![]() ![]() My worry is that the end of the embargo will spark a stampede of American business and ideological pressure, and create something akin to the disastrous post-Communist experience in Russia, where GDP fell by nearly two-thirds and life expectancy by five years, and a handful of well-placed people absconded with half the nation's property.ĭespite that record of disaster, a great many conservative and neoliberal economists still think that simple free-markety reforms - privatization, union-busting, austerity, axing wage and price controls, and so on - is some kind of magic formula for creating rapid economic growth. The overall objective, therefore, ought to be to pursue modernization and democracy while preserving what Cuba has already built. Now, there's nothing wrong in principle with American companies investing in Cuba - and if Obama's so-far rapturous reception there is any guide, ordinary Cubans are excited by the prospect of jobs and development. He's traveling with a slew of business executives, notably the CEO of Marriott International, the luxury hotel company that is obviously slavering at the prospect of Cuba's many lovely beaches and corals. He says Google is going to provide internet service there. Probably the most unsettling aspect of re-opening relations is how Obama has explicitly made American economic penetration part of the agenda. ![]() ![]() If President Obama wants his Cuba legacy to be remembered positively, he should be careful with his promotion of American business. When that does happen, Cuba will have to undergo a process of difficult and probably painful change which could lead to serious instability or even political collapse. The eventual restoration of full relations is still some ways off (most of the embargo is under the control of Congress, which would have to pass a repeal), but it's surely only a matter of time. However, all is not bright and shining hope. ![]()
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