ABSTRACT
Leaders as a category, however, are seldom dismissed in that way: Leadership is a praise word. Particular leaders get their share of opprobrium, but not the whole class. Without consent from their followers, without some level of mutual trust, leaders cannot lead. It is sometimes difficult to acknowledge that leaders whom history has judged despicable may yet have enjoyed the respect and admiration of their followers. Ignoring facts in practice usually also means ignoring advice. Every leader has advisers at his side, sometimes there by statute, the leader being legally required to get their consent before his decisions are put into effect, and sometimes members of his "kitchen cabinet" - unofficial consultants, usually old friends and companions, and generally believed to have more clout than the official advisers. A curious feature of higher-level academic institutions marks them off from other formal organizations like the military or monastic orders or communist parties.
