The Island of the Worker's Paradise

Michael Moore has produced some great propaganda for the Island of the Worker's Paradise, also known as Cuba (official motto, Socialismo O Muerte, "Socialism or Death").

Before another citizen of the free world packs his bags and heads south, he should consider the following grim statistic. According to the US State Department, per capita income in Cuba is around $14 per day. That means the average Cuban would have to work nearly three days to buy the book recently seen in the hands of the Commander-in-Chief of the Island, The Age of Turbulence, by Alan Greenspan.

In contrast, the average Cuban exile in South Florida has an average annual income of $37,440, according to Cubanet.org. That means a Cuban exile in Florida would use just 1/10th of 1% of his annual income to buy the same book.

Geographically, only ninety miles separates the Island of the Worker's Paradise and South Florida. Culturally, very little separates Cubans and Cuban exiles. Economically, however, they exist in different worlds, and one is clearly better than the other.