¡Viva el teléfono celular!

“First you get the money, then you get the power, then you get the cell phone!”

It’s a slight modification to the infamous line uttered by gangster Tony Montana in the 1983 hit movie Scarface, to be sure but you get the point.

With Fidel Castro’s health in question, brother Raul has given Cuban citizens permission to buy the ultimate capitalist invention - the cell phone. Raul, of course, recently took over as Grand Poobah of Cuba with his brother doing his best Weekend at Bernie’s imitation.

Anyway, the result of Raul’s decree were lineups that stretched for blocks over the last two days.

I bet there were a lot of disappointed Cubans if and when they managed to reach the front of the line. Cell phone service, however, costs $120 a month (probably a ripe market for pre-paid service me thinks). The average Cuban makes about $20 a month.

At that rate, one wonders how anyone on a poor island/country like Cuba can afford a cell phone.

High-ranking officials can. Apparently, cell phones in Cuba were already commonplace albeit illegal by the letter of the law.

The Cuban elite have toted around cell phones since 1991 so it’s not exactly a new thing but the locals nonetheless are excited.

Raul must be a real gadget geek. Last month, you’ll recall, he allowed his people to buy DVD players, this month it’s the cell phone.

What’s next? A PC in every Cuban household?

[tags] Cuba, Fidel Castro, cell phone [/tags]