War Room?
Eddie, your comments are useless ... go back to the War Room! As you know, I contributed frequently in the War Room, for many years, far longer than many who may be in that forum now. However, I stopped and haven't been in that forum for about 2 years (as I'm sure you know). But, I never see you in the sailing forums, and it appears that you reside entirely within the War Room, only appearing here, where there may be an opportunity to get political.
I think it's wrong to banish this thread to War Room because it relates so strongly to the desires of sailors who want to visit Cuba. Don't banish it just because it has a political context. Let's put aside political animosity and simply have an unabashed discussion. It surely doesn't offend me to learn that there are a variety of strong opinions. I'm here to learn, not drown a discussion.
Emerge, I understand your point, and I agree that Batista was a tyrant who served the wealthy and contributed to conditions which made Cuba ripe for revolution. As I said, I think that the US was very uneasy about the alliance with him. Kennedy had some harsh things to say about the relationship that Eisenhower seemed to tolerate (basically, the US in the 50's turned a blind eye to the atrocity in Cuba, because Batista was anti-communist). Political relationships are always complicated as I described in the years after the Spanish-American War where America demonstrated that they wanted Cuba to be independent, yet they feared the instability of a new Cuban government. For that reason the treaties and amendments were filled with conflicting agreements. To be sure, the underlying motivation is that America always wanted trade with Cuba that would be uncomplicated by European powers. America has always wanted business interests in Cuba.
I also agree with Kper. For many in this forum, visiting in Cuba seems to be about me, me, me. Benny thinks Cuba is an unspoiled country and he wants to be among the first to visit before it is overwhelmed by McDonalds and Hard Rock Café, but he seems to ignore the boot of authoritarianism that prevents any kind of prosperity. It's not an "unspoiled" country when people fear their government. Is their any doubt that the citizens of Cuba fear the authorities?
Canadians are chirping that they visit Cuba freely and it's a wonderful thing. But it still sounds like visiting Cuba is completely controlled by Authority ... certainly Chuckbear's blog amplified that reality. Even though he wrote that well over a decade ago, has it changed? It sounds like it hasn't.
Consider this ... despite the ability of Canadians and Europeans to travel to Cuba, has the boot of authority been lifted from the throats of Cubans? Do Cubans enjoy civil rights now, more than before? Are Cubans better off, more prosperous based on their exposure to Canadians and Europeans?
It doesn't sound like it, so what makes us think that new diplomatic relations with the US is going to improve civil rights and prosperity for Cubans. It still sounds like Cuban citizens have to watch their step if they engage with foreigners. Is that what everybody wants? Go to Cuba, enjoy the hospitality, then leave and nevermind that some of your hosts and new friends may end up in jail or worse. Am I wrong about this?
Despite what I just said, I am also in agreement that embargo and isolation doesn't appear to have any purpose, either. I think it is worth the effort to make a change, and I think that opening relations is bound to work for the betterment of Cubans, eventually.
