But Henwood shoots two well-aimed holes in the argument:
- "[Richard Hofstadter] made the now largely forgotten point that American Protestants have long had a deep sympathy for The Market. Since they see humans as fallen, corrupt creatures always in need of a good kick in the ass, they revere it as a wonderful mechanism of social discipline, punishing the lazy and rewarding the hard-working. If people are poor, it's because they're immoral, impatient, or wasteful.". . .Henwood notes the acceptance of this fantasy explains "why there's been so little political price paid for the economic march back to the 19th century."
[WS:] I'd take exception to this argument. While the American Protestant "Arbeit Macht Frei" may hold in some segments of society, it is far from universal. At the same time, The Market is revered by people who, by the AP standards are "immoral, impatient or wasteful," or worse yet, secular and hedonistic.
I would make that argument rest on a different Hofstadter's notion - "anti-intellectualism." According to Hofstadter, anti-intellectualism is deeply seated in the American populism and its mistrust of "high culture," urbanism and the literati class. This is what really unites a crass billionaire like Donald Trump and a poor hick who "ain't making it" - the hatred of the "liberal/cultural elite" and the love of crass displays of wealth. The love The Market because it sis the mechanism that circumvents and kicks ass of the "liberal/cultural elite" - as evidenced for example by countless folk tales of high school dropouts who made it big.
In fact, the love of The Market is grounded in the antithesis of hard work and diligence - it is the shortcut from rags to riches, the quintessence of the American Dream that bypasses the drudgery of education, the toil of hard work, the burden of moral obligations, and the pomposity of high culture. The Market is more like the lottery - it gives _anyone_ a chance to be on equal footing with the top guy, the preaching and entrapments of "cultural/liberal elite" notwithstanding.
This may explain the popularity of The Market in the lower echelons of society, those who "love their country but cannot pay their bills." They hope that The Market (or lottery winning) will one day put them of the fast track from rags to riches. And they also feel resentful toward "cultural/liberal elites" and see The Market as their chance of getting back at that elite.
Wojtek