Fantasy Island

We have not had normal relations with Cuba since I was in the 4th grade, in 1961.  As I recall, we were taught by the nuns that Fidel Castro was as bad as Nikita Khruschev and was probably hiding under our beds at night.  After that indoctrination, my generation and the ones following mostly forgot about the biggest island in the Caribbean.  If anything, we were regaled by our elders about the  trade with Batista's Cuba and the legendary cigars and rum we were missing.  Cuba was an important market for Long Island potatoes in the 40s and 50s.  The early potatoes were snapped up by the Cubans and they continued to buy until their own crop was ready in January.  The loss of that market started the long decline in ag on my Island.  The news the president is trying to normalize relations with Cuba should be received with enthusiasm by everyone in this country with the exception of the first generation of Cuban exiles.  These dead-enders still hold onto the fantasy they will reclaim the property and privilege they had under Batista.  Good luck with that.   The rest of us will move on to a future of trade and influence we denied ourselves on behalf of this tiny minority which has wielded outsize influence for far too many years.