Gus > The Meritocracy Myth.
A very interesting resume of a very interesting book. Of course, what they say is perfectly true in that the playing field is anything but level for all the players and that the big game is actually more about keeping the playing field unlevel than in attempting to do well on the field as it is. It is only the "little" people, those who cannot see the game for what it is, or who are trapped in it, who are preoccupied with the fairness and unfairness of the game.
I certainly do recognise the built-in unfairness in the game but that doesn't bug me because there's nothing I can do about it. It's like being dealt a hand of cards. My argument is that the game should be played in terms of the desired outcome -- and that outcome should be real and attainable, and not simply political pie-in-the-sky or the preservation of the status quo. In other words, a civil servant should serve the people and not just parasitise them. He should actually have the ability to deliver what he is being paid to do. A doctor, for example, should be able to look after sick people -- and look after them well -- and not just serve a political agenda because of his colour.
BTW, the book agrees fully with my position in our debate:
>>The most obvious and widely recognized nonmerit barrier to achievement is discrimination. Discrimination not only suppresses merit; it is the antithesis of merit. Race and sex discrimination have been the most pervasive forms of discrimination in America. The good news is that such discrimination is declining. The bad news is that these forms of discrimination are down but not out. Besides ongoing discrimination, there are still inertial effects of past discrimination that create disadvantage in the present. The divisive debate over affirmative action in America highlights the continuing disagreements about the size and importance of these residual effects and how to best to address them. <<
What is different in present SAn context is it is the blacks who are now discriminating against whites -- something which one has been led to believe, by definition, is impossible and something which the blacks would vehemently deny. |
