One important item discussed in the parable was the "slush fund", and how it succeeded in influencing the city council. This is the most corrosive aspect. Abou

One important item discussed in the parable was the "slush fund", and how it succeeded in influencing the city council. This is the most corrosive aspect. About 35 years ago the FBI's Abscam[1] public corruption investigation and sting operation brought down quite a few people, including Congressmen. My favorite excuse was from the Congressman videotaped stuffing cash into his pockets, and who later claimed he "was only pretending to be involved with the bribery" and "was conducting his own operation dealing with corruption and that the FBI was ruining his own investigation". IIRC Congress was so upset about being caught taking bribes that they actually cut the FBI budget the following year! Public corruption needs to be investigated and prosecuted more often. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abscam https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abscam