President Obama is America's first "fully functioning, Self-determining" President in Havana, Cuba.
By President Barack Obama going to Cuba with First Lady Michele Obama and his daughters, Malia and Sasha they demonstrate what a "fully functioning, Self-determining" family can be. This is especially true given the relentless negative backlash the Obamas have dealt with during their years in the White House. Having the confidence and grace to go to Cuba as a family unit to speak peace is a clear point of demarcation in American politics and a lesson for parenting. The Obama's stopped the U.S. insanity towards Cuba. Parents need to stop the insanity towards children.
The Obama Family is exporting Peace.
As a parent, I was beyond proud seeing two intelligent, beautiful young First daughters step out of Air Force One. These two young ladies have been the shining examples of what being responsible is. Our First Daughters have never created any public scandals for their parents, our First Family or America as a Nation. This reality in itself indicates the Obama's have raised fully functioning, Self-determining children. Our children get to see their peers representing the United States of America in a classy way speaking peace worldwide. This is parenting by example.
President Obama's trip to Cuba is the line of demarcation for all people.
President Obama's trip to Cuba sets him apart from all other presidents before him since the U.S. embargo on Cuba was set in place. No other President dared to act against the financial and violent Cuban-American lobby that kept the failed US policies against Cuba in place by any means necessary. These anti-Castro lobbyists have conducted terrorist attacks here in the United States as well as high-jacking and exploding planes with civilians. To this day, these terrorists live free in Miami protected by politicians and civilians in America, not the middle-east, but here in Florida to be specific.
But in the face of the 50-year-old stagnant destructive beliefs of lobbyists who have financial strangleholds on politicians that keep the U.S. Embargo on Cuba in place, Obama took actions only a mindful voter in today's political arena would do, he decided to transform US-Cuba policies with actions. Obama has embraced the same mindful distinctions required to raise fully functioning, Self-determining children to transform US-Cuba policies. Teaching children it's wise to change your mind after fifty years of failure is one of the biggest gifts we can teach our children.
What are fully functioning, Self-determining distinctions?
(1)To be a fully functioning person requires you to be able to practice the "5-A's". This means you can have a conversation with anyone, anywhere, anytime, about anything, anyhow and stay in the conversation. My two elementary school daughters will add you must do the 5-A's without throwing a tantrum. Way too many adults throw tantrums when they don't get their way.
(2)To be a Self-determining person means you have the capacity to learn new information, reconsider your positions and then change your mind and take new actions. Simply said, you make decisions based on what's best for the future, not a reaction to your past. You own "What hooks you? Is you." You become responsible for your reactions to what hooked you that have nothing to do with serving what's possible.
(3)Lastly, it requires you to honor your own words and the impact they have on others no matter what with respect for everyone involved. Breaking promises has become a way of life for too many parents, hence children.
President Barack Obama is demonstrating all three distinctions by transforming our US-Cuba relationships.
Presidents Barack Obama, Raul Castro, and the 5-A's conversations.
President Obama is committed to conversations that normalize all relationships between the US and Cuba. This in itself proves President Obama thinks of what's best for everyone beyond the few who do nothing to end the failed embargo. Therefore, President Obama is engaging with Cuba's Raul Castro, in Havana, Cuba, in person, now. Obama is not waiting another fifty years.
The tantrums are coming from people who hate the Castro's at everyone's expense. Ironically they hate the Castro's so much they don't even care the only people they have hurt for the last half century are Cubans in Cuba, Cubans in America, and Cubans around the world. It's simple, if you cannot practice the 5-A's in an area of life, you are dysfunctional in that area. You are teaching the children around you to be dysfunctional.
President Obama is Being Self-determining.
For the last five decades the world has seen US-Cuba policies be high-jacked by a few people who simply have not resolved their emotional issues with the Castro brothers, hence they go crazy pushing anything that is anti-Castro. They cannot discuss anything positive towards Cuba hence they cannot have a functional or equitable conversation when it comes to normalizing relationships with the Cuban government.
These pro-US embargo against Cuba people claim they want what is best for Cuba. I assert that:
"If you want what is best for the Cuban people, you do what Cuban's in Cuba want. Cuban's want America to end the U.S. embargo now." Luis Moro
President Obama as a functioning adult creates solutions.
President Obama learned new information about Cuba. He then reconsidered it all and changed the positions formally dictated to past Presidents by a small Cuban anti-Castro lobby. Obama is not being hooked by the anti-Castro haters. Rather President Obama took his entire family to Cuba so the world could see world peace is possible right now. Today.
Now Obama is engaging with Cuba to create a new peaceful future for all.
By going to Cuba, President Obama is demonstrating that he has the fully-functioning, Self-determining skills to evaluate all facts, opinions, and options about Cuba, then make decisions that are consistent with what is best for the whole of the planet. At the very least American citizens can now take new actions that may alter the course of the failed 50-year old US policies and laws against Cuba. Our children do not need to live in the fear mongering past of anti-Castro haters.
President Obama honored his word with me.
When I first met then Senator Barack Obama while he was running for President of the United States in 2008 I shared with him how I spend my life lobbying against the failed U.S. policies towards Cuba. I even supported financially and campaigned for long time friends U.S. Senator Robert Menendez and U.S. Congressman Albio Sires with the hopes of them having a change of mind by seeing the decades-old US embargo on Cuba is not working.
My friends did not budge or even consider the possibility of lifting the US embargo on Cuba as an option. So I then simply followed a new path and focused on electing the a mindful voting candidate, then-Senator Barack Obama, that had the sense to say...
"Doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result is insanity." President Barack Obama -- paraphrase Albert Einstein quote
This simple, yet direct principle is all I need to know if a politician or person is a mindful voter. Many of us knew we needed a mindful voting politician to transform our US-Cuba polities. We believed Barack Obama would be the one.
So when Senator Obama shook my hand, looked me in my eyes, and said he never understood why we have these policies and he will do something about it. I knew I would do my best to elect him President of the United States. Our "Elect Obama Now" Campaign was instrumental in producing the most-early voters in the history of elections.
The following month after first meeting Obama I was invited to lobby our US congress and Senators to vote against the US embargo. My invitation came by way of Mavis Anderson of the Latin American Working Group. Mavis and her team are undeniably one of the hardest working, consistent humans rights organization in Washington, DC pursuing peace and justice in Latin America.
My value to the Latin American Working Groups extraordinary effort with so many people lobbying our political leaders was the history-making movie I made in Cuba, Cuba's Love and Suicide, the movie, which I personally gave to Senator Obama, his staff, and all the politicians our group met in the Senate and Congress. Cuba's Love and Suicide was the first time many politicians and their staff in the halls of Washington DC would actually see the real Cuba with their own eyes and experience the negative impact the failed US embargo on Cuba has on the Cuban people. The Cuba Film proved it was time to forgive. As world-renowned therapist Ira Israel states. When we forgive. That's where the freedom comes in.
Soon after another life long friend Vivian Lesnick Weisman finished her documentary, The Man of Two Havana's. This documentary revealed the facts and betrayals by the Cuban-American politicians who literally high-jacked and purchased votes in DC to maintain failed policies against Cuba. Her film highlights the heroic bravery of her father Max Lesnick who stood up against the U.S. Embargo on Cuba during a time where Cuban's here in America literally bombed his Replica Magazine offices and threaten his life and his family's life as their entitlement because of their anti-Castro hate. Hate only creates violence.
Obama is stopping the hate insanity.
Even in the face of decades of deceptions, lies and political vote buying, now President Obama did not become another President who continued the hate insanity of failed US Policies against Cuba. Teaching our children to not be haters is fundamental to creating peace on earth.
From my personal experience with Obama, he simply listened to all sides then made his own conclusions. Obama and his team are fully functioning, Self-determining (or fully formed, self-actualizing as some like to call it) enough to engage in any conversation, with anyone, anywhere, anyhow, about anything with the goal of "creating a-world that works for everyone, with no one left out" as Werner Erhard first declared.
What's next after Cuba? We Speak Peace Worldwide.
President Barack Obama has set the stage for a peaceful relationship between the people of Cuba and The United States of America. This possibility of peace will continue to expand to all people around the world. With the education available today, there is no reason to live a disempowered life. We can all speak peace. You and I simply declare "We Speak Peace"
An aspect of being a fully functioning, Self-determining person is you can actually create, start and engage in conversations with your enemy not knowing the answers, but with just one side committed to peace. One side that is determined to have both sides committed to peace. All you have to do is declare I Speak Peace for yourself. At which point you can practice the 5A's with anyone and stay conscious enough to embrace your personal emotions, set them aside, and focus on what is truly good for yourself and the whole of humanity.
World Peace is possible and there's a growing movement of mindful voters committed to speaking peace and creating world peace as a reality. But it will require all of us being fully functioning, Self-determining people declaring and generating We Speak Peace.
As a parent, I focus on creating a future where Air Force one represents peace everywhere she lands. I want future leaders like Malia, Sasha, my daughters Kylie and London, your daughters and sons speak peace as their lifestyle choice.
President Obama set the Peace stage with Cuba.
Now is the perfect time in history for our generation to be mindful voters and elect politicians who speak peace. The test if a politician speaks peace is simple. Are they for peace with Cuba or do they want to continue the failed 50-year old policies. Let's see if they visit Havana, Cuba seeking peace or continue hate that has produced nothing. Which do you want for your children? A leader who creates Peace. Or a leader who continues to perpetuate hatred. As Albert Einstein would tell you. Stop the insanity. Start Speaking Peace.
I Speak Peace.
Luis Moro
This is the first article in a series of articles highlighting "fully functioning, Self-determining" parents and their contributions to peace.