The solutions found by citizens are often touted as "achievements of the system," when in reality they are desperate struggles for survival.

The instilled fear of the "mole" - who could be anyone and from whom we must protect ourselves - is the most efficient trick, the most effective and successful path to disunity.

"It is not possible for a Cuban citizen to etablish her own web domain and house it on a server in Cuba; but it is illegal for her to establish a web domain hosted on a server in another country." " Cuba's "official" bloggers reflect the only true reality. We, the alternative bloggers, therefore, are puppets of some foreign power."

You can sign your own name to anything you think and write, but you aren't allowed to publish any of those things, particularly if you have signed them.

It is common to have to show ID when walking with a friend from another country. Common that buses are stopped in the middle of the street and bags inspected to see if we are carrying some cheese, a lobster, or some dangerous shrimp hidden among our personal belongings.

My husband told him: " Teo, your uncle Adolfo is in jail because he's a very brave man," to which my son replied with his innocent logic: "Then you are free because you're a little bit cowardly."

However, I fear for a nation that unconditionally rewards ideology rather than talent; where a student who participates in a political demonstration can be graded higher than one who masters his subjects; where educational institutions teach students that the way to succeed is to disse,ble.