Digest for November 14, 2025

🪞 A Reflection

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”
— Abraham Lincoln

Power has always been the ultimate mirror. It reflects what we are when nobody can stop us. Titles and elections make it look formal, but the real test happens in smaller, quieter places—at a desk, in a meeting, in how we handle the people who can’t fight back. That’s where character either deepens or curdles.

We like to imagine that power corrupts, but what it really does is reveal. It shows which values were real convictions and which were costumes of convenience. Every ounce of authority—whether over a team, a budget, a household, or a nation—comes with a moral weight: to use it in service, not self-indulgence. Power, handled poorly, multiplies harm; handled well, it multiplies dignity.

The temptation is always the same: to confuse control with strength, to believe that might justifies indifference. But restraint is the truer measure. Wisdom begins where impulse meets conscience. Every strong hand needs a steady heart behind it.

We’re living through a moment that tests this balance daily—between leadership and ego, conviction and arrogance, liberty and license. The remedy isn’t cynicism; it’s responsibility. If last week’s candle was about tending truth, this week’s mirror asks whether we deserve the light we’ve been given.

Power, like knowledge, isn’t a prize to keep. It’s a loan—meant to be spent carefully, returned intact, and used for the repair of things.

📘 Recient Posts

📝 Starstuff: Remembering Carl Sagan

✦ This Week’s Quiz — The Weight of Power

“The measure of a man is what he does with power.” — Plato

1. Reflection

Think of a time this week when you held influence over someone — a decision, an opinion, a reaction.
→ Did you use that moment to protect, persuade, or prove?
(One sentence reflection.)

2. Historical Insight

Which of the following leaders most famously warned against the “military-industrial complex,” a caution about concentrated power?
A) Franklin D. Roosevelt
B) Dwight D. Eisenhower
C) Harry S. Truman
D) John F. Kennedy

3. Modern Parallel

Identify a recent event where restraint—choosing not to use power—proved more effective than force.
(Brief example; local, political, or personal.)

4. Integrity Check

You discover a small error that benefits you but disadvantages someone else.
→ What principle guides your next move: justice, loyalty, self-interest, or expedience?
(Choose and explain in one line.)

5. Perspective

Sagan spoke of “custodianship” over our planet.
→ In civic terms, what does custodianship of power mean to you?
(Short reflection.)

6. Systems Question

Which structure best prevents abuse of power over time?
A) Absolute transparency
B) Separation of powers
C) Public opinion polling
D) Charismatic leadership

7. Personal Practice

List one habit or boundary that keeps you from misusing your own influence — however small it seems.
(Open response.)

Extra Credit — The Test of Character

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” — Lincoln
→ What does this quote reveal about the link between integrity and self-knowledge?

✨ Quote of the Week

“Because we are not angels, our power must be bound by conscience before it is bound by law.”
— Adapted from James Madison, Federalist No. 51

🔮 Coming Soon

Topic: Justice and Restraint The Stoic idea of justice as harmony applied to modern governance.