[paulpauper]

Maybe we need to come to terms with the fact that the <a http://greyenlightenment.com/the-meritocracy-we-dont-underst... meritocracy is one stratified by IQ, with some having the cognitive potential to produce more merit than others, and those smarter people will tend to rise to the top socially and economically, too. But the benefit is we get new technologies, job creation, and higher standards of living. That doesn't mean we need to do away with merit, but instead offer economic conditions for everyone to succeed within their cognitive potential. You can't raise society and the economy by chopping down the smartest, the most successful, which is I think what Paul Graham was getting at. Class warfare is analogous to <i>Animal Farm</i> where the uprising makes things worse.

[wavefunction]

We don't live in meritocracies.

[bobby_9x]

Uprisings always make things worse. Pretty much every 'revolutionary' in the history of the world has ushered in soul-crushing fascism, except the american revolution.

This is what makes Trump and Sanders so scary for America.

[ZenoArrow]

Violent uprisings make things worse, because even if they succeed they often leave behind a massive power vacuum, that some people are only too glad to try to fill.

However, peaceful uprisings have shown to be far less problematic. Think about the revolutionary movements led by Gandhi and MLK.

I see no evidence that a Sanders presidency (or a Trump presidency, for that matter) would lead to a violent uprising, so I'd suggest it's fine to calm down a bit, you're unlikely to see America fall apart (or at least, you're unlikely to see it fall apart because of a new president).

[cnfjejfnfjsjd]

I anticipate that you had a comfortable childhood, yes?

Not that it would affect your superior meritocratic status or anything...