America’s rivalry with Cuba was once a bitter battle of ideas. When a 20-something Fidel Castro electrified his supporters with visions of a bright socialist future, he wasn’t bluffing. When John F. Kennedy said that the Cuban revolution was “incompatible with the principles and objectives of the Inter-American system,” he meant it. People on both sides defended these ideas around the world. Cuba supported uprisings in Bolivia, Colombia, Guatemala, the Congo, and elsewhere. It sent thousands of