Kewl. Thanks. Too bad they hate us anyway

ya maybe they didnt want to be ruled over by the ****ing mafia.

huh? is this a new thing?

Cuban dissidents have always been tied to Amerikkka.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_of_Pigs_Invasion

Don't rain on his parade, you finally asked a question he could answer.

I think that’s just a you thing.

The left's continued tendency to defend the Cuban government is one of its great shames. There's no excuse for defending the current Cuban government or Castro.

Did my post say anything else, since you felt the need to quote it?

Cuba defaulted on its debts in the 80s, and they defaulted on their restructured debts in 2020, and currently the economic wheels are hardly spinning even if they are under a moratorium. They subsist on a meager economic diet of exports to partners not affected by sanctions and economic aid, the latter which has dried up even more in recent years.

There is indeed no way way around US sanctions, one of the most effective tools in the US geopolitical arsenal.

Certainly, there is no need to defend a regime with disdain for basic human rights, extensive censorship and kangaroo courts aplenty. Under Leninism, the party is never to blame, which a lot of the time makes it illegal or very dangerous to point out that there is a problem. Not a great trait when the population is beginning to starve.

People tend to trip over themselves in the door to ignore such things if it means waggling a finger at the US.

Still, it should be possible to balance several facts at once. Pointing out the impact of sanctions is not defending the Cuban regime. Sanctions not only have an impact, they are meant to have an impact. The goal is to cripple your target economically, and in the reality of communist regimes and dictatorships the brunt of that burden will be shifted to the people. Apparatchiks always dine well.

I didn't write anything about sanctions. You are responding to things I did not say.

US policy is terrible. But the left mostly recognizes that.

Economically speaking, it's not that complicated why Cuba is struggling. They restrict trade. The government essentially has a monopoly on consumer goods, and they ration. This creates a black market, and corruption. There is a legitimate argument that US trade that is allowed to occur will result in the Cuban people being exploited by black market thugs.

The embargo is a drop in the bucket when it comes to Cuba's issues, yet it's received the most play from the left. My post wasn't an indictment of anything you said in particular, but rather providing context to my post.

I would certainly agree that sanctions alone can not explain Cuba's economic fate, and history isn't exactly short on communist countries which have failed at economic growth or delivering food to their people.

The US does not sanction countries for doing business with Cuba, which in itself limits the impact. Still, not being allowed to do most business with the US is not to be trifled with economically. Of course, for enterprise / foreign investment the embargo has a genuine effect, while technically limited to US companies and their foreign subsidiaries, the world of international commerce is a convoluted web. Limiting future deals in the US, or facing a US court is not an appealing prospect for any company anywhere in the world.

I would think the decline of the tourism industry under Covid and countries less willing to supply foreign aid should not be underestimated either.

Cuba is not going to be prosperous until communism/dictatorship falls. They weren't prosperous before COVID, they just suffered a little bit less. The people aren't allowed to overthrow the government.

I think that is way too simplistic.

"...Cuba is not going to be prosperous until their gov't aligns it interests and goals with US interests and goals"

Not trying to nitpick but I think you would agree that the US has no issue supporting despotic regimes of any flavour as long as they see they have aligned interests.

I would agree. I believe it is simplistic, and I agree there's more economic variables involved. However, I also don't think communism is viable, which makes those other variables largely irrelevant.

I'm not really arguing against what TD is saying, but more so the relevancy. It doesn't matter what the US does.

Sounds familiar….

Sure.

And I would not bet my personal money that even a US friendly communist Cuban regime would be successful as i think the system is deeply flawed. But I think China has shown you can create a system that works in that regard as long as your leadership prioritizes or sees the countries growth and success as also their personal success.

The proximity to the US is the big thing for CUba. They could screw up a lot of things and still have a successful country and market and growth just due to having that giant engine next door spinning out opportunities.

Canada has been a big beneficiary of that ride, outside and separate to how we have managed ourselves (good or bad).

which people are those? a few people on the internet, like 3 people in this forum, and then 0 people in our mainstream media or government? i think the reality is the exact opposite of this

Like Haiti and other capitalist Caribbean nations?

Did you misread what I said as 'any and all Caribbean nations'?

Just curious as I can help with the big words first before answering as saying one or even some COULD benefit via proximity is not disproven if ALL do not benefit. Not if you know how language works.

yes, exactly like Haiti. so similar. OMG.

The CIA actually agreed. Fidel was no Marxist. Well that is until the USA thugs drove him into the arms of the Soviets.

https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/28/w...d-in-1959.html

May want to crack open a book or a podcast even once in awhile

Che and Castro were fed up with the corruption and USA exploiting South America. They were fed up with people starving and dying, and yes they were making the USA responsible for this.

Che was Cuban and Argentinian, he also played a key part in the Cuban revolution:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Che_Guevara

https://www.stitcher.com/show/blowback

As far as making the USA responsible... They payed the corporate cartels in full for the land and resources they took back.