With the fall of the Soviet Union, one of the final pseudo-labels, that of a mere Soviet puppet regime wholly dependent on Moscow for survival, was finally laid to rest. Cuba is rightfully called a Socialist country, just as much as the US can be rightfully called a Capitalist country. But just as it would be wrong to say that the US is merely a generic form of Capitalism, it would be wrong to classify Cuba as a generic form of Socialism. Each country has evolved far beyond the textbook definitions and classroom qualifications that are typically used to study these economic forms in school. They are much more than just the few sentences penned by Marx in the 19th Century or Arthur Young in the late 18th Century.
Where the Club of Rome, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Trilateral Commission, and other institutions have colluded with Western Capitalist nations to run roughshod over the rest of the world in an unparalleled race of global hegemonic proportions during the last forty years that could very well be sending the entire human race on a collision course with its own distinction, the Socialist nations have gone in the reverse direction. The collapse of the Soviet Union, the Westernization of China and the entry of the former Eastern Bloc countries into the European Union have set Socialism on its ear.
Consumerism for the few at the expense of the many has turned the entire world into two very distinct groups, the have all and the have nothings. There are very few nations who lie in between. And the gap is widening. There are very few nations who can look to improve the lot of their own citizenry while the IMF and the World Bank continually insist on internal draconian measures aimed at maintaining these countries impoverished, uneducated, unwell, and unfit. As long as it is worth it to risk one's life to reach the US in order to work for a spiteful country, slave wages, no health care, no schooling, and no help, the jackboot of neoliberal capitalism on the rest of the world will keep its firm hold.
But there is hope. Cuba is responding with free health care for other countries. Already, free eye surgery has helped over 1 million people in over 31 countries. The Henry Reeve Contingent has sent desperately needed aid to areas stricken from natural disasters. Other countries, such as Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil, Nicaragua and Argentina are starting Socialist programs of their own.
With Cuba as the model state, other countries now have a path towards equality across the castes. Whether rich or poor, White or Black, privileged or not, everyone in Cuba has free education, free health care, and a given chance to be productive in society. Those who can't find work are encouraged to return to school at government expense, something that President Obama has recently copied.
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