A Lesson in Totalitarianism

at 6:04 PM Thursday, April 8, 2011

Here's a fascinating quote from the AP story, "Experts, business leaders seek to help Cuban entrepreneurs":

"As long as the Cuban economy was a totalitarian economy, the argument for an embargo was that you are hurting the Cuban state. As the Cuban economy becomes directed toward the private economy... then it begs the question as to whether the embargo is really hurting the government or the people," said Carlos Saladrigas, co-chairman of the Cuba Study Group.

Obviously, Mr. Saladrigas has absolutely no idea what totalitarianism means.

You'd think one of the "experts" (according to the title of the story) would know better -- but apparently not.

So let's give them a hand.

Here's the definition of totalitarianism:

1. centralized control by an autocratic authority
2. the political concept that the citizen should be totally subject to an absolute state authority

Not even the most ingenious observer can argue that Cuba is not a totalitarian state.

To be precise, Mr. Saladrigas uses the term "totalitarian economy" -- but a totalitarian state without a totalitarian economy is an oxymoron.

Plus, Raul Castro himself, in his "guidelines" for the upcoming VI Communist Party Congress, stated that Cubans cannot own any business -- that's called totalitarianism any which way you spin it.

Thus, it begs the question -- as Mr. Saladrigas himself poses -- if lifting sanctions helps Cuba's totalitarian state, then why are you seeking to do precisely that?