Inequality is intensely tied to social mobility. Check out the Great Gatsby Curve or this talk on snowball inequality. The common sense way to think of it is that as the rich entrench themselves further and further apart from the rest of us, it becomes harder and harder to jump the gap, the rich stay rich, the poor stay poor and we move from meritocracy to aristocracy.
I would say we have already reestablished a de facto aristocracy.
The richest live like kings. Actually they enjoy a level of luxury that even the richest kings of old couldn't possibly have imagined. They basically live like gods, with virtually unchecked power, influence and wealth.
It is possibly the most lavish private home in the world, and it overlooks the absolutely crushing poverty of Mumbai's worst slums. The sheer level of cognitive dissonance is mindboggling.
I basically agree, Gregory Clark is an economic historian and he's published some stuff which suggests that advantages last for something like 10-15 generations which is absolutely mind-blowing. Check out that voicerepublic link, it has a take on inequality/meritocracy which is different from the usual attacks on meritocracy but I think a lot stronger, it at least gave me a lot to think about.
The word meritocracy was invented as a sarcr term to describe aristocracy wearing false dressing of equal opportunity.
That's why people clamoring for "meritocracy" today are
looked down upon for their self-unawareness.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Gatsby_curve
https://voicerepublic.com/talks/snowball-inequality-meritocr...