THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 2, 1994 TAG: 9409020023
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A22 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
Once again our nation is defying international law. Once again our country is attempting to force its rule on a sovereign state, Cuba.
Cuba is not our enemy. On many occasions the government of Cuba has attempted to normalize relations with us. It is our government which has remained consistently hostile.
Cuba is not an aggressive state. It has an elected government which, despite the lies constantly repeated in our press, has undergone many reforms and is largely supported by its people.
The fact that Cuba's economy is suffering is due in no small part to a 30-year embargo followed by a law that not only prohibits our trade with Cuba but punishes other countries which trade with Cuba as well. This policy has been condemned more than once by the community of nations. The result of this illegal policy is that we are now seeing economic refugees trying to come here. Despite images in the news, most Cubans are not lined up waiting to flee to the United States. But many are.
The logical move would be to end the illegal embargo and normalize relations with our neighbor to the south. Instead, our president is pursuing an ill-conceived, arrogant, outdated Cold War policy which looks like something out of the Reagan years. But Cuba is not Grenada, and Cuba has friends we don't need to alienate - friends like France, Canada, India, China, Mexico. . . .
It's time for this idiocy to end. It's time we voice our dissatisfaction with an escalating policy of groundless aggression against Cuba. It's time our president uses a little intelligence and diplomacy to end this, his most recently created crisis; or does he have to send in Jimmy Carter, again?
AL MARKOWITZ
Norfolk, Aug. 25, 1994 by CNB