The Power Elite in the Social Imagination...

The Power Elite is a 1956 book by sociologist C. Wright Mills, in which Mills calls attention to the interwoven interests of the leaders of the military, corporate, and political elements of society and suggests that the ordinary citizen is a relatively powerless subject of manipulation by those entities.

One of the goals Mills set for himself in The Power Elite was to tell people how much the organization of power in America had changed during their lifetimes. For instance, in the 1920s, there was what Mills called 'local society', that was found in towns and small cities throughout America... where and whose political and social life was dominated by 'local' resident businessmen. 

Small-town elites, usually Republican in their outlook, had a strong voice in government because they were conservative in their thinking being in that 'local' outlook... looking out for their best interests which were truly near and dear. And, for most part, the congressmen who represented them were of a similar experience with local connections to dominant families in those 'local' circles.

By the time Mills wrote his book, this world of local elites had become as obsolete as the Model T Ford. Power in America had become nationalized. The Power Elite recognized that companies which were once local were growing into corporations with far reaching implications. 

Yes, they still were primarily regional in their workforces and customer bases as well. But, this was changing quickly because of the demand for housing (veterans of WWII) and out of a 'victor' mentality that Americans grabbed onto and with that came a sense of prosperity and with that greater demands for things that the local output could not maintain. This opened up nationwide markets as in national markets thus developing  national interests (over local interests) which eventually led to international interests.

What had once been a propertied class, tied to the ownership of real assets in the place where they were had now become a managerial class (corporate society) without 'local' borders. And, with them came to be a political corporate society. They were and are rewarded for their ability to organize the vast scope of corporate enterprise into an engine for ever-expanding profits. 

No longer were the chief executive officers of these companies chosen because they had bonded with the company over time having got their 'foot in the door and worked their way up. Nor were they justly competent in the local framework of things as in from 'there', having 'local know how' ... they did not have to be. 

Every American was now in their eyes the same being... the same in their likes and dislikes. It did not matter if the power elite were in touch with the locals or regional influences as they once were. What did matter was being from a 'right' and essentially necessary corporate social background. 

Sure, connections still mattered, but so did bureaucratic skill... the ability to maneuver, to climb on and ride any horse put in the gates and the ability to ride it out in any downturn. The men who possessed those skills did not have to be 'local' and in fact that was rejected for broader pools of 'men/women' with such corporate traits/abilities. And, so it was and is!

Remember folks, according to Mills, the "power elite" are not 'local' but rather those that have come to occupy (maybe even created to occupy) the dominant positions, in the dominant institutions (military, economic and political) of a dominant country, and their decisions (or lack of decisions) have enormous consequences, not only for the U.S. population but, "the underlying populations of the world." 

The institutions which they head, Mills posits, are a triumvirate of groups that have succeeded weaker predecessors: (1) "two or three hundred giant corporations" which have replaced the traditional agrarian and craft economy, (2) a strong federal political order that has inherited power from "a decentralized set of several dozen states" and "now enters into each and every cranny of the social structure," and (3) the military establishment, formerly an object of "distrust fed by state militia," but now an entity with "all the grim and clumsy efficiency of a sprawling bureaucratic domain."

Doesn't it look like the picture of America today? Don't be fooled into thinking that any one man can make America great... regardless of party. And, don't be fooled into thinking that any one party can do it either Democrat or Republican. And, don't forget who owns the media and military ~ The Power Elites. 

Just, remember folks, its power, money and connections that controls what the power elite want you to think! They don't care about you or where you are from and they certainly don't care about the small town you might live in or the local company you might own or work for... You are just a number in their power ball game!

"Do not put your trust in mortal man who cannot save" ~ Psalm 146:3.

 

 

Note ~ The above is an interpretation from an excerpt taken from "The Power Elite Now" by Alan Wolfe (Nov. 2001)

*ONLINE SOURCES ~ https://prospect.org/power/power-elite-now/ and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_Elite