Leopoldo Lopez calls for unity to a Venezuela that is on a brink of collapsing

Venezuelan political leader Leopoldo Lopez, a husband and a father of two who has been imprisoned by the Maduro regime since February 18, 2013 is calling on the Venezuelan people to stand united and exercise their rights to peaceful protests as it is permitted by the Venezuelan Bolivarian Constitution.  Leopoldo Lopez was the victim of political persecution by the late president Chavez, and the persecution has systematically been continued by Nicolas Maduro.

The falling of oil prices brings a different panorama for Venezuela and perhaps for Leopoldo Lopez, and the dozens students, political prisoners, and the Maduro regime.  In a country where not only human rights are missing but also there is a lack food, a lack of products and above all a lack of security, the Maduro regime knows that their  time in power is threatened by Maduro’s inability to solve Venezuelan’s unsustainable economy.

Perhaps the Leopoldo call for unity and to stand for Venezuelan freedom will resonate today more than ever with the Venezuelan people, tired of hoping for peace and prosperity. 

Response: "With Cuba, Nothing Can Be Simple"

I recently read an article called "With Cuba nothing can be simple" http://time.com/3646803/cuba-decision/ written by Jean-Paul Renaud  which I found fascinating, even though his personal journey is very different from that of many of my other Cuban friends'. These men and women fought the Castro regime, and paid with their freedom.  For them, the U.S. negotiations with a brutal dictator is  not an option. 

There is a dilemma on both sides of the embargo lift - each completely justified.  For those who oppose lifting the embargo their argument is: How can you move forward without forgetting the pain and anguish, the humiliation, the torture and death that the Cubans have gone through, and are still going through under the Castro regime? 

For those who support lifting the embargo: Why not to move forward and put and end to this nightmare created by the Castro regime?  As the author said, "with Cuba nothing can be simple”  is very true, but I think that the duty of the Cuban people is to make sure that the Cuban Holocaust is NEVER forgotten.