the.com/privilege
the tailwind you never feel until you turn around and walk into it.
means An unearned advantage, right, or immunity granted to a particular person or group, often invisible to those who hold it.
from From Latin privilegium, literally a 'private law' — privus ('private, one's own') plus lex, legis ('law'). It originally meant a law made for or against a single individual, a rule bending around one person. It entered English through Old French as privilege, carrying that same sense of a special exemption handed to the few rather than the many.
- latin roots
- means private law, a rule for one person
- invisible weight
- easiest to spot when you suddenly lose it
- writs of privilege
- once legally shielded lords from arrest
- parliament
- members can defame freely inside the chamber
- self-blindness
- those holding most often see it least
for instance
harvard legacy admissions — children of alumni receive 45% acceptance rate vs 3.2% general rate (2023)
swiss bank secrecy laws — allowed wealthy clients to hide assets until reforms began in 2009