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Originally Posted by Dragonlich
But a lot of those aid offers were *also* for political reasons. Do you honestly believe that Cuba and Venezuela offered help because they're so nice and friendly? Hell no... it's purely political: "look at us helping the evil enemy, aren't we great?".
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BINGO
you hit the nail on the head dragonlich. the purpose of aid-giving (by national governments) is rarely practical, but just another component of the international geo-political dance. by extending his hand, castro is in a win-win situation. if the US accepts, then cuba will get a nice PR boost and the accomanying political pressure to warm relations. if the US declines, it can easily be construed as arrogance and/or an unwillingness to work "for the good of humanity" or some such slogan. both goverments know this (witness our community-relations dollars being spent on iranian earthquake victims), and use this tool to further their own agendas.
it may be sad, but that's the way the game is played. personally, i rely on NGOs and church-funds to do the bulk of real good-will efforts, the political realm is just a side-show to real compassion.