What would a budding dictator need to happen in order to declare martial law over a democracy?
Dec 07, 2009
in
Hurricane
if hurricanes were in short supply and it needed to look like a natural disaster?…something really big that would cause a lot of deaths and panic the population…
maybe even something that put the regime in charge of medicine, food, water, utilities, industry, travel, trade, communications, media, fuel……..and such.
and would cause an immediate need for a civilian army.
and if it was planned. would it have a better chance if it started somewhere out of that democracy’s control where it could get a good head of steam up first?
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22 comments
Tmess2 on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
The primary thing that a dictator needs is a military willing to go along with martial law. That is why dictatorships primarily occur in countries with a history of military intervention or young fragile democracies in which support for democratic institutions is not part of the culture of the military.
You Disappoint Me on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Not the virtually curable Swine Flu >_>
libertarian anarchist on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
An epidemic like swine flu
That was easy, can I have my treat?
Captain Willard on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
sounds like 911
Dimunitive Juarez Griffin on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Hurricane is not big enough. It needs to be nationwide.
Bush did pretty good with Iraq, but we found out the truth. After that, the "Saddam is out to get us" mantra didn’t have the same impact.
myopinion on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
I would say.. a couple wars… a sinking economy and the possibility of a pandemic.. that ought to do it!!!
Presto.. I am king!
King Obama!
Dennis c on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
He would need to confiscate all of the guns in private hands so that the general population could not oppose him.
Once all of the guns in private hands have been confiscated, he can essentially do anything that he wants.
Even if the Supreme Court declares that his seizure of power is illegal, the Supreme Court has no method of enforcing it’s decisions.
The Supreme Court becomes merely a glorified debating society.
dingobluefoot on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Now, give the man time. He’ll find some way to get us nuked yet, yanno…
john m on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Good some of you have a brain
The the big bad piggy cold
Why is Obama a liar? on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
well he would need a high unemployment rate to displace the masses, then he would need to generate concern over how they could make a living, next you would need to generate a "separate class (e.g. jews (hmm ..republicans?) " of people, then you’d need to start making sweeping statements about forthcoming disasters or emergencies.
Next thing you know, public institutions (schools, parks , theaters) would be closed and following that…..tada …..Marshall law
Then it’s (Marshall law) just never goes away and neither does the new dictator.
Shadow Knight on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
*chuckle*
I guess the evil Obamas created the swine flu so they could take over the US.
Please refasten the tinfoil hat.
andypanda on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
They could do it if the swine flu gets worse, or for any reason they want!!! watch the movie Red Dawn!!
the Ol' Foolosifer on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
It wouldn’t take much when you have one that want to destroy the nation. If a disease could be spread and enough people died and those still living started any thing that looked like trouble, he could and possibly would before you took your second breath.
A pandemic would do it. And maybe this Piglosi flu is just that.
Do you know what a budding dictator is called when in the second stage?
A blooming idiot dictator.
Thomas SR on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
A flu pandemic would do nicely. Maybe that’s why his administration’s trying to make such a big deal out of nothing. This "flu" hasn’t killed jack compared to the number of people who get ill and/or die each year from our "normal" flu outbreaks.
ak6702 on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
That sounds like a novel.But it could happen.
Boomer Wisdom on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Do something similar to the burning of the Reichstag. And blame it on the opposition.
Sabotage the economic system, then blame it on the system.
Shoot your dog in the leg, and then blame the dog for not fetching the paper in the morning.
Forget the flu bug — although we know it wouldn’t have happened if Mexico wasn’t getting so hot from man-made global warming–err, climate change…
Mr. Bitter on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Here are a few examples from History…
Stalin built a his own political machine inside the Communist Party while Lenin was in charge. He was "elected" by the Communist Party after Lenin died. He has supposed to have said "Power does not lie with the voters but with who counts the votes."
Mussolini seized power in a bloodless coup when thousands of his supporters marched on Rome, and demanded that he be put in power.
Franco came to power by winning the Spanish Civil War.
Hitler was able to declare a "state of emergency" after the Reichstag fire. There was a provision in the Wiemar Republic’s Constitution that allowed him to do this. Technically, the Wiemar Republic still existed under Hitler, (but only on paper)
I assume this question is based on the concern of "Reichstag’" type incident occurring the United States. There is no clause in the United States Constitution would allow the President to declare martial law over the entire United States without any limits.
President Lincoln faced the worst crisis in American History… A full scale civil war. Elections were still held, and free speech continued. This historical precedent is a powerful one.
I haven’t had all that much faith in our leaders, but I believe in our system of government.
Drop short and duck on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
For the indians to take back over the land and run it like it used to be until the whites came and stuffed up the place. Hehehehehhe come down under and join me in the Simpson Desert and roam like a aboordoon.
Edg1 on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Pretty much anything real or imagined. Epidemic, terrorist attack of any kind, natural disaster, economic disaster and so on.
Maybe even if a few militia types showed up in D.C. with guns, or any riots.
Any excuse will most likely do.
TomT on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
Depends on how imaginative the budding dictator is. …and what his teleprompter tells him.
canam on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
It just fell in his lap. Like the economic crisis. oink oink!!!
Big One 0909 on December 7, 2009 at 7:01 am
First, have your security chief declare those who oppose you extremists.
Then discover that there are enough of them to warrant action.
Step one has already taken place.