I guess it would depend on what kind of criteria you choose to rate them. You could pick anything from military success to a stable economy to simply having popular approval and you might end up with vastly different results.
Perhaps a better question would therefore be: have dictators existed that have done right to their people?
Well, a difficult question. Very broadly speaking, I would say no - because letting everyone in a society participate in the decision where the nation is going as a whole is a crucial part of "doing right to your people". Few people want to simply accept everything without having a say. Another problem with dictators is that they oftentimes end up doing very bad things in the hope of making up for the point above and gaining the people's approval in a different way. Dictators also tend to be masters of manipulation and propaganda. They lie to their people and abuse their (economic) despair.
However, it is certainly true that some dictators have done SOME good things. Fidel Castro has given Cuba one of the best healthcare systems in the world and good education for everyone. Hugo Chavez has lifted millions of paupers out of misery. Ghaddafi gave his people free healthcare, education, electricity and almost-free petrol, as well as (almost-) equal rights for women. Ayatollah Khomeini gave Iranians back their national sovereignty, which they were thirsting for. Hitler managed to stabilize the German economy... and he passed the first non-smoking laws in the world (and they were pretty strict). The thing with the Autobahn on the other hand is not true. Germany had already been building highways long before Hitler.
The question is: at what price did these things happen? And even more importantly: do we need a dictator to achieve them?
Yes, there have been dictators that have done good deeds. However, for any good thing they did, they did about three horrible ones. And, to come full circle, none of them actually let the people have a choice. Even if they perhaps had a good sense of what their people wanted, such totalitarianism must be considered very problematic by anyone who cares not just about democracy but about freedom.
Maybe the one guy that would come closest to a benevolent dictator would be France-Albert René from the Seychelles. But I'm sure even with him, we could find a lot of dirt. In the end, humans are humans. And the power-hungry ones are usually not the most caring ones.
King Hussein maybe?
"Peace demands no less courage than war. It is the courage to meet the adversary, his attitudes and arguments, the courage to face hardships, the courage to bury senseless illusions, the courage to surmount impeding obstacles, the courage to engage in a dialogue to tear down the walls of fear and suspicion. It is the courage to face reality."
"Jordan's signing of a peace treaty with Israel, and other issues, were met with disdain by Syria's president Hafez Al-Assad. The CIA handed the King a detailed report in December 1995 warning him of a Syrian plot to assassinate him and his brother Hassan."
upload.wikimedia.org/.../...ein_of_Jordan_1997.jpg
hell nooooo, human beings are evil and controlling, and assholes. they want everyone to be a monolith, they think their way is the superior way, superior ideology, why do you think religion was created? to give people some control and moral groundwork (altho some humans hide their evils behind religion instead of use religion to make themselves better as people). no good dictator exist, human beings are not kind people.
I'm not sure if they've existed in the past, but in present day it's hard to find kind and understanding leaders.
(Also that's Oman's Sultan in the picture, he's a good leader in my opinion)
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Power corrupts so I’m not sure if there were any purely good dictators. Most dictators started off as good but eventually became corrupt. The only one that can be considered somewhat “okay” was Francisco Franco since he saved some Jews from the Nazis. http://strangeside.com/ww2-franco-helps-jews/
I think it's possible for a benevolent dictator to be the best form of government. There are issues with democracy because the voting public can be swayed by privately owned media, false media, ignorance and prejudice. After the vote no further control is usually possible, and those in power can be very corrupt. On the other hand, a dictator could take the advice of experts, make swift decisions based on intelligent and knowledgeable advice, and not have to worry about short term popularity. They could shape society in the long term, for the better.
A good example of a benevolent dictator might well be the British monarchy, the current Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Victoria spring to mind, though perhaps those aren't ideal examples. I'm sure there must have been plenty over the millennia. There is one that escapes me, I think it is the Sultan of Brunei, if I recall correctly.
I'm sure it's happened. Kings of ancient times were also practically dictators. Dictatorship isn't instantly wrong because we have some guarantee that the dictator will be worse than other forms of government - dictatorship is bad because no matter how lucky you are the first or even second time around, the next one can screw everyone over in a heartbeat and there's nothing you can do to stop him
Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso. Supporter of women's equality, fought to end feudalism, redistributed land to peasants, had schools and hospitals built, encouraged planting trees to prevent desertification, made his funding transparent to be open to scrutiny, etc. Millions of children were vaccinated in less than seven years and the grain production grew dramatically.
HAHA... you are expecting something good from someone Who's position name acronym becomes to be "DICK"
besides the good dictator were the one, who are recorded in history as bad.
the bad dictator were the one , about who history has no wrong record..
history does not shows GOOD or BAD..
it shows the records made by people in power...
"WAR DOES NOT DECIDES WHO WON, IT DECIDES WHO ARE REMAINING"
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk lead the Turkish War of Independence from 1919 to 1922. His presidency from 1923 to 1938 removed foreign influence from the former Ottoman territory. His series of social reforms allowed women to vote, agrarian land reform, removed Islam as the state religion, established secularism, and the adopted a Western-based criminal code.
I was taking notes at a university lecture once, and the lecturer spoke clearly and didn't speak too fast. Definitely the best dictator ever!
dictatorships are seen as a bad thing but i dont think capitalism is so great either so given my views im sure some dictators of the past must have been better than trump
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of Republic of Turkey. Its debatable calling him good or bad, mostly good for modern Turks but some still oppose his actions. Well worth looking him up, I praise him.
I mean, Mubrak, Assad and Ghdaffi actually weren't bad. The only ones who opposed them were radicals who wanted a Sharia government. They were just angry because they weren't allowed to practice their Sharia law.
The majority of "dictators" are better than Obama, Bush, Clinton and the majority of USA presidents. Take Muammer el Gadafi for an example. During his time, people in Libya lived better than people in USA or any European country. Until Americans killed him and fucked up his country, which brings me to my second point: most of those dicators don't go around the world killing innocent people and forcefully taking what belongs to them.
*does the Nazi salute*
My führer has always been the greatest. Heil Hitler!
Well... there have been fair kings and emperors and Julius Caesar was a lit motherfucker. He favoured the common man and wanted to improve the lives of plebians and peasants as opposed to the rest of the aristocracy at the time.
There were a few good Kings. Kings are pretty much dictators.
I’m from Oman. Our monarch is far from a dictator. Your picture is kinda offensive to me.
Hitler! No just kidding.. I don't think they do. Dictators always fuck things up and force people to do things they think are right. Have good abusive, controlling pricks existed? No
No body is a good or bad dictator... it's simply if the nation is progressing , it's people have a happy life... they get good health , work , education... and a good future... we say he is a good ruler , or else... he is a bad dictator
King Wenceslas? He was good. He was so good that someone wrote a song about it. 😂
I believe there were a few. Most become corrupt by power or are ousted by political allies/enemies at some point in there career.
As in like Benevolent dictator.. Arguably Lee Kuan Yew.
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