Galt's Gulch

What Made America Great?

Posted by straightlinelogic 10 years, 1 month ago to History
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The best answer gets a signed copy of The Golden Pinnacle, which has its own answer to that question. Judging is at the sole discretion of straightlinelogic. Contest runs for a week.

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  • Posted by comyn1066 10 years, 1 month ago
    "Man, the Founding Fathers said in essence (with a large assist from Locke and others), is the rational being; no authority, human or otherwise, can demand blind obedience from such a being — not in the realm of thought or, therefore, in the realm of action either. By his very nature, they said, man must be left free to exercise his reason and then to act accordingly, i.e., by the guidance of his best rational judgment. Because this world is of vital importance, they added, the motive of man's action should be the pursuit of happiness. Because the individual, not a supernatural power, is the creator of wealth, a man should have the right to private property, the right to keep and use or trade his own product. And because man is basically good, they held, there is no need to leash him; there is nothing to fear in setting free a rational animal."
    Religion vs. America
    by Leonard Peikoff | 1986 | The Voice of Reason



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  • Posted by scorpioschild 10 years, 1 month ago
    The Freedom to create. The freedom to work 24/7 to produce what you want to create and to market that item. the freedom to protect ones property and respect others property
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  • Posted by DaveM49 10 years, 1 month ago
    The idea that everything not expressly forbidden was permitted. A complete reversal from the monarchist idea that "everything not expressly permitted is forbidden".

    A sidebar: Ragnar Danneskjold touched on it nicely in his comments about Robin Hood. The original Robin Hood stole back from the rich what they had stolen from others. He did not steal from the rich merely because they were rich or because "that was where the money was".
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  • Posted by khalling 10 years, 1 month ago
    The founding principle of 'I own myself'
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    • Posted by Robbie53024 10 years, 1 month ago
      While there is something to that, for such a long portion of American history, that wasn't the case - slavery.
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      • Posted by khalling 10 years, 1 month ago
        That 's how we knew slavery was wrong. The slaveowners argued against natural rights as the progressives do today and look! We have becone slaves again! Do you own all the product of your labor? Do you feel confident the govt will not take your property?
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        • Posted by Robbie53024 10 years, 1 month ago
          Not at all. That worries me all the time. While physical property isn't my biggest concern, it is my retirement funds that worry me the most. There's too much out there for politicians to overlook to pay the bill for their largesse.
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  • Posted by iroseland 10 years, 1 month ago
    Seems that the best thing is being free to as the question in the first place. My great grandparents left Germany in the early 30s. Back then they were told what made their country great. It was not even up for discussion.
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 1 month ago
    When someone talks about something "unheard-of", "disruptive", or radically deviating from tradition, the average American's first thought is "cool!". People from other places think "Who does he think he is? This sounds dodgy." Everyone makes a real judgement when their hear the facts, but the FIRST American thought about someone trying something new is that maybe it's a positive thing. That attitude is powerful and it colors everything we do.
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    • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 1 month ago
      Those were features of the foundation of America, BUT at the time the notion of any democratic republic form of gov't was a theory from ancient times. They took it, and made it real. In the blink of an eye compared to the time since ancient Greece and Rome, all that stuff you mentioned was condemned.

      You're denigrating something amazingly special. Imagine some people in some distant and difficult-to-reach place set out to solve some major problem of humanity that's seen as a fact of life. Let say they want to abolish the concept of nation states, flags, borders, etc, so everyone can live in peace; something that sounds impossible to you and me. They succeed and create a blueprint that much of the world uses as inspiration. That's amazing stuff. That's what America did.

      You're saying the dark side of America is just the bad stuff and mistakes.

      Just think about your comment on about genocidal slaughter. 200 years later Americans are this mixture of cultures from around the world that is often afraid to criticize anything different. We don't want to be anything like that mistake. When you mention the notion of an industrial society coming into contact with hunter gathers, the FIRST thing we think is avoiding exploitation.

      Why do you think the worst mistakes of Americans history are its foundation?
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        • Posted by dbhalling 10 years, 1 month ago
          That is absurd. According to your argument, all of the Americas (Mexico, Caribbean, Venezuela) would all be rich. Your are not analyzing you are pontificating. The US is the only country in the history of the world based on the idea that you own yourself. That was not only in the Declaration of Independence, but in our common law. The main legal text of the US was Blackstone's commentaries which were animated by Locke's idea that you own yourself.
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        • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 1 month ago
          I like that book, although I don't agree with all its conclusions. Your answer is begging the question, i.e. using what you're trying to prove in the proof. You're saying the worst mistakes of American history are its foundation b/c they are in fact the foundation.
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            • Posted by CircuitGuy 10 years, 1 month ago
              "I know what begging the question means"
              Many other readers might think it means raises the question.
              Regarding genocide, slavery, and tyranny, clearly those things (factors/mistakes) were present in US history. Why do you call them foundational?

              A lot of good came from US, as dbhalling points out. Why call the bad foundational?
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    Posted by barwick11 10 years, 1 month ago
    The Protestant Work Ethic.

    A nation and multiple generations of people who believed that they were put here on this Earth to "be fruitful, multiply, and subdue the earth" to glorify God.
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