MEO Australia Raises Funds for Cuba Exploration Program
by MEO Australia Ltd.|Press Release|Monday, February 29, 2016
MEO Australia Limited (MEO or the Company) reported Monday it has
executed a Private Placement Agreement with London listed Leni Gas Cuba
Limited (Leni Gas Cuba) to raise $1.4 million, with funds to be used to
advance MEO's exploration program on the Company's newly awarded 919
square miles (2,380 square kilometers) onshore oil block, Block 9 in Cuba.
Under the placement agreement, MEO will issue Leni Gas Cuba 140,716,573
shares at an issue price of $0.0071 (AUD 0.01) per share. The placement
of shares to Leni Gas Cuba falls within MEO's placement capacity and
will make Leni Gas Cuba MEO's single largest shareholder with a 15.8
percent interest in the Company.
Leni Gas Cuba is a specialist Cuban investment company listed in London
and has businesses in Cuba ranging from oil and gas interests, tourism
and import/export.
Cuba boasts exceptional oil and gas prospectivity. The Block 9 PSC area
is in a proven hydrocarbon system with multiple discoveries within close
proximity, including the multi-billion barrel Varadero oil field. Block
9 contains the Motembo field, the first oil field discovered in Cuba. An
ongoing technical review of Block 9 has confirmed the significant
prospectivity of the PSC (Production Sharing Contract) area, with
initial analysis identifying recovered oil from a number of previously
drilled wells and a number of structural leads and prospects. MEO
expects to complete its preliminary assessment of Block 9's
prospectivity and reprocessing of 2D seismic data by mid-year.
MEO is prequalified as an onshore and shallow water operator in Cuba and
was awarded a 100 percent interest in the Block 9 PSC on Sept. 3, 2015.
Petro Australis Limited holds a conditional 40 percent back-in option.
MEO's established position in Cuba provides a strong early mover
advantage ahead of ongoing strengthening of diplomatic relations between
Cuba and the US.
MEO's CEO and MD Peter Stickland commented:
"We are delighted to welcome Leni Gas Cuba as a cornerstone investor.
Leni Gas Cuba's focus on Cuba is strongly aligned with MEO's objective
of advancing its Cuban interests, particularly with the exploration
program at Block 9.
The placement is a strong validation of the significant value upside
potential of Block 9 and highlights Leni Gas Cuba's confidence in MEO's
assets and activities."
Source: NEWS | MEO Australia Raises Funds for Cuba Exploration Program
| Rigzone -
http://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/143268/MEO_Australia_Raises_Funds_for_Cuba_Exploration_Program
Monday, February 29, 2016
Sunday, February 28, 2016
He is Obama, Not God
He is Obama, Not God / Iván García
Posted on February 28, 2016
Ivan Garcia, 24 February 2016 — Neither American economic power nor
Barack Obama's oratorical skills seem to be enough to satisfy
exaggerated, unreasonable or personal demands from the diverse group of
Obama fans who make up Cuban society.
The national psyche is fixated on the underlying and widespread idea
among Afro-Cubans that foreign money, investment and commerce can put
the madness that is the national economy back on track.
After class at Eugenio Maria de Hostos, a high school located in
Havana's La Vibora neighborhood next to a steel mill, a group of
students are chatting. "Dude, I swear, when Obama comes in March, I am
going to ask him to buy me a pair of Nikes. My New Balance shoes are
worn out," says a boy amid chatter and laughter.
A teenage girl in the sixth grade says she would like to talk to Obama
about "fixing the school, which is dilapidated, and getting me a
scholarship to study film in the United States."
One might think of such trivial requests and fantasies as forms of
child's play. But speaking in a serious tone as he skillfully maneuvers
through a series of potholes on Tenth of October Avenue, Antonio's
comments suggest otherwise.
A taxi driver who works twelve-hour days driving an old car with a Ford
chassis, a Hyundai engine and a German transmission, Antonio observes,
"I think this visit will be very important. Obama will probably bring
some good things. The government is fixing the streets and replacing
vintage cars with new American ones."
Giorvis, a bricklayer, would like the Obama administration to approve
temporary visas for Cubans seeking short-term employment in the United
States. "I have a cousin in New York in real estate. He tells me that
they need workers. If they allowed temporary employment in the United
States, people would spend a few months there and then return to the
island. I assure you most people would not want to emigrate," he says.
If the government of Raul Castro were to open an office where people
could submit written proposals to President Obama, the number of letters
it received would be surprising.
Starting with Nora, a plump mulata who sells paper cones filled with
peanuts for a peso apiece at the bus stop on the corner of Ascosta and
Pey streets. She dreams of getting a small loan to repair her
dilapidated shack. Then there is Osniel, the owner of a cafe who wants
to import food supplies directly from Miami. Finally there is Sergio, a
first baseman on a junior league baseball team who would urgently ask
Obama to sign an aggreement between the MLB and the Cuban Federation to
halt the constant drain of players jumping the fence. In one way or
another, every Cuban wants something from Obama.
But Obama is not Houdini. Over the course of twenty-four hours he will
have to listen to the strident rhetoric of military dictators demanding
the return of the Guantanamo Naval Base, the lifting of the "blockade,"
billions of dollars in reparations and the closure of Radio Marti and
its television affiliate.
According to a Communist Party official in Tenth of October, the most
populous burrough in Cuba, "expectations are that there will be a huge
reception and that he will likely give a speech in the auditorium of the
University of Havana or the Palace of Conventions. But not in the Plaza
of the Revolution. Since it's the symbol of anti-imperialist resistance,
that would be a contradiction. Although, given the times in which we
live, anything is possible."
One sector that would also like to speak frankly with Obama is the
dissident community, if there is time in his schedule to meet with them.
Within the opposition there are a variety of views and differing opinions.
On March 21 in 2003 — the same day of the month on which Obama will set
foot on Cuban soil — Jorge Olivera, a poet and independent journalist,
was one of seventy-five dissidents sent to prison on orders from Fidel
Castrol
For Olivera the visit by the U.S. president could mark a turning point.
"I hope he meets with members of civil society and the opposition, the
old and the new. At least that is what he has suggested in several
interviews. I am one of those who believes this could be a watershed."
Berta Soler, leader of the Ladies in White — a group of women whose
peaceful marches led to three-way negotiations between the regime, the
Catholic church and the Spanish government to free prisoners of
conscience from the Black Spring of 2003 — is more skeptical.
"On January 28 the Ladies in White sent a letter to President Obama
describing concrete cases of human rights violations by the dicatorship.
[These involve] assaults Sunday after Sunday on our marchers demanding
the release of political prisoners, harassment, theft of money and
property by authorities, and threats to family members. We have as yet
to receive a reply from Obama. Our group will approve of Obama's visit
to Cuba if and when he meets with independent members of civil society
and the oppostion. Otherwise, Obama will be complicit in the
dictatorship's violation of human rights," says Soler.
One month before Air Force One lands in Havana and the stunning
presidential limousine known as "the Beast" rolls through the city,
Cubans have come up with every observation, request and piece of gossip
imaginable.
"They say an aircraft carrier and a submarine are coming as part of the
secret service detail protecting Obama," says a craftsman who sells his
products in the capital's historic district. "Several avenues will have
to be fixed just so the Beast can get around Havana. What we need once
and for all is food, construction materials and investments from the
U.S. that will benefit Cubans, not the government."
According to some polls, the U.S. president's approval ratings in Cuba
are higher than those of the Castro brothers. And he is more popular on
the island than in his own country. In spite of the complaints by
average citizens, dissidents and the government, Obama elicits positive
reactions among Cubans.
El Negro, as he is affectionately called by many here, could boast of
being able to fill a stadium or plaza voluntarily. But fulfilling a
litany of requests is another matter. He is Obama, not God.
Source: He is Obama, Not God / Iván García | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/he-is-obama-not-god-ivn-garca/
Posted on February 28, 2016
Ivan Garcia, 24 February 2016 — Neither American economic power nor
Barack Obama's oratorical skills seem to be enough to satisfy
exaggerated, unreasonable or personal demands from the diverse group of
Obama fans who make up Cuban society.
The national psyche is fixated on the underlying and widespread idea
among Afro-Cubans that foreign money, investment and commerce can put
the madness that is the national economy back on track.
After class at Eugenio Maria de Hostos, a high school located in
Havana's La Vibora neighborhood next to a steel mill, a group of
students are chatting. "Dude, I swear, when Obama comes in March, I am
going to ask him to buy me a pair of Nikes. My New Balance shoes are
worn out," says a boy amid chatter and laughter.
A teenage girl in the sixth grade says she would like to talk to Obama
about "fixing the school, which is dilapidated, and getting me a
scholarship to study film in the United States."
One might think of such trivial requests and fantasies as forms of
child's play. But speaking in a serious tone as he skillfully maneuvers
through a series of potholes on Tenth of October Avenue, Antonio's
comments suggest otherwise.
A taxi driver who works twelve-hour days driving an old car with a Ford
chassis, a Hyundai engine and a German transmission, Antonio observes,
"I think this visit will be very important. Obama will probably bring
some good things. The government is fixing the streets and replacing
vintage cars with new American ones."
Giorvis, a bricklayer, would like the Obama administration to approve
temporary visas for Cubans seeking short-term employment in the United
States. "I have a cousin in New York in real estate. He tells me that
they need workers. If they allowed temporary employment in the United
States, people would spend a few months there and then return to the
island. I assure you most people would not want to emigrate," he says.
If the government of Raul Castro were to open an office where people
could submit written proposals to President Obama, the number of letters
it received would be surprising.
Starting with Nora, a plump mulata who sells paper cones filled with
peanuts for a peso apiece at the bus stop on the corner of Ascosta and
Pey streets. She dreams of getting a small loan to repair her
dilapidated shack. Then there is Osniel, the owner of a cafe who wants
to import food supplies directly from Miami. Finally there is Sergio, a
first baseman on a junior league baseball team who would urgently ask
Obama to sign an aggreement between the MLB and the Cuban Federation to
halt the constant drain of players jumping the fence. In one way or
another, every Cuban wants something from Obama.
But Obama is not Houdini. Over the course of twenty-four hours he will
have to listen to the strident rhetoric of military dictators demanding
the return of the Guantanamo Naval Base, the lifting of the "blockade,"
billions of dollars in reparations and the closure of Radio Marti and
its television affiliate.
According to a Communist Party official in Tenth of October, the most
populous burrough in Cuba, "expectations are that there will be a huge
reception and that he will likely give a speech in the auditorium of the
University of Havana or the Palace of Conventions. But not in the Plaza
of the Revolution. Since it's the symbol of anti-imperialist resistance,
that would be a contradiction. Although, given the times in which we
live, anything is possible."
One sector that would also like to speak frankly with Obama is the
dissident community, if there is time in his schedule to meet with them.
Within the opposition there are a variety of views and differing opinions.
On March 21 in 2003 — the same day of the month on which Obama will set
foot on Cuban soil — Jorge Olivera, a poet and independent journalist,
was one of seventy-five dissidents sent to prison on orders from Fidel
Castrol
For Olivera the visit by the U.S. president could mark a turning point.
"I hope he meets with members of civil society and the opposition, the
old and the new. At least that is what he has suggested in several
interviews. I am one of those who believes this could be a watershed."
Berta Soler, leader of the Ladies in White — a group of women whose
peaceful marches led to three-way negotiations between the regime, the
Catholic church and the Spanish government to free prisoners of
conscience from the Black Spring of 2003 — is more skeptical.
"On January 28 the Ladies in White sent a letter to President Obama
describing concrete cases of human rights violations by the dicatorship.
[These involve] assaults Sunday after Sunday on our marchers demanding
the release of political prisoners, harassment, theft of money and
property by authorities, and threats to family members. We have as yet
to receive a reply from Obama. Our group will approve of Obama's visit
to Cuba if and when he meets with independent members of civil society
and the oppostion. Otherwise, Obama will be complicit in the
dictatorship's violation of human rights," says Soler.
One month before Air Force One lands in Havana and the stunning
presidential limousine known as "the Beast" rolls through the city,
Cubans have come up with every observation, request and piece of gossip
imaginable.
"They say an aircraft carrier and a submarine are coming as part of the
secret service detail protecting Obama," says a craftsman who sells his
products in the capital's historic district. "Several avenues will have
to be fixed just so the Beast can get around Havana. What we need once
and for all is food, construction materials and investments from the
U.S. that will benefit Cubans, not the government."
According to some polls, the U.S. president's approval ratings in Cuba
are higher than those of the Castro brothers. And he is more popular on
the island than in his own country. In spite of the complaints by
average citizens, dissidents and the government, Obama elicits positive
reactions among Cubans.
El Negro, as he is affectionately called by many here, could boast of
being able to fill a stadium or plaza voluntarily. But fulfilling a
litany of requests is another matter. He is Obama, not God.
Source: He is Obama, Not God / Iván García | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/he-is-obama-not-god-ivn-garca/
I’m Afraid That Ecuador Will Deport Me To Cuba
"I'm Afraid That Ecuador Will Deport Me To Cuba" / 14ymedio, Mario Penton
Posted on February 27, 2016
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 26 February 2016 — Sigfredo Ochoa is 40
years old. Six months ago he was one more "Palestinian" in Havana, a
Cuban from Holguin living "illegally" in the capital of his own country,
according to the authorities – a status that earned him that strange
moniker among native Havanans. He worked as an investigator, regulator
and auditor in the Provincial Trade Company, a state entity that, among
other things, manages the dwindling quotas distributed through the
ration book.
"The idea of coming to Ecuador arose mainly because of the state of
siege I experienced because of my homosexuality. At work it was
impossible not to be discriminated against, and on top of that there is
the economic situation we Cubans experience. My salary wasn't enough to
live on; if I ate I couldn't clothe myself, if I clothed myself I
couldn't eat; a question as existential as Shakespeare's 'to be or not
to be,' but in a tropical version.
Ochoa noted that it wasn't easy to get the money to leave the island.
His parents had to sell the old family house and buy a small apartment
in order to cover the cost of the trip. The passport cost him five
months salary, and adding the cost of the ticket and the first months'
living expenses, it wiped out the few dollars he had.
"My mother has Alzheimer's disease and has already been operated on for
colon cancer. My father is a retired old man. Together their pensions
don't total 30 CUC a month (under $30), tell me, who can live in Cuba on
that money? I had no option, I had to sacrifice myself for them… and for
me."
Sigfredo's expectation was, like many Cubans who set off for Ecuador,
that he would be able to enter the labor market in the Andean country,
where the minimum salary is 366 dollars a month, more than ten times
that in Cuba, although the cost of living is higher in Ecuador.
"I thought getting a job would let me survive and be able to help my
parents, but everything here has wiped me out. These people do not want
to give us work and they don't want us in their country. We go out
looking for work and they simply tell us they don't want Cubans. In a
month we have no money left to pay the rent and we have to sleep in the
street. I don't know what I'm going to do," he laments.
On entering Ecuador with a tourist visa, Cubans have 90 days to try to
legalize their status in the country. For several years that have done
it through a professional visa, which in the interest of the nation's
human resources, allows professionals from the island to qualify for the
title previously legalized by the Cuban Foreign Ministry and certified
at the Ecuadorian embassy in Havana, and so to stay in Ecuador and
subsequently find work in areas such as healthcare and education.
Cuban doctors and professionals took advantage of the opportunity to
come en masse, which forced the Cuban government to come to an agreement
with Ecuador to suspend this right to university graduates coming from
the island. Over time, other alternatives to legalization were also
closed, such as the temporary visa, valid for six months, know as the
12-IX and the commercial visa.
"The only option now to legalize myself is to marry an Ecuadorian and
have children. It's the only possibility left to us Cubans. Ecuadorians
are asking between 3,000 and 4,000 dollars for a marriage of convenience
that enables us the privileges of a spouse," says Sigfredo.
Sigfredo is grateful to Ecuador as the country where he discovered
freedom. "What struck me most when I get here is that you can speak out
and say what you really believe without anyone controlling it." However,
just the fact of being Cuba, and in addition being undocumented, has led
to a lot of discrimination.
"One of the many times I've sought work a restaurant they wouldn't even
let me speak. 'There is no work for Cubans here. You and dogs are the
same thing,' they said. They kicked me out with these words, 'Get out of
here, you people come to this country to steal our jobs.' That hurt me
so much because I didn't want to take anyone's job, I simply had the
idea of helping my family and getting out of the nightmare that is life
in Cuba," he lamented.
Employers in Ecuador often take advantage of these undocumented migrants
as cheap or slave labor. "Once I worked in a bar for a week. I did the
cleaning and served as a barman for 20 dollars a day. I never say a
single cent. When I asked for my pay the owner said he would call the
police. We are completely defenseless."
Many Cubans are living in the center of Quito. "There are many who are
undocumented," comments Ochoa. "Recently there was a raid and they took
several. I live with fear, I try to go out only after sunset or very
early in the morning, in the hours when the police usually aren't in the
streets because I'm afraid they will deport me to Cuba."
For Sigfredo, in Ecuador, as in Cuba, there is nothing to hope for. He
does not believe he can obtain residency and, even though he has tried
to join other groups departing for the United States, the extremely high
cost – around 6,000 dollars – and the dangers of the jungle have stopped
him. Now he sees a hope.
A group of Cubans who share his fate have decided to give a voice to
those migrants who are surviving in the streets of Quito. He was one of
those who went to the demonstration at English Park. "It is the only
hope we have left, if they don't want us here, at least we can go where
we can grow as people and work honorably. That's all we are asking for."
Source: "I'm Afraid That Ecuador Will Deport Me To Cuba" / 14ymedio,
Mario Penton | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/im-afraid-that-ecuador-will-deport-me-to-cuba-14ymedio-mario-penton/
Posted on February 27, 2016
14ymedio, Mario Penton, Miami, 26 February 2016 — Sigfredo Ochoa is 40
years old. Six months ago he was one more "Palestinian" in Havana, a
Cuban from Holguin living "illegally" in the capital of his own country,
according to the authorities – a status that earned him that strange
moniker among native Havanans. He worked as an investigator, regulator
and auditor in the Provincial Trade Company, a state entity that, among
other things, manages the dwindling quotas distributed through the
ration book.
"The idea of coming to Ecuador arose mainly because of the state of
siege I experienced because of my homosexuality. At work it was
impossible not to be discriminated against, and on top of that there is
the economic situation we Cubans experience. My salary wasn't enough to
live on; if I ate I couldn't clothe myself, if I clothed myself I
couldn't eat; a question as existential as Shakespeare's 'to be or not
to be,' but in a tropical version.
Ochoa noted that it wasn't easy to get the money to leave the island.
His parents had to sell the old family house and buy a small apartment
in order to cover the cost of the trip. The passport cost him five
months salary, and adding the cost of the ticket and the first months'
living expenses, it wiped out the few dollars he had.
"My mother has Alzheimer's disease and has already been operated on for
colon cancer. My father is a retired old man. Together their pensions
don't total 30 CUC a month (under $30), tell me, who can live in Cuba on
that money? I had no option, I had to sacrifice myself for them… and for
me."
Sigfredo's expectation was, like many Cubans who set off for Ecuador,
that he would be able to enter the labor market in the Andean country,
where the minimum salary is 366 dollars a month, more than ten times
that in Cuba, although the cost of living is higher in Ecuador.
"I thought getting a job would let me survive and be able to help my
parents, but everything here has wiped me out. These people do not want
to give us work and they don't want us in their country. We go out
looking for work and they simply tell us they don't want Cubans. In a
month we have no money left to pay the rent and we have to sleep in the
street. I don't know what I'm going to do," he laments.
On entering Ecuador with a tourist visa, Cubans have 90 days to try to
legalize their status in the country. For several years that have done
it through a professional visa, which in the interest of the nation's
human resources, allows professionals from the island to qualify for the
title previously legalized by the Cuban Foreign Ministry and certified
at the Ecuadorian embassy in Havana, and so to stay in Ecuador and
subsequently find work in areas such as healthcare and education.
Cuban doctors and professionals took advantage of the opportunity to
come en masse, which forced the Cuban government to come to an agreement
with Ecuador to suspend this right to university graduates coming from
the island. Over time, other alternatives to legalization were also
closed, such as the temporary visa, valid for six months, know as the
12-IX and the commercial visa.
"The only option now to legalize myself is to marry an Ecuadorian and
have children. It's the only possibility left to us Cubans. Ecuadorians
are asking between 3,000 and 4,000 dollars for a marriage of convenience
that enables us the privileges of a spouse," says Sigfredo.
Sigfredo is grateful to Ecuador as the country where he discovered
freedom. "What struck me most when I get here is that you can speak out
and say what you really believe without anyone controlling it." However,
just the fact of being Cuba, and in addition being undocumented, has led
to a lot of discrimination.
"One of the many times I've sought work a restaurant they wouldn't even
let me speak. 'There is no work for Cubans here. You and dogs are the
same thing,' they said. They kicked me out with these words, 'Get out of
here, you people come to this country to steal our jobs.' That hurt me
so much because I didn't want to take anyone's job, I simply had the
idea of helping my family and getting out of the nightmare that is life
in Cuba," he lamented.
Employers in Ecuador often take advantage of these undocumented migrants
as cheap or slave labor. "Once I worked in a bar for a week. I did the
cleaning and served as a barman for 20 dollars a day. I never say a
single cent. When I asked for my pay the owner said he would call the
police. We are completely defenseless."
Many Cubans are living in the center of Quito. "There are many who are
undocumented," comments Ochoa. "Recently there was a raid and they took
several. I live with fear, I try to go out only after sunset or very
early in the morning, in the hours when the police usually aren't in the
streets because I'm afraid they will deport me to Cuba."
For Sigfredo, in Ecuador, as in Cuba, there is nothing to hope for. He
does not believe he can obtain residency and, even though he has tried
to join other groups departing for the United States, the extremely high
cost – around 6,000 dollars – and the dangers of the jungle have stopped
him. Now he sees a hope.
A group of Cubans who share his fate have decided to give a voice to
those migrants who are surviving in the streets of Quito. He was one of
those who went to the demonstration at English Park. "It is the only
hope we have left, if they don't want us here, at least we can go where
we can grow as people and work honorably. That's all we are asking for."
Source: "I'm Afraid That Ecuador Will Deport Me To Cuba" / 14ymedio,
Mario Penton | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/im-afraid-that-ecuador-will-deport-me-to-cuba-14ymedio-mario-penton/
Cruise With Pittsburgh Sports Figures Aboard Picks Up 16 Migrants
Cruise With Pittsburgh Sports Figures Aboard Picks Up 16 Migrants
by ELISHA FIELDSTADT
A Carnival Cruise ship hosting Pittsburgh athletes and sports fans
picked up 16 migrants believed to be Cubans in the Gulf of Mexico
Saturday, according to the U.S. Coast Guard and the Carnival Corporation.
The Carnival Sensation, while hosting a group participating in the "2016
Legends of Pittsburgh Cruise," picked up 15 males and one female "from a
vessel in distress" while en route from Key West, Florida, to Cozumel,
Mexico, according to the cruise line.
The incident occurred approximately 50 miles off the northern coast of
Cuba, Carnival said.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios said the migrants would be
transported to Cozumel "where Mexican authorities are waiting."
The incident got attention when Steelers linebacker James Harrison, who
was aboard the four-day cruise, posted pictures of the incident online.
"We just stopped for this boat with 16 people in the middle of the
ocean," Harrison wrote on Twitter. "Wild!!!"
Organizers said Steelers placekicker Chris Boswell, wide receiver
Antonio Brown and many former Steelers players would also be on board
the ship.
Source: Cruise With Pittsburgh Sports Figures Aboard Picks Up 16
Migrants - NBC News -
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cruise-pittsburgh-sports-figures-aboard-picks-16-cuban-migrants-n527306
by ELISHA FIELDSTADT
A Carnival Cruise ship hosting Pittsburgh athletes and sports fans
picked up 16 migrants believed to be Cubans in the Gulf of Mexico
Saturday, according to the U.S. Coast Guard and the Carnival Corporation.
The Carnival Sensation, while hosting a group participating in the "2016
Legends of Pittsburgh Cruise," picked up 15 males and one female "from a
vessel in distress" while en route from Key West, Florida, to Cozumel,
Mexico, according to the cruise line.
The incident occurred approximately 50 miles off the northern coast of
Cuba, Carnival said.
Coast Guard Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios said the migrants would be
transported to Cozumel "where Mexican authorities are waiting."
The incident got attention when Steelers linebacker James Harrison, who
was aboard the four-day cruise, posted pictures of the incident online.
"We just stopped for this boat with 16 people in the middle of the
ocean," Harrison wrote on Twitter. "Wild!!!"
Organizers said Steelers placekicker Chris Boswell, wide receiver
Antonio Brown and many former Steelers players would also be on board
the ship.
Source: Cruise With Pittsburgh Sports Figures Aboard Picks Up 16
Migrants - NBC News -
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cruise-pittsburgh-sports-figures-aboard-picks-16-cuban-migrants-n527306
While Obama fiddles
Charles Krauthammer: While Obama fiddles ...
By Charles Krauthammer
Published: Sunday, Feb. 28 2016 12:00 a.m. MST
Summary
Since Obama began his "historic" normalization with Cuba, the repression
has gotten worse. Last month, the regime arrested 1,414 political
dissidents, the second-most ever recorded.
WASHINGTON — State of the world, Year Eight of Barack Obama:
(1) In the South China Sea, on a speck of land of disputed sovereignty
far from its borders, China has just installed anti-aircraft batteries
and stationed fighter jets. This after China landed planes on an
artificial island it created on another disputed island chain (the
Spratlys, claimed by the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam).
These facilities now function as forward bases for Beijing to challenge
seven decades of American naval dominance of the Pacific Rim.
"China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea," the commander of
the U.S. Pacific Command told Congress on Tuesday. Its goal? "Hegemony
in East Asia."
(2) Syria. Russian intervention has turned the tide of war. Having
rescued the Bashar al-Assad regime from collapse, relentless Russian
bombing is destroying the rebel stronghold of Aleppo, Syria's largest
city, creating a massive new wave of refugees and demonstrating to the
entire Middle East what a Great Power can achieve when it acts seriously.
The U.S. response? Repeated pathetic attempts by Secretary of State John
Kerry to propitiate Russia (and its ally, Iran) in one collapsed peace
conference after another. On Sunday, he stepped out to announce yet
another "provisional agreement in principle" on "a cessation of
hostilities" that the CIA director, the defense secretary and the
chairman of the Joint Chiefs deem little more than a ruse.
(3) Ukraine. Having swallowed Crimea so thoroughly that no one even
talks about it anymore, Russia continues to trample with impunity on the
Minsk cease-fire agreements. Vladimir Putin is now again stirring the
pot, intensifying the fighting, advancing his remorseless campaign to
fracture and subordinate the Ukrainian state. Meanwhile, Obama still
refuses to send the Ukrainians even defensive weapons.
(4) Iran. Last Thursday, Iran received its first shipment of S-300
anti-aircraft batteries from Russia, a major advance in developing
immunity to any attack on its nuclear facilities. And it is negotiating
an $8 billion arms deal with Russia that includes sophisticated combat
aircraft. Like its ballistic missile tests, this conventional weapons
shopping spree is a blatant violation of U.N. Security Council
prohibitions. It was also a predictable — and predicted — consequence of
the Iran nuclear deal that granted Iran $100 billion and normalized its
relations with the world.
The U.S. response? Words.
Unlike gravitational waves, today's strategic situation is not hard to
discern. Three major have-not powers are seeking to overturn the
post-Cold War status quo: Russia in Eastern Europe, China in East Asia,
Iran in the Middle East. All are on the march.
To say nothing of the Islamic State, now extending its reach from
Afghanistan to West Africa. The international order built over decades
by the United States is crumbling.
In the face of which, what does Obama do? Go to Cuba.
Yes, Cuba. A supreme strategic irrelevance so dear to Obama's
anti-anti-communist heart.
Is he at least going to celebrate progress in human rights and democracy
— which Obama established last year as a precondition for any
presidential visit? Of course not. When has Obama ever held to a red
line? Indeed, since Obama began his "historic" normalization with Cuba,
the repression has gotten worse. Last month, the regime arrested 1,414
political dissidents, the second-most ever recorded.
No matter. Amid global disarray and American decline, Obama sticks to
his cherished concerns: Cuba, Guantanamo (about which he gave a rare
televised address this week) and, of course, climate change.
Obama could not bestir himself to go to Paris in response to the various
jihadi atrocities — sending Kerry instead "to share a big hug with
Paris" (as Kerry explained) with James Taylor singing "You've Got a
Friend" — but he did make an ostentatious three-day visit there for
climate change.
So why not go to Havana? Sure, the barbarians are at the gates and
pushing hard knowing they will enjoy but 11 more months of minimal
American resistance. But our passive president genuinely believes that
such advances don't really matter — that these disruptors are so on the
wrong side of history, that their reaches for territory, power, victory
are so 20th century.
Of course, it mattered greatly to the quarter-million slaughtered in
Syria and the millions more exiled. It feels all quite real to a
dissolving Europe, an expanding China, a rising Iran, a metastasizing
jihadism.
Not to the visionary Obama, however. He sees far beyond such ephemera.
He knows what really matters: climate change, Gitmo and Cuba.
With time running out, he wants these to be his legacy. Indeed, they
will be.
Charles Krauthammer's email address is letters@charleskrauthammer.com.
Source: Charles Krauthammer: While Obama fiddles ... | Deseret News -
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865648828/While-Obama-fiddles-.html
By Charles Krauthammer
Published: Sunday, Feb. 28 2016 12:00 a.m. MST
Summary
Since Obama began his "historic" normalization with Cuba, the repression
has gotten worse. Last month, the regime arrested 1,414 political
dissidents, the second-most ever recorded.
WASHINGTON — State of the world, Year Eight of Barack Obama:
(1) In the South China Sea, on a speck of land of disputed sovereignty
far from its borders, China has just installed anti-aircraft batteries
and stationed fighter jets. This after China landed planes on an
artificial island it created on another disputed island chain (the
Spratlys, claimed by the Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam).
These facilities now function as forward bases for Beijing to challenge
seven decades of American naval dominance of the Pacific Rim.
"China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea," the commander of
the U.S. Pacific Command told Congress on Tuesday. Its goal? "Hegemony
in East Asia."
(2) Syria. Russian intervention has turned the tide of war. Having
rescued the Bashar al-Assad regime from collapse, relentless Russian
bombing is destroying the rebel stronghold of Aleppo, Syria's largest
city, creating a massive new wave of refugees and demonstrating to the
entire Middle East what a Great Power can achieve when it acts seriously.
The U.S. response? Repeated pathetic attempts by Secretary of State John
Kerry to propitiate Russia (and its ally, Iran) in one collapsed peace
conference after another. On Sunday, he stepped out to announce yet
another "provisional agreement in principle" on "a cessation of
hostilities" that the CIA director, the defense secretary and the
chairman of the Joint Chiefs deem little more than a ruse.
(3) Ukraine. Having swallowed Crimea so thoroughly that no one even
talks about it anymore, Russia continues to trample with impunity on the
Minsk cease-fire agreements. Vladimir Putin is now again stirring the
pot, intensifying the fighting, advancing his remorseless campaign to
fracture and subordinate the Ukrainian state. Meanwhile, Obama still
refuses to send the Ukrainians even defensive weapons.
(4) Iran. Last Thursday, Iran received its first shipment of S-300
anti-aircraft batteries from Russia, a major advance in developing
immunity to any attack on its nuclear facilities. And it is negotiating
an $8 billion arms deal with Russia that includes sophisticated combat
aircraft. Like its ballistic missile tests, this conventional weapons
shopping spree is a blatant violation of U.N. Security Council
prohibitions. It was also a predictable — and predicted — consequence of
the Iran nuclear deal that granted Iran $100 billion and normalized its
relations with the world.
The U.S. response? Words.
Unlike gravitational waves, today's strategic situation is not hard to
discern. Three major have-not powers are seeking to overturn the
post-Cold War status quo: Russia in Eastern Europe, China in East Asia,
Iran in the Middle East. All are on the march.
To say nothing of the Islamic State, now extending its reach from
Afghanistan to West Africa. The international order built over decades
by the United States is crumbling.
In the face of which, what does Obama do? Go to Cuba.
Yes, Cuba. A supreme strategic irrelevance so dear to Obama's
anti-anti-communist heart.
Is he at least going to celebrate progress in human rights and democracy
— which Obama established last year as a precondition for any
presidential visit? Of course not. When has Obama ever held to a red
line? Indeed, since Obama began his "historic" normalization with Cuba,
the repression has gotten worse. Last month, the regime arrested 1,414
political dissidents, the second-most ever recorded.
No matter. Amid global disarray and American decline, Obama sticks to
his cherished concerns: Cuba, Guantanamo (about which he gave a rare
televised address this week) and, of course, climate change.
Obama could not bestir himself to go to Paris in response to the various
jihadi atrocities — sending Kerry instead "to share a big hug with
Paris" (as Kerry explained) with James Taylor singing "You've Got a
Friend" — but he did make an ostentatious three-day visit there for
climate change.
So why not go to Havana? Sure, the barbarians are at the gates and
pushing hard knowing they will enjoy but 11 more months of minimal
American resistance. But our passive president genuinely believes that
such advances don't really matter — that these disruptors are so on the
wrong side of history, that their reaches for territory, power, victory
are so 20th century.
Of course, it mattered greatly to the quarter-million slaughtered in
Syria and the millions more exiled. It feels all quite real to a
dissolving Europe, an expanding China, a rising Iran, a metastasizing
jihadism.
Not to the visionary Obama, however. He sees far beyond such ephemera.
He knows what really matters: climate change, Gitmo and Cuba.
With time running out, he wants these to be his legacy. Indeed, they
will be.
Charles Krauthammer's email address is letters@charleskrauthammer.com.
Source: Charles Krauthammer: While Obama fiddles ... | Deseret News -
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865648828/While-Obama-fiddles-.html
Americans need to understand Cuba to do business there
Op-ed: Americans need to understand Cuba to do business there
By Sue Ashdown
First Published Feb 27 2016 03:12PM
With family ties in Cuba, I began traveling there not only before it was
fashionable, but when doing so was considered somewhat aberrant. I
helped Cubans peg me by explaining that Utah was sort of close to
California. Explaining my Cuban connection to Utahns was harder.
Ironically, both Utah and Cuba are considered red states, but not
exactly for the same reasons.
What always struck me about Utah and Cuba were not the differences, but
the similarities. As a Utahn, I had nothing to do with Miami's shrill
anti-Cuban rhetoric, so I always saw Cuba on a more personal level.
Having been raised a Mormon, I found that the best parts of my culture —
neighborly solidarity, collective effort — were prized in Cuba.
In recent years, as my visits to Cuba became more frequent and longer,
it seemed evident that the sound and fury of my country's bitter
antagonism toward Cuba had reached exhaustion. Looking at the situation
from a business perspective, the half-century of ceding the Cuban
marketplace to foreign competitors was no longer tenable for U.S. companies.
Together with a Cuban partner who'd performed professional market
studies for those foreign competitors, we opened a firm to provide
real-time, onsite Cuban market information for fact-starved American
businesses. The timing couldn't have been better. Several months later,
Presidents Obama and Castro announced their intentions to re-establish
diplomatic relations.
Over the past year, as we've met with U.S. business executives visiting
Cuba, my partner and I have been struck by the number of myths and
prejudices we hear repeatedly. Partly it's the result of more than 50
years of misinformation about a forbidden island. It's impossible to
help businesses get their bearings until the myths are swept away and
Cuba is approached realistically.
One of the most common misconceptions is the idea that Cuba is a banana
republic where who you know is more important than what you know, and a
little cash on the side never hurts.
Perhaps unwittingly, Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker reinforced the
notion at the recent U.S./Cuba Regulatory Dialogue in Washington, where
she complained about "problems reaching people in [Cuba] to discuss
business opportunities, and difficulties identifying the relevant Cuban
laws and regulations." But Cubans have a process for this, which the
Spanish, French, Germans, Japanese, Russians, Brazilians and Chinese
clearly manage to maneuver. Where is the American hang-up?
The business approval process in Cuba is a collective one, not decided
in discussions with one or even a handful of influential people. It
involves a great deal of painstaking — some would say exhausting —
steps, in a certain order. High-level contacts, or bribes, are simply
not effective business tools. As for Cuban regulations, they're not
unintelligible, but U.S. companies will have to break their Miami
dependence in order to interpret them correctly. They need to conquer
their fear of dealing directly with Cuban entities and advisers who
actually have their feet on the ground in Cuba, regardless of their
national origins.
At a dinner in Havana recently, a Cuban woman seated across from me
leaned forward to ask how our work was going. Challenging, I answered.
"The Americans have a problem," she said, getting straight to the point.
"They're arrogant. And Cubans are very proud. They can't stand being
told what to do. The minute they sense things going that direction is
the moment it all goes wrong. It's a difficult combination. But not an
impossible one."
I know the problem. American executives, solidly convinced of the virtue
of the system that has worked so well for them, are often so mystified
by the Cuban way of doing things, and so carried away by first
impressions — Havana's dilapidated skyline, rickety antique Chevrolets —
that they can come off like missionaries to a benighted people.
Sometimes when we mention that there is something to be said for a
system that has allowed for Cubans to survive 55 years of crushing
economic sanctions, the response, with those first stark impressions in
mind is, "Well, but at what price?" The answer goes to the very heart of
Cuban identity. Exactly like the early Mormons who relocated to the
periphery of the United States, Cubans see their sovereignty as priceless.
The businesses we've seen that will prosper in Cuba are the ones that
fully grasp this concept and look for ways to work together rather than
focusing on differences and insisting that Cubans change to suit them.
Sue Ashdown is a sixth-generation Utahn and the president of the
Utah-based IcarusCuba LLC, in partnership with David Urra. Previously,
she directed the Washington, D.C., based American ISP Association and
was a partial owner of XMission in Salt Lake City. She divides her time
between Utah and Havana.
Source: Op-ed: Americans need to understand Cuba to do business there |
The Salt Lake Tribune -
http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/3576964-155/op-ed-americans-need-to-understand-cuba
By Sue Ashdown
First Published Feb 27 2016 03:12PM
With family ties in Cuba, I began traveling there not only before it was
fashionable, but when doing so was considered somewhat aberrant. I
helped Cubans peg me by explaining that Utah was sort of close to
California. Explaining my Cuban connection to Utahns was harder.
Ironically, both Utah and Cuba are considered red states, but not
exactly for the same reasons.
What always struck me about Utah and Cuba were not the differences, but
the similarities. As a Utahn, I had nothing to do with Miami's shrill
anti-Cuban rhetoric, so I always saw Cuba on a more personal level.
Having been raised a Mormon, I found that the best parts of my culture —
neighborly solidarity, collective effort — were prized in Cuba.
In recent years, as my visits to Cuba became more frequent and longer,
it seemed evident that the sound and fury of my country's bitter
antagonism toward Cuba had reached exhaustion. Looking at the situation
from a business perspective, the half-century of ceding the Cuban
marketplace to foreign competitors was no longer tenable for U.S. companies.
Together with a Cuban partner who'd performed professional market
studies for those foreign competitors, we opened a firm to provide
real-time, onsite Cuban market information for fact-starved American
businesses. The timing couldn't have been better. Several months later,
Presidents Obama and Castro announced their intentions to re-establish
diplomatic relations.
Over the past year, as we've met with U.S. business executives visiting
Cuba, my partner and I have been struck by the number of myths and
prejudices we hear repeatedly. Partly it's the result of more than 50
years of misinformation about a forbidden island. It's impossible to
help businesses get their bearings until the myths are swept away and
Cuba is approached realistically.
One of the most common misconceptions is the idea that Cuba is a banana
republic where who you know is more important than what you know, and a
little cash on the side never hurts.
Perhaps unwittingly, Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker reinforced the
notion at the recent U.S./Cuba Regulatory Dialogue in Washington, where
she complained about "problems reaching people in [Cuba] to discuss
business opportunities, and difficulties identifying the relevant Cuban
laws and regulations." But Cubans have a process for this, which the
Spanish, French, Germans, Japanese, Russians, Brazilians and Chinese
clearly manage to maneuver. Where is the American hang-up?
The business approval process in Cuba is a collective one, not decided
in discussions with one or even a handful of influential people. It
involves a great deal of painstaking — some would say exhausting —
steps, in a certain order. High-level contacts, or bribes, are simply
not effective business tools. As for Cuban regulations, they're not
unintelligible, but U.S. companies will have to break their Miami
dependence in order to interpret them correctly. They need to conquer
their fear of dealing directly with Cuban entities and advisers who
actually have their feet on the ground in Cuba, regardless of their
national origins.
At a dinner in Havana recently, a Cuban woman seated across from me
leaned forward to ask how our work was going. Challenging, I answered.
"The Americans have a problem," she said, getting straight to the point.
"They're arrogant. And Cubans are very proud. They can't stand being
told what to do. The minute they sense things going that direction is
the moment it all goes wrong. It's a difficult combination. But not an
impossible one."
I know the problem. American executives, solidly convinced of the virtue
of the system that has worked so well for them, are often so mystified
by the Cuban way of doing things, and so carried away by first
impressions — Havana's dilapidated skyline, rickety antique Chevrolets —
that they can come off like missionaries to a benighted people.
Sometimes when we mention that there is something to be said for a
system that has allowed for Cubans to survive 55 years of crushing
economic sanctions, the response, with those first stark impressions in
mind is, "Well, but at what price?" The answer goes to the very heart of
Cuban identity. Exactly like the early Mormons who relocated to the
periphery of the United States, Cubans see their sovereignty as priceless.
The businesses we've seen that will prosper in Cuba are the ones that
fully grasp this concept and look for ways to work together rather than
focusing on differences and insisting that Cubans change to suit them.
Sue Ashdown is a sixth-generation Utahn and the president of the
Utah-based IcarusCuba LLC, in partnership with David Urra. Previously,
she directed the Washington, D.C., based American ISP Association and
was a partial owner of XMission in Salt Lake City. She divides her time
between Utah and Havana.
Source: Op-ed: Americans need to understand Cuba to do business there |
The Salt Lake Tribune -
http://www.sltrib.com/opinion/3576964-155/op-ed-americans-need-to-understand-cuba
Saturday, February 27, 2016
The Limits of Obama's Trip to Cuba
The Limits of Obama's Trip to Cuba
125 FEB 23, 2016 8:00 AM EST
By Editorial Board
With all due respect to Mick and Keith, a Rolling Stones concert is no
longer a life-changing experience. Nor is a visit from a U.S. president,
necessarily. Change in Cuba -- where these two events are scheduled for
successive days next month -- depends most of all on the Cuban government.
President Barack Obama's trip to Cuba on March 21 is not, as its critics
contend, a vote of confidence in President Raul Castro's government. It
is simply an opportunity for Obama to acknowledge both the successes of
his policy and its limits.
More than a year after the normalization of ties began between the U.S.
and Cuba, there are tangible signs of progress. Commercial flights and
ferry service from the U.S. will soon resume, bringing even more
American travelers to Cuba. U.S. cellular companies now provide service
on the island, and Internet access has improved. The first U.S. factory
on Cuban soil in more than half a century will soon open. And serious
talks have begun on issues such as investor protections, telecom
regulations and environmental protection.
Like the hundreds of millions more dollars in U.S. remittances now
lifting the fortunes of ordinary Cubans and fueling small businesses,
these developments can have a powerful cumulative effect. For one thing,
they raise popular expectations and put the onus for change squarely on
Cuba's government. Moreover, even with the embargo intact, a visit from
a hugely popular American president may help to convince the Cuban
people that the U.S. is no enemy.
So you can expect an eloquent speech or two. But soaring rhetoric about
free expression is meaningless without support for those who depend on
it to criticize the Castro regime, which has increased its persecution
of them. Obama can also help his credibility by recognizing that, for
most Cubans, daily life is much as it was. The government retains
overwhelming control of the economy.
Bringing about positive change in Cuba won't be quick or easy. And a lot
of what counts as change in Cuba is something that came to the rest of
the world a long time ago (see: Stones, Rolling). But recent
developments in Latin America -- Chavismo's crackup in Venezuela, the
election of a new president in Argentina, and the cease-fire in Colombia
-- make change in Cuba more likely. So, too, will Obama's trip.
To contact the senior editor responsible for Bloomberg View's
editorials: David Shipley at davidshipley@bloomberg.net.
Source: The Limits of Obama's Trip to Cuba - Bloomberg View -
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2016-02-23/the-limits-of-obama-s-trip-to-cuba
125 FEB 23, 2016 8:00 AM EST
By Editorial Board
With all due respect to Mick and Keith, a Rolling Stones concert is no
longer a life-changing experience. Nor is a visit from a U.S. president,
necessarily. Change in Cuba -- where these two events are scheduled for
successive days next month -- depends most of all on the Cuban government.
President Barack Obama's trip to Cuba on March 21 is not, as its critics
contend, a vote of confidence in President Raul Castro's government. It
is simply an opportunity for Obama to acknowledge both the successes of
his policy and its limits.
More than a year after the normalization of ties began between the U.S.
and Cuba, there are tangible signs of progress. Commercial flights and
ferry service from the U.S. will soon resume, bringing even more
American travelers to Cuba. U.S. cellular companies now provide service
on the island, and Internet access has improved. The first U.S. factory
on Cuban soil in more than half a century will soon open. And serious
talks have begun on issues such as investor protections, telecom
regulations and environmental protection.
Like the hundreds of millions more dollars in U.S. remittances now
lifting the fortunes of ordinary Cubans and fueling small businesses,
these developments can have a powerful cumulative effect. For one thing,
they raise popular expectations and put the onus for change squarely on
Cuba's government. Moreover, even with the embargo intact, a visit from
a hugely popular American president may help to convince the Cuban
people that the U.S. is no enemy.
So you can expect an eloquent speech or two. But soaring rhetoric about
free expression is meaningless without support for those who depend on
it to criticize the Castro regime, which has increased its persecution
of them. Obama can also help his credibility by recognizing that, for
most Cubans, daily life is much as it was. The government retains
overwhelming control of the economy.
Bringing about positive change in Cuba won't be quick or easy. And a lot
of what counts as change in Cuba is something that came to the rest of
the world a long time ago (see: Stones, Rolling). But recent
developments in Latin America -- Chavismo's crackup in Venezuela, the
election of a new president in Argentina, and the cease-fire in Colombia
-- make change in Cuba more likely. So, too, will Obama's trip.
To contact the senior editor responsible for Bloomberg View's
editorials: David Shipley at davidshipley@bloomberg.net.
Source: The Limits of Obama's Trip to Cuba - Bloomberg View -
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2016-02-23/the-limits-of-obama-s-trip-to-cuba
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
