What makes an American success story embrace Marxism? Why would a man to whom the free market gave him his every wish, wish oppression on his fellow man? Why would this movie star, whose children go to private schools and live in a secure and lovely mansion tell Hugo Chavez, "I'm raising my kids to be revolutionaries?" Several reasons, I think. And he's absolutely not the first man who lives and thrives in freedom to espouse oppressive ideology for others. He's just the latest in a long line.

Portrait # 1: His father. Sean Penn's dad was Leo Penn, a first generation Jew from Russia. (Whose parents fled oppressive governments) He married a catholic girl, Sean's mother; they were both actors. And during the fifties he flirted with communism, was blacklisted and had the bad judgement to support Germany publicly while his fellow Jews were being incinerated in Auschwitz. Oopsy. But he still became a successful and famous director, a millionaire who found America embraced and rewarded him with riches beyond his wildest imaginings. His children never had to bus a table one day in their lives. Sean carries over into his generation the bitterness about his fathers blacklisting and it informs all of his political ideologies. Penn took out full page ads in the New York Times denouncing George Bush and his policies but supports Hugo Chavez on the exact same issues: War-mongering, torture, repression.

Portrait # 2: The Jewish Problem. "Venezuela's Jews fear more attacks". It always comes down to this in Marxist countries: It's the Jews fault. As President Hugo Chavez intensifies his anti-Israel campaign, growing hate crimes against Jews increase. Jan. 30th there was a violent invasion of Caracas' largest synagogue. There are calls for protests at the synagogue, a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses, seizures of Jewish-owned property, the closure of Jewish schools and a nationwide effort "to denounce publicly with names and last names the members of powerful Jewish groups present in Venezuela." Chavez suggested that the looting of the synagogue might have been an inside job and he demanded that Jewish leaders publicly recant accusations against his government. State media is also exerting pressure on the students, in at least one case singling out leaders of Jewish origin for scrutiny.

Portrait #3: Torture. Chavez is attempting to extradite two men for alleged crimes "against persons, against public order and against public and private interests" [if we had that law, we could extradite all of Wall Street]. But the men were not sent back because U.S. prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed there was evidence they would be tortured, according to court documents and their attorneys. Tortured?! Penn who rails against torture by America supports Chavez where real torture takes place.

Portrait #4: Penn is intellectually dishonest. If George Bush had shut down all voices of opposition, Penn would have cried "Dictatorship!" But when Chavez shut down all oppostion T.V. & radio, Penn flies over and has dinner with him. And has their picture taken together. And rails against America on foreign soil. If George Bush had nationalized all the American oil fields and all the banks and made himself the National Money Czar, Penn would have gone ballistic. But when Chavez nationalized all the private enterprise in Venezuela and put himself in charge of the national treasurey, Penn flew over and spent the weekend with him. Dude, Chavez made himself "Pope" of the Catholic church in Venezuela - what about separation between church and state?

So if there is an "R" after the name, they are evil. If there is a "D" (for Dictator) after the name, he can't run fast enough to embrace them. Daddy issues. And the students who have united against Chavez shake their heads in frustration, spike their fists in the air, how do they compete with the ugly American who jets over intact with his freedom and his money and priviledge and props up the dictator he-hopes-for- life Chavez? and then gets to go home?

[As of Sunday's "election" a portion of the population is packing up to leave, while they can. They see the writing on the wall.]

Herma Marksman, Chavez's "other woman" for 10 years warns that Chavez is "imposing a fascist dictatorship" and that, "a totalitarian regime is coming." She should know, she spent 10 years with Chavez and they used her home to plan his coup against the Venezuelan government.

She points out: "Today there is more injustice, and no sign of that group of democrats who voiced and accepted different opinions. We live under an autocrat who does not respect the separation of powers."

Meanwhile, Chávez's policies for dealing with the students are growing more repressive, explaining perhaps why the movement seems to lack the well-organized vigor it had just a year ago. In recent days, the secret intelligence police have begun searching the homes of student leaders, with officials claiming some student protests turned violent or had the capacity to do so. Student leaders like Penn's son and daughter, future revolutionaries.

-And so, as life often does, it comes full circle. While his father's parents had to flee their homeland because they were being persecuted as Jews under a repressive regime, Penn supports a foreign leader who persecutes Jews under a repressive regime.