A controversial belief about meritocracy
The Daily Drip
One of the hard parts of being a human is sometimes thinking we want something or understand something and then finding out that it's more complicated or that we actually don't want that thing.
Here's a fun thought:
Do you believe in meritocracy?
This is the idea that the world moves along based on how hard people work and how good they are at something. It also suggests that the people who succeed are those who worked the hardest or who had the most talent.
Of course, for me, I wish our world was this way. It's not. We have this thing called "opportunity" which just doesn't reach everyone--and it turns out that opportunity is a huge factor is "success."
But let's break this out into how we live our lives. I'd like to think that I strive to make the playing field of life more even so that the possibility of meritocracy is more possible. Making the playing field more even is the part that most people disagree about. I think most of us would like the world to be more of a meritocracy, but we disagree about the best way to get there.
Here's a controversial example:
I happen to like some evidence-based public service programs that I believe actually level the playing field. Some people don't like those programs because they feel that's not true. Some of my friends argue that giving handouts should be banned entirely.
My response is a little difficult to swallow, so stick with me.
Let's ban inheritance. If we don't like handouts and we believe that everyone should start from "00.00" then it's not really fair if someone inherits wealth from their parents. We shouldn't allow any parents to transfer any of their wealth to their children because hey, that's not a meritocracy where everyone starts from "00.00" is it?
Oof. People hate this. All of a sudden, the rules start to bend about what makes a meritocracy and where the lines of family and individuals overlap or intersect. All of a sudden, reason and rationality become more and more difficult to hold onto.
That's your emotional brain hijacking your critical thinking brain. You don't even know it's happening. You're just along for the ride. Just like the rest of us brain-owners.
The point of sharing this controversial example is to remind each of us to regulate our emotional brain by using empathy (the mental effort of taking someone else's perspective) as our weapon of choice. The more we can wield empathy to understand other viewpoints, the less divisive we will be.
As we approach election day in the US, listening to understand each other (instead of listening to beat each others' arguments) is going to keep us strong.
Have a beautiful Saturday.