President Raul Castro

Cubans have a new vehicle for expressing opinions: letters to the editor of the ruling Communist Party's newspaper, Granma. Letters for and against reforms under consideration by new President Raul Castro were published by Granma. One writer called for the elimination of the dual currency system, a major source of complaint among Cubans, who are paid in Cuban pesos but must buy many consumer goods using Cuba's hard-currency convertible pesos worth 24 times more. Publication of the letters was a novelty in a country where the press is controlled by a one-party state that allows no independent media and has a record of suppressing dissent.

Cuba has ordered all state enterprises to adopt "extreme measures" to cut energy use through the end of the year in hopes of avoiding the dreaded blackouts that plagued the country after the 1991 collapse of its then-leading ally, the Soviet Union. Government officials have been warned that the island is facing a "critical" energy shortage that requires the closing of nonessential factories and workshops and the shutting down of air conditioners and refrigerators not needed to preserve food and medicine, according to Reuters.

Once again, Cuba was absent from the Summit of the Americas. Yet the communist nation might as well have attended the gathering last weekend in Cartagena, Colombia, because it took center stage, despite U.S. efforts to focus on other issues. Ecuador's president refused to attend the summit in protest of Cuba's exclusion. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Brazil's Dilma Rouseff, both moderates rather than left-wingers, said there should be no more Summits of the Americas without Cuba.

Fidel Castro said Wednesday that his brother President Raul Castro was right to adopt a "dignified silence" over a Moscow newspaper report that Russia may refuel nuclear bombers on the island, and said Cuba doesn't owe Washington any explanation about the report.

The highest-level meeting of U.S. and Cuban officials in Havana in years was overshadowed Saturday by a flourish of recriminations reminiscent of the Cold War-era tensions that have long polarized the two nations. The talks Friday in Havana focused on immigration issues, including visas and repatriation, part of a dialogue resumed in July after a six-year suspension. Both governments labeled the talks as positive. But on Saturday, Cuba scolded the U.S. officials, who used their visit to meet with dissidents.

An estimated 100,000 cheering loyalists crammed a plaza here as acting President Raul Castro presided for the first time over ceremonies marking the start of the Cuban Revolution. In a one-hour speech, Castro acknowledged that the economy has failed to meet the needs of working people and signaled the need for unspecified "structural changes." "No one country can afford to spend more than what they have," he said during a ceremony peppered with praise for his convalescing older brother, Fidel.

Last month, Cuba opened its doors a little wider. President Raul Castro announced that Cuban citizens would no longer need to obtain notoriously hard to get exit permits to leave the country; just a passport. Many Cubans are understandably skeptical of Castro's action. No doubt some Cubans will still be denied passports, and there are still many restrictions on travel. Athletes, musicians and members of the military, for example, still have to obtain special permission from big brother (or, in this case, little brother, Raul)

Cuba's announcement that it will lay off half a million state employees, about 10% of the workforce, is a dramatic shift for the communist government as it urgently tries to salvage the flailing economy. The plan, which is scheduled to launch in full force next month, calls for workers to move into a small but soon-to-expand private sector of mostly mom-and-pop businesses, such as barber shops, B&Bs and vegetable farms. The government has defined 124 jobs that citizens can take on as "self-employed" businesspeople, allowing them to pocket profits but also requiring them to pay taxes.

SANTIAGO, Cuba — In a historic trip to Cuba on Monday, Pope Benedict XVI reached out to island residents and exiles alike, urging Cubans to "build a renewed and open society, a better society. " Benedict became only the second pontiff to travel to Cuba, a nation where the Roman Catholic Church has gradually gained ground as the communist government has been forced to reform many of its policies. Before his arrival, Benedict criticized Cuba's Marxism as an obsolete model in need of change.

Last week, Cuban President Raul Castro endorsed sweeping economic reforms, proposed term limits for government and Communist Party officials, and conceded that the party's failure to groom a new generation of leaders will make it harder to find a successor. The proposed reforms could usher in major changes. For the first time since the 1959 revolution, the government would allow Cubans to own and sell houses and cars. Taxis, barbershops, restaurants and other privately run businesses would be allowed to expand and hire workers.