Letters to the Editor
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Depends on what 'optimism' means
Picasso painted his masterpiece Guernica, and yet Franco stayed in power for 40 years, and his Axis allies proceeded to destroy the rest of Europe...
kovie
True, but on the other hand, Franco only held power for 40 years, and was slowly overthrown by a people's movement which produced a more democratic and just Spain than has ever existed. The same happened in post-fascist Portugal, and post-fascist Chile, and post-fascist Argentina.
And the Europe destroyed by its fascists and collaborators rebuilt, and for all their faults are more stable and supportive of their citizens than the pre-war governments.
Twenty years ago, no one thought Venezuela would ever move past the Punto Fijo alternating government corruption scheme to begin using some of its vast wealth to improve the lives of its desperately poor citizens. Now they have a government that even detractors admit is far more democratic than the Punto Fijo system and is investing in its own citizenry, for how long who knows, but there was at least for some years a move forward.
None of which is to say that things 'worked out for the best,' just that things which seem set in stone often change, and often due to unexpected impulses.