Cuban Communism needs U.S capitalism to survive

 

In yet another sign that Cuba is impatient to heel to the US and, probably more related to financial needs than actual desire, Raul Castro repeated with and air of impatience on Saturday that he is ready and willing to talk to the US….Again. It is now common knowledge that Cuba´s finances may not bring the nation until mid 2010 so, the last option is to seek out US dollars from American tourists and switch imports to US derived suppliers. A historical illustration of communism needing capitalist dollars to stay afloat.

 

 

Lenin and Marx and the national hero Che all had ideals far from those currently in play in today´s Cuba. Molding their ideals to suit the times seems to be the political bureaus most confusing task these days. Furthering the doctrine and idealism of Cuba´s hypothetical political forefathers is becoming increasingly tricky, requiring surreal creativity. Efforts to obvert the aforementioned heroes turning into caricatures of the past are becoming less effective year on year as Cubans grow tired of the same old rhetoric.

 

 

Without going into the intricate details of communism, the whole ideology of this particular type of political structure is one of self sufficiency and non dependence on outside and contrasting political structures (nations). In a time when world trade was pretty scarce, not like the way we know it today, it seemed pretty conceivable that a country of the size and geography of the Soviet Union could actually become self sufficient, creating a type of utopian nationalism based upon the “by the people for the people” concept. Grouping other nations such as Cuba with similar political beliefs assisted in creating a multifaceted economy offering international type trade but, within the communist nation block. The problem is that losing important trading partners, similar to what transpired when the Soviet Union collapsed, can leave allied nations in the bloc with a significant dilemma. Something akin to consumer withdrawal symptoms, that cannot be cured with a dose of imports from a forbidden seller such as a democratic nation. So, its not only the loss of a major trading partner but also the obligation to dilute the hard and fast political doctrine designed to frown upon trade with non communist nations. Not so long ago (for those who remember) communist nations diffused national propaganda rejecting trade with what they deemed “the enemy” or in other words, democratic nations. Such was the fervent belief in communist ideals that the antagonism applied to non communist nations was taught to small children and educated right through the schooling system then later on via the aforementioned propaganda. Democratic nations did no better though, they also deployed propaganda designed to undermine the concept of communism within their nations. The 1950´s Joseph Raymond McCarthy hearings in the US sounding today like a witch hunt in the dark past of paranoia the US has had with communism. Either way, both sides thought they were right.

 

 

The U.S is today acutely aware that Cuba is approaching bankruptcy and is therefore holding all the cards in any deal. Mr. Castro´s words concerning the inflexibility of his nation to discus Cuba´s socialist ideals are more symbolic than feasible political beliefs. The bottom line is that the trade off for receiving the much needed US dollars is already the beginning of the end for Cuba´s political system. Nevertheless, we feel that the U.S may actually look at the bigger picture and consider the longer term when making decisions over the next few months. Having Cuba´s president make statements like the ones of late may be enough to convince everyday Cuban´s that their system is doomed. The simple logic is that Raul Castro´s government needs US dollars to prop up its economy and, more importantly, keep him and those around him in power. Therefore, we are seeing and hearing the first communist president admitting openly that he needs capitalist dollars to maintain his communist system. If this is not a clear sign that Cuba is about to become a democracy under a veil of communism we don´t know what is. The US will certainly invite a situation where everyday Cuban´s are informed by their president that all of their problems will end when the U.S sends them money via tourists and American brands to their supermarkets. On a social economic standpoint the US could not wish for a sweeter message than “Cuba´s economy saved by the U.S” which is how we will probably begin the proposed dialogue. The big question is, will the U.S hold on 12 months until Cuba´s economy fails entirely or will they come in and save the economy maintaining Raul Castro in power?

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