Why Trump’s Unfiltered Style Taps the Deepest American Instinct
For a nation born in rebellion and built on improvisation, today’s culture of behavioral micromanagement isn’t progress - it’s regression. Trump didn’t break the rules; he reminded us we once lived without them.
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America didn’t begin with rigid rules or behavioral micromanagement. The hyper-formality and sanitized workplaces we see today are relatively recent. To understand this shift, we must trace a path from the rugged, improvisational spirit of early America to the managed behavior of today.
1. Individualism and Informality
Early America thrived on rough individualism and deep suspicion of centralized control. Life on the frontier was improvisational and informal, contrasting sharply with Europe’s rigid class systems. Though religious, early Americans favored decentralized, community-driven morality over top-down enforcement. It was a culture of DIY ethics and informal norms.
2. Bureaucracy and Rationalization
With industrialization came formal systems in schools, factories, and government. Max Weber’s "iron cage" of rationalization emerged: standardized tests, punch cards, and bureaucracy replaced intuitive, flexible practices. German influence helped shape this order, but America’s growing complexity made such systems inevitable.
3. Behavioral Psychology and HR Culture
By mid-century, behavioral psychology and figures like B.F. Skinner influenced classrooms, offices, and parenting. Corporate HR culture emerged, creating unwritten codes for everything from speech to facial expressions. Therapeutic culture followed: emotional regulation and internal monitoring became norms, all designed to fit people into teams and hierarchies.
4. The Post-60s Reaction
The 1960s disrupted American norms, but institutions quickly adapted. From conservative "law and order" to liberal sensitivity training, both sides pushed for behavior control. By the 1990s, schools and workplaces became more procedural and cautious. Even social life, shaped by social media, demanded compliance with invisible rules.
The conclusion is that America wasn’t always this "anal", it became so over time, shaped by institutional needs and cultural overcorrections. What was once improvised and free is now optimized, policed, and branded. Understanding this shift lets us question which behaviors are necessary, and which are symptoms of over-control.
When President Trump talks about the American Dream, perhaps it’s because he is that dream - unleashed. He never succumbs to rigid etiquette or the scolding morals of the modern-day Karen. And maybe that’s exactly what we need to learn from him. Perhaps that’s what “Make America Great Again” really means. Because a land cannot be truly free or brave if it’s constantly told how to behave.