Re: Are we as human beings prone to becoming corrupted with power?
Of course we are, but it depends, as said above, on how much power you have and how limited you are and how you get the power.
I see power as a weapon. Imagine if you are in a park and there is a bear in front of you. At first, you might not be afraid of that but everything starts when you see some suspicious movements that make you think that animal is going to attack you. Suddenly, the situation worsens but you try in your way to stop the animal from attacking. When, after so many attempts your peaceful strategy fails and you see yourself in front of the real danger, then you grab your weapon and pull the trigger.
In the same way, suppose you're a businessman and you have some kind of manager under your supervision. One day you propose him a risky investment and he denies helping you in this initiative. You warn him of being fired and he reluctantly accepts what you say; however, he still doesn't do what you exactly say. To him, what you are proposing is too risky and largely impossible. The manager at this time tries to persuade other employees that your proposal will not succeed and they distantly express that to you as an entrepreneur. At this time, you see the manager as a boring problem, and having all the power at hand, you fire him. This is your power and you use it whenever your interests are affected. This happens at different hierarchical relations in society. We've been grown with the feeling that every authority has a limit and every individual acts upon regulations and moral grounds; we've been also grown with the idea that we personally wouldn't use power at our favour; however, we've not been under those circumstances where we'd be really tested on our maturity and stability when somebody would try to touch our interests. Even when you're found under emotional pressure and against an argument you reply to another party: "you're sun of a bitch", you're abusing your power.
So yes, I think power can corrupt us and the degree of corruption can grow with the increase of power.
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