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Octafish

(55,745 posts)
25. The Origins of the Overclass
Thu May 26, 2016, 10:53 AM
May 2016

By Steve Kangas

THE ORIGINS OF THE OVERCLASS

by Steve Kangas

The wealthy have always used many methods to accumulate wealth, but it was not until the mid-1970s that these methods coalesced into a superbly organized, cohesive and efficient machine. After 1975, it became greater than the sum of its parts, a smooth flowing organization of advocacy groups, lobbyists, think tanks, conservative foundations, and PR firms that hurtled the richest 1 percent into the stratosphere.

The origins of this machine, interestingly enough, can be traced back to the CIA. This is not to say the machine is a formal CIA operation, complete with code name and signed documents. (Although such evidence may yet surface — and previously unthinkable domestic operations such as MK-ULTRA, CHAOS and MOCKINGBIRD show this to be a distinct possibility.) But what we do know already indicts the CIA strongly enough. Its principle creators were Irving Kristol, Paul Weyrich, William Simon, Richard Mellon Scaife, Frank Shakespeare, William F. Buckley, Jr., the Rockefeller family, and more. Almost all the machine's creators had CIA backgrounds.

SNIP...

How did this alliance start? The CIA has always recruited the nation’s elite: millionaire businessmen, Wall Street brokers, members of the national news media, and Ivy League scholars. During World War II, General "Wild Bill" Donovan became chief of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner of the CIA. Donovan recruited so exclusively from the nation’s rich and powerful that members eventually came to joke that "OSS" stood for "Oh, so social!"

SNIP...

Historically, the CIA and society’s elite have been one and the same people. This means that their interests and goals are one and the same as well. Perhaps the most frequent description of the intelligence community is the "old boy network," where members socialize, talk shop, conduct business and tap each other for favors well outside the formal halls of government.

CONTINUED...

http://www.american-buddha.com/illum.originsofoverclass.htm

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PS: Thanks for grokking, Dont call me Shirley! A national news media with integrity would connect the dots. Until that happy day, we have to do the work of the only BUSINESS mentioned by name in the Constitution: the press.

Recommendations

1 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

is this actually a surprise or even news to anyone here? niyad May 2016 #1
You're right, it's not news to DU. Octafish May 2016 #4
It'll come out PJMcK May 2016 #8
The specifics were new to me. Also we get hundreds of new readers every day. Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #20
The Devil is in the details 99th_Monkey May 2016 #6
If Hilary is guilty and exonerated she will be over-qualified to become a Republican candidate Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #22
K & R femmocrat May 2016 #2
Thank you! I remember when DUer DonViejo brought this up last year... Octafish May 2016 #5
It's frankly astonishing every time I reflect on our two "presumptive" nominees 99th_Monkey May 2016 #3
Interesting Times, Ours. Octafish May 2016 #7
Comparing apples and oranges is always productive. Trump is an evil con man who thieves. TeamPooka May 2016 #10
+1000 nt ProudProgressiveNow May 2016 #13
Hillary & Trump are the "same" <--your words, not mine 99th_Monkey May 2016 #14
The report cited the last 4 Sec. of State for the same thing TeamPooka May 2016 #16
I'm not going to stoop to your level of vile insults. 99th_Monkey May 2016 #17
A creative but silly thought PJMcK May 2016 #9
The Manchurian Combover Octafish May 2016 #23
K&R Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #11
kick Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #12
Trump, The Mob & Organized Crime Octafish May 2016 #24
It says something about the internet when Trump-trolls are allowed to hide OPs like yours... Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #26
The .01% and their minions all either mob or heavily tied to the mob. Dont call me Shirley May 2016 #15
actually, some of them simply use the Mafia, without realizing long-term ramifications... Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #18
The Origins of the Overclass Octafish May 2016 #25
Thank you, Octafish for keeping us informed! You are a 4th Estate treasure. Dont call me Shirley May 2016 #35
Robbins, who called Trump, “the slickest con-man out of New York City” --in other words malaise May 2016 #19
as con-men go, Trump isn't that slick. His victims are just so hateful and foolish. Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #21
Donito Comboverleone made him an offer he couldn't refuse. Octafish May 2016 #27
I lust love your posts -Donito Comboverleone - that's it malaise May 2016 #28
me too... Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #29
Ha malaise May 2016 #30
did you see the new Mississippi flag in a previous comment? Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #32
You mean Donald "Little Fingers" Trump? ArnoldLayne May 2016 #31
Personally, I consider the Republican political party to be our largest crime organinzation. Todays_Illusion May 2016 #33
Jack Abramoff type of mafia ties sounds about right. L. Coyote May 2016 #34
would you like a side order of Scanlon and some Cunningham with that special K cereal? Jeffersons Ghost May 2016 #36
There has always been a fine line between... CanSocDem May 2016 #37
Here's one from Wayne Barrett and Democracy Now about dRumpf's beaucoup org crime connections: Mc Mike Jul 2016 #38
Bookmarked. Recommended. love_katz Jan 31 #39
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