I agree. It's a systems effect. I see this phenomenon manifest in other areas of life too.
Whenever you have a good system with average actors vs a bad system with some outstanding actors, the former usually wins in the long run. Good systems scale better and are more sustainable.
In the traffic case, the average skill of the drivers in Brazil is arguably higher than in America (they can maneuver into spots that Americans won't even try to, and drive at much shorter braking distances without getting into accidents), but the traffic fatality rate there is also a lot higher.
I've also noticed this in the corporate world. Big companies with good management but average employees tend to stick around for a long time (I won't name names, but a lot of people who work at big companies are decidedly mediocre).
Companies with bad management but better-than-average employees tend to get into a lot of trouble. (cf. Uber)
You want to have good systems and good actors, but when it is only possible to choose one, choosing the good system usually works well.
Whenever you have a good system with average actors vs a bad system with some outstanding actors, the former usually wins in the long run. Good systems scale better and are more sustainable.
In the traffic case, the average skill of the drivers in Brazil is arguably higher than in America (they can maneuver into spots that Americans won't even try to, and drive at much shorter braking distances without getting into accidents), but the traffic fatality rate there is also a lot higher.
I've also noticed this in the corporate world. Big companies with good management but average employees tend to stick around for a long time (I won't name names, but a lot of people who work at big companies are decidedly mediocre).
Companies with bad management but better-than-average employees tend to get into a lot of trouble. (cf. Uber)
You want to have good systems and good actors, but when it is only possible to choose one, choosing the good system usually works well.