Is meritocracy without merit?

I’d prefer not to live in a meritocratic order, because meritocratic ends in -cratic; I don’t really need any other reason. Certainly I consider meritocracy a lesser evil than nepotism. In practice, though, systems said to be designed as meritocratic as often as not amount to nepotism-washing. I’m very cynical about the prospects for meritocracy as an antidote for nepotism. Meritocracy in practice is too often something like: we have scholarship funds for people of modest means (or better yet, from deep poverty), but it takes two legacy admits to pay for each one.

It’s like in the ancient TV show “LA Law,” some young associate got into law because of its potential to help people, but are alarmed about the amount of billable business they have to drum up to be afforded the privilege of a little pro bono work. Whatever pro-social things are instituted are set up as negative sum games; the house always wins.