I just read an article stating that Cuban/US relations may be beginning to warm up a bit recently. Apprently the a group called the Congressional Black Caucus recently met with leaders from Cuba and the meetings were positive. Recenly, Castro has let some of his power go (admittedly to his family) as he ages. Other NATO nations aren't nearly as harsh in relations to Cuba as the US, and the Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missle Crisis were almost 50 years ago. Is it time to end Cuban sanctions? Is our relationship with Cuba just an old, left over relic of the Cold War or are there clearly legit reasons why we still have strained relationships with Cuba? I'd like to hear some opinions on the matter.
i read the cover article on about this on cnn.com. im not sure as far as cuba what kind of country they are at this time. but i will say i like how obama is bringing tension down around the world. im sure some people can twist that around to something negative. i just dont why you would want to though.
Maybe this man does want to normalize with US in his lifetime. I predict Cuba and North Korea are not going to continue to be problems once the dictators die.
bush slapped on more sanctions on cuba during his term and it seems obama is going back to the pre-bush sanctions. i get the feeling that cuba will never really warm up to the USA as long as fidel is still breathing. it would be a slap in his face because throughout his tenure, the USA has tried to overthrow and assassinate him.
Changes have also been made in regards to how often Cubans living in the US and Cuban-Americans can go back to Cuba. Last Tues., bi-partisan legislation was introducted in Congress to elminate the travel ban on Americans going to Cuba. Those who introduced the bill believe it has enough support to make it through the House and Senate. Thus, if you plan on traveling to Cuba, it's unlikely you will get penalized for a law that won't be in existence too much longer.
If relations improve, I hope the US influences Cuba and not the other way around, like Cuba's human rights improve. Since Fidel is part of the Humanitarian part of UN, I hope the US can influence them to condemn to countries Sudan and North Korea for their horrendous human rights, and stop condemning Israel for doing almost nothing. The only problem I see is we would be helping out a man who would not release his power when he became in charge, and a country that helps other dictatorships like Venezuela.
It's good that families that haven't seen each other in decades will be able to reunite for christmas(or other times) again.
I'm still hoping to be able to enjoy a visit to Cuba before I go the The Great Beyond, or turn to dust... whatever happens when you croak. When I was a kid, Cuba and the Latin culture were still a huge deal in the US. Time for those days to return. Cuba was a part of that history so often overlooked in our country. A BIG part of it.
I think Cuba and the U.S. will continue to gradually warm in the coming years, but there is a lot of raw hostility to overcome. At least the rabid, anti-Castro segment of Cubans in Florida doesn't dictate American policy anymore. I predict North Korea will continue to be a problem until the regime collapses.
The one thing I like about Castro is that he lived past the Bush administration. Can you imagine what would have happened had he died and W's administration gave carte blanche to all those old Cubans in Miami who think they still own the country? It would have been yet another disaster of epic proportions driven by winger fantasies. Now, maybe we can ease into some kind of understanding that benefits us and Cuba long term.
this is for cuban-americans, not for all americans. cuban-americans could go back to visit cuba once every 3 years i think. now they want to make it so that they can visit once every year, which is how it was before bush i think. ordinary americans still will not be allowed to go visit cuba freely and spend their money there. if you want to visit cuba, go through mexico or some other intermediary country. immigrantion and customs have better things to do than to find every single person who visited cuba.
There was also legislation introduced last Tues by a bi-partisan group of lawmakers to end the travel ban for all Americans as well, which according to the people that authored and sponsored the bill, has broad based support. Now that Bush isn't in office, Congress doesn't have to worry about the President vetoing it either. This initiative is also supported by the US Chamber of Commerce: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-cuba-travel1-2009apr01,0,4526770.story But you're right, you still have to go to a gateway country like Canada or Mexico, but my point was that you're not going to get penalized for law that's not going to be in existence much longer. Even without this new legislation that was just introduced, many Americans still take their chances and go, and like you also alluded to, the chances even then of getting caught were slim.
Definitely. I meant strategically, in the sense of them being a threat to other nations by attack or weapons proliferation.
Here we are, protected, free to make our profits without Kefauver, the ******* Justice Department and the F.B.I. ninety miles away, in partnership with a friendly government. Ninety miles! It's nothing!
What do you mean? Prices will come down...this is only bad for the cigar black market, and for Bacardi sales. Bring on the Havana Club!
