blog post

The first main point that I find in David Brooks' "The Triumph of Hope over Self -Interest" is Americans don't want to distribute more wealth down to themselves. Sentences like "The Democrats couldn't even persuade people to oppose the repeal of the estate tax, which is explicitly for the mega-upper class.", and "Every few years the Republicans propose a tax cut,...And yet every few years a Republican plan wend its way through the legislative process and, with some trims and amendments, passes." The second main point that I find is people vote their aspirations. The sentences "They have always had a sense that opportunities lie just over the horizon, in the next valley, with the next job or the next big thing. None of us are poor, we're just pre-rich.", supports this main idea. The third main point that I find is income resentment is not a strong emotion in much of America. The sentence "But if you are a middle-class person in most of America, you are not brought into incessant contact with things you can't afford." supports this third main point. Also the sentences "Moreover, it would be socially unacceptable for you to pull up to church in a Jaguar or to hire a caterer for your dinner party anyway. So you are not plagued by a nagging feeling of doing without." support it. The fourth main point that I find is many Americans admire the rich. "I'm writing this from Nashville, where one of the richest families, the Frists, is hugely admired for its entrepreneurial skill and community service.", supports the fourth main point. And "People don't want to tax the Frists- they want to elect them to the Senate." also supports the main point. Americans resent social inequality more than income inequality is the fifth main point that I find in the text. Sentences like, "...middle-class journalists and academics who seem to look down on mega churches, suburbia, and hunters are resented.", and " Americans see the tax debate as being waged between the economic elite, led by President Bush, and the cultural elite, led by Barbra Streisand, and they are going to side with Mr. Bush, who could come to any suburban barbershop and fit right in." support the fifth main topic. The last main topic that I find is most Americans do not have Marxian categories in their heads. "Americans do not see society as a layer cake, with rich on top, the middle class beneath them and the working class and underclass at the bottom." supports the last paragraph's main point. "They see society as a high school cafeteria, with their community at one table and other communities at other tables" also supports this main point.