[big campaign] McCLATCHY - Commentary: Lifting ban would make Cuba freer, open

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Simply awesome - This perfectly counters the argument projected by the ridiculously reluctant Cold Warriors & those who have right-wing special interest contributions in their campaign coffers. It would be great to see this story pushed far & wide - and, of course, replicated repeatedly. Please contact me off-list if you are able to project this story and/or would like to help place the next one. Best, Aniello 202.234.5807 office 502.664.2420 cell ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/68808.html Commentary: Lifting ban would make Cuba freer, open By Bob Stallman WASHINGTON — It amazes me that it is 2009 and Americans are still unable to visit or do business with Cuba. It is the only country in the world where our government bans Americans from traveling. Unfortunately, a lot of opportunities are being missed for both business and tourism because of these costly restrictions. I was lucky enough to visit Cuba in 2002. I say lucky because both the country and its people are beautiful. It also helped me see firsthand the disarray left on Cuba's agriculture industry when the Russian troops left in the early 1990s and how Cubans are dealing with the aftermath. My trip to Cuba shored up several things for me. First, Cuban citizens are good people and second, they need affordable food. During my visit, it was striking to see tourists there from everywhere in the world except the United States. To remedy this, there is legislation on Capitol Hill that would open Cuba to travel for U.S. citizens. Further, President Obama recently relaxed rules to allow Cuban-Americans to visit their family, while easing financial and gift restrictions. These actions bring us one step closer to increasing food and agricultural sales to Cuba, an important priority for the American Farm Bureau Federation. U.S. agricultural sales to Cuba have been on average $400 million annually since 2000. With the embargo lifted, we expect that number would rise to $1 billion annually. While touring the Cuban countryside I realized the nation's ability to produce bulk commodities had significantly diminished after the Russians' departure. Other countries are taking advantage of the opportunity. For example, I visited a joint venture project between an Israeli investor and the Cuban government to grow oranges. This is just one agriculture example and there are plenty more. Being able to feed its citizens is a big priority for Cuba. It is a poor country, but its people are by no means malnourished. Every Cuban is given rations for basic foods, such as milk and rice. When I was there, a campaign was in place encouraging average citizens in cities to plant plots of vegetables in order to help produce food. There are many practical reasons the United States and Cuba should be trading. The Cuban government allocates a specific sum of money to buy food and pay transportation costs for those imports. Transportation costs would be minimal between the United States and Cuba compared to Europe or Asia, which means more money could go toward feeding Cuba's citizens instead of being burned up in shipping costs. By removing U.S. restrictions on Cuba, we also weaken the totalitarian grip on that nation's citizens. History has shown we can do more to spread democracy by opening travel and trade to other countries. By working as ambassadors of change in those countries we can have more positive impact on the lives of the Cuban people than anything we have done under this embargo over the last 47 years. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. After nearly a half century, the time is now to open Cuba's border to U.S. citizens, businesses and ideals. *ABOUT THE WRITER* Bob Stallman is president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. Readers may write him at 600 Maryland Avenue SW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20024. This essay is available to McClatchy-Tribune News Service subscribers. McClatchy-Tribune did not subsidize the writing of this column; the opinions are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of McClatchy-Tribune or its editors. © 2009, American Farm Bureau Federation --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the "big campaign" group. To post to this group, send to [email protected] To unsubscribe, send email to [email protected] E-mail [email protected] with questions or concerns This is a list of individuals. It is not affiliated with any group or organization. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---