I was discussing the upcoming war in Iraq with a colleague and was told the people of Iraq didn’t want the war because they loved Saddam as a dictator.
I said that was not true and all the media driven elements supporting Saddam were organized by the Bath (sp?) party and not participating meant at least a sock in the nose.
It was then brought up that the people did in fact love Saddam and there are many countries that had dictators that were loved by the people.
I am interested in anyone who can give me some supporting information on either side of the argument. Do the people of Iraq really love their dictator? Is there a country where the people really love their dictator?
I’m not at all attempting to bolster a counter argument. It’s just that it was said with such strength that I questioned where I was dumb about the subject or not.
Mardi, it will be difficult to get a factual answer and I think it would be difficult even if you could interview Iraqi citizens u nder the current circumstances. The mods may want to move this to IMHO or GD.
Anyway, IMHO I don’t think a lot of ordinary Iraquis aside from the ruling Baath party love Saddam all that much. Stalin has been used as an example of a beloved despot in other threads but in his case getting the Soviet Union through WWII was a big feather in his cap. Stalin was also seen as turning the Soviet Union into a superpower following WWII so it’s not unreasonable that people woudl revere him even today. It doesn’t seem Saddam has made Iraq a better place during his tenure but since he controls all the media I’m sure the average citizen puts the blame on the U.S. Of course a lot of Americans believe the same thing so YMMV.
Bear in mind that no matter what they think of Saddam, Iraqis most assuredly love their country and their people, and many are probably quite pissed off at ol’ lonesome George for throwing his weight around. After the war, if Iraq has any infrastructure left, and if they somehow manage to have a stable government and economy within a reasonable time, maybe they’ll be grateful that Saddam is gone. But that’s not to say they’ll be grateful to us.
It might be a form of Stockholm Syndrome or Battered spouse syndrome (seriously), just on a national scale instead of an individual scale. People get bullied & controlled until they fall in love with their abuser and can’t live without them.
I think you’re right. That was the whole point of Orwell’s 1984, the last line of which, regarding Winston Smith, was, “He loved Big Brother.” The thought of such total submission still gives me chills.
Omar Torrijos, who led the milatary government of Panama from the late 1960s until his death in the early 80s, was idolized by many and is still revered by large numbers. (I can see the office of the Fundacion Omar Torrijos, dedicated to his memory, from my window. Much of this was due to the fact that his government gave a lot of help to the poor in rural areas. Even Noriega, when he was in power, had lots of adherents (though you won’t find many who will admit to liking him now). At the time, Noriega was admired by some for standing up to the bullying Yanquis.
Admittedly, Saddam is in a different class, and in brutality he is far worse than even Noriega. But I’m sure many Iraqis do look up to him for defying the big bad Americans.
Dictators, if they are seen as strong men who stand up for national interests against foreign threats, may often be idolized by large segments of the population. This may be reinforced if they dispense benefits to the lower classes (even if, in fact, the poor might well be better off without them.)