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12/06-06/07
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What Exactly Does Oligarchic Mean?
Just a quick article today. I recently made a big deal out of Ralph Nader using the word oligarchic during one of his interviews. I suggested that most people did not know what it meant. This would include me as well. I did know it had something to do with a form of government but I would not have been unable to clarify it any further.That is until now.
Oligarchy is a form of government where political power effectively rests with a small elite segment of society. The word oligarchy is translated into "rule by few."
This power may also not be exercised openly, the oligarchs preferring to remain "the power behind the throne", exerting control through economic means. Although Aristotle pioneered the use of the term as a synonym for rule by the rich, for which the exact term is plutocracy, oligarchy is not always a rule by wealth, as oligarchs can simply be a privileged group.
I am glad that is all cleared up. Clear as mud.
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