Karl Marx led the start of The Terran Empire

I just saw Star Trek Enterprise Season 4 Episode 18: 'In A Mirror Darkly' and I noticed that someone that looks vaguely like Karl Marx leads the mob to raid the Vulcan ship.

Also on another note .... what the hell kind of fever dream did the writers drift into with this side story that lasted a few episodes? They just come out of left field for no apparent reason.