Asshole of the Day
By 
Surely, as Scott and many others pointed out yesterday, it would be difficult to match wits with the “moral clarity” of Jonah Goldberg on the question of dictatorships and social order. Not even Goldberg, however, would seem capable of arguing that the regime of Augusto Pinochet was actually democratic in its very origins. William Hawkins, Fellow at the US Business and Industry Council, offered these sage observations today on the H-Diplo discussion forum:
It has been standard in news accounts to simply mention that Allende was “democratically elected” without further details. But he won a bare plurality of the votes in 1970, 36.2%, against two major opponents. This is actually less than he got in 1964 when he polled 38.6% against one major opponent, Eduardo Frie, who received 55.6%. Allende had also run for president in 1952 and 1958, losing both times. There was a fairly consistent one-third of the electorate (give or take) who supported Allende, but that is a long way from a majority or any demonstration of democratic will. He certainly never had a mandate.
In 1973, opposition parties controlled the Chamber of Deputies and the Supreme Court had condemned Allende’s abuse of executive power as he attempted to rule in the face of rising popular discontent. So the military coup can be said to have been more in line with public opinion than against it, and thus more “democratic” in nature than Allende’s continued rule. Which explains the ease of the operation and its general acceptance. The rather small number of victims (tortured and executed) in the years immediately after the coup does more to reveal the weakness of the radical movement than its alleged vibrance as the vanguard of the people.
Of course I’m nearly speechless. H-Diplo is a well-moderated forum that does not permit intemperate language and personal attacks; since the ideas contained in these two paragraphs are unworthy of serious refutation, I’m not sure there’s much more I can offer except to endorse Rob’s Plan B in case I get turned down for tenure. I’m not sure I’m smart enough to work at the American Enterprise Institute, but I’m pretty sure I could fake my way into the USBIC.