Categories
Today

Dictator Overthrown

On December 22, 1989, Communist President of Romania Nicolae Ceaușescu was overthrown by Ion Iliescu after days of bloody confrontations. The deposed dictator and his wife fled Bucharest with a helicopter as protesters erupted in cheers.

The couple was quickly caught and, on Christmas day, tried by a military tribunal and executed by firing squad.

1 reply on “Dictator Overthrown”

Until Ceaușescu and his wife were in front of a firing squad, they were sure that the revolutionaries would not actually execute them. 

What I remember most about the Ceaușescu regime is that, long before Barack Obama, they used the argument of you-​didn’t-​build-​that, specifically in the case of education. The regime argued that its citizens could not leave without compensation to the state, because the state had educated them — basically, “You didn’t build you!”

Well, Nick and Barry, you can’t use the violent power of the state to crowd-​out private provision, and then claim a debt on the part of consumers.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *