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Pete Kofod has kindly offered to let me publish a paper he has
finished just this morning on a very important topic – the rise of the
Praetorian Class. A former military officer himself, Pete knows what he
writes about, and he writes about it very well.
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Much attention has been paid to the “disappearing
middle class” and the “vanishing American Dream.” While the
observations are largely accurate, they are also misleading. The traditional
three-tier model of the upper, middle and lower class broadly categorizes
people according to income and net worth. One significant problem with this
model is that membership in any particular class is very much in the eye of
the beholder. One man’s “scraping by” is another
man’s “opulent living.” This subjective and arbitrary
grouping and boundary assessment inevitably gives rise to the simmering class
warfare that is starting to rear its ugly head in many Western countries.
Such categorization is therefore meaningless at best, if not outright
deceptive as it conflates a variety of economic actors.
The chief fallacy of this model rests in the fact that
it focuses on how much those actors are compensated, as opposed to how
and why they are compensated. A far better perspective is perhaps gained
using two classes, the Political Class and the Economic Class, with a third
class emerging.
The Butcher, the Baker, the Candlestick Maker –
The Economic Class
The Economic Class, at least in the United States, has
historically been the numerically dominant group, although in recent decades
its dominance has noticeably waned. The economic class would traditionally be
called the Private Sector, but even that term has become misleading for
reasons we will delve into later in this article.
Members of the Economic Class provide goods and
services that are voluntarily sought by consumers and paid at rates that the
market will bear. In an unfettered environment, the economic class would
count farmers, engineers, coal miners, artists, physicians, janitorial staff,
security guards, merchants and company executives among its membership. They
participate freely and competitively in the market place, using the economic
principles of Division of Labor and the Law of Comparative Advantage to
increase the wealth of society as well as improve their personal position.
Capital, entrepreneurial and human resources are brought together
collaboratively to meet the needs of the market place. This is standard
Economics 101 fare and hopefully generates little controversy among the
readership. The important factor defining Economic Class membership is not
the amount of money a person earns but rather their participation in the free
and open market.
The Lazy Highwaymen – The Political Class
Like the Economic Class, members of the Political Class
are not properly defined by their wealth but rather by how they exert
influence in the market place. Whereas members of the Economic Class engage
the market openly and voluntarily, members of the Political Class employ
coercion and deceit to achieve their economic objectives. The coercion and
deceit may either be exerted directly or, as is increasingly observed,
through a variety of proxy agents. The most obvious members of the Political
Class are, unsurprisingly, politicians. This group includes elected
individuals at every level of government as well as various appointed
officials.
In addition to this primary membership category, a
second distinct group exists within the Political Class. It consists of
various advocates including lobbyists, influence peddlers and miscellaneous
other supplicants of government cheese. These creatures exist to serve as
envoys for the third distinct group, which is made up of a patchwork of
commercial entities that have learned that employing a politically
well-connected pitch man replaces the need for an effective sales and
marketing organization and in some cases even the requirement to have a
desirable product.
Furthermore, it is commonly observed that members of
the Political Class routinely migrate between the three aforementioned
groups. An unfortunate consequence of allowing these economic actors to
“cut in line” is that the rewarded event becomes the prevailing
trend. Because of that, there is virtually no industry that has opted out of
the rent-seeking game. From the military-industrial complex to agricultural
subsidies, to the utterly corrupt banking system, the Political Class is
inexorably claiming an increasing share of the world’s economic
activity, a highly disturbing trend indeed.
Subsidized inefficiency, intentional destruction of
productive assets and confiscation of property are but some of the effects
that are observed when the Political Class employs force to serve those that
are “more equal than others.” The arrangement can be summed up by
saying that economic activity within the Economic Class places the bargaining
power in the hands of the buyer whereas the economic activity within the
Political Class places the bargaining power in the hand of the seller. This
gives rise to dislocations in the free exchange of goods and services as well
as widespread misallocations of capital as businesses adjust their practices
based not on the normal mechanics of supply and demand but rather based on
the dictates of the Political Class. Over the years, the scale of the
intrusions of the Political Class into economies around the world, and very
definitely here in the United States, has grown to the point where truly free
markets are now the exception and not the norm.
Because the Economic Class operates in the realm of
voluntary exchange whereas the Political Class employs force to achieve its
objectives, many of which are anathema to the Economic Class, it follows that
a significant amount of resources must be dedicated by the Political Class to
the enforcement of their objectives. This role has traditionally fallen on
the wide array of military and law enforcement organizations as well as
numerous regulatory agencies and departments.
From the US military’s role in protecting the
Political Class’s global interests and the IRS keeping the Treasury
full, to the FDA serving “Big Pharma”
and various law enforcement agencies maintaining a low-level chronic fear in
the populace, the level of physical control that the Political Class needs to
extend over productive resources is staggering. And in lockstep with the
virtually unchecked growth in the Political Class, so has grown the size and
scope of the enforcement branch deployed to protect its interests.
Paradoxically, for reasons I’ll touch on momentarily,
the allegiance of this enforcement branch belongs to neither the Political
Class whom they serve nor the Economic Class whom they “service.”
In time, their level of influence grows to the point in which they become a
class of their own. They are the Praetorian Class.
Legions and Lictors –
the Praetorian Class
The Praetorian Class includes members of the Armed
Services, federal, state and local law enforcement personnel as well as
numerous militarized officials including agents from the DEA, Immigrations,
Customs Enforcement, Air Marshalls, US Marshalls, and more. It also includes,
although to a lesser extent, various stage actors in the expanding security
theater such as TSA personnel. The main mission of the Praetorian Class is to
keep the order of the day. This requires displaying an intimidating presence
in their interactions with the Economic Class.
As the Praetorian Class ascends, the clear, albeit
unstated, message that emerges is that actions and events in the Economic
Class only occur with its tacit consent. Whether driving on roads, traveling
in the air, visiting public land, walking down the street or even living in
your own home, every action you take is predicated on its permission. By
preconditioning the populace to enforcement of its edicts, most of which are
completely arbitrary, the Praetorian Class sets itself up for a high degree
of autonomy in its actions. This is confirmed by the fact that consequences
for malfeasance within the Praetorian Class are almost never observed, and
when it happens, it typically becomes a grotesque spectacle in which one of
their own is sacrificed as an example, so as to keep appearances of effective
internal controls.
Members of the Praetorian Class are typically recruited
from the Economic Class and usually from the lower socio-economic spectrum,
which offers them an opportunity for personal and professional gain that
otherwise might be out of their reach. Early on in the training and
indoctrination process, a strong emphasis is placed on teamwork and advancing
the welfare of the team above the individual. While independent thought is
never overtly discouraged, the fact is that questioning authority and failing
to display complete loyalty to the team results in censure, shunning and even
expulsion. Naturally, the recruit learns in short order which behavior is
rewarded and responds accordingly. This forges a lifelong, unbreakable bond
between the brothers-in-arms. This bond can be observed when people proudly
display unit insignia and decorations decades after their departure from
service.
As they serve in their martial role, members of the
Praetorian Class learn to despise members of the Political Class and to view
the plight of the Economic Class with detachment or even contempt. Law
enforcement and military personnel will converse behind closed doors about
the most horrific injustices and brutalities with cavalier amusement. While
perhaps natural, their training for violence and teamwork is a fundamental
cause for why members of the Praetorian Class abandon their roots and in time
come to view their peers “back on the farm” with contempt.
Likewise, the steady displays of the craven and treacherous character of the
Political Class causes the Praetorian Class to privately disavow emotional
allegiance to their masters, usually early in their service.
Naturally, as the members of the Praetorian Class
socially distance themselves from both their origins and their masters, even
though they are paid to do their bidding, a new group identity among them
emerges. Adoption of this group identity, forged by the training,
indoctrination and work, defines membership in the Praetorian Class. Some of
the characteristics of this identity include:
- Viewing everything and everyone according to a
perceived threat posture. The members’ thought processes, beliefs and actions center on
viewing the world through a paradigm of a graduated conflict spectrum
and how to posture themselves accordingly. Even in the most mundane
settings, their conversations tend to be awkward if not centered on
their martial duties.
- Tight internal socialization. Because they view life through
a martial paradigm, members tend to socialize almost exclusively amongst
themselves. Immediate family members are expected to do the same, which
naturally occurs anyway as they can share experiences that external
relationships simply are unable to address.
- Loyalty is the highest honor. Whether referred to as the blue
wall of silence or the brotherhood in arms, even the most egregious
transgressions are buried. If the misdeeds are internal, meaning member
versus member, the justice is handled internally. On the other hand,
external missteps are typically swept under the rug and significant
chicane is experienced by outsiders who seek to learn the truth.
In a relatively free and peaceful society, members of
the communities that form the Praetorian Class lead a discrete existence.
Members of the military commute to and from their place of work and are
largely invisible to both the Political and Economic Class, certainly in
communities that are not “Praetorian” communities. Attendance at
cultural events in uniform is frowned upon, if not explicitly forbidden.
During these times, members of the military and law enforcement are expected
to live and operate outside the perception of other members of society, their
purpose and function regarded with a sense of detachment and perhaps even
subtle curiosity.
As the Political Class increasingly calls upon the
Praetorian Class to ensure their order, however, their martial nature becomes
more visible in the fabric of day-to-day life. This serves several purposes.
For one, it allows the Political Class to demonstrate its willingness to use
unlimited force to achieve its objectives, something that was always the case
but is now made publicly visible. Rationalizing the increased public profile,
a stream of honorifics is bestowed upon the Praetorian Class so that they may
be presented as defenders of the Economic Class. This is accomplished through
the time-tested use of pageantry, pomp and circumstance.
Over time, additional perquisites are bestowed upon the
Praetorian Class including preferential treatment in both private and public
facilities. Preferred air travel accommodations for uniformed personnel,
including dedicated lines at TSA checkpoints and preferential boarding, have
recently emerged as cultural standards that further distance the Praetorian
Class from the masses.
Another clear change is the physical appearance of
members of the Praetorian Class. The uniforms transition from relatively
inconspicuous attire to “battle uniforms” such are those now
standard issue to both the military and law
enforcement personnel. These optics reinforce the
position of the Praetorian Class as maintainers of public order, convey a
message of physical dominance and establish chronic low-level fear among the
masses. Sometimes referred to as the militarization of the police force, this
characterization traditionally refers to the increasing firepower in even municipal
police departments. Frequently lost in this observation, however, is the
psychological impact that such a heavily armed police presence has on the
“civilian” population – specifically that it further
separates the Praetorian Class from the Economic Class.
As the influence of the Praetorian Class grows, so do
the resources it consumes. This is manifested in the form of continuous
“equipment” upgrades, training budgets and costly
“interagency collaboration” in addition to the usual staff
augmentation. This, of course, has the ancillary benefit of directing
resources to equipment and service providers that are favored by the
Political Class and in some cases may in fact be the primary purpose.
Perhaps less obvious is the need to constantly keep the
Praetorian Class on the march. A bored Praetorian is a dangerous creature
that will start looking for things to do. In order to keep the Praetorian
Class engaged, they must be fed a continuous source of adversaries that they
in turn actively engage. In “peace time,” actual engagement is
replaced by training and rehearsing the defeat of the adversaries.
While the Praetorian Class emerges as its own entity,
with allegiance only to the members' peers, the most senior of the
Praetorians are eventually invited to join the Political Class. Prior to that
occurring, they are vetted for suitability, after which they become
“made men.” Consider the long list of senior military officers
and police chiefs that joined the ranks of the political elite. It is a sight
to behold, their new-found support of the Political Class, a class they had
silently held in contempt until their recent assumption. Metropolitan police
chiefs, district attorneys and joint chiefs of staff are selected for
political compatibility, not conviction of character.
How Does It Play Out?
History does not keep a flattering record of societies
that allowed the Praetorian Class to rise. The Roman Empire’s decline
from splendor to squalor extended for two centuries whereas the Nazi Third
Reich collapsed in less than two decades. The continuous drain on productive
resources, continuous warfare against new foes, abrogation of human rights
and liberties and a pervasive culture of fear inevitably send the society
into a tail spin. Some societies are able to observe the retreat of the
Praetorian Class, but it is usually a function of economic necessity and
often after a great price has been paid by the general population.
Unfortunately, as the tragedy unfolds, the Economic Class
often tries to ride out the calamity. This is understandable, since people
have a limited capacity to internalize long-term trends. In fact, because
people adjust to new circumstances relatively quickly, it is almost
impossible for them to compare the condition of life in the present versus
the past. The common vernacular for this concept is “the new
normal”, which upon the slightest reflection represents an obvious
paradox, since the word normal implies a historically stable trend.
The Third Reich as a Textbook Example
History books are filled with examples of societies
that have seen the rise of the Praetorian Class, followed by their own
subsequent collapse, ranging from the Roman Empire to the Soviet Union. Of
all the examples, however, none seems more instructive than the rise and fall
of the Nazi Third Reich in Germany.
Over a period of two decades, starting with the
collapse of the Weimar Republic and the end of World War II, Germany saw the
rise of a charismatic demagogue, the rise of police and paramilitary forces,
the development of a military-industrial complex, the assumption of industry
by the State, the demonization and persecution of scapegoats finally
resulting in widespread warfare and societal ruin. Because the timeline is
relatively compressed compared to other historical examples, spanning a
single generation, the Third Reich serves as an excellent example of the
broader consequences a society experiences when we observe the rise of the
Praetorian Class. Furthermore, by virtue of its recent occurrence, many
cultural and technological parallels serve as clear milestones.
Call to Action for the Economic Class
In order to evade the inexorable path to ruin, two
critical actions must be taken. First, it is imperative to understand historically
how events play out, identifying key milestones along the process. Some
milestones may include the level of military spending, such as the $700
billion that the United States spends annually on defense. Consider the
escalating threat propaganda. Leading up to the war with Iraq in 2003, a
common justification heard was “We gotta
fight them there, so we don’t have to fight them here.”
Apparently that strategy didn’t work, since the 2012 National Defense
Authorization Act declared the United States part of the global battlefield.
Is it the increasing monitoring and control exerted over the media, including
the subpoena and detention of free-speech activists? Or perhaps it is the
tortuous argument that the private minting of silver coins bearing no resemblance
to US legal tender currency represents domestic terrorism.
As the saying goes, “History does not repeat, but
it does rhyme”, which is to say there are events that have played out
universally in the past and are likely to do so again. An implied task that
emerges is the need to be an avid student of history. Usurpations of power
observed today have historical precedents in some form or another and
therefore serve in some instances as predictable milestones.
Second, identify the milestone that defines the
“point of no return,” at which point taking no action is likely
to have very adverse consequences. This is a very difficult task emotionally
as it usually requires taking drastic action before circumstances clearly
warrant it. It may involve winding down business and social commitments while
conditions on the surface still seem fine. This, of course, represents a
personal balancing act. While there is merit in the saying that it is better
to be a month early than a minute late, there is a practical limit to the
value of that axiom. Predicting a financial collapse twenty years early, and
making adjustments accordingly, results in significant opportunities lost,
both personally and professionally.
In Summary
The emergence and rise of the Praetorian Class is a
common observation in societies that have transitioned from market-based
meritocracies to societies governed by coercive syndicates formed by the
Political Class. The Praetorian Class is formed and grown to defend the
Political Class and in time becomes the dragon that rules its master. It
represents a highly disturbing trend because it foretells the decline, not
the advance, of a society. In some instances, the decline is peaceful,
clearing the path for an improved future. Unfortunately, in many instances
that is not the case. The Political Class leverages the full force of the
Praetorian Class representing significant loss in wealth, personal freedom
and, in many cases, human life. For this reason, it is critical that
productive members of society take steps to protect themselves.
Pete Kofod is the founder and
president of Datasages (www.datasages.com),
a technology services firm that offers cloud computing and strategic technology
services to various private organizations. Before entering the technology
sector, Pete served with the US Military, both in the United States and
abroad, where he forged many close friendships that still thrive today.
Pete is a property owner at La Estancia de Cafayate
in Argentina and enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including tennis,
skydiving and hiking. His most recent adventure is pursuing his private
pilot's license. Pete is married and homeschools his two children.
Pete can be reached at contact@datasages.com.
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