>My point was to question the need for abstract concepts, like capitalism,
I didn't invoke it as an abstract comment, but as shorthand, which is often how words are used, no? In this case, I meant that there are few institutions in the US that act to counter the prevailing structures of competitive individualism - unions, a welfare state, etc. - and few viable anticapitalist ideologies for people to draw on. Consequently, the "common sense" of many Americans is very market-friendly - and their daily experience teaches them little else. A partial exception is the church, but lots of American Protestantism is quite down with competitive individualism.
Doug