Castro admits Communism 'doesnt work'

[BJJ-Blue]

"HAVANA, Cuba — Fidel Castro told a visiting American journalist that Cuba's communist economic model doesn't work, a rare comment on domestic affairs from a man who has conspicuously steered clear of local issues since stepping down four years ago.

The fact that things are not working efficiently on this cash-strapped Caribbean island is hardly news. Fidel's brother Raul, the country's president, has said the same thing repeatedly. But the blunt assessment by the father of Cuba's 1959 revolution is sure to raise eyebrows.

Jeffrey Goldberg, a national correspondent for The Atlantic magazine, asked if Cuba's economic system was still worth exporting to other countries, and Castro replied: "The Cuban model doesn't even work for us anymore" Goldberg wrote Wednesday in a post on his Atlantic blog."

Full article:
http://www.cleveland.com/world/index...ubas_comm.html

Here is another article talking aobut Gov't layoffs in Cuba and that Cuba will now allow private sector jobs.

"Our state cannot and should not continue maintaining companies, productive entities and services with inflated payrolls and losses that damage our economy and result counterproductive, create bad habits and distort workers' conduct," the CTC, Cuba's official labor union, said in newspapers.

Full article:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americ...ex.html?hpt=T1

So now we have the Communist dictator with the longest reign in history admitting that people like Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and 1bad65 were right all of these years. Hopefully Obama will take note. Of course I'm sure some people will still argue over how great Cuba is compared to the US and how socialism will work here if only the right people are put in charge of implementing it.

[sanjuro_ronin]

CUBA's communissm doesn't work, he didn't say commiunissim didn't work.
Fact is, Cuba needs to adapt a more "Chinese" mode:
Capitalist economy that is highly controlled. and regulated by Government.

Then they can, hopefully, progress to a more open and democratic type of governing.

To go from communisim to democracy like they did in the former USSR would be as big a mess as it was there.

Matter of fact, that whole mess was a wake up call for the rest of the communist countries.

[David Jamieson]

If Cuba had not been deliberately cut off from trade with the USA it's communism would work fine.

They have 99% literacy, a pretty good medical system, almost zero unemployment and a good mortality rate.

but because they have to buy light bulbs from 400 miles away instead of 90, they've been deliberately hobbled by the USA and their sanctions against them which have been ongoing for more than 45 years now.

Cuba was an example of how to make communism work. China never practiced communism ever.

They are a totalitarian, authoritarian country that practices a form of collectivism but has a wealthy elite and now abides by a capitalist piece mixed in with their authoritarian regime.

the biggest hurdle to true communism is humanity. we just don't roll like that because we function out of self interest.

it's an ideal. Karl Marx was a fool to think it would work in the real world. lol

[BJJ-Blue]

If Cuba had not been deliberately cut off from trade with the USA it's communism would work fine.

So the Communist country needed the Capitalist country to survive, and you're defending it?

They have 99% literacy, a pretty good medical system, almost zero unemployment and a good mortality rate.

LMAO! Did you even read the article?

but because they have to buy light bulbs from 400 miles away instead of 90, they've been deliberately hobbled by the USA and their sanctions against them which have been ongoing for more than 45 years now.

Had they been a free market country, they would have learned how to manufacture light bulbs down there decades ago, and for a profit as well.

Cuba was an example of how to make communism work.

Not according to Castro! Really David, can you even admit you were wrong just once? Of course you did manage to prove me right yet again:

Of course I'm sure some people will still argue over how great Cuba is compared to the US and how socialism will work here if only the right people are put in charge of implementing it.

Thanks, buddy.

[BJJ-Blue]

China never practiced communism ever.

Please tell me where you were educated so I can avoid that place like the plague.

[Syn7]

well, cuban communism would have been alot better off had they not had so many external pressures and an embargo thats been dogging them for ever... i wonder how it would have turned out if everyone had just p i s s e d off and let these people sortr out their own revolution...

the so called cuban missile crisis is a perfect example... that silo would never have even been planned had they not needed to buffer themselves out while being caught in the middle of two superpowers at odds... external influence and medling is the reason for that whole debacle... and america was esspecialy p i s s e d off because their puppet was ousted... the elite ruling class minority was hit so hard you could hear the complaints in DC... the fact that fidel nationalized their resources and kicked out american exploitatipon made him an enemy... he had no choice but to pick sides and play ball, to an extent... im not saying he is a wonderful leader who would have created paradise... but i do believe his intentions were right and he never had a fair shake and opportunity to put in place the system he wanted from the beginning... america kept funded anti castro groups and basically forced him to clamp down hard on resistance and then washington stood back and pointed their fingers at his harshness... like they didnt orchestrate the whole thing from the beginning... its an old trick, the greeks even did this...

[BJJ-Blue]

but i do believe his intentions were right and he never had a fair shake and opportunity to put in place the system he wanted from the beginning...

LMFAO! He only had over 50 friggin years!!!!

You liberals are never successful at anything, except blaming others for your failures.

[Syn7]

needing to buy from the states doesnt mean capitalism is better, its a geography thing... america has things cuba doesnt and buys from abroad... just like the states does... importing goods is a huge biz in the states... it simply caosts more to ship things from 1000's of miles away when there is a source within 100 miles...

cuba is a small place, they cant manufacture everything they need and like every other nation on earth, a large part of survival relies on trade... the fact that a major trading partner has cut them off has made everything alot harder and more expensive than it should have been...

and nationalizing the so called free market was a sin to washington... they had alotta interest in cuba, and it wasnt to the benefit of the average cuban as much as it was for the benefit of a very small handful of wealthy families in the states... it wasnt that they dont have a free market for their own people that was the problem, it was that they created a system to make it impossible for american interests to exploit cuban people that made them so angry... these families lobbied in washington and turned an economic issue into a socio-political issue... old tactic... tar and feather your enemy then point and show everyone how dirty they are, then cut them off or even exterminate them for being so un-clean... the small minority ruling elite have been doing this forever... if a tribe was inconvenient to a roman noblemans pocketbook, he lobbied in the assemblies and senate to go to war against the evil tribesman and even enslave them for labor on the land they used to live on fruitfully in order to finance some fat romans debauchery... same old story... and the appologists just keep comming...........

[Syn7]

LMFAO! He only had over 50 friggin years!!!!

You liberals are never successful at anything, except blaming others for your failures.

your lack of understanding is incredible and yoursheeplike conditioning is absolutely staggering... you really dont see how an embargo like that would create challenges for a small nation so close??? you really think funding and arming anti-castro militants was constructive in creating a peaceful solution??? they knew they couldnt invade them so they did the next best thing, they meddled in affairs that werent their own...

[Zenshiite]

well, cuban communism would have been alot better off had they not had so many external pressures and an embargo thats been dogging them for ever... i wonder how it would have turned out if everyone had just p i s s e d off and let these people sortr out their own revolution...

the so called cuban missile crisis is a perfect example... that silo would never have even been planned had they not needed to buffer themselves out while being caught in the middle of two superpowers at odds... external influence and medling is the reason for that whole debacle... and america was esspecialy p i s s e d off because their puppet was ousted... the elite ruling class minority was hit so hard you could hear the complaints in DC... the fact that fidel nationalized their resources and kicked out american exploitatipon made him an enemy... he had no choice but to pick sides and play ball, to an extent... im not saying he is a wonderful leader who would have created paradise... but i do believe his intentions were right and he never had a fair shake and opportunity to put in place the system he wanted from the beginning... america kept funded anti castro groups and basically forced him to clamp down hard on resistance and then washington stood back and pointed their fingers at his harshness... like they didnt orchestrate the whole thing from the beginning... its an old trick, the greeks even did this...

That's pretty much the same problem Iran has faced for 40 years. You do have to wonder how their economy would be doing if America would step off. It was also the elite ruling class that got hit hard in Iran, and the US didn't like that one bit.

[Syn7]

That's pretty much the same problem Iran has faced for 40 years. You do have to wonder how their economy would be doing if America would step off. It was also the elite ruling class that got hit hard in Iran, and the US didn't like that one bit.

yup, the moment they overthrew the american puppet and put their own interests ahead of international capitalist interests they became an enemy... and the tar and feathers commenced...

i mean giving money and weapons to iran and iraq at the same time for their wars wasnt exactly a righteous play... the US armed and backed saddam in order to weaken iran and give america a good jump off point for military action... suadi arabia isnt enough, they needed to be much closer to the big bad wolf...


oh snap, remember ollie north... yeah america has done such good things over there, the US couldnt possibly share any blame for the state of their socio-economic atmosphere....

its also staggering just how many opponents of middle eastern peoples dont even realise persians are a completely seperate race from arabs...

[David Jamieson]

In fact, a liberal democracy is the ideal society that can work.
It includes forms of socialism and it includes forms of capitalism.
It runs on rule of law and continues to refine law in a secular and observant manner that is fair to all.

Appointment instead of election to posts is a problem.
Not hiring to positions that shouldn't be run by a politician is a problem.
Not having individuals accountable for tax dollars to the dime is a problem.
Corruption and a laissez-faire attitude towards it in favour of an economic model over a moral one is a problem.

There are a lot of problems with liberal democracy.

But as a human being, i'd say it's the best form of order out of chaos that can be afforded to humans. So long as fascists can be kept out of seats of power and overt socialism is tempered with common sense. I'm happy to pay taxes for that civilization.

[BJJ-Blue]

your lack of understanding is incredible and yoursheeplike conditioning is absolutely staggering..

Are you seriously calling me "sheeplike" on the basis I have been saying for years that Communism doesn't work and now I post quotes of Fidel Castro agreeing with me?

[BJJ-Blue]

I'm beyond stunned that you guys are defending communism in Cuba when the very guy who brough communism to Cuba and ran the country for ~50 years said it didn't work.

[BJJ-Blue]

needing to buy from the states doesnt mean capitalism is better, its a geography thing... america has things cuba doesnt and buys from abroad... just like the states does... importing goods is a huge biz in the states... it simply caosts more to ship things from 1000's of miles away when there is a source within 100 miles...

cuba is a small place, they cant manufacture everything they need and like every other nation on earth, a large part of survival relies on trade... the fact that a major trading partner has cut them off has made everything alot harder and more expensive than it should have been...

If it's all about geography and an embargo, please explain how Taiwan has faced those exact problems and yet has managed to prosper?