THE GOLDEN AGE OF INFORMATION or "WE'RE JUST A FEW YEARS BEHIND SCHEDULE MR. ORWELL"
by Andrew Lloyd

Are the meek inheriting the Earth? No, not yet but the leadership may be changing for the better. While the new national Elite are still predominantly well-born white males with a strong belief in the current capitalistic system they differ in two important ways: Education and Individuality. The road to the top may still be "dog eat dog" but the weapon wielded by the would be leaders is not money, it is information. The arena involved is not primarily national, it is global. Conformity and belonging are slowly giving way to diversity and individuality.

The Industrial Revolution provided America with its first group of Power Elite. These individuals started and owned the companies that built the American Infrastructure, once the infrastructure was in place the need arose to improve upon it, speed it up, smooth out the rough edges and, now, computerize it, The individuals capable of doing this fine tuning of society are no longer the well to do, go get 'em individuals. The heirs to our society and its problems are the New Elite or "Technocrats."

My thesis is as follows: The New Elite will eventually assume the positions of power within the established institutions, These institutions may very well go through initial changes to modernize and restructure the control of power, The restructuring of power will likely trend toward a more centralized or governmental control rather a corporate control, This change, however, would be of such a nature as to make it difficult to assess its merits.

In the following paragraphs I will try to examine the factors that lead to the development of the New Elite. Through this examination I hope to shed some light upon the possible future in America under the New Elite. one of the largest contributors to the emergence of the New Elite is the widespread availability to higher education. The G,I, Bill, Pell Grants,, Minority Scholarships and readily available Federally guaranteed student loans all provide individuals with the opportunity to educate themselves. Many of these individuals would not have been able to do this without the help of these programs, The established Elite has, in accordance with their moderately liberal social concerns and attitudes, provided these opportunities, In the beginning this opportunity for education was to the benefit of the Elite, These youftg educated individuals gave back to the Elite what was originally given to them. The young "Technocrats" were employed and controlled by the Elite. Things are just now changing and a shift in power is occuring. One change that has occurred due to the availability of a college education is what is called degree inflation. When once you could work your way up in the business/political world with a Bachelor's Degree now one needs extensive graduate studies and in many cases Doctoral Degrees to advance, The complexity of our industries (medical, military, telecommunications, aerospace and computer) has lead to a society that is very specialized and compartmentalized. An individual who possesses expert knowledge in these areas now wields extreme power. Knowledgeable individuals were controlled and subordinated in the past by the Church and those with money and traditional power, The proliferation of highly educated individuals, and in general, the widespread attendance to higher education of some sort among much of America has lead to a questioning of conventional religious and social norms. We have learned so much about our individual make-up through the study of psychology and biology that we are now able to discard age old myths and misconceptions about human nature and existence. This knowledge, along with its new born skepticism has eroded the power of the Western Church and the norms and that were taught through it. This can be evidenced by the fact that the new "Technocrats" are far more tolerant to sexual, social and ethnic diversity.

The 'highly compartmentalized nature of educationmorals , the questioning of conventional norms and the lack of controlling forces has lead to a radically individualistic group of New Elites. While the New Elites may still fit the mold of the old Elites they are definitely not joiners or followers. This individuality may prove to be problematic for the New Elite in their climb to power. This may still be the problem today but in the future it will no longer be possible for the established Elite to hold their power from these highly educatedthan "Technocrats" that they icreated' to improve their own institutions. The day will soon come when the established Elite wont even understand the complexities of their own industry. The functioning, and subsequently, the power will change hands and belong to the "Technocrats. " Just like Dr. Frankenstein, the established Elite really had no idea what they were creating' when they paved the road for the "Technocrats."

So, are the New Elite to be seen as an improvement for society, monsters, or something in between. While it seems likely that the "Technocrats" will assume power at some point in the near future it does not follow from this that highly educated, more tolerant individuals will improve life for the masses, The power that will be wielded by the "Technocrats" is of a radically different type. The established Elite exercise their power overtly via money and clearly defined institutional roles. The "Technocrats" wield information as their weapon. The control of information through the computer industry, telecommunications and American Universities can be used in one of two ways. The "Technocrats" can either attempt to improve the standard of living for the masses through education and awareness or they can control information in such a way as to mold the consciousnesses of American peoples to maintain their power over the masses, In conclusion I would just like to note that power control of any kind can be misused. The control of information is the most powerful force over the masses. The information society is on the horizon.