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Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Cuba Runs Out of Toilet Paper
Now how to blame this on the embargo....
The financial crisis, which has already hit Cuba's economy hard, is about to give the country another big kick, this time in the tuchas. Literally. Cuba is on the verge of a toilet-paper crisis.
Devastating hurricanes have left the state-run company that produces the country's supply, without the raw materials necessary to keep up with demand. In addition to which, President Raul Castro recently announced a 20 percent cut in imports, meaning a lot less goods on state-run store shelves. Cuban officials are saying they may not have sufficient TP supplies until the end of the year.
Posted by Richard Anderson on August 12, 2009 | Permalink
Comments
What a crappy situation to be in
Posted by: Alberta Altruist | 2009-08-12 7:13:39 PM
What? I thought that Cuba had solved chronic shortages and all those other problems which have always plagued state-planned economies. Not much of a paradise without toilet paper.
Posted by: Kalim Kassam | 2009-08-12 8:13:33 PM
Great post! Keep up the excellent work!!
COMMON CENTS
http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com
ps. Link Exchange??
Posted by: Steve | 2009-08-12 8:22:26 PM
Ahh yes the work of Che and Fidel has paid off. How about one wipes their ass with the official program of the Cuban Communist Party!!!
Better yet a picture of Fidel!
Posted by: Merle Terlesky | 2009-08-12 9:59:02 PM
When a party slides to the depth of toilet humour, I start looking for new friends.
Posted by: dp | 2009-08-12 11:12:02 PM
There is no financial incentive for them to do what it takes to produce the product.
Posted by: Floyd Looney | 2009-08-12 11:51:42 PM
Yeah, cuz the US' ongoing act of war against Cuba -- the embargo -- is having NO impact on the quality of life of ordinary Cubans. It is only hurting the dictators. And of course, it has not harmed the cause of human liberation in any way as it ruthelessly punishes the Communist junta.
Posted by: JC | 2009-08-13 12:45:23 AM
The embargo is a disaster. It makes things worse economically, has not put any pressure on the criminals that govern in Cuba, and conveviently deflects blame for the real cause of poverty in that country. Time to get rid of it.
Posted by: Charles | 2009-08-13 5:31:56 AM
I was under the impression that the United States, like any country, had the right to determine with whom it will and will not do business. And there are nearly 200 other countries around the world for Cuba to do business with.
Posted by: Shane Matthews | 2009-08-13 6:21:21 AM
Another socialist state run policy goes down the toilet...or doesn't! Depending on your outlook.
;-)
Now that the western, so called, free nations are moving towards the same kind of government, I'd say stock up! (on everything)
Posted by: The original JC | 2009-08-13 6:39:15 AM
Wow, apparently nations have rights now. Who knew?
JC,
My girlfriend already has. She came home with close to 150 rolls yesterday because, apparently, they were on sale. Funny, I doubt if she read the article though ;)
Posted by: Charles | 2009-08-13 6:55:14 AM
If Trudeau were still alive and PM, Canada would be air-lifting tons of TP to Cuba, a sort of Trudeauopian Marshall plan. It's what comrades do!
Posted by: John Chittick | 2009-08-13 10:07:20 AM
@Shane Matthews: "I was under the impression that the United States, like any country, had the right to determine with whom it will and will not do business"
Fail.
The "United States" or the gang in D.C., does not "do business", nor do they have a "right" to. Businesses and individuals do business. It is THEY who have the RIGHT to decide with whom they do it, and most would like to do it with the long suffering people of Cuba.
Posted by: John Collison | 2009-08-13 2:24:10 PM
John wins, Shane loses. States don't have rights, individuals do. By preventing individuals from trading with others peacefully, the state is violating their basic rights.
Posted by: Charles | 2009-08-13 7:00:36 PM
I blame the embargo.
Cuba have an embargo against capitalism.
Posted by: David Gagnon | 2009-08-13 7:58:44 PM
By preventing individuals from trading with others peacefully, the state is violating their basic rights.
Posted by: Charles | 2009-08-13 7:00:36 PM
Raytheon is legally prevented from selling Tomahawk Cruise Missile's to Iran. Do you believe that Raytheon's rights are being violated?
Posted by: The Stig | 2009-08-13 9:01:59 PM
The Stig, that is a good question and as a libertarian type am not sure how to respond exactly. I would still agree with Charles though since the state is a man made entity that should not have the right to tell you that you can only buy stuff from the East side of town. Or the city north of you. Or the province West of you. I cannot think of many cases where you shoud be restricted in who you can do business with. I trust you to just what's best for you better than anyone. I also do not feel obligated to save you from what I might consider mistakes.
Posted by: TM | 2009-08-13 10:02:30 PM
The lines of distinction between the modern state and many corporations within our mixed economies have become blurred beyond recognition. One could argue that the Raytheon's of the world are little more than agents of the states from which they operate or are little more than de facto contractual dependents. Rent seeking comes at great cost to ones liberty.
Shane's comment, "..And there are nearly 200 other countries around the world for Cuba to do business with." warrants more thought. The US embargo (which should be abolished) gets the most blame for the ills of Cuba. Thinking for a moment of Cuba as an isolated Island without any US presence can hardly account for it's basket case economic performance. It's one of those classic "people's paradises" the leftists hold up as an experiment in utopia but refrain from immigrating to. That would all be ruined if American tourists flooded the island with greenbacks.
Posted by: John Chittick | 2009-08-14 11:06:38 AM
Cuba does business with the whole world. The so-called "embargo" has little real effect on them.
Posted by: Floyd Looney | 2009-08-14 12:19:10 PM
They need to get hand held bathroom bidet sprayers and then they won't ever have to worry about running out of toilet paper again. With these you can use a towel to just dry off (yes your own personal towel for those with no imagination) and it's much more sanitary. I think Dr. Oz on Oprah said it best: "if you had pee or poop on your hand, you wouldn't wipe it off with paper, would you? You'd wash it off" It makes cleaning the toilet itself a breeze also. For those of us who really like to be clean it is the best invention since the toilet. It is so much better than a stand alone bidet and this is why: 1. It's less expensive (potentially allot less) 2. You can install in yourself = no plumber expense 3. It works better by providing more control of where the water spray goes and a greater volume of water flow. 4. It requires no electricity and there are few things that can go wrong with it. 5. It doesn't take up any more space, many bathrooms don't have room for a stand alone bidet. 6. You don’t have to get up and move from the toilet to the bidet which can be rather awkward at times to say the least. Available at http://www.bathroomsprayers.com
Posted by: Jeff9 | 2009-08-19 4:57:27 AM
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