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B Sides: Sight of the Bumblebee

Brandon Ferguson, Opinions Editor

The first bumblebee of 2006 just sputtered by my face. More of a waddle than a sputter; a lawnmower engine doing its best to handle a hibernation’s worth of excess weight. Do bees hibernate? With an IV of turkey gravy? This bumblebee was either fat from birth and stoned on life or, possibly, it’s a turkey gravy slumber. What would David Suzuki say?

It’s January 29th, or the 30th, it’s a Sunday—no— Monday afternoon and I couldn’t care less for research as my cell phone is my calendar and neither have been invited to the patio.

About ten degrees Celsius and crisp. Healthy but frail clouds, worn out from five weeks of work without braking, sparsely spot the sky, the blue sky, enjoying a leisurely stroll through my neighbourhood. I’m in shorts and a T-shirt. The Beatles sing “Good morning, Mr. Sunshine.” All is well on this lonely day.

This book I’m reading, Béink, says that thinking sucks.

For chumps and scientists, it says. Don’t think and drive or you'll get tossed in the think tank. Bénk thinks—no—feels that we can learn more in a heartbeat than we can solve in a lifetime. Studies have shown that studies over-think their subjects.

Studying her hands on the beach, before and after plunges into the cool ocean water, I could get lost for hours in the intricate web of her delicate lines. Like sweet raisins and salty peanuts, I wanted to devour her one knuckle at a time. Not that I’m a cannibal; she just had a tenderness that inspired one to want to consume her flesh, take her in, taste her for yourself, and grow fat on the sumptuousness of her sensuous skin. Sunsets seemed to sit atop the shimmering horizon forever and yet sank out of sight faster than the Titanic.

What makes a blockbuster movie? A blockbuster trade? Is it the names, or their fame, or a blend of the titles we lend to pretend that we’re not all the same? How lame, this game that shames most of us into Entertainment Tonight viewers to simply skewer the few that are acclaimed. Who would ever begrudge someone their success? The same people who comment on a red carpet dress, I guess. While fame is the fodder of those rutted in fiction, here’s a little barb I can bark out with conviction: Leo DiCaprio, you should of stopped at Growing Pains, ya bum.

Parents need to be more upfront about puberty. Don’t hide those pimply yearbook photos; don’t cover up your front-of-the-class foibles. Puberty is murder if you can’t

step back and laugh at the hilarity of metamorphosis. Curly

hair sprouting, cracked voices shouting, girls-don’t-like-me pouting, the creepy Croatian dude with a full moustache—

it’s all a hormonal Lollapalooza where Perry Farrell-looking

lads hopefully come out of the genetic mosh pit as Eddie Vedder men. It’s not a race but a phase instead. And I think I can see the finish line up ahead....

Cuban Five Held in US Jails

Noah Fine, OP Contributor

On February 13, five Cuban men will once again appear before the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in the United States to demand a new trial outside of Miami. These five men—Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labafiino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando Gonzalez, and René Gonzalez—were sent to Miami to infiltrate right-wing ter- rorist groups.

The Cuban Five allege that these right-wing groups have committed acts of sabotage against the people of Cuba for more than four decades including: contamina- tion of water and livestock, a string of hotel bombings, numerous assassination attempts against Cuban president Fidel Castro, the 1976 bombing of the Cubana de Aviacion flight 455, killing all 73 people on board, and a cruel US-imposed blockade on Cuba limiting the amount of food, medicine, and building supplies exported to Cuba.

All of these attacks have happened since the Cuban revolution in 1959. All of them have happened with the support and knowledge of the US. To date, the US still protects anti-Cuban terrorists like Luis Posada Carriles, one of the men responsible for the mid-air bombing of Aviacion flight 455. Isn’t the United States leading the “war on terror?” Why then does the US defend and pro-

tect self-admitted terrorists like Posada and jail the men sent to Miami to end terrorism against the Cuban peo- ple?

In September 1998, the Cuban Five were taken from their families and put into jails. Each one of the Five placed in a different prison—spread as far a part as pos- sible in the US—and placed in solitary confinement for 17 months. During this period, their democratic rights were violated and the men were subject to horrible human rights abuses.

The Cuban Five were convicted in a US federal court on June 8, 2001, in Miami. The US government claims that they were engaged in espionage on US military bases and threatened national security. However, within the 14,000 pages of court transcripts, no proof of espionage was ever produced. For their part in preventing over 170 acts of terror against Cuba, the Five were given sentences ranging from 15 years to two life sentences.

On August 9, 2005, after five motions made by the lawyers of the Cuban Five, three judges of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals released their decision sighting that, “the pervasive community prejudice against Fidel Castro and the Cuban government and its agents and the publicity surrounding the trial and other community

Down below my patio, a little gir—no higher than my knee—slowly speeds along the sidewalk in a multicoloured tricycle. The trike’s about the size of a Shaquille O’Neal shoe, made of plastic parts green, red, and blue. She’s wearing shiny black one-strap shoes, black stockings, a puffy blue jacket, and a yellow toque. A tall spiny tree grows out of the patch of grass that acts as a safe-zone between the street’s pavement and the sidewalk’s concrete. One of its roots pushes up on the sidewalk, making a minor riser for this mini rider to surmount. The Beach Boys’ “Little Honda” plays as her first attempt to tackle the hill fails. First gear. ..it’s alright. She eyes the bump and goes again. Second gear...I lean right. Again she tries, and again she can’t quite crest the cusp of the concrete’s breach. Third gear... hang on tight. Frustrated but determined, this belle on wheels puts her feet down, leans forward, makes like Pebbles Flintstone and fast-steps up and over the hill, down the sidewalk, and out of my life. Faster. ..it’s alright.

Left to my thoughts, I wonder about how wondrous it’s going to be when I’m a father someday, how lucky I am to be me today, what it’s like to face death, and how amazing it is to live well loved.

And...how stoned is that bumblebee? It’s the first bumblebee of the season on such a beautiful day to be alive. Puttering around, being tossed like a kitten’s yarn, big dopey loops to figure out that it’s just me sitting here, bumbling, stumbling, goofy bumblebee.

The sidewalk puddles stretch out for a better tan. The leaves turn upward in salutations after more than a month of Chinese water massage. Cats come out from under cob- webs to take part in the prowl of midday. Clouds kind of linger but don’t have the time to stay. Steam rises and sun falls in this moment, on this Monday, as the bumblebee, clumsily, buzzes away.

events combined to create a situation where they were unable to obtain a fair and impartial trial. We agree, and REVERSE their convictions and REMAND for a retri- al.”

This announcement from the 11th Circuit Court marked a time of hope for the Cuban Five. However, the government of the United States immediately intervened, appealing the decision by the 11th Circuit Court and demanding a review of the decision by all nine judges of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on February 13.

The US appears to hope that the court will come out with a decision more in favour of US, and is looking to avoid a re-trial for the five Cuban heroes.

On February 13, 2006, there will be a picket action demanding, “Free the Cuban Five!” It is going to take place at the US Consulate located at 1095 West Pender and Thurlow from 12-1pm.

This action is organized by the Free the Cuban Five Committee—Vancouver. For more information, please contact: Cuban5_van@yahoo.com or 604.719.6947. Or, go to www.vancubasolidarity.com/ freethefivevan.html for more information on the Cuban Five.