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Why Are You Ranking: The Best Ways to Tell that America Is Still the Greatest and Most Moral Country in Human History, Listed from Most Perfect to Perfect

'Making America Great Again' requires knowing why America was so great (and moral) in the first place.

By Skyler SaundersPublished 6 years ago 10 min read
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The 'Stars and Stripes'

What makes New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's statement that “America was never that great” false is not because he said it. As an emotionalist, he fails to realize the beauty and promise and perfection that is America. For him to say that America was never that great is to say that any of his so-called accomplishments must not have been so great, either. It’s because deep down in his corroded soul, he truly believes it. He has no sense of historical figures or the founding documents that, in fact, make this country so great. Furthermore, the notion shouldn’t be that America is great. It should be stated that it was the first and only moral nation based on its founding principles of life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness. This is an original and earth-shattering pronouncement. No other country before the United States of America had ever declared that there are inalienable rights that each individual is recognized, acknowledged, and protected at birth or through citizenship. Though there may have been contradictions and other missteps within the writing of the documents, the idea is that America is a “perfect union” and that it can only get more perfect. But because the fact that the United States was and is currently a mixed economy, it is difficult to ascertain fully the nature of the government of America. What Governor Cuomo occupies is a gun. And that gun of government should be in place to protect citizens from outside barbarians, crooks at home, and to resolve conflicts amongst parties in a rational manner. While the signers of the Declaration of Independence and the architects of the United States Constitution would never witness the abundance of minds committed to technology, law, finance, and industry spring up all over this land, they knew selfishly that they would be creating a better world for themselves and their families. This extends to the present day. With rampant regulations, coercion and controls that hamper businesses and the lives of individual Americans, it is a wonder that any enterprises still see founding, an industry of books, film, music, and television is thriving and places like Silicon Valley burn with an intensity of creativity. So, start making those MAMA hats (Make America Moral Again) and get ready for Why Are You Ranking: the Best Ways to Tell that America is Still the Greatest and Most Moral Country In Human History.

Making up, Stacking up, and Saving Up

The Coins That Built a Nation

The Financial Sector That Helped to Build America

Without the aid of the capitalists, none of the marvels that we enjoy today would be possible. Men like James Piedmont “J.P.” Morgan secured the possibility for Thomas Edison’s electric company to merge with the Thomas-Houston Electric Company and oversaw the foundation of companies such as US Steel and AT&T. Along with Morgan, Thomas Mellon lent his fiscal genius and created Mellon Bank. His real estate holdings and loan to industrialist Henry Frick propelled his standing as a competent man of money. Far from being robber barons, these men and others like them provided the necessary funds for companies and other businessmen to get off of the the ground. If it were not for the bankers and other financiers, inventions, books, baseball, and other values would not be possible. Not only is this a sign of greatness, it points to the ethical nature of the banker, the financier, the industrialist. Men like Morgan and Mellon or their offspring are often cited for their philanthropic work. However, those dollars (neither good nor bad, just peripheral) represent the toil and mental activity of some of the brightest business minds in all of the ages. History shows that these men earned their way and produced massive fortunes based on the content of their minds.

Rank: Most Perfect

A Place to Work

Men and women were freed up to pursue food and leisure.

The Comprehension of Aspects of Work History

The mid to late 19th and early 20th centuries proved to be boon times for the US. During this period, a surfeit of inventions, books, industries, and financial instruments came into fruition. This was a period before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This was a time where if there was a fire or some other calamity, then the owners of the business would install fire sprinklers, fire escapes, and other safety measures. They would also purchase fire insurance to protect them from the damage done to their workers and wares. Gradually, every sector of the economy, which involved workers in close proximity or at risk for experiencing a fire or other disaster, became safer. Without the government bureaucrats to butt their noses into the affairs of private businesses, many companies flourished and did not have to worry about any vicious inspections by federal, state, or local entities. Restaurants and hotels sprung up like fresh daisies and dotted the homeland. People could save up enough money for at least a few nights out of their busy days to enjoy a hot meal and the company of their friends and family. All of this was the result of capitalism. Workers could set aside time for vacation and take their loved ones out on adventures around the country. What government inspectors combed through slabs of meat or denied patrons from eating at certain establishments? Where are all the documents of the companies that sought to poison their customers by serving them strychnine? No records exist because of the profit motive. As a result of restaurants seeking the dollar, they ensured that they possessed the cleanest surfaces, prepared the best foods, and provided outstanding service to keep folks coming back to their places of business. No Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or other bureaucratic busybodies at this time interfered with the orderly flow of exchanging value for value.

Rank: More perfect

America's Bloodiest War to Date

Throughout the rest of the world, relatively, all was peaceful.

The Fact That Wars Had Decreased Worldwide

As war ravaged the North and South of the United States in the mid 19th century, the rest of the world was relatively quiet. Even with the rising tide of statism amongst world governments, America still had the power of reason on her side. This power allowed the advanced, technological North to bring the barnyard version of economics, the South, to its knees. With heroes of that war like Generals Ulysses S. Grant and especially William Tecumseh Sherman, the idea of liberty for all citizens became a flicker and then a flame (especially for parts of the South during Sherman’s famous “March to the Sea”). But in the time after the American Civil War up until World War I, America and the world experienced one of the most liberated and enjoyable periods in all of human history. There existed no major wars over the many lands. Through the power of industry, the nation was able to pick itself up, even in the midst of economic panics and depressions. All of the men who fought in the war sought opportunities in the cities and made those places flourish. African Americans, once marginalized, tasted the sweet waters of freedom for the first time. Their undying will to create for themselves a life not based on mandatory servitude and squalor demonstrates just how lively the American spirit is. In a war that cost the lives of over 600 thousand men, the solemn promise that was built into the Declaration soon found the very people that would benefit the most from those words. Some blacks could vote by 1870. This shift in the powers of the State and individual rights permitted the most affected people to begin to realize their ability to achieve the American Dream. Though, it would not be for nearly a century before blacks received full voting rights, the 19th century provided the foundation for the liberty that is afforded to blacks.

Rank: Getting even more perfect

An Image of a Lady

The Liberty statue greeted millions of immigrants.

Immigration brought in the best potential.

Different corners of the globe saw people yearning to come to America’s shores. Places like Ellis Island, Upper Bay New York processed people from Russia, Sweden, Norway, Ireland, Germany, Poland, Italy, Greece, France, amongst a whole host of other nations. By absorbing all of these individuals, America became more robust. People with little to no education came to this continent and found menial jobs. They figured that they would be able to make enough money to send their children to school and make their family more prosperous. And that happened. Generations down the line have fostered fortunes based on the uneducated, relatively poor ancestors that came from destitute and backward regimes. America was great at this time because it opened its doors to the very people who sought not to receive handouts but to work for their keep. Although some families remained poor over time, the vast majority of immigrants saw their net worth rise with each passing generation. The morality of this is astounding. To take people, some of them from brutal dictatorships, to the land of freedom and opportunity displays the ethical profundity of the United States.

Rank: Getting more perfect

Edison's brainchild changed the world of sound.

Sounds from an Old Phonograph Floating Through the Room

Inventions caused the cost of living to go down and the quality of life to increase.

Edison’s patents for the phonograph, motion picture camera, and long-term electric light bulb, not to mention his power stations, ushered in a wave of better living through science. People could play music with relative ease, capture images of life, illuminate their homes, and possess the capacity to have that electricity run through their appliances. Alexander Graham Bell’s idea for a telephone revolutionized the way that people communicate. Steam engines could make transcontinental travel a reality with the invention of the mechanical lubricator by Elijah McCoy. Eli Whitney’s discovery of the cotton gin made slavery not only an unethical practice but a impractical one as well. This invention illustrated that the brutality of slavery could end. The internal combustion engine put the horse and buggy out of commission. While it had been a time-honored tradition to use a horse to power a carriage, now horsepower in a machine could drive a motor vehicle. The morality behind fossil-fuel driven machines like the internal combustion engine reflects the efficiency of free minds applying reason to solve complex problems.

Rank: Still getting perfect

Miss Stowe's mind transformed the abolitionist movement.

Harriet Beecher Stowe proved that a woman could aid in changing history.

Mark Twain in his famous white suit and with his well-known pipe.

Mark Twain's serio-comic mind has inspired millions.

Authors continued the notion that America is a land of ideas.

Harriet Beecher Stowe is known for, among other tidbits, the phrase “Uncle Tom” from her 1852 opus Uncle Tom’s Cabin. A bestseller, this book enlivened the abolitionist movement and drove readers to take action in the fight against slavery. Even President Abraham Lincoln quipped that Stowe had helped to spark the US Civil War with her writings. Another writer with great might and wit that started conflicts over words existed in the 19th century as well. With such classics as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1875) and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), Samuel Langhorne Clemens would be known to America and the world as Mark Twain. For his mastery of the English language, colorful, fully-imagined tales, Twain stands as one of the foremost giants of American literature. Though not one for maintaining business matters, Twain’s creativity and honesty shines through page after page in his works. Contention over the content of Mr. Twain’s masterpieces still remains to this day. While some would argue that the way that the man wrote in the first place was to hold a mirror up to the current affairs of his day. This is the only proper idealism. To chop up bits and pieces of his book or to “censor” his words only adds to the ugliness of the intentions behind what Twain detested most. But that shouldn’t worry the next buyer of one of his books. For their fantastic scenarios and deft understanding of humanity, Twain ought to be celebrated, not demonized.

Rank: Getting more perfect

"Take me out to the ball game..."

The Classic Game of Runs and Outs

Leisure time and activities like sports started in this period.

The Major League Baseball (MLB) organization began in 1903. During this time, many people had little recreation or diversions to keep their mind at ease yet were still focused enough to know what’s happening. Baseball provided that outlet for athleticism and leisure. Children in America’s streets played stick ball and traded baseball cards. By enjoying their lives after hours of work, the game brought to millions the opportunity to relax and understand the dynamics of the game at the same time. As “America’s Pastime,” the game soon evolved and allowed colored players by the mid twentieth century. Now, over a century old, the MLB continues to be a haven for amusement and entertainment. America's greatness is not lost on this famous game.

Rank: Perfect

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