Right. I agree mostly. I believe that the US being "the land of opportunity" is more than a euphemism for patriotic babble. Extending it, with a cynical slan

Right. I agree mostly. I believe that the US being "the land of opportunity" is more than a euphemism for patriotic babble. Extending it, with a cynical slant, I think you could almost call it the "land of opportunism". The "equality" spoken of certainly isn't a zero sum game. I don't think that you wind up with US like polarization -- which drives its innovation -- in a more "equal" society. That's why a lot of the European efforts to duplicate a Silicon Valley sort of culture seem to fail. It's just not part of the social fabric. I think it's exactly that sort of zero-to-rich mobility that makes the US attractive for people on both ends of the social spectrum, but is also connected to it lagging behind other developed nations nearer to the median.