I generally support opening diplomatic relations with Cuba. I see it as a first step toward getting rid of the corrupt, oppressive Castro regime. However, what if it actually has the opposite effect?
See the following:
Cuba gets lots of tourists and foreign investments
-the government uses the money to increase its grip over the people
the government uses its new money to install sophisticated spying systems on internet accounts
-this allows the regime to increase its grip and stifle any dissent
Cuba becomes a society with no privacy at all.
To keep tabs on you lot, America spends a lot of money ‘…The NSA is one of at least 15 intelligence agencies, and combined the total U.S. intelligence budget in 2012 was $75 billion.’ CNN
The Dirección General de Inteligencia is supposed to be very good, although not as good as the Americans, and although it can spend far more sparingly to get results, I can’t see any similar budget figures. However, America has 300+ million to control; Cuba has 11 million. They can never milk as much from 11 million as America can from 300 million ( and their existential threat means American Intelligence services can justify their own existence to man ).
Both the NSA and the DGI will use phone/internet spying systems to stifle dissent and surveil their people, but the Cubans are in a race they can never catch up.
No, the desired effect will occur. More government oppression will result in the money flow getting slashed and after the Cuban people have had a taste of the modern world they won’t want to go back. As it is Fidel and his brother have outlived the sentiments that got them into power and allowed them to stay there. There could well be another internal political fight in Cuba, but that one will get rid of the Castros forever.
If the past has shown us something then that isolation does not promote change. If the US can manage to establish relations with Cuba on all levels, that is diplomatically, economically, culturally, I believe the current regime will be gone in ten years or less.
Good luck with that. No, I don’t think it will have the opposite effect. Opening up Cuba will be the death knell of the Cuban Communist Party. The inflow of capital will also come with an inflow of ideas and technology. To put it another way, China, which is orders of magnitude more powerful, is barely keeping a lid on their own people, and the CCP is barely hanging on by it’s finger nails since they opened up to the west, and personally I think it’s just a matter of time before the CCP goes down. The Cuban Communist Party? No chance they will survive.
This is something we should have done years ago, and I’m pleasantly surprised that it happened so quickly once the ball got rolling.
The opposite effect of what? We’re not doing this to change Cuba. We’re doing this because it’s better to be talking to people than not talking to people. It’s pretty arrogant to think that as soon as we open diplomatic ties that a country is going to want to be like us.
Americans have a strong cultural belief in the Irresistibility of Corruption; and that the power of better living standards can stamp out idealism: but, particularly with latin americans, people can be stubborn — the CIA has thrown away millions in bribing ingrates over the years.
However the rewards are great: merely by shaking shiny objects in front of their noses, Cubans — or their new representatives — will vote to junk their present health system and join the improved American Health System. An 11 million more payers for the big Insurance companies !
So, um, to keep their present health system they have to keep a totalitarian rule? Who knew?!? I bet those Western European types will be shocked by this revelation.
Oh…and it’s plus CIGARS! Sugar is nice and all, but the real plus is those Cuban cigars! Bring those babies on, I say!
They don’t have to keep the repulsive communist system to retain a state health service; but if they go for the trinkets of their new masters, then privatisations such as led to the Oligarchs in Russia and the slashing of welfare systems will not be far behind. The Free Market cannot be denied.
And make no mistake, the US has no great interest in Cuban Sugar as such; but they do have in complete control of Cuban Sugar, as in the good old days.
If it has the opposite effect, oh well, Cuba is not our property to dictate to what we want to happen. Some countries rise to a international threat, Cuba doesn’t. Its great if they open up, but not our problem if they don’t. The law we are changing restricts American movement, that’s not fair, so we should have it changed. Whether it does anything to the Cuban people is irrelevant
I think we have to admit our current policy hasn’t worked in prompting changes in Cuba. It’s far past time to try something new. If it works, great. If it doesn’t work, we’re no worse off.
Agreed. It’s also arrogant to think that Cuba is isolated from the rest of the world just because it’s isolated from the US – they’ve had diplomatic relations with most of the world, a thriving tourism business, and export trade since practically forever.
Won’t that be great? I look forward to the joyous day when the Cuban people can start getting their health insurance claims denied, and be forced to pay exorbitant sums for the privilege, just like free citizens of a real country!
Cuba may well become a huge headache for the USA-suppose they decide to ship all of their poor to the USA (as Castro did in the 1970s -the Maralietos?). That was another of Jimmuh Cahtuh’s great moments-South Florida was invaded by criminals and mental patients.
You’re referring to the Mariel boatlift of 1980. In order to understand it, you need to know a bit more about the history of U.S. policy on Cuban refugees, as compared to asylum claimants for other countries, most notably Central America and Haiti.
And suppose the US shipped them right back? Normalization of relations doesn’t change immigration laws. And as noted, the Mariel boatlift was an unusual situation under emergency conditions where the US opted to accept these people. The embargo didn’t prevent the Mariel situation from happening, and indeed it can be argued that the embargo was a contributing factor to why it happened in the first place.
Cubans already have no privacy. Each block has representatives from the Committee for the Defense of the Revolution. Each representative has a file on each family on the block with information on their family dynamics, political thoughts, and all activities. If any family is engaging in non approved political activity or is suspected of political unreliability they are reported and they could lose their job, not be allowed to travel, denied education, be harassed by state agents, or even a mob is brought in to threaten and insult the family.
Being monitored on the internet would be an improvement over the status quo.
