Pope to Visit Cuba

Regarding your front-page photo, “A Historic Handshake,” Nov. 20, between Pope John Paul II and Fidel Castro: I would like to know if the pope plans to shake hands with the thousands of political prisoners, incarcerated for their beliefs, in Castro’s gulags. Now, that would be historic.

JUAN CARLOS COTO

Burbank

Tomorrow’s news: The pope comes to Cuba. Here’s why: Castro is trying to break the U.S. embargo. As punishment to Castro, we have denied access to food. Cubans have developed diseases found in concentration camps, such as poor vision and weakness.

Americans also know access denial. Thirty-five million fertile acres have been withdrawn from cultivation: too much corn. Billions have been paid to dairymen to slaughter millions of their cows: too much milk. Access denial is the scandal of this century.

JOHN JACKSON

Santa Monica

In describing the reason why Israel cannot be expected to return to its 1967 borders, Henry Kissinger states that “no country could [leave] all its major cities within mortar range of the enemy” (Opinion, Nov. 17). Does this mean that Kissinger favors dismantling the U.S. base at Guantanamo, Cuba? Guantanamo commands several Cuban cities and is not merely adjacent to Cuban soil, but actually on Cuban soil--a situation that no country can be expected to tolerate according to Kissinger. When can we expect the withdrawal, Henry?

THOMAS DOBRZENIECKI

Costa Mesa