"I know of nothing more opposed to revolution than commercial mores. In a constitutional and peaceful democracy...love of wealth directs men principally toward industry. Industry...can prosper only with the aid of very regular habits. It is the very violence of their desires that renders the Americans so methodical. It troubles their souls but arranges their lives."

He shows that in America egalitarian/capitalist society has proved a productive benefit to all. "In America everyone works to live, or has worked, or was born of people who worked. The idea of work as a natural and honest condition of humanity is...offered to the human mind on every side."

He even sees the pitfalls presented by the nanny state. He fears that the American character might succumb to the idea that government can take care of all the minor aspects of people's lives. He points out that this form of government "does not break wills, but it softens them, bends them and directs them; it rarely forces one to act, but it constantly opposes itself to one's acting; it does not tyrannize , it hinders, compromises, enervates, extinguishes, dazes and finally reduces the nation to being nothing more than a herd of timid industrial animals, of which the government is the shepherd."

Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" is must reading for any student of American History, Character, Economics or Politics.

Tocqueville on American Character : Why Tocqueville's Brilliant Exploration of the American Spirit Is As Vital and Important Today As It Was Nearly Two-Hundred Year Ago, by Michael A. Ledeen. This fascinating analysis of Tocqueville's "Democracy in America" illustrates how right Tocqueville was in describing the American character as industrious, stable, independent and bound for greatness. He also warns of pitfalls that could entrap the American nation that we can see laid out for us at present by the prospect of the "Nanny State". This is a fascinating read about a man whose vibrant prose and keen analysis have been so insightful.