Why do unethical leaders thrive, despite all talk to the contrary?

The disappearance of the iron curtain in the early 1990s led many social and political analysts to believe that liberal democracy had prevailed as the “winning” political system of humankind. At the same time, egalitarianism, positivity, and humanism (along with mainstream Western ethics) came to dominate the textbook versions of organisational life and leadership. At the very least, it came to dominate views of how they should be. As of lately, largely the same circles have witnessed the recent rise of “big man” leaders, appalled. These retro leaders are the direct opposite of what the orthodoxy of leadership scholarship has suggested for the past three decades. The question remains: despite all the talk to the contrary, why is it that unethical leaders thrive?