I will add some of my own anecdotal evidence to your anecdotal evidence. I have yet to meet a single person in life that has admitted they they had it easier or an advantage. I've always believed that was because for the most part everyone works hard, some just get larger rewards for that hard work.

I can tell you growing up from a small high school without any prestige there was very much a hard cap on how many students from our school a Harvard(or other top institutions) would except. To the point where top students would bargain with each other about which schools to apply to so they didn't steal someone else's acceptance offer on a 3rd choice etc.

Secondly, the tech world has been a glaring example of while one can use Harvard's selections as a signal to find talent, there are many, many, many exceptions to that rule. And your comments are quite sad to read in light of that new information.