@Matt! This video by a Yale Alum which I just watched is a terrific insight to how the elites in the US behave and think from an early age, which forms their behavior as older adults. He correctly identifies how ivy league elite universities select their candidates. Unlike other countries its not mainly about the highest intelligence or grades or real learning but demonstrating extremely aggressive ambition to the point of immorality & fanaticism. He attributes his fanaticism as a poor kid as being the key to getting him into Yale. This creates a system where only the top 1% most aggressive people end up attending Ivy league schools and they spend all their energy competing against each other to win the spoils.

His chief insight is that this 'education' is flawed as it trains a class of intellectually hollow bureaucrats and careerists, most of which are borderline or basically sociopaths who will do anything to win.

JD Vance who attended harvard is a typical product of the system..I wondered if he had sex with Thiel to secure his patronage.

I attended one of the top schools but not at the level at Harvard and Yale and remember it being a cutthroat competition and extremely stressful. In retrospect it was not so much about the learning but more similar to the things he says here. The chief insight in this video is that he correctly identifies that this is the opposite of real learning, creativity, and innovation which can provide insight into why US political, military and economic leaders are so mediocre at best and frequently terrible. Their skill is to advance in their careers at all cost even if they burn down the assets that they are given. And why so many of them are complete sociopaths like Trump who are only concerned with 'perception' of winning.

Basically America has created an Indian caste system with all the same problems at they have.