this post was submitted on 13 Feb 2025
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Inevitably, all hierarchical organizations end up on the wrong side of history.
In hierarchies, people compete for position.
People with principles, morals, integrity and/or empathy will have choices that they simply will not make.
People without those things are not constrained. They can and will make whatever choices might benefit them, with no regard for the consequences to others.
So all other things being more or less equal, psychopaths actually have a competitive advantage in hierarchies, and hierarchies end up effectively rewarding and thus selecting for psychopathy.
There are some offsetting factors that also prevent the "best and brightest" from rising to power: https://dealbreaker.com/2007/10/icahn-explains-why-are-there-so-many-idiots-running-shit
He moves up the corporate ladder, without a single original idea that might make his boss feel threatened by his potential.
Eventually, he gets to be the #2 guy at the company. He's a little dumber than the C.E.O., but the board likes him, so he eventually gets to be C.E.O.
Of course, he assigns a #2 who is a little dumber than he is. "And eventually, we're going to have all morons running our companies," Icahn concluded. "We might not be that far off from that right now."
That sounds vaguely like The Peter Principal.