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| Pyramid of Capitalist System (1911) by IWW |
Top tier = The ruling elite (politician, monarch and industrialist/CEO/major shareholder) run the country, make/influence the law, raise taxes, decide/influence when to go to war etc.
2nd tier = The Church. About 80% of the world's population belong to an institutional religion, so religious doctrine/dogma is powerful. For example, US Catholics who opposed conscription during WWI were tried as deserters following the American Catholic Church's decision to support the war (see Ben Salmon). In the UK, Anglican priests take an oath of allegiance to the monarch.
3rd tier = The military has power over everyone other than their paymasters and religious intermediaries. They are trained killers and take an oath of allegiance to either the monarch or state.
Bottom tier = The middle class and rich have power over their workers and tenants.
Under all tiers = The working class and poor are powerless, at least in the earthly realm...
"The first will be last and the last will be first." One day...
Thankfully it's not quite so bad 100 years later, but we do have a way to go. The trouble is, trashy tv and cheap goods have become the new 'opiate of the people' and I think they might be better doping agents than religion ever was.
ReplyDeleteRadical religion helped to motivate 'the masses' (those willing and able to think) to fight for a better lot. I can't see radical tv or radical electronic goods happening, though. How can 'the masses' be woken up from their indifference today? Are today's 'masses' those unable or unwilling to think?
Yeah, certainly consumerism, shopping and stuff are pretty high on the capitalist pyramid. I guess this is represented by the industrialist/corporate CEO/major shareholder. Corporations, monarchy and the state share the top tier.
DeleteThere may not be any radical tvs or electronic goods, but certainly the media that runs on them can be. The internet can be a great leveller, although of course the powers that be are fighting against this (e.g. SOPA/PIPA). People can now find, if they are willing to educate themselves, news and information outside the traditional and mainstream media channels. One only has to look at this blog.
P.S. In my humble opinion, I think the poster is as relevant today as it was in 1911. In fact I would argue that not much has changed since the time of Ancient Egypt and Abraham. The tools (e.g. telephone, tv, smart phone etc) may have changed but the hierarchy is still very much in place.
The hierarchical structure is similar I grant you, but in the West at least, those who rule us know their limits, although the Tories show they are still willing to test those limits, and the conditions of the workers are better than those of the slaves who built the pyramids. Life is not so cheap, and the poor are recognised as equally human, if somewhat reluctantly by some.
ReplyDeletePlus, institutional Church plays a much smaller part in most peoples' lives and is therefore less important in society in general.
DeleteI agree worker and civil rights have improved since Ancient Egypt. We are now free range rather than factory farmed. The farmer hasn't changed though; it is still the state.
DeleteI agree the institutional Church plays a lesser role in most peoples daily lives. Many people though still flock back to the Church in times of crisis (war, famine, bereavement etc) to seek answers.