In reverse...
The carrot is fine. That's actually hard-coded into our genetics, else we'd just lay around eating, pooping and waiting to die.
I'm not gonna suggest that it's binary, but there's definitely part of me that doesn't that "we are being used and held back with the divisive talking points", because if we're so dumb that we're basically falling for every shiny Nigerian Prince scam out there, then maybe we deserve it.
I couldn't say what the bulk of the circumstances are being the rise in millionaires, but I do know that the envious side of me would prefer to believe it's windfall related. I think tech fanaticism in nonsense industries plays a role.