The Puritan work ethic of the time is still very evident
today. Puritans in 17th century Salem believed hard work kept the devil away. In the
modern day, Americans work more hours per week and take less vacation than almost any
other society on Earth.
The Puritans were fundamentalists
on the Bible and Christianity. While there is no organized Puritan Church these days,
there are many variants of fundamentalist Biblical Christianity, and the country on the
whole is still quite religious.
One could also argue our
society is still very reactive to fear, and are willing to ignore civil liberties and
legal rights in exchange for at least the perception of security. In Salem, they were
willing to sell out innocent friends to save their own skins. Today, Americans are
willing to give up the free speech and association rights of their countrymen in order
to apprehend terrorists.
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