This week, the world rocked with news of what appears to be a diabolical cheating scandal involving some of our most beloved celebrities. From hired aces taking SAT tests to schools waiving normal admission requirements for a hefty fee, celebrities such as Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) and Lori Loughlin (Aunt Becky from Full House) are now facing the likes of felonies, prison time, and the loss of their reputations. As more of the sordid details hit the media, like Loughlin’s daughter vacationing on the yacht of the president of UCLA when the scandal broke, how is the common person to interpret exactly what is going on in the rarified air of privileged elites?
In response to this question, I harken back to my days of old-more specifically, my college days of studying Marxist interpretations of history and the various ramifications of class conflict. According to Marxist theory, our society is comprised of the elite, the middle class, and the proletariat. The goal of the elite is to shrink the middle class, creating a larger proletariat of workers, and of course, a smaller group of elites who control most of the capital in a society.
The C’s of elitism are:
- Closed
- Conspiratorial
- Consensus
The wealthy individuals and their children involved in this scandal are all part of an elite society that is closed to most of us. The common person takes the SAT or ACT, applies to colleges, and gets in based on merit. Community colleges are often part of this scenario, as is attending less well-known colleges and universities that lack the prestige of those in the top ten. Nevertheless, the common person plays by “the rules,” and attends the school to which their merits have gotten them. Additionally, the common person often works while in college, attends classes faithfully, studies, and takes tests. College is often a stressful time, but it is also a time of learning and growing as a person. For the elite, this is often not the case. The daughter of Lori Loughlin, for instance, never took the SAT test, skips class, parties often, and has plenty of spare cash. Furthermore, she aces her classes regardless of her attendance or participation. This type of world is closed to most of us, who struggle daily to balance school, work, and paying bills.
The participation of everyone from test takers, proctors, coaches, and admittance counselors, is indicative of the conspiracy in our midst. True elitism is very conspiratorial in nature, with various individuals participating in it, through the taking of illegal bribes in exchange for favors. The bribes create a false reality for the elite, where they appear to be like the rest of us, but better, where in actuality, they are simply cheating. The crux of the conspiracy is capital, (aka money,) which the elite compile through the exploitation of proletariat labor.
Elitism works because of the general consensus of the people living within its false reality. The fantasy of elitism is an illusion to which its’ members must all agree. Exploiting labor for the cheapest price is the name of the game, and capital is merely a means to an end. The primary end, for the elite, at least in regard to this scenario, is the fantasy of smarter, better children, putting out very little labor themselves. Children, such as the daughters of Lori Loughlin, spend the majority of their time on social media, rather than studying, in order to make more capital off their own pseudo-celebrity status. In essence, this is how the wheel of elitism goes ‘round and ‘round.
In every Marxist scenario, there exists the synthesis (aka the elite), and the antithesis (the proletariat and disillusioned middle class.) When the antithesis finally revolts against the synthesis, it is called revolution. One can argue that this revolution is occurring right now, within our criminal justice system coupled with the media, and framed by their reactions to these elitist shenanigans. The media will socially ruin them-the criminal justice system will lock them up and possibly throw away the key, at least for a while. As a society, one can argue that the common person has become disillusioned with this type of behavior, and will no longer put up with it. The revolution is occurring now.
While the world continues to learn more about the current celebrity cheating scandal and all of its machinations, the common person is able to witness history in motion. The three C’s of elitism are spotlighted by the bad behavior of the synthesis, and the revolution of the antithesis is evident in the media and our judicial system. As it currently stands, we all have front seats to the oxygen literally being sucked out of the rarified air so often sustaining cheating elites. The real world is here, and the here is now.