Is Lord Acton Right? Rethinking Corruption, Democracy, and Political Power

Werlin, Herbert H.

doi:10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILSHS.1.1

Paper Titles in Periodical

International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences

ILSHS Volume 1

ILSHS > ILSHS Volume 1 > Is Lord Acton Right? Rethinking Corruption,...

< Back to Volume

Is Lord Acton Right? Rethinking Corruption, Democracy, and Political Power

Removed due to plagiarism

Full Text PDF

Abstract:

This article examines Lord Acton’s famous assertion, “power tends to corrupt and absolute power, to corrupt absolutely,” including the suggestion that democratization reduces corruption. This assertion requires us to look at the meaning of political power, corruption, and democracy. By making a distinction between primary and secondary corruption (essentially, controllable and uncontrollable corruption) and between liberal democracy (emphasizing competitive politics) and classical democracy (emphasizing consensus-building politics), together with introducing Political Elasticity (PE) theory, a number of difficult questions are raised: 1. What is political power (with Hobbes and Russia, in mind) 2. What is the linkage between political power and corruption 3. Why is it that corruption does not necessarily prevent economic development (with China in mind) At the conclusion the autocracy-corruption linkage is examined, as exemplified by a comparison of Singapore and Jamaica, indicating: (1) that political power, if persuasive, is not necessarily corruptive; (2) liberal or partisan democracy tends to corrupt and lawless democracy, to corrupt absolutely and (3) authoritarian regimes may recognize that controlling corruption is essential for their legitimacy and economic prosperity.

Info:

Periodical:

International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences (Volume 1)

Pages:

1-13

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILSHS.1.1

Citation:

H. H. Werlin, "Is Lord Acton Right? Rethinking Corruption, Democracy, and Political Power", International Letters of Social and Humanistic Sciences, Vol. 1, pp. 1-13, 2013

Online since:

September 2013

Authors:

Herbert H. Werlin

Keywords:

Authoritarianism, Corruption, Democracy, Lord Acton, Political Power

Export:

RIS, BibTeX, Text

Distribution:

Open Access

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

References:

[1] Campos Jose Elgardo, Hilton L. Root, The Key to the Asian Miracle. Washington, DC: Brookings, (1996).

[2] Carothers Thomas, Framing the Challenge., In Promoting the Rule of Law, ed. Thomas Carothers (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, (2006).

[3] Chadda Maya, India: Between Majesty and Modernity., In The Struggle Against Corruption (109-139), ed., Roberta Ann Johnson. New York: Palgrave, (2004).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781403981004_5

[4] Dahl Robert A., Polyarchy: Participation and Opposition. New Haven: Yale University Press, (1971).

[5] Davies H. W. E., Town Planning Review 59 (1) (1988) 207-220.

[6] Diamond Larry, Can the Whole World Become Democratic? Public Lecture 12, September 2006. Available from the Institute for Policy Studies, www.ips.org.

[7] Figueroa Mark, Amanda Sives, Commonwealth & Comparative Politics 40(1) (2002) 81-108.

[8] Goehler Gerhard, Constitution and Use of Power., In Power in Contemporary Politics (40-68), eds. Henri Goverde, Philip G. Cerny, Mark Haugaard and Howard Lentner. London: Sage, (2000).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11615-002-0045-1

[9] Global Advice Network 2008. China Country Profile. Available from www.business-anti-corruption.com.

[10] Gray O., Predatory Politics and the Political Impasse in Jamaica,, Small Axe, 13 March, 90, (2003).

[11] Halperin Morton H., Joseph T. Siegle, Michael M. Weinstein, The Democratic Advantage: How Democracies Promote Prosperity and Peace. New York and London: Routledge, (2005).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/20034287

[12] Hamnett Steve, "Political Framework and Developmental Objectives of Post-War Dutch Planning. In Public Planning in the Netherlands, eds. Ashok D. Dutt and Frank J. Costa. Oxford: Oxford University Press, (1985).

[13] Harrigan J., Effects of the IMF and the World Bank on Public Expenditure Accountability in Jamaica,, Public Administration and Development 18 (1985) 1.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1099-162x(199802)18:1<5::aid-pad989>3.0.co;2-e

[14] Human and Social Development Group. Violence and Urban Poverty in Jamaica: Breaking the Cycle. Washington, DC: World Bank, (1997).

[15] Lee Kwan Yew, From Third World to First: The Singapore Story. Westport, CN: Praeger, (2000).

[16] Mann James, The China Fantasy: How our Leaders Explain Away Chinese Repression. London: Viking, (2007).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12142-008-0093-z

[17] Miller Norman, Rodger Yaeger, Kenya: The Quest for Prosperity. Boulder, CO: Westview (1994).

[18] Mutalib Hussain, Third World Quarterly 21(1) (2000) 313-38.

[19] Neher, Clark D., The Case for Singapore., In The Singapore Puzzle (28-42), ed., Michael Haas. Westport, CT: Praeger, (1999).

[20] Norris Katrin, Jamaica: The Search for an Identity. London: Oxford University Press, (1962).

[21] Pan Philip P., Out of Mao's Shadow: The Struggle for the Soul of a New China. New York: Simon & Schuster, (2008).

[22] Sakwa Richard, Putin: Russia's Choice. London and New York: Routledge, (2004).

[23] Toonen Theo A. J., Frank Hendriks, The Embarrassment of Success: Institutional Underpinning of Polder Politics., In Polder Politics: The Re-Invention of Consensus Democracy in the Netherlands (265-90), eds. Frank Hendriks and Theo A. J. Toonen. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, (2001).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315203164-16

[24] USAID 2006. Jamaica. Washington, DC: USAID. Available from www.usaid.gov.

[25] U.S. Department of State 2004. Kenya Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2003. Washington, DC: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2458/azu_acku_pamphlet_jc599_a34_a34_2003

[26] Werlin Herbert H., The Mysteries of Development: Studies Using Political Elasticity Theory. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1998/(2001).

[27] Wolin, Sheldon S., Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Western Political Thought. Boston: Little, Brown, (1960).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/ahr/66.2.410

[28] World Bank, World Bank Development Report 2000-2001. Washington, DC: World Bank, (2001).

[29] World Bank, Kenya: A Policy Agenda to Restore Growth. Washington, DC: World Bank, (2003).

[30] World Bank, The Road to Sustained Growth in Jamaica. Washington, DC: World Bank, (2004).

[31] Wrong Dennis H.. Power: Its Forms, Bases and Uses. New York: Harper and Row., (1979).

[32] Yusuf Shahid Dancing with Giants: China, India, and the Global Economy. Washington, DC: World Bank, 2006. ( Received 8 April 2013; accepted 11 April 2013 ).

Show More Hide

Cited By:

This article has no citations.