You're not competing against the best of the best for every single job. Only 1% of people are in the 1%, and they'll largely be employed in high-wage, high-visi

You're not competing against the best of the best for every single job. Only 1% of people are in the 1%, and they'll largely be employed in high-wage, high-visibility positions at high-budget employers. In an idealized global market you'd be competing against other people for jobs with desirability commensurate with your own ability. It's true that if in an absolute sense you're in the bottom rung of the labor pool then a global market will be more likely to sort you into a job with low desirability. I sympathize; I'm from Cincinnati, and if my employer were in the Bay Area (and paying Bay Area wages) it would have been harder for me to get a job there. But I'm not that sympathetic, because a global market means someone with a better fit but no local options can find a job. It means that if the market for data scientists in Cincinnati dries up I still have a chance.