[OPE] "The Cuban model doesn't even work for us anymore, " he said.

If that is really the case, it's a better approach. Namely, the
state-versus-market debate is really a rather false one, and the real issue
concerns the modalities of the relationship between cooperation and
competition.

I think though that if the US wants to see more democracy in Cuba in the
sense of multi-party democracy and individual rights, then there would have
to be military assurances and a lifting of the blockades, or at least a
reduction of them. If they truly want to see change in Cuba, they would have
to take a friendlier attitude. If they would rather see the regime crap out,
then they can wait a long, long time. Because although Cuban people want
change, they don't want to be on the dole queue either.

It is unlikely that the Cuban polity would permit more civil freedoms, if
they think it is going to assist the destabilization of the country by
foreign powers. If there were more assurances that the sovereignity of the
country would be respected in word and deed, then a lot of the political
paranoia would end. I think that in the finish most people don't care much
for the political rhetorics, they look at things practically and they look
about what works, what is really going to improve people's lives. I suppose
also that the Cuban polity will be looking carefully at its own foreign
policy, since Uncle Sam is watching it.

The great advantage of socialism is, that you are no longer restricted to
any particular type of property forms, you can try out different
arrangements to see what works best to improve people's lives, and that is
after all what it is all about, as I would think Fidel would be the first to
acknowledge (a political leader always thinks: what are we in this for, what
is the end purpose?). You can have the basic egalitarian principle, but you
can be quite flexible in how you go about implementing it. Of course, there
are also constraints - some methods are not compatible with each other, or
there are conflicting imperatives, as economists will point out - there is
plenty experience there to draw on. Nevertheless, solutions can be found
that are acceptable to the working majority.

J.

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Received on Sun Sep 12 19:51:53 2010