The reading by C Wright Mills, "The Power lite", made some very adequate points but also had some false ideas as well. I agreed with Sarah and Zach about the influence of the wealthy and large corporations. Money equals more influence, not power. They are able to sway peoples' decisions with their money, but are not able to directly create and alter policy. So the wealthy don't necessarily have more power than the average American because everyone gets one single vote and is equal in that sense. The sole way to have power in government is to be directly involved with policy and lawmaking. Celebrities and CEOs have extreme amounts of influence, as stated in the article,"Government is dominated by a few top leaders, most of whom are outside the government and enjoy great advantages of wealth."
Mills also goes on to say that the elite only use their influence and power to benefit themselves. However, I believe this is not true because they are still apart of America as a whole and everyone always has a certain sense of pride in their nation. No American wants to see the U.S. in ruins. So I believe that they may use their power to sway things that help them in some cases, but it doesn't always hurt the American people.
I agree with you on the fact that the "elites" or the wealthy have influence in our democracy. Elites have influence on our policy making but have just as an equal vote as any other American. I agree that the elitism theory is fitting for our government but to an extent. I agree with you when you say they have influence. However, just because they are wealthy doesn't mean that they are going to be able to go and change policy completely because they are only one person or a small group of people. Smaller interest groups such as the NRA will have a bigger impact because they have more followers and can make a more powerful influence rather than one elite person. I am a mix of both when it comes to how our democracy is split because elites play just as much of a role as do the average Americans.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your idea that just because they have money, they may not be able to directly change policy. Yet, they can sometimes indirectly influence some people into doing it for them. I also agree with your ideas on small interest groups and their ability to influence policy.
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