A day using money in Cuba • Hacker News Board

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#81

Post by em-bee » Tue, May 26, 2020, 1:51 AM UTC

empath75 wrote: post #67

fennecfoxen wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Random over-generosity is not a particularly effective charity pattern. If you feel that Hacker News denizens like ourselves happen to have too much money, there are a variety of organizations which can transmit sums of money to those in need: not just a one-time $15 at random with a special tax diverted to prop up the Cuban government, but on a recurring basis, every month, as part of a program to help eliminate wor…

Who cares if it’s an effective form of charity. It’s nothing for you and a big deal for that person. Not everything needs to be minimaxed to death. Same deal with haggling in the developing world. It’s just a gross thing to do when there is a big wealth inequality.

but it's also what creates the expectation that visitors have a lot of money and it attracts the wrong kind of people. they do not know that the money you give them is nothing for you.

besides, $15 isn't exactly nothing for me either. i would quickly blow my travel budget if i were that generous.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#82

Post by ceejayoz » Tue, May 26, 2020, 1:52 AM UTC

WalterBright wrote: post #8

The US had an official dual currency from 1914 to 1933. There were gold dollars, and fiat (inflated) dollars. There was an official, fixed exchange rate between the two. The two started out at parity in 1914, but things diverged steadily until in 1929 a gold dollar was worth 85% more than a fiat dollar. Like all such systems where the relative values float but there's an official exchange rate, this eventually collap…

> We have a dual currency today - when you pay a "convenience fee" for using a credit card instead of check or cash, that's what is going on (as the credit card taker gets charged 3% for those transactions, and passes it on to the credit card user).

Barring a few gas stations that give a cash discount, that's very much not the way it works. It's the cash users getting screwed; they pay the same price as credit card users, but they don't get the rewards you'd get as a credit card user (I get 2-5% cash back on virtually any purchase, for example).

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#83

Post by acjohnson55 » Tue, May 26, 2020, 1:53 AM UTC

VWWHFSfQ wrote: post #74

riffic wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> most of the island is mired in poverty the elephant in the room is the 60 year old embargo and its third-rail effect on American politics.

The actual elephant in the room is 60 years of brutal communist dictatorship.

The brutal communist dictatorship that the embargo has helped to further entrench. Simple fact is, all these years later, both exist.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#84

Post by acjohnson55 » Tue, May 26, 2020, 1:55 AM UTC

cptaj wrote: post #80

VWWHFSfQ wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The actual elephant in the room is 60 years of brutal communist dictatorship.

This right here. Cuba is under a DICTATORSHIP. Stop defending the damn thing. The embargo is NOT the reason they're poor. Ask any cuban. But PLEASE if you're not going to bother to listen to the people who actually live in the place, just be kind and shut up. Your support literally kills people over there.

Many Cubans acknowledge that both pieces have resulted in the misery of regular people. They're not at all naive about their government or the US's policies towards them.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#85

Post by acjohnson55 » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:00 AM UTC

empath75 wrote: post #67

fennecfoxen wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Random over-generosity is not a particularly effective charity pattern. If you feel that Hacker News denizens like ourselves happen to have too much money, there are a variety of organizations which can transmit sums of money to those in need: not just a one-time $15 at random with a special tax diverted to prop up the Cuban government, but on a recurring basis, every month, as part of a program to help eliminate wor…

Who cares if it’s an effective form of charity. It’s nothing for you and a big deal for that person. Not everything needs to be minimaxed to death. Same deal with haggling in the developing world. It’s just a gross thing to do when there is a big wealth inequality.

On the haggling part, there are places where it's culturally insensitive not to haggle. I find that super irritating as a person who does not enjoy playing the game.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#86

Post by vkou » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:00 AM UTC

m0zg wrote: post #48

vkou wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't our current economic system be described as rule by those who impose dog-eat-dog capitalism on others, but do not live in it themselves? I think the common factor is that elites always find a way to insulate themselves from the problems of the plebs, including the ones that they have created.

I suppose you could. The difference is, you can't find yourself in a labor camp in Siberia for the crime of having some foreign currency on you.

No, just for doing business with an embargoed country. There's a few other differences too, but why are we changing the subject? This subthread was after all, talking about elite hypocrisy.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#87

Post by kirrent » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:02 AM UTC

WalterBright wrote: post #8

The US had an official dual currency from 1914 to 1933. There were gold dollars, and fiat (inflated) dollars. There was an official, fixed exchange rate between the two. The two started out at parity in 1914, but things diverged steadily until in 1929 a gold dollar was worth 85% more than a fiat dollar. Like all such systems where the relative values float but there's an official exchange rate, this eventually collap…

The name for this effect where people try to hoard the more valuable currency is Gresham's law: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gresham%27s_law

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#88

Post by ethbro » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:04 AM UTC

cptaj wrote: post #80

VWWHFSfQ wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The actual elephant in the room is 60 years of brutal communist dictatorship.

This right here. Cuba is under a DICTATORSHIP. Stop defending the damn thing. The embargo is NOT the reason they're poor. Ask any cuban. But PLEASE if you're not going to bother to listen to the people who actually live in the place, just be kind and shut up. Your support literally kills people over there.

I mean, the US embargo is a big cause of why they're poor. But the dictatorship is the cause of that embargo.

If Cuba could trade freely with the US, their economy would be better. If Cuba were under a more free government, their economy would be better: also, they wouldn't be under a US embargo, and their economy would be even better.

Whether an ideological stance is worth the economic collateral damage is a value judgement.

But you can't say the embargo is not causal of Cuban poverty.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#89

Post by thiagoharry » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:12 AM UTC

pwned1 wrote: post #79

riffic wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> most of the island is mired in poverty the elephant in the room is the 60 year old embargo and its third-rail effect on American politics.

They can trade with the rest of the world, right?

Not exactly. Theres restrictions and penalties also for companies which trades with them and even for ships. They also cant use dollars in the trade.

Re: A day using money in Cuba

#90

Post by pmiller2 » Tue, May 26, 2020, 2:12 AM UTC

North Korea actually has 3 versions of their currency: one for North Koreans, one for “socialist” visitors, and one for “capitalist” visitors. They’re distinguished by having either 0, 1, or 2 stars on the coins, or different color seals on the notes. I don’t know how this has affected the economy of North Korea, but it sure is interesting.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_won