The psyche of mainstream America is slowly starting to grasp what grumpy leftists have long argued: Extreme wealth does a number on people's grasp on reality.
For decades, the dominant narrative about the rich, especially the billionaire class, was that they really are better than us: Smarter, more talented, and, in the case of tech billionaires, equipped with prognostication powers so profound they are indistinguishable from magic. Medieval people had the "divine right of kings." Modern people have the "must be brilliant to be that rich" fallacy. As I wrote late last year, it does seem lately, however, the idea that money equals merit has finally started to falter in the public imagination. The myth of the superior intelligence of rich people has taken a beating from the repeated public stupidity of people like Tesla CEO Elon Musk or illiterate reality TV host Donald Trump. Even Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who coasted as one of the "good ones," took a public faceplant by blowing up his marriage as idiotically as possible.
