Constructive Deconstruction

Your time will be up…Waiting for Fidel to drop dead

Countdown in Cuba
July 17 2006

Prepared by: Robert McMahon
Source: Council on Foreign Relations

Cuban leader Fidel Castro is nearing his eightieth birthday and talk of succession is in the air. His younger brother, defense minister, and heir apparent, Raul, is enjoying a surge in media attention (Miami Herald), suggesting to Cuba watchers that a power transition is underway. Raul has stressed in recent media appearances that the communist party will remain the anchor of the Cuban ship of state. U.S. officials have something different in mind. Vexed by Castro’s regime for forty-seven years, the White House earlier this month reaffirmed a plan to support independent civil society and break the information blockade in Cuba, aiming for a transition to "genuine democracy." The Bush administration endorsed a call by a government agency, the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, to spend about $80 million to promote democratic succession.

But Cuban officials have signaled they will play hardball against this soft diplomacy, saying it amounts to active U.S. support for regime change. The president of the Cuban National Assembly, Ricardo Alarcon, said the U.S. efforts are doomed to fail but would "cause harm and deprivation and suffering of individuals." Cuba’s dissident community is still struggling to recover from a 2003 crackdown on citizens ranging from medical doctors to librarians. An AP analysis says Cuba notably lacks the kind of opposition figures and institutions that helped communist states in Eastern Europe make a relatively smooth transition to capitalism. The Lexington Institute says in a recent Cuba policy report that despite the Bush administration’s tough words, its policies in Cuba "seem to have no prospect of being politically decisive." This new CFR backgrounder looks at the issues that continue to dog the U.S.-Cuban relationship.

Other than some enhanced funding, there does not appear to be much new in the U.S. approach. The Congressional Research Service says the U.S. government has been planning for years how to handle political transition in Cuba, noting a 1997 report by the Clinton Administration that outlined ways in which U.S. and international actors could assist in the democratic development of Cuba. The size and focus of the fund announced on July 10 appeared to be similar to the new Bush administration initiative to spur democratic change in Iran. In both cases, local civil society activists raised concern that receiving U.S. monies could damage their efforts. In neither case is it specified how such funds would be channeled to democracy groups.

Ok. I’m a supporter of Democracy. But i’ve come to realise one thing. Democracy is not something you can force on people. People like freedom, yes. But people are not necessarily ready for that. It’s a simple concept really. Society is like a huge blow up of a family. When you’ve got the typical parents above 40, 1 kid that’s in his 20s and another that’s in his teenage years there’s a certain way of governing the family. It would be great if you could give everyone freedom of course, but no, you simply have to control what the teen does and doesnt and slowly introduce the concept of freedom and responsibility. To introduce complete freedom the next morning will simply cause the teen to go crazy.

A mature nation like the US is likened to a family with grandparents in their 60s, parents and children who are in their 20s. They know their roles, and thus should be given freedom.

So what am i trying to say? Look at the nations where democracy has been introduced by an external nation…how many of them are in chaos right now? How many of them have more blood being shed now than when their so called autocratic leaders were in power? My bet is this…when the people are ready for democracy, they’ll fight for it. And that’s the best time for the champions of democracy to step in…

Mid-Day update

I’ve managed to get the online chess system up…it’s accessible at http://www.xsmatter.com/webchess

Please feel free to use the platform. Amongst the cool features of it is that it allows you to play with another player while out of realtime. So you could make your move and if your opponent sets his email notification ‘on’, he’ll be notified after your move. Now, this is playing chess for the fun of it…no pressure =)

My nick is EagleOne on the platform so anyone who wants to play with me…=)

On another note, Jennifer told me last night that both the Constructive Deconstruction and XSMatter sites don’t appear properly because it’s configured to look fine on MY screen…which just so happens to be a wide-screen. So…Please give me some time to make the right screen alterations ya?

Cheers!

Busy Busy

Ok…i’m kinda busy after my trip out…catching up on emails, follow-ups, pursuing new stuff, etc…
But here’s something that i thought was more spooky than funny…Something to do with the way his eyes bulge out when he laughs…