Richardw, I think you have it in a nutshell. The "trickle-down theory" is only so much BS. A local restaurant here in Charlotte once had a water-sculpture that was labeled "Reagan's Trickle-down Policy". The top cups were over-flowing with water, but with each descending cup the flow became less and less. The penultimate one got the occasional drop. The bottom one got none.
Guilds were traditionally the rich man's enforcement agencies.
Looks like the tradition still goes on.