Complex sentence: The beginning of all ameliorative reforms to government must presuppose democracy, as a rule; even lip service to oligarchies, for example with notions of benevolent dictatorship, must be dismissed as fantastic.
Split into simpler sentences: The beginning of all ameliorative reforms to government must presuppose democracy, as a rule. Even lip service to oligarchies--for example, support for purportedly benevolent dictators--must be dismissed as fantastic.