ESSAY & DVD REVIEW:
CHE – Revolutionary to the Bone
Revolution is a naughty word here in the United States. Defined as, (n) revolution (a drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving) or (n) revolution (the overthrow of a government by those who are governed), it’s mere mention send turbulent shudders through the empty spinal cavities of the status quo conservatives.  For those with established wealth and power, thoughts, words or actions implying revolution are demonized,  minimized and their leaders are almost always institionalized as threats to the state and with good reason. As the world witnessed with the rise and fall of its most pragmatic radical, Ernesto “Che” Guevara, and the word revolution have become synonymous. Indeed, since Guevera’s death in 1967, despite the massive cult appeal, there has few TRUE movies that has illustrated Guevara’s passion, practice, leadership, armed insurrection that made him (in)famous the world over. The Oscars for 2010 clearly  ignore the outstanding performance of Beneciao Del Toro.
Benicio Del Toro, with an uncanny resemblance, gave one of the most brilliant,  awe-inspiring performance of his career, personifying Che’s passion and practice of revolution, while humanizing, without canonizing the subject matter.
         The first DVD opens with where The Motorcycle Diaries leave off, giving us a picture of Che Guevera and his successful revolution with Fidel Castro in Cuba. Che (Del Toro) and Castro (Demián Bichir) discuss going to Cuba, head out train rebels, set up a clinic, a school and printing press. Virtually creating a jungle community, We see how Guevara becomes not only the moral authority of the movement, but Castro’s philosophical nerve center.
 Peasants were “not to be messed with” commands Guevara as he executes renegades who have betray Fidel Castro’s trust by shaking down villages and raping local teen-agers. We see many times how Del Toro personifies, ever so splendidly, Che’s brutality and fairness. Guevara recognizes h, Castro and the uprising are nothing without popular support and wins the country over with his charisma, knowledge and humanity.
Bouncing back and forth between the revolt and post revolt, we see Che in black and white footage during famous U.N address. Del Toro is magnificent as Guevara determined energy and repugnance is delivered with fire and brimstone to the absent U.S delegation and the Latin American states, he deems as “agents and puppets” of “imperialist America”.
The second DVD, spotlights Che’s export of Cuban Communist revolt to the jungles of Bolivia. Leaving his wife and children, Castro christens his journey incognito where he is welcomed initially with open arms by the communist rebels. The welcome soon cools Che’s reds split with the faction leader, Mario Monje (Lou Diamond Phillips), thus weakening the anti-government movement and dooming the revolt before it gains serious momentum. Through this second half, we watch as Del Toro takes us through the same, fair and humane practices toward the local folk as he had done in Cuba, only this time there is a joker in the deck...the CIA.
Determined not to allow another Castro-like revolution to occur in Bolivia, U.S. backed, CIA trained divisions are painstakingly molded into crack “anti-guerilla” vanguard as American military advisors boast of “similar successful units” in Vietnam. History and hindsight tells us the CIA was 1 and 1 in the anti-communist business during those crazy sixties.
Education – During the Cuban revolution, Guevara set up schools, hospitals and a printing press in the remote jungles, teaching illiterate peasants to read and write.
“Those who cannot read or write are easily deceived.” Guevara proclaimed.
Advocates for the poor are few and far in-between these days. Witnessing the non-stop media beatings taken by John Edwards, gives us proof positive that advocates of the poor in the United States are as doomed as Che Guevara. Not that Edwards had done anything any other politician had done. It was the mere fact that he was a voice where there should be no voice. In the eyes of long established wealth he should be silenced, and so he was.
From watching this film, I can see why Guevara was respected, admired feared and hunted. Del Toro played Che with overwhelming and astonishing charisma that Guevara was known for.
            My friend Rocko joined us on Saturday night for what turned out to be our “Che Guevara Weekend”. Rocko was oblivious as to who Che was or the Cuban revolution, only that we were taught to hate the Cubans, a typical American response. Throughout the movie, we were enthralled, glued to the spectacle of Che Guevara’s dazzling revolt unfolding before us.

EDUCATION –
“Those who cannot read or write are easily deceived.” ~ Che Guevara.
As more and more schools are disappearing here in Los Angeles, and with skyrocketing tuitions, Guevara’s proclamation rings clear. Without education, there are no protests or revolts, no changes or social advancements. Historically, all successful revolutions are the brainchildren of a bohemian, well-educated and well-to-do aristocracy who obsess in overthrowing the establishment who gave them the funding to do so. Lenin, Robespierre, Guevara Washington were all academics, far-sighted and bright enough to know when entire masses of people were getting screwed by a select few.

POVERTY -
Born from well-educated Argentinean aristocracy, young Ernesto Guevara had full access to privilege. His travels throughout South America provided a front row view of dehumanizing poverty and the enormous chasm between wealth and squalor.
As I witnessed the unrelenting attacks upon former senator and vice-presidential candidate, John Edwards, I realized he had not done anything any other politician had done. He had committed adultery and fathered a child while his cancer stricken wife had undergone cancer treatments. Newt Gingritch had done virtually, the exact same thing ten years early. But what had made Edwards such an appealing target were his outspoken views that favored the poor. In the eyes of American wealth and inherited privilege, Edwards has become a leper of politics and persona non-gratis regarding any presidential possibilities in the near or distant future.

RELIGION – A Handy Tool for politics
   Anyone who knows me would consider me on the most capitalistic and entrepreneurial individuals they have ever met. Having said that, if I were to make the suggestion...
   “Rich people should give half of everything they make to the poor.”
I would be labeled a “socialist” or a “communist” when in fact I was merely quoting Jesus Christ from the book of Mathew in the Bible. Che Guevara also saw this particular paradox as the church and religion were used to “convert” populations to Christianity, inflict Holy wars and weaken science, but not to enforce fair treatment for the lower classes. As history becomes clear to many, interpretation of religion as a whole has been to the advantage of those who can utilize it to their own advantage.

CAPITALISM – Was Che Guevara right?
         In a country mired in corporate welfare such as farm subsidies, tax loopholes, tax relief, tax shelters, tax cuts, deregulation, and the ultimate insult to the common American citizen, the Wall Street BAILOUTS, most see our evolution of capitalism as skewed toward the benefit of a very few (.2% own 50% of the world’s wealth) .It’s not surprising that around 50% of America debates itself on the virtues of Capitalism vs. Socialism.
         Given those predetermined figures and the two most foremost models of economic failure  in 1929 & 2008,  capitalism in its present form of greed and corruption is doomed to collapse an average of 50 to 70 years or so. Fortunately for America, though its economic engine failed miserably, the constitution beliefs and frameworks held firm during both tradgedies that ravaged millions of families’ life savings and investments.
         If time and tenure are any indicators or gauges of success, Che’s Cuban Revolution still stands ominously visible within the Western hemisphere. With Castro’s brother Raul, firmly in control today, Communist Cuba stubbornly stands defiant against American resentments and its threats, thumbing it’s nose at it and all “imperialistic powers”.
If the regime was clearly meant to fall, it was Che Guevar who knew that in order for ANY government to stand, it required the WILL and consent of the people it governs. Without this popular support, the regime becomes vulnerable and doomed like Saigon in ’75 or Kabul in ’94.
CJ Davidson

Luscious Fragrances - Hawai'i.com

The Magickal Mind of Rocko Star Rocko's myspace photo album