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Jewish World Review July 28, 2003 / 28 Tamuz, 5763
James Lileks
Despot's Deserts
http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com |
Idi Amin's death lingering coma reminds us of a peculiar
time in 20th century history, an era when mass-murdering, cannibalistic
brutes were punch lines to a "Saturday Night Live" skit.
Yes, the Amins of the world are often comic, from a distance.
The Robert Mugabes are content to cloak their evil in a simple black
suit; they look presentable at international functions. But the
Amins feel compelled to out-kitsch the ghost of Mussolini.
Hence the chestful of medals for battles that were never fought.
The epaulets, the stars for manufactured rank. The titles that pile
up platitudes like slabs of cheap, dry cake: Protector of the Land,
Scion of the Army, Father of Liberty, Inspector of Pants, Master
of Poultry, Scourge of Those Evil Spirits Responsible for Dry Scalp
and Tooth Decay, Sovereign of the World, Emperor of the Milky Way,
God's Go-To Guy. Also a Notary Public and Amway Distributor.
Translation: brute. The more titles, the worse the rule. The greater
the official praise, the more loathsome the leader.
By why do we remember Amin, and not the scores of thugs who've shoved
their countrymen through the meat-grinder? In terms of body counts,
he was a piker. Amin tortured and killed between more than 200,000
people -- a ghastly sum, but by 20th century standards, this was
the amateur hour.
No, Amin added his own special twist to the perverse history of
modern misrule. We speak of leaders who have their opponents for
lunch, but it's usually a metaphor. Amin was accused of actual cannibalism.
We don't have photos of him tucking into a plate of minced dissident;
no chef has ever stepped forward to discuss the tyrant's favorite
sweetbreads recipe. But the Ugandans believed that he ate his enemies
-- a rare charge to make against a head of state, so one must suspect
they had their reasons.
His alleged cannibalism struck many in America as a comical twist
on the African dictator. It resurrected childhood images from movies
and comic books: sober, pith-helmeted white men boiling in a big
black pot while bone-nosed natives whooped and sang. That was the
old Africa, the Dr. Livingstone-I-presume Africa. New Africa was
the postcolonial dream of technocratic rule, socialist planning,
British-educated elites calmly steering their newly freed nations
to their place in the international order.
To find an actual cannibal in charge of one these countries was
almost surreal. How could anyone who drove around town in a flashy
sports car winking at the girls, as Amin was known to do, sit down
for a meal of Braised Foe?
But consider today: In the Congo, "rebels" are eating
Pygmies for their magic essence, as if they're a video-game power-up.
This isn't a joke; it happens.
It's difficult to imagine the terror you might feel knowing that
an army was en route, and it didn't just kill citizens, but ate
them. Ate them. So why was this funny over here in the West? Why
was Idi Amin a punch line instead of a byword for the nightmarish
character of postcolonial dystopias?
Because it was Africa, had nothing to do with apartheid, and hence
could be ignored?
Just a thought. In any case, Amin's misrule ended with a lesson
to us all: If you oppress and murder your people, invade neighbors,
and spend the national treasure on brutal wars, you may have to
suffer decades of exile by a seaside resort. Amin went to Libya
first, then Saudi Arabia, where he spent his happy last years. No
doubt he saw the ads in Despots Quarterly, read about the 24-hour
security, Western-grade medical facilities, sparkling beaches, cabanas
for your extended relations. Why, the concierge would even help
coordinate your return to power if you joined at the Diamond Plus
level.
Just remember: Amin stands out only because he did a Hannibal Lecter
on his enemies. The theft and murder was otherwise unnotable. In
the history of humanity, the Libyas, Saudi Arabias and Ugandas of
Amins are not unusual. Liberal democray is the anomaly. Amin is
the norm. All the more reason to cheer his passing -- and keep a
close eye on those who gave him shelter.
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JWR contributor James Lileks is a columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Comment by clicking here.
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© 2003, James Lileks
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