Social Stability and Uncertainty in the Age of A.I.

Social Stability and Uncertainty in the Age of A.I.

Donald Harvey Marks

Physician scientist and 3rd gen veteran

8 January 2026

Wealth inequality transforms functional democratic systems into elite-driven plutocratic structures by concentrating political power in a super-minority, eroding the responsiveness of institutions to the average citizen, and creating structural economic barriers that undermine societal stability. This transformation replaces a "level playing field" with a system where capital, rather than the voting majority, dictates public policy.

The Hijacking of Political Responsiveness

In a functional democracy, the masses determine their collective future; however, extreme wealth inequality enables a privileged minority to acquire "preponderant weight" in settling social questions.

• Domination by Funders: Peer-reviewed studies show that when the preferences of economic elites are controlled for, the views of the average citizen have a "minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact" on policy. Decisions are increasingly determined not by voters, but by "contributors of billions" who receive a return on their political investments.

• Institutional Codification: The 2010 Citizens United ruling is identified as a monumental step toward plutocracy by holding that companies are persons and money is speech, effectively removing restraints on elite influence.

• The Myth of Equality: By maintaining a narrative that society still offers a "level playing field," failures are individualized, obscuring the reality that the environment is "rigged" in favor of the affluent.

The Erosion of Societal Stability

As wealth concentrates, it triggers systemic instabilities that can lead to the total collapse of societies.

• Pathologies of Despair: Stagnant incomes for the bottom 50% have led to a "sea of despair" characterized by family dysfunction, addiction, and rising suicide rates.

• Crisis of Legitimacy: Public confidence in the U.S. Congress plummeted from 42% in 1973 to 11% in 2018 as citizens realized the system no longer functions according to the ideals of the Constitution.

• Boom and Bust Cycles: High wealth concentration increases the risk of financial crises through asset price bubbles. In models of societal dynamics, broad power-law wealth distributions eventually trigger social unrest and the destruction of wealth, leading to "bust" regimes.

• Radicalization: Feelings of relative deprivation—the gap between what one achieves and what one feels entitled to—can fuel collective anger and radicalization, as marginalized groups seek purpose through extremist ideologies.

Job Displacement and the AI "Intelligence Inversion"

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) threatens to deepen plutocratic structures by fundamentally disrupting the link between capital and labor.

• Intelligence Inversion: AI may trigger a phase where human cognitive labor becomes economically worthless, rendering traditional metrics like GDP obsolete.

• Digital Feudalism: Sources warn of a future "Digital Feudalism" where a few monopolies control superintelligent systems, while the rest of humanity becomes "dependent serfs" subsisting on stipends (UBI).

• Concentration of "Code": Wealth is increasingly concentrated among the "owners of code" who control the A,I. platforms, while human labor becomes less central to production (the post-labor economy), leading to stagnant wages and a "winner-takes-all" economy.

Unaffordability Generated by Inflation and Debt

Plutocratic structures are reinforced by financial mechanisms that burden the lower and middle classes while protecting the assets of the elite.

• "Soft Default" and Financial Repression: The government may quietly erase national debt by keeping interest rates below the rate of inflation, effectively paying back debt with currency that is worth less.

• The Cantillon Effect: New money injected into the economy benefits the asset-owning classes first, leading to asset inflation (stocks and real estate) that widens the wealth gap.

• Debt as a Barrier: High levels of student and consumer debt, combined with rent inflation that outpaces wage growth, make it mathematically impossible for younger generations to save or enter the "investor class".

Homelessness and Political Disenfranchisement

The culmination of these trends is a physical and political displacement of the most vulnerable citizens.

• The Affordability Gap: Home prices have doubled in the last decade, and nearly half of all U.S. renters are now "cost-burdened," spending over 30% of their income on housing.

• Structural Homelessness: Homelessness reached record highs in 2023 as a direct result of housing shortages and the expiration of COVID-era protections.

• Political Consequences of Housing Instability: Financial distress and housing instability, such as evictions, lead to substantial declines in voter turnout. Conversely, when financial distress is relieved (e.g., through mortgage refinancing), political participation increases, suggesting that the current economic structure actively suppresses the democratic voice of those it marginalizes.

To understand this transformation, one might use the metaphor of a gladiatorial arena: while the crowd expects a fair fight, the wealthy few have purchased the armor, the weapons, and the referees. The average citizens are left to fight for survival in the dust, while the elites watch from the boxes, deciding the rules of the next match to ensure their own champions never lose.

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Social Stability and uncertainty in the Age of A.I., by Donald Harvey Marks (this article)