# Che Guevara **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 16, 2013, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425 "2013-08-16T16:45:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Longshanks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Longshanks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Longshanks)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/1 "2013-08-16T16:45:22Z")
Was Che Guevara good, bad or are those terms to simple to describe him. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/2 "2013-08-16T16:51:33Z")
[Seems kind of like an asshole.](http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2004/09/the_cult_of_che.html) ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/3 "2013-08-16T16:51:58Z")
which side are you on? ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/4 "2013-08-16T16:58:30Z")
Depends. Do you sell guns or T-shirts? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/5 "2013-08-16T17:02:09Z")
I’d say a physician who kills folks is an asshole. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/6 "2013-08-16T17:05:11Z")
Communist murderer. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/7 "2013-08-16T17:06:15Z")
like all doctors he liked golfing. ---
**Author:** ![Longshanks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Longshanks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Longshanks)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/8 "2013-08-16T17:11:29Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > which side are you on? Like most people I don’t really know how to discern the facts from the fiction of such a polarized figure, which is a reason why I wanted to see what you guys thought. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/9 "2013-08-16T17:19:24Z")
Try looking at (1) who admires him and (2) who despises him and (3) evaluate their reasons for feeling that way in light of the known historical and biographical evidence. Sounds simple, but it takes you past baseless opinionating. ---
**Author:** ![Aro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b3f665/32.png) [@Aro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aro)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/10 "2013-08-16T17:30:59Z")
I’d recommend Jon Lee Anderson’s bio of him for a lot of detail and an interesting take on his motivations. He ultimately did a lot of bad things, but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/11 "2013-08-16T18:06:47Z")
> [@Aro](#): > > He ultimately did a lot of bad things, but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good. I’d go with this, then, he turned into a bit of a beast. Then, he became a bit of an egomaniac, which is what got him killed (indirectly, of course.) ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/12 "2013-08-16T18:07:41Z")
Plus, considr the context of his life - like Marx himself, he lived in a society with a massiv separation between the rich, privileged classes and the vast majority of dirt poor. The social systems - law, religion, government - existed to reinforce that privilege based on money and inheritance. When we grow up in a society with a strong middle class (once upon a time) that generally emphasises fairness and equality, it’s hard to understand a social structure that simply assumes this is not so. it’s not surprising (even if it’s wrong) that some people concluded the only solution to this system was to completely destroy it and rebuild the “perfect” society. What’s truly sad was that by the 1940’s it should have been apparent that following the party line was having the direct opposite effect on those iron curtain countries where it was the orthodoxy. It’s odd to think that when Castro was fighting in the mountains of Cuba, he was interviewed by US journalists, people in the USA thought he was a breath of fresh air, his movement was seen as bringing proper democracy to Cuba after decades of corrupt exploitive dictatorship. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/13 "2013-08-16T18:41:21Z")
Moved from GQ to IMHO. **Longshanks** , a number of your recent threads have been moved from GQ to IMHO or GD. Please consider whether you are asking a clearly factual question before opening a thread in GQ. If in doubt, it may be better suited to another forum. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/14 "2013-08-16T19:22:53Z")
As to the OP: murderer verging on genocidal. > [@Aro](#): > > I’d recommend Jon Lee Anderson’s bio of him for a lot of detail and an interesting take on his motivations. **He ultimately did a lot of bad things, but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good**. (My bolding) You know who also ultimately did a lot of bad things, , but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/15 "2013-08-16T19:34:21Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > (My bolding) > You know who also ultimately did a lot of bad things, , but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good? Mussolini? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/16 "2013-08-16T19:45:07Z")
> [@Aro](#): > > I’d recommend Jon Lee Anderson’s bio of him for a lot of detail and an interesting take on his motivations. He ultimately did a lot of bad things, but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good. most tyrants think they’re doing the right thing. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/17 "2013-08-16T19:47:41Z")
Good or bad with regard to what? A physician? A revolutionary leader? A humanitarian? A diarist? A lover? A motorcyclist? Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Longshanks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Longshanks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Longshanks)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/18 "2013-08-16T19:50:36Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Good or bad with regard to what? A physician? A revolutionary leader? A humanitarian? A diarist? A lover? A motorcyclist? > > Stranger 2nd, 3rd and 5th;) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/19 "2013-08-16T19:52:57Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > You know who also ultimately did a lot of bad things, , but a lot of his actions stemmed initially from a wish to do good? Ronald Reagan (though his definition of “to do good” is more than a little dubious). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425/20 "2013-08-16T20:39:16Z")
Guevara was a “commie come lately” - he became a communist in the fifties. You had to be willfully blind by that point in order to think communism was still a good idea. If Guevara had legitimately wanted to help people and make the world a better place, he wouldn’t have done it by promoting communism. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/che-guevara/666425.md?page=2)