Andrew Roberts - A Despicable Stain On The Reputation of A Worthy Discipline

On the subject of mad as a box of frogs right-wingers, here's the latest delight from Andrew 'if only it was 1930s Germany' Roberts in today's special piece in The Observer on democracy:

Are dictators ever good?

Very, very rarely, but occasionally. They can be useful in civil wars or near-insurrection, such as in Spain in the Thirties and Chile in the Seventies, to prevent takeovers by Marxist-inspired movements that would deny democracy in the future, since both Generals Franco and Pinochet eventually handed over to a democratic system in a way that until the late 1980s Communists never did. Dictators almost always carry on in office well after the initial need for them has gone, however, and their record on human rights is generally terrible. Presently, President Musharraf of Pakistan is the personification of a 'good' dictator, protecting his country from Islamic fundamentalist terrorism, but he needs to spot the right moment to leave, and the right person to whom to hand over power.

Yes, good old Franco and Pinochet.....they were quite benevolent really, weren't they? As for Musharraf, nice to see Roberts adopting my preferred terminology for him (although the irony appears to be missing), I'm sure those that have been victim to the MQM might think differently though (not to mention his assault on Geo TV).

Not to be outdone, professional shit blogger (Guido Fawkes) adds his weight to the proceedings:

Are women more democratic?

Not in our house.

Andrew Roberts, Melanie Phillips and Guido Fawkes in one day?? Hand me the pills.