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Pensive_Jabberwocky t1_jdbyc10 wrote

Reply to comment by iGriffinTheAwsm1 in As Cuba election day nears, some voters ask, 'why bother?' by Newgripper1221

Yeah, they have been under embargo for 50+ years, but the experts on Reddit go "if they just pulled themselves by their bootstraps".

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YeaISeddit t1_jdc763j wrote

My personal theory is that Cuba’s economy would be as strong or stronger than China (per capita, of course) if it weren’t for the embargo. Cubans have a very high level of university education attainment, even higher than the USA, and much higher than China. With solid tourism and good access to the US markets, Cuba could have been an economic powerhouse.

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UncleGrga t1_jdecz54 wrote

If that was the case, they would have at least been able to optimize agriculture and feed their people.

I agree with your theory under ideal circumstances and disagree with the US embargo. But the current government there is also a clusterfuck of incompetence.

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professordantae t1_jdfi3q3 wrote

Why wouldn’t we put economic repercussions on a regime that practices horrible human rights violations?

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Pensive_Jabberwocky t1_jdgr1je wrote

This is bullshit, if that was the case, the US would have embargoed half the world today.

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professordantae t1_jdgtgut wrote

Where else do you think we should put sanctions for human rights violations?

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Pensive_Jabberwocky t1_jdgtuqw wrote

We'll, let's begin with Saudi Arabia, and then we can continue down the list.

But the point here is that Cuba is under embargo, not just some economic sanctions, which means that their economy is severely isolated from the rest of the world. Their government may be garbage, but no government anywhere could have made a significant difference in a situation like this.

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