Local Cuban Americans share their views after last week’s protests To better understand why it’s so effective, it would help to have a little background. The three pillars of the classic totalitarian model are: Advertisement 1) Total control of the information ecosystem (TV, radio, newspaper, internet). 2) Calibrated hunger (standing in long lines for hours for basic supplies to feed your family limits your bandwidth for planning and your appetite for a fight). 3) State terror imposed through a well-trained and armed security force (intended to dole out punishment that will dissuade and scare Cubans into an Orwellian mindset meant to extinguish the thought of any possibility of success).