On Feb 4, 2009, at 9:05 PM, db wrote:
Opportunity has been HUGE in the US historically... both for the country and individuals ... unlike Europe and other parts of the world who have experienced true widespread hardship more recently than 1929.
And a principle enabler of that opportunity was a people unshackled by restraining government and class structures, free to make the most those opportunities through hard work.
Because of that, I think Americans generally have come to take personal opportunity, accessible services and infrastructure support for granted and don't credit its critical value and importance.
Personal opportunity, yes. The later two, I am not so sure of. Many Americans have long coupled personal opportunity with personal responsibility - they were responsible for making their success, government could not do it for them. Until very recently in our history few Americans would assume that if they failed at something government would back them up.
If we do without and struggle hard for a period now, I suspect American's general appreciation for what government can and does do ... despite its imperfections... will rise.
Perhaps, or merely our dependence on government to do what we used to do through other means. ISTR reading recently that studies showed that conservatism and liberalism aligned very closely with a persons general attitude toward life and success - those who thought it possible to succeed if only you worked hard enough were conservatives, those who thought their success in life was determined chiefly by their birth were liberals.
Now that free marketeers, in successfully freeing themselves from governance/ oversight, have severely trashed our collective wealth and opportunity, the mood and opinion about government is already changing dramatically.
This assertion of cause is laughable - we are more regulated in more areas than at any point in our history. The federal register of rules and regulations just keeps growing.
If the economy continues to worsen, I think American's attitude about the need for good government will more closely align with the rest of the world who are more acutely aware of government as being essential and more helpful than not.
Sadly, you might be correct as to the attitude shift favoring government, and too our detriment.
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