In more than four decades before incoming and wide range use of internet and cell phones, Peter Drucker, the famous late management professor published a book titled, The Age of Discontinuity. The main theme of the book was based on the fact that knowledge is the basic factor of wealth in a nation, not physical products such as steel and natural resources.
Marshal McLuhan (1962) published his book, The Gutenberg Galaxy in which he developed the concept of Global Village. By this he meant that electrical devices have removed the space and time barriers in such a way that the globe has been turned in to a village. He also explained some other characteristics of the age of discontinuity.
If we accept that every five years all scientific and technological inventions have been doubled and every single invention has immerse functional, dysfunctional, manifest and latent consequences upon social as well as international relations, henceforth, with the passage of these four decades we have to accept that we now are really living in a new era which is mostly departed from the past.
With a closer look to this new era, we also can claim that the concept of global village with the mass usage of Digit and Waves could be conceived as a Mobile Globe. With regard to this concept, the globe is not as small as a village, is with anyone who has access to a very inexpensive wireless device, the globe is with him or her even in a cave.
A very outcome of this drastic change is growing a kind of unprecedented complexity in social as well as international relations. An interesting point in this view is the fact that the globe does not actually shrink, but one’s insight and vision have enlarged in seeing the globe larger than ever. A man in ancient time conceived his village almost as his world. If he visited a town nearby, his world became a little bigger. But now an educated man or woman, by and large, can conceive the whole globe. This concept is in accordance with the amount of knowledge at ancient time and now.
At that time a learned man had studied all branches of social as well as physical sciences whereas at the time being one man is not able to study even one per cent of all sciences. Within the process of differentiation and specialization in all aspects of social system any branches of sciences breaks down to many different scientific branches.
So, the more specialization, the more narrow minded a man would be and his world would be mostly limited to his scientific field and any scientist will have a very comprehensive and elaborated knowledge in a very small segment of the field, consequently, more people will get alienated from the whole social process in new era, henceforth they could be manipulated by some social elements such as mass media or ruling elite.
Theoretically speaking the most important feature of this age is a metamorphosis change among the parts of any system in which human being is involved. In other words the relations have been changed from a kind of mechanical relation to organic. In organic system any change in a part will have a lot of effects on other parts such as any change in the function of kidney will have a change in the functions of other parts of the human organism.
This looks simple, but it gets a little complex when we understand that other parts of the organism such as heart, liver, brain and other parts will have negative effects on kidney and again all parts to each other. This process is well-known to physicians and they know how to tackle with that, but when we look at social system within the context of organic relations with immerse variables that are changing all the time with deviation amplifying causal interaction to each other, we can realize the bottom line of the complexity.
The very important point that we have to put in mind is the fact that we are at the threshold of devastating social as well as international problems.
Looking to the subject from the standpoint of an historical approach for instance in ancient time if any event had happened in China had no effect upon Rome and England. Even in World War 1 there was no or very little effect upon countries not involved in.
Now within the context of organic relations, we can compare the prompt effect of the September 11th event with less than 3000 casualties with that War. A week after that event any one in the whole globe felt some changes upon his life even for a waiter in a restaurant in a Far Eastern country. What I am trying to say is the very high degree of sensitivity in social and international relations. We can also call attention to a very recent small event in Christmas Eve that a fanatic boy tried to explode a plane flying from Amesterdam to the U.S.A.
Within this theoretical framework, now we can see a very drastic impact upon the fundamentals of social sciences. Because theories of social sciences extracted from studying historical events and social relations at the time of whom that develop a theory as Karl Marx and Max Weber did in mid nineteenth and mid twentieth respectively. Marx claimed that a capitalist pays to his laborers to the point in order to keep him alive to work for him.
We may find some facts for his claim at that time, but no one can believe or pay attention to this claim today especially in industrial countries. Within the passage of fifty years with advances in technology, industrial and commercial corporations enlarged in such a way that a new era with new needs showed up in which followed by scientific management. About a century after Karl Marx declared his Manifest, laborers in industrial countries such as U.S.A had a kind of standard living that Marx never could imagine.
Scientific management as a new discipline changed the vision to the concept of growth and production in economic theories. What I am trying to say is the fact that theories of social sciences are valid as long as they are in accordance with real situations, otherwise they would be misleading. Theories as the essence of sciences both physical as well as social shape our vision to the real world.
Now, we can take a close look to the most important concept in social sciences named freedom. The time Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) and John Locke (1632-1704) talked about freedom, people had access to sword, shield, arrow and bow.
But, now a man can have access to a very terrifying mass destruction tool. Worse than that, under the slogan of freedom some sort of mass media have come to existence that we can call them mass destruction media. It is interesting to note that some political elite such as Franklin D. Roosevelt the late former president about seven decades ago realized the oncoming problem and stated that the growing corporate like feudal baron and aristocrats of old might threaten economic freedom of individuals to earn the living.
This recent economic crisis could be viewed from this stand point. He, still never could imagine the technological advances in our age that growing corporate in relation with other corporate such as some satellite channels with paid programming and advertising hammer the brain of the people to do this and or to buy that right away and they push them to the degree that people will get helpless.
Furthermore, some channels in their regular programs show a case that a married lady in front of her husband confesses that her child belongs to her ex boy friend not to him. This episode will develop a lot of latent dysfunctional consequences at national and international level. First and worst it brings down the level of immorality and makes many married people suspicious to each other that eventually may end up to some kind of crime or divorce.
In other word, the invisible thread of social system will be loosening and the cornerstone of the society which is the family will be shaken. We have to remember this kind of show is regular in western countries such as U.S.A as well as many other programs that direct the young generation to the hell. This also results into a generation with no feeling about guilt. At international level, we know that in some Eslamic cultures if a married lady makes such a confession, in less than an hour will be beheaded and chopped. Extremists will magnify and take advantage of it. This is the main cause of cultural wars and extremists are actually the effects of cultural wars.
With regard to the above introductory notes, we can pinpoint our main purpose relating the political elite to this new era or The Age of Mobile Globe.
In this complex world with very many intervening variables, ruling elites function such as glands. The size of ruling elite comparing the whole society could be conceived as the size of all glands to the human body. By ruling elite we mean all elected officials such as the president, vice president, chancellors, prime ministers, governors, congressmen, and appointed persons such as cabinet members, ambassadors, and so on. All political elite in a country such as U.S.A. may reach to thirty-thousand. It means one per cent of one per cent of the population. The decisions of this very small part of social system are just like the secretions of glands named hormones. We know that any default in any gland such as thyroid may end up to death.
The importance of the ruling elite as social glands will be magnified by the degree of industrial and economic power of a country. This is why the whole world is looking to the U.S.A. ruling elite. With regard to the U.S. economic crisis anybody anywhere even a layman has realized the importance of this proposition.
Before analyzing the ruling elite in the U.S.A, we have to call attention to the differences between democratic regimes and one man dictatorship systems. In the U.S.A. ruling elites are responsible for policy making and important decisions where as in regimes under the command of single ruler, the dictator’s decision can change the course of the history of a nation even more a vast region.
25 centuries ago if Xeroxes, the Emperor of ancient Persia from Achaemenidis dynasty, had accepted the advice of his uncle not to attack Greece, he could have stopped the nation from many events and very many negative consequences afterwards. By attacking Greece, he actually exhausted the legitimacy of his dynasty in one hand and empowering the Greeks with the confidence that they could defeat the Emperor of the Persia and consequently the situation came up for a man named Alexander the Great. We can also call attention in to a more recent event.
If the last King of Bourbon dynasty, Louee 16 in France had taken some rational decisions, even at the very end of his ruling time; he could easily curb the oncoming events and control the machine of government within a constitutional system. In that situation there was no ground to show up someone such as Napoleon Bonaparte with all his consequences.
But in democratic countries, the ruling elite, especially, is responsible for any victory or defeat and progress and collapse. The power elite of Great Britain in the Age of Queen Victoria (1837-1905) or during the World War II are the key factors for progress and victories the nation had. In other words, for instance in the United States of America the former president is not responsible alone, but the ruling elites are responsible for all consequences attacking Iraq. The other side of the coin is the fact that President Barack Obama can not do much as he desires. An interesting point about President Obama is the fact that his education and experience is law and order or in a sense conservatism and inertia, whereas he advocates change.
For instance the main factor for economic progress of China is her political elite, not economists. Economists could be hired from around the world. Rationality has deep root in China’s culture. I remember in 1968 while China had the red flag and no political relation with the U.S.A., Yezkel Dror, the author of the first book in Public Policy Making, as visiting professor at the University of Southern California told me that on the basis of a research at RAND Corporation the power elite in China decides rationally.
Within this paradigm, they found out when any member of the ruling elite gets old, he may hurt the nation by wrong decisions as their charismatic leader Mao Tesong did at his elderly age.
It is interesting to note that the economic relation between U.S.A. and China has gone through the same pattern that was between Spain and Great Britain in late eighteenth and nineteenth century. At that time Spain had gold from the colonies in southern part of America and could buy whatever needed from a growing industrial country such as Great Britain. So China is getting strong as Great Britain did at that time.
There could be found a very delicate differences between G.B. and U.S.A. and that is the point that not only U.S.A. orders for industrial products to China, she offers free know how to that country as well.
We have to call attention to another very important factor in the Age of Mobile Globe and that is the fact that when knowledge is the source of the wealth and economic power, any nation with planning and organizing can educate her people almost in one generation, so a hard working people such as Chinese can easily become a very powerful country in a short time.
In 1992 when I was in a research mission in China, a university professor told me that my salary was near $100 per month. Whereas if I were working in a university in the United States ,I will be awarded $5000, but I am satisfied with that because we all get so little and work for our country. This way of vision is the source of power in a country with 25 per cent of the world population. From the economic standpoint that is why U.S.A. has trillions $ debts and China has gotten trillions $ of gold reserves and with that buys U.S. bounds.
This is not actually the main problem. The very problem shows up when China gets very rich and becomes affluent society and follows the unacceptable consumption pattern of U.S.A. That is the time that the nature will reach to the break even point very soon specially through the context of deviation amplifying causal interaction.
The China’s rational ruling elite could be compared better with the Soviet Union in the past. In spite of the scientific background initiated by Peter the Great near three centuries ago and extra income from gas and oil, the Soviet Union collapsed. The main reason was based on the fact that the ruling elite in Soviet Union could not realize the nature of a knowledge society. The ruling elite at that time had the Stalinist orientation in governing. That pattern could never satisfy the social needs of knowledge society. Interestingly to say that cultural pattern as software shows itself on the quality of industrial products and improving the quality comes after the changes in cultural patterns in social system of a nation such as Russia.
However, the enormous wealth accumulated by the hard working generations between 1850 and 1950 and the natural resources in The U.S.A. has slowed down the need for change. The tenderness of the American soldiers in Iraq shows the features of knowledge society comparing them with the American army that fought in World War II, in such event such as D-Day.
I believe that this great nation because of its enormous wealth and economic power has undermined the need of improving political thinking despite a drastic need to do so. Supporting my idea that the capability of the ruling elite should be improved is the features of presidential election and the war in Iraq. But before that in order to prevent any misunderstanding, I have to mention that because of synergic characteristics of cultural and natural situation of the U.S.A the beauties of this country is even more than her rates in G.N.P. and Noble prize Winners comparing with the whole world.
As we know this country with about five per cent of world population has more than thirty per cent world G.N.P. and near 45 per cent Noble Prize Winners. But the other side of the coin is that because of her leadership role at international level any malfunction and wrong doing in any aspect of social functions would have accelerated impact upon other nations and will be magnified. To me it is hard to realize the cultural and natural beauties of this great country without a world wide experience with academic vision. With regard to the above standpoint now we can easily pinpoint some shortcomings in this social system.
The first is about the Republican candidates for presidency and vice presidency, in which one was too old for the burden of the Presidency and the other one was a very inexperienced young lady. This episode actually exposed the scarcity of very qualified persons for very top positions and men near the top. Besides that for supporting our idea; we can put our finger upon Iraq war. Before we attack a country in order to conquer, we have to study the structure of power elite and the historical pattern of that in order not to fall into a pitfall and stay in a black box. The social changes can not happen overnight and by order. The landmark of the error took place with dissolving the Army of Iraq.
By that decision they actually created the most fearful trained terrorist group with immerse money and arms. Any student of governmental affairs is familiar with the concept of The Iron Law of Oligarchy in Bureaucracy. By that we mean that a large organization such as army could be controlled by few at the top. In other words the top officers could be removed and put the eyes of secret service upon the successors and have tight controls on them and remove them step by step to be coordinated with new pattern resulted from the changes in ruling elite by democratic system.
We also had to know that even the nearest men to Saddam Hossain even his sons did not like him and were afraid of him. Dictators have no feedback upon their wrong decisions and consequently they get suspicious to any one, even to their successors. That is why Peter the Great, Evan the Terrible in Russia and Shah Abbass the Great in Iran killed their sons.
Within that situation after collapse of Saddam there was no need to blow up every thing and sacrifice many lives.
However, improving political thinking is not like training craftsman. During World War II, it was found that in order to train craftsmen, there is no need to get through many years of stewardship. They could be trained in just a few months.
Improving political thinking should start from the grassroots. We cannot educate and train a man or woman for leadership the same way that we educate a physician. A very few people have some exceptional capacity for thinking, learning, talking and making speech with great amount for tolerance of ambiguity. We never know the talents except motivating them strongly from their childhood .Some social scientists have found that a key element for social change and progress is related to the content of the books used at elementary schools.
Besides that those political concepts should be dispersed among the population by all means especially through educational institutions and takes years and perhaps a generation to see the results. In fact during that time the talents and those are interested will show up and go through professional studies, internships and ultimately recognized and elected by people.
In Great Britain in 1970’s a group of social scientists decided to publish inexpensive pocket books about key concepts in political sciences such as democracy ,bureaucracy, revolution, dictatorship , legitimacy, power, and so on. In France the books were published under the name of Key Concepts in Social Sciences.
Beside this, there is a need for new political theories as Professor Paul Krugman the Noble Prize winner, did in economic and theorizing a new pattern of international trade system which has been changed comparing what they did in 1970’s.
We also need some theoretical guidelines in order to breakthrough the bureaucratic structure which has limited the vision of the people.
We also have to keep in mind and be aware of the fact that human beings are reluctant to apply theories to themselves and that is why the social sciences are far behind the physical sciences. Political theories even are much more behind all other social theories and totally should be revised and also to be added some new theories in the Age of Mobile Globe.
An English philosopher in twentieth century has mentioned that all philosophical thinking in the West could be conceived as footnotes to the Plato’s philosophy. This could be supported by the fact that Plato’s book named Republic is on the syllabus of some graduate students in the U.S.A
Our political scientists may end up to a new paradigm within which we visualize human rights within a much broader context under the name of Nature Rights. By Nature Rights we mean that our globe with all its belongings has the right to be as it is and not to be destroyed by an element such as human being. We should pay much more attention to Al Gore’s vision the former Vice President about the nature without lip service
At the end of this article I would like to call attention to my main goal for this writing which is the very importance of ruling elite and their orientation. Ruling elite mostly think about their position and how to keep it. That is why they are very sensitive to mass media. They know that the science and technology have empowered the mass media such a way that they can make a hero out of a retarded man or vice versa. That is why they cry about the nature just to minimize the effect of industry upon nature not to think about the causes.
In other words, they blow the horn from the open end. Changes and progress do not take place suddenly. First a problem should be recognized, accepted, conceptualized and then solve it with comprehensive work on that .This is exactly what happened to merit system in governmental organizations. Going to history, in March 1856 London Economist had an article criticizing patronage bureaucracy and the very need to reform the recruitment system for public organizations. The merit system initiated and came out of this process in Great Britain and U.S.A.respectively.
Abolfazle Sadeghpour,
Ph.D Professor and former Chairman Of Governmental Affairs,
Tehran University
December 2009