The Definition of Irony

What is the definition of irony?

It may come any day now when Fidel Castro dies — the victim of his highly touted system of socialized medicine in the worker's paradise of Cuba.

Even though Castro imported a doctor from Spain to treat his diverticulitis — an infection in the large intestine that rarely proves fatal in capitalist countries — the Communist dictator is said to be in grave condition following three failed surgeries.

It's not only irony, it's poetic justice.

U.S. doctors look with stunned amazement at the relatively simple health-care problem Castro faced and the results — a hospitalization that has continued since late July. They suggest that medical procedures on Castro were botched.

I would suggest the doctors caring for Castro did everything they could to save him. We're just now learning the truth about Cuba's health-care system after decades of lies.

Socialists in this country have been holding up Cuba as a model for medical care. How many times have you heard this lie? Yet, the real proof is that the best of Cuba's medical establishment couldn't successfully treat Castro for a routine ailment after six months.

Is Hillary Clinton paying attention to this?

Is Nancy Pelosi watching?

Is Harry Reid understanding the significance of this amazing story?

Keep in mind, this is happening to the Comandante — not some sugar-cane harvesting peasant. It shows you just how bad socialized medicine gets. It atrophies to the point where it is incapable of healing, even when doctors' lives may depend upon it.

Without getting into the gory details of his illness, suffice it to say that diverticulitis causes bulges in the large intestines that get infected.

The normal treatment is a colostomy, the removal of part of the intestine, the creation of an opening in the abdomen and the attachment of an external bag for the patient's excrement. A second operation is required to rejoin the intestine.

But Castro's medical brain trust, in consultation with the Patient in Chief, opted for a shorter procedure — one that led to a second infection and two more surgeries.

When Castro dies, it will likely be because toxins from his own sick body poisoned him.

But it is the toxic ideas of Castro that have taken their toll on his homeland of Cuba and spread through much of Latin America and the rest of the world. Despite his many crimes against humanity, Castro is still perceived throughout much of the Western world as a kind of harmless folk hero.

One of Castro's best-known slogans was "Socialism or death!" Many Cubans have asked, over the years of Castro's reign, "What's the difference?" Now, even Fidel will see it is no choice — they are one in the same.

No doubt there will be some who don't learn the obvious lesson from Castro's bout with socialized medicine. They will continue to insist it is a better way — a fairer system, a more equitable one, one that focuses on saving lives rather than profits.

Let me leave you with one last thought: When was the last time you heard of some wealthy sick guy who chose to go to Cuba for treatment rather than, say, the Mayo Clinic or Johns Hopkins University?

It doesn't happen. It never will happen. The only people who believe Cuban medical care is equal to or superior to what we have in the United States are those who teach at universities, attend them or pay to see Michael Moore movies.

RIP, Fidel.

Rot in perdition.

To find out more about Joseph Farah, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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