I found this blog post very interesting. Not something I have really thought about, the fact that people both despise and uphold politicians, at the same time!
http://www.ultimateminority.com/2010/03/12/us-and-them/
"One of the more interesting (of many) paradoxes of statism is that people simultaneously esteem and loathe politicians. Most would deny the former sentiment, but a belief that the state is a collection of experts tasked with running society and the economy betrays that denial. Further, this esteem is manifest in their reference to politicians as “leaders,” “authorities,” and “officials.”
The elephant in the subconscious tells the individual that the political class wields power over them, but the discomfort of this nagging truth is alleviated by labeling politicians and bureaucrats as “public servants,” with statements such as “we are the government,” mitigated by the belief that “we” hold ultimate power with our vote. After all, we can “throw the rascals out” anytime they don’t do our bidding.
But even more powerful is the assumption that politicians act in “our” best interest, that the people who enter into the realm of “public service” do so to help others, which implies that they are on a higher moral plane than the average person. As for the government bureaucrats, it is assumed that they are necessary to fulfill societal needs that cannot, or would not, be provided without a government. In the case of welfare, for example, this implies that the rest of us would not take care of our fellow man because people are greedy and self-interested, but those who enter into “public service” do care, and that their willingness to step up and provide something that other people will not indicates a higher degree of honor and selflessness.
Here’s the key: This entity we call government is nothing more than a collection of individuals, and ALL individuals act in their self interest…"
You can click the link to read the rest.