Often, when I purchase my steak and the fixings, I can’t help but marvel at what put this succulent slab of American beef in the grocer’s butcher case. After the farmer raised the animal, a highly sophisticated network of processors, distributors, truck drivers, and store associates made sure my ribeye was available for purchase. America’s consumption privilege is the envy of the world because innovation has created the systems that provide even our most trivial desires, almost on demand.
Innovation begets innovation and Americans are accustomed to having everything at our fingertips due to our remarkable history and free market values. A century ago, Henry Ford transformed access to personal transportation with his famed assembly lines and, more importantly, the efficiencies of vertical integration. The ability to control his own supply of steel and electricity enabled Ford to mass produce an affordable automobile for everyman that would spark America’s famed car culture.
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