The name "America" used to have a powerful name to it. People once associated it with Edison, Rockefeller, Carnegie, and many others who contributed to this idea of American Exceptionalism. We used to be, "A City Upon a Hill" as a good man, who went by the name of John Winthrop once said. Although his spelling may be a little odd, his phrase was, nonetheless, upheld by the greatness of America.
Thomas Edison, one of the leading inventors in America, shed light and made the city upon a hill really glow. Pun intended. His famous invention, the lightbulb, took him 10,000 tries to perfect. Today, we take this man's 10,000 tries for granted. Not only did Edison's achievement pave the way for modern electrical lights and appliances, but we gave 3/4 of the world, working electricity. Street lights, lamps, store signs, even flashlights are all modern reincarnations of the light bulb. Without his perseverance, the world may still be relying on wax and candles for a form of light. Therefore, in a sense, America's discovery of light, illuminated other nations in the world. America set an example of the what society could achieve through determination, and through each nation's adherence and adoption of America's (Edison's) great invention, America had permeated through their country and in turn, became an exceptional and respected country.
As industrialization and modernization became a reality, two of America's leading business men also showed how they could make America exceptional. Arguably, two of the men who built America, Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller, were prime examples who showcased how America could "dominate" the world.
Carnegie was a man who had only a few years of schooling and achieved his wealth from a frugal earning at a cotton factory. He later held several jobs and succeeded his railroad boss, allowing him to invest in other iron companies. Wait, wait, wait. Does his background sound familiar? Well it should because it highlights the essence of The American Dream. This dream was what led people to America; it was what made America and idealistic country to live in. But back to Carnegie we go. When he later created his Carnegie Steel Company, it was almost immediately sold, making him and America a whole lot richer. Carnegie was left with $480 billion dollars and America was left with the world's first billion dollar corporation. I repeat, THE WORLD'S FIRST BILLION DOLLAR CORP. Do you know much that amount of money was back then? Just exceptional huh? No other country had accumulated this big of a foothold on just one sector of the expanding industrial world. And this wasn't just a one time company at all. We use steel today for a variety of infrastructures and appliance. Whether it be railways, buildings, bridges, cars, steel is still a demand for this world.
On a whole other business spectrum, John D. Rockefeller has his fair share of riches as he showed America and the world how he could dominate and control using his oil company. Similar to Carnegie, Rockefeller started small, with a job as an office clerk. He too was carried The American Dream with him. He and his partner later began to tap into the newly, growing oil business. Through investments, and borrowing, Rockefeller was able to buy out many of his competitors and control roughly 90% of America's oil. 90%! What company can you think of today that controls 90% of a share of something? This was probably the most unnatural monopoly anyone has ever seen. Not only did America have to stop this type of behavior through the Sherman Anti Trust Act, but Rockefeller set a precedent for the world to follow. Of course, today, business around the world find it difficult, almost impossible, to form a monopoly, much less control 90% of a share in an industry. It was Carnegie's idea and vision that he created through the investment in oil reserves which proved to be so great. Look at today. People around the world are extreme users of oil. Cars consume huge amounts of oil every year along with machines and factories used to manufacture these cars and many other products. Today, we see Carnegie's actions reflected in the other countries. In fact, the mining of other oil reserves are dominated by foreign countries, most notably in Venezuela and Saudi Arabia.
The world did not go unnoticed. In fact, many of today's businesses in steel and oil are not dominated by America. Why? Well, it's because other countries, learned, adapted, and used some of America's greatest industrialists ideas and plans to benefit their own. If this was not a good reason to see America upon a hill, and follow America's examples, then I do not know is.
Sources:
Carnegie: http://www.history.com/topics/andrew-carnegie
Rockefeller: http://www.history.com/topics/john-d-rockefeller
Edison: http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/thomas-edison
