Oligarchy is a form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may be distinguished by nobility, education or corporate, political, or military control; such states are controlled by families who pass their influence from one generation to the next, but inheritance is not a necessary condition of oligarchy. Throughout history, oligarchies have been tyrannical, relying on public obedience or oppression to exist. Aristotle pioneered the use of the term as meaning rule by the rich, for which another term used today is plutocracy. In the early 20th century Robert Michels developed the theory that democracies, as all large organizations, have a tendency to turn into oligarchies. In his "Iron law of oligarchy" he suggests that the necessary division of labor in large organizations leads to the establishment of a ruling class concerned with protecting their own power; this was recognized by the Athenians in the fourth century BCE: after the restoration of democracy from oligarchical coups, they used the drawing of lots for selecting government officers to counteract that tendency toward oligarchy in government.

They drew lots from large groups of adult volunteers to pick civil servants performing judicial and administrative functions. They used lots for posts, such as judges and jurors in the political courts, which had the power to overrule the Assembly; the exclusive consolidation of power by a dominant religious or ethnic minority has been described as a form of oligarchy. Examples of this system include South Africa under apartheid, Liberia under Americo-Liberians, the Sultanate of Zanzibar, Rhodesia, where the installation of oligarchic rule by the descendants of foreign settlers was regarded as a legacy of various forms of colonialism; the modern United States has been described as an oligarchy because economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on U. S. government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent influence. A business group might be defined as an oligarch if it satisfies the following conditions: owners are the largest private owners in the country it possesses sufficient political power to promote its own interests owners control multiple businesses, which intensively coordinate their activities.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and privatization of the economy in December 1991 owned Russia-based multinational corporations, including producers of petroleum, natural gas, metal have, in the view of many analysts, led to the rise of Russian oligarchs. The Ukrainian oligarchs are a group of business oligarchs that appeared on the economic and political scene of Ukraine after its independence in 1991. Overall there are 35 oligarchic groups The Zimbabwean oligarchs are a group of liberation war veterans who form the Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front, a colonial liberation party; the philosophy of the Zimbabwean government is that Zimbabwe can only be governed by a leader who took part in the pre-independence war. The motto of ZANU-PF in Shona is "Zimbabwe yakauya neropa", meaning Zimbabwe was born from the blood of the sons and daughters who died fighting for its independence; the born free generation has no birthright to rule Zimbabwe. Some contemporary authors have characterized current conditions in the United States as oligarchic in nature.

Simon Johnson wrote that "the reemergence of an American financial oligarchy is quite recent", a structure which he delineated as being the "most advanced" in the world. Jeffrey A. Winters wrote that "oligarchy and democracy operate within a single system, American politics is a daily display of their interplay." The top 1% of the U. S. population by wealth in 2007 had a larger share of total income than at any time since 1928. In 2011, according to PolitiFact and others, the top 400 wealthiest Americans "have more wealth than half of all Americans combined."In 1998, Bob Herbert of The New York Times referred to modern American plutocrats as "The Donor Class" and defined the class, for the first time, as "a tiny group—just one-quarter of 1 percent of the population—and it is not representative of the rest of the nation. But its money buys plenty of access."French economist Thomas Piketty states in his 2013 book, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, that "the risk of a drift towards oligarchy is real and gives little reason for optimism about where the United States is headed."A study conducted by political scientists Martin Gilens of Princeton University and Benjamin Page of Northwestern University was released in April 2014, which stated that their "analyses suggest that majorities of the American public have little influence over the policies our government adopts."

The study analyzed nearly 1,800 policies enacted by the US government between 1981 and 2002 and compared them to the expressed preferences of the American public as opposed to wealthy Americans and large special interest groups. It found that wealthy individuals and organizations representing business interests have substantial political influence, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little to none; the study did concede that "Americans do enjoy many features central to democratic governance, such as regular elections, freedom of speech and association, a widespread franchise." Gilens and Page do not characterize the US as an "oligarchy" per se.

The Rhode was a British car made from 1921 to 1930. Mead and Deakin Ltd had started in business making motor cycle components, they made the "Canoelet" sidecar. In 1912 they made at least two cyclecars under the name of Medea with 1244cc Chapuis-Dornier engines but these did not go into series production. In 1921 they decided to return to car making and created a subsidiary company called the Rhode Motor Co with a factory at Blythswood Road, Birmingham; the name was taken from Cecil Rhodes. In 1926 it was claimed. In 1928 the company was taken over by Thomas McKenzie and H. B. Denley, in charge of sales. Production was moved to smaller premises at Birmingham. No engine making facilities existed and the last few cars had Meadows engines; the last cars were made in 1930 or 1931 but were still listed until 1935. The "9.5" was unusual in having a four-cylinder engine with overhead camshaft. With a capacity of 1087 cc and made in-house, drive was to the rear wheels through a three speed transmission and at first no differential.

The engine had no oil pump with lubrication relying on oil being picked up by the flywheel and being fed by a gallery to the valve gear. The conventional chassis had quarter elliptic springs all round. Braking was by either a single drum on the solid rear axle; the original coachwork was described as the "Occasional four" indicating that there was just room to squeeze in two rear seat passengers. The de-luxe "Norwood" tourer model was added in 1923. A Sports version was added in 1923 with a two-seater body with the spare wheel at the rear; the aluminium wings and bonnet were left unpainted. The engine was tuned with a high lift camshaft, special cylinder head and counterbalanced crankshaft. Options included a differential. A top speed of 65 mph and fuel consumption of 45–50 miles per gallon was claimed. About 1000 cars are thought to have been made. In 1923 the engine was enlarged to 1223 cc by increasing the cylinder bore from 62 to 66mm and the model name changed to the "10.8". A choice of coachwork with "light four seater", coupe and "enclosed four seater" versions were available joined by the "All-weather" in 1924.

The cheapest version took. The sports version now had an output of 38 bhp. In 1925 the Wrigley gearbox was replaced by one of their own manufacture with four speeds and the name changed to the "11/30". Four wheel brakes were made available; the engine changed from overhead cam to pushrod overhead valves in 1926 and the name reverted to the "10.8". 1500 "10.8"s, "11"s and "11/30"s are thought to have been made. The final model was the Hawk launched in 1928; the engine reverted to overhead cam and the chassis was lengthened. The only body seems to have been a four-door fabric saloon. Around 50 were made

John Stearns was an US physician. His father was a physician and he was educated at Yale College, followed by an internship in a doctor’s office on the countryside, he studied medicine at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia and in 1793 he settled as a physician in Waterford. Together with two friends, he founded a Society for combating empiricism and quackery, which in 1806 totalled 20 regional Societies who were united in 1807 in a Federal Society. Stearns was secretary and president of that Federal Society. From 1810 to 1813 he was sent to the State legislature in Albany. In 1813 he settled as a physician in New York City. Account of the Pulvis parturiens, a Remedy for Quickening Child-Birth. In: New York Medical Repository, Hexade II, Band V, S. 308–309 An essay on the bilious epidemic fever, prevailing in the state of New-York: to which are added, a letter from Dr. James Mann, hospital-surgeon. H. C. Southwick, Albany 1813 An address delivered before the Medical Society of the State of New-York, the members of the legislature: at the capitol in the city of Albany, the 2d. of February 1820, on the influence of the mind upon the body in the production and cure of diseases.

E. & E. Hosford, Albany 1820 Philosophy of mind, developing new sources of ideas, designating their distinctive classes, simplifying the faculties and operations of the whole mind. W. Osborne, New York 1840 An address, delivered on the occasion of assuming the chair as president, at the first regular meeting of the New York Academy of Medicine, February 3d, 1847. H. Ludwig, New York 1847