“Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn’t mean politics won’t take an interest in you.”
I find myself quoting Pericles quite often these days… Not only because the above sentence is so repeatedly (and tragically) apt, but it also goes to show that many elements of human nature haven’t changed at all.
Those who want power are usually the ones who should not have it. Alternatively, the very ownership of power changes the individual. As Lord Acton once famously said, “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
One only has to consider momentarily the likes of many emperors, from Caligula to Caesar…
Indeed, our recent article was on the emperor Tiberius, a Roman emperor considered both accomplished and a monster. Our associate editor, Alex Barrientos, then asked what makes a good statesman… so I’d like to take that thought one step further… and ask after a specific requirement, essentially:
Do you need to be Good to be a Good leader? And is it really necessary to be a “paragon of virtue” to lead a country?
As always, you can write me directly at [email protected]. We’ll be reading out responses in our new Podcast, Classical Wisdom Speaks! (Coming out soon).