No expert in this area, but I see a tendency to perceive different countries as being 'corrupt' or 'not corrupt.' The primary difference seems to be not the level of corruption-at-the-top, except perhaps in some extreme cases, but the degree to which corruption is egalitarian. I don't really want to live in a society where every cop and petty bureaucrat needs a bribe, but at some point you're just a sucker if you aren't in on the action. When the assholes at the top are just stealing and looting, the rest of us might as well have our chances too.
