Diego Maradona: From the Sublime to the Ridiculous

Diego Maradona could be an absolute marvel on the football pitch. The "Hand Of God" notwithstanding, his second goal in that game as well as his goal in the game against Belgium in the 1986 Word Cup were simply breathtaking.

He's made a mess of his life: drugs, blaming the Mafia for Argentina's losing the 1990 World Cup Championship, cheating on his wife, you name it. Yet in Argentina he's still regarded reverentially, to put it mildly. Now he has his own television program, free to bloviate on whatever he wishes. Of all the stupid things he has said, this must rank amongst the stupidest:

Tonight, Mr. Maradona's interview segment will be with Mr. Castro, who spoke with him in Havana last week. During the interview, Mr. Maradona calls the Cuban dictator "a god."

In that same paragraph he goes on to put down President Bush, to put it mildly. Regular readers know that the level of contempt that I have for Bush is fairly high, perhaps Diegito should live like most Cubans have to live before he pronounces Castro "a god."

Comments

[leftside]

We'll see how many follow the "ridiculous" Maradona down the Avienda against US sponsored Free Trade, Capitalism and Imperialism this weekend.

Of course Maradona has been through the ropes. But remember, he knows Cuba, he's lived there for 3 years. Cuba has helped get him off Coke and given him purpose again.

And Maradona is not exactly alone in his respect for Castro in the region. In Argentina, you can count a solid majority that supports him (according to the only poll i could find). Diego certainly knows the fast life and has chosen somrthing far more noble. That alone deserved more respect that you give him.

[Randinho]

I would imagine that there are few who call him a "god."

As for following a noble path, give me a break. Diego is a headline hound and a attention junkie. If he really wanted to follow a noble path and wasn't dying to call attention to himself, maybe he'd work for an NGO. Christ, he's lining his pocket. This is the same Diego who was dying to get on the Albacestes while people were being tortured in La Escuela Mecánica de la Armada and dropped alive and unconscious out of airplanes in Argentina.

Noble path my ass. Diego just wants to get attention. I would love to see someone like Adolfo Perez Esquivel or Ernesto Sabato lead the demonstration, someone who's dedicated their life to freedom and justice, not calling attention to myself.

Diego goes to Cuba, gets treated royally and unlike most Cubans can come and go as he pleases. Let him go there and live without privileges and the ability to come and go as he pleases and we'll see how godlike he thinks Castro is.

[leftside]

Look, I am in no position to argue about Maradona's character. But he did kick an awful coke habit, get fit and now his name is associated with politics and not girls and partying. Cuba and Castro himself did that... maybe he is a God :)

Sure NGO work is more selfless, but I don't think its more effective in getting the people to pay attention. And NGOs are nothing if they don't get the State's attention (and often help). Didn't Esquivel co-lead the march? He did organize the press conference...

And 99.9% of Cubans are allowed to fly anywhere, unlike us, if they have an exit permit. The two "restrictions" Human Rights Watch just cited as unjustified are 1) for doctors and 2) those likely to defect and work against national security interests. As I am sure you know, the US uses Visa's the same way and much worse. By the accounts I read Maradona lived modestly in Cuba as do plenty of world class Cuban athletes and artists, who live amongst the people and support the Revolution. The Cuban people give up so much for their top-notch medical, cultural and sports training. They deserve to reap the reward... unlike nearly every other Latin country where "brain drain" is endemic.
Respectfully, Matt