Mereja.Forum

[Thomas H]

What Saddam Hussein’s romance novels and Kim Jong-il’s film criticism reveal about authoritarianism.

By COLIN DICKEY
The Book of Genesis begins by asserting, in the most fundamental way, that when God says a thing, it happens: “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” We mortals may or may not be true to our word, but what makes the divine the divine is this complete lack of daylight between word and deed.

Authoritarian leaders have long aspired to this godlike union of word and action. A dictator does not deal in facts and reason, but rather in the brute force that makes his word law, that turns each and every utterance into concrete action, unencumbered by anything but his own will. It’s there in the very term itself: dictator, one who dictates, one who merely has to speak in order to bring about change, so strong is the bond between proclamation and action.

Source: https://newrepublic.com/article/147595/dictators-write

[DefendTheTruth]

What Saddam Hussein’s romance novels and Kim Jong-il’s film criticism reveal about authoritarianism.

By COLIN DICKEY
The Book of Genesis begins by asserting, in the most fundamental way, that when God says a thing, it happens: “And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” We mortals may or may not be true to our word, but what makes the divine the divine is this complete lack of daylight between word and deed.

Authoritarian leaders have long aspired to this godlike union of word and action. A dictator does not deal in facts and reason, but rather in the brute force that makes his word law, that turns each and every utterance into concrete action, unencumbered by anything but his own will. It’s there in the very term itself: dictator, one who dictates, one who merely has to speak in order to bring about change, so strong is the bond between proclamation and action.

Source: https://newrepublic.com/article/147595/dictators-write

if dictators indeed write (like to write) then Meles Zenawi should have written one, but I am afraid that not a single book was left behind that bore his name. Did I miss something?