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I'm not saying this haphazardly, this is a genuine thought - maybe it's not having a nice car that lets you drive aggressively, but the other way around, unethical behavior yields nicer cars.

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I would guess (of course this is just an observation, no real evidence) that both scenarios are plausible, and there is actually a feedback loop between them. Roughly:

Superiority complex -> unethical behavior economically -> economic superiority -> increased sense of superiority -> unethical behavior in general -> ad infinitum

The rich tend to come from rich families, and it's likely that they model their ethics and behavior on their parents, who may have gotten to where they are through a disregard for ethics.

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