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Power Elitism

By Saqib
Reading Mills' work, it becomes apparent that the abuse of power seems to come from two primary problems with the structure in place today: the concentration of power and the level of power afforded to those in charge.

Regarding power concentration, the founders of the US certainly had a different system in mind when the Republic was started, with multiple checks and balances and the dissolution of power away from the hands of the few. Gradually, this system was corrupted.

The essential dilemma now is that the wealth and size of the state has increased to the point where it is almost impossible to expect that those in the military industrial complex and Big Business are going to respect the separation of powers. I am wondering if a state/empire with this degree of wealth and might can ever be expected to remain corruption-free. In other words, a country of smaller size with less state power has a better chance for the people of the country to exercise democratic rights and pressure those in charge whereas an empire is a beast that simply has outgrown the demands of the people. Any nation it seems with such an outpouring of capital centered around a government structure is almost inevitably going to fall prey to the intoxication of its own strength. Hence, you develop what Mills call a power elite. Is there then some credibility to the claim of those on the right in the US who say that small government with less interference is better?

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