I'm the only person in my family who wasn't born and raised in Cuba. I've spent time on the island and it's been an obsession of mine for as long I can remember.

If you read the writings of American foreign policy makers from around the time the embargo was put into place, it's clear that the embargo exists for idealogical reasons more than anything else. The American government was afraid that if the Cuban Revolution was allowed to continue without stiff (and illegal) resistance from the US, that it would act as blueprint for successful socialist government in the region. They were afraid that its ideals would spread beyond the small island into Central and South America. And they had a good point. Even today, with the Cuban economy in a pretty dire condition, the Cuban Revolution is widely admired throughout Latin America. Imagine the movements the Revolution could have inspired in the last 60 years had the embargo not sapped the Cuban economy of so much potential. It should be noted, that the embargo is illegal under international law. Every time the subject comes up for vote in the UN, the only 2 nations to reaffirm the embargo are the usual suspects - the US and Israel.

On the island, the embargo provides the government with a convenient excuse for its poor economy. Unfortunately, it's a pretty good excuse, and the citizens understand that. I don't think the average Cuban is any more anti-American than the average American is anti-Cuban. Even though I grew up hearing stories about how shitty the authorities were in Cuba, it was hard for me to admit that it was a police state until I first visited. It's sad, but it is a police state, and again the US is partially to blame for inspiring so much paranoia in the regime. For as much as the US claims to fight against terrorism, it was responsible for terrorizing the Cuban people in countless ways, not least of which includes bombing a passenger airline (Cubana Flight 455). That said, from the point of view of American policy makers, I think that their aims in Cuba have been relatively successful. They didn't succeed in killing Castro or the dream of the Revolution, but they did ensure that Cuba was transformed into a draconian state with a crappy economy, thereby making it a poor model for other states in the region to follow.

For all its failures, the Cuban government has also had many successes. I think they deserve praise where it's due, because for the last 60 years they have been regarded as an enemy by their neighbor, the worlds most powerful state. Since everyone already knows about the shitty things the Cuban government has done, I'll lay out some of their redeeming achievements.

1. Cuba was the only government to send its military to help liberate Africa from colonial powers. They also sent military forces to help liberate South Africa, which is why Mandela looked up to Fidel Castro a personal hero and friend. While the US and most Western nations did everything they could the continue the status quo in South Africa, Castro stood firmly on the right side of history and backed up his words with money and men.

2. There are no homeless people in Cuba. I walk through downtown LA every week and I see more misery on one street than I've seen in the poorest cities in Cuba. To me this is inexcusable and a signature failing of the American way of life.

3. The World Wildlife Fund reports that Cuba is the only sustainable country in the world. I couldn't find the original report, but what this means is that its the only country that can take care of all of its citizens needs without compromising the needs of future generations. http://pages.vassar.edu/sustainability/video/history-of-sust...

4. Cuba has amongst the highest literacy and life expectancy rates in the world, both of them just a bit higher than those in the US.