Death of the Dictators

Gadhafi is dead and the only thought I can summon is: I'm surprised how long it took. I realize that thought can only occur after he died - it would never have happened prior. But you think about this guy and Saddam and Castro and they are really the last of the dictators, who in retrospect, were very much creatures of the Cold War. Very few of these guys, after the initial coming-to-power stage, ever possessed much legitimacy. But they were able to survive through fear and this umbrella protection from one of the super-powers trying to maintain influence in particular regions at the expense of the other super-power. Since the Soviet Union collapsed, the power of these dictators was a lot less. It was proven to be so in the first Gulf war with the completely underwhelming performance of Saddam's army. Although we didn't exactly realize it, I think the dictators saw the clock ticking on their reigns. Particularly Saddam who took steps like invading Kuwait and trying to build nukes in order to prolong his power. The irony, of course, is these steps ultimately led to his demise and the demise of the dictator. Once Saddam was gone, the rest of these guys seemed weak in comparison. It is now just a matter of time. Even the less problematic dictators - the Assad types - are troubled.