batista. Outnumbered, outgunned, and their feat unreported by the American media, the alzados were abandoned by the U.S., which had formerly encouraged and initially assisted them. All of this is described in detail in chapters 2 and 3.
6 – Is Cuba a friend to the environment?
Absolutely not. Year after year, Cuba’s once wondrous landscape that Christopher Columbus, Admiral of the Ocean Seas, called “the most beautiful land that human eyes have ever seen,” was defaced and defiled by the predatory, anti-environmental polices of Fidel and Raúl Castro for the benefit of themselves and the upper echelon of the regime, namely, the privileged mayimbe class in the Cuban military and the Communist Party nomenklatura. Environmental degradation occurred alongside tourist development on the Caribbean island. But hardly anyone noticed or complained as the silent ecological tragedy unfolded, and many of Cuba’s once beautiful flora and bountiful fauna vanished. From the Sierra Club and other environmental groups there was only deafening silence. The environmental and ecological catastrophe being perpetrated has been virtually carried out in almost conspiratorial silence for over six decades of communist rule. The tourists only see the Potemkin villages that the Cuban government wants them to see. I discussed this tragedy in “Chapter 10: The Silent War Against the Environment.”
7 – What do you want readers to gain from your book?
I wish to debunk the socialist propaganda, rebut the misinformation and lies, and counter the concerted propaganda of the media, particularly the American media that repeats and augments the communist propaganda of the Cuban government. In short, I want to correct the historic record and enlighten readers about the realities of Cuba’s Eternal Revolution.
8 – It’s been reported that China is building a spy station in Cuba, primarily to eavesdrop on America. This seems frightening to me. What do you know about this and what do you think about it?
Unfortunately, it is true. China has been using Cuba, another friendly communist state and also in America’s “own backyard,” as a theater for espionage operations against its main enemy—the United States. In the last two decades, China began replacing and updating Cuba’s obsolete “non-lethal” technical equipment on the island. At a time of political or military crisis, Cuba could supply Beijing with a strategic operational base against America during any escalation or confrontation, or even war, in this increasingly perilous world. At the military base in Bejucal, China already had technicians working with Cubans in updating SIGINT equipment and gathering intelligence against the United States. The Chinese have also announced that they plan to reopen and update the old Soviet SIGINT base at Lourdes near Havana for that same purpose. Yet, the American media continues to ignore the threat that China poses to the United States—with its close ties to Latin American nations, such as China’s assistance to Panama in controlling the Panama Canal and upgrading Cuba’s intelligence gathering operations. And, the final two chapters in the book cover Cuban espionage activities against the United States, both SIGINT and HUMINT.
9 – Why is Cuba’s Eternal Revolution not offered by Amazon? Where can readers order it?
Actually, I’m hoping that it will soon be available at least via Amazon in the United States. Thank you for your interest in my book and asking the correct questions, which the mainstream media seldom do in the present age.
Book Review:
Cuba's Eternal Revolution Through the Prism of Insurgency, Socialism and Espionage
Author: Miguel A. Faria Jr., MD
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Hardback
Release date: June 22, 2023
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