Jan 07 Photo essay: The bizarre, brilliant and useful inventions of Cuban DIY engineers By Travis Daub, Jenny Marder Long walled off from world trade and modern technology, Cuba has developed a robust culture of DIY engineers who turn household items into useful inventions. Water pump motors propel bicycles, clothes dryers are repurposed into coconut shredders. Cuban artist Ernesto… Continue reading
Jan 07 Obama starts 2015 on an upswing, but can it last? By Julie Pace, Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama’s approval rating is creeping upward. The economy is growing. And a flurry of aggressive executive actions on domestic and foreign policy have energized the West Wing. Continue reading
Dec 30 Watch 8:24 U.S. diplomat: No illusions about Cuba’s willingness to allow freedoms By PBS News Hour Continue watching
Dec 30 Why Republicans should thank Obama for opening up Cuba By George C. Lodge George Cabot Lodge asks why Republicans want to deny the Cuban people the better life that he predicts will come with U.S. investment in their country and deny American business new opportunities. Continue reading
Dec 25 Watch 5:15 News Wrap: Pope Francis laments suffering from Ebola, terrorism at Christmas By PBS News Hour In our news wrap Thursday, Pope Francis decried the persecution of Christians and others by the Islamic State and grieved the suffering of those stricken by Ebola or affected by war or terrorism in his Christmas Day remarks at the… Continue watching
Dec 24 U.S. to pay Alan Gross $3.2 million after 5 years in Cuban jail By Douglass K. Daniel, Associated Press WASHINGTON — A former subcontractor freed last week after five years in a Cuban jail will receive $3.2 million from the federal government as part of a settlement with the Maryland-based company that employed him at the time of his… Continue reading
Dec 23 Watch 7:00 Will American baseball get more Cuban imports? By PBS News Hour How will opening the door to normal relations with Cuba affect the world of professional baseball, a game that so many Cubans love? Hari Sreenivasan speaks with Jim Litke of the Associated Press to understand the possible implications. Continue watching
Dec 21 Obama: Now is the time for US to seize opportunities in Cuba By Associated Press WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama said his plan to normalize relations with Cuba gives the U.S. a chance to influence events at an important moment of change for the communist nation, and he brushed off critics who accuse him of… Continue reading
Dec 19 Watch 12:50 Shields and Brooks on reconciling with Cuba, Sony censorship By PBS News Hour Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week’s news, including the choice to censor a Hollywood film about the assassination of Kim Jong-un, President Obama’s move to renew U.S. ties… Continue watching
Dec 19 Watch 3:23 Obama closes 2014 with remarks on Cuba, North Korea By PBS News Hour In a year-end news conference, President Obama discussed reestablishing ties with Cuba, the North Korean cyber-attack against Sony Pictures and race relations in America. Judy Woodruff reports. Continue watching