It may not be common sense, but it's very much ingrained into the American culture. Some examples: 1. In The Three Little Pigs, the two pigs that built houses

It may not be common sense, but it's very much ingrained into the American culture. Some examples: 1. In The Three Little Pigs, the two pigs that built houses out of straw and hay were eaten by the wolf, but the pig that worked hard and built its house out of brick and mortar lived. 2. From 2nd Thessalonians 3:10, "If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat." 3. In the spring of 1609, John Smith cited the aphorism to the colonists of Jamestown: > Countrymen, the long experience of our late miseries I hope is sufficient to persuade everyone to a present correction of himself, And think not that either my pains nor the adventurers' purses will ever maintain you in idleness and sloth... > ...the greater part must be more industrious, or starve... > You must obey this now for a law, that he that will not work shall not eat (except by sickness he be disabled). For the labors of thirty or forty honest and industrious men shall not be consumed to maintain a hundred and fifty idle loiterers. 4. The sheer number of Ayn Rand followers in political office [1] when the aim of Ayn Rand's writing is justify why one ought not give a damn about anyone else (much less the poor). It makes sense for someone in a scarcity economy like John Smith to hold such a viewpoint, because otherwise everyone would starve to death. I lament the fact that even though the US can provide enough housing and food to feed everyone, we do not have the political will to do so. Even though Bertrand Russell was no economist, it seems we have arrived at his most insane dystopia [2] where "half the men are totally idle while half are still overworked" even though we could produce everything anyone ever wanted with a 20-hour work week and everyone working. [1] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/apr/10/new-age-ayn-rand-conquered-trump-white-house-silicon-valley https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/apr/10/new-age-ayn-ra... [2] http://www.zpub.com/notes/idle.html http://www.zpub.com/notes/idle.html