
America's Ruling Class and the Perils of Revolution - robg
http://spectator.org/archives/2010/07/16/americas-ruling-class-and-the
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all
I find the printable format to be easier to read, even on screen:

[http://spectator.org/archives/2010/07/16/americas-ruling-
cla...](http://spectator.org/archives/2010/07/16/americas-ruling-class-and-
the/print)

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joshklein
I'm currently reading the biography of Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow. It's
a compelling look at the origins of the American experiment, and it makes me
feel hopeful seeing just how similar things were at that time. These are all
complaints people were leveling then, just as they have been since the
beginning of government.

"If men were angels..."

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hga
While I mostly agree with you, I have to note that Hamilton was _competent_.
One of the reasons we're an economic powerhouse vs. all those countries that
keep themselves messed up (or in the case of Argentina threw it all away on
the verge of becoming a 1st World nation) is the efforts he helped lead to put
our financial house in order and keep it there. (In point of fact, one of the
reasons the previous system of the Continental Congress fell apart was a
failure to deal with that.)

One of the points that Codevilla is making is that our current ruling class
doesn't have what it takes to guide our country through its current travails.

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gnosis
For a much more thorough look at elite dominance in america, I strongly
recommend "The Irony of Democracy":

[http://www.amazon.com/Irony-Democracy-Uncommon-
Introduction-...](http://www.amazon.com/Irony-Democracy-Uncommon-Introduction-
Advantage/dp/0495501239)

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brazzy
It's funny how current problems and developments in politics and society are
always and without fail "unprecedented" and "radically different" from
anything that has ever happened before, anywhere - at least in the minds of
the people who write (and avidly read) this kind of prose.

~~~
hga
Nah, enough of us know our Pareto
(<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilfredo_Pareto>), who "is famous for saying
'history is a graveyard of aristocracies.'"

What we are seeing now is the beginning of what he described as a "circulation
of elites".

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jchrisa
The comments on the original article are scary. It looks like the Spectator is
the sort of place where you can say women shouldn't be allowed to vote, and
have people agree with you. If these people are the alternative, thank
goodness they aren't well represented in our politics.

