4 ms·
Absolutely a lie, because it's predicated on the false belief that we all start from the same point. Most of the accrual of wealth in the 'meritocratic' system
by analognoise 7y ago
Absolutely a lie, because it's predicated on the false belief that we all start from the same point.
Most of the accrual of wealth in the 'meritocratic' system also goes to the inheritance class - in your example, see a shitty sword and think you can do better? Get a world-renowned swordsmithing coach, have the finances to work at it all day for however long it takes, import the best materials, buy the best workshop, then reap the rewards - all while talking about "your hard work and dedication" and claim everyone else could do it too.
It's total, and utter, bullshit.
- tomp 7y agoI think you're conflating a few things. All meritocracy is, is saying "he gets the job because he's the best" as opposed to "he gets the job because he's my/the king's son". Why someone is the best, is a completely different question. Talent, effort, genetics & IQ, education, nutrition (possibly one of the biggest contributors to the rise of IQ in the 20th century), ... Now, I think it's prudent, from the perspective of society and/or individual companies, to not just consider who is the best right now but also who has the most potential (to be the best in the future), because extreme innate talent seems to be widely distributed and found in unexpected places (e.g. Ramanujan), so societies that fail to identify and develop that talent are losing out... But then, this idea is orthogonal to meritocracy (e.g. already the Habsburg empire recognized the value of public schooling and literacy of the general population).