The weekend in Cuba news: Cheesehead wrestler, migration spike, judo gold

NEWS
Wisconsin wrestler to face Cuban opponent in opener
Olympic wrestler Ben Provisor drew the No. 17 spot and will face Alexi Bel of Cuba in the opening round of the Greco-Roman 74-kilogram weight class at the ExCeL Arena on Sunday.
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/165021846.html#!page=0&pageSize=10&sort=newestfirst
Cuban emigrant interdictions skyrocket
The number of Cubans being stopped at sea before entering the United States is the highest it’s been in almost five years, according to U.S. Coast Guard statistics.
http://www.keysnet.com/2012/08/04/468813/cuban-emigrant-interdictions-skyrocket.html
Cuban Ortiz wins women’s heavyweight gold
Cuba’s Idalys Ortiz improved on her bronze medal of four years ago to win the women’s Olympic heavyweight judo title on Friday, ending the title holder’s five year unbeaten run in the process.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-08-03/sports/sns-rt-us-oly-judo-juw79kbre8721de-20120803_1_78kg-category-judo-heavyweight-gold
Key political risks to watch in Cuba
Cuba is moving along with reforms aimed at boosting its economy, but has also laid out new taxes that angered many and pose a threat to the growth of small businesses critical to the government’s economic plans.
http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/08/03/cuba-risks-idINRISKCU20120803
OPINION
It’s up to Cuban-Americans to save Hispanics from las mentiras, or the lies of the Dem left.
Ted Cruz’s victory in Texas, as well as the success of Marco Rubio, put Cuban-Americans on the front page of American politics.  These wins also give us an opportunity to craft a message to Hispanics — a message that emphasizes individual freedom, self-reliance, a skepticism of the state, and the value of family in our culture.
We hear it over and over again that Cuban-Americans are different.  We are often called the “other” Hispanics.  The media calls us “reactionaries” or “right-wingers” or makes fun of our disdain for communism.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/08/its_up_to_cuban-americans_to_save_hispanics_from_las_mentiras_or_the_lies_of_the_dem_left.html
Guest Commentary: Time for U.S. to end the Cuban embargo
Most folks don’t know it, but there is now a legal way for U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba. It is called the People to People Program, and it is available through a select number of U.S. travel groups. Among them are the Grand Circle Foundation, ElderTreks, Friendly Planet, and National Geographic Expeditions.
http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_21221143/guest-commentary-time-u-s-end-cuban-embargo
HISTORY
Ocala Rifles head off to war in Cuba
The saga of F.D. Pooser, the former county tax collector who resigned after being denounced by a Marion County grand jury for failure to collect taxes and for shortages in his collections, wasn’t quite over by the end of 1897.
http://www.ocala.com/article/20120805/COLUMNISTS/120809878

NEWS

Wisconsin wrestler to face Cuban opponent in opener

Olympic wrestler Ben Provisor drew the No. 17 spot and will face Alexi Bel of Cuba in the opening round of the Greco-Roman 74-kilogram weight class at the ExCeL Arena on Sunday.

Cuban emigrant interdictions skyrocket

The number of Cubans being stopped at sea before entering the United States is the highest it’s been in almost five years, according to U.S. Coast Guard statistics.

Cuban Ortiz wins women’s heavyweight gold

Cuba’s Idalys Ortiz improved on her bronze medal of four years ago to win the women’s Olympic heavyweight judo title on Friday, ending the title holder’s five year unbeaten run in the process.

Key political risks to watch in Cuba

Cuba is moving along with reforms aimed at boosting its economy, but has also laid out new taxes that angered many and pose a threat to the growth of small businesses critical to the government’s economic plans.

OPINION

It’s up to Cuban-Americans to save Hispanics from las mentiras, or the lies of the Dem left.

Ted Cruz’s victory in Texas, as well as the success of Marco Rubio, put Cuban-Americans on the front page of American politics.  These wins also give us an opportunity to craft a message to Hispanics — a message that emphasizes individual freedom, self-reliance, a skepticism of the state, and the value of family in our culture.

We hear it over and over again that Cuban-Americans are different.  We are often called the “other” Hispanics.  The media calls us “reactionaries” or “right-wingers” or makes fun of our disdain for communism.

Guest Commentary: Time for U.S. to end the Cuban embargo

Most folks don’t know it, but there is now a legal way for U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba. It is called the People to People Program, and it is available through a select number of U.S. travel groups. Among them are the Grand Circle Foundation, ElderTreks, Friendly Planet, and National Geographic Expeditions.

HISTORY

Ocala Rifles head off to war in Cuba

In Marion County, the focus in early 1898 was on the revolution taking place in Cuba. Most of the Cubans who had populated Marti City, the cigar manufacturing district in West Ocala, were gone. They had moved to Ybor City at Tampa, where they had been promised more than Ocala could ever offer, to continue making cigars and continue fundraising drives to assist the Cuban rebels.