Third World Strongmen (England, economy, empire, assassin)

[LongtimeBravesFan]

Originally Posted by Grandstander

Excellent contribution, TonyT, Trujillo's life could be converted into a "How To Be A Strongman" manual. All of the classic elements are present...exploits sponsorship by 1st world power, rises through military, wins bogus election by ridiculous margin, converts apparatus of state into personal fiefdom and national treasury into personal wealth, clandestine assassinations of critics, decorates and glorifies self...and comes to a bloody end.

Well, I suppose that last would not be part of the manual, but it would be part of any novel or fictional movie.

I think the final chapter in "Third World Strongman for Dummies" explains how to see when the end has come. It then tells you how to funnel the government treasury into offshore accounts and how to pack as many jewels as possible into a small airplane. Then you take your family and/or your mistress and live the rest of your life in exile in a country ruled by a younger version of yourself. Hopefully one that will hold onto power at least as long as you live.

[erasure]

Originally Posted by ovcatto

Well the correct definition of Third World were those nations not aligned with either the Soviets or the West which comprised the First and Second Worlds.

Huh? "Not aligned"?
I always thought that a lot of Third World countries were aligned either with the US or USSR..

[Grandstander]

Originally Posted by LongtimeBravesFan

It then tells you how to funnel the government treasury into offshore accounts and how to pack as many jewels as possible into a small airplane. Then you take your family and/or your mistress and live the rest of your life .

Making sure you have a fortune to take into exile with you is critical. When South Vietnam collapsed, former president and vice president Ky fled to Southern California without having stolen enough money. He was forced to make a living running a liquor store. It was such a humble life that he eventually returned to Vietnam. President Thieu had more on the ball and made sure that a huge chunk of the national treasury went with him when he skeedaddled. He lived in London for a time while his son attended Eton, and eventually moved to an exclusive wealthy neighborhood in Foxborough, Massachusetts where he lived quietly but comfortably until his death in 2001.

[Randomstudent]

I would definitely second Trujillo another interesting bit of information is while on the one hand committing genocide against the Haitians Trujillo welcomed European Jews fleeing Nazi Germany. The rational for this was his hope that if en-masse immigration of European Jews occurred to the Dominican Republic it would serve to whiten the country.

[Randomstudent]

Originally Posted by asubram3

One of my favorites is Bokassa from the Central African Republic. Another is "Papa Doc." Duvalier from Haiti .

Papa Doc Duvalier was another interesting figure. His use of Voodoo mythology made him especially interesting since he used it not only in regards to his own cult of personality, but he also had his secret police, the tonton Macoute, take on Voodoo aspects as well.

[kettlepot]

C'mon folks, we're missing some of the best ones of all. The Great Leader, the Dear Leader, and now the Dear Commander or whatever he's going to go by.

You know you've really succeeded when you have tens of thousands of sycophants sobbing, wailing, and beating their breasts at the announcement of your death by natural causes. In the last instance, by your cholesterol riddled, and plaque lined heart giving out. To be fat in a country of anorexics, now that's an achievement. At least the people know where the food went.

So we have the Mao Tse Tung Award for most preposterous set of new laws.
The Imelda Marcos Award for the most oblivious First Lady.
The Mobuto Sese Seko Retirement Award for successfully retiring abroad with the largest amount of other governments money.
The Kim Il Sung Award for the best performance at a state funeral (To get that response out of his audience by just being a frozen corpse is quite an achievement).

I'm sure there are more awards that we could give out annually.

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by LongtimeBravesFan

I think the final chapter in "Third World Strongman for Dummies" explains how to see when the end has come. It then tells you how to funnel the government treasury into offshore accounts and how to pack as many jewels as possible into a small airplane. Then you take your family and/or your mistress and live the rest of your life in exile in a country ruled by a younger version of yourself. Hopefully one that will hold onto power at least as long as you live.

The fun part is figuring out where you're going to retire/exile to... But you've got to make sure you've got enough packed away in that Swiss bank account and start planning early to find a country that's going to take you and your five wives, harem, spoiled children, and entourage.

For the lucky ones, you might get a tropical hacienda in Panama or luxurious flat in Paris. If you wait too long and flee at the last minute you might have to settle for Saudi Arabia. If you're really out of luck you might be spending your remaining years in Belarus like the exiled dictator of Kyrgystan. Tough break, sucka--at least it beats the Hague!

[Grandstander]

Originally Posted by kettlepot

C'mon folks, we're missing some of the best ones of all. The Great Leader, the Dear Leader, and now the Dear Commander or whatever he's going to go by.

You know you've really succeeded when you have tens of thousands of sycophants sobbing, wailing, and beating their breasts at the announcement of your death by natural causes. In the last instance, by your cholesterol riddled, and plaque lined heart giving out. To be fat in a country of anorexics, now that's an achievement. At least the people know where the food went.

So we have the Mao Tse Tung Award for most preposterous set of new laws.
The Imelda Marcos Award for the most oblivious First Lady.
The Mobuto Sese Seko Retirement Award for successfully retiring abroad with the largest amount of other governments money.
The Kim Il Sung Award for the best performance at a state funeral (To get that response out of his audience by just being a frozen corpse is quite an achievement).

I'm sure there are more awards that we could give out annually.

I think that there should be some sort of "Bloody Spectacle" award honoring the despot who stages the most gruesome public punishment of political prisoners or people thought to have committed a crime. These events are homages to ancient Rome which really knew how to do it right, using captured enemies or Christians or runaway slaves as dinner for wild beasts, lighting the arena for a night show by making human torches out of the victims, all for the amusement of the Roman sports fans.

Idi Amin was colorful when he was feeding his disidents to the crocidiles in Lake Victoria, Nguema would be a contender for his stadium executions while Mary Hopkins songs played over the pa, but the best of the more recent such public horrors was in December of 2000 and it was done by our friends in Iran.

They had saved up six months worth of criminals so that they could have a punitive pageant in their national soccer stadium. The majority of the entertainers were folks convicted of theft and sentenced to have a hand chopped off.

The news article I read about this event was terribly short of details and I was left with many questions about the specifics. Was this like any other sporting event where food was sold in the stands? Did the public have to buy tickets or was this a free show? If there were tickets, were the prices scaled by how near the chopping action they were? Was it sold out? Were there scalpers outside hustling tickets? (Scalpers....probably in the literal sense there were scalpers, they were the half time show)

Did they have play by play, or blow by blow I suppose, announcers? "There's the snap! Its a handoff!"

Did they have vendors going around selling those giant foam hands?

[nightbird47]

Originally Posted by Grandstander

I think that there should be some sort of "Bloody Spectacle" award honoring the despot who stages the most gruesome public punishment of political prisoners or people thought to have committed a crime. These events are homages to ancient Rome which really knew how to do it right, using captured enemies or Christians or runaway slaves as dinner for wild beasts, lighting the arena for a night show by making human torches out of the victims, all for the amusement of the Roman sports fans.

Idi Amin was colorful when he was feeding his disidents to the crocidiles in Lake Victoria, Nguema would be a contender for his stadium executions while Mary Hopkins songs played over the pa, but the best of the more recent such public horrors was in December of 2000 and it was done by our friends in Iran.

They had saved up six months worth of criminals so that they could have a punitive pageant in their national soccer stadium. The majority of the entertainers were folks convicted of theft and sentenced to have a hand chopped off.

The news article I read about this event was terribly short of details and I was left with many questions about the specifics. Was this like any other sporting event where food was sold in the stands? Did the public have to buy tickets or was this a free show? If there were tickets, were the prices scaled by how near the chopping action they were? Was it sold out? Were there scalpers outside hustling tickets? (Scalpers....probably in the literal sense there were scalpers, they were the half time show)

Did they have play by play, or blow by blow I suppose, announcers? "There's the snap! Its a handoff!"

Did they have vendors going around selling those giant foam hands?

Thats a rep even if I have to spread the love before I can give you one.

Nothing like a good spectical to show everyone why its better to be good.

[Randomstudent]

Originally Posted by Grandstander

I think that there should be some sort of "Bloody Spectacle" award honoring the despot who stages the most gruesome public punishment of political prisoners or people thought to have committed a crime. These events are homages to ancient Rome which really knew how to do it right, using captured enemies or Christians or runaway slaves as dinner for wild beasts, lighting the arena for a night show by making human torches out of the victims, all for the amusement of the Roman sports fans.

Idi Amin was colorful when he was feeding his disidents to the crocidiles in Lake Victoria, Nguema would be a contender for his stadium executions while Mary Hopkins songs played over the pa, but the best of the more recent such public horrors was in December of 2000 and it was done by our friends in Iran.

They had saved up six months worth of criminals so that they could have a punitive pageant in their national soccer stadium. The majority of the entertainers were folks convicted of theft and sentenced to have a hand chopped off.

The news article I read about this event was terribly short of details and I was left with many questions about the specifics. Was this like any other sporting event where food was sold in the stands? Did the public have to buy tickets or was this a free show? If there were tickets, were the prices scaled by how near the chopping action they were? Was it sold out? Were there scalpers outside hustling tickets? (Scalpers....probably in the literal sense there were scalpers, they were the half time show)

Did they have play by play, or blow by blow I suppose, announcers? "There's the snap! Its a handoff!"

Did they have vendors going around selling those giant foam hands?

There was the Lingchi style execution in China. It was often a public event that took up to 3 days and probably as bad as anything that happened in ancient Rome.