Watching the anchorwoman on North Korean state television, her voice faltering and tears in her eyes, as she announced the death of Kim Jong-il, "Our Dear Leader," as his subjects called him, it is hard to tell whether the tears are a genuine expression of her enormous grief or just another set piece in the world's most monstrous propaganda spectacle. The anchorwoman's tears, along with the official cause of the dictator's sudden death -- North Korean television reported he died of a heart attack caused by "mental and physical fatigue brought on by strenuous work" after he had "devoted all of his days to his people" -- are par for the course in the conduct of a dictatorship. The same elements are present in the regime of the late dictator's friend, our neighbor to the north, Bashar Assad. Since the dawn of history, the most common leadership role has been that of the tyrant. In other words, a ruler who by divine right or charismatic authority holds the reins of power in an exclusive fashion. Such were the ancient Assyrian emperors Sargon and Sennacherib. Ancient Greece was acquainted with dictators in the persons of Draco and Peisistratos. Not to mention Rome, which suffered under the iron fists of notorious leaders Nero and Caligula. And so it went until 20th century, when the status of tyrants was actually enhanced to the point of grotesquery. Take Saparmurad Niyazov, the late former president of Turkmenistan, who changed the name of the month of January to his own name and the rest of the months to the names of his family members. Or take Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, whose authoritarian excesses need no further elaboration, and of course Kim Jong-il, whose personality cult was among the most extreme known to humanity. Why is it that so many nations throughout history have been unable to liberate themselves from the grip of aggressive tyrants? There are many possible answers. Perhaps they feel the need for a strong and protective father figure to provide them with security and stability in the face of the alternative, which could be anarchy? Perhaps it is the ideology, like Communism or Fascism, that requires absolute control of citizens for its success. And perhaps it is human nature, with its weakness for idolatry. Within all of us there is a longing to see an all-powerful God embodied in flesh and blood. This God allows us to worship him and in exchange offers a sense of power and hope. But like every idol, his cult requires sacrifices, particularly human ones. In any case, despite all the national "springs" that the future holds and despite the untimely deaths of various tyrants, dictators will continue to play a large role on the world's political stage. And if anyone doubts this, just witness what is happening in Russia. A country that only 20 years ago freed itself from 70 years of Communist tyranny, after overturning centuries of czarist autocracy, appears to be seeking a way back to the suffocating yet warm and protective embrace of the Russian totalitarian bear.
Why we still have dictators
Load more...