Seoul, South Korea - The U.S. should not throw its weight around Cuba once Castro goes because Castro was no Kim Jong Il and Hugo Chavez is a farce.
Despite his ruinous management of the economy, Castro's main legacy is that of a charismatic dreamer of Central and Latin America. It may be hard to find aspirin pills in Cuba but Castro has managed to keep his people well educated and united behind his leadership without instilling the kind of rabid anti-Americanism that we find in North Korea. Unlike Kim Jong Il, Fidel does not starve his people to death and have all his critics shot.
As for Chavez, he's a political comedian, not the wave of the future. Why should the U.S. try competing against him for the hearts and minds of Latin Americans? Chavez is trying to equalize the standard of living in Venezuela by bringing it down to the level of his impoverished supporters. Eventually this will cause his downfall. These days, the younger generations in Brazil, Argentina and Chile are more eager to learn lessons of development from China and Vietnam than to follow along in Chavez's farce. That's a big change and chance.
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