How to handle Cuba

Re “Obama calls for new start with Cuba,” April 18

It is interesting to note that President Obama never mentioned nor hinted at the need for the Cuban government to make reparations and indemnify U.S. citizens and corporations whose properties were summarily confiscated by the Fidel Castro regime. The same holds for those who are in favor of lifting the embargo and resuming relations with Cuba. How can there possibly be a “new start” unless this issue is resolved?

I hope our president does the right thing and makes this point a priority in any future talks with Cuba.

Jason M. Levi

Northridge

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As a naturalized U.S. citizen, our chaotic immigration system is of interest to me. Because Obama has eased restrictions on money remittances and traveling to Cuba, I believe he should end the special immigration privileges afforded to Cubans arriving in this country. It is time to ask that Cubans take a place in line and be subjected to all the requirements imposed on other immigrants to the U.S.

For all his intelligence, Obama is naive if he thinks Raul and Fidel Castro will play fair. Their only concern is the flow of American money into their coffers.

Elsita Smith

Santa Barbara

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Re “Cuba’s cage,” Opinion, April 15

The illustration accompanying William Ratliff’s Op-Ed article was right on point. Cuba is indeed a cage, created by Fidel Castro’s tyranny over the last 50 years.

But not one word was written about this by Ratliff. It seems that Cuba’s political prisoners have never been the darling of the media or leftist intellectuals, as Nelson Mandela and Natan Sharansky used to be. Instead, we get the same old rant about those evil Cuban exiles, still living in the past and daring to make noise about their lost homeland.

Valia Bello

Burbank