This whole thing would really bother me.....if I really gave a rat's behind about what Ozzie Guillen thinks about anything. I understand the sensitivity of the local fan base to those kinds of comments, and the 5 game suspension seems about right, as long as the Marlins have made it clear to Mr Guillen, from the start, that these kinds of "public" statements will not be tolerated, and will result in punishments. Mike Wise's piece in the Post today says it pretty well-the problem with Mr Guillen is not so much this incident, but his history of mouthing off in very inappropriate ways with members of the press in attendance. That is the issue the Marlins will have to deal with, and past performance strongly suggests the issue will keep rearing its head.

That's right, nothing to do with politics.

Insofar as politics is largely about right vs. left, rather than to commit mass murder or not to. There are as many right wing mass murderers as left wing mass murderers. Now if you think that to murder or not to murder is a political issue then you can consider this to be a political issue; I don't.

Lots of Latinos hate Castro. Lots of Latinos hate the "Gringos to the North" ( but of course will do anything to get here). Many Latinos would never want to live in Cuba under Castro, but admire Castro because of his ability to survive and basiclly be a thorn in the side of the "Gringos". It's sort of an "any enemy of America is a friend of mine" type attitude.

Ozzie's comments makes his beliefs clear to me. He admires Castro for his ability to survive and and "stick it" to America. A lot of gratitude the jerk shows to a country that has given him the opportunity to make millions. But the Cuban community is just as bad. They want to "squash" any type of opinions that may not be their own, just the same way Castro "squashes" his opposition. What would you expect from those who oppressed the masses under the Batista regime ? "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss."

Ozzie has not yet been fully honest in his apology. He can't be. How do you tell America that your pro Castro comments are rooted in a deeply felt resentment towards America ? Let's be charitable. Anybody that knows history should be able to understand why many Latinos feel the same as Ozzie. So give him a break and gently remind Ozzie of the truth. And to the Cuban community in Miami, please don't act like the man you despise and accept the apology. Let's enjoy the game.

How do you tell America that your pro Castro comments are rooted in a deeply felt resentment towards America ?"

Well, you start by saying "before I say this, let me preface I am a F'n idiot"

How do you explain all the "Gringos" the Alex Baldwins, Sean Penns, Danny Glovers, Joe Kennedys, who have embraced a brutal dictator responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths?

Growing up I never remember anyone from the public sector talking about how much respect they had for Joseph Stalin or Nakita Krushchev

Forget Castro for the moment---is there a book out there with nothing but Ossie Guillen quotes? Because if there were, I'd seriously consider buying it.

It would be titled" In Case you had doubts I'm an Idiot" forward by Jimmy the Greek---as told through a medium

In case I had any doubt about that, consider this---Ozzie Guillen is a RESIDENT of Miami. So, he knows firsthand that there are a lot of Cuban-Americans who live there. Furthermore, as a native Spanish speaker, he can speak to them directly and therefore he should know how they feel about Fidel Castro. (Although in all due fairness, the native language of most second and third generation Cuban-Americans is English and they might not necessarily be fluent in Spanish. Ben Affleck was actually more fluent in Spanish than his then lover Jennifer Lopez.

Here is my opinion...just mine:

Ozzie's second language is English. He used the wrong words to express his opinion. That said, he should have left politics out of any his comments. I'm not sure what the question was that caused him to make such a statement.

The suspension, IMO, is an attempt to appease the local Latino public...nothing more. This will go on for a while. We have not heard the last of it. I suspect this will go on for a while.

So we beat on, boats against the current....

I'm not defending Ozzie's comments, or the views of left wing celebreties. I also can't defend the actions of our government that supported right wing dictators such as Batista, Somoza and Pinochet. You do know how many thousands of people suffered under those regimes, don't you ? You can understand why there may be some resentment of America among Latinos for these reasons. don't you ?

Ozzie Guillen is not Henry Kissenger. Yes, his comments where stupid and a public relations nightmare for the Marlins. But make no mistake. This has nothing to do with being misunderstood or Ozzie's limited command of English. Whether it's justified or not, Ozzie Gullien, like millions of other Latinos, resents America and admires Castro for the sole reason that Castro is a Latin leader that has survived and stood up to the giant of the north. Gullien's view of Castro is very prevelent throughout Latin America, South America and the Caribean. It's a very hypocritical view. There is no way Gullien would want to live in a Castro controlled Cuba and the country he resents has given him the opportunity to make millions for himself.

Guillen would be better served if he would simply admit his true feelings. He should admit that these feelings are hypicritical and even irrational. He should ask the Cuban community for understanding. He doesn't support Castro and his autrocities any more than the Cuban community supported Batista and his autrocities. If the Cuban community feels it needs to squash Ozzie, then they are no better than Castro when he squashes his opposition. I think there is plenty of hypocracy to go around.

By the way, the US government would not allow any criticism of "Uncle Joe" during WWII, even though they know all about his autrocities. You do remember what happened to Patton ? It's called political expediency. Heck, you should read some of Chruchhill's glowing admiration of Hitler as late as 1938, despite the fact that Winston knew all about Hitler's oppression of the Jewish people ( I can't believe the sensors won't let me use the "J" word, it's not derogitory ) . Neither the left or the right can take the moral high road.

I also can't defend the actions of our government that supported right wing dictators such as Batista, Somoza and Pinochet. You do know how many thousands of people suffered under those regimes,"

I don't know of any Americans who were in love with those people either nor cared to exspress it publicly.

Our involvement with those regimes was for much more complicated reasons than you may be implying and incapable of analysis in this type of forum.

But are you suggesting, and if so you may be right, that when Guillen says he loves Castro he is really saying he hates white people or gringos?

"Guillen would be better served if he would simply admit his true feelings."

I think it would put an end to his career, and he has a pretty good gig for a guy who isn't very bright. I think he would be best served by keeping quiet and seeing if he can ride this out.

"But are you suggesting, and if so you may be right, that when Guillen says he loves Castro he is really saying he hates white people or gringos ?"

Hate is too strong a word, resentment is closer to the truth. This is a very common sentiment south of the border. I don't think it's a stretch to say that most people living in the Americas, but not in the US, view the US as patronizing too say the least. A few years ago ( just after the 2008 elections ) several members of the Congressional Black Caucaus went to Cuba to visit with "El Presidente". I was outraged to hear them speak so highly of him and the health care system in Cuba when they returned and were interviewed by Charlie Rose. They have the same type of resentment towards "White America" or the"Establishment" as the Latinos have towards America in general. I don't agree with it, but I understand it.

There's nothing complicated with this issue. Ozzie admires Castro because he sticks it to America. Residents of Ward 8 support Marion Barry because he sticks it to "The Man". The US had supported oppresive right wing regimes to maintain the status quo and protect the huge profits being made in countries south of the border. C'mon, it's not that hard to understand why there may be some resentment towards America and why many Latinos may hate Castro for his politics but admire him the his chutzpa. My view is that the Cuban community should accept Ozzie's apology, because deep down they understand his feelings, misguided as they may appear. If it wasn't for their blinding hatred for Castro, they too may feel the same resentment towards the US.