Ok this reply was obviously filled with a lot of fact
I’ll help you out Shea and lace you with some information on the subject so you won’t make yourself look so bad next time you try and speak on Cuba.
First Cuba has not attained communism, plain and simple. Socialism, maybe but that is even debatable. But not communism.
Second Fidel and the Cuban people welcome U.S. citizens to their country all the time. The restrictions on travel to Cuba are placed upon U.S. citizens by the U.S. government not by the people of Cuba. Jimmy Carter, Oliver Stone, Kevin Costner, many many U.S. senators and congressmen and women, Common and several other hip-hop artists, myself, and I could go on and on, have all been the guests of the Cuban people in their country and welcomed with open arms. But since you’ve been there I’m sure you’re an expert on how welcome the people of the U.S. really are.
Continuing with the subject of travel restrictions imposed upon the U.S. people by the U.S. government: Restrictions on travel to Cuba violate First and Fifth Amendments
“In February of this year, the Senate held hearings on travel restrictions to Cuba. At the end of the sessions, members of both the Senate Committee on Appropriations and the Treasury Subcommittee concluded three things: one, travel restrictions to Cuba have weakened Americans’ civil liberties without reinforcing national security; two, enforcement of the travel ban by the Treasury Department violates the U.S. Constitution by imposing draconian measures against U.S. citizens who exercise their “inalienable” rights to freedom of movement and speech; and finally, enforcement efforts are being strengthened at a time when government resources are desperately needed for the war on terrorism.”
“The Fifth Amendment guarantees freedom of movement, considered by the U.S. Supreme Court as the very “essence of a free society.” The court emphasized that “freedom of movement makes other rights more meaningful: knowing, studying, arguing, exploring, conversing, observing and even thinking. Once the right to travel is curtailed, all other rights suffer.”
The court also pointed out the effects of the travel ban on First Amendment freedom of speech: “Travel restrictions limit rights under the First Amendment to express our views, hear the speech of others, gather information and associate with others, rights that are essential in a democratic society.”
Justice William Douglas explained: “The right to know, to converse with others, to consult with them, to observe social, physical, political and other phenomena abroad, as well as at home, gives meaning to the substance of freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Without those contacts, First Amendment rights suffer.”
In fact, four out of nine Supreme Court justices have come out against the travel ban, stating that it defies the very principles the U.S. was founded upon.”
It should be noted, however, that during the cold war U.S. citizens were free to travel to the USSR, despite the fact that Moscow was considered the most serious threat to U.S. national security.
The Senate hearings point out that U.S. policy towards Cuba, in preventing Americans’ from exercising their First and Fifth Amendment rights, supposedly guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, is illegal and, in fact, mirrors your very criticisms of Cuba.
And what about the people of the United States? Opinion polls by both CNN and Florida International University report that over 85% of Americans would like to see sanctions against Cuba lifted.
So everyone in Cuba wants to leave huh? I suppose you have proof of this right? Even many people that disagree with the government in Cuba don’t want to leave. Because they don’t take a defeatist attitude that Miami Cubans did or that you suggest people in this country take, “if you don’t like it leave”.
Their government, unlike that in the U.S., does not prevent people from leaving that do decide to do so. And in fact these people are forced by the U.S. governement and the powerful Cuban-American terrorist lobby to take these unsafe craft for their voyage to the U.S. If the U.S. government or the powerful Cuba-American lobby were concerned with the well fair of these people and in seeing them on a safe voyage to the U.S. then they would provide for safe travel for them. But how much anti-Cuba publicity would that stir up? “Well today 2 Cubans flew from Havana to Miami on a 747 and landed safely.” Its much more important for their propaganda to show people on these boats trying to leave. Provide them with safe travel and they’d take it.
As for Elian, the people that kidnapped him and held him from his father had no interest in that little boy’s life or well being what so ever. They are known terrorists and were using him as a propaganda tool against Cuba. “Terrorists you say CB?” Yes TERRORISTS! “But CB where is your proof?”
