What if an army of compassion would enlist to bring in medicine or milk?  Cubans would be helped, and such an approach would also contribute to the building of civil society. Churches and other non-governmental organizations that now distribute milk are learning to take action outside of government control by working with each other and developing new connections in their communities. In essence, they are preparing for a democratic transition in Cuba, helping new centers of governance to emerge alongside the tottering offices of the old.

        The United States now offers humanitarian visas to those bringing in desperately needed items; that opportunity should be greatly advertised and promoted. The travel costs are not high: a $50 Miami airport tax (which the U.S. government could arrange to waive for those bringing in supplies), a $25 Havana airport tax, and a ticket costing $225 from Miami.

        One small but energetic group, Evangelical Christian Outreach for Cuba (ECHO-Cuba), has two people once a week each bringing in 20 pounds of powdered milk packets directly from Miami; that?s what I brought in on my trip.  Those who fly through Jamaica or the Bahamas can bring in 120 pounds of packets. What if more Americans, traveling on humanitarian licenses, came to Cuba until an army of compassion was regularly moving in and out?

        Fidel Castro?s favorite slogan these days is Un mundo mejor es possible (a better world is possible). Indeed it is, if a compassionate conservative alternative to his regime emerges.