Supply and demand, just like capitalism. Naturally... these are all private institutions we've been talking about, are they not? As such, are they not allowed to make whatever business decisions they choose? And if so, why is The American Conservative decrying the lack of meritocracy in these choices? Do they suddenly have a problem with capitalism?
You are not even taking this seriously. Are you suggesting that the admissions people are taking bribes?
The point you are missing is that the Ivies hold themselves up as the elite, yet their admissions decisions discriminate against the academic elite on a large and systematic scale. This is undeniable. This is also very dishonest.
While they may be private schools, they do take in a lot of public money - both in terms of student grants and research funding. As such they are subject to Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Education Act of 1972 provisions.
My gut feeling on the numbers is that they are probably open to A Title IX suit for the female academic elite part. The skew is just so large. Or they went the other way and now face a Race-based suit.
Keep in mind that I am left of center on most things.
