Power
Question : 1. Discuss the statement of Lord Acton that “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely”. Give an example to argue your answer. (more or less 500 words)
2. How does media coverage of communal conflict in Indonesia recently influence your views on power and how power may be used to attain political objectives? Give example for your answer. (more or less 1000 words)
Answer : 1. “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely” is a famous statement of Lord Acton. Power can be defined as the ability to make choices or influence outcomes, which is also power held by a person or group of people in a society. While Corruption can be defined as spiritual or moral impurity or deviation from an ideal. In economy, corruption is payment for services or material which the recipient is not due, under law.
So, in the simply way the statement means people who has any power will make them corrupt because they have an ability to make a corruption easily. “Great men are almost always bad men" is a famous statement from historian and moralist John Emerich Edward Dahlberg Acton. I agree of this statement because there are so many facts about this. Let’s say Hitler, Mussolini, and Saddam Hussein. They are leaders who has big power authority to lead the public at the time.
Then, the example is Soeharto. Soeharto was the second president or Republic of Indonesia who lead the government for 32 years (1967-1998). After Soeharto officially resigned his position as president, the various elements of society began to demand that the prosecution and the court held the former president of Indonesia's longest president. On 1 September 1998, the team of the Attorney General announced an indication of the use of foundation money under the administration of former President Soeharto. Through the Educational Television Indonesia (TPI) on 6 September 1998, Soeharto appeared and stated that he did not have the resources
2. How does media coverage of communal conflict in Indonesia recently influence your views on power and how power may be used to attain political objectives? Give example for your answer. (more or less 1000 words)
Answer : 1. “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power tends to corrupt absolutely” is a famous statement of Lord Acton. Power can be defined as the ability to make choices or influence outcomes, which is also power held by a person or group of people in a society. While Corruption can be defined as spiritual or moral impurity or deviation from an ideal. In economy, corruption is payment for services or material which the recipient is not due, under law.
So, in the simply way the statement means people who has any power will make them corrupt because they have an ability to make a corruption easily. “Great men are almost always bad men" is a famous statement from historian and moralist John Emerich Edward Dahlberg Acton. I agree of this statement because there are so many facts about this. Let’s say Hitler, Mussolini, and Saddam Hussein. They are leaders who has big power authority to lead the public at the time.
Then, the example is Soeharto. Soeharto was the second president or Republic of Indonesia who lead the government for 32 years (1967-1998). After Soeharto officially resigned his position as president, the various elements of society began to demand that the prosecution and the court held the former president of Indonesia's longest president. On 1 September 1998, the team of the Attorney General announced an indication of the use of foundation money under the administration of former President Soeharto. Through the Educational Television Indonesia (TPI) on 6 September 1998, Soeharto appeared and stated that he did not have the resources