23. Wretchard:

The rumblings are being heard at the top levels of Metropolis. The problem for the elite is that they don’t have many moves left. What’s going to drive the crisis from this point on are the desperate contortions of the elite as they struggle to adapt. It’s not impossible. Elites adapt under pressure.

The one thing that I haven’t seen said yet, although 62. Subotai Bahadur comes close is that the elites live in an insular society that, for now, protects them, not only from the harsh realities that everyone else is dealing with, but also the consequences of their decisions. This is why people like Al Gore can fly around the world in his private jet, telling people that we need to change our lifestyles to save the planet, and then relax is in mansion that uses more electricity than a neighborhood block of middle/working class homes. Or, why, as Wretchard mentions in a previous article, the elites in Britain open up the flood gates of immigration in an effort to dilute the native population’s influence. Further, these decisions could benefit the elites, at least in the short term, by permanently segregating the haves (them) from the have nots (us). I have no doubt that the elites will change and adapt if they face an impending crisis, the question is once that crisis breaks through their barriers, will it be too late to change?