Tear Down This Embargo (Editorial)

The Reagan Doctrine gets much of the credit for the death of the Soviet empire, but we think Larry Hagman made a valid argument when he said the TV show “Dallas” played a role.

“The opulence, the consumerism, the food, the cars — these things made them want more than their governments provided them,” said the actor who brought J.R. Ewing to life. Some of us in the ’80s called it the Blue Jeans and Rock n’ Roll Axiom: The best way to win over an oppressive political regime is to expose those who suffer under that regime to all the glorious freedoms of the West in the hope that they’ll force change from the bottom up.

Which brings us to Cuba, Arkansas and U.S. Sen. John Boozman, Republican. Boozman is sponsoring a bill that would enable Cuba to use credit to buy U.S. agricultural products, including Arkansas rice and chicken. And he’s among the many Arkansans calling for the end of the U.S. embargo against Cuba.

Take Our Poll: Should the U.S. end the embargo against Cuba? Let us know here.

“We’ve been doing the same thing decade after decade. It hasn’t worked; it’s time for a change. The good news is I think that Congress is actually starting to realize it,” Boozman said in April. “We trade with a lot worse people as far as human rights and every other aspect — the Chinese, the Vietnamese, the Venezuelans, the Saudis. I think we have to be consistent. If we could trade our ideas, our culture along with products, then that would change Cuba more than anything else.”

President Barack Obama last week announced the U.S. was formally re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba later this month and urged Congress to lift the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba. “We don’t have to be imprisoned by the past,” he said.

When John Boozman and Barack Obama agree, it’s time to listen.