Nigeria, Feb. 13 -- One of the most confusing things about Nigeria is this: The same people who suffer under corruption often defend it. The same citizens who complain about bad roads, poor hospitals, unpaid salaries, and insecurity will rise aggressively to defend the very politicians who preside over those failures.

It looks irrational. But it is not accidental. It is psychological.

The Comfort of Familiar Oppression

Human beings adapt quickly, even to dysfunction. When corruption becomes constant, it stops feeling abnormal. It becomes part of the environment, like traffic or power failure. People begin to measure survival, not justice.

"If at least we can manage." "If at least our people are benefiting." "If at least things are not...