Clinton News Record, 2014-12-24, Page 44 News Record • Wednesday, December 24, 2014
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editorial
Helping the Cuban people
QMI Agency
It's the regular folks that matter.
Toss the politics aside and look at
Wednesday's United States - Cuba
announcement through that prism.
Relations between the two coun-
tries have been virtually non-exist-
ent since Fidel Castro overthrew the
Cuban government in 1959.
But on Wednesday President
Barack Obama announced various
changes including plans to open an
embassy, review the official desig-
nation of Cuba as a state sponsor of
terrorism and lift travel and trade
restrictions.
Cuba is a centrally planned econ-
omy and anyone who knows how
that worked out for the Russians or
Chinese hopefully agrees it's a life
sentence of poverty.
In their 2014 index of economic
freedom the Heritage Foundation
ranked Cuba 177th - just behind
Zimbabwe and just before North
Korea.
If you're outside the system life
sucks. The World Bank pegs GDP
per capita in the communist coun-
try at around US$6,000. The United
States is almost 10 times that at
$53,000.
But if you're an insider, then you
get to share in the spoils of crony
communism. Cuba is notoriously
corrupt.
So is Obama's policy shift the
solution?
Leading Republican Senator
Marco Rubio - a descendant of
Cuban immigrants - says absolutely
not.
Rubio smacked down the White
House's words today in a statement:
"The entire policy shift announced
today is based on an illusion. On a
lie. The lie and the illusion that
more commerce and access to
money and goods will translate to
political freedom for the Cuban
people. All this is going to do is give
the Castro regime which controls
every aspect of Cuban life the
opportunity to manipulate these
changes to perpetuate itself in
power."
Rubio is right that President Raul
Castro will try to use this to his
advantage. What else would you
expect?
But when people's quality of life
increases they start to demand
more democracy and economic
freedom.
These changes may not be per-
fect, but they move in the right
direction.
As Prime Minister Harper's
announcement states: "Canada
supports a future for Cuba that fully
embraces the fundamental values
of freedom, democracy, human
rights and the rule of law."
Canadians should be proud to
learn our country facilitated a role
in these meetings.
column
Some Christmas quotations
Tara Ostner
The Clinton News Record
The holidays mean
something different to
each of us. Below are
some humorous
quotes about Christ-
mas that I thought I
would pass along to
you this Christmas
Eve.
"What I don't like
about office Christ-
mas parties is looking
for a job the next day."
- Phyllis Diller
"That's the true
spirit of Christmas;
people being helped
by people other than
me."
- Jerry Seinfeld
"Christmas is a time
when people of all
religions come
together to worship
Jesus Christ:'
- Bart Simpson
"The Supreme Court
has ruled that they
cannot have a nativity
scene in Washington,
D.C. This wasn't for
any religious reasons.
They couldn't find
three wise men and a
virgin."
- Jay Leno
"Christmas is the
season when you buy
this year's gifts with
next year's money."
- Author unknown
"Christmas is a baby
shower that went
totally overboard."
- Andy Borowitz
"There are 17 more
shopping days until
Christmas. So, guys,
that means 16 more
days till we start shop-
ping, right?"
- Conan O'Brien
And, finally, three
more quotes, more
serious in tone and yet
heartwarming at the
same time:
"My idea of Christ-
mas, whether old-
fashioned or modern,
is very simple: loving
others. Come to think
of it, why do we have
to wait for Christmas
to do that?"
- Bob Hope
"Maybe Christmas,
the Grinch thought,
doesn't come from a
store."
- Dr. Seuss
"One of the most
glorious messes in the
world is the mess cre-
ated in the living room
on Christmas day.
Don't clean it up too
quickly."
- Andy Rooney
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