[liberationtech] Cuba: 5% Internet penetration

[Andrés Leopoldo Pacheco Sanfuentes]

"Myself,"

I believe it is also time to Change the ultra-right wing viewpoints when
analizing the potential ahead for Cuba. The current status quo in Cuba Re:
Telecom is not good, but neither is the Government sanctioned and
subsidized oligopoly we have here in the US!
On Jan 9, 2015 10:22 AM, "Myself" <falcocom25 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Like Leopoldo says it's very important to exert pressure to open up the
> state telecom monopoly to new players. What few people realize amid the
> current excitement is that this window of opportunity will not last long.
> Historically, the Cuban government has negotiated with the USG, only to
> later retrench to their old ways as soon as they can afford it. They may be
> very well preparing the next shootdown of an airplane with american
> citizens onboard or looking for any other excuses they can come up with to
> return to the old status quo and blame the US for all their failings.
>
> Also, very important at this time are the USG democracy promotion programs
> because, among many other positives not related to the tech world, they
> provide some economic independence to Cuban activists and civil society
> actors. The fact is most people in Cuba depend on government jobs to
> survive, to be able to eat at a minimum. The few "cuentapropistas" (ultra
> small private businesses) are very heavily controlled and taxed, government
> inspectors remove their licenses for anything they don't like. Money from
> the USG democracy promotion programs allows many Cuban activists to pay for
> the little bit of censored Internet access they now have at the Nauta
> navigation rooms, they can pay for email (also through Nauta) and
> International SMS on their phones and report abroad and inside Cuba what's
> happening in the island. If these programs didn't exist, most Cuban
> activists would be looking for food all day and affording $5 an hour for
> Internet access would be nothing but a dream to them.
>
> It's no wonder they are constantly vilified as "shady" by the cuban
> government costly media campaigns and their no so disguised "Cuba offices"
> in the US. It's a very thick thorn on their foot.
>
> PGP <http://pgp.mit.edu:11371/pks/lookup?op=get&search=0xA5BA76902CB232E3>
>
> On Fri, Jan 9, 2015 at 2:01 AM, Andrés Leopoldo Pacheco Sanfuentes <
> alps6085 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Here's a feasible approach:
>>
>>
>> http://www.shareable.net/blog/cuba-is-using-cooperatives-to-decentralize-its-economy
>>
>> The technologies I mention are in use already in Cuba, although outside
>> the legal system and thus subject to confiscation - case in point the
>> newsclip about dusmantlement of an underground wifi network leveraging
>> Ubiquiti Networks technology. Now they have a chance to set up coops to
>> provide the same service within the boundaries of the legal system. It is
>> very important for the progressive technology sector (people like the
>> subscribers to this list) to exert pressure to open up the state telecom
>> monopoly to new players, especially those based on democratic control of
>> the means of production, like Coops.
>> On Jan 8, 2015 4:19 PM, "Bill Woodcock" <woody at pch.net> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> > On Jan 8, 2015, at 12:49 PM, Collin Anderson <
>>> collin at averysmallbird.com> wrote:
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > On Thu, Jan 8, 2015 at 2:27 PM, Bill Woodcock <woody at pch.net> wrote:
>>> > It’s called fiber.
>>> >
>>> > Fiber is cheap?
>>>
>>> Relatively.  It’s sand, somewhat processed.  And it carries a lot of
>>> bits.  Nothing else carries a lot of bits.  So, since it’s the only option
>>> that actually carries lots of bits, it’s sorta academic how much it costs
>>> relative to other things, that don’t carry lots of bits.  So, yes, less
>>> than a penny a strand-foot is cheap.
>>>
>>>                                 -Bill
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>
>
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