On the Cuba situation. I do not tell people what to believe that is up to you, but I do believe in sharing information to be factored into your thinking and decision making. Let me share a true story with you my actual personal experiences. When in the ‘60’s and I was in high school. I was, as always, an info gathering nut, so I got pen pals so as to get information right from the sources. I had several pen pals in Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Rumania, 1 in E. Germany, 1 in the USSR (Yakutsk), 3 in So. Vietnam, 2 in Australia, and one each in Japan, Taiwan, The Philippines, England, Ireland, Israel, Austria, and Germany. Because of the ones in Eastern Europe I got a lot of flack. However, one of the women I knew in Czechoslovakia married a guy who was elected to their first Democratic Government. As well, all of them were very pro-American, and Pro-Democracy, and my letters encouraged them to supports later to break from Soviet domination. When I was in the Army in Europe, my German friends told me of the impact on Eastern Europe of American, Western European culture, and media that influenced their Pro-Democracy beliefs. Contact actually dispels the myth and misinformation when you see it and experience it firsthand. And, while China is still a problem, look at the Westernization there. I believe that isolation has not worked in Cuba, but that, as in Eastern Europe, contact and positive interactions will lead to changes there too.
Brian Hoose
