Cuba Bill

[The Duke]

Castro will die soon.  I do not see why trade with Cuba is so critical that it cannot wait until Castro dies.  Why do this now?

[The Duke]

We can make that electronics crap in Indonesia just as easily as China.

[The Duke]

We can make that electronics crap in Indonesia just as easily as China.

Well then why don't we? Why don't the wonderful big businesses do that?

What are you talking about, wonderful big businesses?

All I'm saying is that we don't need trade with China to make computer equipment.  We can make in Indonesia, India, and a ton of other places.  I don't think your comment addresses that point.

You said we need trade with China, and your evidence was that that's where a lot of electronics gear is made.  If we can make that stuff in any of 20 other countries, your point isn't so convincing, is it?

[The Duke]

Even if another Castro takes over, it won't matter that much.  Castro is of symolic value, another dictator wouldn't necessarily be.

[The Duke]

I'd urge Senators to vote nay, and I will advise the President to veto if this passes.  Castro is nearly dead anyway (I hope), big business can wait a few years to turn Cuba into Earth's biggest casino.

[The Duke]

As a private citizen I think we are playing a double standard here. It's okay to condemn dictators who are your enemies, but it's not okay to condemn tinpot dictators like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Libya because we are supporting their abuses.

Libya is not someone we condone.  We rewarded them for giving up WMD and for sharing intel on terrorists.  This was meant as incentive for other such governments to reform along similar lines.  Cuba has made no such reforms.

[The Duke]

We haven't been inconsistent, and we haven't given in.

The Bush admininistration explained to Mr. Khaddafi, just as the Lundgren adminsitration explained to Mr. Bashir, that his behavior was unnacceptable and he needed to change.

Like a master who teaches his dog to do tricks for table scraps, we have asserted ourselves as the dominant player in a hostile relationship and extracted concessions from the weaker power.

[The Duke]

1. Cuba doesn't have WMDs, partly because of the harsh policy we had when it was needed. It is no longer needed; Cuba has no source for WMDs.

Cuba may not have WMD, but they do plenty else.

2. Cuba has no islamic trerrorists, except those in Guantanamo Bay

They have no ISLAMIC terrorists.  Their support for FARC, however, continues unabated.  Until this ends, I see no reason the DoD should be happy about ending the embargo.  They also have access to the Lourdes spy base, which is used against us in the intelligence front.

3. Cuba hasn't made those reforms because they were not necessary. They do need to reform, but it would be better to end the isolation ow and talk, like we did in Libya, to solve the prolem. We no longer need to exclude them, and the longer we do so the highest the riosk that Cba could turn crazy and isolationist. It isn't there yet, but if Castros' sucessor is a nut and we continue to ignore Cuba, it can only be bad for Atlasia.

Would you not agree that Cuba, as the immoral dictatorship, should be obliged to take the first step?  I certainly think so.  They're the @$$holes, not us.  Its on them to take the first step.