News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Fri. Aug. 8, 2014: I am sure President Obama’s mind (what there is of it) is most of all on his upcoming palatial two-week summer vacation on the playground of the Super Rich Martha’s Vineyard. But still Obama took lots of time this week to heap attention on Africa.
Six years into his eight year Presidency, Obama has finally woken up to Africa and its potential in the 21st century. Better late than never!
This week, The White House has displayed the result of a massive effort to bring together the leaders of almost every country in Africa for a week-long business summit. Years after China planted its flag almost everywhere.
Still The Obama Administration deserves credit for doing so but here in Obama’s America that opens him to even more criticism.
What the African Business Summit displays is the glaring absence of any such effort on behalf of the Caribbean and Central America. This is yet one sadder story about the Obama Presidency.
How is it even conceivable that he does not pay the kind of attention so close to home that he is finally paying to far away Africa.
Maybe because Africa is larger but any difference in size is more than made up by distance. Or maybe because Obama’s rich friends now see the oil potential of Africa and want a part of it so here comes the neo-colonists.
What does or does not happen in this region right next to the United States as we all know has more direct impact in the U.S. than does Africa.
And if Chinese inroads into Africa has motivated Obama well hello, China is now just as deeply entrenched in the Caribbean and Central America.
Look at the situation. The reason young people in this new wave are fleeing Central America for the U.S. border is because of the very troubling situation in their own countries. There has never been any immigration problem with those south of the border who were or are doing well, abandoning their homes in a desperate search for better in a foreign land, and one with a language many of them do not speak. It’s those without hope who come.
As for the Caribbean, this is a region that is far underperforming its potential. A key reason is the lack of attention the U.S. provides the Caribbean except for matters of drugs and security.
Both the Caribbean and Central America need exactly the kind of support that is being given Africa this week and is now promised long into the future. Washington may even now be planning annual business development summits for African leaders and nations. And pledging large sums of $$$.
Keep in mind, it is not only hundreds of African officials and business people in Washington this week, but the Administration also summoned lots of American business leaders to come and meet with the Africans.
An important subset of this dichotomy between Africa and the Americas is the brain dead continued isolation of Cuba which is viewed by the American government in the same “terrorist” nation category as North Korea; which in any sane view is beyond imagination.
What is driving this isolation of Cuba for decades without end? The current Cuban government is no worse if not better than many of these African countries that are being warmly embraced by Obama this week. The different is, right wing former Cubans have been defining our policy by their large political contributions to Republicans and Democrats.
The U.S. policy toward Cuba speaks directly to the wider issue of the Caribbean very much and also Central America. On one level, the potential in Cuba is vast if the U.S. stopped its embargo of Cuba. Cuba could well prove the catalyst to business development in the entire region.
The problem is even more pernicious in setting the tone for the dismissive U.S. attitude toward the Caribbean and Central America. That policy sets the tone for the U.S. lacks of positive input far beyond one large island Cuba.
In other words, what there is with President Obama now and his entire Administration, is a negative mindset toward the Caribbean and Central America, reinforced and hardened by the nonsense toward Cuba.
Obviously they no longer have this kind of dismissive attitude toward Africa, if they ever did. Let’s strip away all the BS! It is nothing short of outrageous for the Obama Administration to make this kind of very positive effort on behalf of Africa and its economic development – which they certainly should do – but not at all on behalf of the Caribbean and Central America.
Guaranteed you will not see a comparable Business Summit for the Caribbean and Central America being announced by Obama. No way would he be inviting leaders and lots of the business people from the Caribbean and Central America to Washington this year for a week of high quality business meetings to meet and make deals with American business leaders and with a glitzy White House dinner for all of them with Obama and a pledge of billions of U.S. dollars for the Caribbean and Central American development. No way!
So while President Obama and his family Saturday head to their summer paradise of Martha’s Vineyard and the seaside mansion where they will be for two weeks of golf, sun and fun after the conclusion of this week’s African Business Summit …..
He will be fooling himself if he thinks he is doing himself or the U.S. any good ignoring the future of the Caribbean and Central America. In other words he is living and vacationing in a Fool’s Paradise.
