tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8205333.post1057221413387293492..comments2023-10-16T11:28:03.544+00:00Comments on Anomaly UK: Meritocracy and other bad ideasAnomaly UKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04780148789321563441noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8205333.post-59495567525415039192012-09-26T14:33:43.544+00:002012-09-26T14:33:43.544+00:00"they have no connections to each other, and ..."they have no connections to each other, and are still competing and fighting each other at the highest level of government."<br /><br />Lol. You can't be serious. <br />Don't know about England but there's plenty loyalty among the upper classes in Southern Europe, South America, East Asia. <br /><br />It isn't pretty.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8205333.post-28294913843511065732012-09-20T12:54:47.492+00:002012-09-20T12:54:47.492+00:00Another way to look at it is as a sort of tiered r...Another way to look at it is as a sort of tiered response to the Peter Principle. If everyone starts out nominally at the bottom and works their way to the top in a purely meritocratic structure, then there are far too many steps. Everyone is going to be promoted past there point of incompetence except for a very few. And those few are going to be strongly selected for ability to claw their way to the top against all odds, and not just on raw ability.<br /><br />By having tiers and promoting within them, there's less people you need to claw your way over to get to the top. You might be more likely to end up with someone who has necessary talent and isn't almost by definition a ruthless climber. You'd also perhaps avoid the problem of sucking all the talent out of the provinces and concentrating it in the economic and political capitals.perfidyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14364011789707274954noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8205333.post-85759638331298782512012-09-20T12:02:20.563+00:002012-09-20T12:02:20.563+00:00I think it is also important to consider what thos...I think it is also important to consider what those in government actually must do. Obama is nominally the boss of millions of people. Such a position is impossible, in my opinion. If the state were much smaller in size, it would be much easier to handle.<br /><br />Also, foriegn relations become much simpler when the policy is disengagement. Obama effectively rules a world empire, his job would be much simpler if the US let foreign countries do whatever they wished.<br /><br />Taxation too; if you get rid of complex income taxes and just tax commodities like food and fuel, it becomes much easier to identify tax cheats.<br /><br />Simplifying government would allow the less bright to police things effectively.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09781810772483419472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8205333.post-3360671669795351622012-09-20T07:32:38.649+00:002012-09-20T07:32:38.649+00:00The other way of looking at this is that the demot...The other way of looking at this is that the demotist theory of government believes that good government consists of having the 'right' people in power; that the problem of government consists of finding the right people.<br /><br />The reactionary theory of government says that it is less important who is in government, compared to their incentives when they get there.sconzeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01908181786934308463noreply@blogger.com