this post was submitted on 20 Mar 2024
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This isn't meant to be a discussion on the morality of the embargo, but the affects of the embargo ending for both countries. These affects can be political, economic, or social.

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Same thing that would happen if sanctions on Afghanistan were lifted. Regular people's lives would improve as the country could import what they need. Cuba is really lacking in cement and medical supplies for example iirc (though their medical system and education is world-class), and they can't import them cuz of the embargo.

Obviously not much would change in the US, aside from some people realizing socialism isn't too bad when you're not a tiny country sanctioned and blockaded by the most war-mongering nation in the world.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

A TON of political mudslinging in the US that would die down after a few news cycles and a great deal of improvement to Cuba’s economy due to the dropping of the embargoes due to increased trade and tourism from the U.S.

Substantially? Not much (other than improving Cuba’s economy). This isn’t the 1960s, and “Ooo! Scary Cooommmunism!” thing isn’t the political bulwark it once was. Aside from a bunch of old bags in congress full of pace makers and life-extending pharmaceuticals, the vast majority of Americans couldn’t give a shit.

As a not-Cuban person, I can’t opine on how they’d feel about it. If I were to guess, I’d imagine they’d be in favor of it, but I can’t be sure.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

The US economy is so gigantic compared to Cuba’s that I don’t see it changing much at all for the US—maybe some medical advancements. For Cuba it would mean being able to acquire goods at more reasonable rates and probably a much bigger tourist trade if they’re not careful. Edit and better internet, I hear that’s important.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago (1 children)

They'd both suddenly benefit... the impact on America would be pretty minimal economically simply due to scale but it probably would improve health by moving us partially off corn syrup. And for Cuba it'd end decades of arbitrary economic kneecapping by the US. Tourism would probably explode since it'd be a shorter flight than cancun from the east coast and, y'know, not fucking Florida.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I don't think it would have any significant impact on corn syrup usage.
The US already produces about nine times more sugar cane than Cuba does. We also import it from countries like Brazil and the other Caribbean islands.

Our usage of corn syrup is because it's very cheap to begin with, and for various reasons it's desirable to keep food production, including corn, higher than demand would normally require.
That has one effect of further lowering the price of corn syrup.

The only thing that'll get us to cut back the amount of corn syrup in foods is the (slow) growing trend of consumers preferring foods that don't have added sugar, which would also preclude cane sugar.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Corn syrup is mainly cheap because of the huge subsidies, putting that money to better use supporting veggie or fruit production would make us all a lot healthier

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago (2 children)

realisticly, i dont think much outside of trade restrictions to cuba would help them. politically on the states side whichever party removes it loses a lot of Cuban voters who migrated to Florida who are in the camp of not liking Cuba. can potentially turn the state the other parties color goven how swingstatey Florida is on its own.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago

Florida has already gone pretty Republican, so I don't imagine that changing.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You don't think trade with the world's biggest economy and closest physical neighbor would have much of anmeffect?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

not saying trade wont have an effect, its just definitely on one side, it would be minimal, and Cuba for sure would benefit (heavily) from not having import restrictions. Relationships between the twp countries at least immediately, would not change.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Right.

That said, Cuba doesn't really have import restriction, it's the US has export restrictions.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

yeah effectively the same if its in context of just the two countries i guess. Regardless, Cuba has a lot to gain on being able to trade for cheap produce made in the U.S, and at least, have another large country to compete for sales outside of Brazil (whose fast tracked into being virtually the largest agrarian society these days)

the end result is basically Cuban Tourism goes up, U.S exports to Cuba drives food prices down.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The food prices falling might actually result in a net negative impact on their economy.
If local producers can't viably compete with aggressively low priced American crops, they'll lose out heavily.

On the whole, the tourism will probably bring in a lot of money, but a good chunk of it would leave the island immediately, and they'd have to wrangle a flood of goods they didn't have to compete with before.
(A lot of Caribbean islands end up in situations where the major tourist hubs are owned by American companies that pay locals as little as possible and then ship the profits back to the US. So the island just sees the benefit of 40 jobs, not 200 high paying tourists a month)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (4 children)

the type of crops cuba grows arent the main exports that the U.S typically goes through. iirc theyre big on sugarcane and rice, neither of which are major US exports reletive to the global scale of exports.

at worst, the citrus market in cuba crumbles, but thats less significant than the above two.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

You are comparing apples to apples but I think there is an issue of scale. It's like the apples that are produced by the tree out back (Cuba) vs the apples that are produced by the little stand the vineyard keeps for their fall cider (US). I don't have a lot of fruit trees out back so the couple basket fulls that apple tree produces is a huge portion of my fruit production but the vineyard's couple ton of apples is only a small portion of their fruit production.

For rice, the largest rice crop Cuba has ever produced in a single season is estimated to be 465k tons in 03/04. The US produced 11m tons and exported 3m tons of rice last year.

Edit: overstated US rice production do to not noticing a unit difference.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Not exactly.

Any ship that docks in Cuba is barred entry to US ports in the next 180 days.

The US can also sanction foriegn companies that trade with Cuba.

It's not a blockade but it has a chilling effect on trade.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Mass immigration into Cuba?

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago

I wonder how many poor retirees would consider it if the options are living in a modest apartment in Cuba surrounded by a great health care system versus shitting in a bucket in a van down by the river.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

probably, just look at how many people are retiring to Vietnam.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

I have no idea, but I'd be stocking up on cigars like a motherfuck. Trump putting the kibosh on bringing Cuban cigars back into the US still chaps my ass.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

The US would start importing Havana Club

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

A lot more tourism to Cuba from the US.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Vietnam was embargoed until the 90s, and dropping it basically allowed the soft power of the US to do it's thing. 'Nam isn't really an ally of the US, they consider themselves neutral, but they're undeniably very friendly. I suspect that a generation of trade and tourism could do the same to our relationship with Cuba and might result in softening attitudes among Cuban-Americans as they reestablish contact with their families and reconcile lingering animosity from the revolution.

I think this would also work for the DPRK, Iran, and others. Trade is really nice and children are rarely willing to carry the grudges of their parents.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

For the US, the change would be minimal. The economy of Cuba is so small by comparison and they don't have a heavy industry or tech sector to offer much to the US economy. Most outflows of money would likely be in tourism by US citizens to Cuba. And maybe some businesses would find ways to offshore some work. But again, I think the overall impact would be small.

As for Cuba, it really depends on the Cuban Government. Trade with the US and tourism are likely to have a much larger impact (as a percentage of GDP) on Cuba. The country could well see a sizeable influx of foreign cash. Managed well, this could create a lot of opportunity for the Cuban people. Managed by a corrupt regime, intent on enriching itself and it's friends, this could lead to the same type of misery which usually results from corrupt government.

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Significant improvement in the quality of life of Cubans. Probably also increase US tourism to Cuba. Not sure if it would have any real impact on the average US citizen.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Some have mentioned medical tourism. Could an industry grow around that? Would American insurance programs start covering work done in Cuba?

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Mass medical tourism and the collapse of the corporativist medical industry in the US.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Who do you think will build resort hotels?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Does Desi Arnaz (a Cuban) and Lucille Ball (an American) have to do with this subject?

If not, then I probably brought it up out of nowhere because I watched I Love Lucy before.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

No. It is due to the Cuban protests.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Heheheh, right. I missed the subject. :P

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

It would be interesting if they had an "I Love Lucy" experience in Havana as a tourist trap.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It would improve living standards and mortality rates for Cuban citizens.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Just to shine light on something positive for the US, it could be a good thing for American rice growers as Cuba could possibly become large buyer of USA rice

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

I would also expect American pork to be big in Cuba as well.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

100% TAS Key West - Varadero swimming speedrun NO COSMIC RAYS

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

Massive inequality growth in Cuba

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko said on Friday that more than 100 Russian companies had started operations in Cuba over the past year, according to the state news agency TASS

So, I doubt it would ever happen.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (3 children)

What does Russia in 2024 have to do with the blockade? Cuba has been trying to peacefully trade with the US for 60 years - even when the USSR provided aid.

Make no mistake about who is imposing the embargo

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

I'm thinking about a holiday there - friends who've been really enjoyed it. The beaches, the food, the music. https://www.onthebeach.co.uk/destinations/caribbean/cuba

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Even during the ‘open’ Obama years, tourism for Americans was severely limited by the lack of banking interchange between US banks and Cuban ATMs and credit card networks. You have to bring cash and use a currency exchange, and if you run out you have no way of getting more money from your American bank. Other countries’ networks don’t have this issue, but it would need to be fixed for Americans to visit and spend money.

I’m glad the internal currencies of CUC vs CUP have been resolved, though a massive influx of tourist dollars would strain the existing economic systems of Cubans being paid for jobs other than tourism.

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