Religiosity in the U.S.

[hoov]

> Certain brits, most notably Tom Nairn, are all too quick to regard the U.S. as
> a product of 18th-century rationalism.  It's much more a product of 16th and
> 17th-century Puritanism.  By the same token, of course, Americans are all too
> quick to overlook the antiquated nature of the British Constitution.
> Dan Lazare.

of course, mainstream historians have produced countless studies attempting
to define the 'American' character...prominent among these are the 'puritan 
thesis' that emphasizes history from the landing at Plymouth Rock to the
Revolutionary War era & stresses the religious and idealistic motivations
of the early settlers (never mind all those folks who ended up here for other
reasons); the 'frontier thesis' stressing the 'winning of the West,' from
the Louisiana Purchase to the end of the 19th century (don't want to call
this imperialism); and the 'melting-pot' thesis that focuses on the millions 
of European immigrants who arrived during the Industrial Revolution seeking 
a 'land of promise' (that one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice
for all thing)...Michael Hoover