>"Make no mistake, as emperor, Palpatine is a
>dictator--but a relatively benign one, like Pinochet.
>It's a dictatorship people can do business with. They
>collect taxes and patrol the skies. They try to stop
>organized crime (in the form of the smuggling rings
>run by the Hutts). The Empire has virtually no effect
>on the daily life of the average, law-abiding citizen.
>"
>
>http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/001/248ipzbt.asp