@Archivist @threalist have been wondering for a few years about this now. taleb had a book where he talks about people going "wow the gulags made people strong"

then points out gulags did not make russians strong. gulags ate russians who were weak. its the same as irradiating mice and saying the survivors are strong.

survivorship bias seems to fit a lot of societal issues overall. where the stupid could not physically continue to live (ex. mountainous areas, harsh seasons, etc) there are less stupid people. where stupid people thrive there are tons of stupid people. we now live in a situation where stupid people are able to thrive in exponential quantities.

this is how people of no worth or ability can even hold positions of authority over others.