Weekly Article - Does Power Corrupt?

Does Power Corrupt?

Power is something that people have wanted and fought over since the beginnings of humans. Throughout history as people obtain the power that they continuously strive to gain, they strive for more and more power. People who gain only a little bit of power soon want more, which can easily corrupt a person’s motives. People stop doing things because they are right and it’s what they believe in and start doing things just to gain power. History has shown that many people have been corrupted by power, but with control and a balancing system within governments, we can now control how much power a single person is allowed to have.

The word corrupt means lacking in integrity. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/corrupt) Holding a position of power in a government or any position where a person has authority can be enjoyable for many people. This authority allows people to control their fellow countrymen, or any human. As are many enjoyable things, power is addictive. Many leaders that have turned out wrong such as Napoleon and Stalin were corrupted by their enjoyment, or what they thought was necessity, to hold all of the power. People try to gain more and more power so that they can use it for personal purposes. Not all power is corruptive though. Only extreme power, such as when a person has absolute power, corrupts leaders because once people get a small taste of what is possible to have, they try to get that power anyway that is at all possible, which means that it is possible for people to change their beliefs and views on moral things to gain the confidence of the people. (http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/200908/how-power-corrupts-leaders)

Ever since people have banded together to form groups during the stone ages, there have been corrupt leaders. Leaders that do things only to protect themselves, their power, and their interests are dangerous to people in modern times. There have been many instances where, because one person had absolute power and they gave no thought to morals, crimes have been committed such as genocide and wars have been started. Power hungry people have tried to gain more power and take over the world, which has resulted in many deaths throughout the past few centuries all over the world.

There is only one way to keep people from gaining absolute power, and that is to not them have the chance. The United States checks and balances system almost eliminates the possibility that someone may completely take over the government. In short, the checks and balances system allows one part of the government to overrule or stop another part from becoming too powerful. The Unites States Declaration of Independence also states that the American people have the power to change the government if necessary or if it becomes harmful, “That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles … as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness” ( Original words of the Declaration of Independence from http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html). This allows us to change the government not only if one leader is corrupt but if all are corrupt, making it so that the citizens, and now because of our large involvement of world affairs, the world, are never affected by a corrupt dictatorship.

As mentioned before, there has been much bloodshed because of leaders and dictators looking for personal gains. Dictators and leaders such as Stalin or Hitler used their power to advance themselves personally and force their ideas on people which weren’t always moral. Although many people have been corrupt, and many citizens around the world have been affected by corrupt leaders and governments through acts such as genocide and the oppression of beliefs, there are ways to prevent those things from happening.

Works Cited
"Corrupt | Define Corrupt at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 27 Feb. 2010. .

"Declaration of Independence - Transcript." National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 27 Feb. 2010. .

"How Power Corrupts Leaders | Psychology Today." Psychology Today: Health, Help, Happiness Find a Therapist. Web. 27 Feb. 2010. .