Meritocracy came to America in a big way starting in the 1950's, propelled by factors such as the space race and the discrediting of racism. It was a good idea. The unforeseen consequence of it was that it displaced the idea that wealth and power gave some additional responsibility to the wealthy and powerful to sustain the fairness of the social contract. When Americans adopted the concept that society ought to reward work of great merit, cause and effect were conflated and those of great wealth and great power were largely liberated from taboos against excessive exploitation, solipsism and hedonism.