November 30, 2008

Dear editor,

I was greatly disturbed by your editorial about U.S. policy toward Cuba on Thursday November 27th.

If you recognize that our country's policies are being used by the Castro regime as a "scapegoat" then why should the policy change? The world, including Cubans on the island, recognizes it as a scapegoat. Keeping currency and credit from a regime that has always used its scarce resources to subvert other countries and repress Cubans instead of using it to help them is a legitimate objective. Changing policies to remove a scapegoat while strengthening the regime seems like a nonsensical approach to me.

But the truly disgusting part of your editorial is where you claim that "Mr. Obama owes nothing to those voters" meaning Cuban-Americans. Well the fact is that the president elect made promises to "those voters". Those promises included making changes to the family travel and remittance restrictions while maintaining the rest of the overall sanctions against the regime. You are shamelessly recommending that Obama break those promises. I guess the editorial board of the Palm Beach Post doesn't mind if politicians lie as long as it's "those voters" that get lied to.

Henry Gomez

Posted by Henry Louis Gomez at November 30, 2008 06:43 PM

Comments

Incongruous as it may seem, many Cuban-Americans voted for Obama. Specifically, the late comers that want travel restrictions to be lifted.

Every single Cuban-American teacher at my friend's school (except for her) voted for Obama. She's now considered an outcast. In fact, Cuban-Americans that I've known for years and never expected to vote Democrat, just lately admitted to having voted for Obama.

I guess the Palm Beach Post thinks it would be OK for Obama to break the promises he made to them as well.

Posted by: Firefly [TypeKey Profile Page] at November 30, 2008 11:04 PM

At the rate Obama, the agent of change, is hiring Clintonistas and Bush operatives for his team, he not only is the antithesis of change, he is evidencing that he plans to break a good many of his campaign pledges. At least until 2010 or until the economy returns to normal, expect none of those tax increases Obama promised. And nothing will change in our Iraq policy in the near future it seems.
Obama may break that promise on the embargo, too. It won't cause him any immediate political problem. I hope he doesn't break it, but he has to give something to the left and this is an easy one for him to break.

Posted by: honey [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 1, 2008 01:43 AM

"Those voters." Gee, where have I heard that same sort of thinly veiled contemptuous dismissal before? "Those people," courtesy of Bill Clinton during the Elian crisis. "That woman," again courtesy of Billy boy, referring obviously to Monica Lewinsky. Do you see a pattern here? I do.

As for the Cuban-Americans who voted for Obama, in some cases it's short-sighted expediency, and in others, it's a mortal fear of being unfashionable or "uncool." There's a lot of that going around.

Posted by: asombra [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 1, 2008 10:01 AM


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