Hereditary meritocracy


Think Ravi Menon explained this really well here, zooming into the key issue of inequality

Inequality in outcomes is to be expected and is fair, what is unfair is inequality of opportunity as well as inherited outcomes.

Meritocracy in it's purest form is not the problem - it is hereditary meritocracy. Hereditary meritocracy is an oxymoron, it is not meritocracy and actually runs counter to it, but it unfortunately exists as a natural side effect. It is rather closer related to aristocracy, giving rise to an elite class that is perpetuated across generations.

Relating to the point about wealth: I would say even within the same generation the gap can widen. Investment is something that those with spare cash can use to accumulate more of it, but those who are struggling to get by day by day do not have any spare to use for further accumulation. Hence smaller initial differences get amplified over time in a snowball effect.

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