Either not subjugated to our evolutionary objectives is merely a rebel without a cause.
Well, a meritocracy we portray to have today, not subjugated to our evolutionary objectives, merely yields a very narrow vile-maxim of riches as the standard deviation of merit. Hence, a meritocracy not subjugated to our collective interests is just as bad as a democracy ignoring the same. Pick your poison.
The way to secure a meritocracy is to align human merit to our collective evolutionary objectives. Merit subjugated to the freedom of freedom to ensure a continual renewal of the real contribution to our evolutionary objectives aligned with our ever-changing equilibrium with nature.
Once we establish such evolutionary goalposts, a meritocracy of ever-expanding inequality will be much better than the stifling regurgitation of equality derived from the groupthink of a democracy.