4. Why would it be a mistake, as the textbook notes, to equate wealth with power?
Power is not the unlimited capacity for doing things. It is more of the ability to make
others do what you want them to do. As a matter of fact, money can buy you power and
thus you can pay others to help you achieve your goals. Money doesn't just give you
power in political terms but in a symbolical way as well. It can be used as a figure of
success and respect for a lot of people, giving you a platform with which others can
applaud you for your achievements or criticize you for it. An example would
be lobbyists who are usually hired by special interest groups to persuade the legislators in
voting for legislation that they favor. "Of the top twenty organizations in spending to
influence legislation, there is only one quasi-liberal group, the AARP" (Eitzen, Zinn, and
Smith P.38). However, the rest of the organizations only speak for the top 1% of the
income distribution. The purpose of a lobbyist is to not ensure the national interest is
served but rather the interest of how the powerful can get their way.