# Why are today's absolute rulers called 'presidents'? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [November 21, 2017, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264 "2017-11-21T08:36:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/42 "2017-11-25T06:04:05Z")
Malaysia is composed of 9 sub-national monarchies who’s monarchs take turn serving as the over-monarch of Malaysia for a 5 year term. The Pope is also an elected monarch. > [@up\_the\_junction](#): > > Robert Mugabe is President? Zimbabwe has been a flawed democracy (supported by the military, troublesome elections) but hey, the president of the USA is a game show host. > > Kim Jong-un is the Chairman of the Workers’ Party of Korea, never heard anyone refer to him as ‘president’. His grandfather, Kim Il-sung, was actually the President of North Korea before he died. And also after he died for the rest of eternity. ---
**Author:** ![SarahWitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@SarahWitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SarahWitch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/43 "2017-11-25T07:24:52Z")
> [@PlaceboTarget](#): > > In my opinion, international mass media should stop calling absolute rulers ‘presidents’ because by doing so they help legitimize their regimes both domestically and internationally. Here’s a newsflash: there are no democratic nations in the world. Only oligarchies-- autocracies included. If the people cannot choose their government, then they do not _consent_ to it-- period; and any rationalization, such as the “Constitutional Republic” shell-game, is just an oligarchy with more steps, to deceive the ignorant. This is not how the Founders and American People intended, however that’s how it’s been at least since Lincoln; so get used to it. You can’t say one oligarchy is good, and another evil; _any_ regime to which the majority do not agree, is by definition unequal and therefore absolute. Either go true democracy, or go home. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/44 "2017-11-25T15:59:19Z")
> [@SarahWitch](#): > > This is not how the Founders and American People intended, . The founders who kept slavery legal, who established an Electoral College and appointed Senators rather than direct election, whose home states’ laws limited the franchise to white male christian literate property-owners? Sure, they intended “real democracy”… ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/45 "2017-11-25T16:02:33Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > Malaysia is composed of 9 sub-national monarchies who’s monarchs take turn serving as the over-monarch of Malaysia for a 5 year term. The Pope is also an elected monarch. > > His grandfather, Kim Il-sung, was actually the President of North Korea before he died. And also after he died for the rest of eternity. Interesting, so when the North Korean regime collapses they are going to have to posthumously depose him. Is there any precedent for that? Were any dead Roman emperors posthumously undeified? (the standard MO was to deify them after their death) ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/46 "2017-11-25T16:35:36Z")
> [@gatorslap](#): > > The term “president” does not in any way imply democracy. I don’t know why some people are under the impression that it does. I’m kind of baffled by it, myself. I took “president” to mean “presiding officer”, with no particular regard as to how he or she got that office. > [@](#): > > Monarchy is hereditary. Minor note - it also suggests a single absolute ruler. No doubt there are some family oligarchies out there who give the title and public visibility to one of their members when the previous title-holder dies, but the power is held by the family collectively rather than invested in that one person. The House of Saud comes to mind. ---
**Author:** ![SarahWitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@SarahWitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SarahWitch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2017, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/47 "2017-11-25T23:49:29Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > The founders who kept slavery legal, who established an Electoral College and appointed Senators rather than direct election, whose home states’ laws limited the franchise to white male christian literate property-owners? > > Sure, they intended “real democracy”… It’s called a null hypothesis, but you probably think that’s a Pokemon character. Just because you don’t understand something, doesn’t make it wrong… nor does your disagreement void it in law. It was their train-set, you don’t have to like it in order for it to be what goes, just because it doesn’t jibe with your fictitious ideology where everything happens by magic. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2017, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/48 "2017-11-26T01:34:19Z")
> [@SarahWitch](#): > > . . . , but you probably think that’s a Pokemon character. Knock it off. A bit of sarcasm is tolerated in this forum, but direct insults are not. Your habit of declaring your opponent to be wrong based only of a claim for your unsupported definition of a word does not promote serious discussion, but moving beyond that to denigrating that poster’s understanding is a step over the line. Stay civil. [/Moderating] ---
**Author:** ![SarahWitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b782af/32.png) [@SarahWitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SarahWitch)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2017, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/49 "2017-11-26T01:37:26Z")
ok. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2017, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/50 "2017-11-26T01:42:06Z")
And a warning for talking back. You must learn to respect our rules. ---
**Author:** ![Hellestal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ab097/32.png) [@Hellestal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hellestal)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2017, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/51 "2017-11-29T19:59:16Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Likewise, in the 1940s, Hitler chose to call himself “Fuhër” (translated “Leader”) Started in the 1930s but of course ended in the 40s. And the title was _Führer_. German does not use rock dots over the letter “e”. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2017, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264/52 "2017-11-30T00:13:59Z")
He actually started calling himself Führer in the 1920s, but it didn’t become an official state title until 1934 when he merged the Chancellorship (which he had since '33) and the Presidency into a single office after the incumbent, Paul von Hindenburg died. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-todays-absolute-rulers-called-presidents/802264.md?page=2)