« Betcha He's Still Too Stupid To Listen | Main | Randomly Random »
January 20, 2006
Rhetorical Question #353,975
So how come the United States has spent 50 years punishing Fidel Castro for being a Communist, and yet engages in billions of dollars of trade with China? It can't be about human rights; China's government routinely commits some of the worst human rights abuses anywhere on the planet.
I couldn't help but juxtapose a couple of news stories this week: 1)Wham-O, the maker of such quintessential American toys as the Hula Hoop and the Frisbee, has been sold to a Chinese company -- joining several other high profile Chinese purchases of US companies in recent years; and 2) the US, led of course by the Bush Adminsiration, will not allow Cuba to play in the first World Baseball Classic -- a move that could lead to the cancellation of the tournament.
I don't get it. If communism is so bad that we need to have sanctions so severe that we can't even allow a baseball team to enter our country to play a game, then why the billions of trade every year with China and US firms building offices in Shanghai like it was SimCity? If free market economies can be used to break down walls of control and shatter the false economic precepts of communism, then why aren't we selling Wham-O to a Cuban company and letting Cuba play freaking baseball? (By the way... Cuba participated in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. The world didn't end.)
Sometimes, hypocrisy isn't just maddening, it's stupefying.
Frank Deford had an article in Sports Illustrated a month ago that I just found, but in it he explains what a stupid decision this is, and why. If you're a baseball fan, I strongly suggest that you read it. If you're an anti-Castro nutjob whose hatred blinds you to common sense, I insist that you read it. You can't have a World Baseball Classic without Cuba, whose people are among the world's most passionate fans of the game; if the Bush adminstration insists on trying, the rest of the world -- including US baseball players -- should just say, "forget it, then."
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.thechroniccurmudgeon.com/cgi-bin/mt/mtb.cgi/81
Comments
I guess Cuba can't afford to buy us lock, stock, and frisbee.
Posted by: mileah at January 20, 2006 11:00 AM
The Bushies reversed themselves. Cuba's in.
Posted by: Linkmeister at January 21, 2006 01:59 AM
Linkmeister: I think W read my post and changed his mind. ;-)
Posted by: Curmudgeon at January 21, 2006 07:58 AM
Ha! Archie has a line in one of Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe books: "If your ego is in good enough shape, you'll pretend to be surprised if the national party calls you to ask if you're willing to run for President on their ticket, but you're not REALLY surprised."
Posted by: Linkmeister at January 21, 2006 02:52 PM
