Why did the CIA have Che Guevara killed?

[swing_voter]

"I know you've come to kill me. Shoot, coward! You are only going to kill a man!" Terán hesitated, then pointed his self-loading M2 carbine[238] at Guevara and opened fire, hitting him in the arms and legs.[239] Then, as Guevara writhed on the ground, apparently biting one of his wrists to avoid crying out, Terán fired another burst, fatally wounding him in the chest. Guevara was pronounced dead at 1:10 pm local time according to Rodríguez.[239] In all, Guevara was shot nine times by Terán. This included five times in his legs, once in the right shoulder and arm, and once in the chest and throat.[233]

Che Guevara - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Lot's of propaganda in the Wikipedia article. Looks like the Cubans have gone over it.

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[RetiredUSN]

The proper way for that animal to die.

 

[Monica33]

As good a summary position as is required .

Quite simply, Che Guevara was attempting to export Cuba's revolution, and this was contrary to American interests in the Western Hemisphere. The Cold War was a series of proxy wars and undercover struggles for dominance between the US and the USSR.
If the Soviets (and the Cubans, who occasionally acted independently from their Russian patrons) managed to foment a successful communist revolution in a country, resulting in a new Soviet client state, that would have been viewed as a clear victory for them (and therefore a defeat for the US).

Given the incredibly high priority that this competition was given by US Cold War presidents (regardless of their party), other factors fell by the wayside. If a Latin American ruler claimed to be "anti-communist," well then, he was "our" guy, regardless of how unsavory or corrupt he might be. The wisdom of this strategy, to say nothing of its morality, is of course highly controversial in retrospect.

Che was a "rock star" among left-leaning activists throughout the Americas and beyond. But his popularity was resented by Fidel Castro, who decided it would be best to have Che out of Cuba. "Export the revolution!" he was told, even though in the eyes of the Soviet leadership, who were orthodox Marxist-Leninists, none of the target nations were yet "ripe" for revolution.

So he ended up in Bolivia, trying (without much success) to convince Bolivian Indians to rise up against the government. This somewhat farcical attempt ended with his betrayal, ambush and death. I doubt Fidel shed many tears over this, as it created an extremely popular and useful martyr who could no longer pose a threat to his rule.
It is widely known that one of Che's fingers was cut off after his death (to provide proof of his identity in case anyone claimed his death was a hoax). That finger currently resides somewhere in CIA Headquarters.

 

[Jredbaron96]

If I had to take a shot in the dark, I'm guessing they didn't like him.

 

[Felis Leo]

"I know you've come to kill me. Shoot, coward! You are only going to kill a man!" Terán hesitated, then pointed his self-loading M2 carbine[238] at Guevara and opened fire, hitting him in the arms and legs.[239] Then, as Guevara writhed on the ground, apparently biting one of his wrists to avoid crying out, Terán fired another burst, fatally wounding him in the chest. Guevara was pronounced dead at 1:10 pm local time according to Rodríguez.[239] In all, Guevara was shot nine times by Terán. This included five times in his legs, once in the right shoulder and arm, and once in the chest and throat.[233]

Che Guevara - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Lot's of propaganda in the Wikipedia article. Looks like the Cubans have gone over it.

.

Because he was a relatively effective Communist paramilitary agitator.

 

[swing_voter]

As good a summary position as is required .

Quite simply, Che Guevara was attempting to export Cuba's revolution, and this was contrary to American interests in the Western Hemisphere. The Cold War was a series of proxy wars and undercover struggles for dominance between the US and the USSR.
If the Soviets (and the Cubans, who occasionally acted independently from their Russian patrons) managed to foment a successful communist revolution in a country, resulting in a new Soviet client state, that would have been viewed as a clear victory for them (and therefore a defeat for the US).

Given the incredibly high priority that this competition was given by US Cold War presidents (regardless of their party), other factors fell by the wayside. If a Latin American ruler claimed to be "anti-communist," well then, he was "our" guy, regardless of how unsavory or corrupt he might be. The wisdom of this strategy, to say nothing of its morality, is of course highly controversial in retrospect.

Che was a "rock star" among left-leaning activists throughout the Americas and beyond. But his popularity was resented by Fidel Castro, who decided it would be best to have Che out of Cuba. "Export the revolution!" he was told, even though in the eyes of the Soviet leadership, who were orthodox Marxist-Leninists, none of the target nations were yet "ripe" for revolution.

So he ended up in Bolivia, trying (without much success) to convince Bolivian Indians to rise up against the government. This somewhat farcical attempt ended with his betrayal, ambush and death. I doubt Fidel shed many tears over this, as it created an extremely popular and useful martyr who could no longer pose a threat to his rule.
It is widely known that one of Che's fingers was cut off after his death (to provide proof of his identity in case anyone claimed his death was a hoax). That finger currently resides somewhere in CIA Headquarters.

I think there is a lot of true to Fidel wanting Che dead.

Fidel wanted the limelight for Fidel. Che was in the way.


Who knows? The Cubans might've dropped a dime on Che, themselves.


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[calamity]

"I know you've come to kill me. Shoot, coward! You are only going to kill a man!" Terán hesitated, then pointed his self-loading M2 carbine[238] at Guevara and opened fire, hitting him in the arms and legs.[239] Then, as Guevara writhed on the ground, apparently biting one of his wrists to avoid crying out, Terán fired another burst, fatally wounding him in the chest. Guevara was pronounced dead at 1:10 pm local time according to Rodríguez.[239] In all, Guevara was shot nine times by Terán. This included five times in his legs, once in the right shoulder and arm, and once in the chest and throat.[233]

Che Guevara - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Lot's of propaganda in the Wikipedia article. Looks like the Cubans have gone over it.

.

Throughout most of the 20th century the US did everything in its power to suppress left wing populism, most of illegal; all of it unethical.

 

[swing_voter]

Throughout most of the 20th century the US did everything in its power to suppress left wing populism, most of illegal; all of it unethical.

It's war.

How is it illegal?


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[Nickyjo]

It's war.

How is it illegal?


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Supporting government by death squad and torture is wrong, morally. Overthrowing democratic governments to replace them with such governments, as we did in Guatemala in 1954 and Chile in 1973 is wrong legally. Neither Guatemala’s nor Chile’s government (or DR’s, or Grenada’s or Nicaragua’s or for that matter Vietnam’s) posed a threat to the US. Our own paranoia was the problem.

 

[calamity]

It's war.

How is it illegal?


.

Undeclared wars are illegal.

 

[Nickyjo]

Undeclared wars are illegal.

You don’t understand. Nazi Germany gets the courtesy of a war declaration. Countries with brown people like Nicaragua don’t merit that.

 

[venice_ca]

The CIA overthrew the democratically-elected government of Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala to help United Fruit Company avoid complying with the new laws that were instituted in that country. This became the model for US intervention in Central and South America after WW2 -- keeping countries safe for US business interests. Low taxes, no regulations, little worker protection -- we all know the drill.

 

[Nickyjo]

The CIA overthrew the democratically-elected government of Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala to help United Fruit Company avoid complying with the new laws that were instituted in that country. This became the model for US intervention in Central and South America after WW2 -- keeping countries safe for US business interests. Low taxes, no regulations, little worker protection -- we all know the drill.

Actually, too few of us know the drill, as Americans are generally ignorant of th US role in the region. Years ago, one item was telling: when Jimmy Carter proclaimed a human rights program that not only might criticize communist governments, but also right-wing countries in the US camp, one South American journal reacted with cynical rejection of the policy. They spoke of the history of the US in the region, and assumed that Carter was attempting to recover a moral high ground after the scandals of Watergate and Vietnam, not believing that a US administration could really care about human rights.

 

[calamity]

Actually, too few of us know the drill, as Americans are generally ignorant of th US role in the region. Years ago, one item was telling: when Jimmy Carter proclaimed a human rights program that not only might criticize communist governments, but also right-wing countries in the US camp, one South American journal reacted with cynical rejection of the policy. They spoke of the history of the US in the region, and assumed that Carter was attempting to recover a moral high ground after the scandals of Watergate and Vietnam, not believing that a US administration could really care about human rights.

And then he turned right around to arm the Mujahideen. The war against communism destroyed the high standing of this country. The war on terror buried it.

 

[Tigerace117]

Throughout most of the 20th century the US did everything in its power to suppress left wing populism, most of illegal; all of it unethical.

Che was a psychotic thug.

 

[southwest88]

You don’t understand. Nazi Germany gets the courtesy of a war declaration. Countries with brown people like Nicaragua don’t merit that.

Yah, if you want to consider that a courtesy. The US entered WWII because Imperial Japan jumped the gun - they were not ready for a long-term, long-distance war across the Pacific; they were never realistically going to be ready - with the vast bulk of their army chasing Chinese regular & irregular military in China. IJ was trying to militarily force the Chinese to negotiate a surrender, & pacify whatever remained of conquered China. That didn't happen, it wasn't going to happen.

Hitler thought that IJ would sweep away the US & Allies - he was right, but only for the first year of US involvement as a combatant, up to June 1942.

Nicaragua's population, BTW, per Wikipedia:

"Ethnic groups[edit]​

"The majority of the Nicaraguan population is composed of mestizos, roughly 69%.[citation needed] 17%[citation needed] of Nicaragua's population is of unmixed European stock, with the majority of them being of Spanish descent, while others are of German, Italian, English, Turkish, Danish or French ancestry."

(My emphasis - more @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicaragua#Ethnic_groups)

Wiki lists the 2018 Nicaraguan population as 6,500,000. 17% of that = 1,500,000; & I would bet that they make up the top tier of government, schools, law, business, etc.

 

[swing_voter]

Undeclared wars are illegal.

the-cold-war-and-after-presidential-power-to-use-troops-overseas-without-congressional-authorization

www.law.cornell.edu

No they aren't.

President is in charge of the military. Whatever the president orders, the military will carry out. Congress has the power of the purse strings. Congress could've stopped it whenever it wanted.

Congress would occasionally pass bills supporting the president.


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[venice_ca]

Jimmy Carter proclaimed a human rights program that not only might criticize communist governments, but also right-wing countries in the US camp . . .

When I first met my late husband, he was involved with a group of political exiles from Argentina's Dirty War. Definitely leftists, even a Maoist, but they revered Jimmy Carter -- and his State Department -- for pressing for and securing the release of a family of five who were imprisoned by the junta for suspected anti-government activities. (Imprisonment at that time automatically meant torture.) A relative here appealed to then-Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA) who pressed Carter's administration to take action.

 

[Nickyjo]

Yah, if you want to consider that a courtesy. The US entered WWII because Imperial Japan jumped the gun - they were not ready for a long-term, long-distance war across the Pacific; they were never realistically going to be ready - with the vast bulk of their army chasing Chinese regular & irregular military in China. IJ was trying to militarily force the Chinese to negotiate a surrender, & pacify whatever remained of conquered China. That didn't happen, it wasn't going to happen.

Hitler thought that IJ would sweep away the US & Allies - he was right, but only for the first year of US involvement as a combatant, up to June 1942.

Nicaragua's population, BTW, per Wikipedia:

"Ethnic groups[edit]​

"The majority of the Nicaraguan population is composed of mestizos, roughly 69%.[citation needed] 17%[citation needed] of Nicaragua's population is of unmixed European stock, with the majority of them being of Spanish descent, while others are of German, Italian, English, Turkish, Danish or French ancestry."

(My emphasis - more @ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicaragua#Ethnic_groups)

Wiki lists the 2018 Nicaraguan population as 6,500,000. 17% of that = 1,500,000; & I would bet that they make up the top tier of government, schools, law, business, etc.

Well some Spanish are browner than average, as are my people, Italians. But my sarcastic point was that places like Nicaragua, Guatemala, DR, Grenada, Haiti, etc., have been treated differently, like our back yard property, with war not declared and invasion no big deal.

 

[Nickyjo]

Che was a psychotic thug.

What does Che's psychosis have to do with brutal, quasi-imperialist US policies?

 

[Tigerace117]

What does Che's psychosis have to do with brutal, quasi-imperialist US policies?

The OP wondered why the CIA wanted Che dead. I pointed out the reason. No amount of wailing “US imperialism” changes the fact that he was a psychotic thug.

 

[Nickyjo]

The OP wondered why the CIA wanted Che dead. I pointed out the reason. No amount of wailing “US imperialism” changes the fact that he was a psychotic thug.

Perhaps, he's no hero of mine, but the US turned him into an inspirational and international symbol of someone who went on a quixotic failed campaign to liberate others, to create "two, three, many Vietnams." And there is no wailing about US imperialism. It existed. Textbook case was Guatemala and the United Fruit Company in 1954.

May exist still, given all the US bases and fleets scattered around the world.

Guevarism - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[aociswundumho]

Che was a psychotic thug.

i.e. a typical leftist

 

[swing_voter]

Perhaps, he's no hero of mine, but the US turned him into an inspirational and international symbol of someone who went on a quixotic failed campaign to liberate others, to create "two, three, many Vietnams." And there is no wailing about US imperialism. It existed. Textbook case was Guatemala and the United Fruit Company in 1954.

May exist still, given all the US bases and fleets scattered around the world.

Guevarism - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

In 1871, U.S. railroad entrepreneur Henry Meiggs signed a contract with the government of Costa Rica to build a railroad connecting the capital city of San José to the port of Limón in the Caribbean. Meiggs was assisted in the project by his young nephew Minor C. Keith, who took over Meiggs's business concerns in Costa Rica after his death in 1877. Keith began experimenting with the planting of bananas as a cheap source of food for his workers.[2]

When the Costa Rican government defaulted on its payments in 1882, Keith had to borrow £1.2 million from London banks and from private investors to continue the difficult engineering project.[2] In exchange for this and for renegotiating Costa Rica's own debt, in 1884, the administration of President Próspero Fernández Oreamuno agreed to give Keith 800,000 acres (3,200 km2) of tax-free land along the railroad, plus a 99-year lease on the operation of the train route.

United Fruit Company - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I'm sure they paid bribes. Everyone in L.A. countries pay bribes.



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[Nickyjo]

In 1871, U.S. railroad entrepreneur Henry Meiggs signed a contract with the government of Costa Rica to build a railroad connecting the capital city of San José to the port of Limón in the Caribbean. Meiggs was assisted in the project by his young nephew Minor C. Keith, who took over Meiggs's business concerns in Costa Rica after his death in 1877. Keith began experimenting with the planting of bananas as a cheap source of food for his workers.[2]

When the Costa Rican government defaulted on its payments in 1882, Keith had to borrow £1.2 million from London banks and from private investors to continue the difficult engineering project.[2] In exchange for this and for renegotiating Costa Rica's own debt, in 1884, the administration of President Próspero Fernández Oreamuno agreed to give Keith 800,000 acres (3,200 km2) of tax-free land along the railroad, plus a 99-year lease on the operation of the train route.

United Fruit Company - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I'm sure they paid bribes. Everyone in L.A. countries pay bribes.



.

It’s one thing to pay bribes. It’s another to overthrow a democratically elected government and replace it with a murderous dictatorship, as the US did on behalf of United Fruit Company in Guatemala.