Adam Smith pointed out a few years back (think 1776, a good year), capitalism, as all forms of government, all eventually are run by individuals with power acting in self-interest.
Basically, a large society governing entity, no matter the number of people, is subject to the laws of human nature. People are flawed. Greed and self interest are fostered when power is involved. Corruption flows when those with power are not held accountable. Like children who get away with little acts of bad behavior, they soon move on to bigger and much worse behavior.
Our government relies on thousands of people who all need to act in the best interest of the entire country (and sometimes the world). But they fail us. They fail us on a daily basis. The police officer who allows a fellow officer to get away with a crime, the politician who votes and campaigns for his monetary donors, the vice president who monetarily benefits from a war he pushes for.
Each person who works for our government or is elected by us, needs to be a better person than most. Since there is hardly a way to measure a persons spirit, we need instead to discourage bad behavior and not make it such good fortune to take the wrong road. Severe punishment can curb a lot, but also can the exposure of the small things, a politician having a ticket reversed, a police officer acting un-professionally and yes, a vice president profiting from the deaths of thousands of American soldiers.
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