A “Morning Edition” report today on the Philippine economy notes that Ferdinand Marcos, deposed 20 years ago after two decades in power, polls as more popular than any of the leaders who have followed him. In part, people say that the economy was better under Marcos. A variety of factors played into that, including the massive US investment in military bases throughout the Marcos regime, but the post-Marcos economy can’t have been helped by the enormous amounts of money Marcos and his family reaped during his time in office, his massive spending on palaces and vacation homes, and other Saddam-style perks of the authoritarian dictator.