Cold War Dictators


Figure 1.-- Here Fidel is pictured with two American boys whose names are also Castro. The photo was taken on his 1959 visit to the United States. At the time he was still aress darling and just beginning to emerge from his guise as a freedom fighter for democratic rule. Castro presented himself as leading the democrativ 26th of July Movement against right-wing dictator Fulgencio Batista. Castro perjaps only second to Mao and Che is one of the great icons of the Left. While right-wing dictators are castigated for killing and supression of basic human righta, Castro and the other Communist dictators are lionized as great heroes no matter how horific their body count or intense their suppression of human rights and as in Castro's case the destruction of a thriving econpmy and turning Cuba to one of the poorest countries in Latin America. .

A major issue during the Cold War was dictators. There were both right-wing and left-wing dictators. The left, however, pretended for good propaganda that there were only right-wing dictotors. In intert discussions, we are constanly bombarded with condemnations of Ameruva for dealing with the likes of Pinochet, Somoza, and Trujillo who killed in the thousands, but were seen as disgraces and were ultimately replaced. There was no no criticism by the Left for Communist dictators like Mao who killed in the tens of millions and today continues to be a left-wing icon. That of course is absurd, but is widely believed are at least accepted by coutless people around the world. And unlike the right, trend their dictators into heroes, no matter how horific their death count or supression of human rughts. Just look how Lenin, Stalin, Mao, Castro, Ho Chi-Minh, Chavez became cultural icons and remain so today in spite of the millions of people they killed and the ecompmic activity they destroyd. Now we even see a left-wing American president fawning over one of those dictators--Fidel Castro. President Obama's visit is another one of his many apology tours (March 2016). Dictator are not new. They in different guises (primarily monarchial) have been a force throughout history. The first modern dictator was probably English Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. The great dictators of history are mostly left-wing dictators or dictaots like Hitler and Mussolini that adopted left-wing concepts. But it is in the 20th century that totalitarian dictators with the advent of mass coomunication. Many are willing excuse the killing of left-wing dictators because they are seen as working for a better tomorrow. Those that oppose them are seen as impeding history and a utopian tomorrow. Cuban dictator called them worms. Other left-wing dictaors have their own terms. The Left criticizes America for dealing with right-wing dictators during the Cold War, but not a word of critism for dealing with Stalin during World War II. Nor is there critivism for the left-wing dictators spawned by the Communists and the immensly larger death count of left-wing dictators. Some how America is criticised for dealing with right-wing dictators, but there is no moralmossue connected in dealong with left-wing dictators. It is useful to look at some of the differences between left-wing and right-wing dictators as well as some of the individuals involved.







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Created: 4:32 PM 3/20/2016
Last updated: 4:32 PM 3/20/2016