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Print E-mail del.icio.us 52 comment(s) - last by LatinMessiah.. on May 8 at 9:50 PM
The average desktop computer costs the equivelent of three years worth of wages in Cuba

After the resignation of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro and the transfer of power to younger brother Raul Castro, life in Cuba is getting better for some citizens. For many years, Cuban’s were denied the things we take for granted here in the U.S. because of presidential decree.

A few weeks ago, Raul Castro lifted a ban that forbade Cubans from legally owning cellular phones and DVD players. This week, BBC News reports that Raul Castro lifted a ban that prevented Cubans from legally owning personal computers.

Desktop computers are now available in Cuba and BBC News reports that a crowd formed at the Carlos III shopping center in Havana when the first PC shipments arrived. Despite the large crowds most were there only to look on as others bought.

The average price for a new desktop PC in Cuba is reported to be around $800 and the average monthly wage in Cuba is a mere $20. That would mean an average computer in Cuba would cost most citizens over three years of pay.

Most Cubans have access to supplementary income according to BBC News, typically from family who live abroad. Despite the availability of computers on the island nation, internet access is still limited to a few locations like workplaces, schools and universities.

The Cuban government is unable to connect to undersea fiber optic cables due to trade sanctions imposed by the U.S. The internet access available in the country is via limited bandwidth satellite connections.

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who cares about all that, what i want to know
By kattanna on 5/6/2008 11:59:05 AM , Rating: 2
is when i can legally hit up my local cigar shop and get a good cuban.

one thing i have always found interesting is that one reason thats always been given as to why we continue to openly trade with china is to bring in more of americas influence and "encourage" democracy. yet we willnt try that with a country barely 90 miles off our coast. hmmm




By FITCamaro on 5/6/2008 12:10:53 PM , Rating: 1
Willn't huh?

Well I for one am not going to shed a tear that we can't trade with Cuba.


RE: who cares about all that, what i want to know
By gramboh on 5/6/2008 1:57:28 PM , Rating: 2
You would if you knew about the deep oil/gas reserves within their territorial control.

That alone is why the US will eventually resume trade relations.


By therealnickdanger on 5/6/2008 2:21:58 PM , Rating: 2
Why do that when we can just slant drill into it the way China is doing it to us in Florida? Oh wait, that's right, the Sierra Club.


RE: who cares about all that, what i want to know
By gramboh on 5/6/2008 2:56:15 PM , Rating: 2
The Cuban reseves are very deep, pretty sure too deep for directional drilling. We are talking $100M a well in drilling costs.


RE: who cares about all that, what i want to know
By emarston on 5/7/2008 8:00:41 AM , Rating: 2
Actually, we have some the same oil down below our territory in that part of the Gulf... it's not that we can't get to it, but environmental policy/regs prevents us from drilling there. People don't want wells off the coastline and such.


By gramboh on 5/7/2008 11:07:35 AM , Rating: 2
Yeah that is true, I guess people don't want platforms within view or any potential risks of blowouts or something. Out of sight out of mind I guess? Hah.


By FITCamaro on 5/6/2008 2:41:58 PM , Rating: 2
Oh god no we can't buy oil from another foreign source. God forbid we actually tap our own oil reserves.


By JustTom on 5/7/2008 1:56:16 AM , Rating: 3
Oil is fungible, whether we trade with Cuba or not the oil will enter the market.

Having said that I do hope we end the trade embargo.


By ElFenix on 5/6/2008 6:09:07 PM , Rating: 3
why do people forget that it takes two to trade? castro didn't want any US anything on his island. he was very happy about the embargo because it allowed him to blame his own failures on the embargo rather than manning up.


yay for the new spam!
By zinfamous on 5/6/2008 11:39:49 AM , Rating: 3
so...how long until we start seeing a flood of Cuban-based spam and scam emails? Look out Nigeria!

Dear ser,

My name is Raul, and I comi to you with proposetion regarding fininciel benefits to yours and my families. I have obtained for your security a large sum of money to be deposited in securities of Habanna national bank, in equivilent sum of 2mil US Dollores.
Due to the recent deposition of local government forces, this money is first-come, first-serve. please send me 10 thousand equivilent US Dollores to so that I might secure account transfer in your name.
Regards, Raul.




RE: yay for the new spam!
By Aarnando on 5/6/2008 12:52:06 PM , Rating: 2
Oh no! Now we'll have to deal with Cuban businessmen, too? Aye carumba!

-Aarnando


errors
By CW23 on 5/7/2008 2:25:18 PM , Rating: 3
It's called spell check.




Wow
By Ensoph42 on 5/6/08, Rating: 0
RE: Wow
By PrinceGaz on 5/6/2008 2:07:35 PM , Rating: 2
The news does arrive daily, it's just that some of it is a little old, like this PCs in Cuba story which was reported by the BBC last Saturday.


Let the strangeness in Cuba end
By phxfreddy on 5/6/2008 5:26:31 PM , Rating: 2
So we think Castro tried to kill Kennedy or maybe since no candidate seems to be able to win the presidency without Florida. I'm as right wing capitalist as they come. However its easy to see we are winning the war in China. ( they are changing ....We are not! ) ..... If it worked in China it will work in Cuba! Hook em up a fiber optic cable and let them have high speed access. See if it helps or hurts our cause. I'll bet you dollars to donuts that they change FASTER towards capitalism!!!




Security!
By JonnyDough on 5/7/2008 7:35:21 AM , Rating: 2
If a computer costs you 3 years salary, I would be very leery of your neighbor. You might consider dropping an additional years salary on a broken-glass bottle topped concrete wall and a Rottweiler as well. Or maybe you could just get insurance and check about a discount for a fingerprint I.D. device and adding an administrator password to your bios so you could laugh knowing that who ever steals it the day after you bought it won't be able to use it. Muahahaha.

Wait, does this mean I have to get pwned by Cubans and their lag on StarCraft now too? :-\




By Bender 123 on 5/6/2008 3:40:13 PM , Rating: 1
How long until we see this in our inboxes...

Greeting America investor I am Hugo Sandaval a attorney for your distant relative that died in plane crash. He had approx. 1,000,000 American dollars in Cuba bank and we trying to get money away from Cuba. Send us your bank # and we will gladly leave you 250,000 in service fee for your service...




Computers ?
By SaintSinner1 on 5/6/08, Rating: 0
A nice transition, but...
By daftrok on 5/6/08, Rating: -1
RE: A nice transition, but...
By TimberJon on 5/6/2008 11:46:02 AM , Rating: 1
Funny how we are Buddy-Buddy with asia cause we would DIE without electronics, ceramic mugs, office supplies, toner, Etc.. etc..

I have doubts about them really gearing up and becoming an E-threat. It takes you time learning on computers to be able to code and all that hacker stuff. Unless there are some uber geniuses there just waiting to plug-in.


RE: A nice transition, but...
By Tsuwamono on 5/6/2008 11:47:46 AM , Rating: 5
thats not a form of communism. Communism is where all wealth is shared amongst the people equally. Communism in practice usually ends up being combined with a dictatorship which is what you are talking about.

Your society(USA) is a Capitalist democracy. There are Capitalist dictatorships, Communist democracies, Communist dictatorships, socialist democracies and socialist dictatorships.

Dictatorship(also includes monarch societies) or Democracy are a general description of the government.

Capitalist/Socialist/Communist are a general description of an economic setup.


RE: A nice transition, but...
By porkpie on 5/6/2008 11:53:42 AM , Rating: 5
The USA is a semi-capitalistic Republic, not a Democracy.