Aces

Today’s Impromptus is the last in a series, concerning the Castro brothers’ foreign policy. Today’s installment deals with the Castros and China.

The boss of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping, visited the Castros last summer (ten days after Vladimir Putin left). As I mention in Impromptus, Xi formalized many deals with the Castros, including one to develop golf courses in Cuba.

Which is interesting, because Fidel Castro, in his salad days, effectively banned golf, denouncing it as a “bourgeois” pursuit. (“Bourgeois” was one of his worst words.)

“But listen,” I say in Impromptus: “One of his sons, Antonio, not only plays golf but is said to be a champion.”

I have a caveat, however: “When it comes to dictatorships … you can never be completely sure. According to Pyongyang, Kim Jong-il had eleven holes-in-one in his very first round of golf, carding a score of 38 for 18 holes, or 34 under par — something Bobby Jones never dreamed of. Neither did Nicklaus or Woods.”

Okay, all of this is prelude to the point I want to make here in the Corner: A score of 38, when par is 72, is not all that great — for a guy who has made eleven aces. In my view, someone who can card “1” on eleven holes should really be able to play the remaining holes in under 27.

Do you know what I’m saying?

One more point: When examining Xi’s visit to Cuba, I thought of WFB — and Jesse Jackson. Xi told Castro he wished him long life (which he has had already). Jackson, in Havana, years ago, shouted, “Viva Castro!” On television later, WFB asked Jackson, “When wishing long life to Fidel Castro, were you at the same time wishing short life to his political prisoners?”

I have paraphrased, but it was great, like many — most — Buckley moments.