Obama in Cuba

[whell]

Presidential visits to any foreign country are heavily scripted, so the location and timing of this picture was no doubt placed on Obama's visit to Cuba following careful consideration and forethought.



So, what is the takeaway from a US President allowing is picture to be taken in front of the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana with the visage of el Che in the background?

[Boreas]

Why, he's a Marxist revolutionary, of course. Just like the Right Wing blowhards have been saying for 8 years!

[bobabode]

Doesn't bother me in the slightest. In fact, if it makes the RW nippleheads over at Fox News lose their minds? It's a good day.

[Boreas]

[nailer]

Recognizing that Ernesto is a Cuban hero?

[Tom Joad]

Originally Posted by whell

Presidential visits to any foreign country are heavily scripted, so the location and timing of this picture was no doubt placed on Obama's visit to Cuba following careful consideration and forethought.



So, what is the takeaway from a US President allowing is picture to be taken in front of the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana with the visage of el Che in the background?

Why not?

Che was awesome.

A real Hero of the common people.

[whell]

Originally Posted by Tom Joad

Why not?

Che was awesome.

A real Hero of the common people.

Well, I figured someone that created the Cuban labor camp system, who helped replace one miserable police state with another, and who had folks shot who disagreed with him was someone that you'd think was "awesome".

[Dondilion]

Originally Posted by whell

Well, I figured someone that created the Cuban labor camp system, who helped replace one miserable police state with another, and who had folks shot who disagreed with him was someone that you'd think was "awesome".

Che has become a fashion statement.

[Boreas]

Originally Posted by Dondilion

Che has become a fashion statement.

Which is precisely what was intended.

[Boreas]

Originally Posted by whell

Well, I figured someone that created the Cuban labor camp system, who helped replace one miserable police state with another, and who had folks shot who disagreed with him was someone that you'd think was "awesome".

The truth is that Che was a great and charismatic revolutionary fighter but far too nuts to work in the government. Basically, Fidel and Raoul knew early on that they needed to get rid of him but he was too popular to purge. The solution they hit on was to give him tasks at which he would both chafe and fail, then convince him to leave Cuba and spread the revolution to other parts of the world.

So, the Cuban government came out the winners. They got rid of a seriously loose cannon (who also happened to smell very bad), spread the fame of the Cuban revolution around the world and, with his eventual death, had a martyr around which build the cult of Che.