Cuba Inching Closer To Freedom?

A few demonstrators are out in Miami's Cuban community, marking the blessed end of the dictatorial rule of Fidel Castro, who announced his resignation early this morning.

The news, thus far, has not been met with large demonstrations, either in Miami or Cuba. Perhaps we have learned not to hope for much with Cuba, especially with Raul Castro taking over the government, promising only "modest" reform -- in a country where the average wage is $18 a month!

Speaking in Rwanda -- a country that knows a thing or two about brutal rule -- President Bush was upbeat, calling on the world to help move Cuba towards democracy:

"The international community should work with the Cuban people to begin to build institutions that are necessary for democracy," he said. "Eventually, this transition ought to lead to free and fair elections — and I mean free, and I mean fair — not these kind of staged elections that the Castro brothers try to foist off as true democracy."

If that dream turns out to be just a short way off, I'll be surprised. It's been a long time since the Berlin Wall fell overnight. Despots have adapted, figuring out how to hold onto power in a world that no longer welcomes them.

But even so, a world without Fidel Castro is a better world.