The triumph of the revolution on January 1, 1959, initiated the most radical transformation in Cuban history.
The first phase, from 1959 to 1961, was not initially communist but nationalist, populist, and deeply anti-imperial.
The Agrarian Reform Law from May 1959 limited landholdings to 1,000 acres, expropriating US-owned estates and distributing land to peasants.
Urban reforms slashed utility rates and rents. But the expropriations provoked US retaliation: first the suspension of the sugar quota, then a near-total economic embargo in February 1962.
Castro responded by nationalizing all US property and pivoting toward the Soviet Union.
The failed Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962 sealed the island’s fate as a Cold War frontline state.
Politically, Castro dismantled the old republican system. Political parties were banned, elections abolished, and all media and unions subordinated to the state.
The Communist Party of Cuba, the PCC, formally established in 1965, became the sole legal party, organized through a system of people’s power.
Dissent was systematically crushed, and hundreds of thousands fled into exile.
The "Special Period" was a severe, extended economic crisis in Cuba beginning in 1991, triggered by the collapse of the Soviet Union.
This eliminated nearly all foreign subsidies and trade, leading to a 35% GDP drop. It was marked by extreme food shortages, energy blackouts, and rationing.
In economic terms, it forced Cuban planners to confront a question debated since the 1960s:
could a centrally planned economy survive without a patron socialist bloc, meaning the Soviet Union and its Eastern European allies?
The answer, reluctantly, was no, leading to the first serious experiments with market mechanisms under Raúl Castro.
When Fidel Castro fell ill in 2006 and formally ceded power to his brother Raúl in 2008, a new phase began.
Raúl Castro, a pragmatic former defense minister, acknowledged the old Soviet model was “obsolete.”
His reforms in the period from 2010 to 2018 were the most significant since the 1990s. They eliminated the 1993 ban on buying and selling homes and cars,
slashed half a million state jobs, expanded self-employment licenses to over 200 categories, created special economic zones,
and allowed non-agricultural cooperatives. By 2016, private employment had risen from almost zero to 30 percent of the workforce.
Economically, the 2020s have been catastrophic. The pandemic collapsed tourism, down 80 percent, and tightened remittance restrictions,
which meant, for instance, that an emigrated family could not freely send dollars to their relatives in Cuba.
In 2022–2024, Cuba experienced its worst crisis since 1994: 70 percent of the population lives on $20 per month,
fuel shortages cause daily blackouts, inflation for basic goods reached 400 percent; and pharmaceuticals are scarce.
This collapse suggests that partial market reforms, without reintegration into global finance or a new patron, or deeper structural changes may not be enough.
The government has responded not with liberalization but with “economic war” rhetoric, re-nationalizing some small businesses and blaming the embargo for every shortage.
Tightened US sanctions, including blacklisting Cuban hotels and prohibiting dollar remittances, strangled hard currency.
The likely future is neither a sudden collapse nor a rapid democratization, but a continued, painful half-reform: a Cuba where state and market coexist uneasily.
Main Sources:
MacMillan The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd edition
of Economic Thought (2012)
TABLE OF CONTENT -----------------------------------------------------------------
1 - 100 Philosophers 9 May 2009 Start of
2 - 25+ Women Philosophers 10 May 2009 this blog
3 - 25 Adventures in Thinking 10 May 2009
4 - Modern Theories of Ethics 29 Oct 2009
5 - The Ideal State 24 Febr 2010 / 234
6 - The Mystery of the Brain 3 Sept 2010 / 266
7 - The Utopia of the Free Market 16 Febr 2012 / 383
8. - The Aftermath of Neo-liberalism 5 Sept 2012 / 413
9. - The Art Not to Be an Egoist 6 Nov 2012 / 426
10 - Non-Western Philosophy 29 May 2013 / 477
11 - Why Science is Right 2 Sept 2014 / 534
12 - A Philosopher looks at Atheism 1 Jan 2015 / 557
13 - EVIL, a philosophical investigation 17 Apr 2015 / 580
14 - Existentialism and Free Will 2 Sept 2015 / 586
15 - Spinoza 2 Sept 2016 / 615
16 - The Meaning of Life 13 Febr 2017 / 637
17 - In Search of my Self 6 Sept 2017 / 670
18 - The 20th Century Revisited 3 Apr 2018 / 706
19 - The Pessimist 11 Jan 2020 / 819
20 - The Optimist 9 Febr 2020 / 824
21 - Awakening from a Neoliberal Dream 8 Oct 2020 / 872
22 - A World Full of Patterns 1 Apr 2021 / 912
23 - The Concept of Freedom 8 Jan 2022 / 965
24 - Materialism 7 Sept 2022 / 1011
25 - Historical Materialism 5 Oct 2023 / 1088
26 - The Bonobo and the Atheist 9 Jan 2024 / 1102
27 - Artificial Intelligence 9 Feb 2024 / 1108
28 - Why Am I Here 6 Sept 2024 / 1139
[13:15] herman Bergson: Thank you for your attention
[13:15] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): Thank you Herman
[13:15] herman Bergson: One endless series of crises for Cuba...
[13:16] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): :(
[13:16] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm
[13:16] herman Bergson: Sanctions are ruining the country
[13:17] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): Those people already had nothing
[13:17] Stranger Nightfire: What is being done at this point to the Cubans by the Trump administration is absolutely cruel
[13:17] herman Bergson: I wonder how much is due to mismanagement of the economy
[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): true
[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): inndee Stranger
[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ;(
[13:18] herman Bergson: Yes, Trump has restored more than 240 sanctions agains Cuba.
[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): he is a real monster,
[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): wanting them all to die
[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): horrible
[13:19] Stranger Nightfire: Every remotely socialist country at least in the Western Hemisphere has undergone massive economic warfare by the United States, and then we claim their economic problems prove that socialism doesn't work
[13:19] herman Bergson: And Cuba's biggest problem is that it have lived of donations of Russia for many years.
[13:20] Max Chatnoir: It's sounds like they never really had a chance to see how the economy would work. It might have failed anyway, but there were roadblocks.
[13:20] herman Bergson: I think so too, Max, they don't get a chance
[13:21] herman Bergson: Yes how to make socialism fail.....
[13:21] herman Bergson: In the begining Cuba had the best healthcare system and a literacy of almost 95%
[13:22] herman Bergson: Elas, all paid for by Russia mainly
[13:22] herman Bergson: How can socialism survive in a capitalist world?
[13:23] herman Bergson: Marx was quite right in pointing out how the workers are exploited by the owners of the means of production
[13:24] Stranger Nightfire: After the success of the revolution in Cuba Castro actually came to the United States on a friendly diplomatic mission to work out some kind of reasonable arrangement and of course was given the boot
[13:24] Stranger Nightfire: Same can be said for Ho Chi Minh
[13:25] herman Bergson: The very word socialism seems to be a curse word (in the US)
[13:25] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yep
[13:25] Max Chatnoir: What was the argument made for cutting Cuba off?
[13:25] herman Bergson: Because under Castro it became a Marxist- Leninist state
[13:26] herman Bergson: and second the Platt Amendment for 1902
[13:26] herman Bergson: He claimed that the US has the right to interfere with Cuban affairs
[[13:27] Max Chatnoir: But if that was really a nonfunctional economy, why not leave it alone and let it fail?
[13:27] herman Bergson: And gave the US that peculiar marine base on the island: Quantanamo Bay
[13:28] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): where they mass tortured prisoners
[13:28] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): among other things
[13:28] herman Bergson: The US has a history with Cuba, especially the frustration of the Bay of Pigs and the scare missle crisis from 1962
[13:29] Max Chatnoir: Yes, that was scary.
[13:29] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aha!
[13:30] Max Chatnoir: I was actually wondering if there was any point in finishing my MS thesis. Fortunately, I did anyway.
[13:30] herman Bergson: I think the US is not willing to accept an economy based on socialist principles close by
[13:31] herman Bergson: I have no idea what the current situation in Cuba is.
[13:31] Korel Laloix: It is more than that though... as I live in Florida, I know several folks of Cuban heritage, and they can't wait for the current Cuban government to fall.
[13:31] Korel Laloix: And they put a lot of political pressure on the gov.
[13:32] herman Bergson: Not much or often in the news programs these days
[13:32] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): no
[13:32] Max Chatnoir: No, it isn't.
[13:32] herman Bergson: More than 500,000 Cubans have left their country
[13:33] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): were did they go?
[13:34] Korel Laloix: A lot went here to Florida.
[13:34] herman Bergson: Most of the to Florida
[13:34] herman Bergson: Mayby some other South American countries too
[13:35] Korel Laloix: Cubans are marginalized by a lot of other Latin American ethnicities.
[13:35] Korel Laloix: Not sure why though.
[13:35] herman Bergson: I read something about Cuba and Venezuela. Cuba sends doctors to Venezuela in exchange for oil
[13:36] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ok, at least they got out of there, i heard like the US had troops everywhere capturing them a sennding them back into the hellhole of Cuba again maing it impossible to flee
[13:36] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): making
[13:36] herman Bergson: And then there are also thed African- cubans...
[13:37] herman Bergson: Seriously discriminated under Batista in the 1950s
[13:37] herman Bergson: Wonder what their position now is
[13:38] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ok
[13:38] herman Bergson: All together a problematic country, suffocated by US sanctions.
[13:38] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): :(
[13:39] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): i dot get it, , so much evil from one place
[13:39] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): as i say, why cant we just be human
[13:39] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): not threatening each other like shit
[13:39] herman Bergson: Maybe we have to look at European democracies with socialist parties....
[13:40] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): i knew Cuba was poor but not it was and always have been this bad
[13:40] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): poop people :(
[13:40] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): poor
[13:40] herman Bergson: Maybe there is some hope, now that Viktor Orban finally is defeated
[13:40] Daruma Boa: indeed
[13:40] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aaa yes i heard that
[13:40] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): thats good news
[13:40] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): let's wait and see
[13:40] Daruma Boa: I als hope that for everyone - who is bad - will be a pay day in their lifes.
[13:41] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and hope for the besk
[13:41] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): best
[13:41] herman Bergson: Indeed... you never know what the leading elite will do.
[13:41] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): damn cant type again,
[13:41] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): well its aother sluggish day for me
[13:42] herman Bergson: This brings us to the end of Marx and socialist economic ideas....
[13:42] Max Chatnoir: How do all those other little islands in the Bahamas work?
[13:42] Korel Laloix: I would imagine a lot of tourism and fishing industries.
[13:42] herman Bergson: Tourism perhaps or Epsteins? :-)
[13:43] Max Chatnoir: What is their economy?
[13:43] Max Chatnoir: Does some rich guy own each of the islands?
[13:44] herman Bergson: The Dutch islands have a big oilrafinery and agriculture and tourism
[13:44] herman Bergson: Well they are not Dutch, they have a level of independence
[13:44] Korel Laloix: Banking and other financial services now form the largest sector of the economy at about 85% of GDP, with tourism being the second largest industry at 5%.[1][21] Industrial and agricultural activities occur; however, these are on a limited scale and Bermuda is heavily reliant on imports.[1] Living standards are high and as of 2019 Bermuda has the 6th-highest GDP per capita in the world.[1]
[13:44] Max Chatnoir: So they have both factories and farming
[13:45] Korel Laloix: Bermuda appears to have figured it out.
[13:45] Max Chatnoir: and tax shelters?
[13:45] Korel Laloix: Looks like it.
[13:45] herman Bergson: Interesting Korel...
[13:45] Korel Laloix: From Wikipedia... so take it with a pound of salt.
[13:45] herman Bergson: Sounds good and not so sad as Cuba
[13:46] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): aaa
[13:46] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): true
[13:47] Korel Laloix: So any final words as this is the last installment of this series?
[13:47] Korel Laloix: And what is the next?
[13:47] herman Bergson: No no.... now we have to look at the post war development of neo-liberalism, among other things
[13:50] herman Bergson: So, let's ready for that, for it is, I think, THE time for total capitalism.... We might have a look at Fukuyama for instance and definitely Reagan and Thatcher
[13:51] herman Bergson: So, take a rest and get ready for Thursday....Thank you all again
[13:51] Max Chatnoir: OK. Thanks, Herman
[13:51] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): Thank you Herman
