I do not agree with Sen Rand Paul on much, but this I do. Show me how embargos have defeated Cuba in the past 50+ years. It hasn’t. Let Capitalism force it’s hand into the country. Oh wait I forgot, Cuba needs to be excluded from everything, but let’s keep allowing Americans to travel to the less harmful North Korea instead – PB/TK
Capitalism Should Be Our Weapon of Choice in Cuba – By Rand Paul / June 20 2017
Engagement or embargo? That is the question not just in Cuba but also in places like Iran, Russia, and China. Should we trade, or should we withhold our trade in hopes of changing the behavior of other nations? Which will have more impact?
For over half a century, we have had an embargo with Cuba. Not only did the Castros survive it, but they milked it for everything it was worth. As the only source of information on the island for decades, they stoked the nationalism of those Cubans who remained in Cuba to blame America for any of their shortages, instead of the true culprit: socialism.
The embargo did nothing to defeat Castro—absolutely nothing. It is possible it kept him in power longer because of the ability the embargo gave him to further control his people.
President Obama and I agreed on very little, but his slight opening with Cuba was one of those areas. Since his decision to allow more travel and commerce with Cuba, Americans are visiting in record numbers and on their trips they are displaying the greatness of American capitalism: wealth. Every dollar left in the hands of cab drivers, hotel workers, waitresses, and valets is a show of what awaits Cubans if they reject socialism.
We can’t spread democracy through force, as we have shown time and again in our recent foreign policy. But we can model capitalism to the world, export it through our people and goods, and win the debate without one bullet being fired.
Continue to reason.com article: http://reason.com/archives/2017/06/20/capitalism-should-be-our-weapon-of-choic
