[WalterBright]

> do you actually buy into the myth that billionaires are billionaires because of merit?

Yes.

For example, I've missed at least 4 opportunities to become a billionaire, because I was too stupid to see the obvious in front of my face.

I am the son of a mid-level Air Force officer, and attended public schools. After he passed I sorted through his tax records, and discovered that I made more money my first job out of college than he was making at the time at the end of his career.