Barack Obama has moved to normalize relations with Cuba, which assumes, at some point, a lifting of the U.S. embargo. Liberals, of course, have supported lifting the embargo for years, hailing Cuba as a magical land of “free” healthcare and “world-class” education. The more interesting debate has been on the conservative and libertarian sides, where one can hear good arguments, pro and con. I won’t lay out the arguments here, because I want to stick to Obama’s underlying thinking, but I would like to note this: Those who favor lifting the embargo insist that a subsequent explosion in new economic activity will change Cuba. And yet, in truth, throughout the 50-plus years of the embargo, virtually every country on the planet has permitted trade with Cuba. There is no product (tourists included) that Cubans can’t get elsewhere. Tragically, however, the Cuban dictatorship has funneled that money into imprisoning and persecuting dissidents,...(Read Full Article)