Believe it or not

There is a surprising editorial in The Washington Post today that will hopefully become required reading for other editorialists in the West. But don't hold your breath.

It's an editorial on the death of former dictator Augusto Pinochet and lists his all too obvious crimes: the jailings, the extra-judicial assassinations, the foreign cash accounts ...

But the editorial also talks about Pinochet's legacy.

"It's hard not to notice, however, that the evil dictator leaves behind the most successful country in Latin America," The Post says.

"In the past 15 years, Chile's economy has grown at twice the regional average, and its poverty rate has been halved. He also accepted a transition to democracy, stepping down peacefully in 1990 after losing a referendum."

Then the paper refers to The Other Dictator, the one that is close to death in Havana, and his legacy: "By way of contrast, Fidel Castro - Mr. Pinochet's nemesis and a hero to many in Latin America and beyond - will leave behind an economically ruined and freedomless country with his approaching death. Mr. Castro also killed and exiled thousands ..."

Read how Editor & Publisher interpret the editorial here.