# Should the embargo on Cuba be repealed? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 20, 2000, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188 "2000-07-20T02:41:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2000, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/21 "2000-07-21T23:42:21Z")
I just saw [here](http://www.msnbc.com/news/435897.asp) that the ban has been lifted not for any other reason than American farmers want to find a new market. ---
**Author:** ![Danielinthewolvesden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Danielinthewolvesden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Danielinthewolvesden)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2000, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/22 "2000-07-22T00:19:30Z")
Actually, you folks have got it backwards. The embargo on Cuba is fair and reasonable, after all Castro has been training guerrillas & terrorists. But you are right in that the same embargo would only be fair if instituted against China. However china bribes our politians with huge sums of money, something Castro does not do. Trade with Chia is entirely a bad idea for the USA. If we instituted campaign finance reform, ie no China money, the support for China would be small. ---
**Author:** ![Myrr21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Myrr21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrr21)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2000, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/23 "2000-07-22T01:45:33Z")
Umm, first off, Castro’s a pretty decent guy. I mean, he does run a repressive government, but much better than some of the schmucks we’ve put in power (hello Saddam, how’s the weather in Iraq? Are you enjoying the tanks we gave you to fight the dirty commies in Iran? Good). The people of Cuba, despite being desperately poor (partially due to the fact that we won’t trade with them), actually have a very high standard of living–their infant mortality rate is the same as ours, their literacy rate \* better, \* and he even gave a really beautiful speech mourning JFK’s death. Overall, not such a bad guy. And he’s going to die soon anyway (or just live forever, as seems increasingly likely). So why do we have an embargo? Because we’re fools. We’re not really hurting Castro–he’s actually very popular for standing up to us bullies. Think how much money we would make if we just charged a small tax on the import of cuban cigars. The rest of the world thinks we’re fools. Remember that bill that Congress tried to pass allowing us to punish countries who violated our embargo of Cuba? That’s because the rest of the world does trade with Cuba, and rightfully so. We’re just too scared about a bunch of outspoken Cuban exiles who can’t get their nice colony-like country back on their own. I mean, these guys are pansies–I’m talking about the rich ones who couldn’t stand not being rich, not the people who came here to try and support their families. Whrn your country is taken over by someone you don’t like, you stay and fight. The reason they didn’t is because they knew they were outnumbered by the huddled masses they’d opressed for so long. So they come here an dmake a lot of noise about scary commies. I tell ya, if some guy tries to forcibly take over the USA, I’m staying right here and fighting. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Cool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecb155/32.png) [@Joe\_Cool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Cool)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2000, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/24 "2000-07-22T15:18:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Danielinthewolvesden \* > **…after all Castro has been training guerrillas & terrorists…** Hmmmm…then we should embargo ourselves. The U.S. arms and trains more than its own share of terrorists. In fact, we’ve sponsored a few terrorist actions against the legitimate government of Cuba over the years. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2000, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/25 "2000-07-22T15:57:16Z")
not to mention a lot of other latin American countries… Yeah, but we’re the good guys so we can do that. In any case, opening or not is not going to be driven by moral considerations. farmers need to sell their stuff and the only customer they can find now is Cuba so the Congress is lifting the embargo. ---
**Author:** ![Joe\_Cool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecb155/32.png) [@Joe\_Cool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joe_Cool)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2000, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/26 "2000-07-22T16:24:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by sailor \* > **…opening or not is not going to be driven by moral considerations. farmers need to sell their stuff and the only customer they can find now is Cuba so the Congress is lifting the embargo.** True enough. Sadly, almost nothing is driven by right and wrong these days. It’s all about the money. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2000, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188/27 "2000-07-24T19:18:33Z")
I am under the impression that the reason Castro is so evil is because the US is having a pout because they kept Batista in power for so long, and after Castro came in, couldn’t make money off the cheap sweatshop style labor in the sugar fields in Cuba anymore. And it’s not like the US doesn’t support all the fascist, rightwing dictators in Latin America… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-the-embargo-on-cuba-be-repealed/26188.md?page=1)