Soldierly Honesty (and spies)

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Molokh

When the boss says it's necessary for the mission, and threatens to terminate your career [read: kill you to prevent further disclosure of governmental secrets) if you do not do it, it turns pretty much mandatory.

Most police agencies even in corrupt polities do not in fact work that way. Being Honest may make it unlikely that you'll get promoted, and may make your work more dangerous, but it is still usually more about what you are allowed to do than what you must do. Suppose for example that you were a city cop in Moscow, then or now. Your boss isn't going to kill you for not beating confessions out of suspects. But your clearance rate might not be very good so you can forget getting promoted.