Thread: Power

Why do so many people lust for power?

I cannot understand it at all, I find it utterly absurd. Can anybody explain it to me?

What even is power? It is utterly immaterial. Hitler rose steadily up through the ranks and eventually took control of most of Europe, but for what? You can tell people to do stuff. Great. How does that make you happy? What does it achieve?

Is it a knee-jerk reaction against nihilism? Something built in biologically?

Almost every single politician at the fore seems to suffer from exactly the same lust, and as a result they continually make idiotic, careerist decisions to the detriment of society, and the pointlessness of it all makes me mad. It would be so easy to turn everything around, the vital decisions for the whole of society are so obvious, and yet nobody makes them, because everybody who can make a difference suffers from this ridiculous myopia.

Just why?

Everyone achieves an emotional response from different things. For example, someone may find that giving food to the poor gives them a deep satisfaction. Some people may feel deeply satisfied by swimming 50 laps around a pool. And some people may feel deeply satisfied by controlling other people.

I have ideas, but I am uncertain about all of them. Some hunger for power out of deeply embedded feelings of inferiority. Others hunger because they feel uncomfortable in situations they have little to no control over, so they attempt to obtain as much control as possible. That's not all of the story though, and I don't have the answer. It could have been that it developed as a social-survival mechanism in which the control over resources in the group meant having the opportunity to mate more than any other member, and therefor have the greatest success rate of passing on your genes. Does that sound logical? It is a primitive, savage way of thinking, as power comes at the expense of others.

I agree, by the way. The will to dominate is turned into a sort of game, and those who engage in it demonstrate irresponsibility and reckless, harmful behavior toward others, even if done subtly.

Issues which disturb me specifically are the complete disregard for the long-term welfare of the country that politicians are showing where I live, in Britain.

I have never seen a single politician talk about any issue which is not immediately relevant; however these issues are the ones which are extremely crucial.

In particular there is our dependence on crude, which very soon is going to become scarce. There is simply no infrastructure in place to cope with any disruption at all, and when it really starts to hurt, it's going to be far too late. I'm predicting some severe social disruption whilst I'm still young.

The amount of electrical power generated by renewables is currently less than 1%, which is absolutely appalling, as we have some very fortuitous conditions; there's a single dam we could build over that Severn Estuary which could generate something like 5% of our power. 5 percent! But nobody in government gives a toss, because by the time it starts to matter, their political careers will have come to an end.

The Prime Minister's reckless spending of our country's accumulated wealth in times of economic health so as to manufacture a boom and so get him the title is another case of somebody further crippling the country for entirely selfish reasons - he did it for personal power, and that was it. And now, surprise surprise, everybody hates him. Why are people this stupid?? Why would you put yourself in that position?

"First, you gotta get the money. Then when you got the money, you get the power. Then when you get the power, you get the women." - Al Pacino, Scarface

With enough power, you get whatever you want. Without any power, you don't get much of you want.

EDIT: As for politics... I'm not really involved in anything political, so I don't really know.

I know, Xei, and I hear you on the renewables and what's going to go down when our current infrastructure begins to starve. The oil industry has much influence when it comes to political affairs. Who do you think funds the candidates? Well, I don't know the details about political workings in the UK, but the way it works out here is that candidates are backed by corporate entities that want their interests protected. Corporate interests are never public interests. We both know that, though.

Although this is a bit of a side note, I feel it's important to point out that dams are particularly harmful to both the life sustaining capabilities of the river and to the nutritional gain of the surrounding land. There's more, I know, but there's no need to go on about it. We still have wind and solar as viable options too, and perhaps geothermal, but I'm still not clear about any potential long term ramifications about widespread use of the technology (if there are any).

Originally Posted by Xei

Why do so many people lust for power?

I cannot understand it at all, I find it utterly absurd. Can anybody explain it to me?

There is a strong correlation between the amount of sex hormone an individual produces (estrogen/testosterone) and their need for power and dominance. This was clinical proven by testing the amount of sex hormone in the saliva of individuals . Test subjects were placed in a clinical setting where they were forced to participate in a dominance contest. Their sex hormone level in the saliva was tested before and after. The individuals who had previously tested that they had a higher need for dominance showed that after a laboratory dominance contest their sex hormone level rose =higher power/dominance motivation was correlated with higher sex hormone..So, there is a biological cause for this “need for dominance” in some people.

Twenty-five percent of the the civilized world is on estrogen birth control pills and this estrogen eventually makes it to your water supply through the process of elimination. Soooooooo, you guys can rest assured that with all the estrogen you are drinking.....women will control the earth very soon ....hehe.

Originally Posted by Liz

and this estrogen eventually makes it to your water supply through the process of elimination.

How exactly does a logical tool for reasoning move estrogen into the water supply?
Speak, you.

Originally Posted by Invader

How exactly does a logical tool for reasoning move estrogen into the water supply?
Speak, you.

From what I've heard, some of the estrogen in women's urine doesn't get caught by the sewage plant and actually does wind up in our water. I wonder if this applies to home filters as well.

I used to know an excellent quote regarding power. It went something along the lines of:

"men don't wish to accumulate power, they wish to emanate it"

Originally Posted by Black_Eagle

From what I've heard, some of the estrogen in women's urine doesn't get caught by the sewage plant and actually does wind up in our water. I wonder if this applies to home filters as well.

Google certainly does turn up its slew of results, and not just for estrogen, but for other pharmaceuticals as well. A lot of it looks like "I read a study" or "I heard this", so I'm still just trying to find a credible source. There are a few news sites I've never heard of, and I can't find any sources for their information.

Talk about going off on a tangent. If it contributes to the thread any, estrogen reduces violent impulses. Those impulses may lead one to seek dominant positions in their societies, you know.

People like to control things, the more they have a say, the better. It is a combination of greed, ignorance, fear, envy, and fantasy. I found an interesting article that may help understand.

And an appropriate quote:
"Every tyrant who has lived has believed in freedom - for himself."
-Elbert Hubbard

Because it feels good. Some people crave control. Power can come with respect/appreciation. It also gives you the ability to influence, those underneath you. Power can also mean freedom. It's better to be the master then the slave.

Originally Posted by Bizarre Jester

It's better to be the master then the slave.

Maybe, but it's best to be neither.

Originally Posted by PhilosopherStoned

Maybe, but it's best to be neither.

amen.

I once played an Age of Empires 2 Custom Campaign about a king named Unelias. He was born impoverished and was abandoned by his mother during a long war that destroyed much of his homeland. He was rescued by a small military battalion that found him near a broken wagon after many of the villagers had fled the area. He was raised by a rogue captain who taught him to fight, and ended up re-conquering his homeland by burning down several outlying villages and carrying out a genocide of his own people. He then married his cousin, had two deformed children by her, and committed suicide by throwing himself off of a Frigate and being eaten by sharks. this is all, of course, completely off topic, but I thought I should just let you all know

Every single human being desires for power pretty much equally. All that differs is where a particular individual has learned to seek power.

Originally Posted by A Roxxor

I once played an Age of Empires 2 Custom Campaign about a king named Unelias. He was born impoverished and was abandoned by his mother during a long war that destroyed much of his homeland. He was rescued by a small military battalion that found him near a broken wagon after many of the villagers had fled the area. He was raised by a rogue captain who taught him to fight, and ended up re-conquering his homeland by burning down several outlying villages and carrying out a genocide of his own people. He then married his cousin, had two deformed children by her, and committed suicide by throwing himself off of a Frigate and being eaten by sharks. this is all, of course, completely off topic, but I thought I should just let you all know

Well good riddance of a man that commited a genocide and destruction against his own people, his brothers and sisters. He got the fate he deserved.

It's called Karma. The ultimate power. Balance.