My apologies, sir. We have nothing larger than a $3 bill.
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[i][b]Photo above -[/b] The Cuban army arrests demonstrators - in 1959. Not shown: the Cuban army arresting demonstrators again in 2024.[/i]
The link below is about Cuba. If you believe in the idea of a socialist worker's paradise, please stop reading now, and save yourself some grief.
Cuba is out of gasoline, electricity, and has massive inflation. A dozen eggs costs 10X what it did a couple of years ago. The average government salary – if you don't work in the black market - is 7,000 pesos. That would be $20. Per month, not hour. Aye caramba – no wonder half the world wants to come to the USA. And Elian Gonzales - how are YOU doing these days?
Back to the price of eggs in the People's Republic of Cuba. A dozen now costs about 3,000 pesos. Unless you own a chicken. In which case you're a big hombre in your barrio. Until someone steals your chicken. Then you have to buy eggs at 3,000 pesos per dozen. Half your monthly government paycheck. I'm not making this up. Read the link.
Yes, there are demonstrations in Cuba. Thankfully there's gun control, and nobody is getting shot. Protestors ARE, however, disappearing into prisons. Corporal Carlos in the Cuban army might not want to open fire on his aunts and cousins anyway, but if you just arrest someone, and they disappear in a police van, your conscience is a little cleaner.
When you go to an ATM in Cuba, the biggest bill you can get is 1,000 pesos ($3). The government has stopped printing anything larger. The reasons are opaque. People are hoarding cash. There's a fear of bank failures. ATMS don't work during a brown-out. You want to have something under the mattress to convert to real currency in the black market. And of course, your kids might want an egg or two. There are so many reasons.
But why now, and why so suddenly? Two words: “Ukraine Invasion”. Russia just isn't sending those monthly checks to Havana the way they used to. All that money is going to Iran, to buy drones, to kill Ukrainians. Thus, a shortage of Cuban gasoline, electricity, eggs, and any folding money larger than $3.
I've never been to Cuba, but if I did go, I predict that would NOT see Havana TV pundits on "channel dos" engaged in a spirited debate about whether the minimum wage should stay at 12 cents an hour ($20 a month) or get a boost. There would be no interviews with grieving mothers, wondering about what happened to their son, who hasn't been seen since last week's egg rally. I would, however, expect the Cuban government to whip up sentiment, by claiming this is all the fault of America and other democracies. The rule of law and human rights are an existential threat to the Cuban government. Wag the dog. When there's domestic unrest - in any nation - the first impulse of the government is to blame their historical nemesis.
I'm just sayin' . . .
[b][u]Long lines form and frustration grows as Cuba runs short of cash | AP News[/u][/b]
