By definition, an oligarchy is when a small group controls the country.
A recent study shows that in the US, it's the few wealthy elite, and those connected to them, who make government policy. Average American citizens have little or no power over government policy. Neither do "mass-based interest groups." [1]
Before going any further, it must be made clear that the super wealthy are not automatically part of the American ruling class. This will be explained below.
In an oligarchy, the preferences of the majority don’t matter. The ruling oligarchy makes the rules.
The study found that in the US, the majority does not rule. The study concludes:
In the United States, our findings indicate, the majority does not rule—at least not in the causal sense of actually determining policy outcomes. When a majority of citizens disagrees with economic elites or with organized interests, they generally lose. Moreover, because of the strong status quo bias built into the U.S. political system, even when fairly large majorities of Americans favor policy change, they generally do not get it. [1]
In the US, our laws and government policy are controlled by the wealthiest 1%. Their policies allow for the top 10% to live comfortably. The rest of us, 90% of the American population, do not matter to the ruling oligarchy.
Their policies keep your salaries low, your cost of living high, and your schools and neighborhoods unsafe. Why? Because their policies favor their own interests, naturally. Their kids don't go to your public schools, so they couldn't care less about them. They don't live in your neighborhoods. They don't shop at the stores you shop at. They don't vacation where you do. They don't even eat like you do.
These are not your honest, fairly-made wealthy people. No. The ruling oligarchy of America is made up of a group of dishonest people. The super wealthy are not automatically part of the American ruling class. You can be super wealthy and choose not to usurp power from "We The People." But America's ruling oligarchs are those who have chosen to use their mind-boggling wealth to purchase control over our government. They are above the law, as in they have gotten away with breaking laws. In his book, Predator Nation, Charles Ferguson details the fact that the top leaders of the US financial sectors have literally gotten away with breaking laws and have not been prosecuted. Many were rewarded with jobs in the Obama administration.[2]
The ruling oligarchs are above the law.
Their goals are:
to translate their wealth and cohesion into political power in order to shelter themselves, their families, their personal assets, and their industries from competition, prosecution, effective regulation, proper corporate governance, and taxes.[2]
The rest of us, the 90% of America, are in for a deteriorating standard of living. The cost of living will continue to rise, as opportunities will decline. American is no longer the land of fair and equal opportunity. Opportunities for better education, better health, better working conditions, better pay, and even longer life expectancy only exist for the very wealthy. According to Ferguson, America has developed a caste system--a society in which the circumstances of your birth determine your entire life. In the new American oligarchy, a child's future is determined by the parents' wealth, not by the child's own intelligence or energy.[2]
Ferguson states:
"...Americans will just survive, and America will have a very large, poor, angry underclass."
and:
...the United States has been taken over by an amoral financial oligarchy, and the American dream of opportunity, education, and upward mobility is now largely confined to the top few percent of the population.
A poor person born in South Korea or Taiwan has much higher chances of exiting poverty and moving up than in the US.[2]
The thing to focus on is that these horrible conditions are a direct result of the American oligarchy manipulating our government for their benefit. They create laws that allow them to evade paying any federal taxes while making billions in profit. "Only small businesses pay taxes."[3]
WARNING: YOUR BUBBLE IS ABOUT TO BURST.
The oligarchy controls both political parties, Democrat and Republican. They've developed a system of tight control over both parties. Each party in turn keeps its constituents focused on social and "values-based" issues, and distracted from the serious behind-the-scenes policies that keep the oligarchy in power. When it comes to economic issues important to business and finance industries, there is hardly any difference between the two parties. [2] They both push the same policies that keep the oligarchy in power. Whether Republicans or Democrats "control" Congress, the same oligarchy has been in real control through President Bill Clinton's administration, President Bush's administration, and President Obama's administration. [2]
Think about that the next time you're tempted to debate about abortion, gay marriage, gun control, race, or ethnicity.
If we don't own a vacation home or keep a housekeeping staff, we shouldn't be against each other. We should be on the same side. Neither the Democrat Party nor the Republican Party are serving us. Yet they manage to effectively block the rise of a third party.[2] There are more of us than them, and yet they keep us divided on minor issues. If we would ignore our social/values-based differences and join together on finance, we could create some real change.
See our "Call" on our About page.
"If there was hope, it must lie in the proles."
Notes
- Gilens, M., & Page, B. (2014). Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens. Perspectives on Politics, 12(3), pp 564-581. doi:10.1017/S1537592714001595.
- Ferguson, C. (2012). Predator nation: Corporate criminals, political corruption, and the hijacking of America. New York: Crown Business.
- Schiller, B. (2015, April 13). 15 Companies That Paid Zero Income Tax Last Year (Despite $23 Billion In Profits). Retrieved July 28, 2015.
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