Monday, December 15, 2014
Theories of Powers in a Democracy
I agree with Brian. C. Wright Mills' theory of elitists, and that they have control of the government. Furthermore, I agree with Joe in saying that the 1% has a majority percent in the government. A man like Bill Gates is a perfect example for this theory. Bill Gates is not a Congressmen or a President, but an ordinary America. By this definition of Bill Gates he has a fair and equal amount of power in the government as any American citizen does. Once you add the money Bill Gates has and the influential impact he has, he quickly transforms from a common American to an Elite. Mills' definition of an elite is someone who rules the big corporations, run the machinery of the state, direct military establishment, and "occupy the strategic command posts of the social structure, in which are now centered the effective means of the power and the wealth and the celebrity which they enjoy". Bill Gates aliens perfectly with Mills' argument about the elite. Gates has money, which gives him power, which gives him influence among others, which simply continues to give him more power. The cycle of the elite is endless. It is also determined that money equals power, so Bill Gates has just about or more power than a Congressman simply because he has more money than you. The elite don't only have money, but they have influence too, so if the government doesn't accept their money for a law they can influence their followers to push for a law. The elites cause corruption to what Americans call a democracy. A law would need to be passed to turn this "flood" back into a "leak" but the people who would pass this law are among the elite, which makes this task seem almost impossible. Furthermore, even if a law was passed that could limit the money the elite put into the government to get what they want, they would just go to their followers and use their influential power, which is what celebrities have. Overall, I agree that the elitist have the most power in a government, and there is almost nothing to be done to change this.
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I agree with your point that Elites hold some of the most power in our democracy. But, based upon the video we had watched on the 3 different groups (United defense, NCJIS, and Anti-meridian group) i think its very evident that the elites aren't the only ones with access to a lot of power and influence. While Bill Gates can coerce decisions upon our government with, so can a group of completely ordinary citizens. We saw this occur with the Anti-meridian group in an effort to stop the production of a free-way. These people were not extraordinary but they used the necessary tactics to make their voices heard and powerful. This proved that you don't need to be rich or famous to have influence on our government, you just need to be organized and have a strong argument for whatever you're pushing for. This is why I find that the Pluralist theory fits better than the Elitist theory for our American Democracy.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Zachary that although I believe elitists hold most of the power in our democracy, based on the videos we watched they are not the only ones that have access to that power. This is very evident especially with the Anti-meridian group. They were not rich, famous, or anything of the sort but they used the resources they had and had a group of strong supporters; by doing that, their voices were heard. This proved that an everyday group of people who have a strong argument and are organized can influence our government as can the elitists. Once again, agreeing with Zach, the pluralist theory is much more fitting than the elitist theory for our democracy.
ReplyDeleteI understand how both Zach and Cynthia have come to the conclusion of the Pluralist Theory. I agree that the Anti-meridian group used their power to protect their free-way at a local level, but it has been a fight they put up for years. There is not much security in that group, and the chances of them being able to do that again are very slim. Elites like Bill Gates can constantly and quickly make strong and lasting efforts to anything they disagree with. It is undeniable that the stability of an Elite is stronger than a local group like the Anti-meridian. With this strength the Elite is open to many more, faster, and easier options to handle a bill that they disagree with. Overall, groups like the Anti-meridian can sometimes get the outcome they desire if they put enough of their resources to it, and an Elite can get their desired outcome by putting minimal effort to it and possibly "owing" a few people.
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