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An elite in political and sociological theory, is a small group of people who control a disproportionate amount of wealth or political power.

Identity and social structure[link]

Mills wrote in his 1957 book The Power Elite that the "elite" are "those political, economic, and military circles, which as an intricate set of overlapping small but dominant groups share decisions having at least national consequences. Insofar as national events are decided, the power elite are those who decide them."^[1]

According to Mills, the governing elite in the US primarily draws its members from three areas: (i) the highest political leaders (including the president) and a handful of key cabinet members and close advisers; (ii) major corporate owners and directors; and (iii) high ranking military officers.^[2] These groups overlap, and elites tend to circulate from one sector to another, consolidating power as they do so.^[3]

Unlike the ruling class, a social formation based on heritage and social ties, the power elite is characterized by the organizational structure through which its wealth is acquired. According to Mills, part of the power elite is "the managerial reorganization of the propertied classes into the more or less unified stratum of the corporate rich."^[4] Domhoff further clarified the differences in the two terms: "The upper class as a whole does not do the ruling. Instead, class rule is manifested through the activities of a wide variety of organizations and institutions... Leaders within the upper class join with high-level employees in the organizations they control to make up what will be called the power elite."^[5]

The Marxist theoretician Nikolai Bukharin anticipated the power elite theory in his 1929 work, Imperialism and World Economy:^[6] "present-day state power is nothing but an entrepreneurs' company of tremendous power, headed even by the same persons that occupy the leading positions in the banking and syndicate offices.".^[7]

See also[link]

• Corporate globalization
• Global elite
• National Security Council
• Ruling class

• Bilderberg Group
• World Economic Forum

References[link]

Footnotes[link]

Further reading[link]

• Dogan, Mattei (2003). Elite configurations at the apex of power. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-12808-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=Z6Cu8nvJplMC. 
• Domhoff, G. William (1990). The power elite and the state: how policy is made in America. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978-0-202-30373-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=A35GpAnLR5EC. 
• Hartmann, Michael (2007). The sociology of elites. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-41197-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=A802Pz-IZ7cC. 
• Rothkopf, David (2009). Superclass: The Global Power Elite and the World They Are Making. Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-374-53161-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=beHXwswSD9AC. 
• Scott, John, ed. (1990). The Sociology of Elites: The study of elites. Edward Elgar. ISBN 978-1-85278-390-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=ZoW3AAAAIAAJ. 

External links[link]

• Charles Wright Mills on the Power Elite "The Higher Circles"
• G. William Domhoff's online supplement to his book Who Rules America
• Domhoff interview - September 2004, Public Eye.Org - Domhoff on the American Ruling Class as opposed to conspiracy theories.
• NY Books G. William Domhoff: "IS THERE A RULING CLASS?" In response to What Rules America? (May 1, 1975)

Aaron Russo
Russo promoting his film America: Freedom to Fascism
Born	February 14, 1943 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Died	August 24, 2007(2007-08-24) (aged 64) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Known for	Music Manager, Film producer, libertarian politician and activist
Religion	Judaism[citation needed]

Aaron Russo (February 14, 1943 - August 24, 2007) was an American entertainment businessman, film producer and director, and political activist. He was best known for producing such movies as Trading Places, Wise Guys, and The Rose. Later in life, he created various Libertarian-leaning political documentaries including Mad as Hell and America: Freedom to Fascism. After a six-year battle with bladder cancer, Russo died on August 24, 2007.

Early life[link]

Aaron Russo was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1943. Growing up on Long Island, Russo worked for his family's undergarment business.

Entertainment career[link]

In April 1968, Russo opened the nightclub Kinetic Playground in Chicago, Illinois, originally naming it the Electric Theater. He booked numerous prominent rock groups and musicians at the club such as The Grateful Dead, Iron Butterfly, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Rotary Connection, and The Who.

In addition to owning his own nightclub, Russo managed several musical acts throughout the 1970s including The Manhattan Transfer and Bette Midler.^[1]

Russo then moved into producing and directing movies, six of them receiving Academy Award nominations and two receiving Golden Globe Award nominations.^[2] His final film would be America: Freedom to Fascism, a political documentary critical of the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Reserve System and warning about the coming of the New World Order.

Political career[link]

Russo became involved in political issues in the early-1990s when he produced and starred in the documentary entitled Mad As Hell in which he criticized the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the federal government's War on Drugs, the concept of a National Identity Card, and government regulation of alternative medicine.^{[citation needed]}

In 1998, Russo took his political interests to a higher level, running for governor of the state of Nevada as a Republican. Placing second in the Republican primary with 26% of the vote to candidate Kenny Guinn, Russo later endorsed the Democratic nominee, then-Las Vegas mayor Jan Laverty Jones, who would eventually lose to Republican nominee Kenny Guinn.^{[citation needed]} Russo was planning to run again for Nevada governor in 2002 as either an independent or Libertarian but was sidelined by cancer.

In January 2004, Russo declared his candidacy for the President of the United States initially as an independent but then as a Libertarian. At the Libertarian National Convention in May 2004, Russo received 258 votes to Michael Badnarik's 256 votes and Gary Nolan's 246 votes, short of the majority required to receive the presidential nomination. Russo would eventually lose the nomination on the convention's third and final ballot to Badnarik by a vote of 423-344.

On January 14, 2007, Russo announced his full support for US Congressman Ron Paul's candidacy for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination.^[3]

Later in 2007, Russo created the political grassroots organization, Restore the Republic (restoretherepublic.com), to fulfill the political ambitions laid out in his final movie documentary, America: Freedom to Fascism. Regarding the organization, Russo said his goal was to "try and get the word out to the public about what's happening to America -- and give them an opportunity to try to change things".

Death[link]

On August 24, 2007, Russo died at the age of 64 of bladder cancer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California.^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• America: Freedom to Fascism, Russo's last film
• Visit Aaron Russo' Virtual Memorial
• Aaron Russo at the Internet Movie Database

The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article and discuss the issue on the talk page. (December 2010)

Liberal elite is a political stigma used to describe highly-educated, politically left-leaning people, whose education had traditionally opened the doors to affluence. It is commonly used with the pejorative implication that the people who claim to support the rights of the working class are themselves members of the upper class, or upper middle class, and are therefore out of touch with the real needs of the people they claim to support and protect. The phrase "liberal elite" should not be confused with the term "elite" as used by writers such as Vilfredo Pareto and C. Wright Mills. They use the term to mean those who exercise the most political power.

The label is essentially a rhetorical device with flexible meaning depending on where in the English speaking world it is used. As a polemical term it has been used to refer to political positions as diverse as secularism, environmentalism, feminism, and other positions associated with the left.

The originating usage in the United States is applied with various changes to other English speaking countries and by extension to left-leaning elites in other countries.

Australia[link]

In Australia, the term "Chardonnay socialist" has been in use since 1989.^[1][2] For example, Australian left-wing "true believers" leveled it at supporters of the failed republic referendum of 1999 (where the vote was split not along conventional party lines but very much along socio-economic divides, with the rich overwhelmingly supporting the change while the less well-off were opposed – a superficially bizarre pattern for a non-economic issue). Staunch Australian right-wingers, on the other hand, level it at those who support such things as government funding for the arts, free tertiary education, and the ABC – all causes which are described by critics as "middle-class welfare".

The ad hominem argument was particularly used by the Howard Government against members of the Australian Labor Party.^[3]

The term "liberal" has the opposite connotation in mainstream media to that which it enjoys in the US. It is associated with the Liberal Party, a conservative and powerful party whose name is based on their objective to liberalise the market economy within Australia.

United States[link]

In the United States, the lifestyle of the liberal elite is often considered noteworthy.^[4][5] The term "liberal elite" often carries the implicit connotation that the individuals described by the term are hypocritical. For instance, they may support busing and oppose school choice and vouchers, but send their children to private or parochial schools. The liberal elite are often characterized as having an affinity for European culture, especially the culture of France and foreign films. Thus the phrase liberal elite suggests that liberals are unpatriotic, because they like other cultures and are disdainful of American life and culture. Columnist Dave Barry drew attention to these stereotypes when he commented, "Do we truly believe that ALL red-state residents are ignorant racist fascist knuckle-dragging NASCAR-obsessed cousin-marrying roadkill-eating tobacco-juice-dribbling gun-fondling religious fanatic rednecks; or that ALL blue-state residents are godless unpatriotic pierced-nose Volvo-driving France-loving left-wing communist latte-sucking tofu-chomping holistic-wacko neurotic vegan weenie perverts"^[6]? South Park's creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone use the stereotypes attributed to the liberal elite for comic effect. In the episode Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls, they portrayed members of Hollywood's movie industry as being hypocritical and self-serving and having an affinity for tofu, steamed celery, couscous and the products of organic markets. In the episode Smug Alert, they portray San Francisco liberals as haughty and condescending towards people less progressive than themselves and poking fun at the large number of wine and cheese stores in San Francisco. The film Team America: World Police includes jokes about the liberal elite, implying that they live in their own protected niche and are thus unaware of the dangers of internationalism. The film lampooned several Hollywood celebrities, including Susan Sarandon, Liv Tyler etc. for their left-wing political views. Michael Moore, who is famous for having left-wing viewpoints whilst making large amounts of money from his books and films, is also lampooned in the film.

During the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election, Republican candidate John McCain likened Democratic candidate Barack Obama's celebrity appeal to that of pop star Britney Spears and socialite Paris Hilton.^[7]

A political ad from the right wing organization Club for Growth attacked the Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean by portraying him as part of the liberal elite: "Howard Dean should take his tax-hiking, government-expanding, latte-drinking, sushi-eating, Volvo-driving, New York Times-reading, body-piercing, Hollywood-loving, left-wing freak show back to Vermont, where it belongs."^[8]

Those Americans who equate intellectual pursuits and careers with elitism often point out American intellectuals, most of whom are upper middle class not upper class,^[9] are primarily liberal. Fully 72% of professors identify themselves as liberals. At Ivy League Universities, an even larger majority, 87% of professors identified themselves as liberals.^[10] Those with post-graduate degrees are increasingly Democratic.^{[11][12][13][14]}

In Thomas Frank's What's the Matter with Kansas? the idea of a liberal elite is compared to George Orwell's character Emmanuel Goldstein in the book Nineteen Eighty-Four, the fictional hated enemy of the people. Frank argues that anger directed towards this perceived enemy is what keeps the conservative coalition together.^[15]

New Class[link]

The concept of "liberal elites" is a product of 'new class' discourse, which emerged in the United States in the 1970s. Like the 'new class', liberal elites are often understood to be university/college educated professionals, often considered to wield immense cultural power in the media, academy, and school system. The label suggests that any such cultural power is used to gain influence in politics beyond the group's numerical significance. Further, any such influence tends to be characterised as (a) advocating the interests of 'fringe' groups to the detriment of 'mainstream' opinion; and (b) pursuing political goals that are self-serving and/or frivolous, with the effect of restricting public choice.

See also[link]

Further reading[link]

• Larry M. Bartels (2006), "What's the Matter with What's the Matter with Kansas?", Quarterly Journal of Political Science: Vol. 1:No. 2, pp 201–226.

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Economist, The Fear Myth http://www.economist.com/world/na/displayStory.cfm?story_id=3400772
• Joshua Kurlantzick, The New Yorker (2004) "Pardon?" http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/040419ta_talk_kurlantzick?040419ta_talk_kurlantzick