The Col:

> not sure how it has come along in the years since

Cuba is no paradise, but it is certainly better than it used to be. The big problem with Cuba is the disparity between how tourists live and how the locals live. Tourist resorts are really like a paradise. White coral sand beaches, 5 star hotels, great food, great music, great cigars, etc. For the locals it is a different story. There is a lot of poverty in Cuba and in many places people have seen little improvement in their lives in the last 20 years.

However, Cuba has certain things that no other Latin american country has. They have universal healthcare and everyone is entitled to the best healthcare the island can afford. It is so good that people go there for treatment from all over the world and "medical" tourism is one of the rising industries in Cuba. The healthcare system is one of the best in the world, in spite of the island's economic problems.

Cuba also has the best educational system in the western hemisphere. Every Cuban citizen is entitled to free education at any level, from kindergarten to post-doctorate degrees in universities. Compare that with the cost of education in Canada and the US and Cuba comes on top simply because it has a higher percentage of its population attending university. The only drawback to that is that people often have to work in occupations not even related to what they studied because the state cannot guarantee work for everyone. It was funny to be driven aroudn by a taxi driver with a Ph.D. in Spanish literature. High education means high expectations and many Cubans are unhappy with the lack of opportunity that the state can provide. Yet, they are educated, much more so than most other Latin American countries.

Cuba's biggest problems are a lack of infrastructure and viable manufacturing industries. The economic embargo left Cuba with little market for its exports, and the biggest consumer in the world (the US) cannot do business with Cuba. The situation will probably change in the next few years since the People's Republic of China has been investing heavily in Cuba and China is the new emergent market in the world.

The old guard (both in Cuba and the US) is aging, and with time their inflexible positions will give way on both sides. I doubt that the economic embargo will remain there for long and if George H.W. Bush and Henry Kissinger pass away then the main ideological opponents of a more open policy will not be there any more.