Americans, especially those who've led a relatively charmed life, have a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" mentality. The idea of the rugged, cowboy indivi

Americans, especially those who've led a relatively charmed life, have a "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" mentality. The idea of the rugged, cowboy individualist succeeding all on their own through sheer force of will is a deeply ingrained part of our culture. Many would scoff if you tried telling them that they're already deeply interdependent with others to live the lifestyles they lead, for things like the clothes on their back, the food on their table, etc. A person with this kind of mentality who sees homelessness and drug addiction on the street is unlikely to be sympathetic about what brought someone to that state of affairs, or take action to help fix the issue.