The tyranny of merit | Michael Sandel 

The most kind hearted intellectual I have come across. I am not even a legal professional but I watched all his Harvard lecture series.

I have a brother who is literally a rocket scientist. He has a PH.D. from Princeton. My father owned a small sawmill. My brother has nothing but contempt for manual labor and today still espouses the idea that the "smart people" (him) should decide how things should be done and the less educated should sit down and shut up, even though our father became quite wealthy and enjoyed physical labor (making things) his whole life. I started stacking lumber and driving a forklift when I was 14 years old. I still work in the lumber business as an inspector (even though I have my B.A. in Sociology), which is a physically intensive form of work for a 62 year old. My brother believes I am dirt poor (I am not) and incapable of any other work even though my I.Q. tested close to his in school and I ranked in the top 10% nationally in my class. He is convinced he is socially, morally, and intellectually superior to his family. I respect anyone on my crew who do the work that is required of them. It is hard work and I don't try to make it worse for them by demanding the dangerous or impossible.

This reminds me of Warren Buffett talking about how he was very lucky to be born at just the right time, in just the right place, and as a man with right skin colour, so that his skills and interests happened just what was right to make him fabulously wealthy and successful, and that if he lived thousands of years ago, he would've probably been eaten by a lion.

This is one of the most fantastic TED talks I have seen in a long time. Dignity of work is at the center of each of our ego's and the suggestion that those who don't go to college are ill-fated to work at McDonalds is part of such considerable divison. The sentiment that working at McDonalds is inherently a bad thing strips those who work there of their dignity and consequently their purpose. Without a feeling of purpose and belonging, people cannot be cohesive and communities begin to fray. Not everyone can be doctors, engineers, and laywers. There is dignity in every job and we need to acknowledge and thank those who do the required work that helps us all.

Dignity of Labour. Important to keep in mind.

I watch your video 12 years ago, that time are looking very young, now search you here. I feel how time flies

Awesome clip. I'm having a moment of utter realisation. How lucky I am that I can just comfortably sit down on the chair and listen to his wise words

Hearing this is like a fresh breeze flowing through my anxious heart

professor Sandel has profoundly influenced me- the harvard lectures and the way the way he perceives things has left me in awe. massive respect for him. May he live a long, healthy life. it hurts to see him grow old :(

this guy is very sharp! he says all of this without looking at notes, amazing

My all time favourite. I wanna meet him and take a bow.

Professor Sandel is one of the most astute academics of our time...Although I have not met him...he has become a very significant mentor in my life...and has allowed me to experience Harvard, through his lecture series. Thank you, Sir.

I disagree with 90% of what this man says and still respect him deeply. Thank you mister Sandel, it is important that we talk about this.

I am a business student but this gentlemen made me fall in love with political philosophy. It's hard to see him grow old.

I hope this man never dies lol; it's hard to see him getting old.

Been watching old videos of Prof.Sandel earlier and wished there is a new one. My thoughts came true! Thanks Ted!

Indeed! Humanity rules.There is nothing wrong with earning a bachelor's, masters or doctorate and the like. "Never look down on anybody unless you are helping them up." by Jesse Jackson. We live borrowed lives.

Incredibly moving and healing. The talk on Sam Harris’ podcast also excellent.

If there is no free will, this is all quite understandable

Every Sandel video is a pearl of wisdom. I wish he made more

The background sounds of the birds embellishes everything

That was a great video. I just started reading “The Meritocracy Trap”, and this video sums it up very well.

So if you are successful you are lucky, if you are unsuccessful you'r unlucky - that's an extreme point of view, to say the least.

Bless you, Sir! So glad DAVOS listened to you! What a surprise that was!!

I admire even looking at him. So thoughtful sincere and frank

A new ted every other day is good. Equality is important, but isnt success a mix, that is always there. Its always a mix of capability, chance and whether you actually try...

I re-watch this video several times a year. It's a great summary of his excellent book.

I listened to this from start to finish, and my god, it was like a punch in the face. Total wake up call.

I love this talk. Thank you so much for talking about this topic.

I really love who he quotes and bringing it full circle.

Bravo three times over! I watched this TED talks 5 times and I think I may watch it again and again! What he said is the truth at all!

The change that is needed is the change in attitude of the people and nothing to do with meritocracy.

I was quite misled by the applause at the beginning thinking it was a talk given to a crowd. Starting to miss those

Circumstances at birth certainly play a roll, but I also have found that for myself, and for most people who do not inherit their wealth, the words of Samuel Goldwyn ring true: "The harder I work, the luckier I get."

Extremely thanks for compelling me to thinks the other aspects for life.

OMG! I can't believe this amazing professor is still alive after watching his "Justice: What's the Right Thing To Do" Harvard lecture series years ago, really! I am ever so gladful that we still have him alive~

I barely watch TED. But this is really recommendable. I could see more than 95% of similarity between Sandell's idea and mine and this very close similarity makes me feel sure and proud of myself.

I think it is v dangerous to blame "merit" in general. We do not want to encourage lack of merit, but instead we need to re-educate ourselves about what merit really is.

What a beautiful thought!

The dog at the front of the pack forgets that he's not the only one pulling a sled.

This is extremely important right now.

What a man and what a brilliant ethical conscience that should be taught in schools/colleges world-wide over. What is most remarkable about Sandel is that he "subscribes to a certain version of communitarianism (although he is uncomfortable with the label), and in this vein he is perhaps best known for his critique of John Rawls's A Theory of Justice. Rawls's argument depends on the assumption of the veil of ignorance, which Sandel argues commits Rawls to a view of people as "unencumbered selves". His opinions are 100% accurate and absoloutely defy the soci-economic, political and moral stance that so many wealthy people detatch themselves from the very reality they selfishly indulge in a fantastical self-appointed universe. 👍👏👍👏👍👏

Thank you.

As with all things, moderation is key. Thinking that everything you own and are is the result of your own merits and nothing else is a mistake. Believing that everyone who made it big is the result of the talents they were born with and luck is a mistake too. People who were very blessed with their upbringing and physical condition will oftentimes lean towards the former, while those who had a rough start to life will lean towards the latter. Both extremes dont solve any problems, but generate a fair share of them in their own way.

The main issue of this statement refers that the salary is not defined by the importance of your job, rather it is unfortunately defined by the law of offer and demand (a basic economical rule that has defined all societies during the entire human history). Therefore, there are no chances to change this distribution only by a philosophical public decision or wish, in special when resources are scarce (despite that we agree that these good wishes sound fair, but they are unfortunately unpractical). That is, there will be always someone that will be able to do the same job by a lower salary when you talk about of a not qualified job that is well paid, i.e., a job that you don't need great skills, therefore, anyone can do it (if you increase the salary you will have a massive demand for that position). In contrast, if you have a company and you decide to duplicate salaries, it is very likely that your company will be not profitable with time and your company will be disappeared with time because of the natural market competition. Unfortunately, the rule that defines the economy does not match with social wishes. We still live in a society that resources are scarce, therefore, the salary is basically defined as the minimum payment that someone will afford to pay you by your services and skills. For example, if humans invent a robot that can cure people better than doctors, there will not demand to pay for human medical treatments. How can you change social behavior just with good wishes?. Everyone agrees that everyone should get a better salary, but the reasonable question is How can you do it?. I agree that the world is absolutely unfair for most people and there is a lot of injustices about wealthy distribution and opportunities. I agree that only a small percentage of the population has real opportunities in life, however, we are in an age of the history that people have more opportunities than in the entire history of humanity. Noting that people that live in developing countries have still lower chances that someone that lives in the USA. How are you going to balance it (with good wishes?). The solution is not only to point the problem out.

Best Ted talk in a long long time! Def of the year! Important, but simple, concise and to the point!

Absolutely profound on every level!!!

Earnings are not the same as winnings .

Thanks Michael. We need trust, more than ever.

Eye-opening.

A lot of what Sandel talks applies so much to India.

Harvard Justice lecture brings me here

One thing to remember, If you win, remember the role of luck and good fortune If you lose, work harder(do what you can with what you have)

Reconcilable with my thoughts

I hope there us more material of this kind to raise the awareness of the people about it

watching your Harvard series and you're becoming one of my favorite people in this planet.

Everyone talks about the importance of a college degree, yet almost no one mentions that not a degrees will provide opportunities. Universities are happy to take the money of those following their dreams. But don't expect there to be high demand in your dream field.

Sense and sensibilities

Michael Sandel, I feel enlightened listening to you, learning from your talks and lectures, and I sometimes wonder, how did such a distinguished professor at an elite university develop such a generous spirit!! Your wisdom ranks way higher than us!! Is it wisdom, or is it your blessed innate character?

Powerful analysis. Merit is for sure a major factor and one should be proud of success, BUT using it as an excuse to just don't take into account the other factors and look down on people who have their struggles in life is for sure one of the roots of today's political conflict. Many people feel unheard and discarded... this whole myth that the poor are simply "lazy" is so low resolution that really makes you wonder if the upper class super-achievers actually dont want to deal with some uncomfortable truths.

Every Heart Has A Pain .. Only The Way Of Expression Is Different .. Some Hide It In Eyes While Some Hide In Their Smile. -The Shades

Great !! You Sir Is the best teacher for new generation thankyou .. God bless you and God bless USA 🇺🇸😇😎♥️

3:33 Dr Sandel There is a particular reason why we say that change is the only constant. It is necessary for every human to upgrade within time. For instance: In India, about 50-60 yrs ago, Stenography or short hand writing was in wide demand. Most people who are in their 70s and 80s in have taken a course it. However, one does not need them now owing to presence of voice recorders now even present in a smartphone. Hence I would like know the reason behind why upgrading within time is being villainized by you. Thank you

I love Michael Sandel. His class on ethics is off the hook!

Thank you Michael. The world needed your talk.

Great thought by a great thinker

Amazing! Thank you, sir!

This talk is great.

Hey I saw him on Rising!!

I love watching ted talks ...

He always had the answers!

Korean medical school students should watch this.

Just found out about this guy through a university assignment and wow! Its great to hear an academic reminding us of the importance of simple human decency at times like these! brilliant.

Great topic and great speaker on the subject! Thank you this video!

This is the truth for our entire world culture today.

Sandel claimed that workers such as sanitation workers ought to be paid more because they are equally as important as a doctor or a ceo but the reason those positions get paid more is bc there are less ppl that r capable of working those professions. It’s supply and demand.

Difference between the intelligent and the wise

Thank you so much my beloved Michael. This is a very necessary work in our times. The ideas that you present are not empathetic or empathy driven in a sense as might be understood, but rather philosophically driven, or I would say philosophically necessary given the flawed principles. What I want to say, is that "Being in others's shoes" is not a form of empathy, but rather a philosophical position that is necessary thus being true (I don't have to discuss the fact value dichotomy here). I am going to read the book, and I am very excited about it.

Very nice talk. Thank you for the reminder to be humble and appreciative of our good luck.

There's a great book on the matter called The Case Against Education (Caplan). The argument is that the reason so many low-skill jobs are requiring college, is due to a something called Credential Inflation. Diplomas are mostly about "signaling", and not really about what you actually learn in University (Courses like Engineering, which have "real" value by the work market for the learned material are the exception, not the rule). Education is already extremely wasteful due to extreme interventions of government on the Education market (such as loans which would never exist in a free market).

Professor sandel is my favorite contemporary philosopher. This is such a heartfelt plee for us as a society to have intelligent socratic debate so as to make progressive changes. Beautifully worded professor.

thank you for making me realized how entitled and privileged i am acting, God bless Sir, more wisdom to impart please if you may.

Great wisdom. 👍

True meritocracy is not a tyranny. It's a fair chance for everybody to contribute. Those who have an issue with it are either those who believe that one group of people is not as capable of contributing as another when given a fair chance (in which case, who's the tyrant now?), or those who just don't want to contribute yet want to be given whatever they desire. Any other talking points one would muster against a meritocracy is simply trying to posit that a real meritocracy does not exist, and that is intrinsically a flaw of the ideology, in which case I would levy the exact same criticism against socialism. How many times have we seen socialism and communism not only fail, but lead to some of the worst human rights atrocities across the globe? And yet you get people still swearing by it by saying things like "well they didn't employ our particular brand, which will totally work". In which case, ditto for meritocracy. Also, as an additional comment, I'd like to say I don't appreciate Ted becoming so overtly political over the last year. I haven't paid much attention to them in my sub feed, but given that I am A) not American; B) not living in America; and C) fairly politically disengaged/independent, I don't see the value in staying subbed to a channel that seems to be little more than a political reactionary to whatever is happening in the States right now. I can't even remember the last time I found a Ted video to actually be genuine, so I look forward to not seeing them clog my subscriptions hereafter.

This man is an extraordinary human. We need nothing but decision makers like him.

Man just an unemployed passout from India. I don't know how we will change this meritocracy and how we will bring the most important value that we are lacking in our current fast paced world of humility, but I can confirm to the fact that his Justice series of Harvard was equal to my enlightening. It is like knowing the secrets of everything that is happening around us. I hope whoever reads this, watch those 10_12 videos. That's the most important thing that has happened in my life

A truly brilliant exposition!

Sensacional!!!!

Very important message for americans. Some european countries already have a similar culture to what is described as necessary in the video, and it does work out well for them.

Amen brother. You are absolutely right

¡Gracias por los subtítulos en español!

Excellent, thank you so very much! Everyone in the U.S. needs this reality check.

You sir, are Absolutely right

I'm a Korean student who studies philosophy in high school. I'm very fascinated by professor Sandel's philosophy. I think he is the most prominent political-philosopher in the world.

Thank you

I love Michael Sandell so much😍😍😍, his words are so pure

A moral perspective into work and labour. Great!!

Inspiring! Thank you for bringing awareness!

Thanks sharing it helps

Humility a virtue indeed