Psychopaths, Power, and Politics

“Psychopathy is not a rare phenomenon. Dr. Hare estimates that psychopaths consist of 1% of the population. Other psychologists have estimates as high as 4%. That represents between 3 and 12 million Americans, millions of which are … residing in positions of power with a psychological need to control and manipulate others. They are drawn to occupations that allow them to wield power over others, such as police, military, intelligence, and finance.” ~ From Chapter 3 of Timothy Silver’s landmark book Lifting the Veil

Do psychopaths sometimes end up in positions of political power? Sadly, this is a topic that many people don’t even want to discuss. It’s an uncomfortable thought that some of the people running our world will lie, cheat, and do anything necessary to get what they want. Yet the truth is, we all know that many politicians and others in positions of power and authority are devoid of ethics and morals and will do whatever they can to gain more power.