Consider the death of a right-wing dictator. Chile’s brutal Augusto Pinochet died in 2006: “In 2011, the Chilean government officially recognized 36,948 survivors of torture and political imprisonment, as well as 3,095 people killed or disappeared at the hands of the military government.”
I was no fan of then-president George W. Bush. Yet his White House released a statement that described Pinochet’s dictatorship as “one of the most difficult periods in that nation’s history” and said that “our thoughts today are with the victims of his reign and their families.”
Now we have the death of a left-wing dictator, Cuba’s Fidel Castro. Many thousands more were killed, tortured, and imprisoned by Castro than by Pinochet.
I am no fan of president-to-be Donald Trump. Yet his office issued this statement: “The world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Fidel Castro’s legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights.”
The prime minister of Canada, by contrast — whose Liberal party should have something to say about liberty — had this to say about Castro’s death: 
he feels “deep sorrow” upon hearing the news, notes his dad was “very proud to call him a friend,” and offers his “deepest condolences” to the dead dictator’s supporters.
A good leader leads. We encourage young people to speak truth to power. Yet when a powerful leader won’t speak plainly about clear cases of large-scale evil — what lesson does that teach?
Update: Barack Obama has now issued his statement: 1) Neutral on Castro’s actions. 2) Focused on bettering Cuban-American relations in the future. 3) Nice mention of Cuban Americans’ contributions and concerns. 4) Condolences to Castro’s family only (in contrast to Trudeau who offered “deepest condolences to the family, friends and many, many supporters”).
Prof. Hicks,
I just found you by accident (if there is such a thing as an “accident”) on Netflix when I ordered your DVD, “Nietzsche and the Nazis.” I’ve watched it through about a dozen times so far, so I’d be sure to get all the nuances. I didn’t want to miss anything, it was so good! I absolutely loved your presentation and teaching style.
Being so impressed with you as a professor, today I checked Netflix to see if there were any additional philosophy DVDs that you had written and produced that I could order, but I couldn’t find any that Netflix carried. Eventually, I landed on this page comparing what various world leaders had to say about the now deceased, and burning in hell, Fidel Castro. (It’s fun to say that, but I believe Castro is NOT actually burning in hell, for I believe he truly believed what he was doing was right for Cuba, as twisted as that seems.) What did you say in your Nietzsche video? All good things start out with bloodletting (or words to that effect). Castro obviously subscribed to that philosophy as did the Nazis.
So, regarding these press releases, nobody can say that Donald Trump didn’t recognize the horrendous large scale evil perpetrated by Fidel Castro and he doesn’t mince words. I doubt whether Trump will allow anyone to force him to tone it down once he takes office. He obviously doesn’t care about superficial political correctness or what anybody thinks of him; he just wants to get things done and is going to lead his own team.
In contrast, the Canadian prime minister doesn’t seem to be in touch with reality. For him to offer his deepest condolences to Castro’s supporters makes one wonder what Koolaid he’s drinking or whether he’s incapable of critical thinking at all!
Prof. Hicks,
I just found you by accident (if there is such a thing as an “accident”) on Netflix when I ordered your DVD, “Nietzsche and the Nazis.” I’ve watched it through about a dozen times so far, so I’d be sure to get all the nuances. I didn’t want to miss anything, it was so good! I absolutely loved your presentation and teaching style.
Being so impressed with you as a professor, today I checked Netflix to see if there were any additional philosophy DVDs that you had written and produced that I could order, but I couldn’t find any that Netflix carried. Eventually, I landed on this page comparing what various world leaders had to say about the now deceased, and burning in hell, Fidel Castro. (It’s fun to say that, but I believe Castro is NOT actually burning in hell, for I believe he truly believed what he was doing was right for Cuba, as twisted as that seems.) What did you say in your Nietzsche video? All good things start out with bloodletting (or words to that effect). Castro obviously subscribed to that philosophy, as did the Nazis.
So, regarding these press releases, nobody can say that Donald Trump didn’t recognize the horrendous large-scale evil perpetrated by Fidel Castro, and Trump doesn’t mince words. I doubt whether he will allow anyone to force him to tone it down once he takes office. Trump obviously doesn’t care about superficial political correctness or what anybody thinks of him; he just wants to get things done and is going to lead his own team. He is a “hammer.”
In contrast, the Canadian prime minister doesn’t seem to be in touch with reality! For him to have offered his deepest condolences to Castro’s “supporters” makes one wonder about his lack of judgment or critical thinking ability!