Soft, quiet dictators

[Ranger2]

This topic is not trying to argue that some dictators are really just nice guys who need a hug, or aren't committing terrible atrocities.

One thing that always surprises me when I see interviews of infamous dictators is how quiet and soft-spoken they seem. Given their portrayals I would expect a strongman authoritarian dictator to be strong, forceful, and aggressive in interviews.

Try watching these interviews with these dictators. You don't need to pay attention to what they're saying or their arguments. Just look at how they present themselves.
It's interesting to see how dictators are just like many politicians: they have charismatic outgoing personalities on camera but they are really quiet, reserved people off camera. It's strange.
Al-Assad
Saddam Hussein
Gaddafi
Hosni Mubarak (who is still charismatic)

Don't listen to what they say, listen to their body language and how they say it. It's interesting.

[supergandhi64]

sounds like something an apologist would say! dictators are the scourge of the earth & all nations should have freedom & democracy to ensure equal opportunities for all

--supergandhi64

[Mexal]

I do have to agree with Al-Assad on a few points. How can we know that it's him doing all of this? They could just very well be false reports.

[kakalxlax]

hehe, try watching an interview of Cristina Kirschner, that dictator cannot say 2 words without moving like morphing power rangers and yelling like goku

[Love]

It's not like dictators are livid serial killers.
They are just people with a lot of power.

[KatMaestro]

OP saw a pattern. It must be a conspiracy.

[Freaki-boy92]

At 5/30/13 03:17 PM, supergandhi64 wrote: sounds like something an apologist would say! dictators are the scourge of the earth & all nations should have freedom & democracy to ensure equal opportunities for all

--supergandhi64

actually no, it's not necessarily- if you want to get a job interpreting history, then one of the best things you can do is study how despots and dictators conducted themselves in private, it gives a very good insight into how they manage to get into power in the first place for the most part. once that has been done, then steps can be taken to ensure that it doesn't happen again in the future

[supergandhi64]

At 6/8/13 04:26 AM, Freaki-boy92 wrote:

At 5/30/13 03:17 PM, supergandhi64 wrote: sounds like something an apologist would say! dictators are the scourge of the earth & all nations should have freedom & democracy to ensure equal opportunities for all

--supergandhi64

actually no, it's not necessarily- if you want to get a job interpreting history, then one of the best things you can do is study how despots and dictators conducted themselves in private, it gives a very good insight into how they manage to get into power in the first place for the most part. once that has been done, then steps can be taken to ensure that it doesn't happen again in the future

i'm sorry i'm not sure if i understand . . . let me get a couple of things straight right away. do you hate democracy? do you hate freedom? are you a terrorist? are you a muslim

--supergandhi64

[Freaki-boy92]

At 6/8/13 11:55 AM, supergandhi64 wrote:

At 6/8/13 04:26 AM, Freaki-boy92 wrote:

At 5/30/13 03:17 PM, supergandhi64 wrote: sounds like something an apologist would say! dictators are the scourge of the earth & all nations should have freedom & democracy to ensure equal opportunities for all

--supergandhi64

actually no, it's not necessarily- if you want to get a job interpreting history, then one of the best things you can do is study how despots and dictators conducted themselves in private, it gives a very good insight into how they manage to get into power in the first place for the most part. once that has been done, then steps can be taken to ensure that it doesn't happen again in the future

i'm sorry i'm not sure if i understand . . . let me get a couple of things straight right away. do you hate democracy? do you hate freedom? are you a terrorist? are you a muslim

--supergandhi64

i don't hate democracy or freedom, nor am i a muslim.
i just genuinely believe that to prevent further dictatorships from cropping up, we must study the dictators. that means reading any works they may write, watching any interviews they do and finding out why they are in power where they are.
studying a despot is not a bad thing to do when you consider that they are often elected democratically in their first term, and then manage to pass a law that means they are in for life. how does that happen? if it isn't fear, it's something else.