AUTOCRATIC RULE
PALESA MORUDU: The resistance is on against US Big Man
Even for those of us who did not like the old one, Trump’s not-so-brave new world is unsettling, writes Palesa Morudu
January 2017 marked the extinction of Davos Man and the return of the Big Man. During the first few weeks of the Donald Trump Show, live from the White House, it has become clear that we have entered a new world disorder. Even for those of us who did not like the old one, Trump’s not-so-brave new world is unsettling. The Big Man now installed in the White House has an America First vision. Based on our experience of Big Men on the African continent, from Jacob Zuma to Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, the US is in for a rough ride. Zuma was once likened to a tsunami. Like natural disasters, Big Men tend to leave destruction in their wake. They regard constitutions as little more than toilet paper. Institutions that get in their way must be neutered or destroyed. They view the media — "the opposition" — with contempt. Decisions that do not go their way in the courts are characterised as "counter-revolutionary" or "outrageous". They have a particular disdain for the "educated" class. They pr...
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