In one of his few major accomplishments, President Obama has moved toward normalization of diplomatic and economic relations with Cuba. But Cubans are already suffering such symptoms of “shock capitalism” familiar to 1990s Russia as inflation and food shortages.
Thank You For the Precious Gift of Capitalism
Ted Rall
Ted Rall is a syndicated political cartoonist for Andrews McMeel Syndication and WhoWhatWhy.org and Counterpoint. He is a contributor to Centerclip and co-host of "The Final Countdown" talk show on Radio Sputnik. He is a graphic novelist and author of many books of art and prose, and an occasional war correspondent. He is, recently, the author of the graphic novel "2024: Revisited."
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You call it a “major accomplishment.” But, really, how much of an accomplishment is it?
1. People have been calling for it for decades.
2. The embargo of Cuba by the U.S. is, pretty much, clearly some sort of personal grudge against Fidel Castro. Now that he’s about to die (he’s 89 and out of power, having turned the job over to his brother), “normalization” is beginning.
It isn’t really “leadership” when the preznit does what’s easy and popular. That’s not when you find out what kind of leader you have. You find that out when you see the hard choices being made.
Obama had his chance to make accomplishments. And he ran like hell from all of them. He could have closed Gitmo. Yes, he could have. It would have taken some gumption, but as a law school professor, he’s perfectly capable of explaining about the Constitution AND about what is supposed to be the American Character: “In this country, we do NOT have secret prisons. We do NOT torture. We do NOT ship people off to other places that do. Either try these accused people in open court or I will simply pardon every single one of them. We do NOT put aside our morals when it’s inconvenient. That’s when we hang on to them the tightest.”
Obama could have thanked Edward Snowden for revealing the criminally illegal things that he whistleblew on. Instead, Hillary Clinton revoked Snowden’s passport. If Snowden comes back to this country, he will, by statute, be forbidden from explaining his actions to a jury. He will not be allowed to present his defense. That, too, is something Obama could have accomplished a positive with by granting Snowden immunity. Didn’t happen.
Obama’s entire presidency is one failed opportunity after another. And that isn’t because of the Republicans. That’s because the Republicans know how to bully, and Obama didn’t know how to stand up to bullies.
Obumma’s continuously performing political fellatio on the party that vowed to destroy his presidency goes WELL beyond mere failure to stand up to bullies.
“That’s because the Republicans know how to bully, and Obama didn’t know how to stand up to bullies.”
Can anyone really believe that? What are the Democrats afraid of, that the Republicans will beat them up and steal their lunch money? Get real! The Democrats and Republicans conspire together. They each play their assigned role.
We have a winner!
« It would have taken some gumption, but as a law school professor, he’s perfectly capable of explaining about the Constitution AND about what is supposed to be the American Character: …» Well, alex_the_tired, I’d very much like to hear that particular law professor explain, for example, how FISA squares with the following passage in Section 2, Article III of the US Constitution :
«The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed.»
Henri
The cold war racked up a lot of casualties considering it was never officially a shooting war. One wonders where Cuba would be now if we hadn’t snubbed them so hard. Okay, no Russian missiles allowed – I get that part, but there was no reason for an ongoing embargo. Even less so after the USSR imploded.
I am looking forward to Cuban cigars & rum.
These sanctions never accomplish anything anyway to my knowledge.
And no US missiles allowed in Turkey ? That was, after all, the deal – although Mr Kennedy didn’t allow it to be published….
Henri
The Fourteenth Amendment is interpreted as making corporations people.
The Thirteenth Amendment makes slavery, the ownership of people, illegal.
A person who is owned by another person is a slave. A free person is owned only by himself.
So let’s abolish ownership of corporate people by any other than the people of the corporation.
Liberate the people from their capitalist owners.
Let democracy rule the corporate people.
Rule of the people by the people is the American way (or so the rhetoric of the oligarchic state would have it believed) so let’s democratically expropriate the capitalist expropriators.
5 stars.
Of course, the corporate person would only get one vote in the democracy.
The people of the corporation should decide democratically who the corporate person would support financially.
The corporate master class now uses corporate wealth to support the extension of corporate slavery.
No more corporate totalitarianism within its domain financing its extension outward by buying elections for the Master Class.
Oh, heck yeah.
The thing that REALLY pisses me off about Citizens Untied [sic] is the way that the corporate ‘voice’ is really only the voice of the CEO.
It wouldn’t be so bad if it was the voice of the thousand of others who make up the corporation.
W