Pros and Cons of Renting Out Havana

By Aurelio Pedroso  (Progreso Semanal)

HAVANA TIMES — Prestigious writer Graziella Pogolotti, 84, raised eyebrows when she looked at three recent events that have had great impact on the country.

In an article in Juventud Rebelde newspaper, Pogolotti referred to the Chanel catwalk,  the filming of Fast and Furious 8 and to the welcoming of the first Miami-Havana cruise with dancers draped in Cuban flags, besides the inappropriate artistic design.

In short, she was able to interpret the popular feeling, something that those who make decisions seem to forget in recent times, or, as a result of the lapse, react with last minute provisions.

Indeed, the dynamics with which we live require corrections on the fly, something that in no way is a balm for nonsense or underestimation.

Chanel greatly upset people; the thriller, Fast and Furious 8, immobilized half the city including that helicopter flying over our roofs like potential mosquitoes.

Why at this point has no one had the decency to tell us how much was paid by these masters of entertainment and fashion design, in what bank account that fortune is being deposited and how it will be used?

As a colleague noted, so far there is no answer. Public servants act as if they were not such and are not held accountable.

Truthful information may lead us to the hackneyed phrase of Cuban TV psychologist Manuel Calviño when he ends his programs with “it’s well worth it.”

A serious error in these difficult times we live in is not perceiving, or worse still, ignoring the sentiment of citizens.

Summer is coming and many corner forecasters advertise it as hellish. Tempers can rise. And I do not mean the adversaries and enemies of the process underway in Cuba today, but from those who are convinced that Cuba must change under the banner of socialism with better adherence to the will of the majority of its citizens.