Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail

Oh, to have Hunter S. Thompson with us in this election season. The gonzo journalist was my portal into politics, first via a subscription to Rolling Stone in my teenage years and later through his books. I think he would be having a blast covering the current campaign trail. If he thought there was fear and loathing in the Nixon years, he'd surely find that to be child's play compared to what we have on our hands now. 

Cubans are no strangers to fear and loathing in the political sphere. While there are many Fidelistas here (adoring fans of the late comandante en jefe), there are also plenty who lean toward loathing when the subject of Castro comes up. I would guess, from my limited experience and exposure and with no surveys to draw on, that those on the adoring side are in the majority. But there's no guesswork involved when it comes to the Cuban-Americans residing in the Miami area; it's safe to say that virtually all of them loathe the historic leader of the Revolution. 

Which is why I am puzzled when I read of the way Cuban-Americans are by and large Trompetas, strong supporters of Donald Trump. Some of the Cubans here who are less than enthusiastic about Fidel talk about the many ways Trump is a mirror image of their historic leader; they point out the irony of expats jumping out of the frying pan of Fidelismo into the fire of another proverbial "strong man" authoritarian ruler who is cut from the same cloth. While most everyone I talk to would be quick to point out the obvious differences—intellectual capacity, ideology, and end goals come to mind—they also talk about some obvious similarities: 

Look at the way Trump obsesses over having HUGE crowds at his rallies and events. Look at the way he is infatuated with and beholden to Russia. Look at the way he likes to hear himself talk, with interminable speeches filled with repetitive propaganda that often bears little resemblance to reality. Look at his "law and order" mentality, especially in regard to public protests, with virulent disdain and police-state tactics being his first response to demonstrations. Then look at his absolute intolerance of any criticism aimed at his actions or policies; he brooks no form of fault-finding or questioning of any decision. And finally, look at his desire to criminalize whatever opposition dares to challenge him, calling for the imprisonment of all his political foes. Doesn't all that sound vaguely familiar? All the President needs to do is lose a few pounds, grow a beard, and change his MAGA cap for an olive-green military hat to complete the picture. 

Given the fact that so many of the Miami Cuban-Americans fled what they considered to be a dictatorial regime in Havana, it is a mystery to me why they don't have equal loathing for the wannabe dictator now in place in Washington. Perhaps it has something to do with the other half of Hunter S. Thompson's loathing equation—fear. As the author lamented not too long before his death, We are turning into a nation of whimpering slaves to Fear. Trump understands that, and is well-versed at trumpeting fear to garner support. He has successfully conjured up a fear amongst Cuban immigrants that a couple of centrist/moderate Democrats will turn our country into a communist hell. 

Or maybe that's not it at all; it could be that the answer to the mystery lies in another of the gonzo's great lines: Maybe this is all pure gibberish—a product of the demented imagination of [people] with a heart full of hate who have found a way to live where the real winds blow—to sleep late, have fun, get wild, drink whisky, and drive fast with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested . . . Res ipsa loquitur. Let the good times roll. That is, maybe it's just a complete loss of communitarian values and a complete embrace of hedonistic individualism. May it not be so. And may the Cuban-Americans who still have some degree of concern for the common good as well as for individual liberty, and who are so loath to abide any semblance of authoritarian rule, awaken to just what it is they are supporting in the Trump presidency. And may they not be afraid to break ranks and cast a vote for a more truly democratic regime.