Opinion

The Blank Slate Theory and Socialism in Cuba

The existence of the market, with its basic categories such as money, wages, banking, credit and so on, does not imply the presence of a capitalist system. Such economic categories have accompanied human society since the dawn of civilization.

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When I Taught at a Technical School

I graduated as an English teacher in 1999 and began teaching at a technical school. During the first year, my students were studying skilled trades in mechanics, electronica and business. The ones studying business were in their first year while the future mechanics and electricians were in their third.

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When it Comes to Cuba: It’s an Upside Down World

Miami has been in an uproar ever since the US Treasury Department´s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) resumed granting licenses to American citizens who want to visit Cuba in compliance with the policies of the “People to People Contacts Program”.

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Not Everyone in Cuba Has the Right to Study

This title isn’t merely a journalistic hook; it’s the conclusion drawn by the parents of two teenagers after fruitless dialogue with the current Director of Education in the Municipality of East Havana. This is because our children, Kabir and Sebastian, have been denied access to their own school day after day for almost a month.

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The Night Hurricane Sandy Hit

I’m thinking that today I can finally get a good night’s sleep. Hurricane Sandy began plowing through Cuban soil last Thursday during the early morning hours, and since then there have been more than a few bad moments.

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Cuban Immigration Reform & Brain Drain

I believe that Cuba, like any other country in the world, has the right and is obliged to defend its human resources and the investments it has been made in them. But it cannot do this in just any manner…

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Why So Much of a Fuss?

Since twenty days ago, I haven’t been allowed to enter my high school. I’m in good physical and mental condition, and I want to attend my classes as well as finish the twelfth grade and develop professionally. A friend of mine is also going through the same situation as me.

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The People Pay for Misguided Policies

All of the world’s developed capitalist countries are immersed in a structural crisis that has lasted for more than four years, though there’s no solution in sight. Some of these nations (like the US and Germany) have been able to keep unemployment relatively low, but in others (such as Spain, Greece, and Italy) people’s lives have sunk to unbearable levels.

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What Do the Police Do?

I was cutting through the main square in the Havana suburb of Marianao, a place known because they sell food there, and I stopped at one of the state-run businesses. They were selling soda crackers in large plastic bags for 50 pesos (about $2 USD).

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Pets and Pretensions

Cubans have one personality trait that’s almost inherent: being presumptuous and vain. Though they live in a Third World country with a fragile economy, they’ve always aspired to a standard of living higher than their real possibilities.

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