I'm rather wary of culturally based strengths. They DO exist. For example, being a good students is like being a star quarterback in the US. There simply isn't

I'm rather wary of culturally based strengths. They DO exist. For example, being a good students is like being a star quarterback in the US. There simply isn't a way for US culture to have better academic performance with just this one cultural difference. I'm wary because I think culture as a whole exists only to stabilize social stratification. Under normal circumstances layers will naturally mix, but if the mobility channels are clearly specified, you have order. In the US this is the mythos if hard work, in many Asian cultures there are establish systems based around tests. Indian and European systems had no mobility, being caste and nobility based. Hard layers eventually lead to revolt, but soft layers didn't cordone wealth. Soft layers with prescribed channels are more stable. So the existing channels are actually purposely inefficient and mostly stupid. Entrepreneuship for example used to be forced. It was what you must do when given too much freedom. It was freedom in the sense of far too much, being ostracized in the desert. Technology though provides the tools to survive in excess freedom. The desert can become a plain, once you have your endless water supply and teleporter that is. The side effect is that these tools eat culture. It doesn't destroy the bike, but invents the car. Culture becomes a weekend thing. Cultural praising often reminds me of hipster-ish praising of things like traditional razors and single gear fixies. People going backwards while claiming to be going forwards.