Saddam: Making Offers You Can't Refuse

His 1979 takeover had been a replica of Michael Corleone's violent accession to his father's empire in The Godfather. Half the Ba'ath party was bloodily purged when he ousted President Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr, who had been Saddam's "godfather" in the 1960s. Many of the "traitors" were guilty of future intentions; the "proof" was in details he remembered of some of their minor deeds. Others were guilty of "thoughts" he read in their eyes.

The Godfather derives his legitimacy from loyalty and obedience, secured by a system of terror and reward. Saddam told me he admired Michael Corleone as a statesman; a man able to provide his family with protection and a concept of "justice" unavailable under Western civil laws.

A fascinating analogy from today's Daily Telegraph.

Interesting to read that Saddam is the master of the pre-emptive strike. I wonder if he has a taste for irony?