Foreign Affairs

You do end up wondering. Why did Zaireans not dissolve, en masse, into gales of giggling every time Mobutu appeared with that idiotic leopardskin hat on? Why, when the stunted, stupid Ceausescu appeared before his people, was he able - for decades - to gaze upon intricately co-ordinated mosaic displays extolling his benevolence, instead of a chopping sea of "wanker" gestures? How did the Germans of the 1930s look at Hitler and fail to think, "Dude, you've got, like, a skull on your cap. What are you, 14?

The Terrible Taste of Dictators
Guardian UK


also, on a completely unrelated note, LSD may become legal in Russia... (Bruce Eisner's Vision Thing)