A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

My Saddam Hussein Plate May Be Worth Something Yet

Ian Black at The Guardian is talking about "Libya's Growth Industry — Qaddafi Memorabilia." Much of the article talks about parodies and spoofs of Qadhafi propaganda, but there also seems to be a market for Qadhafi pictures with other deposed Arab leaders. (So it would be unfair to post this picture yet again — Oh hell, why not?

And, apparently, the one piece of Qadhafi propaganda memorabilia not being trashed or sold off is rugs with his face on it, which are being put down before the entrances of hotels and other heavily-trafficked places. Dictator nostalgia, with a twist.

If this trend to make old dictator propaganda a valuable collector's item were to catch on, perhaps I should try to sell one of my own treasures:
Actually, no way. It hangs in my basement just above my xerox copy of the front page headline of the Montgomery (Alabama) Banner for June 5, 1989, which bears the wonderfully American headline, "Khomeini Dies, Goes to Hell."

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