Wait, WHAT???!!!??? Fox News says "Obama's right. Americans can't succeed without government"

[Igel]

25. You see, that's not a helpful assertion.

If they're not self-made then they're other-made. Let's not quibble over the forced choice just yet.

That means they aren't responsible for their success. They have no right to their success. Those who made it, own it. That's us. They're just squatters.

Of course nobody means that. Until you look around, then it's obvious that's just what they mean. If everybody gets roughly equivalent government support and some do a lot better, that "a lot better" is what they mean by "self-made." They did something most others don't. That "something" is crucial. If you both start at the same place, the person who did nothing or little with what they were given, well, that's possibly luck, but usually it's a lot more than luck.

That's what I tell my kids. Yeah, luck happens, but not consistently and unless you're on your game it does nothing for you. When a kid does well in class, I don't pat myself on the back. The kid did the work. Self-congratution is self-condemnatino myself: Why didn't all 30 of them do well?

The other kids try to drag the high-achiever down: "You're just smart! You're lucky! The teacher likes you!" They're justifications for mediocrity: avoiding effort, consequences of choices, and being generally resentful about having to set foot in my room. Yeah, that high achiever didn't do it on her own--but you other 29, you got all the same help. What's your excuse? Bad genetics? Bad luck? I'm out to get you?