[February 14, 2017] We’ve all had our share of bosses who let power (derived from their positions of authority) to go to their heads. Abuse of power is so common that the U.S. military tracks it against Flag Officer violations of rules of behavior and actively warns against its poisonous attraction.
“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Lord John Dalberg-Acton, historian and moralist
While politicians are the most visible examples of abusing the power of their elected offices, everyone is susceptible. It’s a human condition and requires serious self-control and discipline to keep it controlled. Leaders must be especially careful and on the lookout for signs of it happening to them or those who work with them. When leaders fall to the allure of power things can go very wrong, very quickly.
“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” – Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States
I’ve personally spoken to more than a dozen military Flag Officers, private company presidents, CEOs, etc. that are being investigated or have been punished for wrongdoing. You’ve probably read about them and many more. Our conversations are private, of course, but very sad. Sad because in almost every case they believed what they did was not wrong and was within their authority.
Most common among leaders who fail to control the power they possess is to believe that rules no longer apply to them. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the classic example of this when she set up a private server so her emails could not be exposed showing her mixing her private charity with public service. Unintentionally or not, she also passed classified information on that server and was caught.
Military leaders can also suffer from arrogance and entitlement, derived from the high regard others have of them. They can be blinded by their own standing so much so that their moral code becomes too fragile to help. This is what the allure of power can do when leaders of good character fail.
Drugs, alcohol, and sexual abuses happens too often among military officers1 and among their civilian counterparts. Militarycorruption.com keeps a running log and editorial to publically expose those who would use their power illegally, immorally, or unethically. This is a good, up-to-date source and gives us a reasonable flavor of what happens when leaders lose their way.
Leaders are not exempt from mores of their society. Power is consistently the source of their downfall.
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