Amnesty International released a report earlier this week indicating that the U.S. and its embargo is responsible for the deterioration of health in Cuba. I was going to post some personal thoughts on this, but after reading this piece by Sylvia Longmire at Dallas-based Examiner.com, I figured I'd let her explain instead:

Unfortunately, the Amnesty report leaves out two very important details regarding Cuba’s purchases of medicines from the US—the ability to pay, and the willingness to buy.

Read Longmire's entire article here.

Before I sign off, here's a small snippet of the Amnesty International report that should raise more than a few red flags:

Amnesty International has been unable to document at first hand the effects of the embargo on the enjoyment of these rights due to the organization’s lack of access to Cuba. The information in this report is based mostly on reports from UN agencies and programmes operating in Cuba, included in the reports of the UN Secretary-General that have been submitted to the UN General Assembly on a yearly basis since 1994. Reports on the human rights situation in Cuba from other UN sources, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, development agencies working in Cuba and human rights organizations have also been considered in order to assess the impact of the embargo on the economic and social rights of Cubans.

I'd love to insert my friend Humberto's signature sign-off here, but I'm afraid this type of "analysis" is all too REAL.