[Ancesthntr]

Absolutely correct - as it has been since we won the War of 1812. Lincoln recognized this (I believe that the quote below is from a speech that he gave in the late 1830s):

“From whence shall we expect the approach of danger? Shall some trans-Atlantic military giant step the earth and crush us at a blow? Never. All the armies of Europe and Asia...could not by force take a drink from the Ohio River or make a track on the Blue Ridge in the trial of a thousand years. No, if destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of free men we will live forever or die by suicide.” - Abraham Lincoln

That last line embodies everything discussed in the subject article.

[DiogenesLamp]

Absolutely correct - as it has been since we won the War of 1812. Lincoln recognized this (I believe that the quote below is from a speech that he gave in the late 1830s):

Lincoln was a large factor in the creation of our modern "ruling class."