Is Cuba "hurtling" toward capitalism?

     The most developed country in Latin America in the 20s: railroads, telecommunications, flourishing agriculture, but with U.S. organized crime making inroads.

     Today the economy is in shambles; lack of economic growth because of poor policies and centralized controls and bureaucracy (also, effects of global economic crisis). Population aging and declining.

Agriculture: a rich land is totally under-utilized and in decline.

     Exports: doctors, soldiers, tourism, culture (music and painting).

Recent economic policy changes in the right direction, but far too timid. Earlier Russian, and now Venezuelan, subsidies put off the need for coherent and sound market-oriented policy choices

     Human rights: abysmal. Dissidents harassed, arrested, jailed. Speaking out is bad for your health.

     Future of a post-Castro Cuba: Cuba's best asset is people - both in Cuba and the diaspora, but neglect has been so acute it will take years to turn around agriculture and the rest of the economy . Real risks: the existing system will slowly erode (will oppression and inequality result in a Cuban "Arab Spring"?)

or a new resource (oil?) will eliminate the pressure for reform.

     A graduate of Catholic University (economics, cum laude) and Georgetown Law, he has a masters from the Harvard Kennedy School. He received an Alumni Achievement Award from Catholic U. for breaking "new ground in advancing small enterprise and economic development in Africa and Eastern Europe." After serving in the US Navy, Mr. Phippard then joined USAID, where he was Assistant General Counsel for Legislation. He was named Senior Legal Advisor in Egypt when the USAID program increased substantially after the Sinai Accords. Jim was named Director of the USAID Office of Near East and North Africa. He was decorated by President Bourguiba for his work and retired from the Foreign Service as a Minister-Counselor. As a senior policy advisor to the Senate Agriculture Committee he proposed key reforms to U.S. international food aid laws in the 1990 Farm Bill. He later served as Chief Operating Officer of ACDI/VOCA, (Agricultural Cooperative Development International and Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance) formed by U.S. Agribusiness CO-Ops. He is a board member and former president of the American Tunisian Association and was named to the U.S. Presidential Delegation to the funeral of former president Bourguiba. He received the Ibn Khaldoun award from the U.S. Tunisian-American Center.