A schoolfriend who became an ordained curate and presumably a vicar once referred to the "creeping infallibility of the Pope".
Like all human endeavours the prevailing norm is liable to extend into areas that are adjacent. Rules morph as understanding blossoms, and only the outsider can see the impact holistically.

And any cohort will include people who can and will exploit it for their own ends. They need the rest to defend their fiefdom.

Was it ever thus.

And can't we (the non-ovine plebs) see precisely this from Trump, May or Putin**?

** other despots are available.