Sickeningly Liberal

Aug. 2, 2012 at 10:51am with 37 notes

Reblogged from prettayprettaygood

The Absurdity of the Embargo Against Cuba

Prior to the embargo against Cuba, John F. Kennedy ordered his press secretary to purchase 1,200 Cuban cigars for his personal use. Even Kennedy, the very same man who attempted to overthrow Castro and was desperate to avoid nuclear holocaust, wanted to purchase products from Cuba. Thus, before the embargo even began, it failed.

It should have been obvious then, more obvious in 1992 when Bill Clinton expanded the embargo, and most obvious today, that an embargo against a neighboring country, especially one that no longer poses a security threat, can’t work. All these decades later, Cuba still suffers from the effects of Communism and is indeed one of the last nations on earth with this problem. Isolation hasn’t brought enlightenment. The strangling of free trade hasn’t, believe it or not, encouraged free trade to flourish.

The embargo costs the U.S. economy billions per year ($3.6 billion according to The Cuba Policy Foundation and $1.2 billion according to the Chamber of Commerce). The UN general Assembly has annually passed resolutions against the embargo since 1992, with the United States, Israel, and occasionally Uzbekistan being among the few dissenters. According to the Los Angeles Times, “shortly after Fidel Castro took power, Washington broke relations with Havana and persuaded most of the hemisphere to follow suit. Every country has since reversed itself, except the U.S.”

Furthermore, the American Association for World Health concluded in 1997 “that the U.S. embargo of Cuba has dramatically harmed the health and nutrition of large numbers of ordinary Cuban citizens,” noting that “charity is an inadequate alternative to free trade in medicines, medical supplies and food.” Amnesty International Secretary-General Irene Khan agreed, calling the embargo “immoral” and said ”it’s preventing millions of Cubans from benefiting from vital medicines and medical equipment essential for their health.”

The embargo is costing us money and restricting our freedom. It has virtually no international support and it’s done nothing to improve living standards for the average Cuban. Why then do so many politicians support it? A cynic would respond that politicians fear losing Cuban-American votes. This fear, while certainly real, is totally unfounded. Since 2008, a majority of Cuban-Americans have supported ending the embargo. And so we have this terrible policy lingering about to the detriment of many and the benefit of no one. It’s time to end this absurdity.