I happened across the example last night and really haven't had much of a chance to figure it out even yet, but it's so classically a hypocritical progressive loser, that I had to bring it to you for a morning puzzle and snort of your own.
So the backstory is that Nick Shirley, whose name is now Kyptonite to progs, went to Havana to see how the long struggle was going for those folks on the ground. Particularly in the face of the loss of Venezuela's oil and the subsequent U.S. oil embargo.
Shirley did a piece in front of an empty gas station explaining how Cubans have to get in a queue to ask for permission to get fuel.
🚨US Blockade on Cuba Explained:
— Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) May 12, 2026
Cuba used to get free or subsidized oil from Venezuela, but after Maduro was captured, the US placed a blockade on Cuba and imposed tariffs on countries like Mexico if they sold oil to Cuba.
Now there is absolutely no oil or gas, and the US is… pic.twitter.com/lS8aICRtDB
He spoke to an emotional man on the street who seemed to sum up life under communism pretty effectively, and with all his heart.
This is the truth about communism from someone living in communism:
— Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) May 12, 2026
- Regime leaders get rich and exploit the people
- No food (hasn't had eggs in a year)
- No freedom of speech
- No equality
"It just leads you to misery, harassment, hunger and anguish" - Man living in communism pic.twitter.com/qSa4ref68U
MISERY, HUNGER, HARASSMENT, AND ANGUISH
They sound like the Four Horsemen of Hell, don't they?
Shirley spent 24 hours on the island, and while there, perhaps his reputation preceded him, because the regime's security police reportedly held the investigative whiz kid for a period, and confiscated all of his cameras except for his iPhone and then trailed him once they let him loose.
🚨 I was almost taken hostage in Cuba...
— Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) May 4, 2026
I went to Cuba to document the humanitarian crisis and show life under 60+ years of communism and now amid the US blockade. Once I landed, they seized all my cameras except my iPhone and had intelligence agents following me all day until… pic.twitter.com/6VFQCOakGZ
Actually, that part isn't at all surprising. And it was pretty hairy for a while, according to Nick.
Independent journalist Nick Shirley said a reporting trip to Cuba turned into what he described as a “very dangerous” situation after he believes he was followed and nearly detained by authorities.
Shirley said that upon arriving in Cuba, officials confiscated his camera and audio equipment. He added that he and his team were then followed by what he believed were intelligence officers throughout their stay.
“When we noticed we were being followed back to our hotel room, we decided to leave that night,” Shirley told NewsNation. “When we tried sneaking out of the hotel at about 4 a.m., there was a two‑star general waiting for us and interrogated us about why we were leaving early.”
He also said he was unaware that he and his team were staying at a hotel operated by the Cuban government — a type of accommodation that U.S. citizens are generally prohibited from using under federal restrictions.
Shirley is pretty savvy about his videos and data he gathers, and released none of his reporting while he was on the islands, so he didn't run any further afoul of the obviously hostile authorities.
They managed to snag a taxi, and booked for the airport, where they still had a gauntlet of questions to answer before being allowed to board and leave.
He's since been told by multiple people not to go to third-world countries again (d'oh!) and released a 30-minute documentary of his visit.
What was entertaining this morning was finding out that one of Minneapolis's finest aggressive progressive freaks, a failed city council candidate named Zach Metzger, and a previous member of the risible 'Cuban Convoy,' had taken off for Cuba again.
This time, in search of Nick Shirley.
Who has that sort of disposable income, for one thing?
It must be nice.
Although, to be fair, he has been christened 'Lavish Mack.'
Though my favorite misadventure from this Cuba trip was Lavish Mack trying to hunt down Nick Shirley, apparently unaware that Shirley had already left the country. https://t.co/SFWpUdfIMX
— Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) May 12, 2026
He accused Shirley of fabricating the entire story about being held while at that same hotel.
Mack, a full-time far-left propagandist, filmed himself at the Havana hotel where Nick Shirley said he was being held and tailed, accusing Shirley of fabricating “pretext” for U.S. action against Cuba.
Even as he was having his own issues, those were Trump's fault.
This comes right after Mack claimed his bank account and Cash App were shut down after he tried accessing them from Cuba, which he blamed on Trump’s new Cuba sanctions.
Here’s Mack, in his own words, on how the new Cuba sanctions apparently caught up with him. https://t.co/Y6ynvABwEJ
— Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) May 5, 2026
Even though, mind you, the exact same thing happened when the ill-fated convoy returned, because it's always been standard protocol coming from the communist island.
It's still the same 'repressive,' only more so now.
Mack was previously detained upon returning from Cuba and has framed it as political repression, even though this is standard protocol. Given his activism around Cuba, he almost certainly knew to expect it and had likely been trained on how to respond. https://t.co/BcOjj2l08c
— Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) May 5, 2026
God, these people are exhausting.
And when Metzger arrived in Mexico, where his debit and credit cards once again worked, and he could buy a protein bar and a bottle of juice, or whatever, he was so grateful for 'his privilege.'
And 'f**k capitalism' was what he took from the whole wasted trip.
🚨 The May Day Brigadistas are on their way back to America. And if they are all following Lavish Mack’s route, they are flying through Mexico first before returning to the United States.
— Stu Smith (@thestustustudio) May 12, 2026
Mack posted from Mexico, overjoyed that he could use Apple Pay again after two weeks in… pic.twitter.com/YHNLB6HCko
...Mack posted from Mexico, overjoyed that he could use Apple Pay again after two weeks in Cuba with “no access” to his banks, no SIM card, no signal, constant blackouts, and sometimes less than $3 to his name.
His takeaway from finally being able to buy water with Apple Pay?
“F**k capitalism.”
A U.S. activist leaves Cuba, immediately benefits from the basic financial access and consumer convenience that Cuba lacks, and somehow still blames America.
Worth keeping an eye on, @ICEgov and @CBP.
As I said. Exhausting.
And I do believe someone needs a whole lot more repression and a whole lot less Apple Pay.
Maybe he'd come to what little sense he was born with.
Then again, I'm an optimist.
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