16577 ª April 23 3:30 PM. “All democracies turn into dictatorships — but not by coup. The people give their democracy to a dictator, whether it’s Julius Caesar or Napoleon or Adolf Hitler. Ultimately, the general population goes along with the idea… It isn’t that the Empire conquered the Republic, it’s that the Empire is the Republic.” George Lucas talks about the politics of his new Star Wars films. [MetaFilter]