Wisconsin Governor Walker, C. Wright Mills and a baseball bat

The details of the conversation between the prank-caller who pretended to be the billionaire David Koch and Gov. Walker of Wisconsin would come as a surprise only to those who believe in the pluralist model of politics of Robert Dahl variety so trenchantly criticized by C. Wright Mills. In his early writings, Dahl argued that despite the presence of elites and powerful interest groups, at the end of the day, it all balances out for the common good. C. Wright Mills took issue with this particular characterization of politics, most famously in his _The Power Elite_ (1956) and other essays. President Dwight Eisenhower's warning about a "military-industrial complex" that constituted one of the sources of Mills' sources, was predictably dismissed by the usual suspects as, surprise, surprise, a paranoid "conspiracy theorist".

Technically, "conspiracy theories" seek to explain every movement, from inception to outcomes as the result of conspiracies. One need not be a card-carrying "conspiracy theorist" to recognize that powerful interest groups do indeed conspire, even though the precise outcomes of their strategic machinations are more often than not, beyond their control. One need not be the proverbial rocket-scientists to make sense of the goings on in Wisconsin as a continuation of actualizing the non-attainable neo-liberal utopia of a dog-eat-dog, winner-take all, robber-baron, so-called free market capitalism. It is the attempt, at all costs, to actualize the "there is no such thing as society, only individuals and their families" claim of Margaret Thatcher and her ideological bedfellows.

The prank-call, although not quite essential for cutting through the ideological tea brewed by the tea party folks, does help - despite the spin that for sure will be imparted by the likes of Glenn Beck and his ilk.

Excerpts from the conversation between Gov. Walker and Fake Koch: (from the Washington Post: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/02/governor_walkers_office_confir.html)

"Beautiful, beautiful," the Koch impersonator replies. "You gotta crush that union."

"Then the fake Koch says this: "Bring a baseball bat. That's what I'd do."

Walker doesn't bat an eye, and responds: "I have one in my office, you'd be happy with that. I've got a slugger with my name on it."

FAKE KOCH: What we were thinking about the crowds was, planting some troublemakers.

WALKER: We thought about that. My only gut reaction to that would be, right now, the lawmakers I talk to have just completely had it with them. The public is not really fond of this.The teachers union did some polling and focus groups...

FAKE KOCH: Well, I'll tell ya what, Scott. Once you crush these bastards, I'll fly ya out to Cali and really show you a good time.

WALKER: Alright. That would be outstanding. Thanks for all the support and helping us move the cause forward."

And, Rachel Maddow on Gov. Walker here on: youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7e4bj5rrd8

Pluralism in politics? To be fair to Robert Dahl, the promoter of the pluralist model, he tempered with optimism about fair-play by penning _How Democratic is the American Constitution?_ (2002)