A term we increasingly hear these days to describe what is taking place here in America is “oligarchy”. An oligarchy is the convergence of wealth and political power, where a small group of people (oligarchs) have control of a country, organization, or institution. An oligarchy is exclusive to people with the greatest wealth that look to harness increasing degrees of political power in their personal favor, typically at the expense of those that are significantly less affluent and therefore less influential. Modern oligarchies are subtle and operate through persuasion, such as social media, by capturing their minions within their echo chamber. Further, oligarchs have no fear of legal consequences and tend to view laws as only relevant for others and as impediments to their unbridled impulses. While wealth and politics have always co-existed, they have never been more present in our country than today. To illustrate, the dismantling of the separation of powers that is occurring coupled with the frontal attacks on the rule of law in concert with the influence of Elon Musk is frightening. In particular, the unaccountable power that Elon Musk wields through DOGE is a grave threat to democracy. Further, the cuts that are proposed to Medicaid in order to provide further tax breaks to the exclusive 1% club is further evidence of the oligarchy in our country. Collectively, we need to wake-up and speak-out before our rights to do so are further obliterated by these modern-day oligarchs through the actions of the current administration.
Tim Knoster (3/17/2025)