I do think there have been some internal struggles in the Valley, though I agree that the idealists have never really been in charge of the companies.
A simplified factional map might involve the "techies", the "suits", and the "apolitical pragmatists", with various shifting alliances between them. The early internet, for example, seems to have been largely dominated by ideologically pro-openness techies, working in a period where their bosses didn't interfere much. It's interesting to read Jon Postel's public emails, for example, and imagine if anyone in a similar position could fulfill his role with the same integrity today.
