How Power Corrupts a Compromised Nation
by Lawrence Kadish • January 15, 2024 at 1:30 pm
If our democracy is to survive, our nation's citizens need to be mindful of Lord Acton's warning, as well as that of founding father Benjamin Franklin, who, upon leaving Independence Hall, told a bystander that America will have a republic, "if you can keep it." Pictured: Benjamin Franklin (L) and Lord Acton. (Images source: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Few know his name, but John Dalberg-Acton, otherwise known as Lord Acton, gave us insight and a warning that millions of people recite, perhaps now than ever. A British historian, politician, and writer from the 1800s, he told posterity, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."
Today we are faced with centers of absolute power that, one can argue, have done serious harm to the fabric of our democracy. Education, elections, politics, have all become concentrations of power where someone speaking the truth to such power runs the risk of being sued for defamation or worse.
