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New York Philharmonic Invited to Perform in Cuba

Nigel — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:42:00 +0000

The New York Philharmonic, continuing its travels in the Communist world, is seriously considering an invitation to perform for the first time in Havana. Philharmonic officials plan to travel to Cuba on Friday to look over logistics, the orchestra’s spokesman, Eric Latzky said.

The visit would take place in late October, just a few days after the orchestra returns from an Asian tour that will include Vietnam, another first for the Philharmonic. In February 2008, it traveled to the isolated, totalitarian North Korea in a trip that drew wide publicity.

Latin America's Brave New World

Nigel — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 13:46:53 +0000

In a post-bubble world that vilifies the private sector and elevates government as humanity’s best hope, two events in Latin America last week deserve attention.

The first was a meeting of the Organization of American States in Honduras. The OAS voted to lift the 1962 ban on Cuba’s membership. The second was the 25th anniversary celebration of the Venezuelan, pro-liberty think-tank Cedice Libertad in Caracas.

The former, state-sponsored event, sided with tyranny. The latter, held by private citizens in the most repressive country in South America, took a stand for liberty. This dichotomy may well be the region’s future.

Cuba Begins Rationing Food

Nigel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 20:47:40 +0000

Cuba is limiting how much basic fruits and vegetables people can buy at farmers’ markets, irritating some customers but ensuring there’s enough—barely—to go around.The lines are long and some foods are scarce, but because the government has maintained and even increased rations in some areas, Cubans who initially worried about getting enough to eat now seem confident they won’t go hungry despite the destruction of 30 percent of the island’s crops by hurricanes Gustav and Ike last month.