LOL@ the title of your thread.
I'm probably going to lose most people with this story because you won't be interested, but I'm going to tell it anyway.
Awhile ago I had a boss who was the most unethical person you've ever met. She was an amazing liar, seemingly very sincere and was a great manipulator. Not a single person liked working for her. But she came in as a Director in our company and all the executives liked her. And no...she wasn't the least bit attractive...overweight, looked like a clown. So that added to the mystery and the "I just don't get how she got to where she is" head scratcher.
She was incompetent and couldn't execute on tasks, so we couldn't even say, "well at least she's good at her job".
So long story short, she eventually got let go after some ugly illegal billings. Now, there aren't many people I've ever met in my life that I can say I really despised...but I despised her because she was so cruel to everyone.
But a long time ago I learned that everyone, regardless if they're enemies or friends, can teach you something. So instead of picking apart all the things that were wrong with her (and there were MANY), I took an honest look at WHY she made it as high as she did. Lying and ass kissing can only get you so far...but there was more than that.
She had a great ability to make others feel that she cared. She would show geniune (or not, doesn't matter) interest in their hobbies, families, kids, etc. She made them like her, regardless of how incompetent she was. If anyone has ever read the classic book, "How to Win Friends and Influence People", she lived and breathed that book. So what I learned was that you can truly connect with people, without the manipulation factor, and that makes people want to align with you in a positive way. I saw her do it right before my eyes and I let my dislike for her blind me to that very important skill in the business world till I took the time to reflect back.
So my point is, if you find yourself (like the author in this article) wondering why someone made it or won an award and you want to make sweeping dismissals....don't. You're doing yourself a disservice because you're missing out on learning some very powerful lessons.