After a barrage of bad press and excoriation for their use of a vile and sadistic murderer to sell cars, Mercedes-Benz quickly backtracked and released an apology for using the image of totalitarian assassin, Che Guevara:
Mercedes apologizes for using Che Guevara image
Daimler AG apologized Thursday for using an image of Marxist revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara during a promotional presentation for Mercedes-Benz cars.
The image briefly appeared Tuesday during a presentation by Dieter Zetsche, head of Daimler’s Mercedes unit, at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It reproduced a famous Alberto Korda photo of Guevara, the Argentine communist who spearheaded the revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power in Cuba. The photo became a symbol of communist revolutionary movements during the 1960s and ’70s.
But in place of the star that adorns Guevara’s beret in the original, Mercedes affixed its corporate logo.
Activists reacted with horror to the appropriation of Guevara, whom many political conservatives and Cuban-Americans consider a mass murderer who helped subjugate Cuba.
“Mercedes-Benz Uses Communist Madman Che Guevara to Sell Luxury Cars,” said the headline on a blog post from the Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative political organization in Washington.
“Che Guevara, not to put too fine a point on it, was a psychopath whose sadistic lust for blood was not easily quenched. He killed for pleasure,” said the post, written by Heritage Vice President Mike Gonzalez.
In a statement Thursday to msnbc.com, Daimler said the image was just “one of many images and videos in the presentation,” which it said was intended to represent “the revolution in automobility enabled by new technologies, in particular those associated with connectivity.”
“Daimler was not condoning the life or actions of this historical figure or the political philosophy he espoused,” the company said, adding: “We sincerely apologize to those who took offense.”
Below the fold, our good friend Michael Pancier provides a more befitting version of the image used by Mercedes, which I warn our readers is appropriately vulgar.
Daimler “sincerely” apologizes to those who took offense. Heaven forbid it loses any business. However, it may not mind the free extra publicity, and it doesn’t apologize to the people who didn’t take offense–unlike “those people,” they’re cool and progressive and shit, and a lot of them may now think Mercedes-Benz is cool.
Well, I know I’m satisfied. Besides, Cubans don’t deserve respect or consideration anyway. Still, this “apology” may have nothing to do with Che’s Cuba connection, except insofar as disgruntled Cubans could start making nasty noises about some exceedingly unsavory associations in Daimler’s past. Needless to say, the company does NOT want to go there.
Assholes.
“Guevara, whom many political conservatives and Cuban-Americans consider a mass murderer who helped subjugate Cuba.” CONSIDER. I suppose it’s too much trouble to examine the actual evidence. After all, this is only a media person talking, as opposed to someone who’s determined to get at the truth. Sad.