No more free lunch in Raul Castro's Cuba

[Zorro]

Source: AFP

President Raul Castro is taking a bold gamble to ease communist Cuba's cash crunch by eliminating a costly government lunch program that feeds almost a third of the nation's population every workday.

The Americas' only one-party communist government, held afloat largely by support from its key ally Venezuela, is desperate to improve its budget outlook; the global economy is slack, and Havana is very hard pressed to secure international financing.

Raul Castro, 76, officially took over as Cuba's president in February 2008 after his brother, revolutionary icon Fidel Castro, stepped aside with health problems.

Though some wondered if Raul Castro would try to move Cuba's centralized economy toward more market elements, so far he has sought to boost efficiency and cut corruption and waste without reshaping the economic system.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20090927/ts_afp/cubapoliticseconomy_20090927182154

[Judi Lynn]

1. No more free lunch at Cuban cafeterias

No more free lunch at Cuban cafeterias
By ANDREA RODRIGUEZ (AP) – 2 days ago

HAVANA — The Cuban government plans to close free cafeterias in state ministries and instead give employees a stipend to buy food.

Under the program, designed to save money for Cuba's cash-strapped government, workers who ate free or for little cost in their government jobs instead will receive about 70 U.S. cents a day — a significant amount in a country where the average monthly salary is $19.

The pilot program announced Friday will start Oct. 1 for the ministries of Work, Finance, Commerce and Economy. If successful, it will be extended nationwide, the Communist Party daily Granma said.

The move represents a change in philosophy for the communist-run government, which dominates the island's economy and micromanages many aspects of Cubans' lives — from rationing food to determining who can own a car.

Cuba's always-fragile economy has been hit hard by the global financial crisis. About 3 million state employees eat at government cafeterias daily, according to the paper.

President Raul Castro, who took over from elder-brother Fidel in February 2008, has said he wants to streamline the country's stifling bureaucracy and put a measure of decision-making in the hands of citizens.

The newspaper insisted that the idea is not to take away a benefit, but rather "to open the doors to rationality and to savings, and to free the country from a weight that it cannot continue to bear."

A simple meal like a pork sandwich costs about 25 cents, while pasta bought at a street vendor runs about 50 cents — meaning some workers could save money, depending on what they eat.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i7MLOoDfvtUSY8ArJCyMnChWJelgD9AUHRQ80

[Zorro]

2. I thought the LBN rules were 4 paragraphs max from a linked article

Have the rules changed?

[Judi Lynn]

6. A sentence is not a paragraph. Nice try. n/t

[EFerrari]

7. There is a rule against posting a two day old story. n/t

[Billy Burnett]

4. No more free lunch. Instead, the gov is giving a raise that = more than the cost of lunch.

Those bastard commies. ;)

[raccoon]

9. Thanks for posting that! I wonder how much misinformation the MSM comes out with similar to this.

Lots, I'm sure.

[No Elephants]

12. Thanks for helping clear up the disinformation from a very misleading article.

[Psephos]

3. kinda says it all n/t

[No Elephants]

11. Really?

[Psephos]

14. That sounds like one of those mystery messages that float up in the window of a Magic Eight-Ball. ;)

[roody]

5. not clicking due to misinformation

"held afloat largely by support from its key ally Venezuela"

[Billy Burnett]

8. Even the headline is misinformation.

As per Judi's link in post #1.

[David__77]

10. I think the low-wage, high-benefit scenario isn't bad.

Social goods should be universally distributed and guaranteed.

[UTUSN]

13. "70 U.S. cents a day — a significant amount in a country where the average monthly salary is $19."

Talk about shooting self in the foot!1