From our Bureau of Twenty-First Century Neocolonialism with some assistance from our Bureau of Groveling Cuban Mammies and our Bureau of Latrine American Military Juntas Distrusted by Their Colonial Masters
Cuba’s Mammies are very disappointed. Last year it seemed as if Castro, Inc. had sold Cuba to Czar Vlad the Invader and Russia was ready to rescue Cuba from economic collapse. But no such takeover has taken place. In fact, there are clear indications that Russia was scared away from getting involved because Castro, Inc.’s leaders are too inflexibly wedded to a form of communism that is incompatible with Russian economic policies.
Moreover, it seems as if the Russian tourist invasion has also fizzled. Ay Mami, poor mammies! They can’t find enough superior beings from abroad who will pay for their groveling. So, it seems as if the dinosaurs of Castro, Inc. have proven to be unsuitable colonial subjects. But none of this has stopped Russia from forging military links with Castro, Inc., directly and indirectly.
Loosely translated from Diario de Cuba
Since January 2023, a lot of noise was generated by the sudden announcement that Russia would sponsor the Cuban regime in an alleged market reform of its economy, which would have the support of Moscow, the supposed benefactor of a bankrupt country.
From that moment on, the trips of businessmen and officials from both governments multiplied, as did the enthusiasm for the “Island of Freedom”, as the Russian press calls the former ally of the USSR 90 miles from the US. But a year passed and the euphoria subsided, the business and investment announcements were little and only the tourism from the Eurasian nation that spends the summer in Cuba produces news—many of them complaints about the poor service they receive.
So was Cuba’s Communist Party seduced and abandoned by the Kremlin, entangled in a war it can neither win nor afford to lose? Were the grandiose announcements just smoke or do we expect future news that will explain the success of that reform?
Cuban economist Emilio Morales, president and CEO of the consulting company Havana Consulting Group, based in Miami, warns that “given the little movement that has been seen, it is understandable that the Russian side is being very cautious when it comes to to make decisions to make million-dollar investments on the Island. They know perfectly well that the Cuban regime is not a reliable partner in economic terms.”
In statements to DIARIO DE CUBA, Morales points out that, on the other hand, Moscow would have realized “the precariousness of the Cuban model and the primitive mentality when doing business on the part of the Cuban nomenclature. In that sense, it does not fit “the old and obsolete Cuban economic model with the Russian model. This disparity does not allow for faster progress in the negotiations. That is why everything remains in speculation and promises that do not seem to be fulfilled.”
But there is an area where Havana has strengthened its ties with the Kremlin, he warns: “The real rapprochement has been on the geopolitical and military level, in the game of the new cold war, unleashed from the Russian invasion against Ukraine, and proven in practice with the support that the Cuban regime has given to Russia, sending Cuban mercenaries to war and making Cuban territory available to receive visits from Russian bombers and submarines carrying nuclear weapons.
Continue reading HERE in Spanish
Well, one can hardly get more “local color” than that. I suspect the mammy costumes may well be provided by the state to suitable applicants. They look too professional and uniform to be individually homemade.
But of course, this could never be racial stereotyping–unless a right-wing regime were behind it.
Cuba needs to learn the meaning of the phrase: “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”