I agree with you as well, and I think the significance of the historical ideal of the Puritan (very Calvinistic) Pilgrims has had a HUGE impact on the US. Even more so than the Puritans, many of the revolutionaries were Calvinist, and the economic philosophy of the US reflects that.
Of course, the fun of having a Calvinist philosophy is that you get to say, one way or another, who's deserving. If someone is immoral and poor, well, then, their immorality is the reason that they're poor. If they're immoral and rich (especially if they have second- or higher-generation wealth), then the wealth and luxury they didn't have to work for corrupted them. And you get to decide what moral compass to use for deciding on their level of corruption. I think just about every offical policy and unofficial "societal norm" in the US has many roots in this.
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Date: 2006-08-08 05:05 am (UTC)Of course, the fun of having a Calvinist philosophy is that you get to say, one way or another, who's deserving. If someone is immoral and poor, well, then, their immorality is the reason that they're poor. If they're immoral and rich (especially if they have second- or higher-generation wealth), then the wealth and luxury they didn't have to work for corrupted them. And you get to decide what moral compass to use for deciding on their level of corruption.
I think just about every offical policy and unofficial "societal norm" in the US has many roots in this.