I feel that my title is stark, but true.
For liberals who squeal about torture, human rights, and the dignity of human freedom, you're in bed with monsters. Soak in it, hypocrites.
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) December 17, 2014
And you can imagine the depths of my sympathy.
So .. how long before Cuban health care is revealed for the horrendous joke it is?
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Mew
Shortly after Obama finishes reducing our system to that level?
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More seriously, I may be a squishy moderate on this, but I don’t really see the point of the embargo. There are quite a few regimes as bad or worse that we don’t embargo, so if the point it to punish Cuba, we’re being very inconsistent. if the point is to effect change in Cuba, well, that’s obviously failed. And who are we to double down on failed policies by just trying them harder, Democrats?
I’m still waiting for someone to explain to me why it’s so vitally important for us to get rid of the embargo when we are the only nation that has one against them.
Vital? No. But as a general rule, we should need a compelling government interest in order to override the general principles of free trade. The only plausible one is ‘it’s a regime run by a murderous thug’. Which is true. But do the folks also support embargos against, Russia, most of the Middle East, and many, many more?
That’s the beauty of it – any problems can be blamed on this idiot, and it simultaneously reinforces *that* he’s an idiot.
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‘s like he got all conservative bloggers and Little Havana a huge Hannukah present. (because it isn’t Christmas or Eid yet)
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Mew
The left’s argument is that the embargo is hurting Cuba. But we are the only nation that doesn’t engage in trade with them. So I doubt that this is the reason they are suffering.
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I know, I know; pointing out “It’s the communism, stupid!” doesn’t go over well with an ignorant segment of the U.S. population.
Cam, the left have simultaneously argued that the embargo is hurting Cuba, that Cuba is a workers’ paradise, and that Cuba has excellent state-provided health care.
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Expecting the left to be rational is like expecting to breathe in outer space …
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Mew
There are other details involved here. The Cuban Embargo is actually 6 separate Federal statutes, imposed over time from 1960.
The Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917, the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, the Cuba Assets Control Regulations of 1963, the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, the Helms–Burton Act of 1996, and the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000.
These statutes have specific requirements in them that must be met before they are lifted.
All of these were, I believe, signed by Democrat presidents. Federal statutes. In case everyone hasn’t noticed; just like with Obama’s Amnesty by Decree; he is again overturning Federal statutes by Decree.
Just thought I would mention it so we would know how far along the totalitarian path we are on. And in passing, Cuba is still listed as a Terrorist supporting state, and sanctioned for that.
The Institutional Republicans have had a minor public case of the vapors. But no substantive action, or hint thereof. Given that there is no opposition party, one could argue easily that we live in a one-party state just as surely as Cuba does. Just that it has not yet exercised its full power.
You can make an argument for or against keeping the embargo. But “because Obama says so” is not the deciding argument, nor is that statement a constitutional process, or is it now?
Indeed.
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Sadly, it seems that, as a country, as a nation, we need increasing levels of Heinleinian “Bad Luck”**, larger and larger doses every generation or two, to remind us of just how good we have it.
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Mew
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** Classical reference, go google it yourself.
No need to Google it, really; Instapundit uses the quote at least weekly in these f*cked-up times.