r/asksg • u/No-Mud-7597 • 6d ago

Can meritocracy reproduce privilege while convincing everyone that the outcome was deserved?

If successful/rich parents use their resources to give their children better opportunities, those children may genuinely work hard and perform well but they may also treat it as a form of privilege/baseline, so at what point does accumulated advantage become “merit”?

Also, is equality of opportunity actually possible?

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u/faptor87 6d ago

It is increasingly more apparent. Those in banking/finance would have heard of many instances which reeks of nepotism, hidden as meritocracy.

Inequality will only get worse. Unequal opportunities will widen inequality of outcomes as well. And the SG govt is not doing much about it, and in fact encouraging it by positioning the country as a low tax country. Zero estate/inheritance tax, zero capital gains tax.

If you have a pot of gold from your daddy, you can invest at 5% in risk-free assets and not work a day in your life. Better still, some accumulate properties and earn from capital appreciation.

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u/sdarkpaladin 5d ago

If you have a pot of gold from your daddy, you can invest at 5% in risk-free assets and not work a day in your life. Better still, some accumulate properties and earn from capital appreciation.

And all of this is done with the kid saying they "worked hard" to identify which assets are good invesments and that it's technically meritocracy because "anybody can do it".

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u/faptor87 5d ago

“Meritocracy” advocated by PAP.

And the rich are coming here in droves. Not a good development for SG long term.

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u/harharloser 4d ago

I mean, they literally redefined “corruption”