Ileana Ros-Lehtinen thinks we are Yankee imperialist pigs?
This is what my my Representative said after we normalized relations with Cuba:
“We are saying to the Yankee imperialist pigs, come and own a piece of Cuba, we are for sale, and those who have money, come on over because it’s a fire sale.”
First, I am in the camp that thinks that opening up Cuba WILL lead to the overthrow of Communism there. One can point to China as a counter-argument, but let’s not forget about the freeing of eastern Europe and Russia.
HOWEVER, I do think there is a real risk in this with Cuba that does not (and did not) exist anywhere else: Cuba has an entire community of exiles in Miami (etc.) that has the political power in their community, the money, the celebrity, and the drive, to replace the Castro Government with a new one of THEIR making and benefiting THEIR power. Meanwhile, the same people who are poor now in Cuba will remain poor, under the new Miami-Import ruling class (unless, of course, one happens to be a family member that remained in Cuba).
20 years from now, Cuba will be just as corrupt and poor as it is now, but the leaders will be named things like Diaz-Balart and Estrella and Estefan.