What would your descendants need to remember about you? Part III

“The domination of an organized minority over the unorganized majority is inevitable.”

The church I was a child in answered to a central power in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Pastors came and went with the latest doctrine. There was a church board, that tended to be the same people through the years. Yet, the most influential people were none of these.

A mother from a family that had been there for generations.

A grandfather who had lived through generations.

This meant there were no drum kits there for as long as I was there, no matter what doctrine allowed.

Later, I would see similar things in the Army.

Big Army would say one thing, like giving us exercises to stay limber, but older non-commissioned officers would have other ideas.

De Jure vs De Facto power.

In the American South, Latin America, and Liberia, we’ve seen dozens of regime changes that nonetheless leave elite families with effective power, even if their official power is taken away.

You’ve probably felt why, before.

Perhaps when you were a part of tight-knit circle of friends within a much larger group. You and your friends could all agree on what to do and when, and this had more pull, since everyone else in the group would have different preferences.

The fewer people there are, the easier it is to solve collective action problems.

So the few can dominate the many.

And in democratic societies, giving up De Jure power for De Facto power has another benefit: when someone is to blame, it is those who hold De Jure power who are easiest to target.

Whatever political institutions come and go, remember to look for the difference between what positions hold actual sway, and what positions don’t.

So for your descendants: remember that who controls how pieces on the board are selected is who controls the board.

Remember where you found power living.

For no matter the environment generations from now, it will live somewhere.