Cuba in the Trump Era
HAVANA TIMES — The Theater, set design, script, soundtrack and even the audience chosen by Trump to announce the end of the rapprochement process with Cuba couldn’t have been worse. In political communication terms, the new US president is just a caricature of Obama.
He chose a theater which symbolizes the US defeat at the Bay of Pigs, they didn’t have the tact to put up Cuban flags, they returned to the old rough talk of the Cold War, the music was left in the hands of the son of a famous murderer and he congregated a group of Cubans in an auditorium who shouted “USA! USA!” in unison as if they were possessed.
The new resident of the White House is transparent in his intentions when it comes to Cuba. He is returning to the failed strategy used in the 1960s. The idea was by creating hunger, misery and desperation among the ordinary Cuban people it would drive them to rise up against the government and end the Revolution.
against Cuba and the show he put on.
Barack Obama’s goal was to support the modest economic boom of Cuban entrepreneurs so that they were the ones to transform socialism into capitalism themselves. Trump’s policy is to drive these small private businesses into the ground so that business owners and employees take to the streets.
Who is losing out when restrictions are being placed on tourism? Analyst Pedro Monreal explains that 76% of US citizens stayed in casas particulares (private rentals); 99% of them ate in private restaurants; 86% bought crafts or artwork from independent artists, and 85% of them traveled in private-owned taxis.
The majority of Canadians, Europeans and Latin Americans go and stay in “All inclusive” hotels and leave the bulk of their money in the State’s coffers. US citizens come of their own accord, they eat in private restaurants, they rent out casas particulares and they travel around in ‘50s convertibles.
The show put on June 16 in Miami transformed Trump into a soloist accompanied by a select choral group of Cuban-American legislators, plus veterans from the failed Bay of Pigs invasion and some Cuban opposition members. While the son of the murderer of Frank Pais “sawed” away at a violin.
Dissidents present at the event were Jorge Luis Garcia (Antúnez), Angel de Fana, Antonio Rodiles, Ailer González and Rosa Maria Paya. They sang the US anthem euphorically in spite of Donald refuses to give them the 20 million USD that his predecessors handed over per year.
Extremists are happy because we’re returning to the Cold War days. On one side of the Florida Strait, some Cubans are clapping in frenzy because another president is promising them the end of the Revolution. Meanwhile, those on this side of the shore declare themselves to be the “chosen ones”, the only ones who have a right to defend Cuba.
These are the ones who exclude and destroy, while the rest of Cubans feel like the country is above any kind of difference of opinion. The latter talk about uniting everyone who loves Cuba, and create a huge alliance to stand up to Trump and prevent his strategy from being put into practice.
The new policy allows us to see a grim view, as clear as day. The attack isn’t directed against the government or the military like they claim it to be but is rather against all Cubans, looking to sabotage their efforts to get by, by developing a more flexible economy.
Lifting the US embargo doesn’t depend on Cuba but on the political ties of elephants and donkeys in Washington. The Cuban people can’t do a lot; they don’t have enough economic, military or political strength to be able to pressure a global superpower.
So there are very few options left, one is to give in and accept the US’ right to dictate national politics in Cuba, just as they did during the time of the pre-Revolution governments. The other option is to return to the old trenches and to continue to be as dignified as they are poor, for centuries on end.
However, the most intelligent response to prevent them from sinking the Cuban people to starvation, misery and desperation, could be to speed up national economic reforms which are necessary to be able to resist with a degree of prosperity until the White House comes to its senses.
Obviously you know nothing about “Marxist convictions” or the Cuban people. Maybe you should educate yourself. You sound like those counter-revolutionaries in Miami. They must love you. Wonder why?
You are obviously a counter-revolutionary. Are you part of the Batista family or what? If things are so bad in Cuba, you wouldn’t be able to live there, and you would be held in detetion, and deported. Your story just doesn’t add up. If there is so much hunger why haven’t you butchered that dog yet? You make me laugh. Your “stuff” is all fake news, and you think we will believe you. HaHaHaHa. How is the weather in Canada these days?
I am totally opposed to the Communist Party of Cuba and to the Castro family regime. My prayer is that one day the people of Cuba who I hold in deep respect, and their beautiful country, will know and experience freedom and liberty.
You CErmle in your smug ignorance try to make the PCC and the Castro regime synonymous. They are not.
Why are you so anti-Cuba? Which one of your handlers “wrote” (or “approved”) your comment? Nice try, but I do not live in Trump(f) land.
It was your own political system that put Trump(f) in the White House. Barely a majority of you American people even bothered to vote! SIXTY MILLION of your fellow Americans did howver vote for your President.
So CErmle, why not address your own internal problems rather than pontificating about Cuba, a country and a people you clearly do not know and clearly don’t even care about.
When I travel to Cuba I don’t care how it is distributed among government agencies there. All I know is on my last trip there I stayed in casa particulares and ate at paladores, so a significant amount of my money went directly to the Cuban people. The U,S government has no business telling me how I should spend my money anywhere. Some people may call it breaking the law. I am not on U.S soil therefore I am not bound by U.S. laws when I am in a foreign country.
The majority of the American people did NOT vote for Trumpf.
How much are you offering the Cuban Military curt9954? Always assuming that you are putting your money where your mouth is?
I dont mind contributing to the Cuban Military in case they need to defend themselves from a rogue U.S administration led by a deranged lunatic !
My words “a free hand to do what he wants in Cuba” should have been ” a free hand to do what he wants with his Cuba policy”. Thanks for that observation. Putin did NOT put Trump in the White House. His cyber-meddling certainly helped the Trump campaign however.
‘And what he wants is to maintain his political base in Florida’ CORRECT
‘…..Trump has a free hand to do what he wants in Cuba’ INCORRECT
(trump can tinker with the details of the embargo whilst he remains in The White House, but he has no jurisdiction to do anything whatsoever in Cuba. It’s a sovereign nation.)
‘…….we have bigger problems to concern ourselves with’ CORRECT
(a rogue president put in place by Putin to name but one of the bigger problems.)
Well done – 2 out of 3 ain’t bad Mr P.
Great article. Just know that according to recent polling most American citizens support ending the Cuban embargo. Not all of us support this buffoon and his counter productive policies! Cuba is a sovereign nation and Cuban citizens should be the ones to decide how their society is organized. Not idiot politicians in Washington DC; who can’t even manage to stop fighting among themselves and properly govern the United States.
I really hope that Fernando reads my comment. I believe that he means well but he is terribly misinformed. Americans don’t care about Cuba. Not because we are heartless but because we have bigger problems to concern ourselves with. As a result, Trump has a free hand to do what he wants in Cuba. And what he wants is to maintain his political base in Florida. To the extent the embargo continues to effect life in Cuba at all, Cubans must solve their economic problems by themselves.
Fernando nails it here.
This article well and truly sums up that sad, nasty, sordid and ultimately futile little get-together in Miami.
Thanks for the article, well done. The fight continues but common sense could in fact rule, once the dust settles. In any case, Fidel continued his angriness, i.e. scolding rebuttal after Obama’s Havana speech. There was a tremendous opportunity but the regime played the wrong card, in my opinion, and we all suffer.
Very good article, as expected from Fernando Ravsberg! Love the cutline: “In the crowd, there were survivors….”
In
the crowd, there were survivors of the Bay of Pigs invasion, who
surrendered after 72 hours and were later exchanged for applesauce by
J.F. Kennedy’s government.
In
the crowd, there were survivors of the Bay of Pigs invasion, who
surrendered after 72 hours and were later exchanged for applesauce by
J.F. Kennedy’s government.
In
the crowd, there were survivors of the Bay of Pigs invasion, who
surrendered after 72 hours and were later exchanged for applesauce by
J.F. Kennedy’s government.
I agree Stephen with one exception – Fernando Ravsberg writes: “The Cuban people can’t do a lot, they don’t have enough economic, military or political strength to be able to pressure a global superpower.”
Maybe he ought to have written that: “The Cuban people themselves are unable to do anything being under the control of a communist dictatorship.”
It now appears that due to the obduracy of Raul Castro Ruz when Obama made his overtures, that the Cuban people will continue to exist in penury. Such are the consequences of political ineptitude and Marxist convictions.
Indeed. When the reality that is Cuba is once again separated away from those old cold-war fantasy aspirations in Miami, the truth remains abundantly clear. The Cuban government will never allow the US to “dictate” their terms of engagement, nor will they surrender to US “demands”. Real change takes time, patience and subtle influence. Most importantly, the potential for real change requires mutual respect.
Good article.