Oligarchy

With apologies to Lewis Carol and his poem Jabberwocky from Through the Looking Glass, I offer:

Oligarchy

’Twas brillig, and the lobbyists1

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the bureaucrats2,
And the ideologues3 outgrabe.

“Beware the Oligarch4, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

1
A lobbyist is a person who tries to influence legislation on behalf of a special interest or a member of a lobby.
Lobbying (also Lobby) is the intention of influencing decisions made by legislators and officials in the government
by individuals, other legislators, constituents, or advocacy groups. Wikipedia
2
A bureaucrat is a member of a bureaucracy and can comprise the administration of any organization of any size,
though the term usually connotes someone within an institution of a government or corporation. Wikipedia
3
An often blindly partisan advocate or adherent of a particular ideology. Merriam-Webster
4
Oligarchy is a form of power structure in which power effectively rests with a small number of people. These
people (oligarchs) could be distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, corporate, or military control. Wikipedia
 2

Beware the Oligopolist5, and shun

The frumious Plutocrat6!”

He took his vorpal sword in hand:

Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And as in uffish thought he stood,

The Oligarch, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

“And hast thou slain the Oligarch?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
He chortled in his joy.

’Twas brillig, and the Plutocrats

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the theocrats7,
And corporatocrats8 outgrabe.

Here's the original version in case you've forgotten it:

Jabberwocky

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,

5
An oligopoly is a market form in which a market or industry is dominated by a small number of sellers
(oligopolists). The word is derived, by analogy with "monopoly. Because there are few sellers, each oligopolist is
likely to be aware of the actions of the others. The decisions of one firm influence, and are influenced by, the
decisions of other firms. Wikipedia
6
Plutocracy is rule by the wealthy, or power provided by wealth. The combination of both plutocracy and oligarchy
is called plutarchy. Wikipedia
7
Theocracy is a form of government in which a state is understood as governed by immediate divine guidance
especially a state ruled by clergy, or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. Wikipedia
8
Corporatocracy, in social theories that focus on conflicts and opposing interests within society, denotes a system
of government that serves the interest of, and may be run by, corporations and involves ties between government
and business; where corporations, conglomerates, and/or government entities with private components, control
the direction and governance of a country, including carrying out economic planning notwithstanding the 'free
market' label. Wikipedia

Paul Schumann, 512.632.6586, paschumann2009@gmail.com, http://insights-foresight.blogspot.com

 3

And the mome raths outgrabe.

“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!”

He took his vorpal sword in hand:

Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

“And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
He chortled in his joy.

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

From Wikipedia: "Jabberwocky" is a poem of nonsense verse written by Lewis Carroll, originally featured
as a part of his novel Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1872). The book tells of
Alice's travels within the back-to-front world through a looking glass.

While talking with the White King and White Queen (chess pieces), she finds a book written in a strange
language that she can't read. Understanding that she is traveling in an inverted world, she sees it is
mirror-writing. She finds a mirror and holds it up to a poem on one of the pages, to read out the
reflection of "Jabberwocky". She finds it as puzzling as the odd land she has walked into, which we later
discover is a dreamscape.

It is considered to be one of the greatest nonsense poems written in the English language. The playful,
whimsical poem became a source of nonsense words and neologisms such as "galumphing", "chortle",
and "Jabberwocky" itself.

I feel a great deal like Alice having stepped through a looking glass (mirror) and I'm now in a world I no
longer recognize.

Paul Schumann, 512.632.6586, paschumann2009@gmail.com, http://insights-foresight.blogspot.com