The embargo is not because Cuba is or was “a threat”. The embargo was/is in place because Cuba nationalized US property as part of their revolution. Supposedly, if that property were to be returned, the embargo would be lifted.
It really only works if you can choreograph it to the opening bass line from Michael Jackson’s “Bad”
I think at this point even token attempts to compensate those who lost property, along with some attempts at economic and political reform would do the trick…after both Castro’s shuffle off. Optimally, they will die soon, whoever takes over will want a rapprochement with the US and be smart enough to see the opportunity inherent in situation and the fact that Obama is president, and we could see real, meaningful change happen in the fairly near future. But the bulk of the changing and concessions are going to have to come from Cuba if it’s going to be politically viable for the US to do anything. That’s the reality. They need us a lot more than we need them, and there has to be some over-riding reason for the political parties to spend the political capital on something that, frankly, most Americans simply don’t give a shit about, and those who do are adamant in their position.
In 1938 Mexico nationalized US property (oil reserves, and facilities. A boycott was urged, but no embargo.
That was the original stated rationale, but the current embargo is imposed under the auspices of the Cuban Democracy Act, which doesn’t mention the return of expropriated property as a condition for lifting the embargo.
In truth, it wasn’t even the rationale originally, just a convenient excuse. The popular history is almost entirely at odds with what actually happened.
I don’t think Cubans will make the first move to lift the embargo. The Cuban people are very proud of their heritage, and culture. And I know quite a few Cubans. Sure, they all want to leave the island, but it is only because they can’t. I understand that Castro has never cashed a US payment for the rent of Guantanamo.
XT, what do you imagine they have to compensate us with? They are poor. All they require from us is a good leaving alone, they are no threat to us in any conceivable way. We don’t use pots to pee in, why should we want to take theirs?
Oh, OK. At any rate, the embargo is NOT because Cuba is seen as a physical threat to the US.
No argument there.
They aren’t that poor. They could make token efforts to compensate those who lost goods, property or money. They could offer to give back some of what was swiped, land wise. They could make other concessions…tax free zones for those who had their property nationalized (i.e. stolen) in exchange for the capital to start businesses (and guarantees that this time they won’t be nationalized). Trade concessions. Political reform. There are myriad things they COULD do.
Well, they have it then so what’s the fuss? We DO leave them alone. We don’t trade with them and totally restrict travel to and from them to us. However, if they want more then it’s on them to give more. I’m sorry that this reality is distasteful to you and others, but it’s reality. There is no reason for us to change the status quo towards Cuba…which is why it hasn’t happened. They don’t have anything we really want or need, and to most Americans it’s not on their radar. The only folks who care about it want those concessions or they won’t budge wrt to their position…and, since they are the ones who will raise hell at any change in the status quo without concessions, and since they wield sufficient political power to make it not worth the effort to go over or around them, that’s the way it is.
The thing you fail to see, I guess, is that if they make token concessions they would gain hugely. We aren’t taking their piss pot, but basically opening up the mechanism by which they can do what China has done…bring in real wealth and capital to their country. Yeah, I’m sure they are a communist paradise and things like wealth and capital are anathema to them (and you), and the US is evil and all, plus the rest of the world trades with them so everything should be peachy…but, again, that reality stuff is that if the US opens up trade and capital expansion with them then they will have that piss pot to piss in. Their choice.
They offered to pay the taxable value of the expropriated assets, and were rebuffed? Why? Because United Fruit and other US claimants were cheating on their Cuban taxes by claiming their land and other chattels were worth a fraction of what they were actually worth. Then they got pissy when the Cubans offered to pay their own assessments. Granted, the original offers were to pay compensation in the form of bonds, but later offers to pay in cash (with what I assume was Soviet money) were blocked by the US government. Read the piece I linked to. I’m no champion of Cuba - I could hardly care less about the place - but the nationalization “crisis” was largely of the US’ and US claimants’ own making.
If words are to be put in my mouth, I would prefer to be the one doing it, if its all the same to you.
Here are a few other things Obama did during the trip to South Africa: 8 photos you didn’t see
Interesting stuff.
Many might, for certain values of “send.”
Reagan vetoed the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act.
Isn’t kinda silly to make a sticking point of that in this day and age?!
I read the link. Thank you for sharing. It was an eye opener!
They have sugar.
And cigars. And baseball players.
Yes, he did. His concern was that economic sanctions would further harm the black underclass, and that economic strife would make South Africa more likely to fall to a socialist revolution, an outcome he wanted to avoid, being a noted anti-Communist and all.
Suggesting that he’d have avoided Mandela’s funeral out of support for apartheid, or dislike of Mandela, is unsupportable.