Michael Sandel: This is how the tyranny of meritocracy operates.

Michael Sandel: But this fiercely competitive society is harmful even to those who succeed. It prevents the winners from gaining the true purpose of education—things like inquiry, growth, and the cultivation of civic virtue and responsibility. Ultimately, it makes successful people see education only as a means to achieve status, better careers, and money. This is how I say the tyranny of meritocracy operates. It functions as oppression not only for those who fail in the competition but also for those who succeed. ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ

It’s so damn hard to do what everyone knows we should be doing. I saw an interview with Michael Sandel, a professor of political philosophy at Harvard, about 'The Tyranny of Merit' and 'The Crooked Timber of Equality,' and even there, he talked about things everyone knows but either won't or can't do. Let’s actually do the things we all know we need to do.

Reporter Hong Sa-hoon, scholar Joan Williams, and the Saturday Debate with Jung Jun-hee—when they covered the topic of young Korean men becoming far-right, they all said the same thing: "There is a huge income gap even within the younger generation right now." Reporter Hong Sa-hoon keeps stressing the point that 'we must acknowledge and reward the value of sweat, the value of labor.' Michael Sandel says the same thing across his successive books. Economic, political, and cultural solutions are not separate. We need to acknowledge the value of sweat, both monetarily and through social recognition.

1. No matter what kind of blue-collar labor job you do, it needs to be acknowledged as contributing to dignity and the common good, and young people must be able to willingly choose it for a living. It needs to be at a level where you can actually make a living. Only then will career paths diversify and anger decrease. We also need equal pay for equal work between permanent and non-regular employees. Michael Sandel consistently argues this in interviews and his book *The Tyranny of Merit*: We need <Respect for labor, and improvement in unequal distribution>. ▷ Michael Sandel: Of course, we should have invested more in welfare, social safety nets, health, welfare, education, and housing. However, the reason these authoritarian far-right politicians are gaining ground is not *just* because of insufficient investment in social welfare. The most crucial thing is that over the past few decades, market-driven globalization has continuously widened the gap between winners and losers. As a result, unequal distribution worsened, and proper investment in social welfare failed to materialize. In this situation, the losers began to feel that their labor was not respected. Therefore, non-college-educated workers started to feel that the elites were ignoring them, failing to properly acknowledge and respect their contribution to the common good. I believe that this gap at the bottom ultimately created the political gap, which is the cause of the far-right gaining power. That’s why younger men, in particular, follow these authoritarian far-right politicians, especially far-right authoritarians like Donald Trump—because it gave them a chance to vent the accumulated rage and humiliation they felt from being ignored until now, and because politicians who exploit these feelings appeared. To solve this problem, we must restore the dignity of labor. (25.12.09 Full interview transcript, *Kyeomson-eun Himdeulda News Factory*).

2. Sandel also emphasizes the importance of various social strata creating solidarity toward the common good through discussion, building civic consciousness. Sandel says the media's role is critical and that these discussions must happen in education up through college. An EBS teacher offers a concrete, good example of this through classroom discussion in an elementary school.

3. Sandel names public facilities as one of the cornerstones supporting democracy. Spaces, opportunities, and facilities where various social classes mix together are fundamental to supporting democracy. He notes that these groups are increasingly separated in education, shopping, transportation, and leisure spaces, so they never mix. Yet, the far-right actively cuts investment in precisely these public facilities. Public facilities are vital, as shown by the example of an entertainment PD and writer who said they greatly benefited from "the public library near home, even though I was born in a poor household." Michael Sandel: (The first step to resolving polarization is) to rebuild the 'civil society infrastructure' that supports the democratic life of the community. I mean establishing common spaces such as public places like city halls, parks where citizens gather, public libraries, public cultural centers, public transportation, and public schools where both the wealthy and the working class want to send their children. In other words, rebuilding public assets is the first step. The role of the media and civil society is also important (they must act as and create a venue for meaningful and respectful debate). We need more public forums for discussion.

Related posts: ● The argument that diversity inclusion/PC culture/refugee acceptance fueled the far-right seems detached from the Korean situation. ● This is an era where grandpa's economic power ultimately dictates status. ● Jung Jun-hee's Discussion: The 2-year grace period for the tattoo artist bill (regarding Dr. Cho Myung-shin) should be shortened if possible.