What modern day factors lead to a successful or corrupt government?

Lance Aguilar

Senior Project Advisor: Ashley Carruth

Abstract

Corruption has been common in every government and almost nobody but government officials
and lobbyists approve of it. This issue impacts every single one of us, through rampant
corruption will negatively impact your livelihood financially and socially. This paper explores
the factors that contribute to the stability and corruption of a society and government and how
the variables correlate with one another. What this research find is the direct impact that not
taking action will have on the broader society as a whole, whether that be corruption in the
government or the social structure. Through the use of social and government corruption within
the Soviet Union under Stalin and Lenin, as well as Nazi Germany, drew the conclusion that the
inability for each citizen to act upon acts of evil is what lead to the unjust and corrupt societies.
My conclusion indicates that through research on the broad factors that can lead to the corruption
of a society are avoidable through the actions of the individual citizen.

12th Grade Humanities

Animas High School

11 March 2019
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Part 1: Introduction

The death toll surpassed 50 million by 1944, on September 1945 over 60-80 million souls

were lost in a conflict spanning only six years. Remembered as WWII, it was the most

destructive human conflict in history. What could lead so much of a society to believe something

as evil and despicable as what both National Socialism and Stalinism became? Is it greed, lust,

envy, or fear of prosecution? Could it be the average citizen was unable to challenge the idea of a

utopia, where the end is justified by the means at any cost? This thesis will go into why so much

of a society can be captivated into believing an ideology that turned into a dystopian hell for

many.

The conclusion will discuss the individuals implication in subsiding such ideologies from

taking power in the first place. However, some of many components are uncontrollable by a

single individual. Factors including non-assimilation of cultures in the society, the division that

is caused by class warfare, and loss of place of many people in the culture through economic and

social hardships will likely have the average individual seek radical alternatives to the current

system, causing corruption among individuals and government.

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Part II: Historical Context/Background Knowledge

What defines a corrupt society? In best terms, it can be described as a society ruled and

maintained by cruel people, protected and shielded by the laws they institute, these people being

elected by a nation whose lost its pride, sense of dignity and hope. In simpler terms, a corrupt

society (the citizens in this context), involves misuse of entrusted power between individuals as a

way for personal gain at the full expense of the other. A scientific definition developed by Dr.

Petrus van Duyne referenced on ​Corruptie.org​ states;

Corruption is an improbity or decay in the decision-making process in

which a decision-maker consents to deviate or demands deviation from the criterion

which should rule his or her decision-making, in exchange for a reward or for the promise

or expectation of a reward, while these motives influencing his or her decision-making

cannot be part of the justification of the decision (par. 2)

Examples of corruption in a government context can be seen in the collapse of the U.S

and global market in 2008, where nearly none of the higher ups in the “Too Big to Fail” banking

system saw fines or jail time for the largest collapse since the Great Depression. ​Forbes.com​ says

in fact, the U.S spent sixteen trillion as of 2015 bailing banks, incentivizing them to continue

their misdeeds. These higher ups likely missed jail time or fines because of their associations

with the government of the United States.

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One prominent example of societal corruption was within the Soviet Union between the

years 1900 (the Russian Empire at the time, transitioned to the Soviets in 1917), to about

1950-60 (around the death of Joseph Stalin). In the Gulag Archipelago, Alexander Solzhenitsyn

describes the environment within the Soviet Union in the early start of the revolution and the

recurring environment thereafter.

Solzhenitsyn describes how the peasants of Russia were not emancipated at the time as

they were to be bought and sold with the land. These peasants were called serfs. During the

Soviet takeover, peasant farmers were told they were victimizers known as the Kulak class.

These people were automatically guilty. The farmers and people better off than others are to be

taken to the Gulags (work camps) and the Soviet army and intellectuals, instructed to recruit

people in small villages to take the Kulak class to the Gulags, as they needed help since they

weren't very powerful on their own at the time. Solzhenitsyn asked the reader to imagine that

they are in a small town and someone comes in and describes to you the reason that you are

worse off than them and the reason they are better materially is that they exploit you at every

chance possible. Soon, people were in mobs grabbing the most experienced farmers and business

owners and sending them to Siberia. In effect, six million Ukrainians starved to death between

1932-33.

Say you were a mother, starving and struggling to feed your children and the state

promised the grain would be provided but it was never delivered. To decide you would walk into
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a field that has already been harvested to pick grains off the ground that would decompose at

some point is very reasonable, right? However, if you decide to keep it for yourself and don't

turn it over to the state, no matter the amount taken from the ground, you were taken for ten

years in a Gulag camp. While you are being taken to a camp to work with no pay other than food

and water, your family would be prosecuted by the NKVD (People's Commissariat for Internal

Affairs, the Soviet secret police) on the charge they were betraying the Soviet party, and accuse

upon your family crimes they never committed. Interrogation and torture was the favorite of the

NKVD until the would finally admit to almost any crime you never enacted. This is one picture

of what a corrupt society can look like.

Part III: Research and Analysis

How Nations Choose to Fail

In this section, I will present prominent theories as to why exactly a nation can be driven

to accept corrupt ideologies, and how economic hardships can ultimately determine whether a

nation will turn corrupt or continue to do so. One prominent theory being is a nation's ability to

adopt free market enterprise, which will grow nations from poverty and can determine whether a

nation will fail or succeed. In “Why Nations Fail” by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson,

explains the reasons why exactly some nations are destined to succeed and why some are

destined to fail. The authors credit the distinction between success and failure in part to natural

geography but argue this distinction is based on the society’s ability to adapt to free markets in

its early stages of development. They use various case studies such as Nogales, Mexico
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compared to Nogales, Arizona, to make their claims, and while many subsequent researchers

have taken issue with their free-market claim, arguing that it is a less convincing explanation for

societal failure than other prominent theories, Acemoglu and Robinson maintain that the largest

factor contributing to a nation's stability and longevity can be attributed to its ability to adapt free

markets and incentive to innovate. The authors expand as they write, “[n]ations fail today

because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to

save, invest, and innovate” (372). The authors claim creating incentives to invest through the

guarantee of private property rights allows the citizens to control the state as opposed to very few

elites. In this way, the authors argue democracy is essential for the longevity and success of a

nation.

Acemoglu and Robinson also say that the nation-state also needs to have control of

violence, ensuring people are most importantly safe but also trust within the society is stable.

Financial trust is also important because a nation's ability to do work within its own orbit will

grow their economies. However, if laws aren't enforced to entities when transactions are corrupt

or don't live up to the standard promised, what companies can you trust? It’s important for the

state to enforce rules that promise even the smallest interactions such as socializing or

transaction of capital. This will be needed to be ensured by the state to be protected under the

law so the exploiter can be prosecuted for exploiting.

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Human Morality

Understanding where morality comes from is essential to realizing why nations can

become corrupt, and why people would turn to worship Stalin like a God or Hitler as the Fuhrer.

Amit Kravit puts forth the belief that humans naturally, through God, have distinct moral values

in, “Moral Comfort versus Tragic Downfall: Kant’s Concept of the Dynamically Sublime and

Schelling’s Tragic Alternative”. Kravit makes the case that these values are distinct from the

creation of religion, more directly Christian values. Making the case as well that humans believe

they are always doing what they believe to be good (if they have a value structure), even if others

believe it to be wrong. Kravits discusses the ideas of 17th-century German philosopher,

Immanuel Kant, and his ‘objectors’ Schelling, Fichte and Hegel. Connecting this to Nazi

Germany and the USSR, it wasn't that most people believed that Hitler or Stalin would do bad,

it's that what they were lead to believe is that what they were doing was for the greater good.

For a society to thrive, there is a need for a basic universal belief system is necessary.

Connecting how this can also be important for a nation, Marcia Grimes, the author of “The

Contingencies of Societal Accountability: Examining the Link Between Civil Society and Good

Government” argues that a civil society with good intentions is necessary for the democratic

process, as well as the stability of the government itself. Even when people with good intentions

take power their ideology can be seen as corrupt and cruel and it can soon manifest to be after

taking power, prime examples being the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany.
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In the writing by Grimes, she goes through the difficulties of reworking a corrupt

government to be not corrupt, and the author argues the path to a better government that is more

effective is reliant on the society being civil. What we find is that to have a more effective

government, officials must be held accountable for each of their actions as a little corruption will

soon lead to severe corruption that is almost irreversible. Political competition and a free,

non-bias press will help mitigate the ability for corrupt officials to climb the ranks within

government and hopefully stop it at the source. Grimes give examples of civil society holding

officials accountable, such as NGOs in Indonesia who brought 43 members of the Padang

province legislature for the misappropriation of funds. Another example she gave was the

movement that gained considerable movement in Brazil through community organizations, were

able to arrest and indict police and politicians involved in the narco-trafficking racket in

Pernambuco, Brazil (Lemos-Nelson and Zaverucha 2006). Another example from Brazil being a

prosecuting authority in Londrina, Brazil sought support from the society to counter the

pressures from powerful political actors, leading the civilians to hold large scale demonstrations

and protests, leading the politicians to stop impending in the investigations conducted (Batista

Calvancanti 2006).

What these examples prove is that it is possible to hold our elected officials accountable,

whether it is through reform or protests. Every one of us is responsible for the actions we don't

take in preventing corruption expanding in government and elsewhere.

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Having a society too attached to its identity could be vital in the collapse of the society as

a whole, a great example being Nazi Germany. A piece by Marko Jusup called “Barriers to

Cooperation Aid Ideological Rigidity and Threaten Societal Collapse,” defines what happens

when people become too attached to their beliefs or morals, calling their ideas “parasites”

because the ideas themselves are ingrained in the brain and are nearly impossible to change.

Although no definition is given and the only definition available is based on ants, Merriam

Webster defines social parasites as, “the relation of various ants that lack a worker caste to other

kinds of ants within whose nests they dwell and upon whom they depend for all the services

normally performed by a species' own workers”. This can explain why people with ideological

ideas that promote excluding outside ideas and influences, such as that of the alt-right, far left,

authoritarian and communist ideologies can become so rigid in their beliefs, reject external

forces and ideas.

Nationalism and Globalism - Diversity and Division

This paper chose to include this topic because it is the likely the defining factor on

whether our western societies can continue to be civil without people becoming desperate

enough to elect corrupt officials who promise to bring them victory, with globalism and

nationalism being contradictory ideas that are highly influential on our future. Directly

contradictory ideas have hard time communicating their ideas, and something that seemed to be

of great importance within the west today is the touchy topic on the influx of third world citizens

and the rise of nationalism in Europe and the United States (despite the US having always been

nationalistic). “When and Why Nationalism Beats Globalism,” by Jonathan Haidt describes how
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nationalism is not only sparked by globalism but is the explosive to it. Haidt defining nationalism

as patriotism being one of the highest virtues as well as their belief in the nation being worth

preserving as it is unique in its own way, and therefore feel a great bond with their fellow

compatriots. Most nationalists don't dislike foreigners for their different skin color or differently

shaped noses, but rather dislike foreigners for their incompatible values or find them as a threat

to their own cultural values. Haidt further explains the way in which one’s perception of threat

can affect the level of nationalistic tendencies as he writes,

[…]fading existential pressures [i.e., threats and challenges to survival] open people’s

minds, making them prioritize freedom over security, autonomy over authority, diversity

over uniformity, and creativity over discipline. By the same token, persistent existential

pressures keep people’s minds closed, in which case they emphasize the opposite

priorities[…]the existentially relieved state of mind is the source of tolerance and

solidarity beyond one’s in-group; the existentially stressed state of mind is the source of

discrimination and hostility against out-groups. (47)

What this quote says is that rapid change such as what is occuring in Europe will lead to

the hostility of outgroups, discrimination and closed-mindedness among individuals. Haidt then

argues that the sentiment that to not allow people of differing cultures is racist and insensitive,

created the provocation of even fairly minded, non-political people to rage. The large influx of

the support of globalism has greatly increased the need for people to support nationalism as they

see the changes within their nations as arbitrary and dangerous. Our modern-day societies have a
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predictable change towards globalism as they become more prosperous, they become far more

open to change, cosmopolitan, become less religiously traditional, more democratic, and less

deferential to their authorities. In turn, what we will likely see is a greater transition into support

of globalism as our society becomes more prosperous, but the effect will be nationalist ideals

within the wider society as it progress’.

“Deliberative Democracy in Severely Fractured Societies” by Adeno Addis explains a

controversial subject: how immigration and diverse ethnicities within a society could contribute

to the collapse of said society. Deliberative is described by Brittanica.com as, “[a] school of

thought in political theory that claims that political decisions should be the product of fair and

reasonable discussion and debate among citizens”. Having a deliberative democracy is likely to

lead to an incomplete constitution that could fracture the state as a whole, as well as if the new

incoming ethnic group can’t define their issues in the electoral process. This only applies to

severely fractured societies as a whole, and can't necessarily apply to a nation like the U.S, where

citizens of all races believe in two (or four) general parties, but the author believes that

multiethnic states could be a threat to democracy itself through four main factors. The author

states,

There are four factors that define severely fractured societies. First, they are fragmented

along ethnic lines. Second, these divisions inform competing visions of the state as a

whole and thus competing visions of national identity[...] Third, as a result of these deep

and thick identities competing to define the nature of the state itself, majoritarian or
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aggregative democracy is often a problem rather than a solution[…] Fourth, though fair

distribution of resources might certainly ease the fractures in these deeply divided

societies, it will not be the entire answer, for the issues at stake here are not merely, or

even primarily, issues of distribution of resources, but rather issues of identity. (64)

A case where these types of divisions can be seen is in modern-day Italy, they have seen

large influxes of north African refugees which has separated them along ethnic lines, as well as

making the nation quickly decide on how to react. This has lead to a greater division in the

nation, on what their future will ultimately look like. Will they be more like France, Germany,

and the United Kingdom or more comparable to Poland, eastern Europe, and the United States?

These divisions based on identity in Italy will ultimately determine the path the nation of Italy

takes. Another example is Nazi Germany, where the ability for the state to distinguish people

worthy of being called true Germans and who weren't made citizens turn on each other based on

identity. The inability for citizens to elect a new government after Hitler seized power and was

named the Fuhrer, made anybody who opposed the new state as objectors and were revoked

rights and privileges.

Opposing Argument

However, a study suggests diversity could lead to more economic growth and says

societies that reject diversity have less technological advancement. The researcher Quamrul

Ashraf in "Cultural Diversity, Geographical Isolation and the Origin of the Wealth of Nations,”

argues that the great leap in technological development between 1820 and 2000 was because of

the west ability to accept other cultures. They come to three conclusions, first that geographic
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isolation, although helpful in pre-industrial times, became a negative aspect after

industrialization. Their inability to reach other cultures and have others assimilate to their

countries negatively impacted their ability to expand capital. Second, those nations that refused

assimilation during the industrial revolution are less technological now. Third, they found that

diversity has a positive impact on economic development in the process of industrialization, not

just in the early stages but also up to now. Richard Florida from ​Citylabs.com​ writes about and

quotes the study, stating;

[i]t finds that "the interplay between cultural assimilation and cultural diffusion have

played a significant role in giving rise to differential patterns of economic development

across the globe." To put it in plain English: diversity spurs economic development and

homogeneity slows it down. (par. 4)

What we can walk away with from this study is that diversity in both terms of ideas and

cultures can greatly impact a nation's ability to grow capital. The problem with this study,

however, is that they acknowledge themselves that they didn't take into account different cultural

norms that others attribute lead to the great boom in the time period mentioned. Although the

west's ability to grow so prosperous in such a short time can be attributed to so many different

factors, it can't be directly attributed to either its ability to accept different cultures or its

incentives of hard work and personal responsibility. Rather, a mosaic of different values the west

holds dear, whether its assimilation to other cultures or free-market capitalism. Many things can

be attributed to its astounding accomplishments.

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Part IV: Conclusion

Several conclusions can be taken away from this research I have conducted, one of which

can be I am wrong. I clearly understand where I could have gone off of course within this

research, I know I have missed other factors that could lead to poor social cohesion and corrupt

governments. The conclusion from the research I have done is that we are each responsible for

the outcome of the officials we elect and that actions not taken by each individual to remove

elected officials who expropriate their power are in part responsible. Furthermore, the inability

for each person to follow their own maxims will more likely lead to the overall collapse of their

society, lead to a more corrupt society, in turn, will lead to a corrupt government through elected

officials.

The research conducted also suggests that democracy is essential to maintaining a civil

society. The fair election of government officials ultimately determines whether the government

will remain corrupt or whether officials will be removed through elections. There is also the need

for a stronghold on violence and crime through well-established laws and enforcers. In turn, this

will create an environment where there is a greater guarantee where the law enforcers won't

expropriate the citizens.

What we can find leads to corrupt societies can be severe disagreements on the path of

the nation going further, which can be a result of large amounts of immigrants that don't integrate

into the society they are transitioning to or underlying ideology changes. The large influx of

immigrants from the third world can be either for economic reasons or war within their home

region. What we can recognize from Haidt's piece is that while nations grow more prosperous,
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they are more likely to begin to be more open to change, cosmopolitan, become less religiously

traditional, more democratic, and less deferential to their authorities. These factors can lead to

growth in globalism, in turn leading to a large growth in nationalism where the progress built

from globalism will be ultimately dismantled by each nation. The factors mentioned above are

some of the most prominent ideas present in the research conducted on failed nations.

I would like to end with a similar story mentioned in my historical context section. In

1933, the German Federal elections took place and Hitler's party held an astounding two hundred

and eighty-eight seats in a six hundred eighty-seven seat Reichstag. The German people were

desperate for change, with over six million Germans with no jobs, and a loaf of bread that costs a

hundred and sixty marks (Weimar Germany's currency), costs over two hundred billion marks a

year later in 1922. In 1923, a single US dollar was worth four trillion marks. Let me ask, do you

really believe that in these circumstances (if you were German) you would continue believing the

same ideals that the Nazis tell you have lead to this catastrophe? What if you could blame all the

current problems Germany faces on the western powers and the Jews? Although the election of

Adolf Hitler can't be blamed upon every person in Germany, it's important to understand that the

inability for most Germans to reject what the party was becoming, should feel in part to blame. I

believe each individual can be the one who rejects evil and stands for truth, each individual is

powerful when enough resist acts of evil. The brilliant philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once

wisely said, “[t]he individual has always to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the

tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to

pay for the privilege of owning yourself”. Take this as a call to action, to understand that just

because a nation fails though economic hardships or corruption, we can all do something about
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it. Getting involved in local politics and showing what you believe about the current state, and

holding your officials accountable can help reduce corrupt spending and greed in the

government. Most importantly, be respectful to opposing opinions, because not doing so will

only make circumstances worse.

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