Why do we still have an embargo against Cuba?

[Squatch]

What threat, economically, politically, or militarily do they pose to use? Castro is an asshole, to be sure, but aren't most communist dictators?

Our long-standing, persistent embargo against cuba is pointless and needs to be lifted.

[NightWatcher]

1. not so fast

I still like the feeling of smoking a Cuban cigar and thinking that I have broken the law.
If they are legal, it will kill the buzz. (kidding of course)

It's purely spiteful, the embargo, that is. I hope to travel there sometime. And I will even if I have to go through Jamaica first.

[blondeatlast]

5. Even Limpballs admits to enjoying them; from Cigar Aficianado:

He contradicts himself quite nicely in these two reports:

http://forums.cigaraficionado.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/7666095/m/939105924
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar/CA_Profiles/People_Profile/0,2540,18,00.html

My husband has enjoyed many a Cuban, but never inn the US.

[NightWatcher]

10. as we speak, I have decided to fire up a Romeo Y Julieta Import

from that evil red-state. yum

[Squatch]

11. ***ALERT***

The Agency Against Counter-American Activities (AACAA) has been made aware of your intentions and is enroute. Please extinguish any contraband tobacco, place your hands on the yellow circles on the wall, and wait patiently for agents to arrive. For your waiting pleasure, please enjoy this country rendition of God Bless America.

[NightWatcher]

13. breakin the law, breakin the law

I'm such a freakin rebel. :rofl:

[blondeatlast]

14. Can you wave your hand this way a bit?

I enjoy them too!

[NightWatcher]

17. her ya go

yes, there is irony in a Grateful Dead shirt wearing hippie smoking a Cuban cigar, but whatever.

[sabbat hunter]

2. mainly because

of the large cuban population that lives in florida that is rabidly anti castro. the are a large voting bloc that neither party wants to anger.

[NightWatcher]

6. is it merely the "anti-Castro" feelings that keep us from making them a trading partner

We could/would provide them with millions of dollars in tourism alone.

Will this change when Castro passes?

[Virginia Dare]

15. Of course, and watch the corporate goons swoop down on

them like vultures on a dead cow.

[blondeatlast]

18. I'm surprised they haven't already. The fangs are already exposed.

Castro's death is gonna cause a lot of ugliness on the wRRRong.

[rasputin1952]

7. You beat me to it...

That is all there is to it...:(

[Squatch]

12. Nobody wants to hear my solution to this.

So, I'm not going to tell you. (Since you probably don't want to hear it, either)

[blondeatlast]

16. Do tell.

I'll even say pretty please!

[Squatch]

19. It's not pretty, but here you go

Give one of those Cuban expats a 30-06 and a single cartridge. Drop him off via HALO (Hi-Altitude, Low Opening) parachute drop on the El Morro Castle where he meets his alluring, yet distant Cubana contact.

After a brief sexual escapade involving strong drinks and suggestive lighting accentuated by sheer silk curtains, the duo evades Cuban authorities on a frenetic chase through the old Spanish garrison.

Shortly, our ex-pat ducks into a black-tie party where he comes face-to-face with his target, the alluring (yet distant) Fidel Castro. After a brief scene with stern stares by both parties, our ex-pat manages to drown Castro in the fruit punch.

Voila'! End of embargo.

[Virginia Dare]

23. The CIA has tried several times...

that Castro is a cagey fellow.

[blondeatlast]

25. Heard from Hollywood yet? I LIKE it! nt

[Virginia Dare]

34. Not enough shit gets blown up though....n/t

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

3. Because if we don't, the commies will get us.

Stop hating America, America-hater.

[mmonk]

4. Florida=electoral votes

[Virginia Dare]

8. They're bad commies...

we only associate with good commies, like the Chinese..:pals:

[BrotherBuzz]

9. Cuban expatriates living in swing-state Florida have a lot to do with it

[warren pease]

20. Because apparently, the Cuban lifestyle is so compelling...

...that eight successive administrations have prevented Americans from traveling there because official Washington is horrified that if they actually experienced Cuba's socialist nirvana first hand, they'd immediately come back home and organize several million armed and disaffected Americans from all 50 states, socialist ideologues all, who would band together to overthrow the federal government, demolish the mightiest military machine in the world, and establish a Cuban-style socialist Utopia right here in the US.

Either that or they're just venal pricks who are waiting for Castro to die so they can suddenly reestablish full diplomatic relations with Cuba and make the island safe again for the usual voracious, predatory US corporations.

A or B? Damn, that's a tough one.


wp

[blondeatlast]

27. Yes. No "or" necessary. nt

[Kelly Rupert]

21. Cuban expatriates vote. n/t

[MADem]

22. I think there's way more here than meets the eye.

I think Castro was involved in some dealings that we don't know about yet, that are still classified.

I also think the Cubans in FL have a lot of clout in "making Castro pay." He nationalized their property, and they want it back. The odds that they'll get them back aren't good, no matter how often they check on their family fincas using Google Earth, and complain to their congressmen, and yell and scream. That's just, well, over.

Then, there's the Puerto Ricans. If we normalize with Cuba, they're so FUCKED.

You've got a workforce in Cuba that is highly educated, healthy and extremely motivated, and will work for less. There's none of that worry about health insurance, either, so employers have fewer expenses. I'd expect to see all those BIG PHARMA companies run like hell from San Juan to Havana, and quickly, too--they could save a bundle and get a better workforce, too. Not only will they have hyper-willing workers, but a shitload of DOCTORS they can call on for research and development as well. It's a win-win for them.

The economy of Puerto Rico would REEL from the normalization of relations. It ain't so great down there nowadays, anyway, and it would get worse. Already crime is up, unemployment is up, and the place just doesn't have that Clinton-era optimism anymore. They really are close to 'decision' time--they need to figure out what they want to do, statehood, or get off the pot, really--because if Cuba ever rejoins the Friends Of Uncle Sam club, they definitely will need a new plan in a big way.

[Virginia Dare]

24. ..or better yet the friends of "Sam's Club"...

who do you think will swoop in first:

A) McDonalds

B) Starbucks

C) Wal-Mart

D) Taco Bell/Pepsi

E) Coca-Cola

F) All of the above, and many many more...they will litter the Cuban countryside with U.S. corporate logos

[blondeatlast]

26. None of the above: Marriott.

The tourism industry seems to lack clout in DC, to my surprise.

http://marriott.com/corporateinfo/glance.mi

[MADem]

29. They'll have to edge out MELIA and BARCELO, who already have a huge foothold in Cuba

They run the luxury hotels down that way, they're worldwide, and there are a load of them:

http://solmelia-push.worldmedia.net/lpw/landing.phtml?lpwpk=7

http://www.barcelo.com/versionesinternacionales.asp

Marriott would have to find a way to run the franchise cheaper than those guys. Good luck...! One thing they'd have going for them is shorter supply lines for proprietary goods.

Of course, Marriott's owners (who are Mormon) have given a fortune to Mitt the Shitt in his campaign, they'd probably love it if he got elected and opened up that market for them. It would give Tweety Bird's wife a new project-she left TV a while back to go work for their international division: http://marriott.com/news/detail.mi?marrArticle=136321

You're not going to see Tweety lean too heavily on Mittsy for the "Mormon" thing--he's not gonna bite the hand that feeds him.

[Virginia Dare]

32. Yep, the Marriott's are actually related to O. Hatch too..

by marriage, Orin's kid married a Marriott.

I'm sure the Marriotts would love to see a Mittsy presidency. I could see Bill Marriott as secretary of commerce or something.

[MADem]

28. Those guys, really, are pikers. They surely all will be there, along with

Domino's, Subway, Burger King, and all of the franchises you see littering Puerto Rico already. To say nothing of the Macy's, Circuit City, Home Depot, kind of crap you see at the Plaza de las Americas in San Juan...

But the BIG money is those PHARMA franchises. That's where they make most of those drugs. They get nice tax breaks, the workforce is cheap...all Cuba has to do is say come on down, we'll give you the same deal, and a cheaper, better educated workforce, to boot...and they'll be outta there in a heartbeat.

If you pop it in your mouth, the odds are excellent that it was "Made in the USA" territory to our south--they've cornered the market on drugs we take, most of which are, indeed, "Hecho en Puerto Rico:"
http://www.pridco.com/english/industry_groups/pharmaceutical/5.11ind_groups_pharma_comp.html

With 16 out of the top 20 best selling pharmaceuticals in the United States manufactured here, Puerto Rico is a pharmaceutical manufacturing mecca. The Pharmaceutical sector is one of the largest industrial sectors in Puerto Rico and is represented by the following companies:

Industry Representatives:
Abbott Laboratories
Allergan Inc.
Amgen Inc.
Astra Zeneca Plc
Aventis
Baxter International Inc.
Becton Dickinson & Co.
Biovail Corporation International
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
Clairant
Cardinal Health Inc.
Ceph International Corporation
Eli Lilly and Company
F.H. Faulding & Co. Ltd
Glaxo SmithKline
ICN Pharmaceutical Inc.
Ivax Corp.
Johnson & Johnson
Knoll B.V.
Merck & Co.
Monsanto Company
Mova Pharmaceutical Corp. (local) (website)
Mutchler Chemical Company Inc.
Mylan Laboratories Inc.
Novartis Consumer Health
Pfizer Inc.
Procter & Gamble Company
Schein Pharmaceutical
Schering-Plough Corporation
Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Wyeth

[LaReservaPr]

30. You forgot Pottery Barn....

Plaza Las Americas is getting Pottery Barn in a couple of months.......

[TheWraith]

31. Because tradition has a lot of inertia.

That's pretty much it. We trade with China, which is a vastly worse offender in terms of human rights than Cuba could ever be, but we have an embargo against Cuba primarily because that's the way it's been for decades. Nobody has gone to the effort of bringing things to the constructive engagement level. Plus the Cuban exiles in south Florida have a lot of political sway, and aside from wanting to be able to visit relatives, they're all for nasty punitive revenge measures against their former home.

[Cults4Bush]

33. ... thats the long and short in a concise manner...

thankies! :)