> Wojtek Sokolowski [mailto:sokol at jhu.edu]
> Jim: It was Justin not me who mentioned cannibalizing old cars and
> computers. My point was that the US blockade is irrelevant
> because Cuba
> can trade with other developed economies - and it does. So if it does
> not get the goods that it needs, it must be for other than
> the blockade
> reasons. Therefore, economic isolation, real or purported is not the
> source of Cuba's economic woes.
This dismissal of the blockade goes much too far. It still has a major impact on the amount of convertible currency -- dollars -- that Cuba has, which is crucial since their peso is not convertible. Further, various US elites have been struggling since 1959 to extend the blockade, penalize the Europeans, etc.
I didn't say that the blockade was _the_ source of Cuba's economic woes. _A_ source.
>... I fully agree that using buses, bicycles or trains whenever possible is
> a much better solution than using cars. But my understanding is that
> car ownership is a big part of macho identity which is alive and well in
> Cuba. In the current situation that macho identity rides on pollution-generating
> US 1950s and Soviet 1970s technology. And that is
> hardly a model to follow.
I wouldn't blame Cuban macho culture. The appeal of cars (to individuals) seems almost universal even though their costs (to society, natue) are quite high. Look at how auto ownership in China is taking off.
Obviously, it would be good to replace the old 1950s US and 1970s SU cars with new Toyota Priuses (Prii?). But Cuba faces a severe foreign-exchange constraint (and the temptation is to _add_ to the stock of cars rather than keeping it constant).
------------------------ Jim Devine jdevine at lmu.edu & http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine