New at Reason
Steve Chapman is unimpressed by Barack Obama's hopeful, audacious ideas about Cuba.
Comments to "New at Reason":
BakedPenguin | August 23, 2007, 8:04am | #
Good column, although expecting a R or D presidential candidate to espouse a position that would 1) alienate a voting bloc perceived as solidly in favor of a position that 2) no other, competing voting bloc is against, is madness. If, say, the cigar trend a few years back had been a little bigger and lasted longer, there might have developed a larger constituency in favor of trade with Cuba. That, or if the Chicago Cubs had the rights to 5 Cuban players who were so good, they'd almost guarantee a World Series win. Then you'd hear an Illinois politican like Obama talk about ending the embargo.Another related item that needs to end is sugar price support. ¡Viva la Confection!
Hugh Akston | August 23, 2007, 8:39am | #
So I take it that Obama's campaign strategy consists of staking out slightly less hawkish positions than Hillary or Bush, and sticking to bold declarations on issues that other candidates could care less about.jon | August 23, 2007, 8:44am | #
It doesn't make sense, unless the White House matters. Florida's electoral votes have kept this failed embargo on life support longer than anything else could.That having been said, I have no problem with what Obama is proposing.
Anonymo the Anonymous | August 23, 2007, 9:41am | #
Cuban-Americans mostly support the embargo, and they constitute a small but active voting bloc in Florida—a state that can easily decide a presidential election (as it did in 2000).My question is, why are the Cuban-Americans so uniformly behind the embargo? Wouldn't they understand more than anyone how the embargo gives Castro a prepackaged demon to blame for the poverty and an excuse for repression? Is this just a case of "we gotta do something, even if this particular something makes no sense"?
de stijl | August 23, 2007, 9:43am | #
If, say, the cigar trend a few years back had been a little bigger and lasted longer...Christ, I hadn't thought of this in a while. That was some annoying shit, right there.
Sure Obama's proposed changes are a half measure, but what other candidate has been willing to touch it? This is the third rail of Florida politics.
BakedPenguin | August 23, 2007, 10:15am | #
Anonymo (if that is your real name) - Counterproductive, useless policy that winds up helping the people it's supposed to hurt, and hurting the people it's supposed to help. All while spawning many negative externalities. Remind you of the drug war at all?de stijl - Agreed about the annoying shit that was the cigar craze. If the smokers could have gotten rid of the dumbass embargo, though, it might have been worth it. Just.
VM | August 23, 2007, 10:15am | #
Baked -1/2 the delegation is not from Chicago, and pretty much all downstaters (Cards fans) would vote to keep the Cubbies down.
Re: cigars. I have heard that Hand-dipped Cuban cigars sure beat the "El Producto (Lewinsky)" ones that tubby "smoked"...
joe | August 23, 2007, 10:27am | #
How Chapman managed to read a coherent policy statement out of that mush is beyond me.Puppies are nice. I like puppies. George Bush did something that isn't nice. To puppies. I won't to that. I'll be nice. To the nice puppies.
Anonymo the Anonymous | August 23, 2007, 10:30am | #
Oh, and someone needs to note that while Obama's policy may not be satisfactory, John Edwards would have no idea what country we're talking about.BakedPenguin | August 23, 2007, 10:40am | #
Moose - Don't suppose S. Illinois is big cigar country, either. As for your second point, at least Monica isn't as likely to get oral cancer. And if some study determines she is, anyone who passes on that info to my girlfriend does so under pain of death...Lurker Kurt | August 23, 2007, 11:25am | #
It's not bad enough that the embargo has been the diplomatic equivalent of the Chicago Cubs...I take exception to that!
The cubs have been much more successful than the embargo.
And I am a Cardianl Fan!
Mark Bahner | August 23, 2007, 12:25pm | #
My question is, why are the Cuban-Americans so uniformly behind the embargo? Wouldn't they understand more than anyone how the embargo gives Castro a prepackaged demon to blame for the poverty and an excuse for repression? Is this just a case of "we gotta do something, even if this particular something makes no sense"?From disussion with those who purported to be Cuban-Americans on the Free Republic website many years ago, my take is that Cuban-Americans like the embargo, but then use loopholes to get their own money into Cuba.
That is, they don't like other people from the U.S. getting money to Cuba (by visiting or trade), but they like to give their own money, so people in Cuba view them as caring souls.
That's a recollected impression from many years ago (more than six). And maybe only 1-3 people (who self-identified as Cuban American...but who were possibly bored South Koreans ;-)).
VM | August 23, 2007, 12:32pm | #
Baked:good call. Downstate Illinois (south of I 80) is also known as the "land of the dropped chromosome".
and don't worry. your secret is safe with me. I swore on our extra-secret decoder rings we got that one time in the mutantly-large box of cracker jacks after band camp practice!
Lurker Kurt | August 23, 2007, 1:19pm | #
Dammit! *Cardinal fan.less than anonymous | August 23, 2007, 1:29pm | #
Shorter Steve Chapman:"Obama's Cuba policy is less bad than all the other (major) candidates. What a jerk!"
Trollaphile | August 23, 2007, 2:39pm | #
Look these terrorists..uh..communitst need to be stopped. If we don't stop them in Havana we will face them in Miami.Mr. Steven Crane | August 23, 2007, 8:21pm | #
ahem.what you saying VM?
land of the dropped chromosome, hmph.