An introduction to the idea of Meritocracy and its validity often raises the question, “How will the ‘best’ rise to the top?” Answers lead to more questions: “How will we implement this version of Meritocracy in a reasonable way? What are the steps needed to bring this plan to fruition?” From the answers to these questions we can presume that, in principle at least, Meritocratic Democracy has no real detractors. It is how, and not what or why, that has elicited doubt from people interested in Meritocratic Democracy.
The laws themselves will be tried and tested meritocratically. Much as by the scientific method, each and every facet will reflect the progression and principles of Meritocracy. The basics of Meritocracy assert that the State looks out for the interests of its citizens instead of placing money at the top of its agenda. It’s people over money. People over power. Actually, it’s people power. Every rule stems from that simple premise. Meritocracy is foundationally altruistic and rational. It prevents unfair advantages, and streghtens every one of its citizens. Unlike capitalistic democracy, which can be manipulated into a plutocracy by those in control of the capital, Meritocracy is about producing people rich in knowledge, culture, imagination, and mental, psychological and economical stability.
Implementing Meritocracy is actually very simple. What is needed first is to remove those in power and start from the ground up. This means bankers and politicians have to go. To stablize the free markets, we should not be focused on free-floating entities that in reality consist of cartels rigging the system. We should be focused on overseeing the nation’s expenses and using money to fund our needs and overall well being.
In a Meritocratic Democracy there are no more rich elites dictating the way society is run. Currently money makes the world go round; those with money actively shape how our world is run, and their number one agenda is to make more money. But where do they get that money? The poor of course. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. Is that a reasonable way to live? To define the human race by inked paper and plastic rectangles with bar codes on them? Not in a Meritocracy. The people decide what they need, and the people will deliver. And in order to successfully run a Meritocracy the people must be continually educated and looked out for. It is a change in the dynamics of how we think and how we operate. We are choosing to see people as individuals with emotions, desires, ideas, and dreams, and not as consumers or workers.
The laws in place now are designed to control. One-size-fits-all: that’s about the size of our social systems. The vote of an experienced and well accomplished economist counts the same as that of an 18-year-old who may still be in school; and thanks to the education system, which is based on grades, and not actual learning, the 18-year-old may have only a 7th grade understanding of civics. This is the mold for politics, banking, education, and health. It’s all the same game: generate profit and elicit compliance. It’s the old “do what I say or else” routine. “Ours is the only way, so anyone who opposes us is a criminal, a terrorist.” It’s no different from the Inquisition, which demanded that people fall into line and “accept our beliefs or die” — except that religious extremism has turned into profit extremism. The inquisitors are the greedy bankers, and the punishment is homelessness. Instead of being burned at the stake, people are being treated as outcasts that every class of society looks down upon, and simply forgets.
Meritocratic Democracy really shines, and one beacon is that leaders will be elected by colleagues in the same field, who have undergone testing requirements similar to those of the candidates. So, how do we choose the best? The answer is simple. We don’t. People must prove themselves. They must show, through their projects, articles, deductive reasoning, artistic abilities, or the amount they produce in their particular field, in order to be elected into higher positions. The work must come first; then the judging commences. Due to Meritocracy’s promotion of improvement and innovation, it won’t fall victim to the old ways of stasis and tradition that humans, evolving organisms, always outgrow. Meritocratic Democracy is the future. It is a self-defining, self-improving, and self-progressing system. It pays for itself. It is a good that goes viral. With every setback, it will learn, adapt, and then apply each problem’s synthesis of its thesis and antithesis. And when it’s here, it’s to stay: Meritocracy is not a question of what or why — or even any longer one of how. It’s a question of when.
