Oligarchy
An oligarchy is a form of government ruled by a small elite group. These people could be distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, education, corporate, universities, or military control.
Throughout history, oligarchies have been tyrannical (relying on public obedience and/or oppression to exist) or relatively benign. Aristotle pioneered the use of the term as a synonym for rule by the rich,[1] for which the exact term is plutocracy.
Oligarchy is not always rule by the wealthy, as oligarchs can simply be a privileged group, and do not have to be connected by bloodlines as in a monarchy.
Forms of government and other political structures associated with oligarchy can include aristocracy, Corporatocracy (Crony capitalism), meritocracy, military junta, plutocracy, technocracy, and theocracy.
Examples
Currently, the central authority of Communist China is concentrated in the Politburo Standing Committee composed of 7-members, of the Communist Party of China.
Forbes magazine suggested that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation under Yeltsin was ruled by international oligarchs. Vladimir Putin's rise to populist power in Russia came about by limiting the political influence of oligarchs whom many perceived as looting the country and exporting its capital to foreign banks in the West. Domestic oligarchs are allowed to operate and keep their wealth so long as they refrain from exercising undue influence in politics by lobbying and bribes. International financial publications such as Forbes have been very critical of Putin.[2]
Ancient Sparta, for instance, was run by an oligarchy.
The Great Reset is a plan to establish an oligarchic party elite.[3]
Texas Republican Officials
Texas Republican officials are arguably dictated by an oligarchy of wealthy dark money donors there, where campaign contributions are unlimited. Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick pursue an agenda there that cannot be described as conservative, and yet legislators known to be conservative typically vote for it. An example is the Convention of States, which is pushed by oligarchs to change the constitution with a Con Con that Justice Antonin Scalia described as a "horrible idea."
Oligarchs were presumably behind the ambush sham impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
See also
References
- â Winters (2011) p.37
- â Russian sanctions have effectively backfired, kicking out the power and influence of international oligarchs such as Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Bill Browder, and Gary Kasparov whom many Russians perceive as looting the country. How Putin Conquered Russia's Oligarchy, Greg Rosalsky, NPR, March 29, 2022. Many Russians are thankful for Western economic sanctions because now the profits from business remain in the country to create more jobs and economic development.
- â Government's Money Monopoly and the "Great Reset"
- Ostwald, M. Oligarchia: The Development of a Constitutional Form in Ancient Greece (Historia Einzelschirften; 144). Stuttgart: Steiner, 2000 (ISBN 3-515-07680-8).