Talk:Idi Amin/Archive 1

message: Greenman: Where do you get C-in-C 1970 from? My sources say 1966, in return for backing Obote against the Kabaka. Graculus 11:21 26 Jul 2003 (UTC)
: Here's one source for the date, though most references don't seem to have dates, so I've got my doubts:  - Mail and Guardian - Greenman 09:34, 12 August 2003 (UTC)
thread_title:  C-in-C year? 

message: Well, now I know why Newt Gingrich looks funny, thanks. Here is a news article about Amin using the phrase "whimsical savagery", an excellent turn of phrase. I suppose that copyvio makes it ineligible for use in the article. StinKerr 23:18, 16 Aug 2003 (UTC)
thread_title:  "Whimsical savagery" 

message: Idi Amin Deleted sections diff
Sennheiser! 14:12, 8 Feb 2004 (UTC)
thread_title:  Moved here from [[Wikipedia:RC patrol]] 

message: So Amin was dark, or darker than some Ugandans as is characteristic of many northern Ugandans in comparisson to other Ugandans. What's the issue that is trying to be established here. I do not think there is any relationship between the contrast of one's skin and savagery. Adolf Hitler who killed 5 million Jews, was of a much lighter complexion than many human beings (and Idi Amin). So what is the relationship or point being raised here?
Secondly, Is there any such thing as 'dark black'? I am an African(Ugandan) and you may refer to me as black or brown. I am actually dark brown. I also happen to be of a lighter complexion than some Ugandans(and Idi Amin),as is characteristic of Ugandans from western Uganda where I come from.  
The fact is we all agree that Idi Amin was a savage and probably mad who killed many people, by the standards and ethics of today, however Uganda at the time like many other African countries and former colonies, was coming out of a system similar to the feudalism of 9-15th century Europe in which leaders held absolute power. Would these leaders be seen to be carrying out genocide in their times, since many of them supressed oppositions in ways which were very similar to those of Amin, in terms of how many people they killed? And how was this in any way proportional or relative to the amount of dark pigmentation cells in their skins.
Denis Mutabazi(Student)
XSHATO@YAHOO.COM —Preceding unsigned comment added by 154.14.246.3 (talk • contribs) 27 December 2004
: To Denis Mutabazi - Hitler killed 6 million Jews, not 5. ...never forget. Loomis51 23:05, 23 December 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  Idi Amin: very black(?), charming dictator(?) 

message: While admittedly a life-long civilian, the following passage doesn't make sense to me:
Amin joined the King's African Rifles of the British colonial army as a private in 1946, rising to the rank of lieutenant after seeing action during the Mau Mau revolt in Kenya. He was considered a skilled, but somewhat overeager, soldier, and developed a reputation for cruelty. He rose through the ranks, reaching sergeant-major before being made an effendi, the highest rank possible for a Black African in the British army.
A lieutenant is a Commissioned officer, & thus of higher rank than a sergeant-major (an NCO). Thus it appears to me that Idi Amin went from private to an officer rank, then was demoted to sergeant-major, then was promoted to effendi (some kind of sub-lieutenant grade officer?). But there is no explanation for this demotion in the article (his military career in the KAR appears to be exemplary), so did someone make a mistake here, & Idi Amin actually became a corporal & not a lieutenant? Or was he a receive a field promotion to lieutentant due to heavy officer casualties? -- llywrch 04:10, 25 Jan 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  Military ranks 

message: Can anyone verify his title of "Big Daddy"??? Comatose51 22:10, 22 Apr 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Big Daddy is not a title. It is a nickname. Ezeu 21:06, 18 July 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  "Big Daddy"? 

message: Undisorganized (if George can make up words so can I) this talk page. Note that there may be some disparity vis-à-vis chronoloical order of comments. Some comments removed. Ezeu 16:25, 8 August 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Note to anyone reading this: I've undone these changes. All old talk restored in chronological order. Chris Cunningham 14:48, 22 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Undisorganized 

message: Once in a while someone comes and adds comments about Idi Amin's erratic behavior with references to roumours (eg. cannibalism), his rediculous titles and other bizarr aspects of this hedious dictator. Usually these additions are removed to keep the article objective (I have done so as well), which (paradoxically) whitewashes his brutality. I think we need to include these aspects into the article. Why not a subheading where we make known some of the intresting things about Amin, eg. the above mentioned, but also that he married abnormally many wives, proclaimed himself Field Marshal and conquerer of the British Empire (etc), arranged motor rallies (which he won because no one dared to beat him), had white men carry him around on a throne (quite funny if you ask me), offered to send food aid for the UK,  -- but also some of the good things he did, like enhance sports in Uganda, promote the fight against apartheid (Amin, bless his soul, wanted African states to attack South Africa). It should also be mentioned that he was overbearingly huge, not only in personality, but also in size.
Also, interestingly, many of Idi Amin's friends and collaborators have recently been released from prison, having served time for their crimes, and many of them have given interviews for the Ugandan newspaper The monitor giving accounts of a naive, well meaning, albeit not entirely cohorent Amin.
:(Conqueror of the British Empire was a title Amin gave himself, along with the Victoria Cross and the Military Cross, part of his obsession with showing himself equal or superior to Queen Elizabeth II - who had failed to accept his invitation to visit him in Uganda.)
--Ezeu 23:27, 8 August 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  The other story 

message: Was Idi Amin's regime a totalitarian dictatorship?
*Yes --Ezeu 03:48, 2 October 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Ezeu, he was as vile as they come, but his power base was far too percarious to develop into something political scientists would classify as a "totalitarian" regime. By the way, these classifications cannot not be decided by a poll of Wikipedia editors seeking to assert that "Idi Amin was a dog." Please review Wikipedia:Cite your sources, Wikipedia:No original research, and Wikipedia:Neutral Point of View. 172 | Talk 05:19, 2 October 2005 (UTC)

text: A poll is not the way Wikipedia works. Stating that Idi Amin was a dictator (totalitarian or not) is not a neutral perspective. Wizzy…☎ 07:45, 2 October 2005 (UTC)
replies: text:  Ah yes, but if you find a source that says he was, then we can add that such and such say that he was a dictator. - Ta bu shi da yu 09:29, 19 December 2005 (UTC)
thread_title:  Impromptu poll 

message: Though "Mississippi Masala" (according to its Wikipedia page) contains some references to Amin's regime, I have removed it from "Portrayal in Media." This section is meant to highlight portrayals of Amin in the media, either by actors dramatically interpreting Amin's persona, or by documentary filmmakers attempting to "portray" Amin through exploration of his actions and character. If Amin had been a character in the film (ie, an actor had portrayed him in the film), this would be a "portrayal in media". However, since the film only references Amin and does not concentrate on portraying him (through dramatic interpretation or otherwise), it should not be included as a "portrayal in media." Docether 15:09, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Portrayal in Media 

message: Does anyone remember that Richard Nixon quote about Amin being a "goddam cannibal asshole" who would "eat his own mother?"  I can't seem to find the exact words, but I think he also said, "Christ!  He'd eat his own grandmother!"  Maybe I'm thinking of something Hunter Thompson wrote, so who knows how reliable it is. Brian G. Crawford 02:01, 14 March 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Richard Nixon on Idi Amin 

message: there is no documentation for the assertion that one of the entebbe hostages was killed by ugandan army officers acting under the orders of idi amin.  therefore i am replacing "murdered" with "allegedly killed."  if someone has any documentation for this incident, i wish that person would add it to this article. jonathan becker 02:03, 1 April 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  No proof of murder assertion 

message: OK, "Portrayal in Media" is getting clogged up with trivia again. Amin was mentioned in a song, his picture showed up in a lad magazine, etc. etc. "Portrayal in Media" is meant to include those works of media which center on a portrayal (dramatic or factual) of Amin". For example, we should include a film in which Amin, portrayed by an actor, is either primary or important secondary character. We should also include a documentary which closely follows Amin and attempts to portray his character through intensive interrogation of his actions. Amin has undoubtedly been referenced in many types of media, but he has not been portrayed in very many at all, and this section should highlight those important portrayals, rather than provide a laundry-list of "mentions". 
The mention of Amin in a Sex Pistols song does not rise to the level of a "portrayal" (which it might, for example, if the song's lyrics were written from Amin's point of view). Likewise, a single line mention in Maxim Magazine is not a portrayal. If the rapper E.D. I Mean has modelled his stage persona on Amin, then it's a portrayal -- otherwise, if the name is all they have in common, we should remove this item as well. In a day or two, barring extensive discussion of this issue, I'm going to remove the first two items listed above and look into the third one. Docether 14:06, 1 May 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Portrayal in Media, Part 2 

message: It was "His Excellency President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Sea, and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular."  Why did it get removed? Stuart mcmillen 07:25, 10 July 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I have put it back, although I believe it is mere trivia. Idi Amin was never officially known by that title – that title was one of his many trivial eccentricities that made good headlines. Whatever crap came out of Amin's mouth was made into news. I argue that Amin's titles and nicknames are trivia (useful in popular culture, but useless for historical documentation) and should be treated as such on Wikipedia. Amin was often a headline, and often used by Western journalists as an excuse to mock African dictators (and occasionally Africans) irrelevant of reality, and disregarding from the fact that their own countries supported Idi Amin economically and morally. --Ezeu 15:11, 25 August 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Why did his title get delted from this page? 

message: Check it out:
http://www2.foxsearchlight.com/thelastkingofscotland/pops/links.html
It links to this page first. (Bjorn Tipling 20:56, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Movie website links to wikipedia 

message: The wikipedia article claims he was in Kenya with the KAR fighting against the Mau Mau rebellion until 1949. He may have been in Kenya, but he wasn't fighting against the Mau Mau. The Mau Mau rebellion and the Emergency didn't start until 1952.—Preceding unsigned comment added by 132.206.12.3 (talk • contribs) 21:11, 23 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: Yes, that inconsistency needs to be corrected. I have made corrections using Guweddeko's timeline. --Ezeu 21:51, 27 November 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Idi Amin in Kenya 

message: This guy was a hero. If he was President in the United States, I bet we wouldn't be having any problems with obnoxious anti-war protesters clogging up our streets. Sunset's Light 04:35, 3 November 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Hero