Cuba

* Conventional wisdom has it that Castro and Communism have been disastrous for Cuba. Certainly, many Cuban immigrants hate the regime, most earlier ones having lost property and wealth to the revolution, most later ones feeling held down by communism. Perhaps a majority of those remaining in Cuba feel that they suffer as a result of the regime's dictatorial communistic ways. They believe that sans Castro and Communism their lot would be more like the images of America seen in various media which they can access. They probably haven't seen images of our housing projects, inner-city blight and poverty in mountain and agricultural communities.
* These opinions may deserve some examination and revision. The revolution was a response to unsatisfactory conditions for the vast majority of Cubans. Much of the commerce was in the hands of the American mafia and plantation owners. One might postulate that average Cubans would be in much worse shape today had Castro not intervened. They have received better education than they would have received sans Castro. Many services have been better distributed than they would have been sans Castro. Most of the deprivations experienced by most Cubans can be attributed to American policies including trade policies. Cuban ingenuity in coping with our policies has been down right heroic. It is very likely that the oppressive effects of Cuban government and American policy have preserved Cuba for the next generation far better than would be the case absent Castro and Communism. It would have been over developed and over exploited and dependent on outsiders as is Haiti. And the wealth gap would be huge, with the vast majority in abject poverty. By the way, over-development, over-exploitation, widening wealth gap and spreading poverty are where we are going with our free-market economy.
* So I say, let Cuba be Cuba. They may find a middle way that is better for them in the long run than would be some attempt to mimic us.