Corruption is in my blood

“The more corrupt the state, the more laws.”
----Publius Cornelius Tacitus quotes ----

Tradition and Culture, is it possible to abolish tradition and culture knowing the society have practiced it for eons?
For instance: Wedding Ring, Chinese New Year Ang Pao, Christmas Presents, Sunday Church Service, Respect the Elder. These practices were established long before you first drew your first breath. Other than rebels & fanatics, Hardly anyone would refrain you from practicing such traditions. After all, trouble is all they are looking for if they forbid you to practice practices which is so deeply fused in your life.

Ever wonder what happens if the government decides to ban Church Service? Naturally some people won't be happy about it and they would very possibly cause a huge drama. Even if the government insist on the ban, do you think people would just stop Church Service all together? No, they would probably do in the dark, in secrecy, close to the public view.

Now, try to imagine this. A society where bribery and corruption are commonly practiced. What happens if the government decides to crack down bribery? In a society where bribes are considered as gesture of goodwill, Could you break this culture that is so deeply ingrained and carefully preserved in the society?

I don't know about that, nor I have extensive knowledge on the dark world of corruption. But from what I gathered, a certain level of corruption is essential to maintain the working structure of a society. The way I see it, no current government system can totally wipe out corruption from a society. The most a government can do is to CONTROL corruption. After all, each of us has to protect our own interest by hook or by crook. If we do not, who else would do it for us?

Corruption. I do not think ill nor do I feel good about it.
What do you think about it?