Emissaries

Nietzsche tells a story about an Emissary and his Master. Once there was a wise ruler whose lands prospered and grew to a point where he (this was, remember, a while ago) had to appoint emissaries to assist him. One of the emissaries became so powerful that he was able to usurp the master and take power, and as a result, the land fell into ruin.

At what point, I wonder, did business usurp wise rule? For me, there are several candidates, and the finger of suspicion points towards the "Washington Consensus" and subsequent deregulation in the West. 

During that time, power moved inexorably towards business, with the resulting concentration of influence into just a few hands, none of whom have any accountability to the countries that host them. 

I'm not into conspiracy theories. I think this was largely unforeseen consequences due to politicians' short-term and self-seeking interests who believed they could control the forces they were unleashing—a precursor to the same attitudes giving us c…