Why do dictators do stupid things?

Follow the link for the full article on this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17990615

Sacha Baron Cohen's latest comedy, The Dictator, features the antics of a fictional leader from North Africa. Admiral General Aladeen is an extreme representation, but why do real autocrats so often do strange things? 

Cohen's character lives in luxury in Wadiya, surrounded by an army of female bodyguards, and the The figure is clearly inspired by leaders like Muammar Gaddafi (who also had a female entourage), killed after being ousted from power in Libya last year.

 Actions of other dictators include

 Emperor Caligula (AD 12 - 41)

• He also loved race horses, and was said to have lavished his favourite horse with a house, a troop of slaves, and wine in golden goblets.

• Caligula's erratic behaviour, which also included ordering troops to gather sea shells during a campaign against Britain, led many to question his sanity.  

Superstituous- Francois Duvalier (1907-1971)-  Haiti

• A voodoo physician, he was extremely superstitious, and believed that he was guarded by voodoo spirits on the 22nd of each month. In later years, he only left the presidential palace on the 22nd of each month.
• He claimed to have placed a voodoo curse on US President John F Kennedy, and said Kennedy's assassination on 22 November 1963 was caused by his powers.
    

Obsessed - Idi Amin (1920s-2003)

•  Idi Amin, who ruled Uganda in the 70s, enjoyed giving himself titles, including "Conqueror of the British Empire" and, most famously, "King of Scotland". He also promoted himself to field marshal and awarded himself the Victoria Cross and Military Cross.

•  There were reports that he kept the severed heads of political opponents in his refrigerator. While this has not been proven, he once said to an adviser before dinner: "I want your heart. I want to eat your children.   

Cult of personality - Saparmurat Niyazov (1940-2006)

• Turkmenistan's president-for-life Saparmurat Niyazov established a cult of personality that could easily have rivalled that of Cohen's "dictator". He had a 15m (50ft) gold-plated statue of himself built and it revolved so it always faced the sun.
• Whilst the majority of people in Turkmenistan lived in poverty, he had an ice palace built in the capital, and ordered the construction of a lake in the middle of the desert. 
• He also named cities, a theme park, the month of January, and even a meteorite after himself.

Happy posting.  Keep this clean and sensible!

All comments will be moderated and those deemed unacceptable will not be published.

Happy posting!  

Mr A

'History is a pack of lies about events that never happened told by people who weren't there. '

George Santayana

Read the following article on the BBC website. www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17515305

It gives examples of 5 long held truths about the Titanic that were actually myths formented by Hollywood.  Napoleon Bonaparte commented that 'History is a set of lies agreed upon' whilst Mark Twain also noted that 'Half of writing history is hiding the truth'.

Is History a pack of lies?  Are films helpful to a historian?  Consider other 'lies' throughout history and whether or not in the classroom History teachers like myself are wasting your time.  Can you belive what we tell you?

Remember to keep it clean- anything deemed offensive will be deleted.

Happy posting!

Mr A

Do we still need to study about World War I?

On the 5th May 2011, the world's last known combat veteran of World War I, Claude Choules, died in Australia aged 110.  Known to his comrades as Chuckles, British-born Mr Choules joined the Royal Navy at 15 and went on to serve on HMS Revenge.  Every British Curriculum School in the world will learn about WW1, but now that there are no living survivors is it relevant anymore?  Instead would it be more useful to learn about more recent conflicts?  The year 9's have studied it this year- what do you think?  The year 8's will start with this topic in September- are we wasting your time?
Remember a good historian is one who can justify their opinions- don't make a statement unless you can justify what you say.  Aim to give specific examples.
Happy Posting and keep it clean!  
Any comments deemed offensive will not be published!
Mr A

PS: Please feel free to continue commenting on the previous topic, or post comments if you have not done so far.  The debate got quite lively with some interesting points and ideas discussed.  Well done to all those involved.

Why are we so obsessed with Adolf Hitler?

Hitler committed suicide on the 1st May 1945 ( ironically the same day Osama Bin Laden was killed 66 years later).  However there is still a huge obsession and interest in him.  A house in Swansea, Wales became an internet sensation because it looked like Hitler.  Daily new articles are published, and millions of books continue to be sold about him.  So why are we so obsessed?  Is Hitler really that important?  Discuss and debate with each other- and keep it clean!  Leave your name after each post so you can be given credit in school.   Any posts deemed offensive will not be published.
Happy Posting!
Mr A :-)