Is this a US thing I'm too French to understand?
I'd say likely yes to this. It's much easier to centrally govern a more geographically dense and homogeneous country.
In the US we have strong localized government (city/county, state) and the more sweeping Federal government.
And they do submit to central government, that's exactly what the discussion in this article is about- will the central court decide to strike down their local laws?
I've been a meat eater my whole life, and a well made impossible burger is pretty damn close. There's nothing "not meat-y" about it like I've experienced with beyond meat. I even use it to make my biscuits and gravy now because I can't tell the difference at all in that.
Alternatively, I've met plenty of people who are so desperate to climb the ladder that, even knowing full well their deficiencies, they climb to a level where those deficiencies become detrimental for everyone around them.
If you aren't a good organizer, and climb into an organization centric position, that's 100% on you. If you aren't a good leader and take a coordinating position, that's on you. If you aren't good at lining up blind screws, and you knew that was a core competency for your job when you took it, that's on you. It's not that I expect you to be "smart enough to overcome" whatever you're bad at, but you shouldn't be in positions where something you're bad at, but can't overcome, is a major part of your duties.
At that point, yes, I'm going to be "mean" and directly point out your deficiencies.
Can you tell I had a fun meeting today?
I can visualize this so clearly and it feels like a fever dream