As the headline in the news remind us daily: immigration in the U.S. is an important policy topic of today. There is a high dependence on the U.S. as haven for refugees and people seeking a better life.
Article originally published in NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/28/opinion/cuba-economy.html
For the past 60 years, Cuba has been unable to finance its imports with its own exports and generate appropriate, sustainable growth without substantial aid and subsidies from a foreign nation. This is the longstanding legacy of Cuba’s socialist economy.
La constante fundamental en los 60 años de la economía socialista de Cuba ha sido su total incapacidad para generar un crecimiento adecuado y sostenible, sin ayuda y subsidios considerables de una nación extranjera, a fin de poder financiar sus importaciones con sus propias exportaciones. La historia de esta dependencia económica comenzó con España en la época de la colonia, continuó con Estados Unidos durante la primera república, se expandió de manera significativa con la Unión Soviética y finalmente con Venezuela desde el inicio de este siglo.
Today’s headlines surrounding Latin America illustrate a continent full of raging protests in Nicaragua, political oppression in Venezuela, and economic crisis’s in countries like Brazil and Argentina. Yet, there lies one country with significant stability compared to its Latin American brethren. Chile, although it encompasses a similar history to its neighbors, including economic instability, socialism, and military dictatorships—persists as a Latin American success story.
This October, the international community saw a new development in an ongoing territorial dispute between the South American nations of Bolivia and Chile.
The Maduro government has staged a plan to help curb the staggering inflation crisis in the country--- by creating a new currency. The idea of implementing a new currency in Venezuela is not new, as the government had tried multiple times to restore some value in their worthless monetary system. The bad news is the country has a terrible track record with financial decisions dating back to when the value of oil took a nosedive and sent the country spiraling into crisis. Their first mistake was backing 98% of their economy in oil.
The idea of giving economic aid to a country is a noble one. Giving sovereign nations money to expand their economies, education levels, basic health, and to instill peace within their borders has been something the United States has done for nearly a century. However, giving them money is inconsequential; it is where that money goes, and how that money is used that matters. By citing instances of economic aid within Latin America in 2017, one can see just that, making one ponder the question; is the aid helping to advance these countries, or is it not helping in any significant way?
In December of 2017, Donald Trump signed the new GOP tax bill rearranging and recreating the way our country collects its dues. This bill affects every state in the Union, but it also affects one curious case in the Northeast Caribbean – Puerto Rico. The bill includes a new 12.5 percent tax on profits derived from intellectual property held by foreign companies. For Puerto Rico, this means it is treated differently from every other state. The new policy is designed to back the “America First” trademark of the Trump administration by bringing home American companies.
Since the 1990s, Mexico’s energy policy has shown a tendency to prioritize short-term objectives as well as its relationship with North America, which resulted in a focus on the production of crude oil for exports to the US. In contrast, the reform passed in 2013 focused on lowering energy costs for Mexican households, increasing investment and employment, and putting the government at the center as owner of oil and gas and regulator of the oil industry. The national presidential elections of 2018 will define the path Mexico will follow in the coming years.
