We Might Get To Purchase Cuban Cigars Legally Soon

[shortz]

Meh sorta. Yes the government still artificially values their currency. But they have learned some of our habits and business practices.

but you'll never hear them admit that. lol

I heard a good interview with Trump that was talking about China. He said that China is in a state (non-political wise) that America was in during it's industrial age. It's one reason it has risen up to where it is. If Americans want to be worth a shit in 50 years, we need to get back to being productive. It's one reason this whole oil thing is pissing me off. Between OPEC, hippies etc, they want nothing but to stop fracking. It's one reason why our oil price is so low. They are trying to drive the value so low that we lose out on the profits and it forces us to depend on foreign oil again.

 

[woodswise]

These things always hurt the wrong people. You want to fight communism in a little country like Cuba you let the Americans in with their wallets. We will show them how good capitalism can be

Agreed 100% POB. All the sanctions in the world won't change a political system when the people at the bottom are so weak and poor they depend on that political system for survival. Sanctions in that situation only entrench the system and make the people feel directly threatened by the sanctions. Give them some capitalism and they'll soon grow to be independent from the communist party and then you'll see some real change down there.

 

[woodswise]

We have been trading with China for how many years now, and they still think communism is better because of how they are coming to power. It's like the Borg from Star Trek. They are more "powerful" as a single entity than they are as individuals, so they think

Many Chinese have developed real financial independence from their government. The Communist party continues to maintain political control through the military and police and local government, but the real power base is shifting, as citizens become wealthy under the new capitalist economic system in China. Eventually the political situation will open up, too. But it will take a generation or two of capitalism before the Communist party loses its stranglehold on the country.

 

[woodswise]

but you'll never hear them admit that. lol

I heard a good interview with Trump that was talking about China. He said that China is in a state (non-political wise) that America was in during it's industrial age. It's one reason it has risen up to where it is. If Americans want to be worth a shit in 50 years, we need to get back to being productive. It's one reason this whole oil thing is pissing me off. Between OPEC, hippies etc, they want nothing but to stop fracking. It's one reason why our oil price is so low. They are trying to drive the value so low that we lose out on the profits and it forces us to depend on foreign oil again.

Trump is a jackass. The price of oil in this country is not controlled by politics, it is determined by a combination of production quotas (agreed by the OPEC members) and what the free market is willing to pay for the available oil. Hippies have nothing to do with oil quotas. Stopping fracking will drive up the price of oil, not down. If you don't understand that, you don't understand basic economics. This is the type of argument that people use to drive home whatever political point they find most convenient, rather than an opinion based on facts.

Fact: fracking is an expensive way to produce oil.
Fact: when oil is high in price, it makes sense to spend the extra money extracting through fracking.
Fact: when oil is low in price, it does not make sense to spend the extra money on oil that has been recovered through fracking, because that oil costs more than traditionally produced oil and companies are actually losing money on producing it.
Fact: when environmentalists and others successfully ban fracking in a community, they reduce the amount of oil that can be produced via fracking. This can have the effect of either increasing profits for other oil producers (by reducing the total oil available in the marketplace) or reducing the losses of the oil companies, when fracked oil becomes too expensive for the market. It will not have, and cannot have the effect of reducing profits to the oil companies when the price of oil is low and can only do that the price of oil is high, when the companies miss out on the extra production.

 

[PillarofBalance]

Trump is a jackass. The price of oil in this country is not controlled by politics, it is determined by a combination of production quotas (agreed by the OPEC members) and what the free market is willing to pay for the available oil. Hippies have nothing to do with oil quotas. Stopping fracking will drive up the price of oil, not down. If you don't understand that, you don't understand basic economics. This is the type of argument that people use to drive home whatever political point they find most convenient, rather than an opinion based on facts.

Fact: fracking is an expensive way to produce oil.
Fact: when oil is high in price, it makes sense to spend the extra money extracting through fracking.
Fact: when oil is low in price, it does not make sense to spend the extra money on oil that has been recovered through fracking, because that oil costs more than traditionally produced oil and companies are actually losing money on producing it.
Fact: when environmentalists and others successfully ban fracking in a community, they reduce the amount of oil that can be produced via fracking. This can have the effect of either increasing profits for other oil producers (by reducing the total oil available in the marketplace) or reducing the losses of the oil companies, when fracked oil becomes too expensive for the market. It will not have, and cannot have the effect of reducing profits to the oil companies when the price of oil is low and can only do that the price of oil is high, when the companies miss out on the extra production.

Woody did you really just say the price of oil is not controlled by politics?

Come on...

Cooooome ooooooonnnn....

 

[Turbolag]

Speaking of oil, the price drop concerns me.

The last time fuel prices dropped, not much later they reached a new high.

I'm wondering if its a smart idea to stock up on fuel NOW, and have some spare, incase the prices sky rocket to $5 a gallon.

Not saying this is gonna happen, just based on the trends in the past.

 

[biguglynewf]

I won't get into the politics...I already have enough grey hairs.....if things work out as the appear. Enjoy Cuba fellas. It is truly a special place.

the island is beautiful, the rum is great and plentiful, the cigars are excellent and the people are some of the most friendly and accommodating people on earth....really....there is something special about them. The diving is superb as well if that interests you.

food...well can be a little dicey at times.....but that might change too. I've not had issues with food in Cuba and have been there 5 or 6 times. Just stick with grilled meats and fish....steer clear of the hotdogs and such.....I'm not so sure they aren't horse and other such yummy treats.....but I digrees. Such a great country guys. Take advantage of this if and when you can.

 

[woodswise]

Woody did you really just say the price of oil is not controlled by politics?

Come on...

Cooooome ooooooonnnn....

I did. I admit maybe that was too strong. It is not directly controlled by politics. Opec sets the quotas for its members, then depending on how much oil they agree to produce, the market sets the price. So politics and politicians can indirectly affect the price, but not directly and not immediately.

 

[tommyguns2]

Woodwise is correct about oil prices. Governments can attempt to influence prices in the short term, but over the long haul, it's good old supply and demand.

The U.S. has dramatically changed the supply side of the equation (increasing U.S. production in the amount of an entire Kuwait) in the past 4 years. That, and Saudia Arabia refusing to reduce their production has caused supply to increase more than demand, and bingo! lower prices.

Regarding Cuba, I still feel for the Cuban people, who live in abject poverty, but I do look forward to going to Havana and doing some Latin dancing with that AWESOME cuban music!!

While I hope some of those American dollars dribble down to the masses, the more likely scenario are the U.S. dollars being gobbled up by the government cronies that control the entire tourism industry. Remember, in communist countries all people are equal, but a few people are more equal than others....

 

[JR Ewing]

Oil price is first and foremost controlled by OPEC. It's one commodity that is not truly "free market".

Speculation also factors in.

Supply and demand are also factors to a lesser extent.

Currency fluctuations also affect price somewhat.


China has done very well overall in recent years, but they also have a tendency to cook their books (I know this firsthand), manipulate their currency, and have poor quality controls. They're like the Wild West - virtually NO regulations or standards.

I think with Cuba or any other nation ruled by dictators who we cannot trust any further than we can throw them, we should hedge ourselves / protect the possible downside.

Chavez nationalized US oil company assets years ago, for instance. It would have been to our advantage at some point to have taken him out and put in someone more compliant. And the military operation in Iraq didn't turn out so well, and we made a huge mistake in at least not getting the oil if we had to go there like both sides wanted and deal with those ME nutjobs.

Ideally the rewards should well exceed the risks of doing business with such people, and our current govt leaders are weak and inexperienced when it comes to such things.

 

[JR Ewing]

http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-10-09/is-china-s-bubble-the-next-financial-crisis