An Analogy

An Analogy

Cuba is being run by a criminal gang that violently seized and maintained power much like Al Capone. Capone established many business ties before he was finally jailed. Some benefited from these business arrangements – foremost among them Al Capone. But the vast majority did not prosper under this mafia setup. The same can be said for Cuba the past 48 years. Why bother to bring up this fact?

It is because I think it only fair that you business people be put on notice. You have joined your business interests with an illegal, criminal gang. Do you honestly believe that Cuba after Castro will honor even one peso of financial obligation? I won’t just say no…I’ll say HELL NO! Take for example, the Chinese iceboxes. The second the Castro boys are gone these forced purchases will become a gift from the Chinese people to the Cuban people. Any money owed to China will be null and void. But should the Chinese be “Indian Givers” then they know where to come to repossess them. It seems like the Cuban people might actually prefer this. If Venezuela thinks Cuba will pay for even one barrel of oil on our bill then Hugo really is crazy. Any joint ventures will immediately become solely the property of the Cuban people. These endeavors will be privatized and the Cuban people will have the first shot at being the new proprietors. All Sherritt International’s mining and power investments will be privatized to the Cuban people. I could go on and I will in the coming weeks to name and legally notify these business entities. You WILL lose everything!

The main point is you should cut your losses now. You all may really hate me at this moment but I’m very moderate on this issue. Virtually every Cuban I speak with says that you can never have enough money to be allowed to set foot in Cuba again. The same goes for tourist. But I believe in redemption but this is only achieved by accepting responsibility and paying compensation. If you are still doing business with Raul’s rackets when we kick him out of power then I’m in agreement with the majority of Cubans. But if you get out now and cut your losses then I will be your advocate for redemption and forgiveness. And I suspect that the islanders will feel even more strongly having lived in this misery for forty-eight years. What do you think?

Tomás Estrada-Palma