"Troika Of Tyranny"- US Vows Tough Approach To Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba

[PavelP + 15]

The United States imposed new sanctions Thursday on Venezuela and Cuba and promised additional penalties against Nicaragua as the Trump administration laid out a hard-line policy toward countries the White House branded a “troika of tyranny.”
National security adviser John Bolton condemned what he called the “destructive forces of oppression, socialism and totalitarianism” that he said the three countries represent. In a speech in Miami, home to thousands of exiles from Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, Bolton said the U.S. “will no longer appease dictators and despots near our shores in this hemisphere.” He spoke at the Freedom Tower, an important local landmark to the Cuban community in South Florida. According to AP agency the administration will prohibit U.S. citizens from involvement in the gold export trade from Venezuela. American officials have said Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro illegally exported at least 21 metric tons of gold to Turkey to avoid U.S. sanctions and to try to help rescue a collapsing economy once bolstered by vast oil reserves.
The U.S. government has sanctioned dozens of top Venezuelan officials, including Maduro, as part of economic measures designed at pressuring the South American country’s return to democracy.

[damirUSBiH + 327]

Russia? China? Central America? Is it 1978 or 2018? I can’t keep track anymore...

[pinto + 293]

After "Axis of evil", we have "Troika of tyranny"

[rainman + 263]

Good...

 

[ThunderBlade + 231]

Plagiarism from: the Axes of Evil... in poor taste. Generally, I agree. Regimes in these countries are brutal. So, are Russia and Saudi Arabia next on the list

[50 shades of black + 254]

Shades of last century... "Troika" -cheers

 

[damirUSBiH + 327]

 

The most people are leaving Venezuela, Maduro is destroying this perspective and with oil reserves one of the richest country in the world. About Cuba - they can make (again) strong link with Russia and begin trade with them, build infrastructure and give to Russia space for military base....too close.

 

[pinto + 293]

Can't wait till "Troika of Tyranny" takes on "Axis of Evil" in World Cup action...

[rainman + 263]

Why not just recycle "Axis of Evil"? It sounds better than Troika of Tyranny and worked so well the last time 

[NatGasDude + 94]

I doubt Cuba would re-establish Russian ties. They are generating so much revenue from European tourism that they cannot risk escalating geo political risk with the US and Euro vacationers.

The catch with Cuba is that the people don't see any of the tourism money. High school students have to work forced labor in order to qualify for school, which comes with a hefty dose of brainwashing. Restaurants and businesses are segregated-local Cubans could only eat and buy from non tourist markets and restaurants. The government confiscates profits from anyone running a business so that they don't experience any kind of merit based growth. 

Right now, it is a balanced dystopia, where the people are being fed enough to carry on. Not to mention that the penalty for slaughtering your own cow for family consumption is life in prison.

Leftist America's love affair with the Castros and Cuba's system has to be the most ignorant perspective I have ever been exposed to. A once first world country now consists of people with a broken spirit, taking whatever the government offers, and staying quiet to avoid punishment, and people actually applaud this system?

With respect to Venezuela, any family with money has already fled to Miami and bought properties. Miami is packed to the rafters with middle class and wealthy Venezuelans. Miami is actually home to more South Americans than Cubans since 2005.

The US has to cut all money flow possible from going to these nations until they come to the table with real reforms, visible proof that people are not being blatantly abused, and legitimate elections. Cuba has been on life support for half a century, and the same exiles are the ones sending money and assistance to their families who remain in Cuba as the government skims a hefty portion of this assistance to sustain itself.

[Guillaume Albasini + 851]

But there is some hope for the "Troika of Tyranny" members : POTUS new best buddy is a former member of the "Axis of Evil" gang.

[ronwagn + 6,290]

President Bolsanaro of Brazil now rules over half the landmass of South America. President Trump can do wonders applying leverage with him as an ally. 

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

This sounds like a job for The Putin-Nazi-Terrorist-O-Matic.

[Dan Warnick + 6,100]

Maybe we need another whole thread, but what happened with Cuba?  I had such high hopes for the people of Cuba when Obama reestablished diplomatic relations and whatnot.  It seems like it would be so easy to work out after all these years.  Are the Casto's that powerful?  I know I'm being naive, but man, what a waste.

[ronwagn + 6,290]

Socialism only goes one way when systems are put in place to enforce tyranny. 

[NatGasDude + 94]

12 hours ago, Dan Warnick said:

Maybe we need another whole thread, but what happened with Cuba?  I had such high hopes for the people of Cuba when Obama reestablished diplomatic relations and whatnot.  It seems like it would be so easy to work out after all these years.  Are the Casto's that powerful?  I know I'm being naive, but man, what a waste.

I was born in Cuba, as were my parents. They have an intricate system of 'chivatones', which would translate to 'sneaks'. Civilians are paid to report their neighbors to the regime for speaking ill of the government, keeping tip revenue from tourists, or even having red meat or 'black market fish' in their refrigerators. Friends of mine were imprisoned and I never saw them again, simply because the government discovered red meat in their homes.

The Obama policies only filled the Castros' coffers, the people of Cuba received nothing. It actually empowered the regime to tighten their grip on the people, and Raul Castro considered Obama to be a complete sucker and a fool. After multiple generations already having been born in a heavily brainwashed society, the people have become complacent and cynical. They have the highest rate of political prisoners per capita on the planet, so the people have given up on fighting for any change.

Cuba's excellent reputation in the education and health sectors is primarily because of centuries of very high standards. They have a 'no nonsense' approach to education and training and are extremely proud of it. Sadly, the government sends Cuban doctors and engineers abroad to provide care and services to other countries as a form of indentured labor. The government keeps the revenue earned by these professionals and then they return to Cuba empty handed. It's extremely depressing.

The island is also an ideal domain to enforce and maintain control over the population. The only solution would be military intervention.

When I hear American liberals talk about how 'good Cuba's socialist system is', and 'oh wow, their education and healthcare is so good', I just wish that they had to cut sugar cane and sleep in burlap sleeping bags in the summer heat in order to get access to a high school education (ages 13-18). Forced child labor is positive feature I guess.

[Dan Warnick + 6,100]

18 minutes ago, NatGasDude said:

When I hear American liberals talk about how 'good Cuba's socialist system is', and 'oh wow, their education and healthcare is so good', I just wish that they had to cut sugar cane and sleep in burlap sleeping bags in the summer heat in order to get access to a high school education (ages 13-18). Forced child labor is positive feature I guess.

Thank you, NatGasDude.  I was truly hoping for someone to give us some perspective, and you have certainly done that. 

It always pisses me off when I stand in some place, on one side of a river say, and look at the other side where there is a dictatorship or "military regime" and think: Why do those people have to suffer so much just because they were born on that side?  People from the same families, with most likely the same IQ, wants, needs, desires, creativity, warm hearts. 

Some people in this world need to be slapped, and slapped hard.  They have no right to force people into their BS.

[Eddie Holmaniii + 1]

Fidelitos y Chavezitos what ever happened to Latino hombres with a spine? Change starts between your ears, but conquest resides in your heart. 2-countries with a population of weak minds and heartless nationalist. Tobacco, sugar and the world's largest oil reserves. You would think they could start a revolution by just focusing on agriculture for nutritional consumption and oil reserves for electrical production. Well feed and blackout free, without the Cuban child-labor might yield a Silicon Valley del Sur?

Bolivar, Marx, Lenin, Next?

[JCPipa 0]

Next: the Oligopoly of Oil - Russia, Saudia Arabia and the USA

[Rasmus Jorgensen + 1,169]

On 11/3/2018 at 3:21 AM, NatGasDude said:

I was born in Cuba, as were my parents. They have an intricate system of 'chivatones', which would translate to 'sneaks'. Civilians are paid to report their neighbors to the regime for speaking ill of the government, keeping tip revenue from tourists, or even having red meat or 'black market fish' in their refrigerators. Friends of mine were imprisoned and I never saw them again, simply because the government discovered red meat in their homes.

The Obama policies only filled the Castros' coffers, the people of Cuba received nothing. It actually empowered the regime to tighten their grip on the people, and Raul Castro considered Obama to be a complete sucker and a fool. After multiple generations already having been born in a heavily brainwashed society, the people have become complacent and cynical. They have the highest rate of political prisoners per capita on the planet, so the people have given up on fighting for any change.

Cuba's excellent reputation in the education and health sectors is primarily because of centuries of very high standards. They have a 'no nonsense' approach to education and training and are extremely proud of it. Sadly, the government sends Cuban doctors and engineers abroad to provide care and services to other countries as a form of indentured labor. The government keeps the revenue earned by these professionals and then they return to Cuba empty handed. It's extremely depressing.

The island is also an ideal domain to enforce and maintain control over the population. The only solution would be military intervention.

When I hear American liberals talk about how 'good Cuba's socialist system is', and 'oh wow, their education and healthcare is so good', I just wish that they had to cut sugar cane and sleep in burlap sleeping bags in the summer heat in order to get access to a high school education (ages 13-18). Forced child labor is positive feature I guess.

My wife is cuban and I am Danish. We have vacationed in Cuba several times and also outside the classical tourist areas. My wife have told me about the "chivatones", but I have to admit that I have not clearly seen people restrain themselfes... And I have seen enough of world to know how to look underneath the surface (and am also fluent in Spanish). Please do not get me wrong - I am not blind - Cuba is not a free country. There is still a very LONG way to go. 

I really hope you do not take offense to this and class me as a naive liberal. I just think there is hope... 

[Tom Kirkman + 8,860]

My wife is Chinese Malaysian and I'm American.  We have a pretty diverse mix of international members on this forum  : )

[NatGasDude + 94]

On 11/5/2018 at 6:26 AM, Rasmus Jorgensen said:

My wife is cuban and I am Danish. We have vacationed in Cuba several times and also outside the classical tourist areas. My wife have told me about the "chivatones", but I have to admit that I have not clearly seen people restrain themselfes... And I have seen enough of world to know how to look underneath the surface (and am also fluent in Spanish). Please do not get me wrong - I am not blind - Cuba is not a free country. There is still a very LONG way to go. 

I really hope you do not take offense to this and class me as a naive liberal. I just think there is hope... 

There are exceptions, but you are correct. I live in Miami now, but I have many cousins in Cuba who turned to the 'dark side' and work for the government committees because they provide certain measures of lenience such as allowing them to fish on the north coast and sell it in their town, as well as keeping more of what they earn. The lack of government money and need for a freer flow of business has led to a relaxation of the tighter policies that were in effect in the 80's and 90's for example, but things are still very tight, and the wrong kind of speech or use of commodities will land you in prison.

It's very much quid pro quo. The government allows the people to get away with certain things as long as they are helping the government in one way or another. Certain towns are fully renovated so that tourists can visit and have positive impressions of that town, and others are completely dilapidated because they are off the beaten path. Areas of Havana have huge holes in the roofing, and rotting/collapsing rafters in historic buildings that will probably not be replaced any time soon.

I think that a wave of capital in the form of allowing foreigners to come (and previous Cuban exiles) to invest in real estate (with guarantees that the government won't suddenly repossess), and open  businesses would solve 99% of Cuba's problems. My parents ran a Pharmacy and Private practice (my dad had a full hematology/chemistry lab in house for his patients) in San Jose (suburb of Havana), the building is literally in ruins.

And to think that the foundation of the Cuban revolution was wealth envy- Castro promised a notion of equality where the guy making 40,000 won't have to envy the guy making 60,000, etc. From a first world country (1930-1950's) that resembled a slice of European culture in a tropical setting (higher minimum wage than the US, phenomenal quality of life pre-Castro), to a sad complacent society that smiles for the tourists and has no upward mobility without kissing the feet of the Communist Party.

With respect to the hope for the future, this has been going on for a long time, and has no real signs of reversal. The biggest impact is that Cubans under the age of 50 have become complacent and jaded because they have never seen pre-Castro Cuba. They are somewhat ok with the system and will probably not make any major changes for decades to come. Unless the tourism money stops pouring in.

Personally, I refuse to return to Cuba, because I don't want to give a single penny to that regime. That is what keeps them running, and keeps the spirit of the Cuban people in the gutter.

[NatGasDude + 94]

On 11/4/2018 at 7:11 PM, Eddie Holmaniii said:

Fidelitos y Chavezitos what ever happened to Latino hombres with a spine? Change starts between your ears, but conquest resides in your heart. 2-countries with a population of weak minds and heartless nationalist. Tobacco, sugar and the world's largest oil reserves. You would think they could start a revolution by just focusing on agriculture for nutritional consumption and oil reserves for electrical production. Well feed and blackout free, without the Cuban child-labor might yield a Silicon Valley del Sur?

Bolivar, Marx, Lenin, Next?

Firing squads, fear, and imprisonment crushed the spirit of the people. Some of the highest per capita executions, and the highest per capita political prisoners in the world. Income envy made the 20k per year (equivalent USD) want to kill and steal from the 40k earners, until the day came that everyone was hungry because of ineffective wealth redistribution. Two of my uncles were counter revolutionaries- one was killed in a firing squad, the other spent 25 years in a 5 foot tall prison cell that he couldn't even stand up in.

[Jan Tucker + 8]

Bolsonaro is a necessary balance against the rising tide of Populist Socialism - present and future - in Latin & Central America. It is also about time that the USA looked South since they are still as much a part of the problem as they are the solution. Early days for Trump and his new Tsar certainly, but if they can bring the right amount and type of pressure to bear to start a balanced change, so be it. Venezuela is an economic disaster, flooding its neighbours with migrants and sheltering ex FARC Chiefs who are too scared to face-up to "justice" in Colombia, as well as encouraging the ELN Guerillas to line their border as a de facto army. Cuba is a write-off, running out of empty solutions, interfering with politics on the mainland and Nicaragua is yet another good Socialist example of how to hold on to power "democratically". I live in Colombia, married to a Colombian for 38 years and this is my home - so I feel that I do have some skin in the vainglorious game...