데스크칼럼

Great Power Comes with Great Responsibility
By Jung Hyun-young, Head Student Editor
The illegal surveillance on civilians, which has recently become the most controversial issue in South Korea, is likely to have been a result of an abusive exercise of ‘power’. All the people related to the surveillance may have thought that the political situation could be stabilized with their power. I think they should have thought the abuse of their power would do harm to all the innocent people. With regard to power, most people have a tendency to focus on just the influence of the powerful rather than their duties as men in power.
However, we should remember great power comes with great responsibility. It means if you are put in a position of having a lot of power, you also have more responsibility than a person who is not so powerful. In order for power to be effective you must have the same level of responsibility as your power. For example, an officer who is not very powerful can sleep easily at night, but a CEO is responsible for many things and has a lot of worries. Presidents or Prime Ministers face this even more so than other politicians, because whole countries are their responsibility.
We should always beware of abusive exercises of power and emphasize that the duties come with responsibility. Throughout history, we have seen the negative effects when and individual has power but does not match it with the equivalent responsibility. Adolph Hitler and Saddam Hussein both had power but used it irresponsibly. The most important thing is not the size of power but how we respond to that. Some people acknowledge their mistakes and take responsibility while others avoid them and try to hide. Some blame others in an effort to save their necks. The person who has to take responsibility needs to determine what the most reasonable response will be for him or her.
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